The Rise and Fall of Rome
Since the beginning of ancient Rome in the eighth century BC, it grew from a small town along the Tiber River in Italy into one of the greatest civilizations the world has ever known. The empire stretched from a large part of the continental Europe, Britain, a large part of western Asia, Africa, as well as the Mediterranean islands. Rome had stayed for 450 years as a republic, and in the wake of the rise of Julius Caesar, Rome became an empire. The rise of Rome’s dominance over the politics of Africa, Europe, as well as some part of Asia from the start of the 1st century BC to the 4th century AD has become a subject of deep studies by historians, economists, political scientists and also military strategists.
Between the 5th century BCE and the 1st century CE, Rome rose from being one among many states in the Italian peninsula to being the center of power in the world. Back when Rome was a republic, the political institutions and offices had been designed to prevent one from becoming too powerful. In the first century BCE, these systems began to fall apart. The rise of the Roman Empire can be attributed to its supremacy in military warfare as well as political stability. The Romans were very practical and also very ambitious in their conquests. In addition, they were very aggressive in obtaining their objectives. The Romans derived their excellent ideas from a wide range of cultures that they had conquered to the ideas to the next level and they were always the best at everything they put their focus on. They always lived to attain a certain standard of excellence; they were never satisfied with their achievements and always sought ways to improve. This paper focuses on the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. Factors that led to the rise and fall of the empire will also be discussed.
The rise of the Roman Empire bears its roots in the Roman republic. The Roman aristocrats were motivated mainly by the need for the glory which led to the Roman expansion. These aristocrats needed Auctoritas, which was a kind of prestige that gave them a higher form of political authority. One of the main factors that fuelled Rome’s conquest for territorial expansion was its military supremacy which was Rome’s guarantee of power for almost 1000 years.
The Roman Empire mainly rose to power due to its strategic location and its resources. Being on the right side of the Mediterranean Sea and also sandwiched between other powerful civilizations, the Empire had a great abundance of resources and strength. The existence of powerful leaders such as Julius Caesar made Rome a big city and Empire by mostly focusing on its military supremacy to conquer some other powerful civilizations like the Ottoman Empire (Eckstein).
We also have Augustus Octavian who brought the Golden Age to Rome, popularly known as Pax Romana. During this period, the Coliseum was built, and there was a lasting peace throughout the Roman Empire. Another key aspect of its rise to power was through granting Roman citizenship to the people they conquered. During that part of history, this move can be described as the most effective political tool.
The empire can attribute most of its success during its rise to the fact that it had control of the Mediterranean (Eckstein). This control earned them an advantage in both the military and the whole economy. Rome had ultimate naval power which helped it in the provision of security and also fending off threats to the empire. The access to the sea ensured that the empire accessed commercial goods with ease. In its rise, Rome ensured that it controlled all the factors of production in its foreign jurisdictions under its control. A standard currency was introduced and used in these foreign jurisdictions for trade. Food reserves, as well as the production institutions, were controlled from a central location in order to divert the population’s attention from political involvement.
Several factors led to the fall of the Roman Empire. Some people even blame it on Christianity stating that it made the Romans into pacifists which made it difficult for them to defend themselves against the barbarian attackers. The fall of the Roman Empire was a slow process which was caused by both internal and external challenges. The date of the fall of the Empire is suggested to be around 476 CE according to studies (Gibbon). It is the date when Romulus Augustulus, the last Roman Emperor was deposed by the Germanic king. After the overthrow of the last Roman Empire, the roads and bridges were abandoned in disrepair, and the fields were left untilled. There was also the emergence of bandits and pirates who made travel unsafe for traders. This made the maintenance of cities difficult since they relied on trade, and businesses slowly began to disappear.
The empire also spent a huge part of their wealth in the military which left inadequate resources for other important activities such as the provision of public housing as well as maintenance of quality roads and also aqueducts. This brought frustration among the Romans, and they felt no need to defend the empire. This made the Empire employ foreign soldiers who were mostly barbarians (Thomson). These foreign soldiers were not only unreliable in times of war but were also very expensive. This forced the emperors to raise their taxes frequently, and this contributed to an increase in inflation. Inflation began when the Empire stopped conquering new lands and the amount of gold that was coming in from these new lands decreased. Since there was no more gold flowing in, this meant that there was less gold to be used in coins. This made the coins less valuable, and merchants had to use barter as the means of trade.
Another factor leading to the fall of Rome was the high rate of unemployment. During the early years of the empire, farming was done in very large estates which were owned by the wealthy. These estates were known as latifundia, and these wealthy men used slave labor. The small-scale farmers who couldn’t compete with the wealthy farmers eventually lost or sold their lands (Levick 53-62). This phenomenon made many people migrate to the cities and cause overcrowding. At one point, the emperor had to import grain to feed over 100,000 people in Rome. These people were a burden to the city since they were unemployed and this led to the rise of crime.
The empire also faced a lot of political corruption. The Romans had not designed a consistent method of choosing a new emperor, and this posed a challenge to the overall well-being of the empire. The choice for a new emperor was debated between the Senate, the old emperor, the praetorian army as well as the national army. This, however, did not last since the praetorian army slowly gained the powers to choose a new emperor. With time, the emperor’s seat started being sold to the highest bidder, and this was followed by a series of 37 other emperors over the course of 100 years. 25 of these emperors were ejected from their positions by assassinations. This form of political corruption eventually led to the gradual fall of the Roman Empire.
Public health was at one time a major concern in the empire, and there were numerous environmental problems. Most of these health issues were brought about by lead. The wealthy class who previously used aqueducts that purified water thought that using lead pipes was the most effective way. The rich citizens of the empire used to lead in almost every utensil. Eventually, people started dying from lead poisoning (Michael 669-672). Another health concern was the Coliseum fights. These fights brought about many deaths, and the decay of their bodies released pathogens in the atmosphere leading to spread of diseases and many deaths.
The rise and fall of the Roman Empire left a significant mark in history and is a subject that still bears many unanswered questions. However, the innovations as well as the inventions made by the Roman Empire profoundly altered the ancient people’s lives and are also used in many cultures all over the world today. They brought insights into the construction of roads, housing and also indoor plumbing. It is undoubtedly clear that the Roman Empire brought about the civilization we have been able to achieve today.