This did not make him an ideal ruler. His love of luxury and pomp was such that he built a grandiose and ornate palace in his capital city—Trier—while neglecting public works to such an extent that the drainage system of the nearby fields failed, and the vineyards that were the backbone of the local economy were flooded. Yet, he seems to have had that rare gift of rulers who know just how far they can tax their subjects without losing their loyalty.
