July, AD 64. Much of Rome is still smoldering. Hundreds of buildings had been completed destroyed in the voracious blaze that burned unchecked for over a week in Rome. Thousands of people were dead. As we learned last time, Nero spent huge sums of money to provide relief. He also tortured and murdered Christians—claiming that these blasphemers and atheists were to blame for the calamity. But, deserved or not, Nero was still held responsible. In subsequent years, the chaos surrounding Nero began to swirl at seemingly faster speeds. The treasury was drained. The parties became ever more decadent. The murders stacked up. Eventually, Nero exhausted both Rome, and himself. And the one thing that this whole autocratic system was meant to stop, suddenly re-emerged with a fury: open civil war. Primary Sources Referenced: Tacitus, Annals 15.37 Suetonius, Life of Nero 23.2