If you played the campaign mode in Rome: Total War as your empire grew, it is quite hard to manage cities and settlements while defending it from enemies. If it's hard in video game, imagine doing it in real life.
I couldn't beat that game until I got a handle on keeping cities peaceful. The wrong general in a city/state could ruin an entire territory. I often had to move one general into the field and another would have to move from say Turkey to England to settle down a city. It took multiple notebooks and 3 months to finally beat the game.
Nice deflecting and how politically motivated of you. Thanks for showing us who you are saying something that has nothing to deal with the subject at hand.
Rome also suffered from three ecological disasters: 1) the playing out of its major gold, silver, copper and iron mines; 2) a grain blight which reduced North Africa to desert instead of farmland; 3) the first incursion of influenza -- an airborne viral plague -- which wiped out *half* the population. It took a lot to bring that empire down.
@@NotSoCasualConversation we will eventually fall too. in 1000 years there wont be no usa , canada , russia etc etc . everything will be new. if history is to go by.
And even then, half of it survived and remained one of the strongest and richest states in the world for centuries- the Eastern Roman Empire centred on Constantinople. They even managed to take back all of Italy and North Africa with some parts of Spain but God had to nerf the Romans again with the literal Bubonic plague that wiped out a third of the population and climate change through once in a million years volcanic eruption which caused mass famines. Even then they managed to remain strong until a 30 year disastrous war with rival Persia and the literal rise of Islam cause partial collapse leading them to lose their richest provinces and their superpower status. And *even then* they managed to survive, eventually seeing a period of growth and reconquest that would see them become the stongest European and Middle Eastern State. I could keep going through these cycles but you get the idea. The Romans were beyond resilient. What a juggernaut.
The Roman Empire never fell, it rebranded itself, ie; The Roman Catholic Church and a few subsiduaries created after a director spill and shareholder revolt in what became known as "The Reformation". The attempt to reclaim market share with "The Crusades" is generally regarded as a marketing disaster, though with rigourous promotion and advertising it had considerable success in what became known as lesser developed regions.
What i love and find fascinating about Rome is that it never really fell or was destroyed, Rome just became so huge and had so many different cultures within it that it just morphed into small alternative versions of Rome, France, Spain and Portugal have a strong influence from Rome in their buildings, language and religion, even England was heavily influenced by Roman culture and values.
Well technically the Romans didn't just "fall apart on their own", it was numerous outside factors that produced agitation among the people. But sure, the expansion over thousands of square kilometers were a LARGE factor in why Rome fell apart. But we shouldn't underestimate the wars that brought Rome to its knees, these weren't just some guys that the Romans stomped on, they were brutally efficient.
Germanic and Hunnic tribes broke the Roman empire in half, Rashiduns and Seljuks broke the backbone of the remaining Eastern portion by snatching Anatolia, North Africa and the Levant, and Ottomans did the ultimate finish
Turks indeed had a decisive role in triggering historical major events like the Migration Period, Crusades, Age of Discovery as well as ending the Middle Ages with the conquest of Constantinople, fall of the Roman Empire.
@@TheKourage88 the germanic tribes who beat them were christian too Alaric and the Visigoths, Gaiseric and the Vandals, Odoacer and his mixed bunch of followers as well as Theoderic and the Ostrogoths were all Arians
@@feldgeist2637 He means that the Jews and Christians destroyed the empire, which is BS. The problems surrounding the empire formed long before the adoption of Christianity
Rome did not so much fall but more faded away. Once the empire was split in half the empires ability to deal with constant invasions, especially in the west, was greatly diminished. As the empire sustained military loses it was carved up piece by piece. With each new region being lost the tax revenue was lost, making the empire that much weaker. A downward economic and military spiral. Octavian (Augustus) himself knew the empire would not last forever and wrote that in personal letters that I have read.
You are right, but the instances of Aetius and Majorian would also make the notion that a competent and active ruler was necessary as well. While the West fell, the East continued on, with more or less, competent or incompetent emperors and such.
@@MrSean03839 For sure, the wealth of the East was certainly a necessity, and it didn't help that after the establishment of a permanent imperial college did the wealth imbalance occur. But as for why the West fell, while the East survived, it was due to numerous internal and external factors to keep things brief, unless further information would be wanted ;). In addition, the seizure of North Africa by the Vandals in the early 420s didn't help the situation as well, especially for the shipment of grain and tax revenue, which is why Majorian prioritized that after his successes in Italy, Gaul, Hispania and the diplomacy with Marcellinus in Illyria. Sorry for the ramble lol, but yea. I see what you're saying and I don't see anything wrong, but I do enjoy talking with sensible people. Take care
Commondus is a prime example of what a weak man is. His father was a great leader, but he didn't spend enough time with his son. This had a negative effect on Commondus and it was one of the many things that made him into the man he was. The key to good leaders and less corruption is both education and a healthy household where both parents have time to spend with their kids.
Marcus was a great leader. But he made the mistake of not picking a successor based on merit; as had been done for him and the previous 4 emperors. Commondus was known deficient and should have been exiled to an island somewhere and strangled
Commodus ruled for about 15 years counting the duo reign of a regent also and 12 years as solo reign years of his reign he did not do bad, it was towards the last 6 years of his solo reign that he started to go mad with power.
No matter how educated and lovely the parents, at the end of the day the statemen serves the ruling class, captains of industry are the real string pullers,
@@cindimams4394every empire in history has a timeframe. USA is not forever. It will end just like any other empire and a new empire will rise and flourish.
@@Chicken56877 I don’t think so. Someone would have to be able to beat us for that to happen and as it stands now we are the strongest military power in the world. Take away our military power and then I can see it happening but that’ll never happen.
So we are just excluding how eastern half of the Roman Empire survived for another 977 years ? West or East didn’t matter it was still the Roman Empire. Once the west fell they didn’t all the sudden change their name and identity to “The Byzantines”, the term byzantine empire wasn’t even created until the year 1557 a full 104 years after the complete fall of the Roman’s on may 29th 1453….RIP Constantine XI he died like a badass
@@sheevpalpatine2128 the holy Roman empire had no authority to be apart of the Roman empire the imperial standard was sent to the eastern half. Not even the pope had the power to give imperium. The eastern Roman empires patriarch did.
some of this is eerily similar to modern day America. not saying it will end tomorrow but we are definitely in a noticeable decline with no signs of changing
My teacher said history will definitely speak about this time as the beginning of the end. Eventually I think usa will lose its global influence (be taken over by China), it will have several civil wars until major splits, several states will continue to call each other america and think it hasn’t died but this would be officially the end of it. This could even be the end of western civilization altogether depending how it goes (though many won’t notice)
Definitely not, America is richer and more powerful than ever and is the world leader in new tech. It will only fall if citizens listen to those who want it to stand still.
Like lots of documentary said, the causes of it's fall weren't barbarians invasions, they had it for centuries, and the majority of its population was originally foreigners that were invaded and integrated. it's fall was caused by infightings, thirst of power and a paralysed society more interested in the status quo than evolving itself for surviving the future.
If anyone is interested in this topic I would highly recommend reading “The Fall of the Roman Empire” by Peter Heather. It is very likely that what caused the Empire to fall wasn’t necessarily internal corruption (which always existed) or a decline in the quality of Roman troops, but an enormous wave of migration of Germanic peoples brought upon by the invasions of the Huns. An additional factor was the rise of Sassanid Persia, ironically seen by most contemporaries as the biggest threat to Rome, which prevented the East from providing effective aid to the West. The final nail in the coffin was when Geiseric conquered and maintained control of Africa, which was where much of the late empire’s wealth came from
Ehh I would disagree. Those are certainly factors but when you go down the years rome was starting to collapse centuries before it technically did. And let’s not forget the eastern part of the empire which is really where most of it wealth came from, thrived after the western part collapsed. Just like all empires before and after, it collapsed under its own weight. Inflation, climate change, internal issues like lead poisoning which affected the most populated areas of the empire, invasions from the Germanic tribes, in fighting between the ruling class, there’s a ton of variables that contributed to the collapse. They say by the end of the empire the people within the city of rome were happy that the city was being taken over by others.
If you read The Fall of the West The Death of the Roman Superpower from Adrian Goldsworthy, you will see he sings a different tune which makes more sense. He is basically saying the lack of a clear succession law and internal strife caused the fall. No one was poweful enough to go against a united Roman empire at the time but if every influential man in the empire wants to be the emperor you can't survive very long. In every civil war Romans died by tens of thousands which crippled the Roman population. That's why they had to rely on German, Goth and even Hunnic Auxiliaries later on. Plus to be able to wage those civil wars every general called legions from frontiers to boost their own numbers and that made the frontiers weaker and weaker. "Barbarians" took advantage and empire fell. Of course that internal strife caused economical decline. It's actually a very long process which starts after Pax Romana.
Then again, it comes from one professor’s perspective so take it with a grain of salt. There are many other historians, and professors who would disagree Peter Heather’s take on the fall of Rome.
There are no clear answers on what is the main cause for the fall of the Roman Empire. But what is certain is that there are multiple causes that triggers the fall of Rome. Examples are the religious conflict between Greco-paganism and Christianity, the conflict between different sects of Christianity such as Arianism and the Nicene Church, climate change, the arrival of the Huns, high corruption, constant civil war, the division of the western and the eastern empire, and hiring barbarians as Foederati.
Speaking of the Crisis of the Third Century, it is quite sad that the 1000th anniversary of the founding of Rome was celebrated during such a really depressing and decadent period. Romulus sure would have considered unworthy to celebrate the anniversary in the midst of the great crisis of the Empire. I mean, not alls states can boast of being 1000 years old...
@@indridcold8433 The UK has not been around for a millennium. The English isles were untamed wildlands dotted with tiny kingdoms. Sending positive vibes to *King Charles III*
@@indridcold8433 only since 1707, but ye England for example has been around a solid 1000 and a bit years Scotland a bit longer, and potentially a lot longer if you could argue continuity from the Caledonians onward. Pretty crazy to think about
@bryanvillafuerte765 Modern Egypt only retains the name. It has no similarities to the Egypt of ancient history. I forgot when the Egypt of antiquity collapsed. The new nation founded in the location of the collapsed Egypt kept the original name. There is a nation called, "Rome." But, it has nothing to do with the Roman Empire at all.
I don't normally comment on the videos I watch. However, I feel compelled to give my feedback here. The videos of this channel are so interesting and insightful. How many of you actually have The Inforgraphics Show as a must watch before going to sleep?? 😉
3:22 false. That's something of a new kind of urban myth. We actually have records of sensational persecutory efforts. 1) by the Roman historian Tacitus describing how Nero shifted blame for the fire onto Christians and had them covered in beast skins and torn apart by dogs; and two early 4th-century works arguably constituting a gold standard of what an explicit historical undertaking of the time might look like, esp. RE suffering of Christians under Roman rule up until that time: 2) On the Deaths of the Persecutors by Lactantius 3) The Church History of Eusebius, written by the bishop of Caesarea in modern-day Israel. 2 and 3 were finished during Constantine's reign. You can suggest the lions stories are uncorroborated (debatable considering applying comparable standards to our other Rome sources). But it's untrue to say that there's no historical basis, regardless the misgivings of 19th century editors. And it's not your first video getting a major detail wrong and mischaracterizing a group.
@@ImNotaRussianBot Who would you believe? The guy who made a video 2000 years after the event took place or Tacitus who live through that era? He even take a snide at the "Followers of the way" and call them "Christians" which was meant to be offensive but later on adopted by the followers of Christ.
Thank you for a really good overview of the Fall of Rome. If you do a movie detailed documentary I think the areas of the use of mercenaries, the deep decline of people living by their own moral standards and the relationship of the Roman Empire's citizens personal wealth and the decline of the Roman citizens moral life. Keep the great work.
"Caesar, you don't have to feel guilty. It's not your fault. You didn't do anything wrong." "That's the problem, Jovius. I didn't do anything. This didn't have to happen. I wanted peace. I WANTED PEACE. What...what will history say about me now?" *-Conversation between Emperor Honorius and his adviser Jovius after the sacking of Rome, "Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire"*
The church in the background controlled heart and minds above the wants of the emperor...and lack of money..meanwhile believe on God...while the people starve
A large percent of territory of Rome was conquered under the Republic, the beginning stated before an empire it was a republic with "a lot less territory", the empire added some more territory but not as much as the republic added
As successful governments become established in new areas, it becomes difficult to manage, and corruption grows within, making it more expensive and time consuming to do the same things it had done before much more quickly and efficiently. This internal inefficiency grows until it can no longer sustain the level of governance it had attained and collapses.
yeah, only right emperor can choose right choice about exits of chaos, however i remember the corruption of empire roman can easily take wrong person who take emperor job into total disaster of empire roman. as today Russia is full of corruption and lack of military techology, as russia was been three times of fall of empire as Empire russian, Ussr and now Russia Putin, do you know future can't easily means there are future empire of earth is too big about appear corruption, chaos conflicts and lose trust of emperor or president or worse much. as explame of civilization humanity will fall into Stone Age from great enemy of humanity on space or some most theart and deadliest of universe. but small country or small planet can enough survival of last humanity on future won't easy.
the complacency bought upon by their advanced social development also weakened the society as a whole, a weak society would have weak men, therefore weak armies
@@brandonjade2146 the comfort and sense of security that a more “socially developed” society have more of may backfire by obviously distancing them from the realities of nature, that not every society in their vicinity are willing to share their values/morals/ethics, pacifists are one example you can see this pattern in the rich west today where they simply allow the consequences of their feel-good policies like grooming gangs, vastly increase in violence, becoming a r*pe capital(Sweden) of the Continent, prioritizing non-natives and even downright discriminating against their natives to show the world how “good hearted” they are
They failed to evolve. Rome was strong because they figured out the formula of power before most people.. “gather up all the tribes to make one massive machine” in time the Germanic tribes and other people elsewhere figured that out. Mix that with Romes enemies who were 5’9 to 6’5 tall and the massive weapons they had.. (Rome had muskets and everyone else had Gatling guns) the Roman’s power counted for nothing.. one swing from those giants knocked many Roman’s back. I agree with the video.. they should have did what america has done and treated everyone good and in return america had many people of different backgrounds fighting for her and gaining the loyalty of some of the countries these people came from.. it might’ve been a super power today and Latin would be spoken by many.
The complex combination of several factors contributed to the “Fall” of the Roman Empire: political, social, cultural, military, economic, environmental, climatic; but the single greatest reason for the collapse was simply this: the rich increasingly became incredibly rich while the rest were plunged into desperate poverty. Deprived of a robust, confident, informed, secure, productive and stable middle class of citizens (which had made the empire possible in the first place) the Roman State could not survive. The increasing economic, social and political marginalization of the citizen body eventually led to a complete breakdown of public institutions and mores. Under those conditions a total systems collapse is always inevitable. ADDENDUM (edit). Leaders and plutocrats beware: diminish the middle class at your (and our combined) peril; the very system that made your wealth, power and privilege possible will collapse if the most productive segment of society is not there to support and uphold it.
Thank you for this brief insight! Very informative - I would dare draw comparisons towards todays megacities e.g. London and its housing crisis as well as its exponential cost of living. Different aspects of citizen bodies nevertheless.
Precisely what is happening today. The USA used to have a much more equal society than "old" Europe. So it thrived. Now the roles are reversed with the US now having the most unequal society in the rich world. And surprise, surprise, is now deeply divided. Another similarity with Rome - over reliance on military power.
I would say the underlying this economic imbalance was the debasement of their currency. Without sound money, those in power will increase the money supply and it will sap the middle classes wealth, causing an incresing imbalance. Rome systematically decreasd the precious metals weight in their coins, allowimg them to fund more conquest and sustain their power, while simultaneously sapping wealth. All the other issues talked about are accurate, but it is all underpinned on this economic princiole
To real❤ Jesus says the hardest truths ever cause He already knows what's gonna happen, Trust in Him you , He will infact come soon , are you ready? Try asking God , Jesus for the Holy Spirit I promise you , you won't regret it ^^
Great video ! The monumental work “History of the Byzantine Empire: Vol. 1: Constantine to the Crusades” and “History of the Byzantine Empire: Vol. 2: From the Crusades to the Fall of the Empire”, of Alexander Alexandrovich Vasiliev (an expert Byzantinist), is considered one of the best accounts on the Greek legacy of Byzantine history and culture. Truly, masterpieces.
This video is a great lesson for everything happening around the world right now on how gradual changes/destabilization over years change world economics, and countries.
Pancho perhaps but what about the shrinking of the middle class farmers-the wealthy taking over the land and the poor farmers then requesting help from the Senate-changing laws to help them get back on track?
The most straightforward theory for Western Rome's collapse pins the fall on a string of military losses sustained against outside forces. Rome had tangled with Germanic tribes for centuries, but by the 300s “barbarian” groups like the Goths had encroached beyond the Empire's borders.
As a Chinese person, I think the ultimate reason for the Roman Empire fall is that Italians didn't have a population advantage over other people in the empire, especially Greeks and Egyptians. The Chinese Han Empire which existed at the same time and had similar population and territory had a much bigger population advantage in its core region (central plain)
It is not so, they were definitely advanced, in few ways even more than greeks and egyptians. Just look at the architecture, the roads, the water pipelines, the mass production of food, a better political and legislative system, etc etc... Also consider that these two populations were few of the most integrated in roman society, greeks eventually considered themself romans for another 900 years, with the Byzantin empire...
Rome didn't have the geographical advantage that China has, e.g. mountains, that's why China will always be unified one way or the other while once Rome fell it could never be restored
Ok, while the roman gods heavily resemble the Greek gods they were much less petty and often lacked their own distinctive personalities acting more like how a God "should" rather than alcoholic power mad dictators. For instance there were markedly less stories of Jupiter cheating on his wife than Zeuz did to Hera. Another one is Mars while he was the embodiment of the concept of war he was viewed in a much more favorable light than Aries who was feared more than respected almost always being painted as a bad-guy even by the greeks.
"Suddenly, the Romans had a huge influx of barbarian warriors fleeing across their border - And Rome's lack of management in their border states came back to haunt them." Let that sink in.
@@AutobahnVault we should watch for huge armies coming at our border?? Lol if you're europe or america no army will invade you from a near country lol stop
"moral decay" Bro Romans themselves complained about "moral decadence" since the Roman Republic and the times of Augustus who passed many laws against "moral decay". It was just a cop out against the real problems.
I could argue them being established on a religion was the downfall. Once that myth wears down, it will create chaos. That is likely why the US Founding Fathers wanted no establishment of religion and freedom to practice any religion.
It's not that. The reason is far more simpler: Rome became an empire by being the most advanced technological power as well as economical. As a republic, innovation by well educated people kept Rome ahead for ages mostly through great engineering and administration. Even when they would lose a battle, they would analyze the enemy and prepare to counter their tech. They also incorporated the Greek school and knowledge to them. But over the centuries, by becoming an empire, with less and less educated people in the government meant that all their advantage would crumble. Also, because of civil wars and strife, they never build up the new conquered provinces (after caesar) to be powerful and self sufficient, a cynical mistake that would lose them those territories.
Constantine after watching a weird light in the Sky: "For the Gods. What was that thing in the sky we just saw?" Lactantius: "A message from God, who wants you to reunify the Empire under the cross of Jesus. With the symbol he made in the sky you shall conquer!" Constantine: "You're right. If, in order to restore Rome's glory, I must use the signal of the God of christianity and spread his word throughout the Empire, then it shall be done!" *Draws sword* "FOR CHRIST!!!" Soldiers: *Draw swords* "FOR CHRIST!!!" *Meanwhile, a few kilometers away* Shepherd: *Returns home, finding his house completely destroyed by a meteorite* "Son of a b*tch..."
If the federal entity of the United States collapses, the states will likely become their own territories. Most of them have enough resources and manpower to do so. The forced independence will likely change laws and social programs in order for the states to avoid going insolvent
Europe will have to instantly leap forward with other democratic allies. If not, the world will have to accept its new collective responsibility of deep+hroating China.
Eternal glory to our formidable Byzantine ancestors. For preserving and delivering our Ancient Greco-Roman heritage. And for blending it majestically with our splendid Christian Orthodox tradition. 🇬🇷 ☦️
Why is there nothing mentioned about the reckless government spending and inflation? I know it isn't very dramatic/cinematic, but it is an enormous factor.
Inflation and the debasement of coinage were large factors that factor in to the lowering of the quality of roman troops. Plus at the start of the Empire military service for Roman citizens was compulsory, though later on they relied more on Auxilliary troops.
"While some of the more dramatic stories like early Christians being fed to lions have no historical backing..." There is ample historical record of Christians being dressed in animal skins and given to dogs to be torn apart, specifically as told by Roman historian Publius Cornelius Tacitus. While technically true that the "lions in the coliseum" doesn't seem to have historical backing, it's a distinction without a difference. The "dramatic stories" were true in that Christians were tortured in the worst ways and fed to animals to be torn apart as well as lit on fire as torches to illuminate Rome. "Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired." ~ Publius Cornelius Tacitus, Roman historian
For anyone watching this video please be aware it’s riddled with inaccuracies either do to lack of knowledge on the writers part or due to not wanting this video to be to long much is passed over
@@raggedclawstarcraft6562 forgot most but I remember they completely skipped over constans the first and Constantine the second and also didn’t mention Valentinian, gratian, or valentinian II and said theodocius came to power when he only had control over the eat
*Fun fact:* There's an amazing comic about the Fall of the Western Empire called "Amiculus", in which the byzantines, after re-conquering Rome during the reign of Justinian, try to find out the fate of Romulus Augustulus while the last days of the boy as emperor are shown through flashbacks. Loved the way Orestes was portrayed here as a maniac obsessed with maintaining the Empire no matter what
why would eastern roman empire even bother about romulus augustulus? He was considered irrelevant and a pseudo emperor, even by his contemporaries, and was not even recognized by the eastern roman emperor. only modern western historiography emphasize him enough to write a comic about him.
Initially it was a monarchy actually and a lot of the reason Atilla was such a challenge for rome was because their military focused primarily on heavy infantry whereas the hunns focused primarily on horse archers theres not a lot infantry can do do skirmishing cavalry well they did adapt and create things like cataphracti (cataphracts) and overcome the hunns the damage was already done
*The Fall of the Roman Empire: A Multi-Century Decline* * *0:00** Introduction:* The video explores the factors contributing to the collapse of the Roman Empire, highlighting its vast size and eventual demise. * *0:34** From Republic to Empire:* The Roman Republic transitioned to an Empire under Julius Caesar and solidified under his adopted son, Octavian (Augustus). * *1:47** The Seeds of Instability:* The Empire's vast size and reliance on provincial governors created challenges for centralized control. Religious conflicts, particularly with the rise of Christianity, also emerged. * *3:45** Commodus' Chaotic Reign:* Emperor Commodus' erratic leadership and obsession with gladiatorial combat destabilized Rome, leading to his assassination and the tumultuous Year of the Five Emperors. * *5:17** Breakaway Empires:* Internal chaos led to the emergence of breakaway empires like the Gallic Empire and the Palmyrene Empire, significantly diminishing Roman territory. * *5:58** Restorative Efforts:* Emperors Aurelian, Diocletian, and Constantine managed to reclaim lost territories, stabilize the economy, and reorganize the Empire. Constantine's conversion to Christianity marked a pivotal shift. * *7:50** Theodosius and the Hunnic Threat:* Theodosius I faced internal rebellions and the looming threat of the Huns, whose migrations into Europe displaced the Goths, leading them to seek refuge within Roman borders. * *9:27** The Gothic Crisis:* Rome's mishandling of the Gothic refugees, marked by exploitation and lack of integration, fueled resentment and ultimately led to a guerilla war that weakened the Empire. * *11:12** Division of the Empire:* Theodosius' death in 395 CE resulted in the division of the Empire into Western and Eastern halves, further diminishing Rome's strength. * *11:47** The Fall of the West:* The Western Roman Empire faced continued barbarian invasions, particularly from the Huns under Attila, and gradually lost territory until its final collapse in 476 CE with the deposition of Romulus Augustulus by Odoacer. * *13:42** The Legacy of Rome:* Although the Roman Empire fell, its influence persisted through the Roman Catholic Church, which became a dominant force in Europe for centuries. * *14:16** Key Factors in the Fall:* The video emphasizes several factors contributing to Rome's decline, including the weakening of the military, overreliance on mercenaries, administrative challenges, poor leadership, internal strife, and the crucial mistake of mishandling the Gothic refugee crisis. I used gemini-1.5-pro-exp-0827 on rocketrecap dot com to summarize the transcript. Cost (if I didn't use the free tier): $0.03 Input tokens: 19765 Output tokens: 547
Romulus Augustulus after being dethroned: "You fools! The byzantines will destroy you once they know of my fall! ROMANS ALWAYS AVENGE THEIR BROTHERS" Odoacer: "Speaking of your "brothers", they told us through messengers that they will allow the establishment of our government" Romulus Augustulus: "They are adopted"
I'm intrigued by your characterisation of the Roman Catholic Church as a continuation of the Roman Empire, in terms of some of its formal properties and a great deal of its executive function. I should mention that I'm not a historian - I just retain an interest in classical antiquity from my decade of Latin at boarding school half a century ago.
This was surprisingly well-done! A few minor corrections, if I may: 1) Constantine may have been the 1st Christian emperor, but unfortunately, he was also the first anti-Semite to rule. He forbade any conversion to Judaism, and forbade his new "Christian" Romans from marrying Jews. 2) Theodosius was the 1st emperor in history to actually *force religious conversion onto his people (Constantine had made it optional). Romans were now forced to pray to Jesus under penalty of death; Pagan statues, libraries, and temples were looted and destroyed, and the Olympics (traditionally dedicated to Zeus) , were outlawed, and did not return until 1859. As for the Catholic Church ruling Europe once the Roman Empire effectively "fell", yes... this period of plagues, education for the nobility only, misbegotten crusades, and massive power abuse by the church itself is known simply as The Dark Ages.
🇮🇹🤨The fall of the Roman Empire did not happen because of the barbarians as narrated in school books, but because of the fall of the Roman spirit. Once, when Rome was at risk, a consul went up to the Capitol with two flags and shouted: "The homeland is in danger, it needs you!" Immediately two huge processions were formed, one of infantrymen and one of knights and both aristocrats and plebeians started to fight. In imperial times the generals, with the order of the Emperor, gathered armies and went to fight. Above all, those who wanted to make a career or simply find respect from his peers must have fought for Rome. The Romans did not give political offices, because at the time the people voted for them to those who had distinguished themselves in combat. The cursum honoruma was based on field battles and whoever didn't have any was out. Even the literati had to fight if they wanted respect and popularity. Horace had to fight with Maecenas in order to earn a place among the men of letters, and so did Cicero. The boys learned to fight already in the gymnasium, with wooden swords. Caesar gained the position of perpetual dictator by conquering Gaul. Every day a courier arrived in Rome carrying the chronicle of the battles that were almost always won. Rome loved him for this. With the advent of Christianity, religion, which occupied a limited place in paganism, although quite felt, in the soul of the Romans, passed into first place. There was only one divinity and you had to ingratiate yourself with it, everything else: wars, drought, cholera, atmospheric accidents and diseases, depended on the God. So it was more important to pray than to fight. The Romans replaced duty to Rome and the Emperor with the supreme God. And since the Romans were no longer fighting, they hired foreign fighters, who didn't have the same discipline or loyalty as the Romans.
Strong empires repel "barbarian" invaders. Weak ones do not. Rome weakened, then was overrun by "barbarians". A big contribution to that weakening is now thought to be plagues that greatly reduced the population, more in the west than in the east. Another was civil wars resulting from Rome's big problem, the succession. In the long run they failed to get it right. (Of course, Gibbon blamed Christianity . . .) Remember, when we ask why Rome fell, the important consideration is, why did west Rome fall while East Rome lasted many centuries longer?
I don't what to make it seem as if I'm speaking with any sort of expertise on the topic, but I believe the statement in question is factual from the perspective that while His contemporaries did not see Him as a Rabbi, many of His followers did, even sometimes addressing Him as such (according to the Gospels).
@@RoadhouseDeluxe I don't agree with this, either. However, you are allowed to have your opinion on what kind of man Jesus was. What we can both agree on is that Jesus grew up in the Jewish faith.
@@EmilyS-gk3st Jesus was a Jew both by virtue of ethnicity and religion . . . BUT his followers were Christians BECAUSE they followed HIM, technically Jesus couldn't have been a Christian himself.🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔
@@savagepro9060 As long as Jesus practiced what He preached and it wasn't 100% Judaism, then yes, I think Jesus could be considered Christian, too. But that's a bit of a loophole. He did grow up Jewish.
If you played the campaign mode in Rome: Total War as your empire grew, it is quite hard to manage cities and settlements while defending it from enemies. If it's hard in video game, imagine doing it in real life.
Laughs in Total War: Attila
The fact that games are made to be fun, says alot lol
@@Kaib902 play Frostpunk, it's fun and depressing and stressful at the same time.
I couldn't beat that game until I got a handle on keeping cities peaceful. The wrong general in a city/state could ruin an entire territory. I often had to move one general into the field and another would have to move from say Turkey to England to settle down a city. It took multiple notebooks and 3 months to finally beat the game.
@@toddparke8535 what game is this pls and what console?
So Rome basically fell from poor leadership and a border crisis
Sounds familiar ey? Rome went from a Republic to an Empire. Wonder where America will go?
Nice deflecting and how politically motivated of you. Thanks for showing us who you are saying something that has nothing to deal with the subject at hand.
@@tyler5914 am I wrong tho ??
The Roman Empire was made up of conquered people from various cultures
good thing the US uses the exact same technology and systems the Roman’s used thousands of years ago
Greed eventually leads to societies downfall and debasement of currency.
@@frankisawesomee facts they made herbs and animals including fish they used flrntheir special sauce went extinct, they over consumed
Rome also suffered from three ecological disasters: 1) the playing out of its major gold, silver, copper and iron mines; 2) a grain blight which reduced North Africa to desert instead of farmland; 3) the first incursion of influenza -- an airborne viral plague -- which wiped out *half* the population. It took a lot to bring that empire down.
Goes to show that no matter how powerful or strong, any empire can fall even us.
@@NotSoCasualConversation: Especially when it's hit from a dozen different directions at once.
@@NotSoCasualConversation we will eventually fall too. in 1000 years there wont be no usa , canada , russia etc etc . everything will be new. if history is to go by.
And even then, half of it survived and remained one of the strongest and richest states in the world for centuries- the Eastern Roman Empire centred on Constantinople. They even managed to take back all of Italy and North Africa with some parts of Spain but God had to nerf the Romans again with the literal Bubonic plague that wiped out a third of the population and climate change through once in a million years volcanic eruption which caused mass famines. Even then they managed to remain strong until a 30 year disastrous war with rival Persia and the literal rise of Islam cause partial collapse leading them to lose their richest provinces and their superpower status. And *even then* they managed to survive, eventually seeing a period of growth and reconquest that would see them become the stongest European and Middle Eastern State.
I could keep going through these cycles but you get the idea. The Romans were beyond resilient. What a juggernaut.
The Roman Empire never fell, it rebranded itself, ie; The Roman Catholic Church and a few subsiduaries created after a director spill and shareholder revolt in what became known as "The Reformation". The attempt to reclaim market share with "The Crusades" is generally regarded as a marketing disaster, though with rigourous promotion and advertising it had considerable success in what became known as lesser developed regions.
What i love and find fascinating about Rome is that it never really fell or was destroyed, Rome just became so huge and had so many different cultures within it that it just morphed into small alternative versions of Rome, France, Spain and Portugal have a strong influence from Rome in their buildings, language and religion, even England was heavily influenced by Roman culture and values.
As well as America
@Bryan Villafuerte let say roman empire ended in 5th century. Which empires should b most legit to hold title as roman empire till today ❓
@@reynoldtanto4853 america is modern roman empire lol
@@grandcanyon-fu9zt do u have any other option?
@@reynoldtanto4853 nah, America is the most corrupt
I find myself thinking about the Roman Empire at least once a week.
Be honest now
History taught us that the only way to defeat a huge unbeatable empire is to let itself crumble down into pieces.
Meanwhile dozens of generations suffer while waiting. Not a very enticing "strategy."
And help it to do so. Kinda like the Chinese and fentanyl.
Well technically the Romans didn't just "fall apart on their own", it was numerous outside factors that produced agitation among the people. But sure, the expansion over thousands of square kilometers were a LARGE factor in why Rome fell apart.
But we shouldn't underestimate the wars that brought Rome to its knees, these weren't just some guys that the Romans stomped on, they were brutally efficient.
@@NashLaoShi and then the Chinese are doing it back to us
@@RodMartinJr
And opposition has historically resulted in genocide and total extinction. Not a very enticing "strategy."
Germanic and Hunnic tribes broke the Roman empire in half, Rashiduns and Seljuks broke the backbone of the remaining Eastern portion by snatching Anatolia, North Africa and the Levant, and Ottomans did the ultimate finish
Turks indeed had a decisive role in triggering historical major events like the Migration Period, Crusades, Age of Discovery as well as ending the Middle Ages with the conquest of Constantinople, fall of the Roman Empire.
Also was Horrible wealth inequality rich people weren’t Paying any taxes the army was just mercenary’s huge slums in the cities.
@@TheKourage88 the germanic tribes who beat them were christian too
Alaric and the Visigoths, Gaiseric and the Vandals, Odoacer and his mixed bunch of followers as well as Theoderic and the Ostrogoths were all Arians
@@feldgeist2637 He means that the Jews and Christians destroyed the empire, which is BS. The problems surrounding the empire formed long before the adoption of Christianity
You should blog about it
This thing sounds eerily like the United States today.
Learn the history. Its destroyed by its people. Today people around the world speak English use US$. The world can’t survive without USA 🇺🇸.
Rome: about 2000 years
US: about 200 years
I am glad I'm not the only one that feels this way.
@@englishteacherdon I believe America 🇺🇸 😢 is now on the same path
@@wilsonburgos1327 yup
Rome did not so much fall but more faded away. Once the empire was split in half the empires ability to deal with constant invasions, especially in the west, was greatly diminished. As the empire sustained military loses it was carved up piece by piece. With each new region being lost the tax revenue was lost, making the empire that much weaker. A downward economic and military spiral. Octavian (Augustus) himself knew the empire would not last forever and wrote that in personal letters that I have read.
You are right, but the instances of Aetius and Majorian would also make the notion that a competent and active ruler was necessary as well. While the West fell, the East continued on, with more or less, competent or incompetent emperors and such.
@@drakehashimoto685 The eastern empire continued on because that is where the real wealth was. The west could not stand on it's own without the east.
@@MrSean03839 For sure, the wealth of the East was certainly a necessity, and it didn't help that after the establishment of a permanent imperial college did the wealth imbalance occur. But as for why the West fell, while the East survived, it was due to numerous internal and external factors to keep things brief, unless further information would be wanted ;). In addition, the seizure of North Africa by the Vandals in the early 420s didn't help the situation as well, especially for the shipment of grain and tax revenue, which is why Majorian prioritized that after his successes in Italy, Gaul, Hispania and the diplomacy with Marcellinus in Illyria.
Sorry for the ramble lol, but yea. I see what you're saying and I don't see anything wrong, but I do enjoy talking with sensible people.
Take care
@ Z EXACTLY, IT FELL AND FADED AWAY. It was PROPHESIED to FALL AND GOD’S WORD WILL RETURN VOID!
AND GOD’S WORD WILL NOT RETURN VOID!
Commondus is a prime example of what a weak man is. His father was a great leader, but he didn't spend enough time with his son. This had a negative effect on Commondus and it was one of the many things that made him into the man he was. The key to good leaders and less corruption is both education and a healthy household where both parents have time to spend with their kids.
Marcus was a great leader. But he made the mistake of not picking a successor based on merit; as had been done for him and the previous 4 emperors.
Commondus was known deficient and should have been exiled to an island somewhere and strangled
Um...
Commodus
Commodus ruled for about 15 years counting the duo reign of a regent also and 12 years as solo reign years of his reign he did not do bad, it was towards the last 6 years of his solo reign that he started to go mad with power.
No matter how educated and lovely the parents, at the end of the day the statemen serves the ruling class, captains of industry are the real string pullers,
The contrast between what's going on in America and the fall of Rome is staggering !
We’ve been through tough political times before, we will get through this. America is still a superpower and the richest country in the world.
@@cindimams4394every empire in history has a timeframe. USA is not forever. It will end just like any other empire and a new empire will rise and flourish.
@@Chicken56877 I don’t think so. Someone would have to be able to beat us for that to happen and as it stands now we are the strongest military power in the world. Take away our military power and then I can see it happening but that’ll never happen.
Trump will bring us back
@@Chicken56877America is not an empire, big difference. And it is not meant to be a dictatorship.
So we are just excluding how eastern half of the Roman Empire survived for another 977 years ? West or East didn’t matter it was still the Roman Empire. Once the west fell they didn’t all the sudden change their name and identity to “The Byzantines”, the term byzantine empire wasn’t even created until the year 1557 a full 104 years after the complete fall of the Roman’s on may 29th 1453….RIP Constantine XI he died like a badass
Im not sure if beheaded by an Ottoman soldier counts as badass, but its cool he died in battle.
@@jamesfry8983 he was already dead at that point, so yes that was unfortunate lol , but like you said chose to go down fighting rather than surrender
Agreed and i still kinda count the holy Roman empire in there
True
@@sheevpalpatine2128 the holy Roman empire had no authority to be apart of the Roman empire the imperial standard was sent to the eastern half. Not even the pope had the power to give imperium. The eastern Roman empires patriarch did.
some of this is eerily similar to modern day America. not saying it will end tomorrow but we are definitely in a noticeable decline with no signs of changing
I mean, if we all work together, is it even possibly preventable? I know USA can’t last forever but I just want to increase the time it survives.
My teacher said history will definitely speak about this time as the beginning of the end. Eventually I think usa will lose its global influence (be taken over by China), it will have several civil wars until major splits, several states will continue to call each other america and think it hasn’t died but this would be officially the end of it. This could even be the end of western civilization altogether depending how it goes (though many won’t notice)
America will fall by it self.
Definitely not, America is richer and more powerful than ever and is the world leader in new tech. It will only fall if citizens listen to those who want it to stand still.
@@pgtipz7468America will fall just like Rome, due to illegal immigration, poor leadership, and inflation.
This ancient history documentary taught me that ancient rulers loved three things: conquering, naming cities after themselves, and dramatic exits.
Like lots of documentary said, the causes of it's fall weren't barbarians invasions, they had it for centuries, and the majority of its population was originally foreigners that were invaded and integrated.
it's fall was caused by infightings, thirst of power and a paralysed society more interested in the status quo than evolving itself for surviving the future.
So. The United States then.
@@Bubonic32 Rome wasn’t a republic when it fall
@Bubonic
Was just going to say that
It was also barbaric migrations due to th
History just repeats itself
If anyone is interested in this topic I would highly recommend reading “The Fall of the Roman Empire” by Peter Heather. It is very likely that what caused the Empire to fall wasn’t necessarily internal corruption (which always existed) or a decline in the quality of Roman troops, but an enormous wave of migration of Germanic peoples brought upon by the invasions of the Huns. An additional factor was the rise of Sassanid Persia, ironically seen by most contemporaries as the biggest threat to Rome, which prevented the East from providing effective aid to the West. The final nail in the coffin was when Geiseric conquered and maintained control of Africa, which was where much of the late empire’s wealth came from
Ehh I would disagree. Those are certainly factors but when you go down the years rome was starting to collapse centuries before it technically did. And let’s not forget the eastern part of the empire which is really where most of it wealth came from, thrived after the western part collapsed. Just like all empires before and after, it collapsed under its own weight. Inflation, climate change, internal issues like lead poisoning which affected the most populated areas of the empire, invasions from the Germanic tribes, in fighting between the ruling class, there’s a ton of variables that contributed to the collapse. They say by the end of the empire the people within the city of rome were happy that the city was being taken over by others.
If you read The Fall of the West The Death of the Roman Superpower from Adrian Goldsworthy, you will see he sings a different tune which makes more sense.
He is basically saying the lack of a clear succession law and internal strife caused the fall. No one was poweful enough to go against a united Roman empire at the time but if every influential man in the empire wants to be the emperor you can't survive very long.
In every civil war Romans died by tens of thousands which crippled the Roman population. That's why they had to rely on German, Goth and even Hunnic Auxiliaries later on. Plus to be able to wage those civil wars every general called legions from frontiers to boost their own numbers and that made the frontiers weaker and weaker. "Barbarians" took advantage and empire fell. Of course that internal strife caused economical decline. It's actually a very long process which starts after Pax Romana.
Indeed, at the end of the day the Goths surely had to have SOMETHING to do with it
Then again, it comes from one professor’s perspective so take it with a grain of salt. There are many other historians, and professors who would disagree Peter Heather’s take on the fall of Rome.
There are no clear answers on what is the main cause for the fall of the Roman Empire. But what is certain is that there are multiple causes that triggers the fall of Rome. Examples are the religious conflict between Greco-paganism and Christianity, the conflict between different sects of Christianity such as Arianism and the Nicene Church, climate change, the arrival of the Huns, high corruption, constant civil war, the division of the western and the eastern empire, and hiring barbarians as Foederati.
Excellent, enjoyed this video very much. Thanks
I think this proves it. History repeats itself. Can anyone else think of a Republic seemingly experiencing such things in modern times?
United States
America😞
No bcs i am joining the empire to defend it, I and like many others….
Joe Biden and the Dems
However modern weapons cancels a fall out champ.
Speaking of the Crisis of the Third Century, it is quite sad that the 1000th anniversary of the founding of Rome was celebrated during such a really depressing and decadent period. Romulus sure would have considered unworthy to celebrate the anniversary in the midst of the great crisis of the Empire. I mean, not alls states can boast of being 1000 years old...
Great Britain is one. It has been the most influential nation on the planet. It is an ancient nation.
Long live the King.
@@indridcold8433 The UK has not been around for a millennium. The English isles were untamed wildlands dotted with tiny kingdoms. Sending positive vibes to *King Charles III*
@Buck Rothschild que será, será
@@indridcold8433 only since 1707, but ye England for example has been around a solid 1000 and a bit years
Scotland a bit longer, and potentially a lot longer if you could argue continuity from the Caledonians onward.
Pretty crazy to think about
@bryanvillafuerte765 Modern Egypt only retains the name. It has no similarities to the Egypt of ancient history. I forgot when the Egypt of antiquity collapsed. The new nation founded in the location of the collapsed Egypt kept the original name. There is a nation called, "Rome." But, it has nothing to do with the Roman Empire at all.
Thanks for including Miserere at 13:43
I don't normally comment on the videos I watch. However, I feel compelled to give my feedback here. The videos of this channel are so interesting and insightful. How many of you actually have The Inforgraphics Show as a must watch before going to sleep?? 😉
bot
The work ethic is unbelievable.
I am sure it's a big team, but they still pump out amazing videos at a crazy pace.
That's your comment? The time you finally comment and it's this. I'd say you should just keep not commenting
Every night brother, every night!
It takes just over a month to make a single video. They have a few groups working for the channel.
3:22 false. That's something of a new kind of urban myth. We actually have records of sensational persecutory efforts.
1) by the Roman historian Tacitus describing how Nero shifted blame for the fire onto Christians and had them covered in beast skins and torn apart by dogs;
and two early 4th-century works arguably constituting a gold standard of what an explicit historical undertaking of the time might look like, esp. RE suffering of Christians under Roman rule up until that time:
2) On the Deaths of the Persecutors by Lactantius
3) The Church History of Eusebius, written by the bishop of Caesarea in modern-day Israel.
2 and 3 were finished during Constantine's reign.
You can suggest the lions stories are uncorroborated (debatable considering applying comparable standards to our other Rome sources).
But it's untrue to say that there's no historical basis, regardless the misgivings of 19th century editors.
And it's not your first video getting a major detail wrong and mischaracterizing a group.
Nope. Your sources were written decades after Nero's death.
@@ImNotaRussianBot Who would you believe? The guy who made a video 2000 years after the event took place or Tacitus who live through that era? He even take a snide at the "Followers of the way" and call them "Christians" which was meant to be offensive but later on adopted by the followers of Christ.
@@ungas024 Great point!
@EFS It’s clear the producers of these vids have political and religious biases lol.
Glad I wasn’t the only one to notice this mistake
Thank you for a really good overview of the Fall of Rome.
If you do a movie detailed documentary I think the areas of the use of mercenaries, the deep decline of people living by their own moral standards and the relationship of the Roman Empire's citizens personal wealth and the decline of the Roman citizens moral life.
Keep the great work.
can you provide sources for the decline of morality leading to rome crumbling, please? i am asking sincerely.
"Caesar, you don't have to feel guilty. It's not your fault. You didn't do anything wrong."
"That's the problem, Jovius. I didn't do anything. This didn't have to happen. I wanted peace. I WANTED PEACE. What...what will history say about me now?"
*-Conversation between Emperor Honorius and his adviser Jovius after the sacking of Rome, "Ancient Rome: The Rise and Fall of an Empire"*
The church in the background controlled heart and minds above the wants of the emperor...and lack of money..meanwhile believe on God...while the people starve
Caesar wanted to be a god.
A large percent of territory of Rome was conquered under the Republic, the beginning stated before an empire it was a republic with "a lot less territory", the empire added some more territory but not as much as the republic added
Big up the republic!
Thank you I wanted to see this comment
No empire or order will last forever, only death, chaos and destruction is eternal.
All of the things you mentioned are dependent on temporal things, and are not eternal. God is the only eternal one.
🐺
You sound like you need a hug
Glad Emperor Aurelian got a mention, probably the most underrated Roman Emperor. He did a lot in 5 years than most emperor ever would.
He smoked Zenobia and her army after fighting off barbarians lol
Nobody ever mentions this.
Aurelian ,Diocletian and Constatine were from Illyria , illyria have 23 emperors in Roman Empire
Remember Heraclius!
He is one of the most rated emperors there is
As successful governments become established in new areas, it becomes difficult to manage, and corruption grows within, making it more expensive and time consuming to do the same things it had done before much more quickly and efficiently. This internal inefficiency grows until it can no longer sustain the level of governance it had attained and collapses.
This video was so interesting I’ve thought about the Roman Empire every day since.
Classic
Me too. Are you single? 😂😂😂😂
Rome was doomed to fall. A string of terrible emperors, a weakened economy, and an increase of stronger opponents acted like a ticking time bomb.
yeah, only right emperor can choose right choice about exits of chaos, however i remember the corruption of empire roman can easily take wrong person who take emperor job into total disaster of empire roman.
as today Russia is full of corruption and lack of military techology, as russia was been three times of fall of empire as Empire russian, Ussr and now Russia Putin, do you know future can't easily means there are future empire of earth is too big about appear corruption, chaos conflicts and lose trust of emperor or president or worse much. as explame of civilization humanity will fall into Stone Age from great enemy of humanity on space or some most theart and deadliest of universe.
but small country or small planet can enough survival of last humanity on future won't easy.
the complacency bought upon by their advanced social development also weakened the society as a whole, a weak society would have weak men, therefore weak armies
@@f.b.lagent1113 what advanced social development? How did it cause complacency
@@brandonjade2146 the comfort and sense of security that a more “socially developed” society have more of may backfire by obviously distancing them from the realities of nature, that not every society in their vicinity are willing to share their values/morals/ethics, pacifists are one example
you can see this pattern in the rich west today where they simply allow the consequences of their feel-good policies like grooming gangs, vastly increase in violence, becoming a r*pe capital(Sweden) of the Continent, prioritizing non-natives and even downright discriminating against their natives to show the world how “good hearted” they are
They failed to evolve. Rome was strong because they figured out the formula of power before most people.. “gather up all the tribes to make one massive machine” in time the Germanic tribes and other people elsewhere figured that out. Mix that with Romes enemies who were 5’9 to 6’5 tall and the massive weapons they had.. (Rome had muskets and everyone else had Gatling guns) the Roman’s power counted for nothing.. one swing from those giants knocked many Roman’s back. I agree with the video.. they should have did what america has done and treated everyone good and in return america had many people of different backgrounds fighting for her and gaining the loyalty of some of the countries these people came from.. it might’ve been a super power today and Latin would be spoken by many.
The complex combination of several factors contributed to the “Fall” of the Roman Empire: political, social, cultural, military, economic, environmental, climatic; but the single greatest reason for the collapse was simply this: the rich increasingly became incredibly rich while the rest were plunged into desperate poverty. Deprived of a robust, confident, informed, secure, productive and stable middle class of citizens (which had made the empire possible in the first place) the Roman State could not survive. The increasing economic, social and political marginalization of the citizen body eventually led to a complete breakdown of public institutions and mores. Under those conditions a total systems collapse is always inevitable. ADDENDUM (edit). Leaders and plutocrats beware: diminish the middle class at your (and our combined) peril; the very system that made your wealth, power and privilege possible will collapse if the most productive segment of society is not there to support and uphold it.
Thank you for this brief insight! Very informative - I would dare draw comparisons towards todays megacities e.g. London and its housing crisis as well as its exponential cost of living. Different aspects of citizen bodies nevertheless.
@@KaiusKing - I think you’re spot on in your comparison. A different citizenry, yes, but many parallels between our world and the Late Roman Empire.
Yes, at last fact. This is where the oligarthic empire of the United States is headed.
Precisely what is happening today. The USA used to have a much more equal society than "old" Europe. So it thrived. Now the roles are reversed with the US now having the most unequal society in the rich world. And surprise, surprise, is now deeply divided. Another similarity with Rome - over reliance on military power.
I would say the underlying this economic imbalance was the debasement of their currency. Without sound money, those in power will increase the money supply and it will sap the middle classes wealth, causing an incresing imbalance. Rome systematically decreasd the precious metals weight in their coins, allowimg them to fund more conquest and sustain their power, while simultaneously sapping wealth. All the other issues talked about are accurate, but it is all underpinned on this economic princiole
Moral Decay.
Uh-huh, that'll do it.
Just like Jesus said ,"how can a house divided stand???"
@@RoadhouseDeluxe 💀
It can't.
Ruh-roh. That doesn’t bode well for U.S.
Modern day America
To real❤ Jesus says the hardest truths ever cause He already knows what's gonna happen, Trust in Him you , He will infact come soon , are you ready?
Try asking God , Jesus for the Holy Spirit I promise you , you won't regret it ^^
We live in a comparable age, the age of Commodus, the Roman Emperor whose-reign most historian's consider marked the beginning of the end for Rome...
If we want to understand the fall of Rome, we only have to look around us.
Not even close, especially if you count the Eastern Roman Empire.
Great video ! The monumental work “History of the Byzantine Empire: Vol. 1: Constantine to the Crusades” and “History of the Byzantine Empire: Vol. 2: From the Crusades to the Fall of the Empire”, of Alexander Alexandrovich Vasiliev (an expert Byzantinist), is considered one of the best accounts on the Greek legacy of Byzantine history and culture.
Truly, masterpieces.
Elite Greed almost always is the rot that contributes to the downfall of all empires.
This video is a great lesson for everything happening around the world right now on how gradual changes/destabilization over years change world economics, and countries.
Biden & Obama = Soros puppets
Decline in morals and values is one of the big things
Pancho perhaps but what about the shrinking of the middle class farmers-the wealthy taking over the land and the poor farmers then requesting help from the Senate-changing laws to help them get back on track?
Kinda like China
@@adriancarty612 I'm thinking the USA.
Hello there 😂😂😂😂
Which let to military decline and decrease in population
A lot of countries claimed that they destroyed Rome, but in reality it was Rome who destroyed Rome
Bingo
Absolutely that’s the way the USA will fall as well we should learn from history
The irony
This is why history is important because it is currently repeating itself.
The most straightforward theory for Western Rome's collapse pins the fall on a string of military losses sustained against outside forces. Rome had tangled with Germanic tribes for centuries, but by the 300s “barbarian” groups like the Goths had encroached beyond the Empire's borders.
@@TheKourage88 I am not a kid, I made my own bone when Rome felt down. Romans lost due to their laziness.
WRONG, rewatch the video. It’s as if you just turned up to write a random personal opinion..
@@sherlockgnomes8971 The God of History says as it is said by me above.
@@sherlockgnomes8971 It’s true, barbarians encroached due to the Hunnic conquerors.
@@TheKourage88 Be civil and respectful
As a Chinese person, I think the ultimate reason for the Roman Empire fall is that Italians didn't have a population advantage over other people in the empire, especially Greeks and Egyptians. The Chinese Han Empire which existed at the same time and had similar population and territory had a much bigger population advantage in its core region (central plain)
It is not so, they were definitely advanced, in few ways even more than greeks and egyptians. Just look at the architecture, the roads, the water pipelines, the mass production of food, a better political and legislative system, etc etc... Also consider that these two populations were few of the most integrated in roman society, greeks eventually considered themself romans for another 900 years, with the Byzantin empire...
Rome didn't have the geographical advantage that China has, e.g. mountains, that's why China will always be unified one way or the other while once Rome fell it could never be restored
@@TheLifeisgood72 You mean Christianity?
@@aofeizhang8735 Pls tell me who started Christianity and what their religion was
@@TheLifeisgood72 Jewish people started Christianity and their religion was Judaism?
"Oh, city of Rome, enjoy your existence, as you shall fall ruled by a man named Romulus..."
*-Last words of shepherd Remus*
The last Roman emperor was named Romulus Augustus. He was right…
This documentary is a must-watch for any history enthusiast. The level of research is top-notch! 📚
Can’t be a coincidence this comes out after OverSimplified releases his First Punic War Series videos (Rome vs Carthage). And honestly I’m here for it
Probably the guy at oversimplified had a hand in this channel as well
I kinda wish we had a bit more dates listed instead of just the length of time of each ruler. Would’ve been nice get more of the dates of the rulers
How often do we think about the Roman Empire? More than 2.1 million times obviously!!! 😂
Well we need to see what to expect in our country cause it seems like history is repeating itself
Ok I monster
@@CitybytheB3ach Jesus???
Ok, while the roman gods heavily resemble the Greek gods they were much less petty and often lacked their own distinctive personalities acting more like how a God "should" rather than alcoholic power mad dictators. For instance there were markedly less stories of Jupiter cheating on his wife than Zeuz did to Hera. Another one is Mars while he was the embodiment of the concept of war he was viewed in a much more favorable light than Aries who was feared more than respected almost always being painted as a bad-guy even by the greeks.
"Suddenly, the Romans had a huge influx of barbarian warriors fleeing across their border - And Rome's lack of management in their border states came back to haunt them."
Let that sink in.
Sounds familiar
What's your point?
@@ishrendon6435 "Learn from the past or be doomed to repeat it" - George Santayana.
@@AutobahnVault most common used quote .....
@@AutobahnVault we should watch for huge armies coming at our border?? Lol if you're europe or america no army will invade you from a near country lol stop
14:11 uh ohhh…. The Protestants about to get mad😂
I think you guys forgot to mention the moral decay of the Roman society also dealt significant damage to the empire's stability
"moral decay"
Bro Romans themselves complained about "moral decadence" since the Roman Republic and the times of Augustus who passed many laws against "moral decay".
It was just a cop out against the real problems.
I could argue them being established on a religion was the downfall. Once that myth wears down, it will create chaos. That is likely why the US Founding Fathers wanted no establishment of religion and freedom to practice any religion.
It's not that. The reason is far more simpler: Rome became an empire by being the most advanced technological power as well as economical. As a republic, innovation by well educated people kept Rome ahead for ages mostly through great engineering and administration. Even when they would lose a battle, they would analyze the enemy and prepare to counter their tech. They also incorporated the Greek school and knowledge to them. But over the centuries, by becoming an empire, with less and less educated people in the government meant that all their advantage would crumble. Also, because of civil wars and strife, they never build up the new conquered provinces (after caesar) to be powerful and self sufficient, a cynical mistake that would lose them those territories.
A very simplistic take and entertaining.
One of those 5 emperors was a good emperor who was likely disposed of because he WAS good. His name was Pertinax.
Today his name is Trump.
@@garysimon7765No, and comparing us to an empire is a bad idea. We never should want an Emperor.
I can’t believe the Pomeranians tried to break away. They seemed like such good boys.
Wealth disparity and corruption. Sounds familiar.
Constantine after watching a weird light in the Sky: "For the Gods. What was that thing in the sky we just saw?"
Lactantius: "A message from God, who wants you to reunify the Empire under the cross of Jesus. With the symbol he made in the sky you shall conquer!"
Constantine: "You're right. If, in order to restore Rome's glory, I must use the signal of the God of christianity and spread his word throughout the Empire, then it shall be done!" *Draws sword* "FOR CHRIST!!!"
Soldiers: *Draw swords* "FOR CHRIST!!!"
*Meanwhile, a few kilometers away*
Shepherd: *Returns home, finding his house completely destroyed by a meteorite* "Son of a b*tch..."
We are living a similar fate now.
True
Who's here just because it's what dudes think about?
On my mind 24/7
I looked it up, but I am no dude…
SNL ❤
Yup!
Real 😭
I think this video was well put together and puts current events into perspective.🧐🧐🧐
I wanna see a hypothetical video of “what if America falls”
If the federal entity of the United States collapses, the states will likely become their own territories. Most of them have enough resources and manpower to do so. The forced independence will likely change laws and social programs in order for the states to avoid going insolvent
Europe will have to instantly leap forward with other democratic allies. If not, the world will have to accept its new collective responsibility of deep+hroating China.
It's will soon
China the next super power🇨🇳💪
America is like a teenager compared to other countries and it is acting accordingly. Our countries frontal lobe is not fully developed yet.
Eternal glory to our formidable Byzantine ancestors. For preserving and delivering our Ancient Greco-Roman heritage. And for blending it majestically with our splendid Christian Orthodox tradition. 🇬🇷 ☦️
you really help me out on my exam studies thank you
Sounds very familiar!
Why is there nothing mentioned about the reckless government spending and inflation? I know it isn't very dramatic/cinematic, but it is an enormous factor.
Because it will make democrats of today look bad
It seems they want to keep down the most obvious comparison
Inflation and the debasement of coinage were large factors that factor in to the lowering of the quality of roman troops. Plus at the start of the Empire military service for Roman citizens was compulsory, though later on they relied more on Auxilliary troops.
They literally mentioned the coffers running dry due to excessive patronage of past Emperors.
@@gavkenny The quality of the roman troops was ok. The constant infight between oligarchs killed many soldiers and weakened Rome.
"While some of the more dramatic stories like early Christians being fed to lions have no historical backing..."
There is ample historical record of Christians being dressed in animal skins and given to dogs to be torn apart, specifically as told by Roman historian Publius Cornelius Tacitus. While technically true that the "lions in the coliseum" doesn't seem to have historical backing, it's a distinction without a difference. The "dramatic stories" were true in that Christians were tortured in the worst ways and fed to animals to be torn apart as well as lit on fire as torches to illuminate Rome.
"Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired." ~ Publius Cornelius Tacitus, Roman historian
Germans (Goths) realised they were quite good at conquering too.
For anyone watching this video please be aware it’s riddled with inaccuracies either do to lack of knowledge on the writers part or due to not wanting this video to be to long much is passed over
can you specify?
@@raggedclawstarcraft6562 forgot most but I remember they completely skipped over constans the first and Constantine the second and also didn’t mention Valentinian, gratian, or valentinian II and said theodocius came to power when he only had control over the eat
For me, one of the best parts about the Roman Empire is that they made Sparta a tourist attraction.
The Roman Empire is alive and far from well. It is in its final stages. Luther gave it a second wind, but it is almost done.
*Fun fact:* There's an amazing comic about the Fall of the Western Empire called "Amiculus", in which the byzantines, after re-conquering Rome during the reign of Justinian, try to find out the fate of Romulus Augustulus while the last days of the boy as emperor are shown through flashbacks. Loved the way Orestes was portrayed here as a maniac obsessed with maintaining the Empire no matter what
Thanks gonna buy it
why would eastern roman empire even bother about romulus augustulus? He was considered irrelevant and a pseudo emperor, even by his contemporaries, and was not even recognized by the eastern roman emperor. only modern western historiography emphasize him enough to write a comic about him.
Initially it was a monarchy actually and a lot of the reason Atilla was such a challenge for rome was because their military focused primarily on heavy infantry whereas the hunns focused primarily on horse archers theres not a lot infantry can do do skirmishing cavalry well they did adapt and create things like cataphracti (cataphracts) and overcome the hunns the damage was already done
*The Fall of the Roman Empire: A Multi-Century Decline*
* *0:00** Introduction:* The video explores the factors contributing to the collapse of the Roman Empire, highlighting its vast size and eventual demise.
* *0:34** From Republic to Empire:* The Roman Republic transitioned to an Empire under Julius Caesar and solidified under his adopted son, Octavian (Augustus).
* *1:47** The Seeds of Instability:* The Empire's vast size and reliance on provincial governors created challenges for centralized control. Religious conflicts, particularly with the rise of Christianity, also emerged.
* *3:45** Commodus' Chaotic Reign:* Emperor Commodus' erratic leadership and obsession with gladiatorial combat destabilized Rome, leading to his assassination and the tumultuous Year of the Five Emperors.
* *5:17** Breakaway Empires:* Internal chaos led to the emergence of breakaway empires like the Gallic Empire and the Palmyrene Empire, significantly diminishing Roman territory.
* *5:58** Restorative Efforts:* Emperors Aurelian, Diocletian, and Constantine managed to reclaim lost territories, stabilize the economy, and reorganize the Empire. Constantine's conversion to Christianity marked a pivotal shift.
* *7:50** Theodosius and the Hunnic Threat:* Theodosius I faced internal rebellions and the looming threat of the Huns, whose migrations into Europe displaced the Goths, leading them to seek refuge within Roman borders.
* *9:27** The Gothic Crisis:* Rome's mishandling of the Gothic refugees, marked by exploitation and lack of integration, fueled resentment and ultimately led to a guerilla war that weakened the Empire.
* *11:12** Division of the Empire:* Theodosius' death in 395 CE resulted in the division of the Empire into Western and Eastern halves, further diminishing Rome's strength.
* *11:47** The Fall of the West:* The Western Roman Empire faced continued barbarian invasions, particularly from the Huns under Attila, and gradually lost territory until its final collapse in 476 CE with the deposition of Romulus Augustulus by Odoacer.
* *13:42** The Legacy of Rome:* Although the Roman Empire fell, its influence persisted through the Roman Catholic Church, which became a dominant force in Europe for centuries.
* *14:16** Key Factors in the Fall:* The video emphasizes several factors contributing to Rome's decline, including the weakening of the military, overreliance on mercenaries, administrative challenges, poor leadership, internal strife, and the crucial mistake of mishandling the Gothic refugee crisis.
I used gemini-1.5-pro-exp-0827 on rocketrecap dot com to summarize the transcript.
Cost (if I didn't use the free tier): $0.03
Input tokens: 19765
Output tokens: 547
So basically... everything went wrong.
Ikr F Rome
Thanks infographic show I've been watching all for years give me tons of info 😂 thanks
80 percent of that information you got was altered and highly likely incorrect better fact check all that ;)
Rome didn’t fall, It moved to America.
Well it moved to a few other places in between
Its vatican now
@@User-zu8hz Yes part of it did become a church and the other part became the Byzantine empire that lasted another 900 years.
It moved to Germany then to Britain then to America
Been calling America Lil Rome....it's a republic, not a democracy!!
What a facnating and informative video keep up the good work infographics 😉😉😉
"Empires aren't immune to internal strife. "
TikTok brought down Rome by breaking down society
Romulus Augustulus after being dethroned: "You fools! The byzantines will destroy you once they know of my fall! ROMANS ALWAYS AVENGE THEIR BROTHERS"
Odoacer: "Speaking of your "brothers", they told us through messengers that they will allow the establishment of our government"
Romulus Augustulus: "They are adopted"
The eastern Roman's did expel the barbarians out of north Africa and italy..Italy...
Reminds me of America now lol.
Every great empire eventually falls.
The crazy thing is that kingdom of Armenia, a country that has lesser military rank than roman empire, actually won against roman empire
i love history, so cool!
Inforgraphics show always giving me new knowledge and ideas. Thank you
One of the factors of its fall is due to open borders. Then the economy. Then infrastructure. Sounds familiar today?
As always great video everyone involved 👍
Thank you for putting this together very interesting!👏🏽👏🏽
Thumbs up and I have a subscribed thank you..👍🏽
I'm intrigued by your characterisation of the Roman Catholic Church as a continuation of the Roman Empire, in terms of some of its formal properties and a great deal of its executive function. I should mention that I'm not a historian - I just retain an interest in classical antiquity from my decade of Latin at boarding school half a century ago.
They knew what they were doing
3:18 is surprisingly (likely) true. Christians, and others, according to the Roman historian Tacitus, were torn apart by wild dogs. History is wild.
Multiculturalism and decadence are what toppled it. Thank you.
Iniquities and vanity. It's how they always fall.
so how did the British empire fall? By winning WWII?
I think it is insane how such a big country fell
They all seem unbeatable at their peak
This was surprisingly well-done! A few minor corrections, if I may: 1) Constantine may have been the 1st Christian emperor, but unfortunately, he was also the first anti-Semite to rule. He forbade any conversion to Judaism, and forbade his new "Christian" Romans from marrying Jews. 2) Theodosius was the 1st emperor in history to actually *force religious conversion onto his people (Constantine had made it optional). Romans were now forced to pray to Jesus under penalty of death; Pagan statues, libraries, and temples were looted and destroyed, and the Olympics (traditionally dedicated to Zeus) , were outlawed, and did not return until 1859. As for the Catholic Church ruling Europe once the Roman Empire effectively "fell", yes... this period of plagues, education for the nobility only, misbegotten crusades, and massive power abuse by the church itself is known simply as The Dark Ages.
🇮🇹🤨The fall of the Roman Empire did not happen because of the barbarians as narrated in school books, but because of the fall of the Roman spirit. Once, when Rome was at risk, a consul went up to the Capitol with two flags and shouted: "The homeland is in danger, it needs you!" Immediately two huge processions were formed, one of infantrymen and one of knights and both aristocrats and plebeians started to fight.
In imperial times the generals, with the order of the Emperor, gathered armies and went to fight. Above all, those who wanted to make a career or simply find respect from his peers must have fought for Rome. The Romans did not give political offices, because at the time the people voted for them to those who had distinguished themselves in combat.
The cursum honoruma was based on field battles and whoever didn't have any was out. Even the literati had to fight if they wanted respect and popularity. Horace had to fight with Maecenas in order to earn a place among the men of letters, and so did Cicero. The boys learned to fight already in the gymnasium, with wooden swords. Caesar gained the position of perpetual dictator by conquering Gaul. Every day a courier arrived in Rome carrying the chronicle of the battles that were almost always won. Rome loved him for this.
With the advent of Christianity, religion, which occupied a limited place in paganism, although quite felt, in the soul of the Romans, passed into first place. There was only one divinity and you had to ingratiate yourself with it, everything else: wars, drought, cholera, atmospheric accidents and diseases, depended on the God. So it was more important to pray than to fight. The Romans replaced duty to Rome and the Emperor with the supreme God. And since the Romans were no longer fighting, they hired foreign fighters, who didn't have the same discipline or loyalty as the Romans.
The atheist take on things.
True.
Now THIS is a very good example of a unsupported hypothesis 😂
Strong empires repel "barbarian" invaders. Weak ones do not. Rome weakened, then was overrun by "barbarians". A big contribution to that weakening is now thought to be plagues that greatly reduced the population, more in the west than in the east. Another was civil wars resulting from Rome's big problem, the succession. In the long run they failed to get it right. (Of course, Gibbon blamed Christianity . . .)
Remember, when we ask why Rome fell, the important consideration is, why did west Rome fall while East Rome lasted many centuries longer?
Eastern Roman Empire not only had a better economy, but also had borders that were easier to defend
"Empires always have the hubris to think they are indestructible, when in fact they are always unsustainable." - Marianne Williamson
I feel that "Jesus was a Jewish Rabbi" is misinformation. However, I applaud you for all the neat informational videos you make for the most part!
I don't what to make it seem as if I'm speaking with any sort of expertise on the topic, but I believe the statement in question is factual from the perspective that while His contemporaries did not see Him as a Rabbi, many of His followers did, even sometimes addressing Him as such (according to the Gospels).
@@RoadhouseDeluxe I don't agree with this, either. However, you are allowed to have your opinion on what kind of man Jesus was. What we can both agree on is that Jesus grew up in the Jewish faith.
@@anthonyleyva 🤔 That is something to think about! I was more referring to officially being a Jewish Rabbi, though. He wasn't in that respect.
@@EmilyS-gk3st Jesus was a Jew both by virtue of ethnicity and religion . . . BUT his followers were Christians BECAUSE they followed HIM, technically Jesus couldn't have been a Christian himself.🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔
@@savagepro9060 As long as Jesus practiced what He preached and it wasn't 100% Judaism, then yes, I think Jesus could be considered Christian, too. But that's a bit of a loophole. He did grow up Jewish.
Been watching for years but I've always wondered are yall ever going to update your art style or whatever
This ancient history documentary has more drama than all my exes combined-well done, ancient world!