Gaius Sallustius Crispus Passienus be the end of Agrippina's villainy, for Claudius' wife, Messalina, correctly perceiving the threat from Agrippina, attempted to have Lucius assassinated, in order to ensure the succession of Britannicus, her own son by the emperor. The attempt failed, and, after procuring Passienus' death, Agrippina worked to bring about the downfall of Messalina. She then seduced her uncle, the emperor, becoming his wife, and persuaded Claudius to adopt Lucius, naming him his heir in preference to his own son. Agrippina then procured the emperor's death, placing her son, now the emperor Nero, on the throne; he soon disposed of Britannicus. Agrippina
Roman emperor of the Romans"). They had also ceased to use Latin as the language of state after Emperor Heraclius (d. 641 AD). Historians have customarily treated the state of these later Eastern emperors under the name "Byzantine Empire". It is important to note, however, that the adjective "Byzantine", although historically used by Eastern Roman authors in a metonymic sense, was never an official term. Constantine XI Palaiologos was the last reigning Roman emperor. A member of the Palaiologos dynasty, he ruled the remnant of the Eastern Roman Empire from 1449 until his death in 1453 defending its capital Constantinople. He was