Fall of the Roman Empire In 476 A.D., the Roman Empire fell due to numerous internal and external problems. The Roman Empire lasted for nearly two thousands years and five hundred years as the world’s greatest superpower. The reasons for the fall of the empire still remains a great unsettled historical debate. Still some argue that the Roman Empire did not fall in 476 A.D., since its Eastern Empire still continued on for another thousand years. Economic problems, overexpansion, division of the empire, loss of traditional values, government corruption, weakening of Roman legions, and barbarian invasions are the primary forces that lead to the fall of the Western Roman Empire. Historians have made other speculation such as natural disasters and lead poisoning, but these degrees played a small role in the fall of Rome in comparison to military, economic, and administrative factors. The Roman …show more content…
Theories such as lead poisoning and diseases may have made a slight contribution to the fall of Rome, although they stand without much evidence. Lead poisoning is often dismissed as a major reason for the decline of Rome, but this theory does have some reasoning behind it. The Romans used lead in lots of ways, many involving food and water. A specific lead pot would be used to boil a particular preservative, Defrutum, which would be easily contaminated by lead. Wine and rations of soldiers would contain this mixture to lengthen its shelf life. Also, many water pipes were lined with lead and would be consumed by humans through water. Although these cases would only contain a small amount, it could still prove to be dangerous. Lead poisoning would have caused many problems such as infertility and loss of memory, largely among the nobles (Mclaughlin). If this was the case, then the ruling classes would become less intelligent and cause a government