Julius Caesar once said, ” It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.” The Ancient Roman Empire was one of the world’s greatest empires. Beginning in around 750 BCE with a small settlement no one knew it would become a great empire making many discoveries that we still live by today. Although the empire was strong they started to run into some problems. Starting in 44 BCE with Caesar becoming emperor and continuing into 500 CE, the city was declining fast. Although some researchers may say that natural disasters were the main reason for the decline of Rome, however the primary reasons for the decline of Rome were political corruption and military mistakes. Political corruption was a main reason for the fall of Rome because there were higher-class people trying to take all the power which made many people unhappy causing assassinations and unfairness. Military mistakes were also a big problem because the military was too lazy to fight causing invasions and unnecessary deaths. To begin with, political corruption was a major reason leading to the fall of Rome. Leaders were jealous, selfish, and unfair to the poor. Document E, an excerpt of a historical text by Priscus states, “A wealthy lawbreaker… is not punished for his injustice, while a poor man… undergoes the legal penalty.” This quote shows that because a man is wealthier than another and can pay a bribe he gets off easy for a crime while a poor
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
Rome was the world’s greatest place for about 500 years. The fall of the Roman Empire led Rome to split into two parts. The eastern part of Rome thrived much longer than the western half. Historians believe that Rome had not fallen until about 476 A.D. because of how long Eastern Rome survived as a Byzantine Empire. Western Rome had fallen after the split and when it did, a number of reasons are in the hundreds. They had decided to split their government due to the fact that they had so much land to cover that they thought it was easier to split the empire in half. There were three main reasons as to why Rome had fallen. The division of the Roman Empire lead to a weak economy, military as well as political and social problems.
There were several reasons for the fall of rome but internal problems such as military deficiency, political turmoil, and a weakened economy were the predominant forces leading up to the fall. Civil wars were a common occurrence in western Europe and often challenged the imperial throne. “It is worth once again emphasizing that from 217 down to the collapse of Western Empire there were only a handful of periods as long as ten years when a civil war did not break out” (Goldsworthy). Emperors constantly faced threats for the throne and often abandoned war against foreign enemy to deal with a Roman rival or Usurper.
Another reason Rome fell is because of the destructive and violent disasters that happened. In (Doc F), in the year 366 AE there was a violent earthquake that left the shores of the Mediterranean Sea dry. This showed that the lack of water could mean less fishing and the lack of water could have created problems for people. Then there was a flood that wiped fifty thousand people away in the city of Alexandria alone. Next there was a plague that swept through Rome and sent their population from 1 million to 250,000 thousand people. (Doc F). This
To begin with, one of the main problems of the Roman Empire was their economic problems and corruption. For example, in an excerpt of a historical text written by Priscus, which was a Roman ambassador to the Huns in 449 C.E, he reported a conversation he had with a former citizen whose land had been conquered by the Huns. In their conversation the former Roman citizen stated, “ The conditions of [Roman] subjects in time of peace [is worse than war]...taxes are very severe, and unprincipled men inflict injuries on others… A [wealthy lawbreaker] … is not punished for his injustice, while a poor man … undergoes the legal penalty… The climax of misery is to have to pay in order to obtain justice…” This supports that one main problem that ended the Roman empire was economic problems and corruption because it shows that if rich people in Rome committed a crime they would only have to bribe their way out of trouble while on the other hand poor people will have to face their consequences which is unfair so when they got invaded by the Huns they decided that it was best if they conquered than to join the military to help their empire. In addition another economic problem is that the the Roman Emperors had to pay their own soldiers to stay loyal which lead to emperors having to mint more coins which is further supported by BrainPop which states, “Roman emperors often bribed their soldiers with money to make sure they remained loyal. And when emperors didn’t have enough to pay their troops, they would mint cheaper coins. This caused the value of Roman money to plummet.” This also supports that one important cause that caused the Roman Empire to decline was the corruption and economic problems because in order for a empire or a civilization to function efficiently, they need to respect all people
Disasters and diseases are one reason of Rome’s fall. According to Document F, it states that “the Roman world was shaken by a violent and destructive earthquake … but the tide soon returned with the weight of an immense [flood] which was severely felt on the coasts of Sicily, … Greece, and of Egypt.” This shows that the earthquake had destroyed the Valens’ empire, which would be very costly to repair all the damage the disaster had done. The flood had also caused a tremendous amount of damage which would contribute to the cost of the earthquake. “Fifty thousand persons had lost their lives in the flood [in the city of Alexandria alone],” which meant that their population would decrease. Diseases also proved the decline of Rome. Different types of plagues “swept over the empire … which brought diseases [from] southern Asia to new areas like the Mediterranean.” (pg 35, Doc. F) These diseases were very
The great Roman Empire spread across all of Europe and into the Middle East. With major trading in Africa and Britain, the economy peaked and brought many with great wealth. Rome was at the top of the top at this point. Despite Rome’s expertize and amazing military Rome’s glory would come to a halt. All of the great advancements and skill the Romans had, would make the Romans come to its end.
Rome was considered one of the utmost powerful empire during its time, but why did it
The Roman Empire was without a doubt the most powerful governing body in its day, but it had fallen! There was not any single cause for the fall of Rome. Many things occurred in a short period of time, which lead to the fall of such a powerful empire. Why did Rome fall? Some of the reasons that caused the fall of Rome was Natural disasters, a weak military, and the collapse of their economy.
The Roman Empire Fell because of internal and external problems. The primary causes for the fall of Rome were because of government corruption, weak military, and disaster & disease. Government corruption was a great contributor to the fall of Rome. From 235-285 C, there were 19 Roman Emperors and 13 of the emperors were assassinated (Doc A). The people
The primary reason for the Fall of Rome was Economic and Social Problems in Rome. From 50 BCE until the year 200 CE the Roman Empire was the super power of the Mediterranean world. The Roman Empire was always growing but then the empire started to slowly fall apart. According to Document C, two reasons why Economic and Social Problems might be the primary reason for the Fall of Rome was that they were maintaining an army to defend the borders of the Empire.
There were many things that led Rome to it’s fate and decline. Rome used to be a large empire that was in Europe, Asia, and Africa. It was at its highest in 117 CE, it was the strongest empire in the world at the time. But just a few hundred years later it no longer was existed . A few reasons the Roman empire collapsed are that they got too big to supply, the military was switching sides in war, and several different groups were attacking them over 400 years.
There are several different factors that led to the Fall of Rome in a 476 C.E. Four notable reasons are the attacking outside forces, the division of the Roman empire, inflation, and the change in the loyalty of the Roman army
One of the greatest empires began to fall to its knees after hundreds of years, but the question is, how? Rome was one of the greatest empires for a long time, but then they started to decline. The Roman Military started to become lazy, which lead to failure. Then between 220-476 CE the Roman Empire started to be sacked by foreign invaders. Although, some researchers may say that natural disasters led to the fall of Rome, nevertheless the primary reasons for the decline of Rome are foreign invasions, and military mistakes.