The Third Century marked the beginning of the end for the Roman Empire, as everything seemed to go downhill from there. Septimius Servius ruled Rome from 193-211 and was the most successful emperor at the end of the 2nd century. He was a learned man but also a brutal warrior, who expanded the army and raised taxes to benefit the army. Although this was great for keeping Rome’s warriors happy, the rest of the people suffered more. Additionally, This set a dangerous precedent with the army more or less deciding the imperial succession over time.
During the Third Century almost every emperor was corrupt and incompetent, leading to the penetration of Roman borders by barbarian tribes. The Roman economy had grown reliant on plunder; as there was less conquest, the economy had to adjust. Therefore, the growth of government and army required higher taxes, emperors tried to cope by debasement of currency, but this just made the economic crisis worse. Population decline from epidemics and wars led to barbarians serving in the Roman army. Prosperity in Rome relied on rapid expansion and exploitation of new territory. Consequently, when that strategy died out, nothing could stop the inevitable downfall of the Empire.
However, the deterioration was slowed by Emperor Diocletian, who ruled at the end of the Third Century from 284-305. He restored order, being the first competent Emperor since Septimius Servius. Diocletian made both good and bad decisions, specifically addressing the issue of succession by dividing the Empire into an east and west half, and also creating a leader and co-leader. The second-in-command (“Caesar”) would take the throne upon the death of the leader (“Augustus”) so there would be no debate about who the next Emperor would be. Diocletians’ decisions temporarily fixed some problems, but after he stepped down from office in 405, things quickly turned to chaos.
Barbarians were mainly Germanic and Franksish, but of the various different types, some were not as violent while others were extremely brutal and destructive. Because they were begging for refuge from the Huns, the Visigoths were let into the Empire by Emperor Valens in 376. They were treated poorly by the Romans and ended up rebelling against Valens and completely ravaged most of Macedonia, Greece, and Bulgaria. Emperor Valens was defeated and killed at the Battle of Adrianople (378). Later in 395 Visigothic leader Alaric pillaged Italy, leading to Roman troops abandoning Britain and falling back all the way to the Rhine river in Germany.
In the 5th Century, the Western Roman Empire was obliterated with the population decreasing from 1.5 million in the 4th Century to 300,000 in the 5th Century, the city of Rome itself was sacked for three days straight in 410. The barbarian Odovacar deposed the last Western Roman Emperor in 476, however the Eastern Roman Empire, which would come to be known as Byzantium, would continue for another 1,000 years.
