What Year Did The Roman Empire Finally Collapse ?
Most historians have conventionally accepted 476 AD as the year in which the Roman Empire ultimately collapsed. It was in this year that Ravenna, capital of the western empire since 402 BC, was overtaken and Romulus Augustulus, the last emperor to rule that part of the Roman Empire, was overthrown by the Germanic tribe. Some historians also assume 410 AD, during the Sack of Rome, to be the year of the final fall down of the Roman Empire. On the other hand, there are many other great historians who believe that the collapse of the Roman Empire was not sudden. It was a gradual process that took more than century and in reality the empire did not collapse. |
According to majority of historical accounts, the Roman Republic was established in 500 BC. A major transition to dictatorship was observed in 100 BC. The Roman Empire was established and it flourished for several years, from 27 AD to 180 AD. The stage for the collapse of the Roman Empire is said to have set in 200 BC. Theodosius (379 BC-295 BC) was the last emperor to rule the united Roman Empire. After the empire was split into two parts, Constantine I (306 AD-337 AD) formed the Byzantine Empire in the east with Constantinople as the capital, and Ravenna was the capital of the western empire.
Rome was sacked by the Ostrogoths and Visigoths during 376 AD-410 AD. After the Germanic invasions in different parts of the empire, the Roman Emperor of the Western Empire was made to step down the throne in 476 AD, which is the year when the Roman Empire is said to have finally collapsed. However, the eastern part was finally destroyed in 1453 AD. Historians who believe that the Roman Empire finally collapsed in the 15th century after the eastern empire fell, also claim that the rise on Islam was the one of the main reasons for collapse of the Roman Empire.
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