Agrippina (opera) "moments of splendour when Handel applies the full "concerto grosso" treatment." "Agrippina", Handel's second Italian opera, was probably his last composition in Italy. On hearing that her husband, the Emperor Claudius, has died in a storm at sea, Agrippina plots to secure the throne for Nero, her son by a previous marriage. Nero is unenthusiastic about this project, but consents to his mother's wishes ("Con saggio tuo consiglio"). Agrippina obtains the support of her two freedmen, Pallas and Narcissus, who hail Nero as the new Emperor before the Senate. With the Senate's assent, Agrippina and Nero begin to ascend the
Roman emperor not recognize him as "Basileus" of the Romans, however, which was a title that he reserved for himself. This line of Roman emperors was actually generally Germanic rather than Roman, but maintained their Roman-ness as a matter of principle. These emperors used a variety of titles (most frequently ""Imperator Augustus"") before finally settling on "Imperator Romanus Electus" ("Elected Roman Emperor"). Historians customarily assign them the title "Holy Roman Emperor", which has a basis in actual historical usage, and treat their "Holy Roman Empire" as a separate institution. To Latin Catholics of the time, the Pope was the temporal authority as