On charges of adultery, Emperor Nero announced today that he is divorcing and banishing Empress Octavia. The couple have been married for nine years, but Octavia has failed to produce heirs to the throne and Nero has fallen in love with another woman, Poppaea Sabina.
Claims of Octavia's infidelity are almost certainly untrue, as even under torture, Octavia's maids have remained adamant that the Empress is innocent.
Claims of Octavia's infidelity are almost certainly untrue, as even under torture, Octavia's maids have remained adamant that the Empress is innocent.
It appears that Nero intends to send Octavia to Campania and keep her under lock and key, but the Roman citizens are not pleased by this. This divorce, which was almost certainly brought about to allow Nero to marry his mistress Poppaea Sabina, has brought about riots in the streets by citizens carrying flower-wreathed statues of the former Empress.
