Nero

Question 1

What was the quinquennium aureum?

Answer 1

The five golden years at the start of Nero’s reign

Question 2

Who did Nero deify at the start of his reign?

Answer 2

His adopted father Claudius

Question 3

Which of Nero’s interests offended the Roman upper-classes?

Answer 3

Music, theatre, chariot racing and all things Greek

Question 4

What suggests that Nero was not as hated as our authors claim?

Answer 4

People used Nero’s name/their connections with him to garner support during the Year of the Four Emperors

Question 5

How old was Nero when he became emperor?

Answer 5

16

Question 6

Who staged Nero’s accession?

Answer 6

Agrippina, Burrus and Seneca

Question 7

How was Nero’s accession staged?

Answer 7

Nero was presented to the Praetorian Guard by Burrus whilst Agrippina delayed Britannicus in the palace

Question 8

What was the result of Nero’s accession being staged?

Answer 8

It presented him as a usurper

Question 9

What did Nero do when Agrippina threatened to replace him with Britannicus?

Answer 9

He murdered Britannicus at a banquet in 55 CE

Question 10

What happened to Agrippina, Burrus and Seneca’s ‘alliance’

Answer 10

Burrus and Seneca ended up opposing Agrippina and helped Nero kill her in 59 CE

Question 11

Who did Nero marry in 53 CE to establish his legitimacy?

Answer 11

Claudius’ daughter Octavia

Question 12

Who did Nero replace Octavia with once his reign was extablished?

Answer 12

His freedwoman Acte

Question 13

How did Nero have Octavia removed?

Answer 13

He accused her of sexual outrages and exiled her before having her murdered in 62 CE

Question 14

Who did Nero marry after Octavia?

Answer 14

Poppaea

Question 15

What did Nero did after Poppaea and their daughter Claudia died in 65 CE?

Answer 15

Deify them both

Question 16

Why did Nero deify Poppaea and Claudia?

Answer 16

Because he loved them but possibly because of guilt

Question 17

Who did Nero marry after Poppaea in 66 CE?

Answer 17

Statilia Messalina

Question 18

Why did Nero marry Messalina?

Answer 18

To appear conventional and respectable

Question 19

Who lead the conspiracy against Nero in 65 CE?

Answer 19

Gaius Calpurnius Piso

Question 20

Who stopped the conspiracy in 65 CE?

Answer 20

A freedman of one of the men involved

Question 21

What happened to the men involved in the conspiracy in 65 CE?

Answer 21

They incriminated each other quickly upon arrest, Piso locked himself in his house and then committed suicide

Question 22

Who did Nero use the 65 CE conspiracy as an excuse to remove?

Answer 22

Seneca

Question 23

How many districts did the fire in 64 CE damage?

Answer 23

10 out of 14

Question 24

How long did the fire in 64 CE last for?

Answer 24

6 days

Question 25

What positive thing did Nero do after the fire in 64 CE?

Answer 25

He introduced new building regulations to prevent future fires spreading so much

Question 26

What negative things did Nero do after the fire in 64 CE?

Answer 26

He built the Domus Aurea and a triumphal arch that claimed Corbulo's glory for himself

Question 27

Who did Nero blame for the fire in 64 CE and why?

Answer 27

The Christians because they were already a marginalised and distrusted group and he needed to shift the blame from himself

Question 28

Which provinces rebelled from Roman rule in 61 and 66 CE?

Answer 28

Britain in 61 and Judaea in 66

Question 29

Which province's rebellion in 68 CE led to Nero's downfall?

Answer 29

Gaul

Question 30

Who led the Gallic rebellion in 68 CE?

Answer 30

Gaius Julius Vindex

Question 31

How did Nero initially respond to the Gallic rebellion in 68 CE?

Answer 31

He did nothing for 8 days

Question 32

Why didn't Nero initially consider the Gallic rebellion in 68 CE a threat?

Answer 32

The province didn't have a legionary garrison and Nero trusted the local urban cohorts and nearby legions

Question 33

What made Nero take the rebellion in 68 CE seriously?

Answer 33

Servius Galba was declared emperor by his legion at Vindex's request

Question 34

What did Nero do in response to Galba being declared emperor?

Answer 34

Very little

Question 35

Who did oppose Vindex and how?

Answer 35

Verginius Rufus and the forces of Upper Germany slaughtered 20,000 of Vindex's men and he committed suicide

Question 36

What happened after Verginius Rufus' men killed Vindex's?

Answer 36

That suggested Rufus be made emperor but he said the choice should be made by the Senate and the People of Rome, who endorsed Galba and declared Nero a public enemy

Question 37

What did Nero do after being declared a public enemy by the Senate?

Answer 37

He fled Rome and died theatrically

Question 38

What was Nero's attitude towards the imperial cult?

Answer 38

He was uninterested in it

Question 39

How did Neronian poets portray Nero?

Answer 39

They praised him as a god but only as far as the Augustus poets praised Augustus

Question 40

What was Nero's attitude to 'non-traditional' religions?

Answer 40

He was intolerant of them

Question 41

How did Nero echo Augustus in terms of religion?

Answer 41

He became part of the same priestly colleges

Question 42

What impact did Nero have on the administration of Rome?

Answer 42

Overall he made no fundamental changes

Question 43

How did Nero's relationship with the Senate change?

Answer 43

His early pandering is replaced by viscous humiliation

Question 44

How did the Senate react to Nero's humiliation of them?

Answer 44

They remained remarkably compliant

Question 45

Which senator publicly opposed Nero?

Answer 45

Thrasea Paetus

Question 46

What was Nero's relationship with the equestrians like?

Answer 46

He saw them as a useful alternative to the Senate and many of them were part of his paid entourage or trained applauders

Question 47

Who was the most prominent equestrian under Nero and why?

Answer 47

Gaius Tigellinus, who was made joint commander of the Praetorian Guard in 62 CE despite his low birth

Question 48

What was Nero's relationship with the plebs like?

Answer 48

They adored him due to the immense variety of entertainment and the generous gifts he provided them with

Question 49

How strong was the plebs' adoration of Nero?

Answer 49

It was only at the end of his reign that they begun to turn against him and years after his death they would still support people pretending to be him