Afro-Eurasia

Nomads were pastoralists found throughout Afro-Eurasia. Due to their strong military capabilities, they were able to conquer various regions from the classical and post-classical periods (600 C.E. to 1450 C.E.), including examples of Huns and Germanic invaders (those that brought down Rome in 476). The Mongols were a key nomadic group from 1200 to 1400. While they committed atrocities in conquest and spread their political control through much of Eurasia, the resulting Mongol state provided for diversity of cultures and advancements in trade and technology.

In the late 1500’s the start of The Colombian Exchange and the settling of Europeans in the Americas sparked a chain reaction of events that would forever change the way we tell the history of that time. It also just may have altered the way we advanced as a species and interacted with one another from that point on. There were many changes that took place in everyday life in both the Americas and Afro Eurasia because of the events of this time period. Some of them more obvious than others, but all were important in their own respect.

The great Roman Empire expanded across all of Europe and into the Middle East. Its military was one of the finest. With major trading in Africa and Britain, the economy flourished with brining many citizens a healthy income. With amazing advancements in culture and technology, Roman society was at its finest. During the Pax Romana, the Romans had 200 years of peace and good ruling by level headed dictators and emperors. Despite Rome’s greatness in all of these areas, Rome would eventually fall. Surprisingly all of these qualities that led up to a flourishing empire were the same ones that led to its demise. As Germanic tribes invaded, the military weakened and the government became unstable.

For a long period of time, Rome seemed like an unstoppable empire. It conquered the majority of the land surrounding it, including Greece, Turkey, Iraq, and many of its other neighboring countries. It seemed as though Rome would conquer the entire world, as it was the center of it, until it began to decline in 476 C.E. The very aspects that made it so successful were the ones that caused its collapse. Various political, religious, and economic reasons caused its downfall. The fact that the entire economy of Rome collapsed and money became worthless was a major reason for the empire’s collapse. In addition, the loss of a common religion and lack of efficient ruling in relation to its vast territory affected the empire. The Roman

Some ask for the bad news first as do I. So I will start this essay telling you how the Roman Empire fell. There are plenty reasons argued as to why the greatest empire fell. I’ve seen plenty of reason but with my research I believe I found the best reason why Rome fell. The western part of the empire had trouble with invasions by barbarian tribes. Rome lost many military forces by these invasions. Germanic tribes were the main struggle for centuries. The Romans uncovered a Germanic uprising in the late fourth century. In 410 the Visigoth King Alaric successfully invaded the city of Rome. The Empire spent the next several decades under constant threat before the Eternal City was raided again in 455 by the Vandals. Finally, in 476, the Germanic leader Odoacer staged a revolt and defeated the

The Afro-Eurasia long distance trade brought many new changes to the world, and strengthened some old life styles.  Changes such as the spread of Empires and Religions, the innovation of technologies, and new trade routes brought new and challenging adventures to the Afro-Eurasia world.  Some continuities were, the use of the multiple trade routes, and mass produce.

Intense human interaction benefited society because humans found ways to take advantage of the environment for better survival, exchange ideas between empires, and strengthen relationships between themselves to create unified empires. Humans took advantage of the environment through domestication and tools to make their lives easier. In the Old World humans domesticated animals such as dogs, horses, cattle, sheep, pigs, donkeys, goats, and some fowls (Document E). The domestication of these animals allowed humans in Afro-Eurasia to have access to work animals. Using these domesticated animals gave humans in the Old World the ability to work faster and move heavy loads.

After nearly half a millennium of rule, the Romans began to lose their grip on Europe in the fifth century. The Fall of Rome left in its ruin political chaos, confusion, wide spread devastation, although the Romans at the time had no idea the fall of Rome was occurring. Divide of Western and Eastern Rome, invasions, military disloyalty, and economic instability are some of the factors associated with the fall of Rome. In AD 476, the last Roman emperor in the west, Romulus Augustulus, was removed from power by Odovacar, leader of the Goths.

The Western Roman Empire is historically known for their drastic fall. Before they were an empire, 509 BC to 27 BC, they were a republic. The republic ended when Octavian changed his name to Augustus and took control. The empire was preserved from Augustus’s reign in 27 BC to the fall in 476 AD. What caused the fall of the empire? The social and cultural aspect in the Western Roman Empire was declining, as was the economy, which led to the weakening of the military- all causing the fall of the Roman Empire. The Roman culture was being changed dramatically, including the old Roman virtues. The economy was in trouble with jobs and therefore, money. And lastly, what some believe to be the main cause, the inability of the army to hold back the invaders.

    Though Rome was a great empire that conquered countless territories, it was not immune to the numerous attacks from barbarians such as the Huns, the Visigoths, the Vandals, and others. The barbarians would raid and sack the capital and other cities in ancient Rome, leaving them without money or tradable items. The Vandals did so much damage to the cities that their name is associated with the crime of extensive damage to property. The Huns were another destructive group of barbarians that were led by Attila. They raided Rome in 451 AD, leaving an immense trail of destruction. Other barbarians attacked Rome at different times, each leaving Rome weaker and helpless. Each attack destroyed their economy and left them desperate for a solution. The Ostrogoths finally caused the Western Empire to fall when Odoacer chased Romulus Augustus, the last of the Roman emperors, off the

During the Post Classical Era, from 600 CE to 1450 CE, new empires rose through the combination of aspects such as social structure and religion from the classical era and globalization as well as expansion of religious and technological ideas from the modern era in order to form the Post Classical Era. Trade took on new roles through connecting areas and spreading goods, ideas, and disease. Ideas that were often spread was religion, such as Islam and Buddhism, thus leading to global awareness and conflict. Though Post Classical Mesoamerica was not included in the global trade route linking Eurasia and Africa, Mesoamerica still enjoyed its own advances during this time period. Through the Post Classical Era, Mesoamerica continued to celebrate religion because of its combination with everyday life, however they began trading because of the introduction of conquest, and developed farming techniques that played roles in trade and religion.

The Roman empire collapsed due to pressure of invasions by barbarians in the west and the Persians in the east. Generals that were rivals murdered emperors and overtook the throne. Economy declined and the state kept taking more and more taxes and resources from the citizens. In the west, in the fifth century, Roman authority collapsed and in the east a Christian Roman Empire survived in the city of Constantinople and turned into the Byzantine Empire.

The Western Roman Empire was marked by its vast territorial supremacy, as it conquering its neighbors to absorb their energy surpluses whether in agricultural outputs, mineral resources, or human capital. With the rapid growth of the Empire, the cost of maintaining order, production, and other logistical elements grew as well. This cost grew to the point there simply weren’t enough resources to defend against invasion especially when disgruntled peasants welcomed the removal of Roman control. The Maya empire failed due to the burdens of competitive warfare between the various city-states of the region. This was unsustainable especially given the population was already weakened by crop failure and drought. The Chaco Empire failed due to the communities coming to the conclusion that the costs paid to the central faction to be redistributed outweighed the benefits gained so they departed one after another. (Chippindale 1)

-----The fall of the Roman Empire marked the end of one of the greatest and longest-lived empires in the ancient world. The official date of the fall of the Roman Empire is often considered to be the date of when the barbarian general Odoacer overthrew the last emperor of the Western Roman Empire, Romulus Augustulus, in 476 CE (Nardo-2004 97). The demise of this Empire was a result of multiple internal and external causes. The first plague that contributed to this decline and fall was the Antonine plague, which started around 160 during Marcus Aurelius’s reign (Sabbatani). The Antonine plague was followed by the Plague of Cyprian, which lasted twice as long as its predecessor, decimated the population, killing between twenty to thirty

As the Roman Empire began to fall, it was split into Eastern and Western sections. The emperor at the time, Constantine, declared that the new imperial residence, Byzantium, would become the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. After experiencing economic issues and invasions from the Huns, the Western part of the Roman Empire finally collapsed in 476. With a wealthy, strong, and prosperous capital, the eastern half of the Roman Empire survived and became known as the Byzantine Empire. This wealth and stability allowed for significant achievements to be made.