Download Decline of the Roman Empire

p.147-151 of Prentice Hall World History Connections
to Today
Causes of the Fall of Rome
Many factors contributed to the decline and fall of
Rome.
 Germanic Invasions
 Military Causes
 Political Causes
 Economic Causes
 Social Causes
Impact of the Huns
To understand the Germanic invasions, you must first
understand a group known as the Huns.
 A.D. 200- Wars in East Asia caused the Huns, a
nomadic people, to migrate west across Central Asia.
Impact of the Huns
 A.D. 350- Huns reach eastern Europe. They were
known for their fighting skills. They dislodged the
Germanic peoples from their land.
This meant the Germanic
peoples came into Roman
territory seeking safety.
Roman Empire
 With the Roman empire already in decline, it was hard
for the Roman legions to stop these invading
Germanic tribes.
 Roman power was fading, and more Germanic peoples
were occupying more & more of the western part of
the Roman empire.
“Fall” of Rome
 A.D. 476- Odoacer, a Germanic leader, ousted the emperor
in Rome.
 Later historians referred to that event as the “fall” of Rome.
 By then, however, Rome had already lost its many
territories & Roman power in the west had ended.
 An emperor still ruled the eastern Roman empire known as
the Byzantine empire. This part of the empire lasted for
another 1,000 years.
The Decline and Fall of Rome
Military Causes
•Germanic
invasions
•Weakened
Roman legions
Political Causes
•Oppressive gov’t.
•Corrupt off’ls.
•Divided empire
Decline and
Fall of Rome
Social Causes
•Erosion of trad.
Values
•Self-serving
upper class
•“Bread and
circuses”
Economic Causes
•Heavy taxes
•Population decline