Transcript BELL QUIZ: USE PAGES 172-177

WHY EMPIRES COLLAPSE?
1) Poor Leadership.
2) Civil War divides the empire-exposing it to
attack from foreign enemies.
3) Too large to govern, control, and protect.
4) Rule of the rich.
5) Religious differences.
INFLATION: What is it?
Inflation=a rise in prices caused by a decrease in
the value of money.
Example of inflation in Ancient Rome
A) Shortage of silver for making coins.
B) Coins were made containing less silver.
C) Merchants raised prices to acquire the same
amount of silver.
D) Result=Money isn’t worth as much and prices
increase.
Chapter 7 section 6 Terms
Inflation
Diocletian
Constantine
Goths
Vandals
Huns
Attila
Alaric
Use pages 172-177 to complete the chart
Decline of the Roman Empire
Political/Military
Economic
Social
1)
1)
1)
2)
2)
2)
3)
3)
4)
4)
1) POOR LEADERSHIP
• Commodus replaces his
father Marcus Aurelius as
emperor of Rome in 180
A.D. (Marcus was the last
of the 5 Good Emperors).
• Commodus proves to be
incompetent and is
assassinated in 192 A.D.
• Emperors changed often
and fought for the throne
until 284 A.D.=created
instability and civil war.
2) CIVIL WAR DIVIDES THE EMPIREEXPOSING IT TO FOREIGN INVADERS.
• Economy went bad due to
lack of wealth coming in
from outside the empire.
• Result is inflation=A rise in
prices caused by a
decrease in the value of
money.
• Farmers sold their land to
pay their debts.
• Revolts by the
Goths(Germans) in 378
A.D.
2) CIVIL WAR CON’T
• The Goths defeat the
Roman army at the battle
of Adrianople in 378 A.D.
• In 410 A.D. the Visigoth
(East German) King Alaric
sacks Rome-First time in
800 years it had been
done to Rome.
• The Vandals (East
German) conquer the
province of North Africa
in 429 A.D. and sack
Rome in 455 A.D.
2) Civil War Con’t.
• Attila the Hun (Asia)
attacks Gaul (Germany) in
451 A.D. but are defeated
by a combined RomanVisigoth Army.
• Attila turns South and
attacks Italy sacking
several Italian cities.
• Attila’s army is defeated
only because it is
decimated by the plague,
however in 476 A.D. he
overthrows Romulus
Augustus and ends the
Roman Empire in the West.
3) TOO LARGE TO GOVERN AND
CONTROL
• Diocletian divides the
Roman Empire in 284
A.D. to make it easier to
govern.
• Diocletian ruled the
Eastern Empire.
• Maximian, the coemperor, ruled the
Western Empire.
3) TOO LARGE TO GOVERN AND
CONTROL CON’T.
• Reforms under Diocletian:
1) Rebuilt the Roman Army and used it to
protect the empire.
2) Individual Freedom was given up for
protection and security.
3) Kicked out the barbarian tribes of Gaul back
across the Rubicon River.
4) Controlled wages and prices to fight against
inflation and improve the economy.
3) TOO LARGE TO GOVERN AND
CONTROL CON’T
• Constantine, emperor of
the Eastern Roman
Empire, spread
Christianity throughout
the Empire.
• Made the Eastern Empire
wealthy and powerful.
• The capital of the Eastern
Empire became known as
Constantinople.
• Eastern Empire remained
strong and did not fall
until 1453 A.D.
Does your chart look like this?
Political/Military
Decline of
the Roman Empire
Economic
1) Inadequate government 1) Expensive to defend and
for size of empire.
maintain an empire.
2) Competition for power.
2) Heavy taxes.
3) Army interference
made government
unstable.
3) Loss of income.
4) Decline of manufacturing
and agriculture.
4) Dependence on
German troops.
Social
1) Too many poor people.
2) Loss of patriotism,
interest in government,
and political honesty.