Emperor Nero

Emperor Nero came into power at a young age thanks to his power hungry mother Agrippina. She married emperor Claudius, had Nero adopted and then poisoned the emperor with a plate of lovely mushrooms. Nero's tutor Seneca did well at first so much so that his first years of rule were exemplary but Seneca was no match for Nero's avid wives. Nero probably realised that the women in his life were outdoing him and so he proceeded to murder his wife and mother. In fact doing away with his mother took several attempts. His failed family life and his taunted aspirations as an athlete and artist drove him absolutely potty.

Much of Rome burnt down in a fire which sprang in dubious circumstances. He sped back to rome from holiday and did his best to aid the poor citizens but he soon recovered and proceeded to confiscated the land and build his own megalomaniac palace and gardens over much of it. The "vox populi" was that he intended to rename Rome "Neronia" and that the Roman citizens would soon have to relocate to the nearby city of Veii to find a home. He tried to divert attention from himself by ferociously persecuting the Christians but eventually he had little alternative but to commit suicide.

He is best remembered for the burning of Rome and possibly for having been the first and only to introduce ten horse chariots to the Circus Maximus. Republican writers had a field day with his biography and much of it was based on his hated mother's memoirs so it is possible that some of the ill things they say about Emperor Nero are a little exaggerated.

A More Detailed Account of Emperor Nero...

During his youth Nero was tutored by the stoic philosopher Seneca who had been recalled from the exile which Caligula had inflicted upon him. Seneca at first succeeded to teach Nero to rule with love so that his subjects might love him back and remember him when he might die. When Nero became emperor Seneca wrote him a speech for the senate in which the new emperor pronounced he would circumscribe his rule to commanding the army whilst Seneca and Agrippina would look after affairs of state. During these early years Nero is said to have refused statues in his honour from being erected and even more interestingly to have done his utmost to avoid sentencing people to death.

But sure enough Agrippina's hunger for power was not satisfied and Seneca's hold on Nero caused her displeasure and she plainly wanted to wield power alone. Seneca and the captain of the Praetorian guards warned Nero. Agrippina was angered by this and threatened to have Nero replaced by Claudius' son Britanicus to which Nero responded by having the latter killed and his mother confined to her quarters.

Many years later, emperor Trajan was to define Nero's first stint as emperor as "Rome's greatest period".

Nero turns Bad

Nero was now in his mid twenties and it is difficult to decide where the blame lies for the subsequent dark period of his rule. Possibly his mother's excessive meddling, perhaps the sudden friendship with the artistic elite through Petronius or most likely his meeting with a woman called Poppea who was as power hungry as his own mother Agrippina but far younger and more beautiful.

Poppea was keen to become empress and so refocused Nero back onto his job as emperor. She also set about eliminating distracting influences such as Seneca and Agrippina: bad news. When Nero went to his mother to ask for permission to divorce from his wife, Tacitus tells us that Agrippina went as far as offering herself to him. Possibly true, possibly made up, but in that climate anyone could go potty.

Nero feared his mother and didn't have the courage to eliminate her himself. It seems he made various attempts before actually succeeding. He also lost his mind in the process.

As well as losing his mind he also laid waste to the treasury and so it wasn't long before he set to confiscating the wealth of any opponents he might find on his path, particularly the senators. Seneca attempted to reign Nero in but soon realised that there was little hope for him to do any good and so he retired, thus removing the last hope of sanity in the Empire.

Popular memory of Nero from then on is not flattering although one should also remember this was an age of "dog eat dog". Nero is said to have had artistic and theatrical ambitions which was hardly in keeping with the role which had been thrust upon him by Agrippina and Poppea. By his mid to late twenties Nero was but a shadow of his former self and quite devoted to feasting rather than fasting. It wasn't long before he had his former wife Octavia exiled and then murdered. The people of Rome were horrified.

A particularly important moment came ten years into his reign: An enormous fire burned down much of Rome. In terms of scale this event was not dissimilar to the great fire of London. Nero is said to have done much to help the citizens: Grain was sold at a heavily discounted price, the palace gardens were opened so that refugees might have somewhere to go and new buildings were constructed to provide housing. However the vox populi (the voice on the street) was that Nero had lit the fire himself and while Rome burned he had sung and played his lyre.

Nero's Persecution of the Christians

Nero was frightened by this and as a good Tyrant he set about finding a useful scapegoat in the growing Christian community. The fact that the Christians refused to worship the emperor's image or the other Roman gods set them apart from other citizens. Nero blamed them for the fire and had many of them put to death in a manner of ways, such as crucifixion, burning at the stake or even throwing them to be savaged by wild beasts and dogs. The manner in which the Christians were persecuted was so severe, even by the standard of the times, that they were pitied by many.

After the city had burned Nero had much of it rebuilt, however he utilised a significant part to build his own palace, known as the Golden House (Domus Aurea), which unified the imperial properties on the Palatine and Esquiline hills. The palace was so enormous that it was in effect a small citadel and it is said that the entrance hall was so lofty that it could house a statue of the emperor some 40meters in height (120 feet). The historian Tacitus tells us that the views over the gardens and vineyards were even more beautiful than the buildings and Nero himself felt it was sufficiently grandiose to boast about.

During construction of the palace Poppea died of an abortion. Nero was deeply affected by this. It is said that whilst he walked the streets of Rome in despair he met a young man who reminded him of Poppea. He had the man castrated and then married him.

It is interesting to note that it is as a consequence of this fire that special legislation was passed in Rome in order to render the city more secure against fires. For example the use of concrete was encouraged rather than wood. Streets were also made wider, partly in order to render it more difficult for fire to spread. This was a turning point in city planning and construction and buildings such as the Colosseum and Pantheon owe something to this episode.

However Nero grew increasingly paranoid and tyrannical which lead to plots being formed against him. Many were put to death to do away with the increasing number of enemies but eventually the armies in the provinces began to revolt and his own Praetorian guard refused to protect him. The senate saw that Nero was alone and set to ensure the support of the Praetorian guard after which they sentenced him to death by whipping. On hearing this Nero preferred to commit suicide. When dying he is said to have exclaimed "what an artist dies with me!".

You might also have a look at what it was to be emperor or "imperator". A list of roman emperors. A general look at famous romans such as scaevola "the left handed".

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"Emperor Nero" was written by Giovanni Milani-Santarpia for www.mariamilani.com - Rome apartments