The Fall of the Roman
Empire
OBJECTIVES
Summarize the decline of the Roman
Empire.
2. Describe the reforms of Diocletian and
Constantine.
3. Trace the fall of the Western Roman
Empire.
1.
A Century of Crisis
Marcus Aureliuslast emperor to
rule during the
Pax Romana
 Inept rulers followed

ROME’S ECONOMY WEAKENS



Hostile tribes on the borders
Pirates in the Mediterranean
No new sources of gold and
silver



Needed money, so they raised
taxes
Minted coins with less silver
Result was inflation


Drop in the value of money
couple with rise in prices for
goods
Crops failed



Famine
Disease
Population decline
Military and Political Turmoil

Generals and soldiers became less loyal
 Gave

allegiance to commanders
To defend the empire, the Roman govt
hired mercenaries
 Foreign

soldiers who fought for money
Citizens were losing loyalty
Emperors attempt Reform


Diocletian
 284 A.D
 Army leader
 Iron fist- limited personal
freedoms
 Doubled size of the army
 Worked to control inflation
 Presented himself as a god
 Divided the empire into
Greek-speaking East and
Latin-speaking West
 He ruled the East and
appointed a co-ruler for
the West
 He was in charge
 Got sick, left office
 Civil war followed
Constantine took power
Constantine Moves the Capital
Took control of the Western portion
 Continued Diocletian’s reforms
 324 A.D. took control of the Eastern
portion
 Moved capital from Rome to Byzantium
 Rename Byzantium---CONSTANTINOPLE
 After his death, the East remained but the
West was lost.

The Western Empire Crumbles

3 main causes for the fall of the West
1. Internal problems
2. Separation of the wealthy East
3. Outside invasion
Germanic Invasions

The Huns
 Central
Asians who invaded Germanic areas
on the borders of the Roman empire
 Destroying everything in their path
Germanic peoples escaped by entering
Rome
 Romans called all invaders “barbarians”
 Western Rome could not fight them off

 Overrun
in three days
Attila the Hun
Soon the Huns
themselves were a
direct threat
 Huns united for the first
time under the
leadership of ATTILA




100,000 soldiers
Terrorized both halves of
the empire
Famine and disease
stopped them

But Germanic invasions
continued
An Empire No More
Last Emperor of Rome:
Romulus Augustulus
 14 years old
 Ousted by German forces
in 476
 Power gone in the Western
half
 Eastern portion took a new
name: The Byzantine Empire
 Survived and flourished
 Preserved Greek and
Roman culture for another
1000 years
 Ruled Constantinople
 Lasted until 1453- fell to
the Ottoman Turks
