2. 1. Legions deciding emperor
2. Economic No new conquests, so no new
money
3. Rise of Christianity
4. Plagues
5. German invasions
6. Classical civilization based on Slaves
3. 234-284 CE 22 emperors as province legions
declare their general emperor.
4. Legions defensive on boarders of empire
Romans and Italians not joining army.
Legions recruit German tribes
5. As China builds the GreatWall, the Huns
move west, the German tribes push into the
Roman Empire.
6. In the East, the Sarssinian
Persians take back
Mesopotamia.
7. Economy begins to collapse.
With no new lands conquered, less money for
empire.
Trade slows as the Persians and Germans attack
more.
Romans did not pay taxes, so emperors put
more pressure on the provinces to pay more.
8. Also, gold and silver mines run out,
emperors debase coins causing
inflation.
Out in the provinces people start to use
barter again.
Plagues hit killing 10 percent of
population
9. The emperors were expected to give
out free wine, money, food, games in
the cities.
Emperors expected to have bigger
fancier courts and build bigger public
buildings everywhere.
10. The tax collectors in provinces become
more repressive.
As the legions in the provinces
protected them less.
12. Reforms of Diocletian
Splits the Empire 294
West always spoke Latin
Roman Catholic Church
Latin Alphabet
East usually spoke Greek
East Orthodox Church
Cyrillic and Greek Alphabets
13. Reforms of Diocletian
Rome reduced to Second class city
Milan became the new Imperial military
capital and Ravenna became Imperial play
city in West (laterVenice)
Byzantium capital in the East
Greek city-state
14. Reforms of Diocletian
2 emperors with 2 assistant emperors
Reorganized Empire into Diocese
People could not move around freely
You had to have one of your sons replace you in the same
profession
Hired more German tribes for the army
Get rid of the mystery religions like Christianity
15. Reforms of Constantine
Rome and Western spoke Latin
Roman Catholic Church led by Pope
Constantinople Istanbul today
Spoke Greek
Orthodox Christian Church
Led by Patriarch Greece, Russia
Baltic States today
20. Christianity had been an illegal religion
as they would not worship Roman Gods
or the Emperor.
21. Stoicism, rationalism, and philosophy broke
down.
People flocked to mystery religions, the most
successful Christianity.
Jewish religious leader Jesus Christ
22. All people poor and rich equal to
God
Salvation threw faith in one God,
like Plato's all powerful celestial
God.
A day of judgment like Osiris, but
for the world.
23. Love not only your friend but even
your enemies
JewishTorah becomes OLD
TESTEMET
JC teachingTHE NEWTESTEMENT
Christian Charity help everyone
24. St. Peter first bishop of Rome.
In a time of economic crisis, Christian bishops
were often the only honest people with
money helping everyone.
25. 35 CE Saint Paul the great organizer of the
early church.
Admitted non Jews.
26. Many join monasteries places
to pray all day and concentrate
on salvation
People give up possessions
and prayed.
27. St Augustine wrote Confessions, combined
Greco-Roman belief that knowledge and
virtue are the same with the Christian idea
that even knowledgeable people sin.
28. Edict of Milan freedom of worship, and
established the Emperor as head of Church.
Pope of Rome head of church inWest,
Patriarch of Constantinople head of church in
the East.
29. Closed classical schools through out the empire
and outlawed the Olympics and other games.
30. By 400 CE, Christians intolerant to pagan religions.
Old temples ripped down, statues smashed.
Aristotle outlawed.
31. In Rome Popes destroy the forum,
old temples, and the coliseum
32. They use parts of the coliseum to build St
Peters Church.
33. By 415 BCE, Christians fought each other over
doctrinal disagreements.
Is Christ a god?
Nestorians Christ was mostly man.
Arians God more powerful than Christ.
34. Emperors settled these questions at great
Ecumenical councils of the Church, and
declared a universal or Catholic Church.
NiceneCreed Christ begotten but equal to
God.
36. As the economy collapsed, the economy in
the provinces became barter again.
Roman tax collectors hated.
37. Legions were made up of barbarians with no
loyalty to Rome, and could not protect towns
against barbarian invasions.
Locals people looked to local nobles to
protect them.
38. Local nobles expand their villas to be self
sufficient, including their own blacksmiths,
justice systems, food supplies, and warriors.
Town and cities decline.
45. Valens deploys his army in a standard formation with his infantry legions in the center flanked by his cavalry, which includes horse-
archers. Fritigern deploys his force on a sizeable hill, his infantry launching attacks from the protection offered by the ring of wagons
where the soldiers’ families are. His cavalry is away foraging so he seeks to delay the Romans until the decisive force arrives.
Fritigern tries to delay the Roman assault by sending envoys to open negotiations but Valens, believing the Gothic cavalry
to be away on a time-consuming raid, resolves to attack. The Goths quickly set fire to the adjacent fields to impede the
attack which results in the discomfort of the heavily-armoured Romans and a choking cloud of smoke over the battlefield.
Romans
(Valens)
Romans
(Emperor FlaviusValens)
40,000 infantry
20,000 cavalry
Goths
(Fritigern)
Goths
(Fritigern)
10,000 infantry
50,000 cavalry
NN
46. Valens strongly believes the Gothic cavalry are not returning so he patiently sends his horse-archers to harass the Goths.
The Gothic infantry are not amused and counters, driving the Roman cavalry back. This provokes a premature,
undisciplined attack by a Roman infantry force which is repulsed and driven back by superior Gothic numbers and
position.
Fritigern tries to delay the Roman assault by sending envoys to open negotiations but Valens, believing the Gothic cavalry
to be away on a time-consuming raid, resolves to attack. The Goths quickly set fire to the adjacent fields to impede the
attack which results in the discomfort of the heavily-armoured Romans and a choking cloud of smoke over the battlefield.
Seeing a part of his army already in combat, Valens orders a full assault and the Roman infantry soon become deeply
engaged in fierce fighting along the hill. Despite high casualties and not being able to be supported by cavalry, the
Romans push the Goths back beyond their wagons on the Gothic right.
The Gothic heavy cavalry arrive at the peak of combat and drive the outclassed and outnumbered Roman cavalry from the field. The
Gothic cavalry, hidden by the looming smoke, swoop around the Roman infantry while the Gothic infantry feel the shift of momentum
and launch a counterattack to push the Romans off the hill. The Roman infantry try to flee but the majority are surrounded.
The Romans are so tightly surrounded that they can hardly draw their weapons; only when many have already fallen can
the Roman infantry fight back with any effectiveness or try and escape. The massacre continues for hours as the Roman
infantry fight for survival. Some Romans manage to escape but are inevitably destroyed along with their commander.
Romans
(Valens)
Goths
(Fritigern)
NN
Romans
(Emperor FlaviusValens)
40,000 infantry
20,000 cavalry
Goths
(Fritigern)
10,000 infantry
50,000 cavalry
55. 476 CE the last emperor ofWest Romulus
Augusts abdicates
Eastern Empire (Byzantine) continues till 1453 CE
56. Classical society did not develop
technologies, because the rely so much on
slaves.
Alexandria developed steam engines, yet no
one put them on trains.
58. Schools, trade, roads, building tech all but
disappeared in the west.
City and town life reduced to almost
nothing as people run to Nobles estates.
59. On horseback, Nobles build castles and protect
their local populations who become serfs.
60. With no political structure German tribes break
down into thousands of warring states called
the Dark Ages.
61. The Eastern or Byzantine Empire
continues on till 1453.
History of the Byzantine Empire [2 vols]:
Alexander Vasiliev
64. Political
Burden not reward
Military interference
Civil war
Division of empire
Moving of capital
Social
Decline interest in public
affairs
Disloyalty, lack of
patriotism
Rich v. poor
65. Economic
Poor harvests
Disruption of trade
Inflation
Tax burden
Rich v. poor
Military
Threat from German
tribes
Low funds
Problems recruiting
66. Economy
Poor harvests
Gold and Silver mines
empty
coins made with cheap
metal
Inflation
Tax burden
Rich vs. poor
Military
Threat from European
tribes
More taxes needed
cannot protect people
Problems recruiting
67. Mystery religions grow in popularity.
Only the Jews kept their traditional religions.
Jews had an exclusive relationship withYawee
or Jehovah.
Jews had nationalism.