Nero: The Man Behind the Myth Book

Stories of Nero's tyrannical reign began before his body was cold and have continued to circulate; the monster who dallied while Rome burned, the tyrant who murdered his wife and his mother and who threw Christians to the lions. But is this the true story? The author seeks to overturn this popular conception of Nero and rescue the man from the myth by revealing Nero as a liberator, who tried to democratize the state. His story is told from his birth into the Imperial family through his mother's remarriage to the new Emperor Claudius--whom she would eventually murder; his education by Seneca; his marriage; his enthronement as Emperor at age 16; his role as patron; his love affair with Poppea and the murders of his wife and mother; the increasing enmity towards him; the Great Fire of Rome and building of the Golden Palace; the killing of the Christians; the death of Poppea and Nero's growing instability; treason trials and suicide writs; rebellion in Gaul and Spain; and Nero's suicide.Read More