Transcript The Fall of Rome - York Region District School Board

The Fall of Rome
By Andrew Smardenkas
Graham Langdale
Michael Donnelly
Introduction

i.
ii.
iii.
There are many factors that
contributed to the fall of the Roman
Empire. Three of the most prominent
ones are:
The rise of Christianity
Political mishaps
Economic mishaps
The Rise of Christianity






Christianity spread very quickly throughout the
empire
Rome was originally a polytheistic society and
was divided between the Pagan followers and
the Christian worshippers
Emperor Constantine 1, adopted Christianity as
the state religion
Until Constantine made this reform, Christians
were persecuted by the Pagan worshippers
Even though Christianity became the common
religion, Pagan worshippers still practiced their
religion which led to the growing rift within the
Empire
“Constantine and Licinius' Edict of Milan (313)
removed penalties for professing Christianity,
under which many were martyred in previous
persecutions of Christians, and returned
confiscated Church property.After the Edict, new
avenues were opened to Christians, including
the right to compete with pagan Romans in the
traditional cursus honorum for high government
positions, and greater acceptance into general
civil society. New churches were allowed to be
constructed and Christian leadership became
increasingly bold ﾑ Christian bishops took
aggressive public stances that were unheard of
among other
religions.”(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantine_I_%28emp
eror%29)
Political Mishaps






Many political mishaps led to the fall
of Rome
A big problem with the empire was
that it was a vast city spreading
from Spain to the Persian Gulf
which caused it to stretch itself thin
As a result of poor unity within the
empire, Rome was divided in the
eastern and the western region
The western region was much
weaker and collapsed in 400 A.D.
Legions of soldiers often lost trust in
the Emperor and were more loyal to
their generals then to anyone else
Emperors such as Diocletine and
Constantine prolonged the life of the
Empire, but could not stop it’s
decline
Economical Mishaps






One of the most significant factor leading
to the fall of Rome was the decline of the
economy
The government had many debts to pay
A way had to be found in order to fund
public building projects, maintaining the
many ‘highways’ that were constructed as
well as a sustaining it’s large army
Citizens were heavily taxed which they
felt was was excessive and unjust.
Rome received much of it’s money from
conquests but eventually this revenue
stopped because there were no more
wealthy lands to conquer
It was impossible for Rome to maintain its
wealthy empire with so many economic
problems and no matter what measures
were implemented, the empire could not
recover.
Historical Importance


The fall of the Roman Empire is
significant in many ways because it was
the end of an era and of the world’s most
powerful empire. Rome’s culture
influenced the rest of Europe, but was
also the base for Western culture. Even
though Rome was gone, it left behind a
changed Europe.
“Rome enriched the world’s culture with
its distinctive architecture, and ground
breaking ideologies. Many of their
technologies were adapted and
improved. Especially the Roman
aqueducts, which were a more primitive
form of infrastructure. The fall of this
grand empire was the greatest event in
ancient world history” ( Taken from Meaghan
Uyede’s The Greatest Event in Ancient World History)
Discussion Questions….

Out of the three primary
reasons for the fall of Rome,
which one do you think was the
most responsible and why?

Do you think that Rome’s
downfall could have been
prevented? How?

After hearing our presentation,
do you think that Rome was as
great of a civilization as you
originally thought it to be?
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
Bibliography

Bradley, M. F. (1997). The Fall Of The Roman Empire. Oxford, London: Journal Of Political
Downfalls.

Brunt, P. J. (1980). The Revenues Of Rome. New York, New York: Yellow House Publishing.

Brunt, P. L. (2001). The Economic Decline In Empires. Oxford, London: Journal of Roman
Studies

Newman, Garfield. Echoes from the Past. Toronto, CA: Patty Pappas, 2001.

Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. Constantine. 18 Mar. 2006.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantine_I_%28emperor%29>.

Meaghan Uyede’s. The Greatest Event in Ancient World History. 5/9/06
18
Mar.
2006
<