Emperors of Rome | Dynasty’s End: The Fall of Nero (Lecture 16)

Lecture 16: The last years of Nero’s reign were close to chaotic, and the emperor himself was increasingly disengaged from reality. He completed his Golden House, visited Greece, and returned triumphant, with 1,808 first prizes “won” in athletic festivals. He was also increasingly paranoid and executed anyone suspected of plotting against him, especially members of his family. In 65, a conspiracy was uncovered (and suppressed), but Nero did not heed the warning. Finally, in the summer of 68, the armies in Gaul and Spain turned against him. Although the first revolt was put down, the second, in Spain, gathered force. Deserted by his armies, then by the Senate, Nero fled the city and perished after driving a dagger into his own throat. His murder of many family members as threats ensured that the Julio-Claudian house perished with him.

Essential Reading:
Cassius Dio, Roman History, book 63.
Suetonius, Nero.
Tacitus, Annals, 15–16.
Champlin, Nero, especially pp. 1–52 and 210–237.

Supplementary Reading:
DIR, “Nero.”
Griffin, Nero: The End of a Dynasty, especially chapters 9–10.