Nero

For other uses, see Nero (disambiguation).

Nero
Emperor of the Roman Empire
Nero, at Glyptothek, Munich
Reign	October 13, CE 54 – June 9, CE 68 (Proconsul from 51)
Predecessor	Claudius
Successor	Galba
Wives	Claudia Octavia Poppaea Sabina Statilia Messalina
Issue	Claudia Augusta
Names Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus
Dynasty	Julio-Claudian
Father	Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus
Mother	Agrippina the Younger

Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (December 15, 37 – June 9, 68), born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, also called Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus Germanicus, was the fifth and last Roman Emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Nero was adopted by his grand-uncle Claudius to become heir to the throne. As Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus, he succeeded to the throne on October 13, 54, following Claudius' death.

Nero ruled from 54 to 68 CE, focusing much of his attention on diplomacy, trade, and increasing the cultural capital of the empire. He ordered the building of theatres and promoted athletic games. His reign included a successful war and negotiated peace with the Parthian Empire (58–63), the suppression of the British revolt (60–61) and improving diplomatic ties with Greece. In 68 CE a military coup drove Nero into hiding. Facing execution at the hands of the Roman Senate, he reportedly committed forced suicide with the help of his scribe Epaphroditos.

Popular history remembers Nero as a libertine and a tyrant; he is known as the emperor who "fiddled while Rome burned" and an early persecutor of Christians. These accounts follow the histories of Tacitus, Suetonius and Cassius Dio along with a number of early Christian writers. However, some ancient sources also indicate that Nero was quite popular with the common people during and after his reign. Some modern historians question the reliability of ancient sources when reporting on Nero's alleged tyranical acts. It may be impossible to completely separate fact from fiction concerning Nero's reign.

Life

Family

Nero was born with the name Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus on December 15, 37 CE, in Antium, near Rome. He was the only son of Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus and Agrippina the Younger, sister of emperor Caligula.

Lucius' father was grandson to an elder Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus and Aemilia Lepida through their son Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus. Gnaeus was also a grandson to Mark Antony and Octavia Minor through their daughter Antonia Major. Through Octavia, he was the grand-nephew of Caesar Augustus. Nero's father had been employed as a praetor and was a member of Caligula's staff when the future-emperor traveled to the East. Nero's father was described by Suetonius as a murderer and a cheat who was charged by emperor Tiberius with treason, adultery, and incest. Tiberius died allowing him to escape these charges. Gnaeus died of edema (or "dropsy") in 39 CE when Lucius was three.

Lucius' mother was Agrippina the Younger, who was great-granddaughter to Caesar Augustus and his wife Scribonia through their daughter Julia the Elder and her husband Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa. Agrippina's father, Germanicus, was grandson to Augustus's wife, Livia, on one side and to Mark Antony and Octavia on the other. Germanicus' mother Antonia Minor, was a daughter of Octavia Minor and Mark Antony. Octavia was Augustus' second elder sister. Germanicus was also the adoptive son of Tiberius. A number of ancient historians accuse Agrippina of murdering her third husband, emperor Claudius.

Rise to power

It was not expected for Lucius to ever become emperor. His maternal uncle, Caligula, had begun his reign at the age of twenty-four with ample time to produce his own heir. Lucius' mother, Agrippina lost favor with Caligula and was exiled in 39 after her husband's death. Caligula seized Lucius's inheritance and sent him to be raised by his less wealthy aunt, Domitia Lepida.

Caligula produced no heir. He, his wife Caesonia and their infant daughter Julia Drusilla were murdered in 41. These events led Claudius, Caligula's uncle, to become emperor. Claudius allowed Agrippina to return from exile.

Coin issued under Claudius celebrating young Nero as the future emperor, c. 50

Claudius had married twice before marrying Messalina. His previous marriages produced three children including a son, Drusus, who died at a young age. He had two children with Messalina - Claudia Octavia (b. 40) and Britannicus (b. 41). Messalina was executed by Claudius in 48. In 49, Claudius married a fourth time to Agrippina. To aid Claudius politically, Lucius was officially adopted in 50 and renamed Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus (see adoption in Rome). Nero was older than his step-brother, Britannicus, and became heir to the throne.

Nero was proclaimed an adult in 51 at the age of fourteen. He was appointed proconsul, entered and first addressed the Senate, made joint public appearances with Claudius, and was featured in coinage. In 53, he married his step-sister Claudia Octavia.

Emperor

Early rule

Claudius died in 54 and Nero was established as emperor. Though accounts vary greatly, many ancient historians claim Agrippina poisoned Claudius. It is not known how much Nero knew or was involved with the death of Claudius, but Suetonius wrote that:

...even if [Nero] was not the instigator of the emperor's death, he was at least privy to it, as he openly admitted; for he used afterwards to laud mushrooms, the vehicle in which the poison was administered to Claudius, as "the food of the gods, as the Greek proverb has it".

Coin of Nero and his mother, Agrippina, c. 54. Agrippina tried to control Nero during his first year as emperor.

Nero became emperor at sixteen, the youngest Emperor yet. Ancient historians describe Nero's early reign as being strongly influenced by his mother Agrippina, his tutor Lucius Annaeus Seneca, and the Praetorian Prefect Sextus Afranius Burrus, especially in the first year. The first few years of Nero's rule were known as examples of fine administration. The matters of the Empire were handled effectively and the Senate enjoyed a period of renewed influence in state affairs.

Very early in Nero's rule, problems arose from competition for influence between Agrippina and Nero's two advisers, Seneca and Burrus. In 54, Agrippina tried to sit down next to Nero while he met with an Armenian envoy, but Seneca stopped her and prevented a scandalous scene. Nero's personal friends also mistrusted Agrippina and told Nero to beware of his mother. Nero was reportedly unsatisfied with his marriage to Octavia and entered an affair with Claudia Acte, a former slave. In 55, Agrippina attempted to intervene in favor of Octavia and demanded that her son dismiss Acte. Nero, with the support of Seneca, resisted the intervention of his mother in his personal affairs.

With Agrippina's influence over her son severed, she reportedly turned to a younger candidate for the throne. Nearly fifteen-year-old Britannicus was still legally a minor, but was approaching legal adulthood. According to Tacitus, Agrippina hoped that with her support, Britannicus, being the blood son of Claudius, would be seen as the true heir to the throne by the state over Nero. However, the youth died suddenly and suspiciously on February 12, 55, the very day before his proclamation as an adult had been set. Nero claimed that Britannicus died from an epileptic seizure, but ancient historians all claim Britannicus' death came from Nero poisoning him. According to Suetonius,

[Nero] attempted the life of Britannicus by poison, not less from jealousy of his voice (for it was more agreeable than his own) than from fear that he might sometime win a higher place than himself in the people's regard because of the memory of his father.

After the death of Britannicus, Agrippina was accused of slandering Octavia and Nero ordered her out of the imperial residence.

Matricide and consolidation of power

Coin of Nero and Poppaea Sabina

Over time, Nero became progressively more powerful. In 55, he removed Marcus Antonius Pallas, an ally of Agrippina, from his position in the treasury. Pallas, along with Burrus, was accused of conspiring against the emperor to bring Faustus Cornelius Sulla Felix to the throne. Seneca was accused of having relations with Agrippina and embezzlement. Seneca was able to get himself, Pallas and Burrus acquitted. According to Cassius Dio, at this time, Seneca and Burrus reduced their role in governing from careful management to mere moderation of Nero.

In 58, Nero became romantically involved with Poppaea Sabina, the wife of his friend and future emperor Otho. Reportedly because a marriage to Poppaea and a divorce from Octavia did not seem politically feasible with Agrippina alive, Nero ordered the murder of his mother in 59. Some modern historians theorize that Nero's execution of Agrippina was prompted by her plotting to set Rubellius Plautus on the throne. According to Suetonius, Nero tried to kill his mother through a planned shipwreck, but when she survived, he had her executed and framed it as a suicide.

File:Remorse of Nero.jpg

The Remorse of Nero after killing his mother, by John William Waterhouse, 1878.

In 62 Nero's adviser, Burrus, died. Additionally, Seneca was again faced with embezzlement charges. Seneca asked Nero for permission to retire from public affairs. Nero divorced and banished Octavia on grounds of infertility, leaving him free to marry Poppaea. After public protests, Nero was forced to allow Octavia to return from exile, but she was executed shortly upon her return.

Accusations of treason against Nero and the Senate first appeared in 62. The Senate ruled that Antistius, a praetor, should be put to death for speaking ill of Nero at a party. Later, Nero ordered the exile of Fabricius Veiento who slandered the Senate in a book. Tacitus writes that the roots of the conspiracy led by Gaius Calpurnius Piso began in this year. To consolidate power, Nero executed a number of people in 62 and 63 including Pallas, Rubellius Plautus, Faustus Cornelius Sulla Felix and Doryphorus. According to Suetonius, Nero "showed neither discrimination nor moderation in putting to death whomsoever he pleased" during this period.

Nero's consolidation of power also included a slow usurping of authority from the Senate. In 54, Nero promised to give the Senate powers equivalent to those under Republican rule. By 65, senators complained that they had no power left and this led to the Pisonian conspiracy.

War and peace with Parthia

Shortly after Nero's accession to the throne in 55, the Roman vassal kingdom of Armenia overthrew their prince Rhadamistus and he was replaced with the Parthian prince Tiridates. This was seen as a Parthian invasion of Roman territory. There was concern in Rome over how the young emperor would handle the situation. Nero reacted by immediately sending the military to the region under the command of Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo. The Parthians temporarily relinquished control of Armenia to Rome.

The peace did not last and full-scale war broke out in 58. The Parthian king Vologases I refused to remove his brother Tiridates from Armenia. The Parthians began a full-scale invasion of the Armenian kingdom. Commander Corbulo responded and repelled most of the Parthian army that same year. Tiridates retreated and Rome again controlled most of Armenia.

Nero was acclaimed in public for this initial victory. Tigranes, a Cappadocian noble raised in Rome, was installed by Nero as the new ruler of Armenia. Corbulo was appointed governor of Syria as a reward.

The Parthian Empire c. 60. Nero's peace deal with Parthia was a political victory at home and made him beloved in the east.

In 62, Tigranes invaded the Parthian city of Adiabene. Again, Rome and Parthia were at war and this continued until 63. Parthia began building up for a strike against the Roman province of Syria. Corbulo tried to convince Nero to continue the war, but Nero opted for a peace deal instead. There was anxiety in Rome about eastern grain supplies and a budget deficit.

The result was a deal where Tiridates again became the Armenian king, but was crowned in Rome by emperor Nero. In the future, the king of Armenia was to be a Parthian prince, but his appointment required approval from the Romans. Tiridates was forced to come to Rome and partake in ceremonies meant to display Roman dominance. The Roman people were said to be overjoyed by lives saved through this peace deal.

This peace deal of 63 was a considerable victory for Nero politically. Nero became very popular in the eastern provinces of Rome and with the Parthians as well. The peace between Parthia and Rome lasted 50 years until emperor Trajan of Rome invaded Armenia in 114.

Even Suetonius, who wrote very ill of Nero, said this of Nero and Parthia:

Vologaesus, King of the Parthians, when he sent envoys to the Senate to renew his alliance, earnestly begged this too, that honor be paid to the memory of Nero. In fact, twenty years later, when I was a young man, a person of obscure origin appeared, who gave out that he was Nero, and the name was still in such favor with the Parthians, that they supported him vigorously and surrendered him with great reluctance.

Administrative policies

Marble bust of Nero, Antiquarium of the Palatine.

Over the course of his reign, Nero often made rulings that protected and pleased the lower class at the expense of the rich and powerful. Nero was criticised as being obsessed with being popular.

Nero began his reign in 54 by promising the Senate more autonomy. In this first year, he forbade others to refer to him with regard to enactments, for which he was praised by the Senate. Nero was known for being hands-off and spending his time visiting brothels and taverns during this period.

In 55, Nero began taking on a more active role as an administrator. He was consul four times between 55 and 60. During this period, some ancient historians speak fairly well of Nero and contrast it with his later rule.

Nero worked to protect the rights of the lower class. Restrictions were put on the amount of bail and fines. Also, fees for lawyers were limited. There was a discussion in the Senate on the misconduct of the freedmen class, and a strong demand was made that patrons should have the right of revoking freedom. Nero supported the freedmen and ruled that patrons had no such right. The Senate tried to pass a law in which the crimes of one slave applied to all slaves within a household which Nero vetoed.

Limiting public corruption was a major part of Nero’s rule. On accusations that high-ranking officers were collecting too much from the poor, Nero transferred collection authority to lower commissioners of competency. Nero banned any magistrate or procurator from exhibiting public entertainment for fear that the venue was being used as a method to extract bribes. Additionally, there were many impeachments and removals of government officials along with arrests for extortion and corruption.

Nero’s actions attempted to the help the poor’s economic situation. When further complaints arose that the poor were being overly taxed, Nero attempted to repeal all indirect taxes. The Senate convinced him this action would be too extreme. As a compromise, taxes were cut from 4.5% to 2.5%. Additionally, secret government tax records were ordered to become public. To lower the cost of food imports, merchant ships were declared tax-exempt.

Nero was an avid lover of arts and entertainment. Nero built a number of gymnasiums and theaters and had performers dress in Greek clothing. Enormous gladiatorial shows were held. Nero also established the quinquennial Neronia. The festival included games, poetry and theater. Historians indicate that there was a belief that theater was for the lower-class and led to immorality and laziness. Others looked down upon Greek influence. Some questioned the large public expenditure on entertainment.

In 63, fiscal crises began to emerge. The Parthian War and a lost shipment of grain threatened to increase the price of food in Rome. Nero reassigned management of public funds, urged fiscal responsibility and gave a private donation to the treasury. He then opted for a peace deal with the Parthians. In 64, Rome burned. Nero enacted a public relief effort as well as reconstruction. The provinces, where wealthy land-owners lived, were heavily taxed following the fire

A number of major construction projects occurred in Nero's late reign. To prevent malaria, Nero had the marshes of Ostia filled with rubble from the fire. He erected the large Domus Aurea. In 67 , Nero attempted to have a canal dug at the Isthmus of Corinth. These projects and others exacerbated the drain on the State's budget.

Major rebellions and power struggles

Compared with his immediate successors, Rome was relatively peaceful under Nero's reign. War with Parthia was Nero's only major war and he was both criticized and praised for an aversion to battle. Like many emperors, Nero faced a number of internal rebellions and power struggles.

British Revolt (Boudica's Uprising)

In 60, a major rebellion broke out in the province of Britannia. While the governor Gaius Suetonius Paulinus and his troops were busy capturing Mona Island (Anglesey Island) from druids, the tribes of the south-east staged a revolt led by queen Boudica of the Iceni. Boudica and her troops destroyed three cities before the army of Suetonius Paulinus was able to return, be reinforced and put down the rebellion in 61. Fearing Suetonius Paulinus would provoke further rebellion, Nero replaced the governor with the more passive Publius Petronius Turpilianus.

The Pisonian Conspiracy

Main article: Pisonian conspiracy

In 65, Gaius Calpurnius Piso, a Roman statesman, organized a conspiracy against Nero with the help of Subrius Flavus, a praetorian tribune, and Sulpicius Asper, a centurion. According to Tacitus, many conspirators wished to "rescue the State" from the emperor and restore the Republic. The freedman Milichus discovered the conspiracy and reported it to Nero's secretary, Epaphroditos. As a result, the conspiracy failed and its members were executed including Nero's former friend Lucan, the poet. Nero's previous advisor, Seneca was ordered to commit suicide after admitting he discussed the plot with the conspirators.

Jewish Revolt (The First Jewish-Roman War)

In 66, there was a Jewish revolt in Judea steming from Greek and Jewish religious tension. In 67, Nero dispatched Vespasian to restore order. This revolt was eventually put down in 70, after Nero's death. This revolt is famous for Romans breaching the walls of Jerusalem and destroying the Temple of Jerusalem.

Vindex's Rebellion

In late 67 or early 68, Vindex, the governor of Gallia Lugdunensis in Gaul, rebelled against the tax policies of Nero. Virginius Rufus, the governor of superior Germany was sent to put down the rebellion. To gain support, Vindex called on Galba, the governor of Hispania Citerior in Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula, comprising modern Spain and Portugal), to become emperor. Virginius Rufus defeated Vindex's forces and Vindex committed suicide. Galba was declared a public enemy and his legion was confined in the city of Clunia.

The Rise of Galba

Nero had regained the control of the empire militarily, but this opportunity was used by his enemies in Rome. By June of 68 the senate voted Galba the emperor and declared Nero a public enemy. The praetorian guard was bribed to betray Nero by the praetorian prefect, Nymphidius Sabinus, who desired to become emperor himself. The praetorian guard captured Nero and he reportedly committed suicide.

After Nero's death, Rome descended into a period civil war known as the Year of the Four Emperors. Nero's successors fought among themselves for power. Galba, Otho and Vitellius were each briefly emperor until Nero's general Vespasian returned from Judea and restored order as emperor.

Great Fire of Rome

Main article: Great Fire of Rome

The Great Fire of Rome erupted on the night of July 18 to July 19, 64. The fire started at the southeastern end of the Circus Maximus in shops selling flammable goods.

File:Nero-graffiti.jpg

Ancient graffiti portrait of Nero found at the Domus Tiberiana.

How large the fire was is up for debate. According to Tacitus, who was nine at the time of the fire, it spread quickly and burnt for five days. It completely destroyed four of fourteen Roman districts and severely damaged seven. The only other historian who lived through the period and mentioned the fire is Pliny the Elder who wrote about it in passing. Other historians who lived through the period (including Josephus, Dio Chrysostom, Plutarch, and Epictetus) make no mention of it.

It is uncertain who or what actually caused the fire- whether accident or arson. Suetonius and Cassius Dio favor Nero as the arsonist. Tacitus mentions that Christians confessed to the crime, but it is not known whether these were false confessions induced by torture. However, accidentally started fires were common in ancient Rome. In fact, Rome burned significantly again under Vitellius in 69 and under Titus in 80.

It was said by Suetonius and Cassius Dio that Nero sang the "Sack of Ilium" in stage costume while the city burned. However, Tacitus' account has Nero in Antium at the time of the fire. Tacitus said that Nero playing his lyre and singing while the city burned was only rumor. Popular legend remembers Nero playing the fiddle while Rome burned, but this is an anachronism as the instrument had not yet been invented, and would not be for over 1,000 years.

According to Tacitus, upon hearing news of the fire, Nero rushed back to Rome to organize a relief effort, which he paid for from his own funds. After the fire, Nero opened his palaces to provide shelter for the homeless, and arranged for food supplies to be delivered in order to prevent starvation among the survivors. In the wake of the fire, he made a new urban development plan. Houses after the fire were spaced out, built in brick, and faced by porticos on wide roads. Nero also built a new palace complex known as the Domus Aurea in an area cleared by the fire. The size of this possibly public complex is debated (some say as low as 100 acres and as high as 300 acres). To find the necessary funds for the reconstruction, tributes were imposed on the provinces of the empire.

According to Tacitus, the population searched for a scapegoat and rumors held Nero responsible. To diffuse blame, Nero targeted a sect called the Christians. He ordered Christians to be thrown to dogs, while others were crucified and burned.

Tacitus described the event:

Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular. Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred against mankind. Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired.

Public performances

Nero coin, c. 66. Ara Pacis on the reverse.

Nero enjoyed driving a four-horse chariot, singing to the harp and poetry. He even composed songs that were performed by other entertainers throughout the empire. At first, Nero only performed for a private audience.

In 64, Nero began singing in public at Neapolis in order to improve his popularity. He also sang at the second quinquennial Neronia in 65. It was said that Nero craved the attention, but historians also write that Nero was encouraged to sing and perform in public by the Senate, his inner circle and the people. Ancient historians strongly criticize his choice to perform, calling it shameful.

Nero was convinced to participate in the Olympic Games of 67 in order to improve relations with Greece and display Roman dominance. As a competitor, Nero raced a ten-horse chariot and nearly died after being thrown from it. He also performed as an actor and a singer. Though Nero faltered in his racing and acting competitions, he won these crowns nevertheless and paraded them when he returned to Rome. The victories are attributed to Nero bribing the judges and his status as emperor.

Death

In late 67 or early 68, Vindex, the governor of Gallia Lugdunensis in Gaul, rebelled against the tax policies of Nero. Virginius Rufus, the governor of superior Germany was sent to put down the rebellion. To gain support, Vindex called on Galba, the governor of Hispania Citerior in Hispania, to become emperor. Virginius Rufus defeated Vindex's forces and Vindex committed suicide. Galba was declared a public enemy and his legion was confined in the city of Clunia.

Nero had regained the control of the empire militarily, but this opportunity was used by his enemies in Rome. By June of 68 the senate voted Galba the emperor and declared Nero a public enemy. The praetorian guard was bribed to betray Nero by the praetorian prefect, Nymphidius Sabinus, who desired to become emperor himself.

According to Suetonius, Nero fled to Via Salaria, a suburb of Rome with his remaining friends. They urged him to flee, but he prepared himself for suicide. Reportedly, the praetorian guard entered to capture Nero just as he stabbed himself with the help of his secretary, Epaphroditos. Upon seeing the figure of a Roman soldier, he gasped "this is fidelity." It was said by Cassius Dio that he uttered the last words "Jupiter, what an artist perishes in me!"

With his death, the Julio-Claudian dynasty came to an end. Chaos ensued in the Year of the four emperors.

Mourning

According to Tacitus, Nero's death was welcomed by Senators, nobility and the upper-class. The lower-class, slaves, frequenters of the arena and the theater, and "those who were supported by the famous excesses of Nero", on the other hand, were upset with the news. Members of the military were said to have mixed feelings, as they had allegiance to Nero, but were bribed to overthrow him.

The civil war during the Year of the Four Emperors was described by ancient historians as a troubling period. According to Tacitus, this instability was rooted in the fact that emperors could no longer rely on the perceived legitimacy of the imperial bloodline, as Nero and those before him could. Galba began his short reign with the execution of many allies of Nero and possible future enemies. One notable enemy included Nymphidius Sabinus, who claimed to be the son of emperor Caligula.

Otho overthrew Galba. Otho was said to be liked by many soldiers because he resembled Nero. It was said that the common Roman hailed Otho as Nero himself. Otho used "Nero" as a surname and reerected many statues to Nero. Vitellius overthrew Otho. Vitellius began his reign with a large funeral for Nero complete with songs written by Nero.

Apotheosis of Nero, c. after 68. Artwork portraying Nero rising to divine status after his death.

Through the civil war and well into the Flavian dynasty, public sentimentality for Nero continued. This was especially prevalent in the eastern provinces, where Nero was the most popular. Philostratus wrote:

The fact is, Nero restored the liberties of Hellas with a wisdom and moderation quite alien to his character; and the cities regained their Doric and Attic characteristics, and a general rejuvenescence accompanied the institution among them of a peace and harmony such as not even ancient Hellas ever enjoyed. Vespasian, however, on his arrival in the country took away her liberty, alleging their factiousness with other pretexts hardly justifying such extreme severity.

Apollonius of Tyana, in a letter to Vespasian wrote:

Greeting: You have, they say, enslaved Hellas, and you imagine you have excelled Xerxes. You are mistaken. You have only fallen below Nero. For the latter held our liberties in his hand and respected them. Farewell.

After Nero's suicide in 68, there was a widespread belief, especially in the eastern provinces, that he was not dead and somehow would return.

At least three Nero imposters emerged leading rebellions. The first, who sang and played the cithara or lyre and whose face was similar to that of the dead emperor, appeared in 69 during the reign of Vitellius. After persuading some to recognize him, he was captured and executed. Sometime during the reign of Titus (79-81) there was another impostor who appeared in Asia and also sang to the accompaniment of the lyre and looked like Nero but he, too, was killed. Twenty years after Nero's death, during the reign of Domitian, there was a third pretender. Supported by the Parthians, they hardly could be persuaded to give him up and the matter almost came to war.

The legend of Nero's return lasted for hundreds of years after Nero's death. Augustine of Hippo, disgusted by Nero's lingering admirers, wrote of the legend in 422:

Others, again, suppose that he is not even dead, but that he was concealed that he might be supposed to have been killed, and that he now lives in concealment in the vigor of that same age which he had reached when he was believed to have perished, and will live until he is revealed in his own time and restored to his kingdom. But I wonder that men can be so audacious in their conjectures.

Historiography

The history of Nero’s reign is problematic in that no historical sources survived that were contemporary with Nero. These first histories at one time did exist and were described as biased and fantastical, either overly critical or praising of Nero. The original sources were also said to contradict on a number of events. Nonetheless, these lost primary sources were the basis of surviving secondary and tertiary histories on Nero written by the next generations of historians. A few of the contemporary historians are known by name. Fabius Rusticus, Cluvius Rufus and Pliny the Elder all wrote condemning histories on Nero that are now lost. There were also pro-Nero histories, but it is unknown who wrote them or on what deeds Nero was praised.

The bulk of what is known of Nero comes from Tacitus, Suetonius and Cassius Dio, who were all of the Patrician class. Tacitus and Suetonius wrote their histories on Nero over fifty years after his death, while Cassius Dio wrote his history over 150 years after Nero’s death. These sources contradict on a number of events in Nero’s life including the death of Claudius, the death of Agrippina and the Roman fire of 64, but they are consistent in their condemnation of Nero.

A handful of other sources also add a limited and varying perspective on Nero. Few surviving sources paint Nero in a favorable light. Some sources, though, portray him as a competent emperor who was popular with the Roman people, especially in the east.

Constantine in the 4th century became a patron of Christianity, and when he ascended to the throne, he also declared himself Supreme Pontiff of the Christian Church. Christian influence in Rome continued from that time forward. In these circumstances, Nero's record of persecuting Christians reinforced the negative perceptions that already existed.

Cassius Dio Cocceianus

Cassius Dio (c. 155- 229) was the son of Cassius Apronianus, a Roman senator. He passed the greater part of his life in public service. He was a senator under Commodus and governor of Smyrna after the death of Septimius Severus; and afterwards suffect consul around 205, as also proconsul in Africa and Pannonia.

Books 61–63 of Dio's Roman History describe the reign of Nero. Only fragments of these books remain and what does remain was abridged and altered by John Xiphilinus, an 11th century monk.

Dio Chrysostom

Dio Chrysostom (c. 40– 120), a Greek philosopher and historian, wrote the Roman people were very happy with Nero and would have allowed him to rule indefinitely. They longed for his rule once he was gone and embraced imposters when they appeared:

Indeed the truth about this has not come out even yet; for so far as the rest of his subjects were concerned, there was nothing to prevent his continuing to be Emperor for all time, seeing that even now everybody wishes he were still alive. And the great majority do believe that he still is, although in a certain sense he has died not once but often along with those who had been firmly convinced that he was still alive.

Epictetus

Epictetus (c. 55- 135) was the slave to Nero's scribe Epaphroditos. He makes a few passing negative comments on Nero's character in his work, but makes no remarks on the nature of his rule. He describes Nero as a spoiled, angry and unhappy man:

Is [prosperity and happiness] in royal power? It is not. If it were, Nero would have been happy. Only see that he has not Nero's stamp. Is he passionate, is he full of resentment, is he fault-finding? If the whim seizes him, does he break the heads of those who come in his way?

Josephus

The historian Josephus (c. 37-100) accused other historians of slandering Nero.

The historian Josephus (c. 37- 100), while calling Nero a tyrant, was also the first to mention bias against Nero. Of other historians, he said:

But I omit any further discourse about these affairs; for there have been a great many who have composed the history of Nero; some of which have departed from the truth of facts out of favor, as having received benefits from him; while others, out of hatred to him, and the great ill-will which they bare him, have so impudently raved against him with their lies, that they justly deserve to be condemned. Nor do I wonder at such as have told lies of Nero, since they have not in their writings preserved the truth of history as to those facts that were earlier than his time, even when the actors could have no way incurred their hatred, since those writers lived a long time after them.

Marcus Annaeus Lucanus

Though more of a poet than historian, Lucanus (c. 39- 65) has one of the kindest accounts of Nero's rule. He writes of peace and prosperity under Nero in contrast to previous war and strife. Ironically, he was later involved in a conspiracy to overthrow Nero and was executed. He wrote:

Where Caesar sits, be evermore serene, And smile upon us with unclouded blue. Then may all men lay down their arms, and peace, Through all the nations reign, and shut the gates, That close the temple of the God of War.

Philostratus

Philostratus II "the Athenian" (c. 172- 250) spoke of Nero in the Life of Apollonius Tyana (Books 4–5). Though he has a generally negative view of Nero, he speaks of others' positive reception of Nero in the East.

Pliny the Elder

The history of Nero by Pliny the Elder (c. 24- 79) did not survive. Still, there are several references to Nero in Pliny's Natural Histories. Pliny has one of the worst opinions of Nero and calls him an "enemy of mankind."

Plutarch

Plutarch (c. 46- 127) mentions Nero indirectly in his account of the Life of Galba and the Life of Otho. Nero is portrayed as a tyrant, but those that replace him are not described as better.

Seneca the Younger

It not surprising that Seneca (c. 4 BCE- 65), Nero's teacher and advisor, writes very well of Nero. He wrote:

So Nero shows his face to Rome before the people's eyes, His bright and shining countenance illumines all the air, While down upon his graceful neck fall rippling waves of hair. Thus Apollo. But Lachesis, quite as ready to cast a favourable eye on a handsome man, spins away by the handful, and bestows years and years upon Nero out of her own pocket. As for Claudius, they tell everybody to speed him on his way, With cries of joy and solemn litany.

Suetonius Tranquillus

Main article: Lives of the Twelve Caesars

Suetonius (c. 69- 130) was a member of the equestrian order and head of the department of the imperial correspondence. Removed by Hadrianus in 121, he started writing biographies of the emperors, accentuating the anecdotal and sensational aspects.

Portions of his biography of Nero appear openly hostile, and while it might be possible that Nero's rule invited such hostility, some modern historians question the accuracy of his account. For example, the following quote, often taken as a sign of Nero's insanity, might simply be propaganda:

He castrated the boy Sporus and actually tried to make a woman of him; and he married him with all the usual ceremonies, including a dowry and a bridal veil, took him to his home attended by a great throng, and treated him as his wife. And the witty jest that someone made is still current, that it would have been well for the world if Nero's father Domitius had that kind of wife. This Sporus, decked out with the finery of the empresses and riding in a litter, he took with him to the courts and marts of Greece, and later at Rome through the Street of the Images, fondly kissing him from time to time.

Tacitus Publius Cornelius

Main article: Annals (Tacitus)

The Annals by Tacitus (c. 56- 117) is the most detailed and comprehesive history on the rule of Nero, despite being incomplete after the year 66. He is unkind to Nero, but unlike other historians, he minimizes the use of sensational stories. Tacitus described the rule of the Julio-Claudian emperors as generally unjust. He also thought that existing writing on them was unbalanced:

The histories of Tiberius, Caius, Claudius, and Nero, while they were in power, were falsified through terror, and after their death were written under the irritation of a recent hatred.

Tacitus was the son of a procurator, who married into the elite family of Agricola. He entered his political life as a senator after Nero's death and, by Tacitus' own admission, owed much to Nero's rivals. Realizing that this bias may be apparent to others, Tacitus protests that his writing is true:

I would not deny that my elevation was begun by Vespasian, augmented by Titus, and still further advanced by Domitian; but those who profess inviolable truthfulness must speak of all without partiality and without hatred.

Nero and religion

Jewish tradition

At the end of 66, conflict broke out between Greeks and Jews in Jerusalem and Caesarea. According to a Jewish legend in the Talmud (tractate Gitin 56a-b) [3], Nero came to Jerusalem and told his men to fire arrows in all four directions. All the arrows landed in the city. He then asked a passing child to repeat the verse he had learned that day. "I will lay my vengeance upon Edom by the hand of my people Israel," (Ez. 25,14) said the child. Nero became terrified, realizing that God wanted the Temple in Jerusalem to be destroyed, but would punish him if it were. Nero said, "He desires to lay waste his House and to lay the blame on me." Nero fled to Rome and converted to Judaism to avoid such retribution. Vespasian was then dispatched to put down the rebellion. The Talmud adds that the sage Reb Meir Baal HaNess, a prominent supporter of Bar Kokhba's rebellion against Roman rule, is a descendant of Nero.

Christian tradition

A Christian Dirce, by Henryk Siemiradzki. A Christian woman is martyred in this re-enactment of the myth of Dirce.

Early Christian tradition often held Nero as the first persecutor of Christians and the killer of Peter and Paul. There was also a belief among some early Christians that Nero was the Antichrist.

First Persecutor

The non-Christian historian Tacitus describes Nero extensively torturing and executing Christians after the fire of 64. Suetonius also mentions Nero punishing Christians, though he does so as a praise and does not connect it with the fire.

The Christian writer Tertullian (c. 155- 230) was the first to call Nero the first persecutor of Christians. He wrote Examine your records. There you will find that Nero was the first that persecuted this doctrine. Lactantius (c. 240- 320) also said Nero first persecuted the servants of God as does Sulpicius Severus. However, some sources speak of earlier Christian persecution, namely Claudius' expulsion of Christians from Rome.

Killer of Peter and Paul

The first text to suggest that Nero killed an apostle is the apocryphal Ascension of Isaiah, a Christian writing from the 2nd century. It says the slayer of his mother, who himself this king, will persecute the plant which the Twelve Apostles of the Beloved have planted. Of the Twelve one will be delivered into his hands.

The Bishop Eusebius of Caesarea (c. 275- 339) was the first to write that Paul was beheaded in Rome during the reign of Nero. He states that Nero's persecution led to Peter and Paul's deaths, but that Nero did not give any specific orders. Several other accounts have Paul surviving his two years in Rome and traveling to Hispania.

Peter is first said to have been crucified upside down in Rome during Nero's reign (but not by Nero) in the apocryphal Acts of Peter (c. 200). The account ends with Paul still alive and Nero abiding by God's command not to persecute any more Christians.

By the 4th century, a number of writers were stating that Nero killed Peter and Paul.

The Antichrist

Main article: Number of the Beast

The Ascension of Isaiah the first text to suggest that Nero was the Antichrist. It claims a lawless king, the slayer of his mother,...will come and there will come with him all the powers of this world, and they will hearken unto him in all that he desires.

The Sibylline Oracles, Book 5 and 8, written in the 2nd century, speaks of Nero returning and bringing destruction. Within Christian communities, these writings, along with others, fueled the belief that Nero would return as the Antichrist. In 310, Lactantius wrote that Nero suddenly disappeared, and even the burial-place of that noxious wild beast was nowhere to be seen. This has led some persons of extravagant imagination to suppose that, having been conveyed to a distant region, he is still reserved alive; and to him they apply the Sibylline verses.

In 422, Augustine of Hippo wrote about 2 Thessalonians 2:1–11, where he believed Paul mentioned the coming of the Antichrist. Though he rejects the theory, Augustine mentions that many Christians believed that Nero was the Antichrist or would return as the Antichrist. He wrote, so that in saying, "For the mystery of iniquity doth already work," he alluded to Nero, whose deeds already seemed to be as the deeds of Antichrist.;

Some scholars, such as Delbert Hillers (Johns Hopkins University) of the American Schools of Oriental Research and the editors of the Oxford & Harper Collins translations, contend that the number 666 in the Book of Revelation is a code for Nero, a view that is also supported in Roman Catholic Biblical commentaries.

The concept of Nero as the Antichrist is often a central belief of Preterist eschatology.

Nero in post-ancient culture

Nero in medieval and Renaissance literature

Usually as a stock exemplar of vice or a bad ruler

• In the Golden Legend, and its apocryphal account of his forcing Seneca the Younger's suicide, where they meet face to face on this occasion.
• In Geoffrey Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, The Monk's Prologue and Tale.
• Giovanni Boccaccio's Concerning the Falls of Illustrious Men.
• Matthew Gwinn wrote a play Nero in 1603.

Nero in modern culture

Main article: Nero in popular culture

Ancestors

Nero's ancestors in three generations

Nero	Father: Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus	Paternal Grandfather: Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus	Paternal Great-grandfather: Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus
			Paternal Great-grandmother: Aemilia Lepida
		Paternal Grandmother: Antonia Major	Paternal Great-grandfather: Mark Antony
			Paternal Great-grandmother: Octavia Minor
	Mother: Agrippina the Younger	Maternal Grandfather: Germanicus	Maternal Great-grandfather: Nero Claudius Drusus
			Maternal Great-grandmother: Antonia Minor
		Maternal Grandmother: Agrippina the Elder	Maternal Great-grandfather: Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa
			Maternal Great-grandmother: Julia the Elder

References

Primary sources

• Cassius Dio, Roman History, Books 61–63 (c. 229)
• Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, Book XX (c. 94)
• Josephus, War of the Jews, Books II-VI (c. 94)
• Philostratus II, Life of Apollonius Tyana, Books 4–5, (c. 220)
• Plutarch, The Parallel Lives, The Life of Galba (c. 110)
• Suetonius, The Lives of Twelve Caesars, the Life of Nero (c. 121)
• Tacitus, Annals, XIII–XVI (c. 117)
• Tacitus, Histories, I-IV (c. 105)

Secondary material

• Nero basic data & select quotes posted by Romans On Line
• Nero biography by Herbert W. Benario in De Imperatoribus Romanis
• Nero Caesar biographical sketch archived in Bible History Online
• Nero Claudius Drusus Germanicus entry in the Illustrated History of the Roman Empire
• Nero entry in historical sourcebook by Mahlon H. Smith
• Nero Nero:The Actor-Emperor
• Grant, Michael. Nero. New York: Dorset Press, 1989 (ISBN 0-88029-311-X).
• Griffin, Miriam T. Nero: The End of a Dynasty. New Heaven, CT; London: Yale University Press, 1985 (hardcover, ISBN 0-300-03285-4); London; New York: Routledge, 1987 (paperback, ISBN 0-7134-4465-7).
• Warmington, Brian Herbert. Nero: Reality and Legend (Ancient Culture and Society). London, Chatto & Windus, 1969 (hardcover, ISBN 0-7011-1438-X); New York: W.W Norton & Company, 1970 (paperback, ISBN 0-393-00542-9); New York: Vintage, 1981 (paperback, ISBN 0-7011-1454-1).

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