The Roman Empire: The Fall Of Rome

The Roman Empire has long been credited as this massive empire that was the epicenter that defined and greatly influenced the history of the ancient world and the modern civilizations to follow. Although the reign of Rome seemed timeless, its own mass of power, natural disasters, and the fast growing widespread popularity of Christianity lead one of the most infamous empires to its demise. The first major driving force behind the fall of Rome was that throughout the Empire's existence it has gone through a cycle of rules who often are taken over by the monumental power they hold while being the leader of the most influential empire, hungry for more power and expansion to allow their influence to permeate throughout the rest of the world. For example, after Octavian’s victory in the Civil War between himself and Mark Antony, he then became the succeeding ruler of Rome after Julius Caesar, defined by his new title, Augustus.

Augustus, driven with power, lead to the expansion of the Roman Empire, but this widespread physical dominance caused the Empire’s military to weaken due to its attempts to protect the its massive geographic area and the natural disasters deeply affecting the citizens within. According to the text, “a new Persian dynasty, the Sassanids, were destined to recreate the ancient Persian Empire that forced Roman emperors to deploy a large part of the army to the rich eastern provinces, taking troops away from the northern frontiers” (Hunt, Martin, Rosenwein, Smith 202). This relocation of military power results in holes within Rome’s defense causing an economic strain on the country while trying to suffice for the missing military personnel, resulting in a stunt to the Empire’s economic