Changes

Augustus had brought peace to the Roman Empire and during his reign he amassed a range of powers. He made himself in effect the first Emperor.<ref> Tacitus. <i>Annals of Rome</i>. 1</ref> Romans feared instability after his death and they accepted his step-son, Tiberius, as his successor.<ref> Suetonius. <i>Life of Tiberius</i>. 4</ref> This established the hereditary principle for Imperial succession and the Julian-Claudians became the de-facto royal house of the Empire. Tiberius, who is often portrayed as a depraved and bloody old man, was in fact a very capable leader. He reformed the system of governance and tax-collection and his rule was mild. By the time of his death the hereditary principle was established and his nephew Gaius (Caligula) became Emperor.<ref>Suetonius, <i>Life of Caligula</i>. 8</ref> Caligula 's four years in power were bizarre and bloody and after . After his assassination , he was succeeded by Claudius. Often While often portrayed as something of a fool, but he did showed at times show that he was a capable leader. He ordered the conquest of Britain and also annexed much of modern-day Morocco for his empire.<ref> Suetonius, Life of Claudius, 8 </ref>

In the first-century AD the Empire was at its zenith. There had been peace for several decades and the borders were relatively secure. The majority of provincials were loyal to the Empire and they were increasingly Romanized. The economy of the Empire was generally good. There was also a great cultural flourishing and poets such as Ovid and writers such as Petronius, produced masterpieces of Latin literature that are still read to this day. This was the Empire that Nero inherited.<ref> Griffin, Miriam T. <i>Nero: The End of a Dynasty </i> ( London: Yale University Press, 1985), p 12</ref>