The independence of Greek city-states ended with the rise of Macedon under Philip II and his son Alexander the Great in 338 BCE. Alexander's conquests spread Greek culture throughout the Near East. After his death, the Successor kingdoms ruled until conquered by Rome. Rome grew powerful through its political system and formidable army, which utilized flexible tactics. The Pax Romana period saw the flourishing of trade, engineering, and arts under stable emperors. Roman culture was evident through realistic portraiture and civil engineering projects throughout the Empire.

1. Lecture 5
HELLENISM AND ROME
INTRO TO WESTERN HUMANITIES

2. Weakened by the enlarged scope and scale of warfare
during and immediately after the Peloponnesian War,
the independence of the Greek polis was ended forever
with the rise of Macedon and the united Greeks defeat
by Philip II and his son Alexander the Great in 338 BCE.

4. Alexander the Great

5. Note: Should say 4th Century BCE not 5th Century

6. Comparison of classic-era Greek hoplite versus
Macedonian phalangite with sarissa (over 6m/19ft).
http://myweb.unomaha.edu/~mreames/Alexander/sarissa_jones.html

7. Macedonian phalanx required level ground
but was very effective.
The Roman general Aemilius Paulus wrote that when
he first saw the phalanx, it was the most terrifying
thing he had ever seen.
Comparison to Greek Hoplites

8. Alexander’s conquests spread Greek culture throughout
the near eastern world.
After his death, the so-called Successor kingdoms were
ruled by his generals.
This time period generally referred to as the
Hellenistic Age.

9. Shown here are the great library
and lighthouse at Alexandria (near
modern day Cairo).
Alexandria eventually became
antiquity’s academic center,
attracting Greek, Egyptian, Persian,
Jewish, and Roman scholars.

10. The library of Alexandria
was but one part of
the Museum of Alexandria.
Museum = study of the
muses
It functioned as a sort of
research institute.
addition to the library,
In
the Museum included rooms
for the study of astronomy,
anatomy, and even a zoo of
exotic animals.
“Starting as early as 300 BCE, the Ptolomaic kings who ruled Alexandria
had the inspired idea of luring leading scholars, scientists, and poets to
their city by offering them life appointments at the Museum, with
handsome salaries, tax exemptions, free food and lodging, and the
almost limitless resources of the library.”

11. Some of the scholars at Alexandria included:
Euclid
invented geometry
Archimedes
calculated pi, discovered hydraulic technology
Eratosthenes
calculated earth’s circumference to within 1% accuracy
Galen
systematized anatomy and pharmacology

12. At its peak, the Library of
Alexandria may have had
over a half a million items
in its collection.
In 391 CE (700 years after its
creation), the Musuem at
Alexandria and its Library were
destroyed soon after the Roman
Emperor Theodosius prohibited
pagan (non-Christian) forms of
worship.

13. One of the victims of this much later
destruction of the Alexandria Library was
Hypatia, famous in antiquity for her
attainments in math and astronomy, as
well, evidently, for her beauty.
A mob of monks egged on by Cyril, the
Christian patriarch of Alexandria, pulled her
from her chariot, stripped her clothes and
dragged her through the streets and into the
Cathedral of Alexandria. There the monks
tore her skin from her bones with oyster
shells. The strips were burnt piece by piece
as she died. The rest of her body was taken
outside the city and burned.

14. Cyril was rewarded for his efforts by
being made one of the early Saints of
the Catholic Church.

15. The Hellenistic successor kingdoms were
eventually displaced in the Mediterranean
world by Rome.
Rome’s history proper begins when it became
a Republic in 509 BCE. At that time, it was a
small town surrounded by richer, more
populous peoples.

17. Over a three hundred year
time period, Rome’s power
grew and through a continuous
series of wars with its
neighbours, eventually
controlled the entire Italian
peninsula.
Within another century, Roman
power extended across the
Mediterranean world.

18. So how did Rome do it?
Polybius (ca. 200–118 BC), a Greek prisoner of war
tried to explain Rome’s successes for a Greek audience.
He claimed it was due to:
1. Rome’s political system (mixed constitution that
blended aristocratic and democratic elements)
2. Roman army

19. Roman Political System
Two eras:
Republic (509 – 29 BCE)
Empire (29 BCE – 476 CE)

20. Roman Republic Political System
Senate
The aristocratic patricians (great families) were represented by the
Senate. Controlled money, government administration, foreign policy.
The Senate also supplied the two Consuls who were elected by the
Senate each year, and acted as generals during war.
Tribal Assembly
The plebians (all other Roman citizens) were represented here. Made
laws. Roman citizens were divided into 35 tribes based on income. Each
citizen voted within his tribe. Each tribal representative then voted. The
tribes were also dispersed by wealth.

21. Tribal Assembly
For any law or motion, the Tribal Assembly, after receiving “advice”
from the patrician Senate, would vote. Wealthier were represented by
more tribes.
Tribal
representatives
vote yes/no
according to its
members
Each citizen
votes yes/no
for motion
within tribe
Tribe 1 Tribe 2 Tribe 3 … Tribe 10 … Tribe 15 … Tribe 20 … Tribe 30 … Tribe 35
Rich Poor

22. Roman Army
Based on their experience from hundreds of years of fighting in the
rugged terrain of Italy, Roman armies developed a checkerboard-type
system that was significantly more flexible than the Macedonian phalanx
or the Greek hoplite. They also adopted the Spanish short stabbing
sword.

24. Roman Army
Even though the army was initially composed of citizen farmers, it was
well-trained, disciplined and focused on killing.
Most warfare prior to the Romans was about trying to break the morale of
the enemy and make them flee. Roman warfare by contrast was about
killing as many of the enemy as efficiently as possible.
As well, the Romans tended to never give up or flee, and would continue
a battle or a war until they wore down their opponent’s willingness to
continue.
Over its history, Rome would suffer calamitous defeats but it would
never countenance suing for peace.

25. This image is a recreation of the
Battle of Pydna, in which the
Macedonians lost some 25,000 men
while the Romans lost about 1000.
“ With the view of doing more to win the
affections of his men and make them more
ready to meet danger on his behalf, Philip
paid special attention to the burial of the
men who had fallen … and ordered the
bodies to be brought into camp that all
might see the honour paid to the dead.
But nothing is so uncertain or so difficult
to gauge as the temper of a mass of people.
The very thing which was expected to
make them keener to face any conflict only
inspired them with hesitancy and fear.
Philip's men had been accustomed to
fighting with Greeks and Illyrians and had
only seen wounds inflicted by javelins and
arrows and in rare instances by lances.
But when they saw bodies dismembered
with the Spanish sword, arms cut off from
the shoulder, heads struck off from the
trunk, bowels exposed and other horrible
wounds, they recognized the style of
weapon and the kind of man against whom
they had to fight, and a shudder of horror
ran through the ranks.
”
Livy, History of Rome XXXI, 34

26. Roman Army
During most of the Republic time period, the Roman army was composed
of citizens (except for the very poorest), who were obliged to leave their
work, provide their own armour and weapons, and serve in the army.
Over time, due to Rome’s constant warfare, the result was that the small
landholding farmer base of the Roman economy collapsed. Agriculture
was progressively centralized into large estates owned by the Senatorial
class and worked by large holdings of slaves.
Around 100 BCE, Rome was forced to professionalize its armies and
accept the landless into the army. In this new professional army, one
made a 25 year commitment to serve; the state provided arms, training,
food, shelter, wages, and retirement benefits (land).

27. Decline of Roman Republic
As the Roman Republic grew in land size, it faced two important
and related problems.
First, a larger and larger percentage of the Roman population became
landless and indebted to wealthier senators.
Second, when the army became professionalized, its soldiers became
progressively more reliant on their generals for pay, rewards, and
retirement lands. Thus the army’s loyalty shifted from the state to its
generals.
These two factors helped foment a great deal of social unrest and civil
wars over the last 100 years of the Republic.

28. Sulla (88 – 78 BCE) Pompey (70 – 48 BCE) Crassus (70 – 55 BCE) Julius Caesar (49 – 44 BCE)
Attacked Rome twice Wealthiest man in
with his armies, became Rome, who used his
dictator for life, and wealth to purchase his
slaughtered almost army, which he used to
10000 political defeat Spartacus and his
opponents (mainly from Successful general who slave army. Eventually Successful general who used
the non-Senatorial used his armies in Greece died leading his army to his power base with the
party) to seize power in Rome. destruction in Syria. plebians. Eventually
Joined with Crassus and marched on Rome, and after
Caesar to jointly rule a 5 year civil war defeated
Rome for a time period Pompey’s armies. Became
known as the Triumvirate dictator for life but was
(61-55 BCE). assassinated by disgruntled
Senators on the Ideas of
March (March 15) 44 BCE,
which plunged Rome into
another 13 years of civil war.

29. Julius Caesar, conqueror of Gaul (modern-day France),
was a wonderful Latin stylist, a skilled politician, and
one of history’s greatest generals.
“Veni, vidi, vici” (I came, I saw, I conquered) is his
summation of one of his many successful campaigns.
He was victorious in a wide range of battles (land, sea battles,
and sieges) against a wide range of enemies (Gauls, German
barbarians, Egyptians, Macedonians, and, most important,
Romans).

30. Painting below is "Vercingetorix Throws Down His Arms at
the Feet of Julius Caesar", 1899, by Lionel Noel Royer.
Vercingetorix was the leader of the unified Gauls in their
attempt to throw off the Roman shackles.
The highpoint of the campaign was the Seige of Alesia, in
which the Roman army besieging Vercingetorix at Alesia,
was beseiged in turn by a huge force of Gauls.
Caesar had the Romans build a wooden wall around his
forces. Ultimately, the Roman army of about 50,000
defeated the 300,000 army of the Gauls.

31. From the HBO Series Rome, which had
Ciarán Hinds playing the role of Caesar
with just the right mixture of arrogance
and confidence.

32. Julius Caesar was assassinated on the Ides of March (March 15) 44 BCE in
the Senate led by his friend Marcus Brutus, Gaius Cassius and 60 other co-
conspirators.
Caesar had been warned by a seer to fear the Ides of March. On that day,
on the way to the senate, Caesar saw the seer and told him “The Ideas of
March have come and I’m still alive.” The seer responded, “They have
come but not gone.”

33. Roman forces loyal to Caesar, led by Mark Antony and Caesar’s
young nephew Octavian defeated the Brutus and Cassius-led
senatorial forces at the Battle of Philippi.
Antony and Octavian ultimately engaged in another civil war,
with Octavian defeating Antony (and his wife Cleopatra’s forces)
at the Battle of Actium (31 BCE).
After the defeat of Antony, Octavian has sole power in Rome – a
Rome that had been decimated by forty years of constant civil
wars.
Octavian in power became Augustus Caesar, the first Roman
Emperor. Thus began the Principate, or the time known as the
Roman Empire.

34. Augustus did not have a son. So he adopted Tiberius, his wife’s son (from
an earlier marriage).
Tiberius had two sons, both of whom died before him. Germanicus was
an adopted son, but was suspected of treason and killed. Drusus was
Tiberius’s natural son. Drusus died, poisoned by his own wife and her
lover Sejanus, the captain of the Praetorian Guards (the only soldiers
allowed in city of Rome).
Caligula, son of Germanicus, is often portrayed as cruel, extravagant,
sexually perverse, and an insane tyrant. Among other things, he was
accused of incest with his sister, of trying to make his horse a Consul and
killing Senators for amusement. He was assassinated by the Praetorians.
Claudius, nephew to Caligula, was an effective and scholarly emperor.
He was eventually murdered at the behest of his last wife so that her son
Nero (not fathered by Claudius) could rule.
Nero was accused of being more interested in acting than ruling, and of
being another ruthless tyrant. Was assassinated. Followed by the year of
four emperors and plenty of civil wars.

36. Pax Romana
Rome’s height is generally connected to the Flavian and
Antonine dynasties. During that time, rather than passing
on power to one’s genetic heir, the Emperor would
adopt the “best” Roman to be his son (and who may
even have been older than the “father”).
This time period is often referred to as the Pax Romana
(The Roman Peace), during which trade, engineering,
and the arts flourished.

37. Pax Romana
Its peak coincided with the rule of the so-
called Five Good Emperors (96 – 180 BCE).
Edward Gibbons, the 18th century historian who penned
Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, described the
period as that “in which the condition of the human race
was most happy and prosperous.”

40. Roman Culture
Roman portraiture: focus on realistic portrayals.
Evidence of extreme respect for experience and age.

42. Many Roman sculptures have youthful
Greek-inspired bodies with stern and aged
heads.

44. Roman version of Photoshop: buy statue of
youthful Greek youth, knock off the head, and
attach realistic portrait of aged Roman patriarch.

45. Heads of Emperors Vespasian and Titus.

46. Bust of Flavian Woman

47. Popular hairstyle during
Flavian time period

48. Not every Roman matron
looked good in the Flavian
updo!

49. Roman Civic Engineering
Romans were masters at solving practical problems and
appear to have had very sophisticated building and
engineering skills.

50. Much of what we know of regular
Roman life comes from the buried
remains of Pompeii, buried in 79
CE by volcanic eruption.

52. Visit Pompeii with Google Maps

54. Very little of Herculaneum has been
uncovered. Herculaneum was buried under
20 meters of ash and is now buried as well
by modern buildings in Naples.

57. Lead water pipes in Pompeii

60. Painted walls in Pompeii

63. A variety of frescos uncovered in Pompeii

64. Cave Canem - Beware of Dog – mosaics
Pompeii

65. Images from the so-called Lupanare or Brothel of
Pompeii. Are these images, as most have thought, a
menu for ordering sexual acts, or …
… is the brothel actually a clock room for a bath house, and
these images are cheeky ways to remember where bathers
hung their toga while they bathed.

67. http://www.lsg.musin.de/geschichte/geschichte/isb/Museum/insul
a.jpg

68. Timgad, Algeria, early 2nd century –
Typical roman city created from scratch in a conquered province for ex-soldiers.

69. http://michellemoran.com/CD/Roman-Villa.jpg

72. Aqueduct in Pont-du-Gard in France

73. Aqueduct in Sergovia, Spain. Notice it turning a corner. The water channel enters an
underground passage just to the left. Romans constructed elaborate water systems for their
cities and generally had a constant gradient drop of 15 to 30 cm every 100 meters. Most were
underground and were about 1m wide by 2m high. Only when they needed to cross a valley or
river was an aqueduct constructed.

74. Pantheon in Rome. Almost two
thousand years after it was built,
the Pantheon's dome is still the
world's largest unreinforced
concrete dome

75. Baths of Caracalla, Rome, c. 211-217 C.E.

76. Coliseum in Rome

77. Representations of Gladiator games

79. “Kill him! Lash him! Burn him” Why does he meet the sword in such a cowardly way? Why
does he strike so feebly? Why doesn’t he die well? Whip him on his wounds!”
Seneca, Roman philosopher, author of Letters on Morality

81. The so-called Bikini Girls, who appear to have amused
the gladiatorial audience in between events …

82. Satyricon
Petronius
On blackboard in class

83. Roman Religion
Rome’s religion is sometimes referred to as pagan. They
imported Greek and Etruscan deities, renamed them,
and assimilated them into their own beliefs.
Like with the Greeks, Roman religion was oriented
around rituals, such as animal sacrifices, and seemed to
lack any type of eschatology (life after death).
Roman religion appears to have been more like a
contract: quid pro quo [I give you, you give me]

84. Rome’s religion was perhaps best analogous to today’s
patriotism. You participated in official religious rituals to
demonstrate your support of the state.
Indeed, it appears that most of the Roman educated
elite during the height of Rome’s pax romana were
pretty much completely secular.
“Just when the gods had ceased to be, and the Christ had not yet
come, there was a unique moment in history, between Cicero and
Marcus Aurelius, when man stood alone.”
-- Gustave Flaubert

85. On the Nature of Things
Lucretius
On blackboard in class

86. Roman Religion
While Rome’s educated and cultured elite were
secularized, there was also a slow but growing counter-
movement that embraced so-called Mystery
Cults/Religions.
These cults were transplants from the eastern edge of
the Empire.
They provided a personal spirituality focused around
monotheism, mysterious rituals, including rebirth via
baptism in blood or water, salvation, eternal
life/damnation, and a personal relationship with that
single divinity.

87. Some examples: Mithraism, Orphism, Eleusinians,
Dionysianism, Zoroastrianism, Manicheanism,
Christianity.

88. Mithras, the sun god born on Dec 25.

89. Villa of the Mysteries, Pompeii
One of the richer villas uncovered in Pompeii appears to
have a series of illustrations of a ritual in one of these
mystery religions.
They seem part of a ritual ceremony aimed at preparing
privileged, protected girls for the psychological
transition to life as married women.

92. Roman Religion
In conclusion, Romans were very tolerant of different
religious beliefs as long as the rituals or the beliefs
didn’t interfere with one’s loyalty to the State.

93. Christianity
After Jesus of Nazareth’s death around 31 CE, there
were two factions of his followers:
Aramaic-speaking Jews focused around Jerusalem. Lead
by James, Jesus’s brother.
“Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of
Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at
him.” Mark 6:3
More focused on transforming Judaism.
Hellenized, Greek-speaking Christians and Jews. Lead by
Paul, who eventually travelled to Rome.
More focused on converting and spreading the faith.

94. Christianity grew initially almost
completely amongst the lower classes in
Rome and in the eastern provinces of
the Empire.
Much of our knowledge of early Christianity in Rome
is found in the subterranean burial chambers where
the poor seemed to have favoured as a place of
worship.

95. Christianity also seemed to gain an early foothold
amongst upper-class women.
Still, Christianity was very much a fringe religion.
Perhaps 5% of the Roman population across the entire
extent of the Empire was Christian by 200 CE.

97. From Pax Romana to … …the 3rd Century Crisis

98. Statues of last of the
“Good” emperors:
Trajan, Hadrian, Lucius
Vera, Marcus Aurelius,–
notice the regal, imperial
calm of the portraits

99. Unlike his predecessors over the previous 100 years,
Marcus Aurelius did not appoint his successor based on
merit, but instead appointed his son Commodus, a
disastrous choice, who ruled from 180 – 192 CE.

100. Commodus was said to have been more
interested in being a gladiator than an
Emperor, and with him began a period of
radical imperial instability and bad
government.
He renamed Rome to Colonia Commodiana (City of Commodus),
renamed the 12 months of the year to his 12 different names,
declared himself the sole god in Roman religion, etc
Commodus was the villain in the movie Gladiator, and is
one of those rare villains who appear to have actually
been significantly nastier in real life than in their
Hollywood portrayal!

101. Commodus was eventually assassinated (poisoned, His second wife Julia Domna was highly learned
then strangled by his wrestling partner). There in philosophy.
followed the Year of Five Emperors and civil war in
which the general Septimius Severus emerged
victorious.

102. The panel depicts the Roman
Emperor Septimus Severus with his
family: to the left his wife Julia
Domna, in front of them their
sons Geta and Caracalla.
The face of Geta was presumably
erased after Caracalla murdered
his brother.

103. Emperor Caracella Severus (murdered his
brother and co-emperor, ruled 6 years,
killed by his soldiers while urinating).
Caracella made a number of vital
changes to the empire. In 212 all free
men within the Roman Empire became
full Roman citizens. He also increased
the size of the army by 25% and doubled
their pay. He also created an incentive
structure (bonus pay to the soldiers who
supported him on his ascension to the
throne) that was going to help fuel the
Third Century Crisis.

104. For the soldiers, a win-win situation emerged. You would get paid a
bonus for deposing the existing emperor. The new emperor would need
to buy your loyalty to stay in power. Rinse and repeat.

105. The 3rd Century Crisis
Between 235 and 284 there were 25 Emperors. Only one
died of natural causes. There were also dozens of others
who were acclaimed Emperor by their soldiers but who
died before reaching Rome.
It was 50 years of unbelievable anarchy: constant civil
war, complete economic collapse, plague, barbarian
invasions, war with a rival superpower (Sassanids), and
the breakup of parts of the Empire into separate states.

106. Emperor Elagabalus (ruled from 218-222) was a teenaged (14
at ascension) relative of Septimius Severus. Short rule. Was
assassinated.

107. Elagabalus is a controversial figure, who was apparently disliked by his
soldiers for his open homosexuality, his love of female fashion, and his
harem of “husbands” who were expected to dress in female clothes and
wigs.
The Roses of Heliogabalus (1888) by Lawrence Alma-Tadema.

108. Emperor Alexander Severus (ruled from
222-235) was another teenaged (also 14 at
ascension) relative of Septimius Severus
who also had a rule cut short by
assassination.

110. http://www.utexas.edu/courses/romanciv/end%20and%20legacy/invasions.jpg

113. The silver content of the main roman
currency (the denari) declined to zero
during the crisis
There were no budget deficits
in Roman times. Since coinage
was based on gold and silver,
the only way to control the
economy was to spend less,
tax more, find new gold or
silver, or put less gold and
silver in the coinage.
Because there wasn’t an
effective taxation system, the
massive cost of the army came
through devaluing the
Silver denari under Mainly copper denari currency, which eventually led
Caracella (217 CE) (270 CE) to rampant inflation.

114. During the Crisis of the Third Century, Rome’s vast internal
trade network broke down. Large landowners, no longer able to
successfully export their crops over long distances, began
producing food for subsistence and local barter.
The common free people of the Roman cities, meanwhile, began
to move out into the countryside in search of food and better
protection. Made desperate by economic necessity, many of
these former city dwellers, as well as many small farmers, were
forced to give up hard-earned basic civil rights in order to
receive protection from large land-holders. In doing so, they
became a half-free class of Roman citizen known as coloni. They
were tied to the land, and in later Imperial law their status was
made hereditary. This provided an early model for serfdom,
which would form the basis of medieval feudal society and the
medieval peasantry.
Rome’s relatively large and prosperous middle class more or less
disappeared for good. Wealth appears to have become
concentrated into the hands of a very few rich families.
Roman cities themselves began to change in character. The
large, open cities of Classical antiquity slowly gave way to the
smaller, walled cities.

115. Emperor Maximinus (first barbarian
emperor, ruled for 3 years,
murdered); Emperor Gordian I
(ruled at same time, dead within
20 days)

116. Emperor Balbinus (appointed by Senate,
tried to bring order, murdered by soldiers
within a few months).
Emperor Gordian III, 13 year old orphan,
murdered after leading his army and
defeating the Persians.

117. Emperor Trajanus Decius, forced to become emperor by his
troops, ruled 2 years, died fighting Goths.
Emperor Gallienus, ruled 8 years (a record!), inflicted massive
defeats on Persians, won two gigantic victories against invading
gothic armies in Greece, and defeated the Alemmani who had
invaded Italy. Murdered by his own bodyguard while fighting
breakaway Roman Gallic Empire.

118. Emperor Aurelian (270-275) was one of the finest
generals in Roman history. Successful in reuniting the
Empire. Murdered by his soldiers.
Emperor Claudius Gothicus, ruled 2 years, died
of smallpox plague.

119. Thanks to Auerlian, by late 274, the Roman Empire was
reunited into a single entity, and the frontier troops
were back in place.
More than a century passed before Rome again lost
military ascendancy over its external enemies.
However, dozens of formerly thriving cities, especially in
the Western Empire, had been ruined, their populations
dispersed and, with the breakdown of the economic
system, could not be rebuilt.
Major cities and towns, even Rome itself, had not
needed fortifications for many centuries; many now
surrounded themselves with thick walls.

120. The Crisis had a tremendous effect on the cultural side
as well.
In general, there was a rejection of the optimistic and
secular orientation of classical civilization and a new-
found concern for religious and other-worldly ideals.
Personal religious experiences and salvation via a
compassionate god became increasingly important.

121. Isis Lactans – Isis feeding infant Horus
(late 4th c)

122. Not the Virgin Mary with the
Christ child, but Hermes
holding the infant Dionysus
with nimbus (halo). These
mosaics are from the 4th
century AD from Nea Paphos,
Cyprus

123. Ceiling from Constantine palace in Trier.
Circles of light indicate regal importance

124. Christianity, which was a very minor religious movement
in the Empire, became a bit more widespread (but still a
minority religion, perhaps no more than 10% of
population).
Similar developments can be traced in philosophy, where
Plotinus (205-270) emphasized man's striving for union
with god and made Neoplatonism the dominant
intellectual force among the educated.

125. Diocletian’s Tetrarchy, c. 300 C.E.
When Diocletian (ruled from 284 to 305)
assumed the rule of the Roman Empire, he
did so with the realization that the empire,
with all it's far-flung provinces, was far too
vast to be ruled effectively by one man.
Accordingly, he formed a system of governing
known as the "Tetrarchy", or the rule of Four.

126. The novel idea behind the Tetrarchy was that the empire
would be divided into four quadrants, which were to be
ruled over by two Augustii, who would be assisted by two
Caesars, or "junior emperors".
This system was intended to provide an orderly and
smooth answer to the question of succession.
The two Augustii would be training the two Caesars as their eventual
replacements. Upon the retirement of the Augustii, the two Caesars
would be elevated to the position of Augustii, and would then pick two
new Caesars.

127. Diocletian’s also reformed the economic system which
had become wildly destabilized during the troubles of
the third century. These included price controls, job
classifications, new coinage, broader taxation, etc,
which had mixed results.

128. Diocletian's reforms fundamentally changed the structure
of Roman imperial government and helped stabilize the
empire economically and militarily, enabling the empire
to remain essentially intact for another hundred years
despite having seemed near the brink of collapse in
Diocletian's youth.
He more or less changed the ideological basis of the
Empire from a pseudo-Republic in which the emperor,
army, and senate shared power to a full autocratic
system with the Emperor in complete control.
He also tried to institute a new official monotheistic
State religion (worship of the Sun).

129. Constantine the Great
(ruled as part of Tetrarchy
from 306 to 312; as sole
Emperor from about 312 to
337).
Following Diocletian’s
retirement, there was not
the orderly power transition
as imagined by the
Diocletian Tetrarchy.
Instead, there was another
series of brutal civil wars
followed by the victory of
Constantine.

130. Constantine is perhaps best known for being the first
Christian Roman emperor (though he also had his wife
and eldest son executed).
Emphasized religious uniformity of belief and engaged in
dramatic church building program.
The official Christian Bible and doctrine of the Catholic
Church were codified during Constantine’s reign.
Added Christian belief requirements to army and
government positions.

131. Under Constantine, Rome was divided administratively
into western and eastern halves, each with their own
capital.
The western half’s capital was Rome.
The richer eastern half’s capital was the old small Greek
city of Byzantium, which was renamed Constantinople,
and then massively upgraded and improved.
Constantinople grew in power and became the center of
the Eastern or Byzantine Roman Empire, which lasted
until 1423.

133. Constantinople lies in a very favorable
location that separates Europe from
Asia, the Mediterranean from the Black
Sea. Surrounded by water on three
sides, it is also quite defensible. Huge
walls allowed the Eastern Roman
Empire to survive for over 1000 years.

135. Indeed, until the invention of portable field artillery/cannon by the
Ottoman Turks in the 1400s, Constantinople’s walls were impregnable.

136. After Constantine’s death in 337, there were the usual
civil wars [337-353], followed by Julian (last of the
pagan emperors), Valens, and Theodosius.
Theodosius (379-395) made paganism and other non-
Christian religions illegal.
At the same time, Rome was subjected to significant
waves of barbarian invasions, which ultimately over-ran
most of the Roman Empire, especially in the West.

138. It is believed that these barbarian
movements were caused by the
movement of Huns and other steppe
people from the grasslands of Central
Asia. These nomadic raiders relied on
their horse mobility and the power of
the composite bow (which can be
shot from horseback, unlike a normal
bow).

139. These steppe people appear to have played the key role in
fatally destabilizing not only the Roman Empire, but similar
unified empires in China, India, and Persia.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/todorkamenov/209397447/sizes/o/

141. Rome was sacked first in 410 by the Goths (and then repeatidly over the
next 50 years by others). Eventually, the Western part of the Empire
was replaced with various “Barbarian Kingdoms”. The prosperous and
stable world of antiquity was gone.
http://explorethemed.com/FallRome.asp?c=1