Nero: The Julio-Claudian Emperors Of Rome

There is a saying that if you do one good thing and one bad, people will always remember you for the bad. A possible cause for this being that humans would rather see the bad in others versus the bad in themselves. This is especially true for many world leaders who often have the possibility of “messing things up” on a much bigger scale. A good example of this is Nero, the last of the Julio-Claudian emperors of Rome. Nero’s legend was truly a product of his mother. Telling Nero’s story would be impossible without including his mother’s doings. Nero and his mother changed Rome both physically and mentally as well as in good ways and bad.
In order to properly understand Nero, his history must first be understood. Nero, or Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, …show more content…
Some of Nero’s greatest contributions to the Roman Empire included eliminating capital punishment and allowing slaves to bring complaints against their masters. For some time Nero even lowered taxes. He was also an avid supporter of the arts and athletics. As a matter of fact, when he committed suicide his last words were “what an artist dies in me!” Nero even gave aid to other cities in …show more content…
Nero’s mother, was dominant and commanding in both the public and private aspects of Nero’s life. This may have led Nero to revolt and do some of the atrocities in the Roman Empire. Considering Nero was 17 this may have been his form of retaliating against his mother. Almost like a teenager today would, except Nero’s temper tantrum would be projected on a much bigger scale considering he was the emperor of the Roman Empire. Agrippina is said to have managed all of the business concerning the empire including receiving embassies and communicating with various communities, governors and kings. Almost as though Agrippina was “reigning” through Nero. This could be considered today’s equivalent to a mother living out her dream of being an actress through her daughter. At one point, Agrippina was adamant in turning the people against Nero. Nero would not tolerate this and banished her from the palace. He was later fed up and Agrippina was murdered at Nero’s command. During his reign, managed to kill his step-brother, wife, mother, and second wife. All murders were done in cold blood for his personal achievements. The murders of Nero’s mother and wives were only the beginning of atrocities during Nero’s reign in the Roman