Ignoring this, Otho’s supporters declared him emperor anyway. Īs emperor in the year 69, Galba passed over Otho and selected as his heir Lucius Calpurnius Piso. Nero, living up to his outrageous reputation, exiled Otho, had Octavia executed, and married Poppaea.ġ6th c. But Otho enraged the emperor by falling in love with Poppaea himself. Until Nero could be rid of his wife Octavia, Otho would be married to Poppaea Sabina and Nero could be with her whenever he wanted. Nero hated his first wife Octavia and loved a woman named Poppaea Sabina. In fact, he and Nero had once struck a very indecent deal together. Otho had been well connected during Nero’s reign. The governor Otho, a gracious member of Galba’s supporters, had high hopes of being named Galba’s heir. Meanwhile, in Rome, Galba was already in his seventies, and there was discussion about whom he would choose to succeed him. It was not difficult for Vitellius to sway the soldiers’ allegiance to himself. At his post in Germany, Vitellius held power over soldiers who felt Galba had not properly rewarded them for their loyalty. One of Galba’s supporters was the statesman Vitellius, also from a prominent family, whom Galba elected as governor of Lower Germany. Once in power, he angered many of his troops by withholding pay, a decision which would come back to haunt him.Ī coin from the brief reign of Galba. Roman historians note Galba’s strictness and miserliness. Yet his family was affluent, which was adequate basis for him to rule. Galba was the first emperor who was not descended from the Julio-Claudian line. This message would inspire Galba’s opposition. Rather than bringing about peace, this act sent the message that it was possible for an emperor to be declared outside of the capital city of Rome. They clashed until only one remained, a man who would become the head of a new dynasty.Īs soon as the senate declared Nero a public enemy in April of 68, Galba, the governor of Spain, declared himself emperor. What followed was a year of chaos as four different men of high social standing declared themselves emperor, each with his own army of loyal supporters. All this resulted in a great conspiracy against him and he was forced to commit suicide on June 9, AD 68.
He had one wife executed and he murdered another with a fatal kick. During his rule, he was disdained by his people because of his vanity and inadequacies as leader. The Roman emperor Nero was the last of the Julio-Claudian dynasty.
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