Nero Claudius Drusus

Drusus was the youngest son of Livia Drusilla from her marriage to Tiberius Claudius Nero, who was legally declared his father before the couple divorced. Drusus was born between mid-March and mid-April 38 BC, three months after Livia married Augustus on 17 January.[5] Gerhard Radke has proposed the date of 28 March as his most likely birthday,[3] while Lindsay Powell interprets Ovid's Fasti as indicating a date of 13 January.[1] Rumors arose that Augustus was the child's real father, although impossible as Livia was already pregnant when she met her future husband, (Emperor Claudius nonetheless encouraged the rumor during his reign to create an impression of more direct lineage from Augustus).

Drusus was raised in Claudius Nero's house with his brother, the future emperor Tiberius, until his legal father's death. The two brothers developed a famously close relationship that would last the rest of their lives. Tiberius named his eldest son after his brother, although eldest sons were usually named after their father or grandfather. Drusus named his second son (future emperor Claudius) after Tiberius.

According to Suetonius, Drusus was originally given the name Decimus as his praenomen, but his full name was later changed to Nero Claudius Drusus. It is not known when or why the change occurred. The names were unusual at the time, both putting heavy emphasis on his maternal ancestry by using Livia's father's cognomen instead of that of her husband; in his original name the use of the praenomen Decimus was also atypical for prevalent families of the late Republic (especially for a patrician);[lower-alpha 1][9] the eventual use of his father's cognomen Nero as a praenomen was highly unconventional as well.[6] His full name given at his Dies lustricus is generally assumed to have been Decimus Claudius Drusus, but some historians such as Andrew Pettinger, Pierre Grimal, T. P. Wiseman, Greg Rowe, Barbara Levick and Eric D. Huntsman believe it may have been Decimus Claudius Nero, Decimus Claudius Nero Drusus or Decimus Claudius Drusus Nero instead.[2][10][11][12][13][14][15]

Livia may have passed down her father's cognomen to her son simply because besides her adoptive brother Marcus Livius Drusus Libo there was no one else to pass it down for the future.[2] In 1988 C. J. Simpson asserted that there are three moments in history where the name change is probable to have happened; when his brother Tiberius was adopted by Marcus Gallius, when their father died in 33 BC, or when he assumed the toga virilis. Simpson personally argued against the time of adoption of his brother as a plausible time for his name change since Simpson believed the event may even have happened before Drusus was born, he also rejected the point of death of their father as likely since it would have probably have brought attention to the circumstances surrounding Livia's divorce and remarriage[9] which had become a part of Mark Antony's propaganda at the time.[16] Simpson stated that in his opinion Livia chose the names Decimus and Drusus for her younger son to minimize association with her ex-husband after she married Octavian due to the former's poor status at the time, but that several years after the man's death it was opportune to emphasize her younger son's connection with his elder brother and that the name change was probably done upon him assuming the toga virilis.[17] Levick believed the adoption of Tiberius necessitated Drusus wearing the name of the Nerones.[18] Simpson responded 1993 in that he believes that Levick's interpretation is incompatible with Suetonius account as he can not accept that Livia and Octavian (once married) would have allowed the adoption of the boy to take place at all, due to Gallius opposition of Octavian. Since Seutonius makes it clear that Tiberius did use Gallius name (although briefly) but dropped it out of respect for his step-father the adoption must have happened before Drusus was born.[19]

Jean Mottershead proposed in her commentary of Suetonius's Divus Claudius that Drusus' praenomen derived from his father's mothers side of the family, possibly the Junii or Laelii as they were the only senatorial families who regularly used the praenomen "Decimus". She also believes that the name change happened when his father died and he moved into Octavian's household.[20] Klaus Scherberich is critical of Mottershead's proposal, he argues that there are no examples of a conservative patrician family like the Claudii Nerones to adopt a completely new praenomen from a maternal ancestor, especially when said gentes were non-patrician. Scherberich is also sceptical of Simpsons explanation.[8]

Lindsay Powell has believes that Drusus personally (despite his young age) may have changed his name directly after his father's death to preserve and honor his memory. In her opinion another motivation for the boy may have been the meaning of the name Nero, which in ancient Sabine (the language of the people which the Claudii descended from) meant "strong" or "valiant", a fitting name for a boy from such a distinguished clan.[21]

Map of Drusus' campaigns against the Germanic tribes, 12-9 BC

Starting in 14 BC, Drusus built a string of military bases along the Rhine—fifty according to Florus—and established an alliance with the Batavi in preparation for military action in Germania Libera.[31] He is likely to have had seven legions under his command.[32] In spring of 12 BC, he embarked an expeditionary force, perhaps consisting of the Legiones I Germanica and V Alaudae, by ship from the vicinity of modern Nijmegen, making use of one or more canals he had built for the purpose.[33] Drusus sailed to the mouth of the Ems and penetrated into the territory of the Chauci in present-day Lower Saxony.[34] The Chauci concluded a treaty acknowledging Roman supremacy, and would remain allies of Rome for years to come.[35] As they continued to ascend the Ems, the Romans were attacked by the Bructeri in boats.[36] Drusus' forces defeated the Bructeri, but, as it was now late in the campaign season, turned back for their winter quarters in Gaul, taking advantage of their new alliance with the Frisii to navigate through the difficult conditions on the North Sea.[37]

As a reward for the successes of his campaign in 12 BC, Drusus was made praetor urbanus for 11 BC when he returned to Rome for the winter.[37] News of Drusus' achievements—navigating the North Sea, carrying the Roman eagles into new territory, and fixing new peoples into treaty relations with Rome—caused considerable excitement in Rome and were commemorated on coins.[37]

In the spring of his term as praetor urbanus, he set out for the German border once more. This time, he assembled a force consisting of all or part of five legions in addition to auxiliaries and, setting out from Vetera on the Rhine, ascended the River Lippe. Here he encountered the Tencteri and Usipetes, whom he defeated in two separate engagements.[38] He reached the Werra Valley before deciding to turn back for the season, as winter was coming on, supplies were dwindling, and the omens were unfavorable.[39] While his forces were making their way back through the territory of the Cherusci, the latter tribe laid an ambush for them at Arbalo.[40] The Cherusci failed to capitalize on their initial advantage, whereupon the Romans broke through their lines, defeated the Germanic attackers, and acclaimed Drusus as imperator.[40] To show his continued mastery of the ground, Drusus garrisoned a number of positions within Germania during the winter of 11–10 BC, including one somewhere in Hesse[41] and one in Cheruscan territory, probably either the camp at Haltern or that at Bergkamen-Oberaden,[42] both in present-day North Rhine–Westphalia.

He rejoined his wife Antonia and two children for a time in Lugdunum before the family returned to Rome, where Drusus reported to Augustus.[41] Drusus was given the honor of an ovation, and for the second time, Augustus closed the doors of the Temple of Janus, signifying that the whole Roman world was then at peace.[43] Drusus was granted the office of proconsul for the following year. In 10 BC, the Chatti joined with the Sicambri and attacked Drusus' camp, but they were driven back. Drusus pursued them, proceeding from the sites of present-day Mainz and Rödgen, where he set up a base of supply, to Hedemünden, where a strong new camp was established.[44] Around this time, the canny Marcomannic king Maroboduus responded to the Roman incursion by relocating his people en masse to Bohemia.[45] In summer of 10 BC, Drusus left the field in order to return to Lugdunum, where he inaugurated the sanctuary of the Three Gaulish provinces at Condate on 1 August.[46] Augustus and Tiberius were in Lugdunum for this occasion (when Drusus' youngest son Claudius was born), and afterwards Drusus accompanied them back to Rome.[30]

Drusus easily won election as consul for the year 9 BC.[47] Once more he left the city before assuming office. His consulship conferred the chance for Drusus to attain Rome's highest and rarest military honor, the spolia opima, or spoils of an enemy chieftain slain personally by an opposing Roman general who was fighting (as consuls did) under his own auspices.[48] He quickly returned to the field, stopping to confer with his staff at Lugdunum and to dedicate a temple to Caesar Augustus at Andemantunnum, before rejoining his command at Mainz, from which the year's expedition departed in early spring.[49] Drusus led the army via Rödgen through the territories of the Marsi and Cherusci until he even crossed the river Elbe.[50] Here he is said to have seen an apparition of a Germanic woman who warned him against proceeding farther and that his death was near. Drusus turned back,[51] erecting a trophy to commemorate his reaching the Elbe, perhaps on the site of Dresden or Magdeburg.[52]

Drusus had sought out multiple Germanic (at least three) chieftains during his campaigns in Germany (12 BC–9 BC), engaging them in "dazzling displays of single combat".[45] The sources are ambiguous, but suggest that he could have potentially taken the spolia opima from a Germanic king, thus becoming the fourth and final Roman to gain this honor.[53] Regardless of whether he was actually able to take them in combat, however, Drusus' untimely death would prevent him from ever going through with the official ceremony. Notably, after Drusus' death, Augustus deposited the laurels from his fasces not in the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus as he had done in the past, but in the Temple of Jupiter Feretrius. J.W. Rich suggests that this action was done as an affirmation to Drusus' memory; had the young commander lived, he would have placed spolia opima in the temple himself.[54]