Lucilla

Lucilla was a daughter of Marcus Aurelius, the wife of the emperor Lucius Verus and later the wife of the senator Tiberius Claudius Pompeianus. After her brother Commodus became emperor, she became involved in a failed conspiracy against him in 182. She was exiled to Capri and subsequently executed.

Historical fiction set in Commodus’s reign often treats Lucilla as a link to the more respected Antonine past and as a focus for senatorial opposition. Her conspiracy provides a dramatic opening for stories of palace surveillance and assassination, although the ancient sources are hostile and leave her exact motives uncertain. Portrayals range from principled defender of Rome to ambitious rival within the imperial family.