What caused the fall of the mighty Roman Empire and its army? No one has a sure idea, but people discovered numerous theories to identify the causes of why Rome’s armies were demolished and the empire’s borders were ultimately choked by barbarian tribes from Northern Europe. However, indeed, Large Empires won’t last long forever, yet the fall of the Rome Empire was not predictable. The Roman Empire lasted or endured for around 1,000 years before it finally falls due to its bureaucracy and political schemes. Could the Roman empire have sustained if leaders had made wise decisions?
The Roman Empire was one of the most powerful empires in the world during that time. When it was at its peak, the roman empire map could be seen nearly across 5 million square miles, spreading from modern-day England to Iraq, and all of northern Africa to Spain. Though, the only army that could challenge that was another empire on the continent that we currently know as Europe: the massive legions of Rome’s opponent, Carthage, captured vast tracks of territory in North Africa and the Mediterranean Sea. It was inevitable the way two of these colossal forces clashed in a conflict that decided which nation would gain supremacy. But why did the Roman Empire fall?
There were dozens of reasons for the fall of the Roman Empire, but four important ones include invasion by barbarian tribes, divide between East and West, weak leadership and lack of control, and poor stability due to no code of conduct.
When did the Roman Empire start?
Roman extension began shortly after the death of Alexander the Great around 200 BC. As a republican, Rome prolonged to enlarge until one King became Emperor. The last roman empire was the Eastern Roman Empire and which fall in 1453 AD as the rise of Ottomans conquered Constantinople. During their supremacy, Rome created some of our most significant civilizations and architectural marvels such as aqueducts, bridges, and bathhouses which still exist.
Poor Stability
The lack of a code of conduct in governing and expanding the empire caused a decline in power and roman supremacy. During its peak, Roman had the 50% of the world’s population which came down to just 10%. Many historian experts suggest the instability was often connected to the lack of a code of conduct which could have helped to maintain law in order in society. The lack of a governing code and policy put pressure on several invasions and lead to a breakdown in political and social authorities.
Roman Armies and their problems
The Roman Army was made up of soldiers that were combined from different sprawling empires. The army soldiers only obeyed the rulers and showed loyalty to the elected government for getting paid for their services. Once the Roman Empire entered into a corruption and debt trap, rulers could not able to pay their military which turned into a revolt by soldiers against the government and rulers. The biggest reason for the fall of the Roman Empire was the distrust and disloyalty of the Roman Army. The unstable economy led to the downfall of the mightiest roman armies and greatest empire.
German Barbarian Invasion
The Barbarian Invasions also named the Barbarian Wars or the Goth Wars, were a successful invasion of Europe by various tribes of barbarians and communities of nomads who crossed the borders and invaded Roman Areas. The invasions crop up between AD 300 and AD 500. The invaders came from both east and west. The period is known for the transition in Europe from Classical Antiquity to Late Antiquity, during this period Paganism was replaced with Christianity.
The Romans faced invasion from the north and then the south. These attacks caused changes in Rome’s armies’ defence system before falling down. The changing government policies cause disaster in a person’s life. The economy clashes as most of the population migrate from central cities to smaller towns or villages to get rid of violence and poverty.
East and West
The clash between East and West created a significant divide, that led to many effects on all of the world, Western people still denies about the partition. The fall of the Roman empire can be seen as the collapse of Western civilization. The Eastern Roman Empire was ruled by the Byzantine Empire that spread from the Balkans to North Africa. On the other hand, the Western Roman Empire was broken into smaller provinces, such as France and Spain.
Weak leadership control
The Roman Emperor Augustus was successful in regenerating the stability of the empire. However, during his administration, he faced constant pressure from the members of the Senate and aristocrats. They used to consider themselves the true emperors and could not understand that an autocrat can be a good leader. Under pressure, Augustus put down their arms and accepted Senate and aristocrats as co-rulers. Augustus was conscious that it would be challenging, but he did not want to include roman armies in politics as the soldiers were trained for combat activities and not for managing empire affairs. However, the decision led to failure for the country and lead civil wars.
Learnings for You
The downfall of the roman empire teaches us that history should not repeat itself and take lessons from those mistakes made by Romans during that time. Several internal issues caused the fall down into Roman Empire. We need to understand that, the economy, an empire or a country can sustain itself if the people and communities respect each other’s religion, maintain social order, avoid corruption and violence, are loyal to the government, and maintain strong leadership.
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References
Ferrill, A., 1986. The fall of the Roman Empire: the military explanation (p. 30164). London: Thames and Hudson.
Harper, K., 2016. The environmental fall of the Roman Empire. Daedalus, 145(2), pp.101-111.
Gibbon, E., Adler, M.J. and Hutchins, R.M., 1887. The decline and fall of the Roman Empire, vol. 1. Bohn..
Gibbon, E., 2002. History of the decline and fall of the Roman empire, Vol. 7.
