The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
I. BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE REPUBLIC AND EMPIRE
A. Rome began as a _________-_____________ that was
heavily influenced by Greek culture
1. By 509 BCE, Rome was ruled by elected _____________
who served in the Roman Republic
2. During the Republic, Rome __________________ by
defeating Carthage in the ____________ __________ and
later under generals like Julius Caesar
3. The Roman Republic weakened due to
__________________, civil wars, and the
______________________ of Julius Caesar in 44 B.C.E.
4. After Julius Caesar’s death, Rome became an
____________ ruled by the Emperor Augustus
5. Under Augustus, Rome entered an era of ______________and prosperity known as the ______ ________________
6. After 207 years of prosperity during the Pax Romana, the Empire began to ________________ and was
___________________ in 476 A.D
II. THE DECLINE OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE: The decline and ___________of the Roman Empire happened
_________________, in THREE STAGES
FIRST STAGE: _______________ _________________ with politics, the economy, and the military began an era of decline
A. ROME’S INTERNAL PROBLEMS
1. POLITICAL AND SOCIAL
a. The empire was _________ ________________ for one emperor to control
b. Emperors after the Pax Romana were ____________
c. Citizens experienced a ___________ of confidence, patriotism, and __________________ to the Roman government
2. ECONOMIC
a. Outside groups _________________ trade and poor harvests led to _________ _________________
b. Rome had a __________ ___________________ (they bought more than they produced)
c. The government _____________ _____________ and minted new coins which led to inflation
d. The economic decline left many Romans very ___________
3. MILITARY
a. _______________ _____________ from Northern Europe, outside of the Roman Empire, were gaining strength
b. The Roman military was growing ineffective due to __________ ____________________: generals had their own
interests and were challenging the authority of the emperors
c. To save money, Romans found it cheaper to hire ______________ ___________________ instead of employing more
Romans; these “_______________________” were not truly loyal to Rome
SECOND STAGE: A BRIEF PERIOD OF REFORM
There was a brief period of ________________ as Emperors Diocletian and Constantine enacted _________________;
however, some of these reforms would help bring about the Empire’s end
EMPEROR DIOCLETIAN’S REFORMS
1. In 284 CE, Emperor __________________came to power; he began a series of reforms that temporarily
_______________ Rome’s decline
a. To fix the problems of the military, he ___________________the size of the Roman Army
b. To help the economy and stop inflation, he fixed the ________________of certain goods
c. In an attempt to do something about the lack of loyalty and patriotism of many Roman citizens, Diocletian presented
himself as a _________________ leader; he wanted to boost the prestige of the position of __________________, so he
claimed descent from the gods and had numerous ceremonies to _________________ himself
2. Diocletian’s most important reform was _______________________the Roman Empire into two parts: the
________________ _______________and the ________________ _______________.
Western
Eastern
a. The Roman Empire was divided by
___________________: the mostly ________________________ Western half and the mostly
___________-_____________ Eastern half;
however, the Empire was also divided by wealth:
the __________was far _____________ than the
West because it contained more major cities and
___________ _______________
b. Diocletian’s reasons for the ______________:
he believed that the Empire had grown too large
and too complex for one ruler; he took the
Eastern half for himself and appointed a
_________________ to run the West; however,
Diocletian had ____________ ______________
of the Empire
EMPEROR CONSTANTINE’S REFORMS
1. After Diocletian’s death, there was a ___________ _______________ among several men who wanted to rule the
Empire; emerging victorious and becoming the ________ _________________ of the West was _____________________
a. Constantine continued many of Diocletian’s reforms, but he reversed the biggest reform: he _________________ the
East and the Roman Empire once again had a ____________ _____________
b. Constantine made other changes: wanting to unify Rome and recognizing that _______________________was on the
rise and could not be destroyed, he ended persecutions of Christians and made it a ___________ ________________;
Constantine later ___________________ to Christianity himself
c. The emperor after him would go on to make Christianity the ____________ _________________ of Rome; this would
have unexpected consequences
d. In 330 CE, Constantine made a change that would have far-reaching consequences for the world: he moved the
____________ of the Roman Empire and his _______ _____ ___________from Rome to a Greek city called _____________
FROM ROME TO BYZANTIUM
a. Given its location on the Bosporus Strait, the city was also in a more __________ _______________ position from
Northern invaders than Rome was; Byzantium was perfectly located to be the ___________ _____ ___________ between
East and West
b. When it was constructed, Byzantium had a strong Greek and Christian influence; the new capital was soon protected by
______________ ____________ and later was the home to many great new structures built in the ____________ ________
c. Byzantium eventually took on a new name: ________________________(or “City of Constantine”)
THE DECLINE STARTS AGAIN, BUT ONLY FOR ONE HALF
1. After Diocletian and Constantine died, the ____________
____________ of the Empire continued to grow
________________and more powerful
2. The _____________ __________, on the other hand,
once again began to ______________
a. Reasons why the Western side of the Roman Empire
once again slid into decline: political ______________,
weakening _______________and terrible ___________
b. Also, Roman citizens were less concerned with the fate
of the Roman Empire and more _______________ with
thoughts of the afterlife (because of the dominance of
___________________)
c. All of these issues made the Western Roman Empire _________ and ___________________ (open to attack)
THIRD STAGE: INVASIONS
1. Repeated invasions by _______________ “__________________” _____________would lead to the conquest of Rome,
bringing the Roman Empire to an end
a. By 370 CE, “barbarian” tribes from _______ and ____________ ____________ were attacking both halves of the Empire
b. The Eastern half was ______-_______________, organized, _____________, and prosperous; it fought off the invaders;
the _____________ half was vulnerable, disorganized, and weak; it could _____ ___________ _________from the invaders
2. THE HUNS: A marauding barbarian tribe from _____________ __________ called the __________ began the invasions
a. The Huns swept into Northern Europe, ____________________all in their path
b. When the Huns invaded Northern Europe, they were so ______________ that they even made the ________________
___________ want to avoid them
c. To ______________ the Huns, the Germanic tribes moved south into the Western Roman Empire’s territory
d. These Germanic groups (such as the Vandals, Goths, Visigoths, Franks, and Ostrogoths) did not move into Roman
territory ___________________; they repeatedly _________________the Western Romans
3. ATTILA THE HUN: When a vicious new leader named _____________ united the Hun tribes, the Huns also attacked
_________ ___________ of the Roman Empire
a. The ______________ side, centered around Constantinople, ____________________ fought off the attacking Huns
b. The ___________ side, attacked at several places by the Huns and Germanic tribes, _____________ and was conquered
4. ROME FALLS: The city of Rome itself was captured and ____________by the __________________ in 410 CE
a. The German warrior _________________ removed the last Roman emperor from power
b. The ____________ Western Roman Army could do little to stop the invasions; by 476 CE, Germanic barbarians took
over the city of Rome and ____________________the West
III. THE IMMEDIATE RESULTS OF ROME’S FALL
1. The once-united Western Roman Empire _____________ _______ into numerous smaller ________________and
territories, each ruled over by different Germanic groups
2. The fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of numerous small kingdoms led Europe to the
______________ _________
IV THE IMPORTANCE OF THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE
1. The Eastern Roman Empire, now known as the _________________ _____________, not only remained together but
survived for nearly a ________________ more years
2. The combination of Greek, Roman, and Hellenistic (the blend of Greek and Asian cultures) achievements are known as
_________-___________ ____________
3. The Byzantine Empire _________ _____________ the cultural achievements of Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome at the
same time as Han China and Gupta India were creating their own great civilizations
4. If the Byzantine Empire also fell, it is possible that the great ____________________and achievements of these great
civilizations could have been _________ ________________
5. Greco-Roman achievements are the foundation of _______________ ___________________, the culture
_______________________live in today
Comparing the Cultural Achievements of the Classical Era
Directions: Match each of the following descriptions with the appropriate classical civilization.
Greece
Rome
Gupta India
Han China
1. Government was led by a Hindu emperor who led conquest of outside territories
2. Government was based on a republic; Citizens vote for leaders (the Senate) who make laws
3. Government was based on an emperor who gained power through the “Mandate of Heaven”
4. Government was based on a direct democracy; Citizens vote directly for laws
5. Invented advanced paper-making techniques that helped increase literacy
6. Invented an examination system based on Confucian ideas to choose government workers
7. Invented legal procedures such as jury trials and witness testimony; Had a written law code
8. Invented new architectural designs such as domes, sporting arenas, and aqueducts
9. Invented new forms of literature and theater, such as dramas and comedies
10. Invented new mathematical ideas such as numerals, zero, and pi
11. Invented philosophy; Philosophers such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle questioned ideas
12. Invented silk-making technology that attracted trade from outsiders; Led to Silk Road
13. Invented thousands of geometric proofs such as the Pythagorean Theorem
14. Made new geographical observations such as the discovery that the Earth is round
15. The religion of Christianity was created in the Kingdom of Judea during this classical empire
16. The religions of Hinduism and Buddhism were spread during this classical empire