The Fall of Ancient Rome

Rome was one of the greatest empires to ever rule in History. They gave modern society a large amount of archaeological advancements, such as the roads traveling everywhere, along with columns, arches, and concrete. Their Latin language has become the language in which many English words are derived from, even though the original language is dead. The Romans also gave us the representative government in which the people rule. How did such a dominating and inspiring civilization cease to exist? Even though we base our society on Rome, the Political, Economic, and Military problems caused enough problems to lead to the empire collapsing. The presentation on Ancient Rome at first focuses on how much Caesar Augustus did for the Roman Empire with his reforms and his image. Citizenship in Rome expanded and Augustus established the Pax Romana, a period of lasting peace and prosperity that insured the survival and eventual transmission of the Greco-Roman heritage and the diffusion of Christianity (Roman Empire). There were problems though, such as internal unrest, social and economic weaknesses, cultural stagnation in transformation, spread of mystery religions, and spiritualization of philosophy that made Rome’s decline a long process. In 476 AD, the western half of the Empire fell, and a Germanic Emperor was put on the throne, ending the long rule of Rome. The textbook gives similar viewpoints to what the presentation did. Even though the Pax Romana gave a so called “Time of Happiness”, with constructive rule, improved conditions for slaves and women, and an orderly world community, small crises started to occur. In the 3rd century, the Pax Romana and peace had come to a halt. The military turned into anarchy and lost their loyalty to Rome. As leadership crumbled and the army strayed, tribal