QA 6_4_2

Q: Who caused the Great Fire of Rome? 

A: According to ancient sources there are two possible perpetrators: Emperor Nero and members of the Roman Christian community.  When the fire broke out, Emperor Nero cast blame on the Christians as the arsonists.  However, Roman historian Suetonius accused Emperor Nero, claiming he played the lyre and sang the “Sack of Ilium,” a Greek epic poem, while admiring the fire.  The controversy deepened when Roman Senator and historian, Publius Tacitus, stated that the emperor was in the southern Roman province of Antium when the fire broke out.  Still, Tacitus did point out that some Roman citizens did hold the emperor responsible, so Nero, to diffuse blame organized a relief effort to help those affected by the fire.  In any case, scholars today still cannot prove whether the fire was accidental, caused by Nero, or by Christians.