Pisonian Conspiracy and Death
In 41 AD, the emperor Claudius recalled Piso to Rome and made him his co-consul. Piso then became a powerful senator during the reign of Emperor Nero and in 65 AD led a secret initiative to replace Emperor Nero that became known as the Pisonian Conspiracy.
Piso leveraged senatorial anger with the emperor Nero to gain power. Already in 62 AD, there had been talk among those of senatorial rank, in the nobility, and among the equites that Nero was ruining Rome. By 65 AD, the city had endured the Great Fire of Rome and the persecution of the Christians, spurring groups of conspirators to come together under the leadership of Piso with the goal of killing the emperor Nero.
On April 19, 65 AD, the freedman Milichus betrayed Piso’s plot to kill the emperor and the conspirators were all arrested. In all, 19 were put to death and 13 exiled, revealing the massive scope of the conspiracy. Piso was ordered to commit suicide and so killed himself.
Read more about this topic: Gaius Calpurnius Piso
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