The end of Nero's reign, resulting from his extravagances and paranoid arrests, differed from the violent
end of Caligula's reign in that there was no method of succession in place. While Claudius was certainly an
unwanted choice by the Senate to replace Caligula, he did fill the role in a seamless transition that actually
turned into a moderately successful reign. With Nero's suicide, knowing that the military revolts of his generals
and legions were irreversible, the Principate faced its first dangerous challenge of civil war since the great
wars that ended the Republic.
In AD 68, the revolt of Gaius Julius Vindex, governor of Gallia Lugdunensis was the final catalyst that brought
the Julio-Claudian line to an end. He was joined in theory by the powerful governor of Hispania Tarraconensis,
Servius Sulpicius Galba (Galba never actually offered troops or support to Vindex), but their reasons are unknown.
Its been speculated that both Vindex and Galba were on a very long list of targets for Nero's executioners but
this is currently impossible to prove. Galba too has sometimes been incorrectly credited with attempting to take
it upon himself to restore Augustan principal, but this too ignores some very specific and selfish behavior.
Essentially speaking Galba, like the others who followed him, would soon show themselves as men of supreme
personal ambition.
While Galba prepared to march on Rome, accompanied by Otho the governor of Lusitania, loyal Neronian forces from
the Rhine area under Lucius Verginius Rufus crushed the revolt of Vindex. What may have appeared to be a sudden
disaster for the revolt of Galba turned into a fortuitous break. Rather than continue in their support of the
crumbling Neronian administration, the forces of Rufus attempted to proclaim him as emperor. In Africa too,
Clodius Macer with the support of Galba, revolted with his one legion and began the process of recruiting another,
while cutting off the grain supply to Rome and inciting the mob (Macer would soon be executed for his efforts
by the distrusting Galba). Though Verginius Rufus refused his troops declaration, preferring to let others play
the imperial game, it was painfully obvious to Nero that any semblance of support for him had faded. (Verginius
Rufus returned to Rome and was transformed into an inspiring, yet minor player in the transition between emperors
and remained so even through and beyond the Flavian Dynasty.) The Praetorian Prefect Gaius Nymphidius Sabinus
played his own hand, promising his praetorians a large reward for their allegiance to Galba and Nero's fate was
sealed. On June 9 AD 68 Nero took his own life, and Galba marched to Rome with the adopted title of 'Caesar',
where he was for the most part readily welcomed. (thus began the concept of Caesar as a title in an attempt to
legitimize Galba's candidacy , rather than a family name, which would be further defined to mean imperial heir in
the near future).
Galba, despite his good fortune made several decidedly devastating mistakes in his early reign. While on the march
to Rome he razed and/or plundered towns that refused his initial declarations as the new emperor. Fostering this
early atmosphere of distrust and anger did little to endear him to a population which would have readily accepted
any strong and charismatic leadership. Immediately upon his arrival in Rome he continued Nero's terror of trying
and executing members of the aristocracy that he thought were conspiring against him. He also alienated the
Praetorians and those legions that weren't under his direct command. Rather than pay the rewards originally
promised by Sabinus (and understandably necessary under the circumstances) Galba refused to pay (perhaps in an
attempt to rebuild the treasury, perhaps on a matter of principal as the details are unknown). Before long, the
Rhine legions that had put down the revolt of Vindex refused to declare loyalty to Galba and chose instead their
new Commander Vitellius (Jan 1 AD 69).
Along with the news of the Rhine revolt, Galba was the victim of some terrible advice and perhaps of his own
convictions as well. Since Galba's march on Rome, Marcus Salvius Otho the governor of Lusitania who had
accompanied him, expected to be named heir to the throne as a reward for his part in the revolts success. Galba,
however, likely wishing to prove his own sense of control, decided on Lucius Calpurnius Piso Frugi Licinianus
instead. Otho, personally slighted, went directly to the Praetorian Guard, already unhappy with Galba and bribed
them to his own cause. By January 15, AD 69 the short six month reign of Galba (he had actually only been in Rome
since October) was coming to an end and the Praetorians executed him in the Forum.
The Senate confirmed Otho as Galba's replacement and he immediately took over, having Galba's heir Piso killed as
well. Though he was ambitious and perhaps guilty of greed, he did not follow up Galba's execution with a great
deal more bloodshed. Unfortunately though, he would have little time to prove himself a capable 'Emperor', as
Vitellius, the newly appointed Emperor of the Rhine legions was on the march to Rome. Otho hastily gathered
forces, and attempted to negotiate with the marching Vitellius, offering to make Vitellius his son-in-law. There
was to be no deal however, and the rebel armies moved into Italy (Vitellius traveled behind the army in Gaul).
The two armies met at Bedriacum where both jockeyed for position along the Ro River. On April 14 AD 69,
Vitellian's legions broke through Otho's center and crushed any resistance. Otho, rather than flee and continue
the civil war any longer, took his own life (ending his reign in only 3 months), and the Senate had little choice
but to confirm Vitellius as the 3rd emperor already in the short year.
Vitellius was thus given an incredible opportunity to rebuild the dignity of the Imperial office and stabilize the
Roman political situation, but instead he did little but dishonor Roman tradition and sensibility. Romans killed
in battle were denied proper funeral arrangements, and his legions marched in a state of drunken euphoria,
creating certain havoc as they went. Vitellius arrived in Rome and honored himself and his friends with feasts,
triumphs and games to ultimate detriment of the treasury. Though he smartly allowed for a gradual transition from
General to Emperor, leaving significant power within the Senate, and was ultimately lenient with Otho's
supporters, his excesses reeked to similarities to Nero. While contemporary sources are certainly favorable to
Vitellius' eventual successor, therefore tainting their reports with propaganda, there is always some element of
truth in the ancient reports. Accordingly, Suetonius described several examples of cruelty and depravity, setting
the state for justifying continued civil war. In July of AD 69, yet another revolt would spring up, this time in
the east. Titus Flavius Vespasianus, an extremely successful general from the invasion of Britain and the
pacification of Judaea, was about to accomplish what Vitellius could not: stabilization of the Roman Empire.
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