The Decline & Fall

OF

The Roman Empire

I. Emperor DiocletianA. Came to power in 284 CE

B. Reign was calledthe “New Empire” because he made many new reforms.

II. The Reign of DiocletianA. Instructed farmers and merchants how much they could

charge for goods (Edict on Prices)

B. Increased size of army and government

C. Divided empire into administrative parts: east and west. 1. Each side had own government and was ruled by

its own emperor.2. The two emperors ruled jointly and issued laws

together. a. Diocletian ruled the eastern half and made himself the senior ruler.

3. Divided empire was expensive - Diocletian created new tax system to pay for it.

III. Emperor ConstantineA. Came to power in

312 CE and ruled both halves of the empire.

B. Under Constantine, Christianity became the main religion in the Roman Empire.

IV. Constantine’s Reign

A. In 313 CE, Emperor Constantine gave Christians the freedom to practice their religion openly.

B. Built new capital at Byzantium and renamed it Constantinople

1. It is located between Greece and Asia, reachable by land and sea, good

defense2. Dedicated in 330 CE; became “New

Rome”

V. After Constantine

A. Nephew, Julian, becomes emperor in 361 CE

B. Christianity becomes official religion of the Roman Empire by 400 CE

C. By 400 CE, empire permanently splits

The Fall of The Roman Empire

WARM UPThe chart below shows major events occurring

during the Decline of Rome. Write the name of the person which matches each description on the line.

Constantine

_____________

Builds new capital at

Constantinople.

Diocletian

_____________

Persecutes Christians and

attempts reform. Divides the empire.

Marcus Aurelius

_____________

Dies ending the Pax Romana

I. Barbarian Invasions A. Since the time of Pax Romana, the empire had been

fighting off attacks from barbarians. 1. Barbarian = people from beyond the Roman frontier

B. The huge size of the empire made it difficult to defend. By the 300s, Germanic tribes were pressing hard on the western borders of the empire. 1. These tribes were trying to escape attack on their own

territories.2. They were attracted by wealthy cities and fertile

farmlands of the empire. C. Some emperors tried to appease the barbarians giving them

land to settle 1. Many were recruited into the army.

a. However, these soldiers had little loyalty to Rome.

Barbarian Invasions

I. Barbarian InvasionsD. In 378 CE, the Visigoths, who settled in the eastern part of

the empire, revolted. 1. They killed Emperor Valens, the leader of the eastern empire, and defeated his army. 2. The Visigoths marched into Rome in 410 CE.

E. In the early 400s CE the barbarians destroyed Britain, Gaul, Spain, and North Africa.

F. 476 CE is considered the fall of Rome – the Germanic chief Odoacer forced the last emperor out the western part of the empire.

G. Constantinople withstood barbarian attacks and remained intact for another 1,000 years.