fandomhigh | Mad Kings and Queens: Raving Royals and How to Survive Them. -- Wednesday, May 14th, 2nd Period

As people entered today, they might notice the desk were missing. Instead, it was outfitted with a wide variety of Roman couches and pillows strewn about the room. There were also a number of wine jugs and goblets filled with various ~~moddable~~ non-alcoholic beverages. Ghanima was perched on a lectus, a goblet of spiced coffee in her hand as she browsed her notes.

Once everyone had found a spot, she looked up and smiled. "Good morning, class. As a fine example of a mad royal, I lied to you last week. The syllabus is not ready today ~~due to RL moving smacking the mun upside the head~~. However, since we have just left the waters of Italy, I felt today would be an excellent time to discuss Nero, a Roman emperor who is famous for reputedly laughing and singing as his city burned."

"Nero became emperor at sixteen, the youngest Emperor up until that time," she said, sipping her drink. "Ancient historians describe Nero's early reign as being strongly influenced by his mother Agrippina, his tutor Lucius Annaeus Seneca, and the Praetorian Prefect Sextus Afranius Burrus, especially in the first years of his rule, which were known as examples of fine administration. The matters of the Empire were handled effectively and the Senate enjoyed a period of renewed influence in state affairs."

"Over time, Nero became progressively more powerful, freeing himself of his advisers and eliminating rivals to the throne. In 55, he removed Marcus Antonius Pallas, an ally of Agrippina, from his position in the treasury. Pallas, along with Burrus, was accused of conspiring against the emperor to bring Faustus Sulla to the throne. Seneca was accused of having relations with Agrippina and embezzlement. Seneca was able to get himself, Pallas and Burrus acquitted. According to Cassius Dio, at this time, Seneca and Burrus reduced their role in governing from careful management to mere moderation of Nero." Ghanima smiled thinly. "Perhaps they valued their heads more than their power. In any rate, tensions began to mount between Nero and the Senate."

"In 58, Nero became romantically involved with Poppaea Sabina, the wife of his friend and future emperor Otho. His wife, Octavia, who happened to be his step-sister -" Ghanima paused and grinned "-add another monarch to the list of dubious marriages - and mother were not amused, and Agrippina tried to reign in her son. According to Suetonius, Nero angrily responded with various attempts on his mother's life, three of which were by poison and one by rigging the ceiling over her bed to collapse while she would lay in bed. When those failed, a collapsible boat was built, which was meant to sink in the Bay of Naples. But the plot only succeeded in sinking the boat, as Agrippina managed to swim ashore. Exasperated, Nero sent an assassin who clubbed and stabbed her to death and framed it as a suicide. At the very least, we must give him points for creativity."

"Octavia also felt Nero's wrath, when he divorced her and then had her executed on a trumped-up charge of adultery to make way for Poppaea Sabina, whom he married. Unfortunately, Poppaea would also meet her end at the hands of Nero, when he kicked her to death one night after being out late at the horse races. She was seven months pregnant at the time."

"Now, Nero began his reign by promising the Senate more autonomy. Nero was known for being hands-off and spending his time visiting brothels and taverns during this period, which suited everyone just fine." Ghanima smiled and stood up, moving to begin writing on the wipeboard. "In 55, Nero began taking on a more active role as an administrator. He was consul four times between 55 and 60. During this period, some ancient historians speak fairly well of Nero and contrast it with his later rule. It is generally agreed that during this time, he was realively sane."

"Nero was also an avid lover of arts and entertainment, as evidenced by his patronage of theatre and the arena. He built a number of gymnasiums and theaters, and enormous gladiatorial shows were held. Nero also established the quinquennial Neronia. The festival included games, poetry and theater. Historians indicate that there was a belief in the Senate that theater was for the lower-class and led to immorality and laziness, and some questioned the large public expenditure on entertainment," Ghanima said, smiling. "I'm sure Nero's habit of large orgies, daliences with actors, and his frequent appreances on-stage had nothing to do with their reluctance to fund his hobbies. Really."

"By June of 68 the senate voted Galba the emperor and declared Nero a public enemy. The Praetorian Guard was bribed to betray Nero by the praetorian prefect, Nymphidius Sabinus, who desired to become emperor himself. According to Suetonius, Nero fled Rome on the Salaria road. His supporters urged him to flee to the East, where he was still universally popular, but he prepared himself for suicide. Reportedly, the praetorian guard entered to capture Nero just as he stabbed himself."

"With his death, the Julio-Claudian dynasty came to an end, and chaos ensued in the Year of the Four Emperors."

Ghanima turned back to the class, tapping her marker against the board. "Many of the surviving sources paint Nero as insane. It is not known whether they are speaking figuratively or literally, given the political climate. It was not uncommon for 'madness' or 'depravity' to be used as political weapons, even then. Recent scholars are divided in attempting to ascribe a medical reason for Nero's behavior, citing as possibilities encephalitis, epilepsy or meningitis, especially considering his family history of madness, and the fact that his brutality and erratic behaviour increased as he aged. The question of whether or not Nero was truly insane, however, remains unanswered."

"Now, I'd like us to discuss a few different things; do you believe that Nero was mad, or merely slandered by unhappy rivals? If he was insane, what do we think caused it?"

"Miss Liddell, Miss Levine, and Reno, may I see all of you when class is done?"

[OOC: Please wait for the OCD done. Enjoy! Availability for the teacher will vary today, but hit me on aim if you need me to tag in somewhere. See store for details.]

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Ella had no idea which disease it could have been, but she was happy to work with someone to figure it out.

Rubbing his neck a little in thought, Chad spotted a classmate who seemed to be pondering the issue, too, and asked, "So, what do you think?"

"I think I don't know anything about medicine, but I'm almost sorry for Nero if any of these were behind his behavior," Ella decided, blinking up at the very tall young man. "Almost. What do you think?"

"I don't think he was crazy at all," Chad said honestly. "Just a kid who got a little out of hand with his power. But, if we had to pick one, I'd lean toward that one." His large finger settled on the handout on meningitis. "But I hope not, 'cause it said a lot of stuff about rashes and STDs, which would be..." He grunted. "Really bad with all those orgies, so I'm settling on this one." He then switched his finger to the epilepsy handout.

Ella read through the two Chad had indicated carefully. "Epilepsy is the only hereditary one, and we're supposed to take that into account," she noted. "And it sounds as though people with it can act normally outside the seizures, which would also fit with Nero."

"But you could be right, too. He might have just handled power badly." Too many people did.

Chad nodded, grunting an agreement. "He was just sixteen, she said. And perfectly normal kids can do really stupid thing when they have more power than other people and it usually takes something big to stop it..."

Not that he was talking about anything in his personal experience, or anything...

"But usually only if there was something rotten in them to start with," Ella argued. "Our prince at home is just 18, and he commands knights, and he'd never do anything like this."

"But then," she added, "he does have a father watching for him, and Kyrria is hardly Rome."

Something rotten? An interesting comment. Chad's jaw squared tightly for a second, looking down at the papers.

Maybe she had a point, though. He grunted.

"And, well, Rome was pretty hard and rotten to begin with, wasn't it? I mean, jus' look at all the political intrigue. Not easy to deal with..."

"Not for anyone." Ella shook her head. "It sounds as though he was all right when he had strong advisers, but got worse as he got rid of them and started trying to do everything on his own. So if he was trying to do it alone, and he had a certain personality type, and the culture was pretty rough, and history was being written by people who didn't much like him ... he wouldn't need to be mad at all."

Chad nodded a little again. "Exactly. Just a normal guy in an abnormal situation..."

Mad Kings and Queens: Raving Royals and How to Survive Them. -- Wednesday, May 14th, 2nd Period

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