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Question ~ What caused the fall of the Western Roman Empire?
Document 1
The basic trouble was that very few inhabitants of the empire believed that the old
civilization was worth saving… the overwhelming majority of the population had been
systematically excluded from political responsibilities. They could not organize to
protect themselves; they could not serve in the army… Their economic plight was
hopeless. Most of them were serfs bound to the soil, and the small urban groups saw
their cities slipping into uninterrupted decline.
This excerpt is from a textbook, The Course of Civilization by Strayer, Gatzke, Harbison (Harcourt, Brace and World, Inc.,
1961).
What were the basic problems facing the Western Roman Empire according to these
authors?
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Document 2
The decline of Rome was the natural and inevitable effect of immoderate greatness
[large size] … The introduction … of Christianity, had some influence on the decline
and fall of the Roman empire. The clergy successfully preached the doctrine of
patience; the active virtues of society were discouraged; and the last remains of
military spirit were buried in the cloister; a large portion of public and private wealth
was consecrated to the …demands of charity and devotion…
This excerpt is from The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon.
According to this excerpt from Gibbon, what were two causes for the fall of Rome?
Explain both.
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Document 3
First the economic factor… While the empire was expanding, its prosperity was fed by
plundered wealth and by new markets in the semi-barbaric provinces. When the
empire ceased to expand, however, economic progress soon ceased…
The abundance of slaves led to the growth of the latifundia, the great estates
that…came to dominate agriculture and ruin the free coloni [farmers] who drifted to
the cities, to add to the unemployment there. The abundance of slaves likewise kept
wages low.
This excerpt is from the Uses of the Past by Herbert J. Muller
What economic issues does Muller identify as causes for decline? Explain.
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How was slavery a cause for the decline of the Roman Empire?
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Document 4
…Part of the money went into…the maintenance of the army and of the vast
bureaucracy required by a centralized government…the expense led to the strangling
taxation … The heart was taken out of enterprising men … tenants fled from their
farms and businessmen and workmen from their occupations. Private enterprise was
crushed and the state was forced to take over many kinds of business to keep the
machine running. People learned to expect something for nothing. The old Roman
virtues of self-reliance and initiative were lost in that part of the population on relief
[welfare] … The central government undertook such a far-reaching responsibility in
affairs that the fiber of the citizens weakened.
This excerpt is from The New Deal in Old Rome by Henry Haskell, and blames the decline on the heavy taxation required
to support government expenses.
Why did the Roman government have such large expenses?
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What was the effect of high taxation on the people?
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What effect did the establishment of a governmental welfare system have on the
people?
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Document 5
Rome, like all great empires, was not overthrown by external enemies but undermined
by internal decay … The military crisis was the result of … proud old aristocracy’s …
shortage of children. [Consequently] foreigners poured into this …void [lack of
soldiers]. The Roman army [was] composed entirely of Germans.
This excerpt is from Romans Without Laurels by Indro Montanelli and blames the fall on “internal decay” specifically that
of the military.
What does this author identify as the cause of the problems in the military?
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Document 6
According to the map, what was the cause of the fall of the Roman Empire? Was this a unified
attack?
Document #7
Every reader of a volume devoted to the Roman Empire will expect the author to express
his opinion on what is generally, since Gibbon, called the decline and fall of the Roman
Empire. . . In the sphere of politics we witness a gradual barbarization of the Empire from
within, especially in the West. The foreign, German, elements play the leading part both in
the government and in the army, and settling in masses, displace the Roman population . . .
the ruling classes were replaced.. by Germans.
The cities ... gradually decayed, and the majority of them practically disappeared from the
face of the earth. Only small islands of civilized life are left, . . . but . . . are gradually
swallowed up by the advancing tide of barbarism. Another aspect . . . is the development of
a new mentality among the masses of the population. It was the mentality of the lower
classes, based exclusively on religion (Christianity) and not only indifferent but hostile to the
intellectual achievements of the higher classes.
SECONDARY SOURCE: Michael Rostovtzeff, The Social and Economic History of the Roman Empire.
Of the Clarendon Press, Oxford.1957, 1, 532-34, 541.
How does Rostovtzeff explain the fall of the Western Roman Empire as a process of decay?
Document #8
The expenses of running the Empire continued to increase. As taxes failed to produce the
needed revenue, the government resorted to devaluation of the currency, . . Prices shot up as
they did in twentieth-century inflations in Europe. A pall settled over the population. People felt
they were being swept downward by forces beyond their power to control. In the face of
overwhelming evils they were helpless. . .(Emperor)Diocletian, with army backing, became
dictator, reorganized the administration, and stabilized the currency . . . Unfortunately, like some
modern rulers facing a similar problem, he overvalued his new monetary unit. Prices promptly
responded with another violent rise. Diocletian recognized the suffering that resulted, but
naturally did not understand the cause. The trouble, he thought, lay in greedy profiteering. In 301
A.D. he issued his famous edict setting maximum prices and wages... But this early attempt at
price-fixing failed. It is recorded that business men closed their shops, that many articles of
commerce disappeared, and that food riots resulted...The heart was taken out of enterprising
men.. Private enterprise was crushed and the state was forced to take over many kinds of
business to keep the [state] machine running. People were schooled to expect some thing for
nothing. This failure of the of Roman virtues of self-reliance and initiative was conspicuously
shown in that pall of the population that was on relief The central government undertook such farreaching responsibility in affairs that the fiber of the citizens weakened...The most disastrous
policy . . . was extravagant spending by the government. Part of the money went into. . . the
maintenance of the army and of the vast bureaucracy required by a centralized government . . .
the expense led to strangling taxation.
SECONDARY SOURCE: Henry J. Haskell, The New Deal in Old Rome. New York. Knopf, 1947, 214-231.
How does Haskell explain the shortcomings of Diocletian’s reforms?