A God in Colchester story
Rome, AD 47–48. Claudius is leading his troops in an invasion of Britain. Messalina's sexual excesses lead her to challenge the well-known prostitute Scilla to a contest to see who can take the most men in an evening; she wins easily. Claudius returns in triumph, but is devastated to learn that Herod has organized a rebellion in the eastern provinces against his rule. Herod believes that he is the Jewish Messiah, but he dies before completing his plans. Messalina takes Gaius Silius as her lover, and they divorce their respective spouses and marry, thinking that Rome will rally around them and proclaim them rulers. Forced to act, Claudius' servants Pallas and Narcissus enlist Calpurnia to tell the Emperor the truth. In the end he believes them and the conspirators are arrested and killed; a drunken Claudius even carelessly signs Messalina's execution order. As Claudius mourns the fact that all whom he cared for are gone, he learns that the Britons have dedicated a temple to him in Colchester, making him a god.
31 total · 2 choice · 9 major · 20 minor
| Theme | Level | Motivation |
|---|---|---|
| courtly intrigues | choice | The plot turns on people of influence jockeying for power in the imperial court of Claudius. Notably, Messalina and Gaius Silius conspired to overthrow Claudius' rule and take power for themselves. |
| life in Ancient Rome | choice | The drama is mainly set in 47-48 AD within the imperial court of Claudius in Rome. |
| betrayal | major | Claudius was upset when he found out that his old friend Herod had decided to stage a rebellion against Rome. Messalina betrayed Claudius by marrying Gaius Silius while Claudius examined the new harbor works at Ostia. |
| coping with having a bad reputation | major | Claudius was eventually told that everyone in Rome, save him, knew that he was being cuckolded by Messalina. |
| extramarital affair | major | Messalina was having an affair on her husband Claudius. Messalina participated in a sex contest behind Claudius' back. It came to light that Calpurnia would sometimes visit Claudius in his bed. |
| husband and wife | major | Messalina was having an affair on her husband Claudius. |
| love is blind | major | Claudius was too doting over Messalina to take notice of her designs on taking power while he was out of town. He was devastated to learn the truth when he returned to Rome. |
| obsessive love | major | Messalina fell in love with Gaius Silius. She told Domitia that she loved him. Domitia confronted Messalina for being reckless for courting Gaius behind her husband's back. |
| promiscuity | major | Messalina boasted that her sexual appetites were so insatiable that she could copulate with every man in Rome and be no worse for the wear. |
| prostitution | major | Scilla, the Sicilian, was Rome's most renowned prostitute. She was humbled by Messalina, Rome's most promiscuous woman, in a tournament of sex. |