Up near zero krona just shy of seventeen a mere teenager when he was vested with absolute power over the mightiest empire in the world of the roman empire. Emperor nero was remembered as the incarnation of evil one of the greatest despots in history a monster and a madman. He killed his brother. His mother and ordered his own wife to be put to death. He was a frustrated artist who made a fool of himself and the imperial throne. But there is evidence that nero was not the crazed and capricious ruler that hes been made up to be. Could nero be the victim of a smear campaign. Did use early biographers distort the facts monday morning. Was his reign. Are his reputed crimes nothing but slander. Narrow range in an era shaped by fear of morality and brutality his world is distant to us as another planet. And yet its straight theres no disputing the fact that rome adored me cry. Nero Claudius Caesar augustus dramatic us was not yet seventeen when he ascended the throne of the julio claudian dynasty. He was worshiped like a god. But he was not destined to become emperor his accession was carefully engineered by his power hungry mother. Agrippina was the daughter of an emperor the widow of a number of unknown the mother of an emperor. And astrologer once predicted her son would ascend the throne but that she would pay for his glory with her life to rich grabiner replied let them kill me then as long as he is emperor. At humble university in berlin researchers are trying to piece together the puzzle of neros legacy. Cloudier tara she is a leading expert in the field a professor of ancient history and a specialist on the role of women in imperial rome. What is fiction and what is historical fact. Jewish has studied the women in neros life and one in particular and repeat. Hes a prophet so i dont think this prophecy is a fabrication handed down through texts by tessa to sin cos you steal who were writing fifty to one hundred years after he rose death. But its an ingenious fabrication because it combines what we know about both protagonists the power hungry agrippina and nero into a telling tale and the one so in that respect its a brilliant invention by the authors of the ancient texts and is probably based on many of the rumors that circulated in their day. Peter was the product of her time a child of rome just like her son nero. Its impossible to understand nero without understanding his world a dog eat dog world governed by. Unpredictable fickle gods. The company the most sacred of romes seven hills two thousand years ago offered sacrifices here to the highest god in the roman pantheon jupiter. Aside for jupiters temple stood is today dominated by an equestrian statue of the emperor hadrian. He was the philosopher among Roman Emperors and has gone down in the annals of history as a good emperor. But what did ancient rome view as a good and what was evil. From the foreign roman the emperor and senators ruled the world this is a reconstruction of the form the political heart of the imperial superpower. Neros rome was defined by a region iraq and social structure. Most of the cities one million inhabitants were daily brewers or unemployed and their own look very different. One out of three roman subjects was a slave legally defined as the owners property like an animal or house. Merchandise that only the elite could afford. The patrician and senatorial classes the wealthy accounted for less than one percent of the population. Early histories recount the Young Emperors antics me is said to have roamed the city at night in disguise doing gaijin thieving and violence. Did nero enjoy being close to his subjects. The fact is that throughout his reign he did everything to earn romes love because he knew that only the peoples devotion secured his hold on power. Misha meyer is a professor of ancient history at the university of tubingen. A specialist in the early roman empire hes looking for the man behind the myth of nero. He doesnt trust neuros first biographers transmitters to tone ears because he has dio. And he suspects their stories of neros nocturnal adventures were based on malicious gossip. Thats probably him as. The problem is that in literature stories like this frequently lead to the creation of stereotypes which can then be applied to rulers who already have a Bad Reputation they could be what happened in the case of an era of. The had librarian bought from birth or harbor or is a significant collection of historic volumes by the authors of antiquity. But biographers of past centuries often had their own agendas to scholars take a discerning view of these texts three writers had what could be called an information monopoly on neros biography tacitus as attorney assumed cassius dio. Tacitus was a teenager when nero died. So tony as wasnt born until a few years after neros death. And cassius dio wasnt writing until a century later. Parts it was because he was tacitus and cassius dio belong to the senatorial class toward you turn uses social standing was a little below that but he too wrote for an heiress to traffic audience. And those were exactly the circles that narrow antagonized so these primary sources endorse a very negative picture that draws heavily on distorted aspects of the new iranian narrative and these distortions are highly. The magic for historians was a problem of art. The characters into tony and his biography of nero are authentic but the same cant be necessarily sort of the plot the author was seeking to entertain inform his readers on tikrit you cant judge anxious historiography according to the standards of modern historical writing the writers of antiquity about voting to produce literature when they conceived their works accordingly. And question. Its up to historians today to verify how much truth lies in these ancient sources and peel away fiction from historical fact and what contrasts to ancient historians view nero and how credible are their accounts. The most ileum of august us rooms first emperor. Only his blood relatives had a claim to the front. Rows mother agrippina was his great granddaughter. Almost a dozen or augustus blood relatives lived in the empire vying for the imperial crown with ruthless determination. Gripping no to plotted against her brother caligula and was exiled as punishment. As a result her young son spent years without his mother neros upbringing was very different to that of an imperial prince maybe that is why he flouted convention as an adult. Because. We know from ancient texts that nero showed an early interest in literature art poetry dance and above all chariot racing. Thats always mentioned in text about his Early Childhood which he spent in the care of his into media because his mother was in exile. It was there that he was allegedly looked after by a barber and a dancer we dont know if they had a formative influence but the texts reveal that he harbored these interests from a very early age but in fact. Agra pina tried to steer a neuro away from such frivolous interests by employing a tutor to prepare him for the role of emperor. The philosopher seneca was a celebrated writer and a charismatic oratory. The view from the circus maximus to the politan hill the science of the emperors magnificent residence. Its remains still testified to the prestige of its former residence. Maghrib you know promoted the prospects of her son through scheming and intrigue. Her brother colleague it lho was murdered and succeeded by her uncle claudius him she married in the year forty nine. Tacitus wrote from this point the empire was changed and all obeyed a woman. Agribusiness choice of tutor for a young son proved wise. In his late fortys seneca was a brilliant speaker and an acclaimed author. As a follower of stoic philosophy he had devoted much of his life to ethical issues he was attuned to social problems and analyzed things with psychological insight. Senecas task was to mold the group in his son into an emperor fit to rule the world above all however seneca would become neuros closest and pfizer. By the year fifty agrippina managed to persuade her husband Emperor Claudius to adopt naira. Was conferred with the honorary title of augusta a title no imperial wife had acquired so young. Claudius had been in power for a decade he loved mushroom says to tony is noted and young girls. His wife and niece agrah pina was twenty six years his junior and she had big plans ancient historians describe the emperor as ignorant weak and mean. Modern scholars view him as an excellent administrator and of not full ruler. This is house of tony is recorded the day of october thirteenth fifty four. The imperial family is gathered around the table. Mushrooms are on the menu claudius his favorite dish. Nero the devoted son is that his mother agrippina his. Glorious his biological son britannicus is also there. Claudius. Dotes on the board neros biggest rival in the line of imperial succession. So tony is gives a detailed account of the plot to murder claudius who had sealed his fate via ducting nero. But after reading the mushrooms the historian writes claudius begins to gasp for air and began suffocating. Exists only as his version the mushrooms are poison and he points the finger at agra pina. She colludes with claudius his physician was called to induce vomiting with a feather but the feather delivers a second fatal dose of poison. If i could. The question as to whether i grip enough poison and claudius is highly contentious among scholars. Ancient historians recorded certain episodes in great detail would be false but there is a rule of thumb. The further removed in time the off as off from the stories they now write and the more detail they put into those stories the more unlikely it is that those stories are true the torque on the sign. Death by poison or an accident with the bait continues. Either way amber if you know who is now at the pinnacle of her power and was the year fifty four and the first part of the astrologers prediction had come true maghrib you know the daughter of dramatica sister of emperor colleague and widow of Emperor Claudius was now the mother of the emperor. Never before had a woman in the empire held so much power. Never been a head of fortune which she could use to buy Decision Makers friends and access to all the corridors of power. But most importantly she had the backing of the military. Grown boasted the worlds most modern army and it was designed to conquer. Neros empire stretched from southeastern britain to africa deep into southern egypt from its commercial gateway of us one the capital syria and syria. A population of almost seventy million spread over an area twenty times the size of modern day germany. All power rested in the hands of the emperor but in reality it was agra pina who was holding the reins. She ruthlessly began to liquidate family members but seneca two was ambitious as his influence on nero grew so too did his personal fortune he brokered state contracts and granted loans an exorbitant interest seneca was now a major power broker. The beginning of a growing conflict between nero and his mother and her piano is traced to a particular event nero fell in love. Active was a freed slave who belong to the retinue of his wife a tapia. Born in greece act it was the beautiful daughter of syrian parents and offered nero respite from his loveless arranged marriage. According to tacitus and cassius dio a woman named look hasta brood the best poisons in rome. Shes alleged to have supplied the. Poison for claudius is murder amid ubiquitous ambition and political intrigue poison was often employed as a means to an end throughout their lives imperial family members took poisonous cocktails in homeopathic doses to boost their immunity. Medical historian current slaven has focused on the deaths in the arrows imperial palace and examined the poisoning practices of the roman elite and hes conducted a critical review of the primary sources. So was a coaster dreamed up by ancient historians or was she a real person. If. It in his voice innings where the order of the day in hellenistic royal families and in imperial rhyme in the context of near a specific mention is made of. A mixture of poison she stands out because the identity of peddlers and toxic substances only shrouded in mystery so look krista did exist she was hired by nero for various jobs and later condemned to death by his successor. So that some fodder for that went to and on and off for good and. Return accuse nero stepbrother was Emperor Claudius his biological son from his marriage to his first wife messalina. Or tonic as came of age when he turned fourteen in the year fifty five. With a bloodline to remember augustus through both his mother and his father britannicas had a more legitimate claim to the from and was neros biggest rival. His was ill it said he suffered from epilepsy. In their. Cols tacitus and cassius dio recorded their suspicion as fact nero hired the costume to mix a potion that would kill his step brother britannicus they branded lacrosse turner as an accomplice in neros first crime. Could this be a slanderous allegation against you or. Me or you can be said of neros case in particular and the early imperial era in general that roman historians couldnt possibly know what are going on behind the palace walls and how alleged murders were carried out they themselves complain bitterly about their lack of information so none of it really adds up the past as i listen so we stick to. February of the year fifty five. Once again trying to do so gives a detailed account of the circumstances surrounding britannicas his death. To bypass the food taster britannicus his first handed a heart untainted drink. Tacitus says the poison has been added to a jug of chilled water which is added to cool britannicus his car. And he leaves no doubt about the identity of the perpetrator nero. The three year story and to do more than just recount a crime there chronicles are peppered with insinuations that any reader back then would understand their goal was to cast nero in a bad light. Only for the. Primary sources generally relate stories of political murders from the moral high ground. Bad monarchs all morally deprived characters carry out murders they poison their victims not unless its from a moral standpoint is particularly reprehensible good rulers dont do such things of course. But after britannicus his death opinion on the street was clear graffiti appeared on the walls of rome accusing nero of fratricide. These are taught from the time the death of britannicas was a major setback for agrippina and until that point she could always use him as leverage in her efforts to control nero when. She could say that you have a step brother who has a much greater claim to the throne than you have because hes claudius is real son you are just adopted and. Not a. Britannicus is death threw a wrench in the works of agribusiness political plans the political deck was reshuffled in the former manner the imperial seat of government. Agribusiness fall was public she was stripped of her powers and her privileges including her residence in the imperial palace and her bodyguards. Nero assumed control he paid more heed to his advisors resulting in five years of exemplary government these would later come to be known as the queen quiney of the five good years of neros rule. Seneca and the protests are in prefect buhrow swer neros most trusted aides. Together they presided over a period of stability with peace abroad and prosperity at home. Seneca addressed his most famous moral treatise entitled an mercy in europe extolling the virtues of the emperor. This is we have to its hard to say whether near i was a particularly milder alone not there are a few episodes in primary sources that contradict the image of the bloodthirsty monster that he was repeatedly portrayed as in later accounts will be money in my view the dog stands out. Its clear that neros earlier it was very unlike that of his uncle emperor of the gorilla who went out of his way to antagonize the senate. He insulted him really entered and expropriated senators driving some to suicide and effectively disenfranchised the council. In contrast nero and his advisors initially treated the senate with respect while senators could propose new legislation the emperor was free to accept or reject their proposals. But all members of the senate were patricians from the wealthy landowner class with huge financial assets. The Young Emperor was keen to have them on his side never the less a conflict erupted. The latter funereal of the leading aristocratic families great estates employing up to sixty thousand slaves some properties the size of a nation state. Their crop yields were exempt from cars. Its duties and sold without surcharges at romes giant food market unlike goods from the empires provinces which were taxed every time they passed through a harbor or city gate. Many senators raked in fortunes by controlling the terrorists and that gave them their competitor bitch. Afia here were discovered injustice and above all corruption in the practice of living customs duties and rents and saw that landlords in particular were making huge profits. Because it often wouldnt. Nero reigned in the ambitions of many senators eyeing minister ariel portfolios like his predecessors he filled these positions with friedman former slaves whom he trusted and he had the backing of the military for nero was loved by his subjects. Were mission. For a Roman Emperor in the First Century it was exceedingly important to be accepted by the roman population before if the citys residents withdrew their support for an imperial leader he was in for trouble. Nero knew that and he correspondingly trying to win popular approval because we see tried a little too hot and went further than other First Century emperors. But there is a whole sequence of accounts that reflect how the kenyan nero sought to maintain the public system. Doesnt. Need undergo this for it has been eating hot temper of political is quoted as wishing his subjects had just one throat to slash not so much he feared Public Opinion he had begun construction of a racecourse on the vatican hill of project nero finished the building centered on an obelisk nero looted from heliopolis in egypt which stands to this day on st peters square. Nero launched a Charm Offensive in the year fifty seven dispensing generous gifts among the people. From the ordered scrolls of Gift Certificates to be thrown into the crowds turning poppers into wealthy Property Owners in the blink of an eye. It was an emperors duty to provide his subjects with bread and circuses the people of rome honored to be fed and entertained and they were delighted that their princeps shared their pastimes as a child nero dreamed of a career in chariot racing even as a teenager is said he created model races with small wooden orses. He rooted for his favorite racing club the greens. But his accession to the throne marked the end of such dreams. They see and. In some respects i see nero as a tragic figure because he was always being forced into roles that he obviously didnt want to fulfill and probably couldnt fulfill. And the deficits that are attributed to his leadership are probably the result not so much of general ineptitude as they are of the simple fact that he felt his calling lies somewhere else entirely. Stunned. To hear. What. Politics were never neros cup of tea he harbored very different interests nero loved poetry music dance the fine arts and above all theatre all pursuits unbecoming of a roman aristocrat. The hierarchical ladder of Roman Society actors and musicians occupied the bottom rung. Of. The. Room was a military power geared to waging war unlike in ancient greece to master. Sports in the roman empire were viewed solely as a means of military training any type of physical activity practiced as an end in itself was considered a sign of weakness and unmanly mous. To improve his. Work to strengthen his muscles by having the lead plates laid eyes chest in the seclusion of the palace he practiced breathing exercises and wrote problems. Very little material disposal when it comes to judging the quality of. Poetry for example. But the little we have indicates that nero was not on talented and that he must have achieved a certain level of achievement. Talented an artist has. Described voice as a pleasant low base. Nero was evidently aware of this weakness since he called the most famous. Court to give him. It was a carefree time for nero who indulge his pleasures with little interference from his advisors. Agrippina deplored his artistic ambitions the gulf between mother and son wide. Fifty nine was a fateful year for agra pino and for nero who became infatuated with sabina. A rare beauty from an aristocratic family she had her own place. Lets busiek ultimately she was a lot like agrippina she too was a woman of noble birth with a hunger for power and the will to do everything necessary to get it. She made the most of her opportunities to get into neros fear and started a love affair. And complete the biggest obstacle in her hopes to marry nero was agrippina in the us does he i thought as untied ninnis. Nero and bill payer seem to make for each other they shared the same sense of humor and a love for the arts and theatre. But the peo wasnt content in the role of mistress she wanted to be narrows wife. Yet nero was still married to mike tapia and the subject of divorce sparked an open war with agra pina. Nero decided to dispose of his mother and the plan he had for her murder reads like a play. He was fond of drama and reenacted maritime battles his scheme was a bit of both. Agra pinas death was to look like an accident scene. He secretly commissioned a ship designed to collapse and sink with his mother and her entourage on board. He just put them to boards doesnt explode off a constant yet to be a famous booby trapped by a strike to break up at sea oil is a bit of an. Nation of how nero approached everything he did it for us he had a poem shelf a spectacle and. Planned the murder of his mother as a veritable showstopper. So i am cause i took. It is march fifty nine. Nero invites his mother to israel or in the resort town of by on the pretext of a reconciliation visit. After dinner shes picked up by the death ship. The collapsing mechanism works but agra pino survives the shipwreck and swims to shore. She sends word to nero experienced an intrigue as she is she keeps her cool and avoids levelling blame. Nero however is mad with fear of his domineering mother. And i dont offer one of the rose successors emperor to meet you and while said we only believe in conspiracies after theyve succeeded thats the problem for nero was that a gripping it was relatively well connected and he had every reason to believe she could strike back thats a clipping of life the only way of preventing an attack on his life was to be proactive. In that and an active with and then nero dispatches assassins to finish the job agra pina the ancient historian say asks the soldiers to stab her in the womb or nero. Nero defended the deal before the senate by labeling agra pina a traitor you have been plotting against him. On the whole the senate backed him but some senators didnt is an oblate companion was divided too near i was aware of that but its safe to say that the upper classes of Roman Society knew that a murder went hand in hand with time. Lastic rivalry. I would say it was simply the order of the day in politics. Does somewhat of tired to put into an author. But how would rome react. Graffiti appeared accusing nero of matricide one of the worst possible crimes. Nero feared would seek revenge. When he returned he was actually given a warm welcome from the crowds and senators turned out to accompany him into the city so his return took on a triumphant quality this is done and he will follow. But nero had always been fearful and now your weekend at night gripped by panic agra pino haunted his dreams. Tacitus wrote hes pursued by furys goddesses of vengeance and retribution. Blunders that would postpone were. The mad Roman Emperor insane caesar these are stereotypes that emerged in the late Nineteenth Century so retroactively lets not be taken at face value we can diagnose a mental condition two thousand years later it was because of what we can say is that nero broke unwritten rules of decorum and. He paid the price in the biographies of his first historians who were writing under a new dentist that perceived him as an enemy of the people. Of the new. Tradition of the roman sun just one path to glory triumph in war and then honorable death. The policy of conquest and expansion was crucial to the elite ranks of the roman army because it fueled the wealth of the aristocratic classes. The conquest of provinces as costly as it was ensured military honors for the sons of the aristocracy and lucrative post says roman viceroys for their father. But nero wasnt interested in expanding his empire and that didnt go down well with his enemies. Or for him and for vital expounds you know one of the roman elite continue to define expansion as the main goal of the empire. Or rule of an emperor was frequently jogged by whether or not he managed to drive expansion for what it was and what i mean i knew it was since this wasnt the case with nero he got us from the outset the place of. The temple of genesis in ancient rome. If its doors were closed there was peace across the empire. Only three emperors in roman history managed to maintain peace. Nero was one of. The success of neuron in Foreign Policy is certainly one of the true highlights of neros runic and even though he was repeatedly blamed for not going on the offensive enough as i. Thought he was fortunate in that he had appointed a capable team he had very experienced commanders who knew how to couple well weighted military pressure with other options such as deescalation strategies. So during his reign flashpoints were dealt with using military force. As was the case in britain as well as through a combination of force and diplomacy. In the hope that no. One to one. For. Announced that a man who preferred diplomacy to war would come to be characterized as a brutal tyrant. But then narrowed it acquire a reputation for ruthlessly pursuing his own agenda. His innocent wanted tapia was one of his victims. Thats what it was this i just was tabio and the rose relationship through the years can really be called a non relationship. This idea it was very reserved because it was a dentist of marriage and nero had always said that though he was married to her and she should have the insignia of the marriage he always knew he would never love her. She was very loyal to him and never pose a threat to his rule. Because she was in remained a very demure woman like all these could be this. She may have been in conspicuous but tabio was low density plea pity by the people of her own. Nero remained hell bent on marrying pious sabina but then required a divorce from tom in your convention not even an emperor critic nor. Nero went but needed to rid themselves of octavia but he couldnt simply vanish or especially in view of her popularity. Nero appears to have lost his ability to gauge the mood of the masses. Maybe the reason he tried to exile the top view to the provinces and he charged her with treason. But his efforts to convict her were thwarted by the anger of the plebeians. Crowds demanded of toffees return to proposed influence on nero was greater assassins were sent to slash tav years wrists and she bled to death. Once again writing appeared on the walls of rome nero wife for you. Want to talk august had an autopsy is murder was tremendously damaging for any row because people expected a number to follow traditional roman conventions and that meant showing respect as a husband and father toward ones family members and the good addition had been extremely popular so it was an emotionally charged issue and contributed significantly to the negative verdict of neros reign in the nails and by a top. Neuro wrote poems waxing lyrical about puppy is amber colored. In january sixty three she bore him a daughter. The couple seemed the picture of happiness but the elite disapproved of a number of displayed his emotions and gave him singing lessons wrote poetry and ignored conventions and their view was mirrored by ancient historians. Neuros daughter died three months after her birth. Tacitus wrote the emperor was excessive in news grief as he had been in his joy. Inside can also and his government could be isnt infests people at the time had very rigid ideas about how a princeps should behave im all the more baffled when nero failed to fit the mold as it could be but he also didnt fit the mold of the socalled bad temper in the way that type area soul killing before him. He was something singular and he was on it and the consternation over how to judge such a figure echoes throughout the literary narratives of my heroes life. Because if i. Dont. Nero may still have had a shot at remember moralized those are good emperor but then something happened didnt she. Sure you would be passed into legend as a monster a great fire. Or so tony innocent cassius dio both wrote their histories after neros lifetime they accused nero of starting the plagues and placing the blame on the christians. Centuries later christian historians would even claim he ordered the execution of the apostle peter. But new evidence has led scholars to believe the fire was not near as fault and that has been wrongly accused of persecuting christians they believe its time to me have dilatation emperor nero. Such. Entering the conflict zone confronting the powerful. As f. B. I. Director james comey was always pretty well known but when donald trump five him last year is close to his fourth trip to measurably this week hes my guest here and by the way hes promoting a book even as he faces new child abuse is in store for the nation so whats the truth conflicts of folks in thirty minutes d. W. Busy devaney is coming to life from bonnie and lets go right to our correspondent he is in central istanbul and we have our political correspondents here in the studio more on those stories in just a minute but first this news just boom its all about the perspective closer d. W. A good. Time for an upgrade. How about on a chair that grows old by. A house with no roof. Poor design highlights you can rate yourself. Trends tips and tricks that will turn your home to something special. Upgrade yourself with d. W. Interior design channel on you tube. Move move move. Move move. Move move move move move move move move move. This is news live from a court in malaysia rules the trial of two women accused of killing the half brother of north Korean Leader kim jong un can proceed the women are accused of poisoning him young in a brazen head that all important airport their families say they were tricked into carrying out the attack now dont have to enter their defenses will get the latest. Hope spate of finding any more survivors under the highway bridge that collapsed in genoa and with at least thirty nine people confirmed dead and the debate over whos to blame is heating up