Suanne G. answered • 11/19/19
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New to Wyzant
Graduate-Degreed History Expert and Writer
Can you attach or at least describe the documents referenced? Really can't answer without knowing what it refers to.
Hunter N.
That's a rather subjective question and it depends on whom you ask. Peter Brown, for instance, has taken the position that Roman civilization didn't really "fall," but rather transitioned into an equally sophisticated, albeit different, Christian Europe of the middle ages. Bryan Ward-Perkins, on the other hand, argues the exact opposite, i.e. that there was a measurable decline in the standard of living and quality of life after the collapse of the imperial government and the invasion of Germanic tribes. Edward Gibbon wrote the definitive treatise on Rome's collapse - "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" - but it's over 200 years old at this point, and not many modern scholars have recourse to it. All of that being said, there are some usual suspects that tend to be cited the most often in discussions on the fall of Rome: 1. Barbarian invasions 2. Economic instability 3. Internecine strife 4. Religious conflict between Christians and pagans 5. Ineffective rulers 6. Lead poisoning 7. Plague and disease 8. Abandonment of Roman cultural identity and beliefs 9. Immorality 10. Systemic collapse precipitated by a number of the above factors Some of these arguments hold more weight than others, and for a balanced perspective, I think you really need to look at a variety of sources.
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11/19/19
Suanne G.
I'd break this down, then, into the following: 1. Invading armies of Germanic tribes pressuring the northern borders of the Empire: there were a string of shocking losses of Roman armies fighting "barbarian" tribes such as the Goths and the Visigoths beginning in the 300s. This trend continued, with successive waves of tribal attacks, leading to the sack of Rome by the Visigoths in 410. Over time, the military needs to address these ongoing incursions lead the Empire to pull troops back from more remote areas (such as Roman Britain) in order to protect territories closer to home--this, in turn, lead to the ultimate abandonment of those farther-flung provinces through lack of resources to maintain them. 2. Ongoing economic problems coupled with the problems with the slave economy: The rate of expansion of the Empire could only be sustained so long as resources captured and exploited outweighed the massive expense of pursuing and maintaining such conquests, To offset the spending on constant wars and general overspending on the part of a succession of emperors, taxes raised exponentially, to the point where wealthy Romans began to vigorously look for schemes to avoid paying them. At the same time, Rome was relying on slave labor to work in the fields and perform most heavy labor, but a gradual decline in the number of successful military campaigns meant fewer captives to enroll as new slaves. Finally, when the Vandals took over North Africa and began acting as pirates in the Mediterranean, Roman trade was severely impacted. 3, The division of the Empire into two parts, Eastern and Western, helped in the short run with administering the vast amounts of territory, but in the long run meant that the Eastern economy thrived while the Western declined. This meant that the West, with fewer resources available to fund armies, became the more attractive target for invading tribes. 4. Overexpansion--by the 300s, Rome had expanded into more territory than could realistically be handled by any form of central government limited to the forms of communication available. When correspondence between Rome and Gaul or Britain could take months, and desperately needed supplies just as long, the gradual erosion of Roman authority along those edges of the Empire was simply a matter of time. 5. Corruption and Instability--Over time, the Roman government became increasingly riddled with corruption and inefficiency. At the same time, the Empire endured more than 20 Emperors in 75 years, as successive "candidates" resorted to killing off their rivals to take the throne. 6. Weakening of the Legions--The overexpansion of the Empire's borders lead to almost constant warfare over a period of many years. Such efforts required an unending source of men, but the number of men of true "Roman" background available didn't keep pace with the need. Over time, more and more mercenaries (especially Germanic tribesmen) were hired to supplement the Legions, These groups had little loyalty to Rome, and increasingly turned on their employers, their betrayal augmented by their newfound knowledge of Roman military tactics and weapons.11/19/19