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63 BCE
Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus/Gaius Octavius Thurinus/Octavian/Gaius Julius Caesar
63 BCE to 14 CE -
Period: 63 BCE to 14
Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus/Gaius Octavius Thurinus/Octavian/Gaius Julius Caesar
Octavian was the first emperor of Rome who made a new and better republic that tied in with the monarchy. He was also the one who killed Cleopatra making Egypt a part of the Roman Empire. -
31 BCE
The Return of the Monarchy
From 31 BCE to 14 CE -
Period: 31 BCE to 14
The Return of the Monarchy
By the last century BC the vast military campaigns and the generals who controlled them were in a constant state of war leading to the end of the Roman republic. Augustus came through the winner of these wars and was made the leader of Rome. He claimed to have brought back the republic, but had actually brought back the monarchy. The monarchy did not have total control however, as he created a balance between the senate and the emperor's control over the empire. -
81
Caledonian's
Emperor Vespasian of Rome wanted Scotland to be a part of his empire. The land in question was however inhabited by a group of people called the Caledonian's. They were defeated by Julius Agricola in 81 CE, in a battle that cost them over 30,000 soldiers. The remaining Caledonian's fled to the hills and mounted various attacks at the Roman Northern Outpost. This happened up until the end of the Roman Empire. -
117
Emperor Hadrian
Hadrian became emperor in 117 CE when the Romans were no longer interested in expansion and wanted to protect their land. He built a wall near the border of England and Scotland, the work on which was completely done by Roman soldiers. -
200
Unemployment
Most farms were sold towards the end of the empire due to the lack of money. Farmers didn’t have the money to pay their workers or to produce much crop. With the loss of all these farms, the empire lost a major food source and hundreds of unemployed people crowded the cities. With so many people out of work and so many people to feed the emperor had to important grain, with money they didn't have. Due to so many living on the streets without food crime rates skyrocketed. -
213
The Alemanni
The Alemanni were a constant threat to the Roman Empire. They were defeated in the Battle of Strasbourg by Emperor Julian in 357 CE. They were later defeated again by Emperor Valentinian 1 in 367 CE. After these battles the Franks of Gaul, which the Alemanni were a part of, entered treaties with Rome and were left alone. Sometime later the Alemanni left the Franks. In 496 CE the Frankish king conquered Alemanni and they became part of his kingdom. -
235
The Third Century Crisis
Between 235 and 284 CE -
Period: 235 to 284
The Third Century Crisis
In the 50 years between 235 and 284 CE the Roman Empire suffered political and military instability. This and the many civil wars caused very short reigns for the emperors at the time. Many things contributed to this crisis such as failed attempts at expansion, the creation of enemy confederations, and the monopolization of the military by the government which lead to even more civil wars. -
285
The Eastern and Western Split
During a period known as the Imperial Crisis the Empire broke into many different regions. It was reunited by Aurelian in 270 CE
Diocletian divided it in half in 285 CE creating the Western Roman Empire and Eastern Roman Empire (or the Byzantine Empire).
Diocletian voluntarily retired from his rule in 305 CE. Diocletian had noteworthy heirs Maxentius and Constantine who brought civil war upon the Empire again, with Diocletian's death in 311 CE. -
291
The Visigoths
The Visigoths had many connections to the Romans. Their name and separation came about by a Roman Cassiodorus. Later on when the Visigoths were permitted to living on Roman land, they were promised food but received none and entered a famine. Causing them to rebel and engage in a war with Rome, that they won. With the Visigoths victory at the battle of Adrianople, the Romans were shook. This Visigoths were given land, a new trend which took away more and more from the Roman Empire. -
313
Constantine and Christianity
One of the many contributing factors to the fall of Rome was the rise of Christianity. In 313 CE Constantine ended persecution and declared toleration of Christianity later making it the official state religion. Romans believed the emperor to be a God but with Christians belief in a God that was not the emperor, the emperor's status was weakened greatly. In 330 CE Constantine furthered the fall of the Empire with a redivide of Rome Eastern half centered on Constantinople a city named after him. -
325
The Effects of Religion
Roman Religion was originally polytheistic including many gods which were adopted from the societies they conquered. They did not enforce their religion on those they conquered.Part of the fall of Rome was when Christianity came in and washed away all of their gods in about 325 CE. Throughout all the struggle and change however, religion always remained a big part of Roman culture, even thousands of years into the future with the Empire long gone. -
364
Emperor Valens
364 to 378 -
Period: 364 to 378
Emperor Valens
Valens was the younger brother of Emperor Valentinian 1 and the Eastern Roman Emperor from 364 CE until his death in 378 CE. The Visigoths asked to stay on Roman land and Valens generals excepted. However due to unfulfilled promises and poor conditions the Visigoths rebelled and engaged Rome in the Battle of Adrianople. The poor strategies used in the battle lead to Rome's defeat and Valens demise. -
378
The Battle of Adrianople
The battle occurred between the Ostrogoth's and Visigoths led by the Thervingian’s and the Roman Emperor Valens. This disastrous defeat which had an estimated 10,000 losses showed weaknesses in the Roman military allowing for future attacks by barbarians. Many believe this defeat to be due to the poor leadership of Emperor Valens, not the ineptness of the Roman Military. -
378
Foreigners on the Throne
The time after the Emperor Valens fell is sometimes referred to as the successor kingdoms. There were two stages. Stage 1 consisted of foreign leaders having control only because of military force. Stage 2 involved rather aggressive forms of expansion. Both stages completely striped Rome of its tax based system to fund the army. The money often going into the greedy pockets of the Kings. During this time many Romans lost their estates and it seemed their culture as well. -
475
Romulus Augustulus
Romulus Augustulus was the son of Orestes, the Western master of Soldiers, whom drove Julius Nepos from the throne. His surname was originally August, but was changed when his father elevated him to the throne on October 31, 475 CE. For 12 months Orestes ruled in his sons name before his soldiers mutinied and killed him. Romulus was spared because of his age, given a penchant, and sent to live with relatives in Campania. He was the last Western Roman Emperor. -
476
Odovacar
After Odovacar defeated Orestes and got rid of Romulus Augustulus he handed the west over to the Eastern emperor Zeno in 476 CE. Odovacar asked to become the governor of Italy. All of those in power in what remained of Rome agreed to this and he was in charge of Italy. After winning many battles and making Italy almost whole again, Zeno decided that Odovacar had to much power and sent someone to kill him. Theodoric is believed to have killed Odovacar during a banquet. -
476
Military Involvement in the Fall
The pax romana was a major casualty of the severe change in Rome during 476 CE. When the successor state kings came to power they forced the landowners, which already paid taxes to fund the war, to take part in the war. Paying taxes and fighting in the war was highly unpopular. Kings thought by stopping taxes they could regain control over the people. Giving landowners more control over the state for centuries. Causing Rome to have no tax revenue or professional armies. -
476
The Dark Ages/ Middle Ages
September 476 CE the last Roman Emperor of the west was killed and replaced by a German Prince named Odovacar. The fall of Rome was considered the death of education, literacy, sophisticated architecture, economic interaction, and written law. The single Emperor of Rome was replaced by dozens of Kings and Princes, none of which could hold power without the military. The Roman Empire is considered the last cultural hub before the beginning of the Dark Ages. -
493
Theodoric
Theodoric was commissioned to kill Odovacar and hand the West over to the East. He refused after seeing the state of the West and became the leader of Italy. During his time the country went through a small renaissance. However this time was generally considered the end of the arts, culture, and great academia that was Rome. -
500
The Franks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes. When the Romans controlled Gaul the confederation stopped its territorial expansion. They attacked the Roman empire several times, though some Franks served in the Roman military. After the Romans left this area they continued their expansion and created a vast empire across Europe during the 6th century CE.
