Tacitus - Annals 14.3

Tacitus - Annals 14.3: Nero Plots the Murder

igitur Nero vitare secretos eius congressus , abscedentem in hortos aut Tusculanum vel Antiatem in agrum laudare quod otium capesseret . postremo , ubicumque haberetur , praegravem ratus interficere constituit , hactenus consultans , veneno an ferro vel qua alia vi . placuit que primo venenum . sed inter epulas principis si daretur , referri ad casum non poterat tali iam Britannici exitio ; et ministros temptare arduum videbatur mulieris usu scelerum adversus insidias intentae ; atque ipsa praesumendo remedia munierat corpus . ferrum et caedes quonam modo occultaretur nemo reperiebat ; et ne quis illi tanto facinori delectus iussa sperneret metuebat . obtulit ingenium Anicetus libertus , classi apud Misenum praefectus et pueritiae Neronis educator ac mutuis odiis Agrippinae invisus . ergo navem posse componi docet cuius pars ipso in mari per artem soluta effunderet ignaram : nihil tam capax fortuitorum quam mare ; et si naufragio intercepta sit , quem adeo iniquum ut sceleri adsignet quod venti et fluctus deliquerint ? additurum principem defunctae templum et aras et cetera ostentandae pietati .

Section 14.3 Translation: Therefore, Nero began to avoid secret meetings with her and praise her when she went away to her gardens or to her estate at Tusculum or at Antium, that she was taking some leisure time. Finally, considering her a thorough nuisance, wherever she was being kept, he decided to kill her, deliberating only as far as whether it should be by poison, the sword or some other violent means. First of all, he decided on poison. But if it were to be given during the emperor's banquet, it could not be attributed to chance, since a similar destruction of Britannicus (had been used) already; also, it seemed difficult to bribe the servants of a woman on her guard against treachery because of her experience in crimes; moreover, she herself had fortified her body by taking antidotes in advance. No one was able to discover how a sword and murder could be concealed; also, he feared that anyone selected for such a great crime as this might disregard instructions. An ingenious plan was offered by the freedman Anicetus, who was in charge of the fleet at Misenum, a tutor to Nero's boyhood, and one who hated Agrippina with mutual hostility. Therefore, he showed them that a boat could be constructed, part of which, skilfully loosened in the sea itself, would cast her out unawares. (He said that) nothing was so capable of accidents as the sea; and if she was carried off by shipwreck, who was so unkind as to attribute to crime, the fault which the winds and waves will have committed? The emperor would bestow upon the dead woman a temple, altars and everything else to show his filial duty.

Passage Analysis

What Happens

Nero moves from psychological distancing to active murder planning. He first avoids his mother and hypocritically praises her absences. Deciding she's "thoroughly burdensome" wherever she goes, he resolves on murder but struggles with method. Poison is rejected—too obvious after Britannicus's recent death, and Agrippina takes antidotes regularly. Assassination is too risky—finding a willing killer and maintaining secrecy seem impossible. Enter Anicetus, a freedman who commands the fleet at Misenum and was Nero's childhood tutor. Exploiting their mutual hatred of Agrippina, he proposes an ingenious solution: a collapsible ship that will make murder look like accident. The sea provides perfect cover—who would blame crime for what waves accomplish? Nero can then play the grieving son with temples and altars.

Key Themes & Ideas

The Perfect Crime: The passage explores the practical logistics of matricide—each method is evaluated for detectability, not morality.
Paranoia and Precaution: Agrippina's defensive measures (antidotes, loyal servants) show she expects attack, creating an arms race of treachery.
Nature as Accomplice: The sea becomes the ideal murder weapon because it provides both means and alibi—natural forces hide human crime.
Performance of Piety: The planned temples and altars show how public grief will mask private guilt—religious display as cover-up.
Freedmen as Agents: Once again, a freedman (Anicetus) enables imperial crime, showing the corrupting influence of former slaves in power.

Tacitean Technique

Euphemistic Language: Murder becomes "interficere" (to kill), death becomes being "intercepta" (carried off), showing linguistic sanitisation of crime.
Tricolon of Methods: "Veneno an ferro vel qua alia vi" presents murder options like a menu, reducing matricide to technical choice.
Ironic Praise: Nero "praises" Agrippina for taking leisure—Tacitus shows hypocrisy through reported speech.
Rhetorical Questions: Anicetus's "who would be so unjust?" manipulates logic to make murder seem reasonable.
Military Language: "Munierat corpus" (fortified her body) makes Agrippina's precautions sound like siege warfare.

Historical Context

The recent poisoning of Britannicus (AD 55) was still fresh—Nero's younger stepbrother had died at dinner, officially from epilepsy but widely believed poisoned. Agrippina's practice of taking antidotes (mithridatism) was common among Roman elites who feared poisoning. Anicetus was a real historical figure, a Greek freedman who commanded the imperial fleet at Misenum (near Naples), giving him both naval expertise and ships. The mutual hatred between Anicetus and Agrippina may stem from her opposition to freedmen's influence. The Tusculan and Antian estates were real imperial properties where Agrippina could live in semi-exile. The promise of temples and altars reflects Roman practice of deifying deceased imperial family members, making the planned hypocrisy especially pointed.

Questions to Consider

How does the methodical evaluation of murder methods reveal Nero's moral vacuum?
What does Agrippina's extensive self-protection suggest about imperial family dynamics?
Why is the sea the perfect murder weapon both practically and symbolically?
How does Anicetus's role as childhood tutor make his suggestion especially perverse?
What does the planned religious commemoration reveal about Roman public vs private morality?
How does Tacitus use technical language to make horror seem bureaucratic?