Did the Roman Empire Fall Essay

During the final years of the Roman Empire there were many losses. "A great amount of art was lost, cities and roads were destroyed, and trade routes became extinct (Shenkman, 1993)." But most importantly, all of Europe’s peace was demolished by the invasions from the Germanic tribes (Shenkman, 1993). However there was one act of improvement that had happened which the new law that stated that there shall be no more slavery (Shenkman, 1993). Many historians mistake the falling of the Roman Empire into the evolution of something else. Ultimately, the Roman Empire was drastically destroyed, those who say it evolved failed to see that Roman had been destroyed by barbaric tribes, there was not one single good emperor during its final years, and that the Empire had already been split in two. 

The great Roman Empire had slowly started to decline. "This slow decline occurred over a period of approximately 320 years, culminating on September 4, 476, when Romulus Augustus, the last Emperor of the Western Roman Empire, was deposed by Odo-acer, a Germanic chieftain” (Wikipedia).  Meaning that since of the slow fall of the empire many people did not realize it was before it was too late. The final collapse of the Roman Empire was when its emperor was killed by a Germanic chief. After that the empire was truly destroyed and there was no chance of reviving it back.

             Rome’s collapse was the result of several emperors who did a very minimal job at maintaining order for the empire. “During the third century Rome suffered from a cycle of near-constant conflict. A total of 22 emperors took the throne, many of them meeting violent ends at the hands of the same soldiers who had propelled them to power” (History Channel Website). One important aspect of this quote to be noted is that over twenty emperors ruled over a short period meaning most of them did not get to hold the throne for long.  Also, many of the fights and wars that came about from the result of the Emperors’ failure to preserve peace and order for the empire. During this time, many emperors showed violence towards their armies, causing fights that had long-lasting effects on the future for leaders of Rome.

            Another major factor in the Roman Empire’s decline was the suffering they had due to loss of land.  “Rome eventually collapsed under the weight of its own bloated empire, losing its provinces one by one: Britain around 410; Spain and northern Africa by 430” (The History Channel Website, 2011).  Immense battles and chaos broke out in the empire but Rome did not appear to realize it.  Other places however were fully alert of what was occurring and many people fled from the empire. Many countries left the falling empire and became their own independent empire.  Rome was not able to recover its loss due to its current state and the attacks from barbaric tribes.

Rome in the beginning was a solid dominant empire but through many mistakes of many emperors it did fall. If Rome could have pulled itself together it would have been successful against the attacks of the barbaric tribes instead waging war with itself. The empire started to decline when it had been split into two parts but it did last a long while during its final days.  The Roman Empire still is known as one of the greatest empires today and many nations learn from their mistake and prospered from not repeating what they had done, after all history does repeat itself to those who do not learn from it.

APA Bibliography

Ancient Rome, (2011). In Decline and Disintegration. Retrieved Apr. 13, 2011, from

http://www.history.com/topics/ancient-rome

Decline of the Roman Empire. (2011, April 9). Retrieved April 12, 2011, from Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decline_of_the_Roman_Empire#Theories_of_a_fall.2C_decline.2C_transition_and_continuity