Nero blamed the fire on Christians and launched a brutal persecution. Tacitus wrote that Christians were “covered with the skins of beasts” and “torn by dogs” or “nailed to crosses,” while others were burned as torches. This is the main ancient testimony for Nero’s persecution in Rome.

Clement says that Paul “won the noblest renown” and “suffered martyrdom” after having “been seven times in bonds” and having preached “in the east and in the west.” The passage is one of the earliest Christian references to Paul’s death.

In 1 Clement 5:1–7, written from Rome in the late first century, the author recalls Paul’s sufferings and death and explicitly connects them with Nero: he says that Paul "had borne witness before the rulers" and that Peter likewise endured "many labors" before suffering martyrdom. Later in the same chapter, both Peter and Paul are presented as examples in the context of persecutions suffered by the Roman church, traditionally understood as the Neronian persecution after the fire of 64. This early Roman testimony is one of the principal ancient sources linking the martyrdoms of Peter and Paul to Nero’s reign and the persecution of Christians in Rome.

Eusebius states that, after the Neronian persecution, “Peter was crucified at Rome” and “Paul was beheaded at Rome.” He explicitly links both deaths to Nero’s persecution in Rome.

Tacitus reports that Nero inflicted punishments on Christians after the fire in Rome and describes the persecution as public and severe. Tacitus does not name Peter or Paul, but he is the key Roman source for the Neronian persecution context.

Paul’s last imprisonment is commonly dated to the period of Nero’s reign, and Christian tradition places his execution in Rome by beheading on the Ostian Way. The article also says Eusebius notes that Paul and Peter were executed during the same Neronian persecution.

Tradition holds that Peter was martyred in Rome under Nero, and Paul was also executed in Rome during Nero’s persecution. The source presents this as received church tradition rather than independently verified fact.

Acts ends with Paul under house arrest in Rome for two years, receiving visitors and preaching. This provides the biblical basis for placing Paul in Rome around AD 60–62, though Acts does not itself describe his death.

The Catholic Encyclopedia and many standard reference works (as summarized on the Wikipedia page) state that according to Christian tradition, the Apostles Peter and Paul were martyred in Rome during the persecution of Christians by Emperor Nero following the Great Fire of Rome in AD 64. The article notes that early Christian writers such as Clement of Rome, Tertullian, and Eusebius link Peter’s martyrdom to Rome and, in Eusebius’ case, to the time of Nero, and that later tradition specifies that Peter was crucified upside down and Paul was beheaded as a Roman citizen. Modern historians cited in the entry emphasise that while the martyrdoms under Nero are a strong and ancient tradition, direct contemporary evidence is sparse and the details (such as exact year and the manner of Peter’s crucifixion) are reconstructable only from later sources.

The article notes: "On July 19, AD 64, a fire broke out in Rome, destroying ten of the city’s fourteen districts." It continues: "During Paul’s first imprisonment, he… was under house arrest in Rome for two years (28:30)… Scholars believe Paul was released sometime in AD 62…" and then describes a second imprisonment: "However, during Paul’s second imprisonment in the Mamertine dungeon… Paul believed only his execution would be left (4:6–7), which was probably carried out in AD 68. Eusebius notes that Paul and Peter were executed during the same Neronian persecution, though Peter was crucified upside down."

This discussion of Paul’s chronology states that Paul’s journey to Rome is dated "between 59 and 60 A.D." and that Acts 28:30 says "Paul was under house arrest for two years before his case came to trial." It notes that "Nero was the fifth Roman emperor, ruling from 54 to 68" and that if these dates are accurate, "Paul arrived in Rome in approximately AD 60, during the tenure of Nero." It further observes: "There is a view that Paul died a martyr’s death in the mid-to-late AD 60s in Rome… Nero died in AD 68, which serves as an upper bound on when the martyrdoms of Peter & Paul occurred." The answer also cites 1 Clement as a first-century Roman text referencing "the martyrdom of Paul (and of Peter) in the context of the Neronian persecution of Christians."

BibleStudy.org reconstructs Paul’s ministry timeline and states that his "second stint in prison, by far his longest, lasted from his early 58 A.D. arrest in Jerusalem (Acts 21) to his early 63 A.D. acquittal in Rome".[5] It dates Paul’s stay in a Caesarea prison from "early summer of 58 A.D. to early autumn of 60" and notes that his "prison epistles, written in Rome between the early spring of 61 A.D. to the early spring of 63," were composed while he awaited trial.[5] The site then describes "his final time in prison, lasting roughly four to six months," occurring "just before his martyrdom in May or June of 68 A.D," and says "he is arrested yet again and sent back to Rome in early 68".[5] It identifies **2 Timothy** as written "when the apostle was in prison in Rome awaiting his inevitable demise".[5]

This overview states: "Paul’s First Imprisonment in Rome (Acts 28:30–31, 60–62 AD). Paul is under house arrest in Rome." It later suggests that "Paul’s release in 62 AD is likely" and that, if Christian tradition is correct that "Paul is executed by Nero following the great fire in Rome (64 AD)… then Paul has at least two years unaccounted for, from 62 to 64 AD, and perhaps more." The author adds: "We assume that Paul is arrested and is in custody in Rome sometime in 64 or 65 AD" and explains that after the fire "anyone considered as a leader of the Christians in Rome would be subject to arrest and death."

The article explains that "Because Paul had appealed to Caesar, he was then sent on to Rome around AD 60 (Acts 27)…" and that "Although a prisoner in Rome, Paul was allowed to live in a house and receive care and provision from friends and family (Acts 28:30–31)… He was under this house arrest for two years." It continues: "Paul was released from this imprisonment sometime around AD 62" and describes a later arrest: "Paul’s last arrest, which is not detailed in Acts, occurred somewhere around AD 66… From there, Paul penned his second letter to Timothy (2 Timothy 2:8–9)." It concludes that "Paul’s accusers… imprisoned and eventually killed the messenger."

This historical-theological essay notes that Paul "visiting Nero’s Rome under house-arrest from AD 60–62" and ties this to his appeal to Caesar during imprisonment in Caesarea from AD 57–59. It describes the traditional picture of Nero as "the man who burned the city of Rome and blamed Christians for it, initiating severe persecution of the Christian church" and acknowledges that "Not even Drinkwater denies that Nero blamed Christians for the fire. Whatever may be said about the details, the fact that he blamed his fire on Christians and persecuted them for it — even burning them in his garden — aggravates the monstrous reality." It dates Nero’s "last four years" from "AD 64/65 to 68."

A social‑media post summarizing standard scholarly views asserts that "Most biblical scholars agree that Paul was imprisoned in Rome twice" and refers to the "Mamertine Prison in Rome where Apostle Paul was likely held".[8] It describes the prison as located beneath the Church of Giuseppe dei Falegname and gives approximate dates, noting that Paul’s imprisonments and martyrdom occurred under Nero, though specific years are not detailed in the snippet.[8] This reflects the **traditional association of Paul’s final Roman imprisonment with the Mamertine Prison** and the Neronian persecution.[8]

A YouTube lecture on Paul’s imprisonments, summarising scholarly consensus for a lay audience, remarks that "Paul spent at least four years imprisoned, first in Caesarea, then in Rome" and emphasises that "Paul yes went to Rome and yes he was in prison in Rome" as a result of his appeal to Caesar. The speaker situates this Roman imprisonment in the early 60s under Nero and notes that later Christian tradition holds that Paul was eventually executed in Rome during Nero’s persecution after the Great Fire, although the New Testament does not narrate his death. The video underscores that the evidence for Nero’s specific role in Paul’s martyrdom comes from early church writers and later tradition rather than direct contemporary Roman records.

This blog article on Roman prisons in Paul’s time notes that "Paul wrote this letter [Philippians] while in a Roman prison, and the date of the composition of Philippians depends on where Paul was imprisoned. His statements to the Philippians concerning his possibly imminent death (e.g., Phil. 1:20) indicate the letter was most likely written from Rome, perhaps in AD 62." It adds that when Paul was "later rearrested and executed (likely a few years after this letter), Paul was probably placed in an underground cell somewhere in Rome," reflecting the traditional view that his final imprisonment and execution occurred in Rome in the later years of Nero’s reign.