page_title: Nero Julius Caesar
section_title: Career
hierarchical_section_title: Nero Julius Caesar / Career
caption_attribution_description: English: Nero Julius Caesar (on the left), eldest son of Germanicus, saluting Tiberius (seated, on the right), detail of the so-called Great Cameo of France. Five-layered sardonyx cameo, Roman artwork, second quarter of the 1st century AD. Français&#160;: Nero Caesar (à gauche), fils aîné de Germanicus, saluant Tibère (assis, à droite), détail du Grand Camée de France. Camée en sardonyx à cinq couches, œuvre romaine, deuxième quart du Ier siècle ap. J.-C.
context_page_description: Nero Julius Caesar Germanicus was the adopted grandson and heir of the Roman Emperor Tiberius, alongside his brother Drusus. Born into the prominent Julio-Claudian dynasty, Nero was the son of Tiberius' general and heir, Germanicus. After the deaths of his father and of Tiberius' son, Drusus the Younger, Nero and his brother Drusus were adopted together by Tiberius in September AD 23. As a result of being heirs of the emperor, he and his brother enjoyed accelerated political careers.
  Sejanus, prefect of the Praetorian Guard, had become powerful in Rome and is believed by ancient writers such as Suetonius and Tacitus to have been responsible for the downfall of Drusus the Younger. As the power of Sejanus grew, other members of the imperial family began to fall as well. In AD 29, Tiberius wrote a letter to the Senate attacking Nero and his mother, and the Senate had them both exiled. Two years later, he died in exile on the island of Ponza. His brother Drusus also died in exile in AD 33. Their deaths allowed for the adoption and ascension of their younger brother, Caligula, following the death of Tiberius in AD 37.
context_section_description: Nero's mother Agrippina believed her husband was murdered to promote Drusus the Younger as heir, and feared that the birth of his twin sons would give him a motive to displace her own sons. However, her fears were unfounded, with Nero being elevated by Tiberius. On 7 June AD 20, Nero was brought into the forum to receive the toga virilis, introduced into the Senate by Tiberius and Drusus the Younger, and was promised the office of quaestor in five years' time. He was excused from holding the lowest magistracy, the vigintivirate, and a congiaria of 60 denarii was distributed by Tiberius at his tirocinium. He was wed to Drusus the Younger's daughter, Julia, later that year combining the families of both possible lines of succession (that of Germanicus and Drusus the Younger). His brother Drusus was introduced to the Senate with similar honours in AD 23, and he too was promised the rank of quaestor in five years' time.
caption: Nero (on the left), saluting Tiberius (seated, on the right) (detail of the Great Cameo of France).
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