Marcus Aemilius Lepidus

Who was Marcus Aemilius Lepidus?

Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, was the son of consul Lucius Aemilius Paullus. He and his sister Aemilia Lepida were both married to siblings of the Emperor Caligula. He was also great-grandson of Lucius Aemilius Lepidus Paullus. Some areas of his lineage are unclear. However, through his mother Julia the Younger, Lepidus was the great grandson of Emperor Augustus Caesar. Lepidus married Caligula's sister Drusilla sometime in November or December of 37. Little is known about him prior to this. Drusilla had been married to Lucius Cassius Longinus since 33 but Caligula forced his brother-in-law to divorce Drusilla so that she could marry Lepidus. The marriage lasted until Drusilla's death in June 38. They had no children. Because of this marriage, Lepidus had become a close friend to Caligula and his family. After the death of Gemellus in 37, Lepidus was publicly marked by Caligula as his heir. In late 38, when the governor of Egypt Aulus Avilius Flaccus was arrested, Lepidus successfully persuaded Caligula to exile Flaccus to Andros rather than Gyarus.