Nerva and the Roman Succession Crisis of Ad 96-99

by Grainger; John D

• ISBN13: 9780415289177
• ISBN10: 0415289173
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-12-06
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

The imperial succession at Rome was notoriously uncertain, and hereditary succession was preferred. But when the infamous emperor Domitian was assassinated in AD 6, he had no sons and had executed several family members who might have succeeded him; the situation provoked a dangerous crisis. John Grainger's detailed study looks at this period of intrigue and conspiracy and explores Domitian's murder, the rule of his successor Nerva, and finally Nerva's own choice of successor, Trajan, who became a strong and respected emperor against the odds. Grainger also investigates the effects of this dynastic uncertainty both inside and outside the ruling group in Rome, asking why civil war did not occur in this time of political upheaval. By the third century civil war was institutionalized, and was one of the main reasons for the eventual downfall of the entire imperial structure. Though the period of this study stands out as the civil war that didn't happen, it was perilously close.

Table of Contents

List of illustrations	vi
List of abbreviations	vii
Plates	ix
Tables	xiii
Maps	xviii
Introduction	xxv
Assassination	1	(3)
Conspiracy	4	(24)
Nerva	28	(17)
Reactions	45	(7)
The emperor's work	52	(14)
The succession problem	66	(7)
The aristocratic networks	73	(16)
Choice	89	(14)
Heir	103	(6)
New emperor	109	(17)
Conclusion	126	(3)
Notes	129	(20)
Bibliography	149	(6)
Index	155