Praetorian Guard

The Praetorian Guard was an elite Roman military force that protected the emperor and served in Rome. Its commanders and soldiers also wielded major political influence.

Praetorian prefect: The senior commander of the Praetorian Guard, who could also hold high administrative and judicial authority. Prefects commanded the Guard and sometimes shaped imperial succession.
Praetorian cohort (Roman Republic): A commander’s personal escort in the Roman Republic, from which the later Praetorian Guard developed. The imperial institution took its name and early model from these Republican escorts.
Lucius Aelius Sejanus: Praetorian prefect under Tiberius who amassed political influence before his execution in 31 CE. Sejanus used command of the Guard to build power at court.
Assassination of Caligula: The killing of Emperor Caligula in 41 CE by members of the Praetorian Guard and their associates. The aftermath brought Claudius to power under the Guard’s protection.
Roman imperial succession: The processes and conflicts through which authority passed from one Roman emperor to another. The Guard’s support could influence who claimed the throne.
Castra Praetoria: The permanent fortified camp built for the Praetorian cohorts on the outskirts of Rome. The camp concentrated the Guard near the capital and its political institutions.
Augustus: The first Roman emperor, who established the Principate and reorganized Rome’s military institutions. Augustus formalized the Praetorian cohorts as a standing imperial force.
Claudius: Roman emperor from 41 to 54 CE, brought to power after the assassination of Caligula. The Guard proclaimed Claudius emperor, demonstrating its role in succession.
Year of the Five Emperors: The Roman civil war of 193 CE, when five men claimed the imperial throne in rapid succession. The Guard killed Pertinax and helped trigger the succession crisis.
Roman civil war: Armed conflict between Roman political or military factions competing for control of the state. Guard interventions sometimes escalated succession disputes into civil conflict.

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