B.A. History (Hons.) Sem.

II
Social Formations and Cultural Patterns of the Ancient and Medieval
World

Teacher: Dr. Richa Malhotra

Date: 3rd April 2020

Unit I: Crises of the Roman Empire - I

Important Terms –

Augustulus: ‘little Augustus’. This title was given to Romulus who was a
minor when he became an emperor.
Antoinianus: A Roman silver coin which debased over the third century CE
and became bronze
Denarius: Roman silver currency
Pax Romana: The period of relative peace and minimal warfare in Rome
starting with the reign of Augustus
Tetrarchy: Arrangement of governance introduced by Diocletian whereby two
Augustus and two Caesars ruled over the Roman Empire divided into four parts
Important Readings on this topic –
Campbell, Brian, The Romans and their World, Yale University Press, 2011.
Farooqui, Amar, Early Social Formations, Manak Publications Pvt. Limited,
2001.
Garnsey, Peter and Robert Saller (ed.), The Roman Empire: Economy, Society
and Culture, (Second Edition), Bloomsbury Academic, 2014.
Potter, David S., (ed.), A Companion to the Roman Empire, Blackwell
Publishing, 2006.
Web Links -
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/fallofrome_article_01.shtml
http://www.roman-empire.net/
Time Line of Roman Emperors Period of Rule
Augustus 27BCE – 14 CE
Trajan 98-117 CE
Hadrian 117-138 CE
Marcus Aurelius 161-180
CE Diocletian (E) 284-305
CE Maximian (W) 285-305 CE
Constantine I 307-337 CE
Constantius II (E) 337-340 CE
Constantine II (W) 337-340 CE
Constans (W) 337-340 CE
Constantius II (E & W) 340-361 CE
Julian (E & W) 361-363
CE Valentinian (W) 364-375 CE
Valens (E) 364-378 CE
Theodosius (E& W) 394-395
CE Arcadius (E) 395-409 CE
Honorius (W) 395-423 CE
Majorian (W) 456-461 CE
Zeno (E) 474-491 CE
Romulus Augustulus (W) 475-476 CE
Introduction
The decline and fall of the grand Roman Empire constitutes an interesting arena
of study and speculation even today. The reasons put forth as explanations for the
fading of the Roman Empire are varied, though often interconnected with one
another. Historians have variously argued that the fall of the Roman Empire may
be attributed to the weakening of the political structure, inadequacy of the ruling
class and the failure of the military apparatus to protect and preserve the vast
territories of the mighty empire. On the other hand, economic reasons are
highlighted as a major cause of the decline. These would include severe financial
crisis arising from diminishing returns from the employment of slave labour,
sharp decline in the supply of slaves accompanied by heavy burden of taxation
upon the common gentry to meet the expenditures on administration and military
preparedness among others. The other aspect which is cited for the fall of the
Empire were the repeated invasions and massacre carried out by foreign invaders
including the Germanic tribes and the Huns which had an adverse impact upon
the stability of the Roman Empire and the fabric of the Roman society.
While keeping these reasons in mind, it ought to be remembered that these were
not the only reasons that have been blamed for the collapse of an Empire which
remained invincible for almost five centuries until its fall in 476 CE. This chapter
will be discussing some of the major reasons held responsible for the emergence
of a crisis situation in Rome which led to its fall. It is important to point out that
Rome was exhibiting signs of instability and fractures from much before the date
specified for its eventual collapse. Therefore, this chapter will first review the
political scenario in Rome from the late second century CE, before a detailed
discussion of the possible reasons for Rome’s collapse. It should be pointed out
that although the crisis situation plagued the entire Roman empire, the discussion
of the decline and fall of the Roman empire essentially refers to the fall of the
Roman metropolis along with the western Roman empire, because, the eastern
Roman empire continued to thrive for many centuries as the Byzantine Empire,
after the fall of west in late fifth century.

Political Trajectory of the Late Roman Empire

The political culture of Rome since the pre- republic period gave an impression
of flexibility and adaptability to new political, social and religious ideas and
ideals. This malleable quality persisted well into the imperial period in ancient
Rome, whereby, extensive territories with varied population, cultures and belief
systems were well knit together into one formidable unit. This facilitated the
deployment of effective military units which consolidated the strength and
position of the Roman Empire. Simultaneously, the economy of Rome prospered
with the incorporation of more and more land rich in agricultural and mineral
resources. This was accompanied by the successful employment of slave labour
to work on these lands, which helped the landed aristocrats to make substantial
profits from their properties.

What needs to be emphasised is the parasitic nature of the city of Rome, Apart
from the imperial court, the oligarchy, government officials, and praetorian
guards, there was a large section of unproductive poor inhabitants who lived on
free grain distribution. Rome was more of a centre of consumption than of
production and the trade of Ostia was essentially a one way traffic. The declining
political and administrative importance of the city was immediately reflected in
the displacement of all economic activity centred on the city. By the third century
AD the aristocracy was no longer interested in residing at Rome or in its vicinity
and moved to estates in the countryside of Italy, Gaul and Spain. This speeded up
the decentralization of economic activity and made the country seats of the
oligarchy self-sufficient economic units. Once Rome and Ostia lost their key
position, Mediterranean long distance trade which for centuries had been geared
to fulfil the requirements of the capital gradually slowed down. This resulted in
the decay of long distance trade especially in the west.

The political culture in Rome matured during the reign of Augustus (27 BCE to
14 CE) who masterfully integrated the traditional ideals of the republican
structure with elements of imperial rule under the banner of his own authority.
He organised the military apparatus of the Roman Empire inspiring bonds of
loyalty towards the emperor which strengthened as a tradition during the reigns
of his successors. The Pax Romana established under Augustus was difficult to
be emulated or maintained by his successors. Fractures began appearing in the
Roman imperial structure from the close of the second century. Although a date
is clearly specified for the fall of the Roman Empire in the west, the imperial
structure became wobbly time and again during the rule of various Roman
emperors. After a period of immense instability from 235 to 284 CE, when Rome
witnessed the ascendance of several emperors in quick succession, Diocletian
came to power and provided some semblance of order and stability.

Diocletian ruled over Rome from 284 to 305 CE and his achievement in re-
establishing stability and peace was impressive after a long period of misrule and
turmoil. He initiated an arrangement known as the Tetrarchy or the ‘rule of four’.
In 293 CE he appointed Maximian, Galerius and Constantius as his co-rulers in
different parts of the Empire. This arrangement was accompanied by matrimonial
alliances to ensure the loyalty of each of the rulers. Both Diocletian and Maximian
adopted royal titles to raise their imperial statuses in the eyes of the people.
Together, the four rulers were able to establish effective rule and suppress dissent
and revolts against the central authority. Diocletian through a series of reforms
reorganised and expanded the strength of the army, revamped the provincial
structure and the system of taxation leading to greater centralisation of power and
control in the hands of the Emperor. Under the rule of the Tetrarchy, substantial
progress was made in the eastern parts. A peace deal was struck with the Persians
which continued for forty years after Persia was thoroughly defeated. In the west,
Britain had been reacquired, Egypt had been subdued and the Rhine frontier was
suitably pacified.

The division of the Roman Empire under the Tetrarchy Arrangement

Diocletian abdicated the throne in 305 CE along with Maximian on account of ill
health. Galerius and Constantius continued as the Augusti after this point.
Constantine I was declared the Augustus of the west after the death of his father
Constantius. Constantine had to assert his superior position by suppressing and
defeating a series of rivals, tyrants and claimants of the title of Augustus. He is
most well known as a significant figure in the history of the Christian Church, as
the propagator of the tenets of Christianity. Emperor Constantine I founded the
new city of Constantinople in 324 CE in the site of ancient Byzantium. This was
referred to as the ‘new Rome’ which comprised of grand buildings and imperial
structures, sculptures and works of art. Most importantly Constantinople was
located at a very strategic position, such that it became the key city in the east. It
attracted important people, elites, bureaucrats and administrators in the east.

Constantine was an ardent follower of Christian ideals from 312 CE and he

propagated the Christian faith by the establishment of churches across the Roman
Empire. He is known to have converted to Christianity in his deathbed.
Constantine through his principles and institutions left behind a legacy for the
future rulers of Rome. After his rule, the legal position of the Church within the
state and the dynamics between the two assumed an important factor of concern,
which was to continue well into the future. A strong tendency of centralisation of
power continued and expanded from the time of Diocletian to Constantine’s
reign. The emperor became all powerful during their reigns and local initiative
and voices were systematically stifled to a large extent. After the reign of
Constantine, Constantinople became the most prominent centre of power in the
Empire and continued to be so even in the Byzantine Empire which succeeded
the Roman Empire in the east.
Constantine’s reign was followed by civil wars among his three surviving sons
which again destabilized the political environment. After the death of Constantine
II and Constans in two unrelated conflicts, Constantius II assumed the
responsibility of establishing his authority as the next Roman emperor from 340
CE. He strengthened his position in the east before marching westwards to assert
himself. He died in 361 CE while he was facing rebellion from Julian, his cousin,
who he had installed as Caesar in Antioch in 355 CE. Julian’s death in 363 was
followed by quick successions by Jovian, Valentinian I and Valens. In 364, after
Valentinian became the emperor, he declared his brother, Valens, to be his fellow
Augustus to take charge of the eastern territories, while he tried to restore stability
in the west. With the exception of rule under Theodosius between 394 and 395
CE, from this point onwards, the Roman Empire was divided into eastern and
western parts under separate rulers, and the trajectory of these two parts began to
diverge steadily. The Roman Empire did not show much stability from this point.
The dynastic rivalries and attempts to ward off intruders and invaders kept the
rulers too occupied to allow them to actually consolidate their positions or
establish order and stability.
The Sasanid Persians posed a threat in the east, while in the west, the territories
were rapidly slipping out of Roman control with repeated invasions by the various
Germanic tribes. Rome lost its influence over Britain and Roman control was
severely undermined in the region of northern Africa and Spain.
One of the landmark incidents in the history of fall of the Roman Empire was the
sack of Rome in 410 CE by the Visigoths, a Germanic tribal group. This
destabilized the entire political system in Rome and Roman territories were
exposed to repeated invasions from outside forces including the Vandals, Huns,
Visigoths and Ostrogoths. Rome was sacked once more by the Vandals in 455
CE. Within the next two decades, Spain and Gaul were taken over by the
Visigoths. Romulus Augustulus, a child, was the final emperor of western Rome
who served as the puppet ruler from 475-476 CE. After the disappearance of
Roman rule in the west, Germanic rulers took over and Theodoric established the
Ostrogothic kingdom in 489 CE. Unlike the western empire, the eastern Roman
empire showed more resilience under able leadership and continued to flourish
as the Byzantine Empire which finally collapsed with the fall of Constantinople
as late as 1453 CE.
Dr. Richa Malhotra, Associate Professor, Department of History, CVS
richa_cvs@hotmail.com
Ph: 9650645706
Date: 03.04.2020
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