Political and Economic Issues and the fall of Roman Empire



Political and Economic Issues and the fall of Roman Empire

Introduction

The downfall of the Roman Empire may be understood as the social decline of the Roman society. There are several theories on the collapse. This decline took place gradually over a period of four centuries. The decline was marked by political disintegration, poor economy, downfall of the military and social factors. The question on the exact nature of the fall is posed to date and has not been answered successfully yet. Other than the conflict on the major causes of the fall of the Roman Empire, the date of the fall is also a debatable matter whereby some hold that the fall took place in A.D 410 with the sacking of Rome while the others hold that the fall came later in 476 with the deposition of Romulus Augustulus.

Thesis Statement

The influence of the political and economic factors in the downfall of Rome

Discussion

Hoarding

One of the primary reasons that led to the economic crisis and inflation was hoarding. This caused decay in the Roman economy. The looting and the hoarding of goods to get the prices to shoot caused the increment in trade deficit. This hoarding served as one of the major catalyst in the economic decline of the Roman Empire. Furthermore the hoarding of currency led to an intolerable inflation.

Land and the crushing tax burden

The fertility of the Roman land was the major source of wealth for the empire, though when the land was taxed it created a greater opportunity for the wealth to increase. This concept was introduced parallel to the taxing of provincial governments. This hit the peasants and helped the government. Towards the end of the Roman Empire, it was noted that as the amount of importance which was given to tax-farming reduced, so did the morals of the society improve. In addition, the government made decision to deplete the imperial coffers. This was estimated to put a cap on the reserve spending by the government. Furthermore, the government increased the rate of taxes forcing the elite to make efficient use of their perishables.

Feudalism

The Roman Empire was also marked by feudalism. The government rendered that it was of prime importance that people were charged in the form of taxes to get the finances needed for imperial guard and the military, though the yields of the land needed to be increased. Farmers and slaves were the only ones who were exempted from tax but were expected to produce phenomenal.

The Dole and Barbarians

Another reason that led to the economic crisis in the Roman Empire was the fact that of the dole and the barbarians. The spending on bread was enormous, it was realized that the amount had gone as high as millions and the Romans were overtaken by the barbarians. The Romans tried effortlessly to regain their control from the barbarians but they failed and all their efforts remained futile for the longest time.

Inflation

The period between the end of the 2nd century ...