The Fall of Rome World History/Napp

“During the third century A.D., several factorsprompted the weakening of Rome’s economy. Hostile tribes outside the boundariesof the empire and pirates on the Mediterranean Sea disrupted trade. Havingreached their limit of expansion, the Romans lacked new sources of gold and silver. Desperate for revenue, the government raised taxes. It also started mintingcoins that contained less and less silver. It hoped to create more money with thesame amount of precious metal. However, the economy soon suffered frominflation, a drastic drop in the value of money coupled with a rise in prices.

Agriculture faced equally serious problems. Harvests in Italy and WesternEurope became increasingly meager because overworked soil had lost its fertility. What’s more, years of war had destroyed much farmland. Eventually, seriousfood shortages and disease spread, and the population declined.

By the third century A.D., the Roman militarywas also in disarray. Over time, Roman soldiers in general had become less disciplinedand loyal. They gave their allegiance not to Rome but to their commanders,who fought among themselves for the throne. To defend against theincreasing threats to the empire, the government began to recruit mercenaries,foreign soldiers who fought for money. While mercenaries would accept lowerpay than Romans, they felt little sense of loyalty to the empire. Remarkably, Rome survived intact for another 200 years. This was due largely toreform-minded emperors and the empire’s division into two parts.”~ World History

1-What problems faced the Roman Empire?

2-Define the following terms: Barbarians, Inflation, and Mercenaries.

3-Why did the empire survive for many years even with these problems?

Diocletian / Constantine / Invasions
- In A.D. 284, Diocletian, a strong-willed army leader, became the new emperor
- He restored order to the empire and increased itsstrength
- Diocletian believed that the empire had grown too large and too complex for one ruler
- In perhaps his most significant reform, he divided the empire into the Greek-speakingEast and the Latin-speaking West / - Constantine gained control of the western part
of the empire in A.D. 312
- In 324 Constantine secured control of the East, thus restoring the concept of a single ruler
- In A.D. 330, Constantine
moved the capital from Rome to the Greek city of Byzantium, in what is now Turkey
- With Byzantium as its capital, the center of power in the empire shifted from
Rome to the east
- The city eventually took a new name – Constantinople or the city of Constantine / - Germanic peoples had
gathered on the northern borders of the empire and coexisted in relative peace with Rome
- Around A.D. 370, all that changed when a fierce group of Mongol nomads from
Central Asia, the Huns, moved into the region and began destroying all in their path
- In an effort to flee from the Huns, the various Germanic people pushed into
Roman lands
- Romans called all invaders “barbarians,” a term that referred to non-Romans
- The Western Empire wasunable to field an army to stop them

Identify and explain the following terms:

Diocletian

Constantine
Constantinople

Germanic Peoples

Huns

Barbarians

Questions:

- How did Diocletian succeed inpreserving the empire?

- Why did so many Germanictribes begin invading theRoman Empire?

- How do you think the splittingof the empire into two parts helped it survive for another200 years?

1. Large numbers of Germanic peoples crossed into the lands of the Roman empire in the late 300s to escape
A) religious persecution
B) black death
C) invading Huns
D) mass starvation
2. Which of the following was one of Diocletian’s reforms?
A) Divided the empire in two
B) Provided free food
C) Issued the first written law code
D) Issued the Edict of Milan / 3. The fall of the Roman empire
A) Marked the end of Roman civilization.
B) Ended the persecution of the Jews.
C) Was a long, gradual process.
D) Was a sudden, unexpected event.
4. The Western Roman Empire fell for all of the following reasons EXCEPT
A) Invaders
B) Inflation
C) Ineffective Emperors
D) The location of Constantinople

- What areas of the empire were not threatened by invasion?

An immediate result of the fall of the Roman Empire was
  1. a renewed interest in education and the arts
  2. a period of disorder and weak central government
  3. an increase in trade and manufacturing
  4. the growth of cities and dominance by the middle class
A major contribution of the Roman Republic to Western European culture was the
  1. concept of government by laws
  2. belief that political power should be controlled by the military
  3. establishment of agricultural communes
  4. rejection of the concept of slavery
The political system of the Ancient Roman Empire was characterized by
  1. a strong central government
  2. rule by a coalition of emperors and religious leaders
  3. universal suffrage in national elections
  4. a strict adherence to constitutional principles
An immediate result of the fall of the Roman Empire was
  1. a renewed interest in education and the arts
  2. a period of disorder and weak central government
  3. an increase in trade and manufacturing
  4. the growth of cities and dominance by the middle class
Which geographic feature was central in helping the Romans unify their empire?
  1. Alps
  2. Tiber River
  3. Mediterranean Sea
  4. Great Rift Valley
At the height of its power, which ancient civilization controlled the entire coastal region surrounding the Mediterranean Sea?
  1. Phoenician
  2. Persian
  3. Roman
  4. Carthaginian
/ Both the Ancient Romans and the Ancient Chinese viewed foreigners as barbarians. This is an example of
  1. cultural diffusion
  2. materialism
  3. imperialism
  4. ethnocentrism
The Code of Hammurabi and the Twelve Tables of Rome are examples of
  1. Written laws 3. Economic sanctions
  2. Religious rules 4. Early constitutions
The term empire is best defined as
  1. a political unit that has a common religious faith
  2. a government ruled by the consent of the people
  3. an extensive territory under the rule of a single authority
  4. a country that requires conquered peoples to assimilate
Which ancient civilization is associated with the Twelve Tables, an extensive road system, and the poets Horace and Virgil?
  1. Babylonian 3. Greek
  2. Phoenician 4. Roman
A major reason for the decline of the Roman Empire was
  1. a series of military defeats in Africa
  2. political corruption and the instability of the government
  3. the abolition of slavery throughout the Empire
  4. continued acceptance of traditional religions
How did the geography of the Italian peninsula influence the development of the Roman Empire?
  1. The unnavigable rivers in the peninsula protected the Romans from their neighbors.
  2. The harsh climate prevented agricultural production.
  3. The lengthy, rugged seacoast encouraged frequent invasions of the Italian peninsula.
  4. The location of the peninsula contributed to Roman control of the Mediterranean region.