--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I would rather see Rome ruled by a man…" description: "\"“I would rather see Rome ruled by a man who once had to ask his accountant tricky questions before his steward could pay the butcher’s bill than by som..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a1/lindsey-davis-19357_nero_i-would-rather-see-rome-ruled-by-a-man-w_568044.jpg" --- # I would rather see Rome ruled by a man who once had to ask… ![“I would rather see Rome ruled by a man who once had to ask his accountant tricky questions before his steward could pay the butcher’s bill than by some mad limb like Nero, who was brought up believing himself the son and the grandson of gods, and who thought wearing the purple gave him free rein…” quote by Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a1/lindsey-davis-19357_nero_i-would-rather-see-rome-ruled-by-a-man-w_568044.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a1/lindsey-davis-19357_nero_i-would-rather-see-rome-ruled-by-a-man-w_568044.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a1/lindsey-davis-19357_nero_i-would-rather-see-rome-ruled-by-a-man-w_568044.jpg) > ““I would rather see Rome ruled by a man who once had to ask his accountant tricky questions before his steward could pay the butcher’s bill than by some mad limb like Nero, who was brought up believing himself the son and the grandson of gods, and who thought wearing the purple gave him free rein to indulge his personal vanities, execute real talent, bankrupt the Treasury, burn half of Rome – and bore the living daylights out of paying customers in theatres!”” [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote warns that a competent, questioning leader is preferable to a reckless, self‑indulgent ruler who misuses power and squanders resources. **In simple terms:** Better leaders ask tough questions; tyrants act on vanity. Key Takeaway Choose accountability over arrogance. Themes leadership accountability power hubris Mood critical reflective Type advice political. When to use this quote - corporate management - public office - budget committees - creative projects Key Concepts political ethics governance financial oversight Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance scrutiny with swift decision‑making? - What safeguards prevent power from becoming vanity? A Different Perspective Even diligent leaders can be constrained by bureaucracy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Like Nero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-nero-4694375/) [Nero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nero/) [Nero Brought](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nero-brought-4694374/) [Real talent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-talent/) [Rome Ruled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rome-ruled-2319388/) [Ruled Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ruled-man-2765048/) ## Related quotes > [“I was strictly a college-ruled man myself, having no talent for illustration and a microscopic scrawl that made wide-ruled seem roomy. The blank pages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-cohn/i-was-strictly-a-college-ruled-man-myself-having-no-talent-for/) [Rachel Cohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-cohn/) > [“Men at the close of the dark Ages may have been rude and unlettered and unlearned in everything but wars with heathen tribes, more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-keith-chesterton/men-at-the-close-of-the-dark-ages-may-have-been-rude-and-unlettered/) [Gilbert Keith Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-keith-chesterton/) > [Examine then, and see if He be not the dispenser of kingdoms, who is Lord at once of the world which is ruled, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tertullian/examine-then-and-see-if-he-be-not-the-dispenser-of-kingdoms-who-is/) [Tertullian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tertullian/) > [Washington...has become an alien city-state that rules America, and much of the rest of the world, in the way that Rome ruled the Roman…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-j-maybury/washington-has-become-an-alien-city-state-that-rules-america-and-much/) [Richard J. Maybury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-j-maybury/) > [ Punishment \[by Nero\] was inflicted on the Christians, a class of men given to a new and mischievous superstition. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suetonius/punishment-by-nero-was-inflicted-on-the-christians-a-class-of-men/) [Suetonius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suetonius/) > [You know yourself what you are worth in your own eyes; and at what price you will sell yourself. For men sell themselves at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/you-know-yourself-what-you-are-worth-in-your-own-eyes-and-at-what/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [“I inherited my sense of passion and romance from the Romans. Specifically Nero and all the fire he possessed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-inherited-my-sense-of-passion-and-romance-from-the-romans/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [Thus Nero went up and down Greece and challenged the fiddlers at their trade. Æropus, a Macedonian king, made lanterns; Harcatius, the king of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-taylor/thus-nero-went-up-and-down-greece-and-challenged-the-fiddlers-at/) [Jeremy Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-taylor/) > [I try to know what I need to know. I make sure to know what I want to know. (Nero Wolfe)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/i-try-to-know-what-i-need-to-know-i-make-sure-to-know-what-i-want-to/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [By the way, you guys seriously screwed up just now. (Nero) We know. (They said in unison.) Yeah, well, what you don’t know is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/by-the-way-you-guys-seriously-screwed-up-just-now-nero-we-know-they/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [I like to think how easily Nature will absorb London as she absorbed the mastodon, setting her spiders to spin the winding-sheet and her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-thomas/i-like-to-think-how-easily-nature-will-absorb-london-as-she-absorbed/) [Edward Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-thomas/) > [“As Seneca warned Nero: No matter how many of us you kill, you will never kill your successor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mitchell/as-seneca-warned-nero-no-matter-how-many-of-us-you-kill-you-will/) [David Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mitchell/) > [I’m not dead yet. It’s all good. (Omari) Good. That whole spontaneous combustion thing can be a real buzzkill. Ruins your clothes, too. (Nero)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-m-not-dead-yet-it-s-all-good-omari-good-that-whole-spontaneous/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [Darkdoom? Darkdoom did this?" Nero was visibly surprised. He placed a hand on his forehead, rubbing his temples. "Oh, why is it always the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-walden/darkdoom-darkdoom-did-this-nero-was-visibly-surprised-he-placed-a/) [Mark Walden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-walden/) > [Nero wasn't worried at all when he heard the utterance of the Delphic Oracle: "Beware the age of seventy-three." Plenty of time to enjoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-p-cavafy/nero-wasn-t-worried-at-all-when-he-heard-the-utterance-of-the-delphic/) [C.P. Cavafy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-p-cavafy/) ## More by Lindsey Davis > [“Once you permit individuals to maneuver in secret, unasked, and for their own purposes, there is chaos.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/once-you-permit-individuals-to-maneuver-in-secret-unasked-and-for/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [A good bathe when you really need it can get you over almost anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/a-good-bathe-when-you-really-need-it-can-get-you-over-almost-anything/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“We marched him to the turfy shack where he lived with his parents and while the youth sulked Petronius Longus put the whole moral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/we-marched-him-to-the-turfy-shack-where-he-lived-with-his-parents-and/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [Never lend if you need repayment; never give where you want a return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/never-lend-if-you-need-repayment-never-give-where-you-want-a-return/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“Sometimes you run away by yourself purely so someone who cares will come to find you. Half the time nobody does. That's the tragedy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/sometimes-you-run-away-by-yourself-purely-so-someone-who-cares-will/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“All bankers assume your money is theirs to play with.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/all-bankers-assume-your-money-is-theirs-to-play-with/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“Afterwards, sometimes she dared to remember being in his arms. How, after only clumsy couplings with others, she and this man had straightaway come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/afterwards-sometimes-she-dared-to-remember-being-in-his-arms-how/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“Premature action alerts the opposition.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/premature-action-alerts-the-opposition/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“It struck me there might be a reason why Helena Justina whipped along at such a cracking pace: she did not want to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/it-struck-me-there-might-be-a-reason-why-helena-justina-whipped-along/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“Sometimes information you barely noticed consciously comes back to you of its own accord.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/sometimes-information-you-barely-noticed-consciously-comes-back-to/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“I had been right in the first place. Getting involved with politicians is complete stupidity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/i-had-been-right-in-the-first-place-getting-involved-with-politicians/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“I like my women in a few wisps of drapery: then I can hope for a chance to remove the wisps. If they start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/i-like-my-women-in-a-few-wisps-of-drapery-then-i-can-hope-for-a/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“Spies have no sense of timing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/spies-have-no-sense-of-timing/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“I like my women in a few wisps of drapery: then I can hope for a chance to remove the wisps.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/i-like-my-women-in-a-few-wisps-of-drapery-then-i-can-hope-for-a-2/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) > [“popular men who laugh at your jokes pose a threat which blatant villains can never command.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/popular-men-who-laugh-at-your-jokes-pose-a-threat-which-blatant/) [Lindsey Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) [Explore all 33 Lindsey Davis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/) ## More Nero quotes > [Nero wasn't worried at all when he heard the utterance of the Delphic Oracle: "Beware the age of seventy-three." Plenty of time to enjoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-p-cavafy/nero-wasn-t-worried-at-all-when-he-heard-the-utterance-of-the-delphic/) [C.P. Cavafy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-p-cavafy/) > [You know yourself what you are worth in your own eyes; and at what price you will sell yourself. For men sell themselves at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/you-know-yourself-what-you-are-worth-in-your-own-eyes-and-at-what/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [“I inherited my sense of passion and romance from the Romans. Specifically Nero and all the fire he possessed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-inherited-my-sense-of-passion-and-romance-from-the-romans/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“As Seneca warned Nero: No matter how many of us you kill, you will never kill your successor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mitchell/as-seneca-warned-nero-no-matter-how-many-of-us-you-kill-you-will/) [David Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mitchell/) > [ Punishment \[by Nero\] was inflicted on the Christians, a class of men given to a new and mischievous superstition. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suetonius/punishment-by-nero-was-inflicted-on-the-christians-a-class-of-men/) [Suetonius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suetonius/) > [Darkdoom? Darkdoom did this?" Nero was visibly surprised. He placed a hand on his forehead, rubbing his temples. "Oh, why is it always the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-walden/darkdoom-darkdoom-did-this-nero-was-visibly-surprised-he-placed-a/) [Mark Walden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-walden/) > [I’m not dead yet. It’s all good. (Omari) Good. That whole spontaneous combustion thing can be a real buzzkill. Ruins your clothes, too. (Nero)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-m-not-dead-yet-it-s-all-good-omari-good-that-whole-spontaneous/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [I like to think how easily Nature will absorb London as she absorbed the mastodon, setting her spiders to spin the winding-sheet and her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-thomas/i-like-to-think-how-easily-nature-will-absorb-london-as-she-absorbed/) [Edward Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-thomas/) > [By the way, you guys seriously screwed up just now. (Nero) We know. (They said in unison.) Yeah, well, what you don’t know is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/by-the-way-you-guys-seriously-screwed-up-just-now-nero-we-know-they/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [I try to know what I need to know. I make sure to know what I want to know. (Nero Wolfe)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rex-stout/i-try-to-know-what-i-need-to-know-i-make-sure-to-know-what-i-want-to/) [Rex Stout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rex-stout/) > [Thus Nero went up and down Greece and challenged the fiddlers at their trade. Æropus, a Macedonian king, made lanterns; Harcatius, the king of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-taylor/thus-nero-went-up-and-down-greece-and-challenged-the-fiddlers-at/) [Jeremy Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-taylor/) > [“They never let you live it down. One little mistake!"- Nero”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lynn-asprin/they-never-let-you-live-it-down-one-little-mistake-nero/) [Robert Lynn Asprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lynn-asprin/) > [“I know not how the Christians order their own lives, but I know that where their religion begins, Roman rule ends, Rome itself ends,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henryk-stanczyk/i-know-not-how-the-christians-order-their-own-lives-but-i-know-that/) [Henryk Stanczyk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henryk-stanczyk/) > [ “\[Christians\] are people such as the world has not seen hitherto, and their teaching is of a kind that the world has not heard… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henryk-stanczyk/christians-are-people-such-as-the-world-has-not-seen-hitherto-and/) [Henryk Stanczyk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henryk-stanczyk/) > [And you take care, too, Shahara. Remember the lies we tell ourselves to survive seldom bring peace to our souls. (Nero)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/and-you-take-care-too-shahara-remember-the-lies-we-tell-ourselves-to/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) [Browse all 59 Nero quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nero/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I would rather see Rome ruled by a man who once had to ask his accountant tricky questions before his steward could pay the butcher’s bill than by some mad limb like Nero, who was brought up believing himself the son and the grandson of gods, and who thought wearing the purple gave him free rein to indulge his personal vanities, execute real talent, bankrupt the Treasury, burn half of Rome – and bore the living daylights out of paying customers in theatres!”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lindsey Davis" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/i-would-rather-see-rome-ruled-by-a-man-who-once-had-to-ask-his/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Nero" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/i-would-rather-see-rome-ruled-by-a-man-who-once-had-to-ask-his/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a1/lindsey-davis-19357_nero_i-would-rather-see-rome-ruled-by-a-man-w_568044.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a1/lindsey-davis-19357_nero_i-would-rather-see-rome-ruled-by-a-man-w_568044.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1a1/lindsey-davis-19357_nero_i-would-rather-see-rome-ruled-by-a-man-w_568044.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I would rather see Rome ruled by a man who once had to ask his accountant tricky questions before his…” — Lindsey Davis", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Lindsey Davis", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-davis/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I would rather see Rome ruled...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/i-would-rather-see-rome-ruled-by-a-man-who-once-had-to-ask-his/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-davis/i-would-rather-see-rome-ruled-by-a-man-who-once-had-to-ask-his/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```