The Downfall of Nero: 68AD

Corbulo in Armenia: The Parthian War 58-63AD

• Nero himself did not undertake any military campaigns, this was left to loyal and competent generals
• The most conspicuous of these was Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo
• He had served as a faithful deputy to Claudius and under Nero led campaigns into Syria and Armenia in 54 and 63 AD to subdue revolts and secure Rome's borders with the Parthians, whom they had been at war with for the first time since the defeats of Crassus and Antony in the late Republic
• The war with Parthia was ultimately indecisive, but Corbulo had crossed the Euphrates with a Roman army and forced Parthia to accept Roman claims to Armenia - the Armenian king must be approved of personally by the Roman emperor

Axios!

• However, Corbulo's successes had brought condemnation from Nero, who was jealous of his successes
• In 67 AD, disturbances broke out in Judaea and Nero, ordering Vespasian to take command of the Roman forces, summoned Corbulo, as well as two brothers who were the governors of Upper and Lower Germany , to Greece
• On his arrival at Cenchreae, the port of Corinth, messengers from Nero met Corbulo and ordered him to commit suicide. Undaunted, he strode forward to accept his fate, and fell on his own sword after exclaiming "Axios!", meaning "I am worthy!"
• Such a move sent a clear message to other generals: success and loyalty to the emperor does not spare you under Nero's reign

Revolts in the Provinces

• The latter years of Nero's reign were marked by turbulence and upheaval
• With the Princeps' attention constantly focused on artistic and personal pursuits, the empire had been mismanaged, and unsurprisingly a number of revolts sprang up:
• [61, 68 and 69 AD] In Britain the famous revolt of Boudicca took place
• [66 AD] Judea revolted, and future emperors Vespasian and Titus were tasked with subduing the revolt
• [67 AD] Gaul revolts under Gaius Julius Vindex
• Tacitus' Annals break off in 66 AD, and so the end of Nero's reign is related by Cassius Dio [63.22-27] and Suetonius [Nero, 40-9]

The Revolt of Vindex

• The most significant of these was by Gaius Julius Vindex, procurator of Gallia Luadunensis (Northern France)
• The people of Gaul, according to Dio, were suffering seriously under Nero's heavy taxations, and Vindex used the anger felt by the provincials to mount a rebellion:
• "He was a man strong in physique and shrewd in intelligence, skilled in warfare and not lacking in courage to meet any big challenge. He also had a passionate love of freedom and boundless ambition" Cassius Dio 63.22.2

Vindex' Speech to the Gauls: Cassius Dio 63.22-26

"He has plundered the whole Roman world, because he has destroyed the full flower of their senate, and because he has committed incest with, and killed, his own mother, and does not even maintain a semblance of being in charge. Numerous killings, lootings and other outrages have been committed by a variety of people on a number of occasions. But as for those crimes committed by Nero himself, how could anyone do justice to them in words? I have seen him, my friends and allies, believe me, I have seen that man (if you can call him a man when he has Sporus as a wife and Pythagoras as a husband), in the very heart of the theatre, that is, in the orchestra, sometimes holding a lyre and wearing a loose-fitting tunic and buskins, sometimes wearing high-heeled shoes and mask... Is there anyone then, who will call such a man 'Caesar' and 'Imperator' and 'Augustus'? Never! No one must ever abuse those sacred titles. These were titles held by Augustus and Claudius; this man deserves to be called Thyestes, Oedipus, Alcmaeon or Orestes. For these are the roles he acts on stage, and these are the names that he has chosen to take the place of his others. Now, therefore, is the time to rise up against him. Rescue yourselves and rescue the Romans as well! Liberate the entire world!"

Nero's Reaction

• Nero was in Naples when he heard of the revolt. His reaction was typically obstinate:
• Suetonius (Nero,40) says that:
• "Nero received the news with such calmness and indifference that he incurred the suspicion of actually rejoicing it, because it gave him an excuse for pillaging those wealthy provinces according to the laws of war."
• Cassius Dio (63.22.16) says Nero wrote to the senate:
• "he excused himself for not having come, pleading a sore throat and implying by this that he would have liked - even at such a juncture - to sing to them."
• He then used this opportunity to announce his design of a new type of water organ...

Outcome: Verginius Rufus

• Vindex mustered a force and marched towards Rome
• However, he was met near modern day Basancon by the commander of the Germanic legions, Verginius Rufus
• Rufus easily defeated Vindex with the grizzled, veteran Germanic legions
• However the Germanic Legions, far from being placated, hailed their commander, Rufus, as emperor, and urged him to march on Rome
• "The soldiers cast down the images of Nero, and hailed their general 'Caesar' and 'Augustus'. When Rufus remained unconvinced by this, one of his soldiers quickly inscribed the words on one of his standards. Rufus, however, erased the words and, after managing with some difficulty to restore order, persuaded them to refer the matter to the senate and people." (Dio, 63.24-5)
• Dio says that Rufus either did not think it right for the army to bestow the emperorship on anybody, or that he had no personal desire to become emperor. But he could have easily done so, as the Germanic legions were among the most powerful in Rome

Galba

• With his forces defeated, Vindex quickly committed suicide
• This should have ended the matter, but he had called for assistance from the governor of Hispania Tarreconensis, Servius Sulpicius Galba
• Vindex himself had not desired emperorship, but swore that he would side with Galba if he revolted
• Galba, fearing that he would be put to death, decided to revolt, and his soldiers on 9th June 68 AD swore in Galba as their emperor
• This was a far more serious threat for Nero:
• "he became very much afraid, and not only made preparations himself in Rome, but also sent Rubrius Gallus and certain others to confront the rebels" (Dio, 63.27)
• "he fainted and lay for a long time insensible, without a word and all but dead... He declared that unlike all others he was suffering the unheard of and unparalleled fate of losing the supreme power while he still lived" (Suetonius, Nero, 42)

Nero Reacts (Again)

This time, Nero's reaction was far more serious: Suetonius (Nero, 43) tell us he planned:

• "To depose and assassinate the commanders of the armies and the governors of the provinces, on the ground that they were all united in a conspiracy against him"
• "to massacre all the exiles everywhere and all men of Gallic birth in the city: the former, to prevent them from joining the rebels; the latter, as sharing and abetting the designs of their countrymen"
• "to turn over the Gallic provinces to his armies to ravage"
• "to poison the entire senate at banquets"
• "to set fire to the city, first letting the wild beasts loose, that it might be harder for the people to protect themselves"

The Senate's Moves

For the Senate, the choice was clear: retain their servility under Nero, or side with Galba and stand a chance of overthrowing the tyrant.

• In mid-68 AD, the Senate formally declared their support for Galba and - in a move that would seal Nero's fate, declared Nero a public enemy
• Suetonius (Nero, 45) tells us Nero had now earned the hatred of everyone in Rome, further validating the Senate's cause
• Both Dio and Suetonius tell us how Nero considered either fleeing Rome, begging for mercy from Galba, or seeking refuge with the Parthians

Nero's Death

• Though Nero planned his escape, there was no opportunity to do so. His guards abandoned him and searches were made by the Senate to bring him to justice
• He retreated to a villa in the countryside, but was hunted by soldiers sent by the Senate
• When they surrounded the villa, Nero asked one of his companions to kill him. "I really am alone" was Nero's response when they refused
• Eventually, he committed suicide - "Jupiter, what an artist dies with me!" were his last words
• He had reigned for thirteen years, and was the last living descendant of Augustus
• Thus ended the Julio-Claudian dynasty...

Aftermath, 68-69 AD

• Both Dio and Suetonius write about the rejoicing at Nero's death:
• "The Roman people were offering sacrifices and going mad with delight, some even wearing felt caps as though they had just been freed from slavery" (Dio, 63.29)
• Galba and his soldiers marched on Rome, where he was hailed as emperor and bestowed the titles of imperial authority
• However, this was not without bloodshed, and in other parts of the empire other military commanders had been hailed emperor by their soldiers:
• Germania - Vitellius
• Judea and the east - Vespasian
• The "Year of the Four Emperors" had begun...