The Fall Of Rome

2 Pages 571 Words

The Roman civilization began with the republic in 509 BCE. It grew to be a large empire by the rime or it’s fall in 476 CE. When Rome began it was helped to develop because it had many untapped resources, such as dense forests, rich, black soil, and large veins of rich minerals under the ground. Document number three shows that Rome was located in present day Europe. Europe is bordered by the North Sea, the Baltic Sea, the Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean Sea, the Adriatic Sea, and the Black Sea. The seas that surrounded the land made it ideal for trade. Even though the land was rich in resources and a good place for trade, it eventually fell in 476 CE. There are many different reasons that are used to explain the fall of Rome, powered by both internal and external forces.

In the early 400s, there were many attacks on Rome, mainly from the Visigoths. This weakened Rome to a great extent. Rome had been used to being the most powerful area, and they had captured many other parts of the the world. They really did not realize, until it was too late, that they could be captured themselves. This is stated in document number one. In response to a growing need for protection, a new system called feudalism developed. Feudalism was a loosely organized system of rule in which powerful lords divided their large landholdings among the lesser lords. Feudalism helped to strengthen the weakened Rome somewhat, but not completely.

An internal cause for the fall of Rome lay in their values. Document number seven states, “...there is a growing lack of justice in judgments, skill in trades, discipline in daily life.” This means that people were loosing sight of what they were meant to do. Their morals were slipping down steadily, and basically, everything was going downhill. Document number two shows why they were able to keep the Roman empire alive for so many years because they maintained the civil and military services. They were able to ...