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       The Late Empire and the Decline of Rome

  Octavius victorious: 27 B.C.
       i. Augustus   -- revered one / honored
       ii. controlled most of the army
         a. appointed governors
        b. controlled finances
         c. Princeps -- first citizen --
             disguised imperial power
       iii. reforms:
          a. attempted return to traditional
              Roman family values:
          b. encouraged loyalty to Rome
          c. attempted to reduce corruption
                 The State of taxation in Rome
       iv.  the Pax Romana --
             peace and prosperity
          a. trade increased by eliminating
              barriers
          b. Roman roads improved
              transportation
          c. Roman army insured security
          d. the Silver Age of Roman Culture
              Virgil --  The Aeneid
              Horace --  Odes
              Tacitus  --  The Histories
              Livy  --   The History of Rome
    C. The Julio Claudian emperors:
                      detailed biographies
       i.   Tiberius   (14-37 A.D.)
       ii. Caligula    (37-41 A.D.)
       iii. Claudius   (41-54 A.D.)
       iv  Nero        (54-68 A.D.)
         Nero's Domus Aurea    
   D.  The Army takes control
       i. Vespasian (69-79 A.D.)
       ii. Domitian   (81-96 A.D.)
       iii. Trajan --    (98-117 A.D.)
       iv. Hadrian    (117-138 A.D.)
       V. Marcus Aurelius  (161-180 A.D.)
          Five Good Emperors
       vi.  degeneration of the military:
            Commodus   (180-192 A.D.)
       vii. Septimius Severus   (193-211 A.D.)
VIII.  Barbarian Threats to the Frontiers --
     A. The Barbarians in the third century
         i. the Franks
         ii. the Alemanni
         iii. the Visigoths

<>I.  Decline after the Age of Augustus
  A.  corruption among patrician class
  B.  decadence of society
  C.  barbarian threat: Franks, Gauls, Goths
  D.  static economy
  E.  army became a drain on the economy
  F.  latifundia grew, tenant farmers increased
  G.  The Crisis of the Third Century
       anarchy & external threat weakened empire
  H.  The Barracks Emperors
        26 emperors in 50 years
II.  Diocletian          The palace of Diocletian
   A. 284 A.D. -- reorganized the empire
      Diocletian's Division of the Empire
      i.  The Tetrarchy    2 emperors &  2 caesars
      ii. ** intended to insure orderly succession
      iii. established oriental despotism
      iv. eastern empire wealthier / easier to defend
      v.  center of power shifted east
   B. forced people to stay in jobs / wage
       and price controls
   C. 303 A.D.  -- persecution of Christians
   D. Struggle for power after Diocletian
II. Constantine
   A. 312 A.D.  The Battle of Milvian Bridge
       claimed he saw a vision in the sky --
       eventually converted to christianity
   B. 313 A.D.  The Edict of Milan  --
       tolerance for Christians
   C. capital moved to Byzantium / Constantinople
   E. the Germans
      i. some warlike, others wanted alliance with Rome
     Barbarization of the Late Roman Army
      ii. Huns nomads -- put pressure on German
         tribes
         372 A.D. crossed Volga, conquered Ostrogoths
      iii. The Visigoths  (western Goths)  --
          entered empire 376 A.D.
Goths Enter and Settle Within the Roman Empire
         a. The Battle of Adrianople -- 378 A.D. --
              revealed Rome's weakness
         b. Alaric and The Sack of Rome 410 A.D., Gaul,
             Spain -- 455 A.D.
      iv. Rome began pulling troops from Rhine frontier,
           Britain
         a. The Franks  -- northern Gaul
         b. The Lombards  -- northern Italy -- 568 A.D.
         c. The Ostrogoths  (eastern Goths)
         d. The Vandals  Spain and North Africa --
             429 A.D.
         e. Angles and Saxons invaded Britain
         f. Huns reached Rome 451 A.D.
      v. Romulus Augustulus -- deposed by Odovacar
          476 A.D.
      vi. German and Roman cultures
VI.  Theories about the Fall of Rome
          moral decay
          Christianity weakened Romans
          political corruption
          lead poisoning
          economics
          Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman
          Empire

            "Barbarization" in the Late Roman Army      

           The Effect of the Barbarian Success     
     Roma    
     A Visual Tour Through Late Antiquity
 

    Christianity and its impact on Rome
I. Pompey ended civil war in Palestine and put it
   under control of a Roman
   governor
   A. Herod the Great 37 B.C. - 4 B.C.
   B. Pontius Pilate procurator 26 A.D. - 36 A.D.
   C. prophets told of a messiah
II. Jesus spread his message -- greeted by some
     as Messiah
    Birth of Jesus
    Jesus of Nazareth
   A. condemned to death
   B. message carried by disciples
III. Jewish revolt 66 A.D.
   A. massacre of Roman garrison
   B. Romans crushed rebels in Jerusalem 70 A.D.
   C. Jewish state absorbed by Rome
IV. Paul of Tarsus
   A. persecuted Christians
   B. converted to Christianity
   C. spread Christianity among non Jews
V. spread of Christianity --
   A. Romans open to new beliefs
   B. Jesus was human not a mythic being
   C. promise of eternal life
   D. all believers equal / not limited to wealthy
   E. Christians faced torture and death with courage
VI. persecution of Christians --
    Throwing Christians to the Lions
    A. Rome tolerated religious beliefs from conquered
         lands
    B. Christians monotheistic
    C. Christians refused to worship Roman gods --
         subversive
    D. Christians refused to fight for Rome
    E. Nero blamed Christians for fire in Rome
    F. Diocletian promoted persecution 303 A.D. -
        311 A.D.

       Christian  Chronology

               Overview of Late Antiquity   

              The Extinction of an Urban Culture

       Hyper History Online
 


 

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