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The history of Nero's reign is problematic in that no historical sources survived that were contemporary with Nero. These first histories, while they still existed, were described as biased and fantastical, either overly critical or praising of Nero. [137] The original sources were also said to contradict on a number of events. [138]
A. N. Sherwin-White records that serious discussion of the reasons for Roman persecution of Christians began in 1890 when it produced "20 years of controversy" and three main opinions: first, there was the theory held by most French and Belgian scholars that "there was a general enactment, precisely formulated and valid for the whole empire, which forbade the practice of the Christian religion.
Christian martyrs were a significant part of Early Christianity, until the Peace of the Church in 313. [citation needed] Suetonius mentions passingly that "[during Nero's reign p]unishments were also inflicted on the Christians, a sect professing a new and mischievous religious belief" in so far as there are no crimes described. [16]
The Christian Martyrs' Last Prayer by Jean-Léon Gérôme (1863–1883, Walters Art Museum). A fanciful scene of damnatio ad bestias in ancient Rome's Circus Maximus beneath the Palatine Hill. In the first two centuries Christianity was a relatively small sect which was not a significant concern of the Emperor.
According to Tacitus and later Christian tradition, Emperor Nero blamed the devastation on the Christian community in the city, initiating the empire's first persecution against the Christians. [3] Other contemporary historians blamed Nero's incompetence but it is commonly agreed by historians now that Rome was so tightly packed a fire was ...
[78] [79] [80] Tacitus' references to Nero's persecution of Christians in the Annals were written around 115 AD, [77] a few years after Pliny's letter but also during the reign of emperor Trajan. Another notable early author was Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus, who wrote the Lives of the Twelve Caesars around 122 AD, [77] during the reign of ...
Largely made up of wooden tenements, fire was a frequent occurrence in the city. Rumor blamed the tragedy on the unpopular emperor Nero, who wanted to enlarge his palace. He accused the Christians. According to the historian Tacitus, many Christians were put to death "not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred against mankind." [3]
When Emperor Nero executed Christians for their alleged involvement in the fire of 64, it was a purely local affair; it did not spread beyond the city limits of Rome. [20] These early persecutions were certainly violent, but they were sporadic, brief and limited in extent. [21] They were of limited threat to Christianity as a whole. [22]