Emperor Nero, infamous as one of the most malevolent, oppressive and tyrannical leaders in all of history, was the last ruler of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. He was born outside Rome in Antium and his mother married his great uncle, Emperor Claudius, in order for her son to become the next emperor of Rome. Was it not evident that his son would become one of the most feared and cruel leaders in Roman history from 54 AD to 68 AD By examining his successes and failures as emperor, his influences and changes across the entire economic, political and social spectrum are revealed . At this stage in the Roman Empire things were extremely dangerous and many power struggles were arising within the royal family. The death of the sadistic Emperor Caligula led to the rise of Emperor Claudius and Rome was left in instability. This created an omnipresence of fear that forced Agrippa, Nero's mother, to secure a safe place for herself by marrying her uncle, Emperor Claudius. To gain emperorship, Agrippa and Nero assassinated Emperor Claudius, making Nero the youngest emperor up to that point, at the age of seventeen. His rule was significantly influenced by his mother, as well as his two ruling advisors Seneca and Burrus. Although he ultimately believed in complete dictatorship, he was mostly quite promising due to his moderate approach to governing. His guardian and advisor Seneca, who was one of the greatest intellectuals and philosophers of the time, taught Nero from a young age about mercy, justice and the sacredness of human life. These ideas pleased Nero and he tried to gain popularity by following these moral ideas. It also allowed the Senate to make more decisions, which was appreciated... middle of paper... a multifaceted system that even the most experienced people could hardly control. Even though he developed the arts, it wasn't worth the amount of human suffering and death that occurred during his time. The government system was eventually established to prevent civil war, but it ultimately collapsed into civil war because Nero failed the system and the Roman people. Works Cited • Tacitus, C. (2005). The annals of imperial Rome. Stilwell, Kansas: Digireads.com.• Tranquillus, C.S. (1978). Lives of the Twelve Caesars. Sl: Corner House Pub.• Century, t. 4., Peter, an and Paul.. (nd). Nero - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved January 2, 2012, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nero• Emperor Nero. (n.d.). The Roman Empire. Retrieved January 5, 2012, from http://www.roman-empire.net/emperors/nero-index.html