- For other uses, see Nero (disambiguation).
Nero
Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (December 15, 37–June 9, 68), born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, also called (50–54) Nero Claudius Drusus Germanicus, was the fifth and last Roman Emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. On February 25, 50 Nero became heir to the then-Emperor, his grand-uncle and adoptive father Claudius, as Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus, succeeding to the throne on October 13, 54 with Claudius' death. In 66 he added the prefix Imperator to his name. In 68 Nero was deposed. His subsequent death was reportedly the result of suicide assisted by his scribe Epaphroditos.
Sources on Nero
In discussing Nero's life and reign, it should be noted that the primary sources may not be reliable. These works were mainly written by the Roman historians Suetonius and Tacitus, both of whom were of Senatorial rank, and who wrote half a century after the events they describe. Their description of the events of Nero's reign are suspect because Nero was known to persecute elements of the Senatorial class.
Life
Family
Born in Antium (modern day Anzio), he was the only son of Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus and Agrippina the younger, sister and reputed lover of Caligula.
His father was grandson to an elder Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus and Aemilia Lepida through their son Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus. He was also great-grandson to Mark Antony and Octavia through their daughter Antonia Major.
His mother was the namesake of her own mother Agrippina the elder who was granddaughter to Octavia's brother Caesar Augustus and his wife Scribonia through their daughter Julia Caesaris and her husband Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa. His maternal grandfather Germanicus was himself grandson to Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia, adoptive grandson to her second husband Caesar Augustus, nephew and adoptive son of Tiberius, son of Drusus through his wife Antonia Minor (sister to Antonia Major), and brother to Claudius.
Rise to power
Birth under Caligula
Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus was born on December 15, 37. At the time he was not expected to ever become Augustus. His maternal uncle Caligula had only started his own reign on March 16 of that year at the age of twenty-five. His predecessors Octavian and Tiberius had lived to become seventy-six and seventy-nine respectively. Providing that Caligula lived long enough to match them, he could produce his own heirs.
Lucius would come to the attention of his uncle soon after his birth. Agrippina reportedly asked her brother to name the child. This would be an act of favor and would mark the child as a possible heir to his uncle. However Caligula only offered to name his nephew Claudius after their lame and stuttering uncle, apparently implying that he was as unlikely to become Augustus as Claudius.
The relationship between brother and sister would soon apparently improve. A prominent scandal early in the new reign was Caligula's particularly close relationship to his three sisters Drusilla, Julia Livilla, and Agrippina. All three are featured with their brother in Roman currency of the time. The three women seem to have gained his favor and likely some amount of influence. The writings of Josephus, Suetonius, and Dio Cassius report on their reputed sexual relationship with their brother. Drusilla's sudden death in 38 would apparently only serve to ensure this belief: she was reportedly Caligula's favorite and was consequently buried with the honors of an Augusta. Caligula proceeded in having her deified, the first woman in Roman history to achieve this honor.
Lucius had then become the son of an influential and notorious woman. But she would soon lose her position by her brother. Caligula had remained childless. His closest male relatives at the time were his brothers-in-law Marcus Aemilius Lepidus (husband of Drusilla), Marcus Vinicius (husband of Livilla), and Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus (husband of Agrippina). They were the likely heirs should Caligula die early. However, after the death of his wife, Lepidus apparently lost his chances, though not his ambitions, to succeed his brother-in-law.
Conspiracies
In September 39 Caligula left Rome with his escort, heading north to join his legions in a campaign against the Germanic tribes. The campaign had to be postponed for the following year due to Caligula's preoccupation with a conspiracy against him. Reportedly Lepidus had managed to become lover to both Agrippina and Livilla, apparently seeking their help in gaining the throne. Consequently, he was immediately executed. Caligula also ordered the execution of Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Gaetulicus, the popular Legate of Germania Superior, and his replacement with Servius Sulpicius Galba. However, it remains uncertain whether he was connected to Lepidus' conspiracy. Agrippina and Livilla were soon exiled to the Pontian islands. Lucius was presumably separated from his mother at this point.
Lucius' father died of edema in 40. Lucius was now effectively an orphan with an uncertain fate under the increasingly erratic Caligula. His luck would change again the following year. On January 24, 41 Caligula, his wife Caesonia Milonia, and their infant daughter Julia Drusilla were murdered by a conspiracy under Cassius Chaera. The Praetorian Guard helped Claudius gain the throne. Among Claudius' first decisions was the recalling of his nieces from exile.
Agrippina was soon remarried to the wealthy Gaius Sallustius Crispus Passienus. He died between 44 and 47, and Agrippina was reportedly suspected of poisoning him in order to inherit his fortune. Lucius was the only heir to his now-wealthy mother.
Adoption by Claudius
Ten-year-old Lucius was still considered unlikely to ever gain the throne. Claudius, fifty-seven years old at this point, had reigned longer than his predecessor and arguably more effectively. Claudius had already had three marriages. He had married Plautia Urgulanilla and Aelia Paetina as a private citizen. He was married to Valeria Messalina as an Augustus. They had two children, Britannicus (b. 41) and Octavia (b. 42). Messalina was still only twenty-five years old and likely to produce more heirs.
Messalina, however, was executed in 48, accused of conspiring against her husband. The ambitious Agrippina soon set her sights upon replacing her deceased aunt. On January 1, 49 she became the fourth wife of Tiberius Claudius Nero Caesar Drusus. The marriage would last for five years.
Early in the year 50 the Roman Senate offered Agrippina the honorable title of Augusta, previously only held by Livia (14-29). On February 25, 50 Lucius was officially adopted by Claudius as Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus (see adoption in Rome). Nero was older than his adoptive brother Britannicus and effectively became heir to the throne at the time of his adoption.
Claudius honored his adoptive son in several ways. 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 adoptive sister Octavia.
Emperor
Becoming Augustus
Claudius died on October 13, 54, and Nero was soon established as Augustus in his place. He was seventeen years old, the youngest Emperor yet. Historians generally consider Nero to have acted as a figurehead early in his reign. Actual decisions were likely to have been left to the more capable hands of his mother Agrippina the younger (whom Tacitus claims poisoned Claudius), his tutor Seneca, and the praefectus praetorianus Burrus. The first five years under Nero became known as examples of fine administration, even resulting in the coinage of the term "Quinquennium Neronis".
The matters of the Empire were handled effectively and the Senate enjoyed a period of renewed influence in state affairs. Problems, however, would soon arise from Nero's personal life and the increasing competition for influence among Agrippina and the two male advisers. Nero was reportedly unsatisfied with his marriage and tended to neglect Octavia. He 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. Burrus and Seneca, on the other hand, chose to support their charge's decision.
Nero resisted the intervention of his mother in his personal affairs. Her influence over her son declining, Agrippina turned to a younger candidate for the throne. Fifteen-year-old Britannicus was still legally a minor under the charge of Nero but was approaching legal adulthood. Britannicus was a likely heir to Nero and ensuring her influence over him could strengthen her position. However, the youth died suddenly and suspiciously on February 12, 55. His proclamation as an adult had been set for February 13. The timing suggests poisoning and Burrus is suspected to have been involved in this murder. As Nero grew angrier at Agrippina’s unofficial rule through him, he began to plot his own mother’s murder, justifying his tactics by claiming she was conspiring against him, which was not the case. Agrippina's power soon further declined while Burrus and Seneca jointly became the most influential men in Rome. Nero was so furious with his mother, Agrippina, because she was sharing the power with him, that he told soldiers to kill her. It was said that he was "haunted" by his mother's ghosts later on.
A series of scandals
While his advisers took care of affairs of state, Nero surrounded himself with a circle of favorites. Roman historians report nights of drunken revelry and violence while more mundane matters of politics were neglected. Among his new favorites was Marcus Salvius Otho. By all accounts Otho was as dissolute as Nero but served as a good and intimate friend to him. Some sources even consider them to be lovers. Otho early introduced Nero to one particular woman who would marry first the favorite (Otho) and then the Emperor: Poppaea Sabina, described as a woman of great beauty, charm, and wit. Gossip of Nero, Otho, and Poppaea each forming parts of a love triangle can be found in numerous sources (Plutarch Galba 19.2-20.2; Suetonius Otho iii.1-2; Tacitus two versions: Histories 1.13.3-4; Annals xiii.45-46; and Dio Cassius lxi.11.2-4).
By 58, Poppaea had become established in her position as Nero's favorite mistress. The following year (59) would mark a turning point in the emperor's reign. Nero and/or Poppaea reportedly machinated the murder of Agrippina. Seneca attempted to convince the Senate that she was orchestrating a conspiracy against her son, but the reputation of the Emperor was damaged beyond repair by this case of matricide. Otho was soon also removed from the imperial court, and sent to Lusitania as governor.
The next turning point would be the year 62, for several reasons.
The first would be a change of guard amongst Nero's advisers. Burrus died and Seneca asked Nero for permission to retire from public affairs. Their replacement as praetorian praefect and counselor was Gaius Ofonius Tigellinus. Tigellinus had been exiled in 39 by Caligula on charges of adultery with both Agrippina and Livilla, only to be recalled from exile by Claudius. Ambitious, Tigellinus managed to become a favorite of Nero (and, reputedly, his lover). Along with Poppaea he was considered to hold greater influence with the Augustus than Seneca ever could. One theory suggests that Poppaea attempted, in the four years prior (58-62), to separate Nero from his counselors and friends; in this case, what happened to Burrus and Seneca may not have been casual.
The second significant event of the year was the divorce of the Emperor. Nero was now twenty-five years old, had reigned for eight years, and had yet to produce an heir. When Poppaea became pregnant, Nero finally decided to marry his mistress, but his marriage to Octavia had to be dissolved before doing so. At first he resorted to accusing her of adultery. However, Nero had already gained a reputation for this offense while Octavia was reputed to be an example of virtue. Some testimony was needed against her, but torturing one of her slaves only produced the famous declaration of Pythias reporting the genitalia of Octavia to be cleaner than the mouth of Tigellinus. Nero proceeded to declare the divorce on grounds of infertility, leaving him free to marry Poppaea and wait for her to give birth. However, the sudden death of Octavia on June 9, 62 resulted in incidents of public protest.
One of the earliest effects of Tigellinus' advancement was the introduction of a series of treason laws; numerous capital sentences were carried out. During the same year, Nero executed two of his few remaining relatives:
Disturbed peace and major rebellions
In 61 AD a major rebellion broke out in the new province of Britannia, centered upon the native tribal leader Boudicca, Queen of the Iceni, who had been flogged and whose daughters had been raped by the Romans. The rebellion was eventually crushed, but the military and civilian casualties and the total destruction of three cities were a heavy toll to pay. The fault of Nero in this rebellion is debatable but there was certainly an impact (both positive and negative) upon the prestige of his regime.
Early in 63 Poppaea gave birth to a daughter: Claudia Augusta. Nero celebrated the event but the child died four months later. Nero still lacked an heir.
Great Fire of Rome
On the night July 18 to July 19, 64 the Great fire of Rome erupted. The fire started in densely populated areas like the Suburra, in which had been built the insulae, wooden dwellings, built on three or four floors. Nero was reportedly vacationing in his native Anzio but had to return in haste. The fire burned for a week. Rumor circulated that Nero had played his lyre and sang, on top of Quirinal Hill, while the city burned. (Tacitus, Ann. xv; Suetonius, Nero xxxvii; Dio Cassius, R.H. lxii.) Over the years, this turned to a legend that Nero had fiddled as Rome burned, an impossible act as the fiddle had not yet been invented. The same accounts depict him opening his palaces to provide shelter for the homeless and arranging for food supplies to be delivered in order to prevent starvation among the survivors. However, Nero lost his chances at redeeming his reputation when he immediately produced plans of rebuilding Rome in a monumental –and less inflammable – style.
The confused population searched for a scapegoat and soon rumors held Nero responsible. The motivation attributed to him was intending to immortalize his name by renaming Rome to "Neropolis". Nero had to engage in scapegoating of his own and chose for his target a small Eastern sect called Christians. He ordered known Christians to be thrown to the lions in arenas, while others were crucified in large numbers.
Gaius Cornelius Tacitus, a Roman historian, has preserved a record of this affair. We quote the following from his Annals (xv.44):
- "And so, to get rid of this rumor, Nero set up [i.e., falsely accused] as the culprits and punished with the utmost refinement of cruelty a class hated for their abominations, who are commonly called Christians. Nero’s scapegoats (the Christians) were the perfect choice because it temporarily relieved pressure of the various rumors going around Rome. Christus, from whom their name is derived, was executed at the hands of the procurator Pontius Pilate in the reign of Tiberius. Checked for a moment, this pernicious superstition again broke out, not only in Iudaea, the source of the evil, but even in Rome... Accordingly, arrest was first made of those who confessed; then, on their evidence, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much on the charge of arson as because of [their] hatred for the human race. Besides being put to death they were made to serve as objects of amusement; they were clothed in the hides of beasts and torn to death by dogs; others were crucified, others set on fire to serve to illuminate the night when daylight failed. Nero had thrown open his grounds for the display, and was putting on a show in the circus, where he mingled with the people in the dress of charioteer or drove about in his chariot. All this gave rise to a feeling of pity, even towards men whose guilt merited the most exemplary punishment; for it was felt that they were being destroyed not for the public good but to gratify the cruelty of an individual."
It is entirely unknown who or what was the cause of the fire. Although our ancient sources (and scholars) favor Nero as the arsonist, it is worth pointing out that fires were common in ancient Rome. His famous Domus Aurea ("Golden House") was part of his rebuilding plan.
Nero the artist and the widower
In 65 Nero was involved in another scandal, considered more serious by the people of that era than it would be now. It was considered shameful for a Roman emperor to appear as a public entertainer, acting, singing, and playing his lyre.
Hated by many citizens, with an increasing list of political enemies, Nero started to appreciate his loneliness, when in 65 he discovered the Pisonian conspiracy (named after Gaius Calpurnius Piso, who intended to take his place) and the involvement of old friends like Seneca in the plot. Conspirators were forced into suicide.
In addition, Nero ordered that Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo, a popular and valuable general, commit suicide because of the mere suspicion of new threats. This decision moved military commanders, locally and in the provinces, to start planning a revolution. Also at about this time, according to tradition, Nero personally ordered the crucifixion of Saint Peter and, later, the beheading of Paul of Tarsus.
In 66 Poppaea died, supposedly by the hand of Nero himself. The emperor left for Greece in 67, where he amused his hosts with other artistic performances, while in Rome Nymphidius (a colleague of Tigellinus, taking the place of one of the Pisonian conspirators) was collecting the support of praetorians and Senators.
Suicide
Back in Rome after the tournée, Nero found quite a cold atmosphere; Gaius Julius Vindex, the governor of Gallia Lugdunensis, revolted, and this brought Nero to a paranoid hunt for eventual threats; in this state of mind he ordered the elimination of any patrician with suspect ideas. His (once) faithful servant Galba, governor of Iberia (Portugal and Spain), was one of those dangerous nobles, so he ordered his death. Galba, lacking an alternative choice, declared his loyalty to the Senate and the People of Rome (Senatus Populusque Romanus: SPQR), no longer recognizing Nero's power. Moreover, he started organizing his own campaign for the empire.
As a result, Lucius Clodius Macer, legate of the legion III Augusta in Africa, revolted and stopped sending grain to Rome. Nymphidius corrupted the imperial guard, which turned against Nero on the promise of financial reward by Galba.
The Senate deposed Nero, who committed suicide on June 9, 68. It is said that he uttered these last words before stabbing himself in the neck: "What an artist the world is losing in me!"/"What an artist dies in me!" With his death, the Julio-Claudian dynasty came to an end. Chaos ensued in the Year of the four emperors.
Depictions of Nero
Depictions in later legends
A Jewish legend contained in the Talmud (tractate Gittin 56B) claims that Nero shot four arrows to the four corners of the earth, and they fell in Jerusalem. Thus he realized that the Lord had decided to allow the Temple to be destroyed. He also requested a Jewish religious student to show him the Bible verse most appropriate to that situation, and the young boy read to Nero Ezekiel's prophecy about God's revenge on the nation of Edom (Ezekiel 25) for their destruction of Jerusalem. Nero thus realized that the Lord would punish him for destroying his Temple, so he fled Rome and converted to Judaism, to avoid such retribution. In this telling, his descendant is Rabbi Meir, a prominent supporter of Bar Kokhba's rebellion against Roman rule.
Depiction in the New Testament
Most scholars believe that the Number of the Beast, 666, featured in the Book of Revelation is a reference to Nero. Feared and despised for his persecution of the Christians, Nero would be a likely target at the time Revelation was written. The letters of Nero's name, when transliterated into Hebrew, add to six hundred sixty-six. See Number_of_the_Beast_(numerology) for a more detailed discussion.
Depictions in fiction
Depictions in Culture
- Nero Burning ROM is a popular CD-RW burning program; the name is a play on the traditional idea of him burning Rome. One of the icons for the program shows the Colosseum in Rome with flames around it. It should be noted that this is historically inaccurate as the Colosseum was built by the emperors Vespesian, Titus, and Domitian on top of the razed Domus Aurea.
- In the third book of Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, the evil school principal is called Nero. He is a harsh and uncompromising despot who forces his students to listen to his violin concerts; a clear allusion to the fiddle-playing emperor myth.
- In the classic British children's television show, Danger Mouse, the villainous Baron Greenback has a fluffy white pet caterpillar named Nero.
See also
External links
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