Ancient Rome 6.

5
Friday, November 4, 2022
8:33 AM
Fall of Rome
 Political
o Office seen as burden, not reward
o Military interference in politics
o Civil war and unrest
o Division of empire
o Moving of capital to Byzantium
 Social
o Decline in interest in public affairs
o Low confidence in empire
o Disloyalty, lack of patriotism, corruption
o Decline in population
 Disease and food shortage
 Military
o Mercenaries: soldiers paid to fight in a foreign army
o Threat from norther European tribes
o Low funds for defense
o Problems recruiting Roman citizens
 Recruiting of non-Romans
o Decline of patriotism and loyalty among soldiers
 Gave allegiance to their commanders, not Rome
 Economic
o Inflation: drastic drop in the value of money coupled with a rise in prices
o Poor harvests
 Overworked soil lost its fertility
 Farmland destroyed by years of war
o Disruption of trade
 Hostile tribes outside boundaries
 Pirates on the Mediterranean
o No more war plunder
o Gold and silver drain
 Caused government to raise taxes
o Widening gap between rich and poor increasingly impoverished Western Empire

Diocletian
 AD 284 - became new emperor
 Restored order and increased strength
o Doubled size of Roman army
 Presented himself in a godlike aura
 Reforms
o Controlled inflation by setting fixed prices for goods
o New tax system
 More money for the government and army to spend
o Saved empire from economic collapse
 o Divided the empire
 Greek-speaking East (Greece, Anatolia, Syria and Egypt)
 Latin-speaking West (Italy, Gaul, Britain, and Spain)
 Diocletian ruled Eastern half
 East half of the empire--far wealthier
 Retired AD 305
o Due to ill health
 Plans for orderly succession failed
o Civil war broke out immediately (AD 311)
o 4 rivals competing for power--Constantine

Constantine
 Byzantium: new capital
o Renamed Constantinople
 Gained control of western half--AD 312
o Continued social and economic policies of Diocletian
 Gained control of eastern half--AD 324
 Restored concept of a single ruler
 Moved capital from Rome or Byzantium (Greek city)
o Protected by massive walls
o Filled with imperial buildings
 Eastern empire--Byzantine Empire
 Western empire--Roman Empire
 Empire would be divided again after Constantine's death
o East would survive
o West would fall
 Due to separation from the wealthier part of the empire and outside invasions

Germanic Invasions
 The Huns: Mongol nomads from central Asia
o Germanic people pushed into Roman lands
 To flee from the Huns
 Romans called invaders "barbarians"
o Germanic people overran western empire
 Western empire couldn't field an army to stop them
o Attila
 Chieftain of the Huns (AD 444)
 Terrorized both halves of the empire
 Failed due to the scale of high walls of Constantinople
 Died in his sleep--AD 453
o Huns were no longer a threat after death of Attila
 Burgundians
 Visigoths
 Ostrogoth
 Franks
 Saxon/Angles
 Vandals
  Ottoman Turks
o Renamed eastern empire Turkey

An Empire No More
 Romulus Augustulus
o Last Roman emperor
o 14 years old
o Ousted by Germanic forces--AD 476
 Western half disappeared
 Byzantine Empire flourished
o Preserved heritage of Greek and Roman culture--1000 years
 Byzantine emperors
o Ruled from Constantinople
o Saw themselves as heirs to the power of Caesar
 Empire endured until 1453