Livia: Mother of Rome - Caitlin C. Gillespie

Written by Caitlin C. Gillespie
Read by Natalie Naudus
Format: M4B
Bitrate: 128 Kbps
Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 33 mins
Release date: 07-21-26

A bold new portrait of Livia, ancient Rome’s first First Lady, who shaped the empire from behind the throne

Livia was no ordinary Roman woman. As wife of Augustus and mother of Tiberius―the first and second Roman emperors―she stood at the heart of the first imperial dynasty, wielding extraordinary influence in a world that denied women formal power. In this vivid biography, Caitlin C. Gillespie reclaims Livia (59 or 58 BCE–29 CE) from centuries of scandal and rumored villainy, tracing her journey from elite birth and early traumatic exile through her rise to wealth and influence as the matriarch of the imperial household.

Drawing on literary and archaeological sources, Gillespie explores Livia’s inner life through her personal losses, including the death of her son Drusus; her political savvy; and her later life as Julia Augusta, high priestess of Augustus’s divine cult. Though she never held an official political position, Livia emerges as a complex figure whose story of ambition, resilience, and maternal power resonates over millennia, captivating audiences from antiquity through today.