Christianity and Decline and Fall Of The Roman Empire

 

I. Spread of Christianity

                1. Constantine a ruler of the Roman Empire and tolerated the new religion of Catholic Christianity with Edict of Milan.

                2. Theodosius the Great made it the official religion.

II. Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

                1. Following the death of Marcus Aurelius, the last of the 5 good emperors a period of conflict took place in Rome.

                2. Political Problems:

                                1. During this time, whoever controlled the army came to control Rome.

                                2. In a 50 year period 22 emperors held power and 20 of them were murder.

                                3. During this time outside forces began to invade the empire.

                3. Economic/Military Problems

                                1. Civil War, the Black Death, and invasions and lead poisoning  from the lead coding that was in there plumbing of the water system.  All this began to weaken the empire and make it open to invasion.

                                2. They also last the ability to keep up with the farming that they needed, and so they had great starvations.

III. Reforms of Diocletian and Constantine

                1. Diocletian believing that the empire was to greatly divided it into four parts but maintained overall authority.      

                2. Both strengthened and enlarged political office and power of the government

                3. Enlarged the army to 500,000 soldiers.

                4. Making Christianity the Empires religion.

                5. Made jobs heredity in order to protect the tax base and the shortage later.

                6. Constantine constructs Byzantium which has been dubbed as The New Rome

                                A. Became the capital of the Eastern Empire.

                * Initially provided some stability but only short term solutions that didnt last long and would not hold when they started to fail. 

IV.  The Fall

                1. The Western Empire came under increasing pressure of German tribes (People who lived in the current area of Germany and would become Germanys population.) This people were surrounding them to the North.

                2. The Huns moved west in to the area of the Visigoths who in turn moved into  the Roman Empire, and sacked Rome in 410 A.D.

                3. The Vandal poured into Italy of Spain and sacked Rome themselves in 455 A.D.

                4. In 476 A.D. the western emperor was dethroned by the Germans ending their reign of Rome.