Other social media users seemed just as perplexed about it as Trump.

Around the same time, First Lady Melania Trump made a rare public statement denouncing an impeachment witness for mentioning son Barron’s name in a joke about the president. Somewhere between that play, composed about 1590, and a play called The Tragedy of Nero, published in 1624, the lute had become a fiddle. The president has also been long criticized for using social media to mock his political rivals and other citizens with whom he disagrees. New York Times. "Nero fiddled while Rome burned. Notice that Tacitus does not make any reference to musical instruments. But perhaps the most interesting rumor that emerged from the great fire was that Nero had played his fiddle while Rome burned. Trump and his election campaign have a pattern of bizarre social media use, which has sometimes boomeranged on them. Some said Trump was unintentionally comparing himself to the mad Roman emperor Nero — who, so the saying goes, “fiddled while Rome burned.”, RELATED: Twitter Jeers After Trump Campaign Video Turns Him Into Marvel Supervillain Thanos — ‘Great Meme, Idiots’. The Flavian Amphitheatre or Colosseum in Rome, built in 70-80 AD, October 1998. Get push notifications with news, features and more.

Some rumors speculated that Nero himself had set the fire, others that he had ordered it. We use cookies to personalise content and ads, to provide social media features and to analyse our traffic.

Nero blamed Christians for the fire, leading to horrific persecution and executions, but in the aftermath, he started to build on the ruins. This confirmed to many that he was responsible, and the story took hold. Coyote Ugly Turns 20: Where Is the Cast Now?

“Thanos was the bad guy who was eventually defeated by the good guys. Some said Trump was unintentionally comparing himself to the mad Roman emperor Nero — who, so the saying goes, "fiddled while Rome burned" It’s unclear whether the meme was referring to the president’s 2020 re-election campaign — and the idea that his victory is inevitable — or the continuing spread of the novel coronavirus in the United States or the volatile stock market the virus has caused or something else entirely. http://www-atdp.berkeley.edu/2030/jmoriuchi/violin-origins.html, Information about the device's operating system, Information about other identifiers assigned to the device, The IP address from which the device accesses a client's website or mobile application, Information about the user's activity on that device, including web pages and mobile apps visited or used, Information about the geographic location of the device when it accesses a website or mobile application. Diocese of Biloxi.

If you would like to opt out of browser push notifications, please refer to the following instructions specific to your device and browser: Trump Shares Head-Scratching Meme That Even He Doesn't Understand: 'Who Knows What This Means'. So great meme, idiots,” one user responded then. Over the centuries, the cithara was replaced by a fiddle. Emperor Nero was a gifted cithara player. Weird & Wacky, Copyright © 2020 HowStuffWorks, a division of InfoSpace Holdings, LLC, a System1 Company. this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines. Nothing says a family vacation like an RV, Princess Diana died when Harry was just 12 years old, It's looked — and felt — like a whole different world as we've been social distancing and attempting to keep each other safe, See All the Celebs Taking RV Trips This Summer, The Sweetest Photos of Princes Harry with Diana, From Empty Streets to Virtual Weddings: What Life Has Looked Like During the Coronavirus Pandemic. 1999. http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/rome.htm, "The death ­of Nero." Music historians believe the viol class of instruments (to which the fiddle belongs) was not developed until the 11th century. RELATED: Melania Trump Touts Women’s Role in U.S. as Her Husband Uses Slur Against Rival Elizabeth Warren. Canfield, Leoon H. "The Early Persecution of the Christians." We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners who may combine it with other information that you’ve provided to them or that they’ve collected from your use of their services. As Nero rebuilt Rome in a new style more to his liking, some believed he used the fire as an excuse for new construction. January 1947. http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/secondary/journals/CJ/42/4/Nero_Fiddled*.html, Rodi, Bishop Thomas J. The Law Book Exchange, Ltd. 2005. http://books.google.com/books?id=Gr9xtakCRpsC&pg=PA46&lpg=PA46&dq=nero+the+destruction+of+troy&source=web&ots=VEZgTjhpB9&sig=rObRshHjQ32PJsRYR4Q5YHvcZow, Gyles, Mary Francis. “Guys I think the hamster on the wheel inside our president’s head just collapsed,” one user responded. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) launched into a pointed critique of Donald Trump during his online address Monday at the Democratic National Convention, comparing the president to the Roman emperor Nero, who legend has played the fiddle while his city burned. "The origins and history of the violin."

You'll get the latest updates on this topic in your browser notifications. "­ The Classical Journal. In 1649 the playwright George Daniel committed this line to print: “Let Nero fiddle out Rome’s obsequies.”

“Who knows what this means, but it sounds good to me!” Trump, 73, tweeted on Sunday afternoon along with the post, which was originally shared by the White House’s social media director, Dan Scavino. February 3, 1878. http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=940CE1DC113FE63BBC4B53DFB4668383669FDE&oref=slogin. This is due to the fact that the fiddle was not invented until much later, possibly in the 11 th century. "Message to young people: Friday, 12/3/2004."

In this engraving, Nero presides over the burning of Christians at the stake. How did public fountains, like those in Rome, work without any type of motor to pump the water?

Introducing ... PEOPLE's Products Worth the Hype, Twitter Jeers After Trump Campaign Video Turns Him Into Marvel Supervillain Thanos — ‘Great Meme, Idiots’, Melania Trump Touts Women’s Role in U.S. as Her Husband Uses Slur Against Rival Elizabeth Warren. Even if Nero did perform while Rome burned, it most likely would not have been with knowledge of the fire taking place, and it would not have been a fiddle. Most of what we know about Nero's reign comes from three ancient writers: Tacitus, Suetonius, and Greek historian Cassius Dio. Picture: Getty In December, the campaign shared a meme depicting Trump as Marvel character Thanos while trying to make a statement about him trouncing his political opponents in the face of his impeachment. A spokeswoman for Mrs. Trump said at the time that she and her husband “communicate differently.”.