preview

The Byzantine Empire : The Fall Of The Roman Empire

Decent Essays

Did the Roman Empire really fall? The Roman Empire was split into two by the Emperor Constantine. The empire split in 376 CE into East and West empires respectively. The eastern half of the empire later became known as the Byzantine Empire. What would later be known as the Byzantine Empire was part of the Roman empire that flourished for nearly another millennia, the Western Roman Empire simply declined into a vulnerable state that allowed invaders to overrun the empire. Rome had essentially been declining since 180 CE when civil wars occurred up until 285 CE. Many factors contribute to the decline of the western half of the Roman empire. The military was beginning to become decentralized. Since there was no clear rule for succession of emperors, the throne was left to anyone who had the might to take it. Inflatiation and lack of funds, and the sheer size of the empire was also a major reason for the collapse in the power of the Romans, which ultimately helped contribute to western Rome’s decline until it finally fell in 400s CE when it was eventually overtaken by Germanic raiders.
The fall of the Western Roman Empire has shown to have a number of causes. The biggest of which was its immense expansion that helped contribute a domino effect of other problems that led to the weakening of the empire-and ultimately its downfall. One big question that many scholars debate is why the Western half of the Roman Empire kept expanding. Was is greed and aggression? For resources?

Get Access