Emperors #5: Nero - The Showman Emperor

We’ve come a long way since the time of Augustus, and there was no longer any pretense of a republic. Rome was now a hereditary monarchy and Nero had seen the Empire as his personal inheritance, his right by blood. Augustus and his direct successor Tiberius had to strike a fine balance between exorcising their power and paying lip-service to the senate.
Throughout his reign, Nero displayed little interest in actually governing the Empire but he loved the recognition and fame that came with the position, and as H. H. Scullard writes in his book ‘From the Gracchi to Nero’ ‘He wrote poetry and the few surviving fragments do not suggest total lack of merit.’ And considering he spent most of his time devoted to his artistic pursuits we can’t certainly expect a total lack of skill. However, he was probably not as good as he thought.

Created by:
The SPQR Historian
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