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Gallienus' armies were driven back twice. All in all it was a good book. By the end of the fifth century, Roman rule had vanished in western Europe and much of northern Africa, and only a shrunken Eastern Empire remained. As of about AD , the Roman Empire was by far the most powerful state within its known world, and had been for over two hundred years. All of this is dubious. After a while the litany of emperors and generals gets dull, and excursions into territories other than the military are rare and limited by source materials. And every time a hugely expensive donative for the Army. Goldsworthy's fault. Its physical remnants can be found throughout much of Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, in the form of roads, bridges, aqueducts, amphitheaters, temples and public baths. In a later age the Vikings would provoke similar terror. In the meantime there had been more attacks on the European frontiers, on the Danube and southern Rhine. Goldsworthy states that he is not an expert in this period, which actually makes the book better for the general reader as he examines a variety of perspectives on various controversies rather than presenting the reader with a neat analysis. I would recommend the book strongly to any general reader interested in the subject with at least a passing familiarity with the age. The Senate, once the source of many of Rome's rulers, was reduced so much in significance that it no longer even supplied military leaders, let alone emperors. Portraying history in such simplistic terms, however, fails to explain that governing the Late Roman Empire was a complex business. Apr 07, Manray9 rated it really liked it Shelves: classical-era , europe-general. There is an admirable attempt, as the narrative becomes more complex in the fourth century, to maintain the story of a single political body. In actual fact Goldsworthy gives a narrative from the period of Marcus Aurelius to the first half of the sixth century. Raiding was endemic in most of the societies of Iron Age Europe. A large number of emperors ruled only for a period of months; there were very few years without civil wars and unrest. Oct 05, Cameron rated it did not like it. But as I was getting into the book I felt guilty and bought the Kindle version. Books by Adrian Goldsworthy. The next century, the third century, was chaotic. Historians conventionally refer to this regime as the Gallic Empire. Only a few were mounted and armour was rare. With the exception of ancient Egypt un What we think of as the Roman Empire didn't so much fall dramatically as steadily slow down, stumble unsteadily for a few centuries, and then keel over quietly somewhere around AD. Sep 17, Todd N rated it it was amazing Shelves: kindle. Enlarge cover. All were swiftly killed by loyal officers, but Decius knew that his prestige was at a low ebb. Hardcover , pages. The author gives his speculations as to how and why the Western Empire fell. Near the end of the first century, the gap between the two rivers was linked by a fortified line, bringing a substantial area of territory, known as the Agri Decumates, under direct Roman rule. They were not the only ones to benefit from the arrival of the Romans. To ask other readers questions about How Rome Fell , please sign up. Eheu, infelix ego et destitute. The tribes on the border exploited the weakness - raiding, plundering and eventually settling in the empire - further eroding the tax base. However, it is doubtful that they saw themselves this way. The Roman provinces seemed vulnerable and so inevitably further attacks came. How Rome Fell: Death of a Superpower Writer

What we think of as the Roman Empire didn't so much fall dramatically as steadily slow down, stumble unsteadily for a few centuries, and then keel over quietly somewhere around AD. The East continued for almost a thousand years to By the end of the third century the Goths, along with other apparently new and powerful peoples like the Franks and Alamanni, posed serious threats to the frontiers on the Rhine and Danube. For chieftains, successful raids brought glory and the plunder with which to reward their warriors. Error rating book. This was a period of remarkable personalities, from the philosopher-emperor Marcus Aurelius to emperors like Diocletian, who portrayed themselves as tough, even brutal, soldiers. I have to confess that I wasn't sure if I wanted to read this book, so I downloaded it off of bittorrent. There is no trace of the auxiliary units moving anywhere else, they just seem to vanish from the record. Now this became more common in other areas close to exposed frontiers. Apr 16, Andrea rated it it was amazing Shelves: world-history , ancient-rome. Thanks for telling us about the problem. None of this makes much sense. Goldsworthy makes an interesting point about the Senate in Rome. In the meantime there had been more attacks on the European frontiers, on the Danube and southern Rhine. Around the same time a new threat emerged from the Black Sea. Every defeat weakened this impression, as did the frequent withdrawal of troops from the frontiers to fight each other in civil wars. Goldsworthy's book is easier to read than Heather's and it contains a more detailed account of the 3rd and 4th century. The short answer would be: First, because the Roman Army focused more on killing each other than on fending off invaders. The final epilogue and much of the introduction talks about the inevitable parallels people try to draw between the Roman Empire and the United States, and dismisses many of them. The threat from the barbarians was now greater and it revealed fundamental weaknesses in the defences of the Roman frontiers. Second, because the Roman Empire came to be ruled by an endless series of upstart generals who seized power by violence, and not by a political class or even by a hereditary monarchy. The other book much shorter was like a case study from an MBA program: the reason for the Empire going out of business. The semi-professional warriors who made up chieftains' warbands were not especially numerous. All were swiftly killed by loyal officers, but Decius knew that his prestige was at a low ebb. Hence the garrison may have been attacked because it stayed loyal to the old regime. Eheu, infelix ego et destitute. The original excavators assumed that the attackers were Germanic tribesmen. By the end of the Western Empire walled cities and 'castles' dominated the landscape, very much as they would for the next thousand years and more. Some almost certainly were hidden by people afraid of barbarian attack, who were subsequently killed, taken captive or otherwise unable to recover their treasure. It was difficult to catch every band of swift-moving raiders - although easier when they withdrew burdened down with booty - and often the Roman response would be a punitive expedition against those held responsible. He then takes us through the tumultuous time from when emperor after emperor reigned for short times. The majority of warriors employed a spear, a javelin for throwing and carried a shield for protection. Amiens seems to have been attacked several times and in the second half of the third century became much reduced in size. Many tribesmen chose to join the Roman army, presumably viewing it in much the same way as joining the band of a chieftain from another tribe. One powerful fourth-century king had warriors in his band and similar numbers are suggested by spectacular collections of weapons excavated in Scandinavia. Nevertheless, the east suffered from a similar sclerosis to the west. Goldsworthy emphasizes the internal problems of continuous civil war. At first the targets were local, mainly the few remaining Greco-Roman communities along the northern coast of the Black Sea. It may well be that one or more similarly charismatic leaders had appeared amongst them again. Occasionally the defences looked stronger than they actually were, but the aim was clearly to deter any attack. The Senate, once the source of many of Rome's rulers, was reduced so much in significance that it no longer even supplied military leaders, let alone emperors. Yet when their Roman paymaster was beaten or murdered, such contingents could not be sure of welcome and employment from the next emperor. To ask other readers questions about How Rome Fell , please sign up. The impact of a raid can only have been dreadful for those communities and individuals actually attacked. Philip had to go in person to the region to restore the situation. The slave trade encouraged raiding. How Rome Fell: Death of a Superpower Reviews

Almost every scholar sees this as a sign that the threat from outside had become greater. This book's interesting thesis is that it wasn't exterior forces that caused Rome's fall, and that the Persians weren't necessarily "tougher" an enemy than the Parthians, but that Rome collapsed from within. Nov 20, Mark Singer rated it it was amazing Shelves: history , roman-history , ancient-history. A similar pattern is observable with the Dacians, who were perceived as a great threat in Julius Caesar's time, but then disappear until the later first century when another strong king emerged. In the meantime there had been more attacks on the European frontiers, on the Danube and southern Rhine. At times the author rails a bit too much against his fellow historians, which is distracting, and reduces confidence in the story being told. Combination of wasted resources, possible decay in population, an overgrown bureaucracy, and Emperors who would rather fight each other or would-be Emperors rather than external enemies. The semi-professional warriors who made up chieftains' warbands were not especially numerous. Cniva was from a Gothic tribe, a people who had only fairly recently come into close contact with the Romans. Beginning with the death of Marcus Aurelius and the accession of the administratively incompetent megalomaniac Commodus, Goldsworthy seeks to explain the collapse of the Roman empire not, as it is sometimes seen, as a phenomenon created almost exclusively by external pressures but as stemming largely from a cumulative failure of leadership. Thus it was able to maintain a large standing army, while in the west the army which looked good on paper was consistently under-manned. Hiring the services of a barbarian chieftain and his followers was an attractive option chosen by many Roman leaders. The grander villas had often been built with towers, but these were essentially ornamental, increasing the visible presence of a great house and also providing an impressive view. Goldsworthy makes an interesting point about the Senate in Rome. In a challenger emerged in Mainz. A very readable narrative history of the decline and fall of Rome. His brother Quintillus was proclaimed emperor, but a few months later faced a challenge by one of the senior generals, Aurelian fully, Lucius Domitius Aurelianus. What surprised this reader was just how much late Rome set the template for Medieval Europe, from the titles of 'Duke' and 'Count' originally designating different types of military commander in the Roman Forces , "Vicars' and "Dioceses" administrative chiefs and their districts , and the like. Nov 29, Gordon rated it really liked it. Yet it is not always clear whether this was the result of warfare or accident. The arrival of Rome may well have increased the frequency and perhaps the scale of warfare beyond the frontiers. So how did it fall? In larger cities these towers were often designed to house artillery. His scholarship is thorough enough to always provide the "what" and often to explain the "how," and these are both done in a satisfying, if somewhat chronologically dry fashion. Error rating book.

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The empire at times regained its stability, sometimes for as much as 20 years at a time, but the overall trend remained downhill. The losses were probably lighter at Abrittus, but it was the first time an emperor had been killed by a foreign enemy - and was made worse because his body was never found for proper burial. Peaceful trade was the most common form of contact between Romans, both civilians and soldiers, living on the frontier and the peoples living beyond. The winner takes all nature of the battle to become Emperor gave army commanders a huge incentive to "go for it", and after every regime change there was massive disruption as supporters were rewarded and the other side purged. Monarchy without orderly succession leads to civil war and paranoia and much effort spent covering your butt instead of looking after your domain. At times, larger armies could be formed when they were joined by all those free tribesmen able to equip themselves, but such forces could not stay in the field for long. But he does meditate a bit on the problems of bureaucracy, and the dangers of any institution forgetting what its primary purpose is. Yet in time it did so, although at the cost of a great effort and considerable resources. This is a good book, but I did not enjoy it as much as I anticipated, probably because Goldsworthy emphasizes areas of the Roman experience that are less interesting to me than others: I'm interested in religion, philosophy, literature, daily life and popular culture, and Goldsworthy concentrates on bureaucratic organizational structures particularly in the army and obscure military campaigns. After the sack by the Heruli, the Athenians built a new wall cutting through the old marketplace and excluding a number of great monuments. It was not just urban communities who fortified themselves, for the same inclination is visible in rural areas. Goldsworthy emphasizes the internal problems of continuous civil war. It is certainly worth reading if one is interested in why the western Roman Empire fell and I not being a historian find it intriguing how modern scholars can have such radically different views on one of the most momentous and consequential events in the Western history. Occasionally the stakes and scale became higher. Mostly, A very readable narrative history of the decline and fall of Rome. Arminius, the man who had destroyed the legions in the Teutoberg Forest and resisted Roman attacks in the following years, came to lead a confederation including his own Cherusci and a number of other tribes. My overall take is that the book is a great piece of narrative history, but is somewhat unsatisfying in explaining the underlying factors that caused the empire to lose the formula for effective governance. The rot didn't immediately ruin the empire it would take cen A very good book arguing that the rot in the Roman Empire started at the top. The titles and iconography - and also the law - employed by these emperors were entirely conventional. Their king was taken into Roman service and given senatorial rank. Rome began to fall when the political culture and system changed so t I enjoyed this book because I have become a big fan or Roman history and I am big fan of the author. Yet the overwhelming bulk of peoples who lived next to the frontier were Germans as far as Roman observers were concerned. For example, Goldsworthy insists almost certainly correctly that Persia was never that strong an opponent, and the barbarians were not necessarily a bigger threat in the 3rd to 5th century, but he is not a data guy; e. But long periods of Roman history are very poorly documented, and after all these centuries, it may not be possible to definitively explain why it fell. Philip had to go in person to the region to restore the situation. This was more than a little unfair, as he spent a good deal of time on campaign on the frontiers in Europe. Over the course of three centuries, emperors gradually placed less and less importance on the public good and more and more on their personal benefit—and immediate personal survival. The decline began after the murders of Commodus and Pertinax and progressed from there. Caesar portrayed the Germanic tribes as semi-nomadic and posing a threat to Rome's allies and even to Italy itself. Second, because the Roman Empire came to be ruled by an endless series of upstart generals who seized power by violence, and not by a political class or even by a hereditary monarchy. A similar pattern is observable with the Dacians, who were perceived as a great threat in Julius Caesar's time, but then disappear until the later first century when another strong king emerged. This meant that whereas formerly the Emperor had a relatively small group of potential rivals to keep an eye on - with many based in Rome most of the time - the focus now turned to the army on the borders, where any army leader could potentially be acclaimed as a usurper. I surmise from the author's conclusion that if you find yourself working for a corpus corporatum in this way, then, like the aging imperium, there is a good chance that your organization is in decline. Goldsworthy, who received his doctorate at Oxford, lectures widely and consults on historical documentaries produced by the History Channel, National Geographic, and the BBC. Analogously, did new needs arise in the late imperium, resulting in it becoming too complex to administer? The nineteenth-century excavator guessed that these were the remains of sentries. The barbarians who swept across the Black Sea were said to have learned how to make boats and then sail them from the survivors of the cities they had overrun. Most of the book consists of history, but the last two chapters sum up reasons for the 'decline and fall'. His son Gallienus was later vilified in most of our sources as indolent and far too fond of the luxuries of life in Rome. In the meantime there had been more attacks on the European frontiers, on the Danube and southern Rhine. 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