Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire Learning Objective: 1) Students will be able to describe problems in the late Roman Empire 2) Students will be able to describe the events that led up the split of the Empire and to the Fall of Rome.

Roman Empire

READ WITH ME Rome’s first emperor, Augustus, ended 100 years of civil war and expanded the boundaries of the empire. When he died in 14 A.D., few Romans could imagine that the empire would ever end. Yet by the year 500, the Western half of the empire had collapsed.

PROBLEMS IN THE LATE EMPIRE Together the Roman Republic and Empire had lasted almost 1,000 years By the year 500 AD, the Roman Empire had collapsed. What happened?

Read With Me There was no single reason for the end of the Roman Empire. Instead, historians point to a number of problems that combined to bring about its fall.

Why did Rome Fall? Political- problems in the government Social- problems that exist among citizen. Economic- affects the way they produce goods and services (jobs, trade, taxes) Military- affects the army and their ability to fight.

Problem #1 Political Instability Not always a clear way to choose a new Emperor. Caused internal wars. More interest in financial gain than public service. Political Instability Political: dealing with who is in charge of the government Instability: not stable, uncertain

Lack of process for selecting new emperors – caused violent power struggles and power vacuums

Bad emperors – greedy, incompetent, selfish, insane,corrupt Nero Caligula

Problem #2 Economic Problems High Taxes to fund the army. Drove people into poverty. Lots of slave labor, which meant less jobs available. High unemployment. Corruption and a rise in crime. Economic: to do with money

Economic Problems Soldiers seized crops and a famine started Romans bought fewer goods People lost jobs Inflation- the rising of prices High taxes

Few new sources of wealth Increased taxes to pay for their armies Economic Decline Few new sources of wealth Increased taxes to pay for their armies Weakened agriculture

Food shortages- violence tore up the countryside

Coins lost value – made of less precious metals – led to inflation

Problem #3 Social: Lack of education The Romans became a lazy group of people Social: to do with how people get along together

Decline in Roman morals and values – human life not valued, no pride in being Roman citizens

Heavy taxes to support the army

Food shortages- violence tore up the countryside

Slavery Discourages advances in farming

Unemployment – too many slaves, not enough jobs

There were more slaves in Rome than there were Roman citizens Unemployment was a big problem and many people lived off the charity of the government

Problem #4 Military Workers leaving to serve in the army Army leader fought each other for power Small invasions by rivals, the Romans lost some of their land. The army couldn’t afford to pay soldiers

Lack of Patriotism Less disciplined soldiers Allegiance with generals instead of Rome Less willingness to sacrifice for Rome.

Over All Problem Weakening Frontiers and Over-extension The borders of the empire were often attacked Huge size made it hard to defend. Sometimes took 2 weeks for leaders in Rome to get news to its generals. People in the army were now recruited from conquered lands, and less committed to Rome.

Were you paying attention? Which of the following was not a reason for the decline of Rome? A. Political Instability B. Weakening of the Frontier C. The outlawing of slavery D. High taxes and unemployment

Which of the following was not a reason for the decline of Rome? C. The outlawing of slavery

Art Time On your graphic organizer, draw four pictures to represent the four problems Rome was facing that led to its fall. Use colored pencils to make your designs colorful.

THE SPLITs! What does the Emperor Diocletian do to solve these problems? He splits the Empire into 2 parts. Rome becomes the capital of the West, and Byzantium becomes the capital of the East.

Constantine Moves the Capital Briefly reunites the empire. Accepts Christianity as a religion in 313. In 330, the Emperor Constantine moved his capital from Rome to Byzantium. (Later re-named Constantinople, now known as Istanbul, Turkey.) What did the Emperor Constantine do?

One Empire Becomes Two….

Two Capitals Capital of the West Rome Constantinople Capital of the East Rome Constantinople

Another name for the city of Constantinople is _______________.

Another name for the city of Constantinople is Istanbul or Byzantium

Various barbarian groups attacked until Rome was sacked and looted in 476 C.E.

What’s left of the Roman half is invaded! In 410 AD a Germanic Tribe attacked and looted Rome itself. In 476 AD, the last emperor in the West was driven from his throne. Pope now in charge of Rome.

THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE But the East Remained… And a new empire is born that will last almost another 1,000 years….. THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE Video: The Fall of Rome Song

DRAW TWO BOXES UNDER YOUR NOTES Cause Effect What were the three problems the Roman Empire faced? What religion did Constantine accept in 313? What did Diocletian do to the Roman Empire? To what city did Constantine move the capitol? What was the new empire in the East?