THE DECLINE AND THE FALL OF ROME
Antiquity, in other words the ancient history, ended with the collapse of the Roman Empire in
the West and its collapse marks the start of the Medieval Age. However, Rome was not built
in one day, so Rome was not lost in one day !! First it started to decline!
THE DECLINE OF ROME
In the 3rd century A.D. it started to decline !!!!
What were the causes for the decline of Rome ??
There are both internal and also extrenal causes :Among the internal problems, some of them
were political:
1. There was no any clear law of succession.
Therefore there were always quarrels among the ambitious military generals to seize the
power to be successor. This brought about civil strife which weakened the state within itself.
2. There was no understanding of reform: When the type of rule was not popular, the only
solution in the minds of the Roman authorities was to overthrow it. There was no any effort
to get rid of the illness. So, this brought about struggles and the struggles brought about
violence.
3. The work of the Roman government was not extended to a larger social strata. The vast
majority of the empire were subjects but they could not participate in the government. So,
the subjects looked on the empire with hostility. This hostility brought about disloyalty.
4. The Roman economy declined. Its economic problems were mostly derived from the
slave system and from the shortage in man power: The Roman civilization was based on cities.
And the cities could exist with their agricultural activities. This means that the economy was
based on agriculture, not upon industry or on commerce. In this respect agricultural surplus was
important. Who did produce this surplus? : Slaves. BUT, the slaves were working under hard
conditions and normally could’nt reproduce to fill their own ranks. Until a certain period the
Romans had been victorious in wars. Their conquests had fresh supplies of slaves in order to
keep the slave system. As long as the slaves were present to do the work, there was no interests
in labor-saving devices; so no technological advance. But thereafter the slave system collapsed
for foreign conquests ended. Thus manpower-shortage emerged. There emerged a pressing need
for men that would be used in the agricultural activities.
5. Meanwhile Rome had faced with an external threat. This was the barbarian pressure.
Therefore existing manpower started to be used in the army: so no men staying on the farms.
At the same time plague in the 2nd and 3rd centuries B.C. reduced the number of population.
What was the result? The result was that there were not sufficient forces to work the land and
not men to fight Rome’s enemies. This brought about demoralization in Rome.
6. The lack of civic ideals and thus the lack of unifying spirit: The Roman Empire was a
great empire which established its political hegemony all over the Mediterranean World.
Europe, eastern Mediterranean, Greece, Anatolia, eastern Mediterranean, all these regions were
within the borders of the Roman Empire. In such a great empire we see regional differences;
and therefore lack of homogenity; the lack of public education; Also social stratification!! All
these were obstacles for the development of any unifying spirit.
So, the Roman Empire started to decline in 184 A.D. but it did not collapse.
WHAT HAPPENED ?
In 284 A.D. the soldier emperor Diocletian started to reorganized the Empire. He made a
serious of fundamental reforms. Up to the time Diocletian, the dominance of the army in the
state affairs had been deeply rooted. In order to prevent this Diocletian took an important
step : He separated military from civilian administration.
Moreover, he divided the empire into two parts. Because he was aware of the fact that
external and internal pressure put such a great empire into weak position. To him it was
impossible for one ruler to govern the entire empire. So he granted the western half to
Maximainus (Maximianus recognized Diocletian as the senior ruler).
Dioclatian began to orientalize the empire geographically. He shifted it administartive weight
towards the East. He ruled from Nicomedia (In the period between 284 – 303 A. D. )
After him, Constantinos abondoned the share of powers. He started to rule over a united
empire. He established a new capital city (in 330 B.C.) in the east. It was Constantinople. Why
Constantinople ? Because this new capital city, Constantinople, had several advantages and
potentialities by means of trade, defense, and commmunication. Now the leading city of the
Empire became easily the center of commerce and administration.
Constantinos also made the succession hereditary. So, brought the principle of dynastic
monarchy to the fore. He acted as the sole owner of the Empire and treated the Empire as his
own private property.
One of the most important achievements of Constantinos was that he initiated the adoption
of a new religion, a new monotheistic religion.
It was CHRISTIANITY !!!!