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There are many factors to why the Roman Empire fell, one of them must be the sudden deaths of Valentinian II in 392 AD and Flavius Constantius in 421 AD, which left the Western Empire without heirs. Thus Stilicho and Aetius became the defacto rulers of the Western Empire in the absence of a legitimate ruler. Both men could not wield absolute power in the face of external problems as they were not Emperor and persistently needed to fight inwardly first to gain power of the Empire.
The two events that occurred while both Emperors reigned were the hardest blows the Empire suffered:
1) Under the reign of Honorius and regency of Stilicho, the Rhine Invasion occurred 406 AD, which ultimately led to the invasion of North Africa by the Vandals, Alans, and Suebi in 429 AD.
2) Under the reign of Valentinian and after the regency of Galla Placidia, Attilla the Hun invaded the Eastern Roman Empire in 441 AD, and then invaded the Western Roman Empire in 451 AD.
Preceding both of these events, there was no valid Emperor who could react to these problems, while Honorius was a child, Stilicho became the defacto ruler of the Empire, and by the time Honorius came of age, Stilicho had the continuity of leadership which undermined the role of Emperor, the same event occurred under Valentinian with Aetius.
Both Emperors assassinated the the defacto rulers, which not only ended their lives, but ended the continuity or power that they wielded, a purge was carried out after the assassination of Stilicho.
So one of the main factors for the Fall of the West was Child Emperors.
cont-
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no it was becuz they didnt invent stirrups u fukin mongoloid
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>>2824808
Wouldn't allow me to post earlier.
> ---------------------------------------------------------------
> Flavius Honorius Augustus
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honorius_(emperor)
> Honorius became Western Roman Emperor at the age of 10 in 393 AD
> Flavius Stilicho
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stilicho
> The most powerful man in the Western Roman Empire
> Valentinian II
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentinian_II
> Valentinian was found hanged in his residence in Vienne in 392
> ---------------------------------------------------------------
> Valentinian III
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentinian_III
> Valentinian became as Western Emperor in Rome at the age of six in 425 AD
> Flavius Aetius
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flavius_Aetius
> The most powerful man in the Western Roman Empire
> Flavius Constantius
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantius_III
> Died suddenly on September 2, 421
> ---------------------------------------------------------------
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Another factor was the Greeks taking over the Senate, then shifted Imperial power to the East, virtually abandoning the Western Empire.
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>>2825368
The Senate by that point was irrelevant. How could it have influenced where the capital was? The capital was moved because Constantinople was closer to the frontiers and easier defended than the declining Rome.
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Rome was already a shell of itself by the 200s. Native romans weren't having kids, while barbarian inhabitants were. Population was dropping, tax revenues falling, trade dried up.
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Except you're wrong, none of those events have hundred year spans of influence. The economy being undermined by the government was the true force that undermined the empire in the west. Economic activity in the empire was based off long distance trade facilitated by coin. However, the aristocrats and government officials undermined the faith in the currency by clipping the coins of their precious metallic worth. this meant that over time currency simply was no longer useable after being clipped of all its worth. Due to demand for currency increasing heavy inflation hit the empire. Taxes were taken in coin, which meant that people had to work jobs that would pay in coin or otherwise avoid paying taxes fleeing from the urban centers of the western empire. Deurbanization occurred, and the economy shifted from long-distance high volume trade toward local trade along villa and village.
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alright you fags I'm going to fix the shit out of this empire and then I-
*gets tortured for five days, beheaded, and then thrown in a river*
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>>2825981
>The capital was moved because Constantinople was closer to the frontiers
No, Rome was a pagan shithole, Constantinople was a New Rome built on Christianity, which lasted a 1000 years longer. In fact, East Rome only collapsed as the Westerners finally got so pissed off with their fake Greek lies, the Latin West sacked them, left them like an empty vessel before the barbarians.
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>>2826028
>Except you're wrong, none of those events have hundred year spans of influence.
I never said this was the sole reason for the Fall of the West, I said it was one of the FACTORS in a larger group of reasons.
>>2826028
This was solved in Diocletian's reign. Attilla destroyed everything north of the Haemus mountains, Attila depopulated the center, divided and conquered both.
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>nobody will ever make a big budget movie about Stilicho or Flavius Aetius
>if they do they'll probably be dressed like 1st century generals
>we'll never get fabulous 5th century armor on screen
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>>2826099
Western Rome had some pretty kick ass armor
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>>2826099
I doubt the armies of Rome were so uniform to begin with.
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>>2826142
In the late period most units in one area would look pretty much the same since they were equipped with mass-produced gear from a local Fabrica.
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>>2826181
And the quality and uniformity depended on the current economic factors.
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>>2826028
Nigga the main method of tax payment was in kind (i.e. not in money) since at least the time of Diocletian. It's half the reason why there were so many laws made to force farmers to stay on their land where they were.
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>>2826188
>depended on the current economic factors.
If there was one certainty in Late Antiquity it's that the "factories" would be putting out quality weapons and armour.
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>>2826035
>>pagan shithole
That's funny considering that it was under "pagan" gods that the empire flourished and grew wealthy and powerful, and it declined when there was only one god. Byzantium did little more then lose territory, regain some but not all of it, and then repeat this process before being conquered by the sort of barbarians that the old empire used to crush.
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>>2825368
>implying the senate had any influence
The capital was moved to make the Emperor and the court closer to the action, and to get them away from Rome itself. It's why Maximian was in Milan and Diocletian in Nicomedia.
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>>2827530
>pagan Julian invades Persia after persecuting Christianity
>his army is soundly defeated and he is slain by persians
Truly the Pagan gods supported the Romans.
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