Emperor Nero (37-68 A.D.):

History's Most Notorious Arsonist and Fiddler

He inhabits the worst of Roman infamy and his name has become synonymous with criminal disregard for suffering because of the rumor that he played the fiddle during the Great Fire of Rome.

Whether myths about his reign are true or apocryphal, Nero’s blood-soaked reputation is well earned. He ruled Rome from 54 to 68 A.D., a tumultuous time that saw revolts in Britain (60 - 61 A.D.) and Judea (66 - 70 A.D.). Following the disastrous fire of Rome, he blamed the Christian population for the alleged arson, ordering many to be burned or crucified. Other infamous acts include murdering multiple members of his family because of his paranoia about intrigues against his rule. He is also believed by early church history to be responsible for the martyrdoms of Peter and Paul, a plausible theory since the two church leaders died in Rome, according to tradition, and Nero was the first emperor to persecute the church. He cast such a large shadow over the early church that quite a few theologians then and even today thought he was the Anti-Christ described in the book of Revelations.

Born just outside of Rome on the 15th day of December, 37 A.D., Nero was the last ruler of the Julio-Claudian dynasty to serve as Emperor of Rome. Originally named Domitius, the boy who later became known as Nero was extremely artistic and given to passions. It was his mother, Agrippina, who pushed him to become emperor and who essentially orchestrated his rise to power.

In 49 A.D., Agrippina married her uncle, the emperor Claudius, in an effort to ensure that Domitius had a claim to the throne. At the time, the only other person standing between Domitius and the imperial throne was Britannicus, the son of Claudius. Agrippina was able to convince Claudius to adopt Domitius as his own and they renamed him Nero. Cunning as she was, Agrippina was still unable to close the deal that would result in Claudius naming Nero as his successor over Britannicus. So Agrippina had her husband poisoned.

In truth, Nero did have a legitimate claim to the throne. If one were to trace his mother’s lineage, one would find that Nero was the only living direct male descendant of the emperor Augustus. But the final decision was to rest in the hands of Claudius and when it didn’t look like he would give in to his wife’s demands, Claudius found himself a casualty in an unwitting war with a very determined woman. Nero became emperor at the age of 17.

Nero ruled 54 -- 68 A.D. with the promise of returning to the principles with which the great emperor Augustus had ruled. Despite having Britannicus poisoned just a year after becoming emperor, Nero seemed to demonstrate seamless governance during the first five years of his reign and quality leadership because of the wisdom of his two advisers, Burrus and Seneca, the philosopher. Agrippina also attempted to rule Rome jointly with her son. Her face even appeared on the coinage beside the emperor’s face. But it was the counsel of Burrus and Seneca advising Nero to refuse Agrippina’s wishes to rule Rome vicariously through her son that eventually led to her execution in 59 A.D.

It is said that one of Nero’s goals was to essentially re-brand Rome. He wanted the outside world to see Rome as a place of humanity and beauty, not violence. But his dream would not come to pass in his lifetime. By 60 A.D., Rome was in turmoil. Revolts against Nero spread throughout provinces such as Britain. Also, costly wars and the emperor’s lavish spending had all but destroyed Rome’s currency. Taxes skyrocketed.

In 62 A.D., Nero lost his advisors: Burrus died and Seneca retired and his reign took a horrific turn for the worse. Nero divorced, then executed his first wife, Octavia, and married his mistress Poppaea. In 64 A.D., Nero was suspected of starting the fire that destroyed much of Rome. In the aftermath of that fire, Nero did well in serving his subjects by opening municipal buildings and even his own garden to house those who were made homeless by the fire. But in an effort to conduct a bit of damage control and reputation management, Nero re-directed his own anger and the discontent of his subjects as a whole toward Christians, whom he used as scapegoats to carry the burdens of Rome’s problems. This began a long and bloody campaign of torture and murder for the last four years of his rule. Many of the torturous atrocities with which he is charged are the result of the Christian persecutions that occurred right after the fire.

In a series of separate revolts beginning with one led by Gaius Calpurnius Piso in 65 A.D., many high-profile Romans were rounded up and executed. His former adviser Seneca was one of the men killed during those revolts. That same year, perhaps overcome with frustrations or perhaps just too impatient to wait for a divorce, Nero is believed to have kicked and stomped his second wife, Poppaea, to death. He married his third wife, Statilia Messalina, several years later after having her husband executed. Revolts reached Judea and lasted there for four years, between 66 A.D. and 70 A.D.

During his reign, Nero was successfully able to imprint a bit of Greek culture onto the citizens of the Roman Empire, despite the fact that Romans often faulted Nero for his love of all things Greek. As well, Rome extended its borders while Nero ruled. He is credited with establishing Armenia as a geographic buffer between the Roman Empire and Iran.

Nero’s rule came to an end in 68 A.D. when the Roman senate declared him a public enemy after economic troubles and a near-complete uprising caused Nero to flee Rome. He committed suicide on June 9th of that year. The controversy over who would succeed him launched Rome into civil war. As we can see, Nero's short reign left behind a legacy of war in which he could brutalize his subjects even from beyond the grave.