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Western Roman Empire Research Paper

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Causes for the Fall of the Western Roman Empire
In the late 4th century, the Western Roman Empire collapsed after being the world’s greatest superpower over 500 years. There were internal and external crises in the late Western Roman Empire, which caused its fall. The external factors included the rise of the eastern empire, invasions by barbarian tribes, and natural disasters. The internal factors included antagonism between the senate and the emperor, government corruption, heavy military spending, economic troubles, the spread of Christianity, and the decline in ethics and traditional values.
The first external crisis is the rise of the Eastern Empire. When Emperor Diocletian divided the Empire into the Western Roman Empire in Milan and the Eastern Empire in Byzantium, the Western Rome began to descend. More specifically, although the division of the Empire made it easy to govern in the short run, it made the two halves drift apart in the long run. The East and West Empires did not work together to combat outside enemies. Instead, the Eastern …show more content…

Rome had tangled with Germanic tribes for centuries; however, the Visigoth King Alaric successfully sacked the city of Rome in A.D. 410. In the next decades, the Empire experienced constant threats from Huns and Vandals. The final death blow to the Western Roman Empire was inflicted by these Barbarians
In addition, the natural disasters contribute to the fall of the Western Roman Empire. During the time of Roman Empire, there were plagues, famines, and earthquakes, which made the Empire get worse.
Internally, an antagonism between the Senate and the Emperor is a major cause for the fall of the Western Roman Empire. In the Western Roman Empire, the Senate acted as an advisory role while the emperor had the superpower in ruling religious, civil, and military affairs, and thus, inevitably became corrupt. As a result, there was antagonism between the Senators and the

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