Download The Decline of the Roman Empire

Previously in
Ancient Rome….
Sections
1,2,3
Beginnings

It all began here- a
small village near a
river with fertile soil
Rome Expands


Rome fought hard for territories and control
of Mediterranean Sea
Beat Carthage 3 times in the Punic Wars
Government



Established a Republic, with 2 consuls and
a senate
Abandoned that idea when Julius Caesar
became dictator for life
That didn’t last long- about a year, then he
was stabbed to death 23 times by his
senate members
Augustus



Caesar’s son Octavian tricked his friend
Mark Antony and his lover, Cleopatra into
committing suicide
He becomes the emperor of the Roman
Empire and gets the title Augustus
Rome lives in peace for 207 years
Roman Empire

Judea, home of the Jews became a Roman
province in 63 B.C.
Jesus and Christianity





This is the place Jesus was born
He was a Jew and a Roman
His popularity and teachings threatened the
Jewish and Roman leaders and crucified him
His resurrection 3 days later convinced many he
was the Messiah, or the son of God
His followers spread Christianity throughout the
empire
And now, your
feature presentation
The Decline of the Roman Empire
The Decline of
the
Roman Empire
Ch. 6 section 4
Pg. 158
Problems in Rome



Economy
Agriculture
Military
Bad Rulers




Historians agree that Rome began its decline at
the end of the reign of the last of the Five Good
Emperors.
Marcus Aurelius (A.D. 161-180) was the last ruler.
Marcus Aurelius’ son, Commodus, was
incompetent and brutal.
Other Emperors that followed were incompetent
also.
The Last 5 Good Emperors
Marcus Aurelius
Commodus
The Gladiator
Prosperity Vanishes




Romans had grown accustomed to a life of
prosperity.
Rome’s treasuries were enriched with gold
and silver.
They grew enough grain to feed the
population.
During the 3rd century, prosperity vanished.
Economic Problems



Hostile tribes and pirates disrupted trade.
Wars were costly.
The wealthy spent money on goods from
China, India, and Arabia.


This spending drained the empire of gold and
silver.
The empire’s expansion came to an end.
Raised Taxes



In effort to pay for the rising cost of
defense, the government raised taxes.
They also began making coins with less
and less silver.
The economy soon suffered from massive
inflation – a drastic drop in the value of
money combined with rising prices.
Agricultural problems

Harvests became smaller






The soil was overworked and lost its fertility.
Farmland was destroyed by warfare
Higher taxes made poor farmers abandon their
lands
Cheap slave labor discouraged improvements in
technology
Serious food shortages resulted
Disease spread and population declined
Military Upheaval



Discipline and loyalty collapsed
Soldiers gave their loyalties to their
commanders instead of Rome.
The commanders fought for themselves to
become emperor of Rome.
Mercenaries



The government began to recruit
mercenaries, foreign soldiers who fought
for money.
Mercenaries accepted lower pay than
Romans.
They had no loyalty to Rome. They were
only in it for the money.
Roman Politics Decay



People lost their sense of patriotism.
Holding a political office used to be an
honor and a means for gaining wealth.
By the 200s, local officials usually lost
money because they had to pay for costly
public circuses and baths out of their own
pockets.
Roman Chariot races
(what they called a ‘circus’)
The Roman Circus

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfSTZUE
H95Q&feature=related
Roman public baths
Roman Public Toilets
Yes, they used the bathroom
TOGETHER!


DISCLAIMER! This is gross, but probably
was the experience
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6snVyK6
gQCE
Baths at Caracalla in Rome
Diocletian became Emperor in 284



Restored the Roman
Empire
Increased its strength
In order for this to
happen, he had to rule
as an absolute ruler
(having total power)
and limit personal
freedoms.
Diocletian’s reforms

Doubled the size of the Roman armies





Drafted Prisoners of War
Hired German mercenaries
Set fixed prices for goods.
Ordered farmers to remain on their lands
and other workers to stay in their jobs for
life.
Passed a decree to persecute Christians.
Divinity





This is interestinghistorians argue that he
really was born the son
of a slave
Claimed he descended from the Roman Gods, as
the son of Jupiter.
When he appeared in public, trumpets heralded.
He made people kneel before him and kiss the
hem of his robe.
His shoes and clothing were adorned with
precious gems.
He wanted it to seem as ‘crime against the gods’
to kill him.
Rome Divides




Diocletian divided the empire in the Greekspeaking East (Greece, Anatolia, and Syria)
Latin-speaking West (Italy, Gaul, Britannia, and
Spain)
He took the Eastern half for himself and appointed
General Maximian as ruler of the West.
Each ruler had an assistant, which was to be their
sucessor.


While Diocletian shared authority, he kept
overall control.
His half of the empire included the
wealthiest cities.
Division of the Roman Empire



Diocletian became ill and retired in 305
A.D.
His successor was supposed to take over,
but instead a Civil War broke out.
Four leaders emerged who fought for the
throne.
Constantine


Constantine took control of the western part
of the Empire in 312 AD.
In 324 AD, Constantine also gained control
of the East, thus restoring the concept of a
single ruler.
He won the Western half,
after praying to the
Christian God, remember?

This is the same
Constantine that
legalized Christianity.

http://www.youtube.com/user/
historyteachers#p/u/25/uYhM
QNPa8mM
Capital moves


In 330 A.D., Constantine moved the Capital
from Rome to the Greek city of Byzantium,
in what is now Turkey.
With the capital in the East, the center of
power shifted from Rome to the newly
named city of Constantinople.


After Constantine’s death, the empire
would divide again.
This time the East would survive, but the
West would fall.
Invaders in the Western Empire



From 376-476 AD, large numbers of
Germanic tribes poured into Roman
territory.
They overwhelmed the structures of
Roman society.
Eventually, they drove the Roman emperor
from the throne.
The Huns




Fierce Mongolian nomads from central
Asia.
Invaded Europe
They destroyed everything in their path.
They were feared by many people.



In order to run away from the Huns, people
sought refuge in Rome.
When the Rhine River froze during an
especially cold winter in 406, Vandal
warriors and families swarmed across the
ice into Rome.
The Western Empire was so disorganized,
it couldn’t stop them.



Rome became vulnerable to attack.
More than 600 years had passed since the
attacks from Hannibal.
The Visigoths invaded Rome in 420 and
plundered the city for 3 days
The Huns become a threat




The Huns unite under a powerful chieftain,
Attila.
His armies terrorized both the Eastern and
Western empire.
In the East, his armies attacked and
plundered 70 cities.
But, they failed to take Constantinople.
Attila the Hun
The Huns weaken




Attila’s army advances on Rome, but they
were weakened by disease and famine.
Attila died in 453.
The Huns were no longer a threat.
The Germanic Tribes continued to attack.
No WAY!

The story is that he died from a nosebleed
on his wedding night. Attila suffered from
chronic nosebleeds throughout his life. On
his wedding night, he became so drunk that
he suffocated in his own blood.

http://www.youtube.com/user/historyteache
rs#p/u/23/tmdPQy6F-dc


In 455, Vandals attacked Rome, leaving it
in chaos.
Famine struck and population dropped to
20,000.
The Roman emperor in the West had
become powerless





Spain belonged to the Visigoths
North Africa was conquered by the
Vandals.
Gaul was overrun by competing tribes
(Franks, Burgundians, and Visigoths)
Britannia was invaded by Angles and
Saxons.
Italy was falling victim to the Ostrogoths.
The last Roman Emperor




14 year old boy, named Romulus
Augustulus.
In 476, German general, Odoacer, exiled
him to the castle of Lucullus in Campania
After that, no emperor even pretended to
rule Rome and the western provinces.
The western half disappeared.
Now known as Egg Castle, or Castelo
do Ovo, or Castell dell’Ovo


It is called Egg Castle because a Roman
poet, named Virgil, supposedly buried a
magical egg in the castle’s foundation.
He said as long as the egg is never
disturbed, the Castle would not be
destroyed.


Romulus Augustulus
His name was
originally Romulus
Augustus, but it
became Augustulus
to mean,' Little
Augustus’.
Romulus Augustulus’ Crown
Byzantine Empire




The Eastern half came to be known as
Byzantine Empire.
It survived and flourished.
It preserved the Greek and Roman culture
for another 1,000 years.
They ruled from Constantinople and saw
themselves as heirs to the power of
Augustus Caesar.
The Byzantine Empire


The empire ended in 1453, when it fell to
the Ottoman Turks.
Even though Rome’s political power in the
West ended, its cultural influence,
continued to be deeply embedded in
Western civilization.
Assignment:


On the bottom part of your note sheet,
briefly discuss the major causes of the fall
of the Roman Empire
Translation: List 3 reasons the Empire
declined in complete sentences