2. The Roman Emperor Constantine the Great ordered the executions of both his wife and eldest son after rumors spread of an illicit affair
Constantine I, also known as Constantine the Great, reigned as Emperor of the Western Roman Empire from 306 CE, and Eastern Emperor after 324, until his death in 337. Proclaimed as Emperor after the death of his father, Flavius Valerius Constantius, Constantine would embark upon a protracted campaign to unite the divided imperial territories under a singular ruler. Overseeing a host of reforms, including monetary policy and military structure, Constantine is perhaps most remembered for being the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. Although living his life as a pagan, Constantine converted to the new faith upon his deathbed.
In 326, rumors began spreading that his Empress, Fausta, was engaged in an illicit relationship with her step-son and Constantine’s eldest, Crispus. Whether true or not, with some historians suggesting Fausta spread falsehood in an attempt to discredit the heir-apparent, Constantine responded ruthlessly by having his son arrested in May, whereafter he was executed by poison. Fausta, equally, did not escape punishment, and was killed in an overheated bath in July. Not content to take just their lives, both of the condemned were erased from inscriptions and their lives scrubbed from official imperial records.