~64-67 · Rome, Italy

Martyrdom of Peter and Paul

The two most important apostles were both executed in Rome under Emperor Nero, cementing the city as the center of the Christian world and establishing the principle that the faith was worth dying for.

Sometime between 64 and 67 AD, both Peter and Paul were killed in Rome during Nero's persecution of Christians. The details come from early tradition rather than the New Testament, but the broad outlines are accepted by most historians. Peter was crucified, reportedly upside down at his own request because he considered himself unworthy to die in the same manner as Jesus. Paul, as a Roman citizen, was beheaded, likely along the Ostian Way outside the city. Nero had launched his crackdown after the Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD, which he blamed on Christians to deflect suspicion from himself. Christians were burned alive as human torches, fed to animals, and killed in other grotesque public spectacles. The deaths of Peter and Paul in this context were not isolated martyrdoms but part of a wider slaughter. Peter's burial site became the most sacred ground in Western Christianity. Constantine built the first St. Peter's Basilica directly over his tomb in the fourth century. The fact that Peter died in Rome, and not in Jerusalem or Antioch, is the historical foundation for Rome's claim to primacy among Christian churches. Two fisherman and a tentmaker, killed by the most powerful empire on earth, and within three centuries that empire would bow to their God.

Why it matters

Established Rome as the seat of apostolic authority through Peter's martyrdom and burial there, and demonstrated from the earliest days that Christian witness could demand the ultimate sacrifice.