The Fall Of The Roman Empire Essay

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What actually instigated the degeneration of the Roman Empire? Some might argue that Germanic invasions coupled with the “otherworldly” rise of Christianity led to the Empire’s decline. This viewpoint, conversely, seems far too limited in scope. In any case, Ammianus Marcellinus, Salvian, and Theodosius all identify a multitude of factors that dissolved the Roman Empire. Though the destruction of invasions and the social change of new religion certainly played an important role, the fall of the empire was likely the result of countless complications, including decreased productivity in agrarian and manufacturing spheres as a result of soaring rates of inflation and taxation, civil dissension and rebellion, a fundamental change from an offensive …show more content…

Tax collectors, belonging almost exclusively to the same class in society or the Potentes, became ruthless in their endeavors to collect taxes. If they failed to reach their quotas in levied taxes, they would be forced to pay the remainder out of pocket. This contributed to growing problems in Romanic society; poverty combined with rapid inflation. A string of rulers dealt blow after blow to the value of currency within the domain (Backman 18). The populace became largely impoverished, leading to a gradual negligence towards infrastructure, including indispensable waterways and roads. Furthermore, formerly independent farmers belonging to the coloni (the peasant or serf class) labored instead for other individuals with superior farmsteads, called Latifundia. Productivity dramatically fell, in both pastoral and engineering …show more content…

Beginning with the persecution of Christians by Diocletian, culminating in the formation of a so-called “imperial cult”, how responsible was Christianity for the decline of the Roman Empire (Backman 48)? Pagans certainly believed that Christians held responsibility for the sacking of Rome in 410 by the vexatious Visigoths, and many were uncomfortable with Theodosius “rash establishment” of Christianity as the official state religion (Backman 56). Christian teachings slowly made their way into formal policies and civil legislation. Pagan traditions and rituals fell by the wayside as emperors assumed control, not only as leaders of the Roman Empire, but as pontifex maximus—“chief priest”—as well (Backman 48). Brutal laws against Jewish and Pagan people did not ascend from any practical or logical stipulation, but because the Christian faith began to fuse with the Roman Empire, leading to a waning of toleration. Subsequently, many scholars of the age troubled themselves with aligning their belief in a Christian faith with their “love of classical literature”, a truly daunting task (Backman

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