Changes

Despite his disabilities and his scholarly pursuits, Claudius was an aggressive Emperor. He did not heed Augustus advice not to expand the Empire and if possible to rule through client kings. Claudius clearly had a an idea that the Empire should be highly centralised centralized and that direct rule was the best option. This means that he launched a campaign to annex client kingdoms.<ref>Levick, p119</ref>.  In his reign her , he fully incorporated Mauretania, Judea, Noricum , and Thrace into the Empire. This may have been motivated by the fact that these expansion became necessary because areas such as Thrace had become unstable . Claudius was concerned that instability in these regions could intensify and possibly could become a threat to stabilityspread. Claudius deposed many client-kings and imposed direct rule.  This change was sometimes achieved peacefully as in Judea , but at in other times areas military intervention was neededrequired. This Claudius was the case forced to intervene in Thracemilitary to maintain Roman hegemony. In Mauretania, (northern Algeria and Morocco), the Romans had to fight a series of campaigns to conquer that kingdom .<ref> Cassius Dio, <i>History of Rome</i>, LX, 18</ref>.  The absorption of these areas ultimately led them to become Romanized , and they greatly helped to strengthen dramatically strengthened the Empire’s frontiers. Claudius ' most ambitious campaign was the invasion of Britannia (modern England and Wales). It has been speculated that Claudius ordered the ' push invasion in order into Britania may have been an effort to legitimize his rule. However, Britain was not only considered to be a wealthy land and it was believed that it was also providing safe refuge but provided a haven for Gallic rebels .<ref>Suetonius, 38</ref>.  Claudius was no doubt also motivated by the desire for personal glory which was very important essential if Claudius wanted to preserve his reign in Ancient Rome. Perhaps the greatest achievement of Claudius ' tenure as Emperor was the annexation of Britannia, which became a Roman colony for almost 400 years. The British provinces, ultimately helped to strengthen the Empire, in the longer term, its mineral wealth greatly significantly enriched Rome and it . It also provided Rome with many legionnaires for the Imperial army.<ref>Levick, p 189</ref>. Unlike the later conquests of Trajan, the territories secured by Claudius made the Empire more cohesive and ultimately stronger.

Emperor Claudius was not content to simply accept the administration and the government that he inherited. After the misrule of Caligula, the government had been neglected and become corrupt and inefficient. The Emperor decided that the government and he needed to overhaul the bureaucracy needed to be overhauled.  However, he was faced with a problem, the persistent hostility of the Senate meant that he could not appoint members of the traditional elite to the government .<ref> Osgood, Josiah, . <i>Claudius Caesar : image and power in the early Roman Empire </i> (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010), p 78</ref>. Claudius appointed freedmen to the bureaucracy and Imperial government. These men were freed slaves , and they often proved to be highly both competent, if not always and mostly honest administrators. Still, even though their appointment brought Claudius faced stinging criticism from the Senatorial elite.  Claudius reformed the traditional secretariat and established different bureaus that were responsible for aspects of the government; there were bureaus for finance, correspondence , and military affairs .<ref>Osgood, p 145</ref>. These bureaus allowed the Emperor to receive information and to issue edicts and directives. This system was also much more centralized than anything previous and more effective. Claudius despite his often-bizarre behaviour behavior was generally hard-working. He personally oversaw many court cases, but he was an erratic judge , and his interference in legal matters was not always welcome.

As Emperor, Claudius held the position of Pontifex Maximus and had a very important role in Roman state Religion. He was concerned with the growing influence of eastern religions in the capital of the Empire and . In response, he expelled astrologers and tried to reinvigorate the ancient Roman practice of soothsaying. In many ways he saw himself as continuing Augustus efforts to restore the old Roman religion .<ref> Osgood, p. 178</ref>.  Claudius forbade any conversions or proselytizing , but he did allow freedom of worship in most cases. He did actively suppressed suppress druidism, the ancient religion of the Celts because of the druids role in were central to resisting Roman rule in Britannia and Gaul. Claudius apparently had an ambivalent relationship with the Jews, he recognized their rights’, but he also expelled them from Rome, according to some sources .<ref> Osgood, p 167</ref>. In general, Claudius attempted to ensure that religion was a unifying force in the Empire and , but he was intolerant of any faith that threatened public order.

Claudius attempted to foster a good positive relationship with the Senate. He may have sought the support of that body in the early years of his reign. However, it seems that many in of the elite had become Roman elites became disillusioned with the Imperial system and even wanted a return to some form of Republican government .<ref>Osgood, p P. 101</ref>.  There were many several plots and multiple attempts to foster incite rebellions during the Claudius' reign of Claudius. According to Suetonius, the Emperor had some 35 Senators executed for treason during his reign tenure.<ref> Suetonius, <i>Life of Claudius</i>, 29</ref>. This possibly led to  These coups pushed Claudius to favor freedmen, rather than Senators when it came , to administer his government. The Emperor used his position as Censor to purge the rolls of the Senate in an effort ostensibly to reform that body, but he also no doubt sought to place those limit the Senate to members who were loyal to him in the assembly.  One of the most significant reforms of Claudius was his insistence on admitting non-Italians into the Senate. He had several Gaul’s admitted to the senatorial rolls. According to Tacitus , he firmly believed that a pluralist and multicultural Senate was essential for the future of Rome. He believed thought that Rome had to admit those outsiders who were loyal to stay vital and stronghealthy.  According to Tacitus, he Claudius believed that the reason why Sparta and Athens fell because was that they would not admit immigrants and outsiders to a share of power and allowing . Essentially, it allowed provincials to become senators would safeguard and gave them a stake in the Empireand gave them a powerful incentive to safeguard it.<ref>Tacitus, vi, 17</ref>. Claudius prevailed and during and after his reign non-Italians became Senators. His policy, further integrated provincial elites into the Roman system but also over time, which as he predicted it greatly benefitted the Empireas Claudius had predicted.

Claudius was in many ways a strange Emperor. He While he was an unusual character and probably had individual, suffered from some form of disability, moreover, his and a dysfunctional private life was dysfunctional. However, he made a major contribution to the peace, stability and the prosperity of the Roman Empire. He expanded the Empire and strengthened the frontiers and the provinces that he annexed would eventually provide Rome with soldiers, taxes and natural resources.  Claudius did much to centralize both centralized power in Rome and this is as was evident in his administrative reforms and he also helped his efforts to create a more professional and effective Imperial government. His religious reforms sought to preserve Roman traditions and were similar to those initiated by Augustus. However, Claudius was also an innovator and he opened up the Senate to non-Italians and this was very important in securing which secured the loyalty of provincials’ elites and helped to unify the Empire. Overall, Claudius was an effective Emperor.