The fall of the Roman Republic
The Roman Republic, as any society, embodied the greatness of what it means to be a republic, but like many empires suffered from imperfection. The city experienced some of the greatest architecture, art, entertainment, trade, law, language, culture, and governments, however it suffered from many wars, poverty, and cruelty. It was a city of extremes. Even through hardships the Ancient city of Rome achieved sophistication and opportunities, but was built on the enslavement of the neighboring tribes. Rome, considered a city of great services and entertainment with such monuments as the Colosseum, Pantheon, column of Phocas and Arch of Titus. Rome, not like
…show more content…
Not to be forgotten, the population suffering from poverty was provided with free bread and entertainment, which one can consider to be a form of welfare to cover up the declining Empire. As Fronto states "The emperors were very careful not to neglect the basic needs of the inhabitants of Rome." They enjoyed the free views of gladiatorial games and the most popular chariot races in the Circus Maximums, holding about a fourth of Rome's population. The gladiatorial combats helped control Rome's population and punished those who had committed crimes. The "Bread and Circuses" allowed peace to exist in the city at the cost of good work ethics, moral values, unemployment and political and military Decadence. When we take a look at the Roman government we can see how they took the best part of the Greek republic and Incorporate their political philosophy into their own government, as a result the people have a say in there republic and power is split between the senates, even a poor citizen could be the leader of the republic, but not everyone could vote there weren't always election, The republic had many tyrannical rulers. The Roman empire was the only super power of its time which allow at the stretch from England to …show more content…
The Roman empire was also heavily dependent on slave labor which allow them to tremendous improvement on Greek architecture which allowed them to create great monuments and achieve architectural engineering, but It’s thought that their use of slavery slowed the progression of technology which would otherwise have been invented to ease manual labor. Also, the Romans set free an increasingly high number of slaves leading up to the fall of Rome. This would have been just fine if they had produced the technology to replace the slaves. But they didn’t, so it was an economic disaster. In conclusion there are cycles in history where a small group comes out of nowhere and explodes and expense and because they go out and conquer large areas of territory which allows them to create a free zone which allowed the Romans to boost their income in the nations wealth, unfortunately because of that wealth the citizens of Rome became rich and lazy, as the saying goes civilization climes in iron shoes and dissent
The later Roman Republic and early Roman Empire controlled most of modern day Europe through Northern Africa to Asia Minor. This time of complete dominance over much of the known world propelled Rome into a new era of wealth and prosperity that allowed Romans to look past military expansion. The Roman state now turned towards betterment of society and the “craving for a good education.” Education was seen not only as a tool for the furthering of personal careers, but as a way to improve Rome. Education passed along virtue and the skills necessary to run the Republic and early Empire. This knowledge began in the home, transferring from father to son through the role of fathers as paterfamilias or head of household. Fathers were in charge of ensuring the best possible education for their sons in hope that they would further the ideals and goals of a glorious Rome. Education, through the different steps of the informal Roman education structure and through the influence of the father, furthered the ideal of Roman virtue and ensured generations of virtuous leaders.
Rome's vast empire lasted for an amazing one thousand-year reign. Half of it referred to as the republic, and the other as the empire. However, after its fall in 5oo-a.d. Rome has still remained in existence through its strong culture, architecture, literature, and even religion (Spielvogel 175). Even after its disappearance as a nation Rome left behind a legacy that will never be forgotten. Its ideals and traditions have been immolated, and adopted for over two thousand years. Whether, it is through its language of Latin, its influence of religion, or its amazing architectural ability Rome has influenced almost every culture following its demise. The heritage of Rome has
As the “abundance of slaves led to the growth of latifudia” (Document 3) the great estates took over the agricultural industry. As latifundia took over, more farmers became out of work and in the persuit of finding work they moved into the cities and “added to the unemployment there” (Document 3). But the expansion didn’t stop there. As “the overwhelming majority of the population had been systematically excluded from political responsibilities, they could not… protect themselves… serve in the army… Their economic plight was hopeless” (Document 1). As missionaries fled into the Roman Armies, the citizens were being forced to pay a huge amount of taxes. But with no farmers to grow the food for the soldiers, who would? Expansion brought wealth into the empire, but “when the empire ceased to expand; however economic progress soon ceased” (Document 3). The inflation rate spiked, the rise in prices on everyday necessities decreased the value of money. The Romans were having to trade with exterior partners for items that could not be produced. The flow of money coming in could not match the amount of money going out. The values of the Romans depleted as their economy crumbled.
In conclusion, if Rome was governed a different way that did not discomfort the people that lived there, there may not have been the fall of Rome.Rome may have been a decent, beautiful city at once, but with foreigners bringing disease and invading areas, military issues, and political assassinations, Rome had fallen. Unfamiliar human beings from South Asia brought diseases killing thousands and invasions which caused battles that was hard for Rome to fight, for they did not wear their proper protection. Rome’s military became lazy and did not wear their proper gear which caused many to die, causing conscription which really hurt Rome more than it helped, for they had people fighting that had no idea what the battlefield was like. Political
The Roman Republic has ended. The new regime has taken over and turn into something that the Romans thought would never happen an Empire. The common citizens had no more say in his own government. The dictators of Rome made sure the poor stayed poor and the rich stay rich. The dictators used “bread and circuses” to distract the
The Roman empire owed its existence to Julius Caesar’s military genius and leadership. At the time of his birth, the Roman republic was rife with corruption, losing touch with the people as Rome rapidly expanded. In addition, the republic suffered much unrest due to an excess of slave labor, leaving many unemployed for the government to sustain with basic food and entertainment, or “bread and circuses.” Caesar changed this, joining partnership with two other prominent men, the wealthy Crassus and the general Pompey, to form the First Triumvirate. However, he quickly took the reins of the new government, securing his position as dictator with many populist actions, such as distributing land to poor farmers. They, in turn, showed loyalty toward their leader, providing unity and patriotism. The Roman empire was born into the perfect geographical and cultural circumstances to rise to greatness.
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
Did you know that the Roman empire was one of the strongest and one of the most powerful empire? Well as we all know the Roman empire fell for these reasons. The first reason is because the population decreased. The next reason is because the Roman empire had a economic crisis. The final reason is because the Roman empire had tons of invaders invading Rome at the same time so Rome couldn’t fight all those empires!.
Whether you prefer to say Rome fell due to the invasions or simply morphed into the oppressive and the corrupt government, economic policies of the emperors had a heavy impact on the lives of the citizens of Rome. The Roman Empire acquired money by taxation or by finding new sources of wealth, like land. However, it had reached its furthest limits, so land acquisition was no longer an option. As Rome lost territory, it also lost its revenue base.In doc# 4: we can see how the economy and citizens were taken advantage of and how the economy was not stable enough, led to the fall of Rome. The empire's main focus was on expanding and funding towards the military and politics. They did not think of the flaws that came with expanding and soon realized that to expand they had to gain military strength, and that costs a lot of money. Immediately the government created high taxes taking advantage of the citizens that leaned on the government welfare system, forcing them to basically pay for advances in the military. This affected small business and companies to crash because they could not afford these taxes, leaving the economy weakened. Therefore the economy could no longer help provide for the military expansion and lead to military weakening. And when the military and the economy was down due to this “internal decay” Rome was easy to conquer and lost all power and eventually fell. Doc# 3 also shows that due to the expansion and Rome wanting to be a world power, it caused a distraction and the economy was used to fund the military success and power, with high taxes. The more it expanded the more the taxes cost and the weaker the economy was. Due to the money that was taken from the economy, Wages being low, slaves disappearing, great estates growing, agriculture was being dominated, it
It states in document 7, “These estates produced enough crops from their fields and rental income for the rich that goods from outside markets are not needed.” This resulted in the loss of jobs for farmers because since estates had enough crops from their fields, farmers would lose jobs since estates had crops in their fields. This affected the empire because since farmers lost their jobs, the government won’t be able to collect taxes from the farmers which results in the government getting less money. Another economic cause of the Roman empire was senators wasting their money. It states in The Fall of Rome, “They wasted their money on big parties that lasted for days. They ate from gold or silver dishes, wore robes of silk.” This evidence shows that senators wasted their money on themselves rather than using the money to help the poor. This negatively affected the empire because since senators wasted money on themselves, no money would go towards the poor, the government or the military. These are the economic causes of the Roman empire.
The Roman Republic was a “democratic” republic, which allowed first citizens to vote, and to choose their governors in the senate (Hence, their consuls). However, it was a nation ruled by its aristocracy, and, consequently, the entire Republic`s power was concentrated in a few individuals. Furthermore, the Senate was controlled by Patricians, which directed the government by using wealth to buy control and power over the decisions of the senate and the consuls. This situation aroused the inconformity of the people; as result, a civil war took place in the Republic (destroying it), and then the Roman Empire was born.
Ancient Rome consisted of two main forms of government, the Republic and the Empire, each of which lasted about five centuries. At first, Rome was a republic, governed by members of wealthy classes. As the Republican form of government continued, a series of civil wars led to the breakdown of the system, and a new form of government, the Empire, was established in its place. The Empire began with a prolonged period of peace, the Pax Romana. However, like the Republic, the Empire also turned foul and collapsed after the Pax Romana. Still, a citizen of the Empire was better off than a citizen of the Republic. Health problems were less severe in the Empire than in the Republic. Moreover, the Empire was more peaceful and better able to provide necessities for average citizens than the Republic was. The political situation was also better in the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire generally provided a healthier and higher quality of civic life than the Roman Republic.
During the Roman Republic, Ancient Rome was at its very beginnings and a civilization was just being created. Like any other civilization there were different levels of status between classes and several positions of power in which people could obtain. Subsequently, just as there were people of power and wealth, there were also people of little to no power and poverty. The Ancient Romans utilized the institution of slavery to help promote their civilization and became a major factor in the economy of the Roman Republic. In a way slaves helped shape Rome into what it is today. Without slavery in Ancient Rome, history could have been written differently when considering Rome as a powerful city and civilization.
Rome became a powerful empire engulfing much of Europe, North Africa, and parts of Asia and what seemed like this great entity called the Romans were always in the search of more territory and land to conquer and assimilate into their ever growing vast empire. However, this was not always the case, before Rome became one of the greatest empires in all of history, Rome was a republic. They were government consisted of a Senate who much like our country today represented certain classes of the citizens of the Republic. During the growth and rise of the Roman republic conquering neighboring territories and competing for land grabs was not Romans primary objectives. Romans
It all depends on one's perspective because some people may say that a Roman’s daily life was easier and simpler than today's life, and others vice versa. Personally, a Roman’s daily life was much more simpler since everyone was treated and even if you were poor. It was easier to become a citizen in the Roman Empire, and live a decent life that didn’t consist of suffering. Yes, it is true that today there is more freedom when choosing what you can be in life, but in Roman daily life was easier to earn money in ways that were less physically exhausting.