Agrippina the Younger and stepfather in 50. Lucius' name was changed to "Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus Germanicus" and he became Claudius's adopted son, heir and recognised successor. Agrippina and Claudius betrothed Nero to Octavia, and Agrippina arranged to have Seneca the Younger return from exile to tutor the future emperor. Claudius chose to adopt Nero because of his Julian and Claudian lineage. Agrippina deprived Britannicus of his heritage and further isolated him from his father and succession for the throne in every way possible. For instance, in 51, Agrippina ordered the execution of Britannicus' tutor Sosibius because he had confronted her and was
Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor years old and had reigned as an independent ruler for just under six years, having nominally reigned for nearly 19 years. The Byzantine princess Zoe, second daughter of the Emperor Constantine VIII, had just disembarked in Apulia on her way to marry him. Otto III's death has been attributed to various causes. Medieval sources speak of malaria, which he had caught in the unhealthy marshes that surrounded Ravenna. Following his death, the Roman people suggested that Stefania, the widow of Crescentius II, had made Otto III fall in love with her and then poisoned him. The Emperor's body was carried