Fire of Rome. On July 18, 64 AD, a fire broke out in Rome, quickly spreading from the market area to the city center. When the flames were finally extinguished, over a week later, nearly two-thirds of Rome was destroyed. Emperor Nero took advantage of the fire to rebuild Rome in a more orderly, Greek-inspired style, starting with an imposing palace called the Domus Aurea. Some insinuated that the emperor had ordered the burning of Rome to suit his own architectural tastes, but he was in Anzio at the time of the fire. Later Roman historians recount that Nero blamed the fire on members of the mysterious Christian cult and, in retaliation, began the first persecutions against its exponents.
