1. Chapter 6 Section 4 Decline of the Roman Empire

2. Learning Goal I will be able to identify the problems that caused the fall of Rome.

3. A Century of Crisis Following the Pax Romana, the Empire had internal problems: Economic Turmoil Military Turmoil Political Loyalty

4. Economic Turmoil Hostile tribes and Pirates on the Mediterranean Sea disrupted trade. Romans lacked new sources of gold and silver. Desperate for revenue, the government raised taxes.

5. To meet its debts the Roman government minted coins that contained less and less gold and silver. It hoped to create more money with the same amount of precious metal. This caused the economy to suffer from INFLATION -- a drastic drop in the value of money coupled with a rise in prices.

6. Agriculture faced equally serious problems. Harvests in Italy and Western Europe lost its fertility b/c of overworked soil. In addition, years of war had destroyed much farmland. All led to: Food shortages Disease spread Population declined.

7. Military Decay By the 3 rd century A.D., the Roman military was also in disarray. As the Empire became weaker, citizens became less willing to fight and be loyal to the state. Due to this, the military declined in strength and forced Rome to recruit Mercenaries -- hiring soldiers from other countries. Mercenaries would accept lower pay than Romans but their loyalty was uncertain.

8. Political Loyalty Political office was no longer an honor but more of a burden. Tax collectors in districts were responsible to pay money if they were short at all with the taxes. Even with these problems the empire lasted another 200 years with the help of reform- minded emperors. Diocletian Constantine

9. Diocletian Strong-willed army leader who governed as an absolute ruler. He restored order to the empire and increased its strength by: He doubled the size of the army Stopped inflation by setting fixed prices for goods. He believed the empire had grown to large for one ruler. He divided the empire into East and West. Dividing the empire failed and civil war broke out immediately.

10. Constantine Took over the western part of the empire after the retirement of Diocletian. Diocletian’s ill health forced retirement. Constantine later won control of the Eastern Empire. Moved the capital from Rome to Byzantium (modern day Turkey) he later named it Constantinople. Consequence- power shifted from Rome to the East, which separated the Western empire from the wealthier Eastern part.

11. The final phase of the Rome’s decline, resulted from a series of attacks by Germanic tribes and finally, by a group of nomads called the Huns. Led by Attila the Hun, they attacked and destroyed 70 cities in the Eastern Empire and then advanced on Western Rome. External Problems

12. Even though Rome’s political power in the West ended, its cultural influence, through its ideas, customs, and institutions, continued to be deeply embedded in Western Civilization.