Some areas of his lineage are unclear. He was possibly the son of
consul Lucius Aemilius Paullus. If so, he was also great-grandson of
Lucius Aemilius Lepidus Paullus (consul of 50 BC and brother of the triumvir
Marcus Aemilius Lepidus), and through his mother
Julia the Younger, Lepidus was the great grandson of
Emperor Augustus. It is also possible that he was instead the son of
Marcus Aemilius Lepidus the consul of 6 AD. 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 became a close friend to Caligula and his family. 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. In 39, Caligula made public letters by his sisters
Agrippina the Younger and
Julia Livilla that detailed an adulterous affair with Lepidus and a plot against the emperor. Lepidus was executed and Caligula's sisters were exiled. Agrippina was given the bones of Lepidus in an urn, and she carried them to Rome. Caligula sent three daggers to the
Temple of Mars the Avenger to celebrate the death. In the
Senate,
Vespasian made a motion that the remains of Lepidus be thrown away instead of buried. The motion was carried and Lepidus was not given a proper burial. ==Cultural depictions==