17. Augustus Was So Serious About Morality Laws That he Exiled His Daughter and Granddaughter, and Killed His Great Grandson
One of Emperor Augustus’ morality laws, enacted in 18 BC, codified a father’s traditional rights if he caught somebody engaged in adultery with his daughter. The father could legally kill the lover, as well as his daughter, whether in his own house or in the house of his son-in-law. Ironically, Augustus’ own daughter, Julia the Elder, ran afoul of those anti-adultery laws.
The emperor did not kill his daughter, but to save face, he had her exiled in 2 BC, first to a small island, then to a tiny village in the toe of Italy. She remained in exile for the rest of her life. In 8 AD, Augustus’ granddaughter, Julia the Younger, also got caught up in an adultery scandal with a Roman Senator. The emperor exiled her to a remote island, where she gave birth to a love child. Augustus ordered the infant exposed.