11/14/2022 0 Comments Nero 8 issues![]() ![]() In such a desperate situation, without reliable channels of information, it is easy to see how rumours could start. This is freely admitted by the historian Tacitus: even though Nero was out of Rome when the fire started, a rumour spread that the emperor had sung of the destruction of Troy from his palace stage.Ĭassius Dio describes chaos in the streets as the fire took hold, as people ran about asking each other how the blaze started. If we examine our historical accounts closely, the only evidence for Nero the arsonist comes from rumour and hearsay. The Fire of Rome by Hubert Robert (1785) Google Art Project/Wikimedia There is a modern myth that the new palace was built solely for parties and orgies. The second reason often proffered is that Nero wanted to rebuild Rome according to his own plans, which included a sumptuous new residence for himself, the “Golden House” ( Domus Aurea). There is a story told by Suetonius that when a man said to Nero, ‘When I am dead, let the earth be consumed by fire’, the emperor replied, ‘No, while I live!’ The first is that he was a mad megalomaniac who burned down the city simply because he could. There are two reasons usually given for why Nero set fire to Rome. While most scholars now agree that Nero was not responsible for the fire, the modern-day rumour mill (as represented by the Internet) is loath to exonerate the emperor. 64 appearing in the histories of Tacitus and Cassius Dio and the biography of Nero by Suetonius. Nero had a reputation as an arsonist even in antiquity, with rumours that he started the Fire of Rome in A.D. This is because they are reported by sources as rumours, rather than facts. These tales can be found in our ancient historical sources (all of which were written at least a generation after Nero’s death) but should not be taken at face value. ![]()
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