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Cato the Younger
I am not totally in agreement about this. Yes the WESTERN ROMAN EMPIRE was going down, but the Romans had enlisted barbarians a long time before it got to hard to defend the romans from the barbarians.. And it was many things who was in place long before the western roman empire of 476 was falling who made it possible. Not just that it was not enough Citizens to put into the legions. But also that in the 280s, and later a deadly plague, most known as the Black Death had decimated most roman city's and the whole economy was more or less in ruin.. And for the records, the 280 to 330s and later, the roman citizenry could not possible see the difference between the barbarians, and the civilized romans who was plundering them alike. When the tax base who the government had to survive on was going down, the taxes was raised, and for the most part they had to leave both farm and the life they once had, for the insecurity of city life - or worse if it doesn't worked out in gangs to plunderer what came their way..
An another reason that the Western Roman Empire failed, is because of of the people was not used to military experience.. In the Republic it had been important to have military experience, in many cases if you wanted public office, and doesn't had the luxury of money, a lot of it it says, then the army was the way to go. Even that you might never bee the next great general, you could at least get yourself a decent life, and if you had good friends in high places, even some good connection you later could use if you wanted public office. After the Empire of Augustus, the idea of military duty for ALL was fading fast.. And the next emperors was afraid of citizens marching to Rom by arms, so they at best tried to please the plebes, who was being dinned, and pampered with. The plebes of Rom was maybe the most spoiled people in the ancient world, with all type of entertainment to hold them content.. And in any cases the ARMY was been profession all the time.. Less Citizens, and more professionals, who made it possible to hold the legions at a low rate compared to who big the empire indeed was.. But also that most of the Empire never exactly was seeing a soldiers, if they was not in the border area then.. The legions was put in the border area, where they pretty effective for a long, long time managed to stop every barbarians with a bad idea of what to do inside the Empire. Many of the legion camps, over time came City's or trading post where barbarians and romans could trade what they had. And in the proses many barbarians was also getting knowledge of many things the romans know. Not just the roman legions, but also luxury items was traded between the romans and the barbarians.. As long as in South Denmark, they have find lot of luxury items, who clearly is influenced or from the Roman provinces connecting the barbarians and romans with a large trade network who criss crossed not just the Roman world, but also the barbaric world. SO trade was indeed a important factor of knowledge of the roman empire long before the first barbarian decided that they wanted luxury items, more than they wanted to trade or pay for it.. But from the 280s and forward the whole germanic world was in turmoil. New people who wanted land was pushing the others forward them - and at first the roman limits was holding, and the roman soldiers was a big enough force to reckon with, so the barbarians was thrown back over the lines.. But in the 390s, and 400s the whole concept was falling apart, and as more of the Roman legions was barbarized, because most of the soldiers was after all of germanic origin (the name Germany are in part a holdover from what the area the romans was calling Germanic, and had no resentments with the Nazi-idea of Germanic ideas... Just for the record) Then the whole idea of who they wanted to help, their kinds men on the other side, or their commanders came into play.. And in many cases, to many cases the legions was given way for their kinds men on the other side. And in the flood way who followed one province after another was taken over by the barbarians..
And another, the Roman Empire as such doesn't stopped exist in 476, rather the barbarians, officially was made king, by the Eastern Roman Emperor. And protector of the Western Roman Empire. and the whole Roman World was not exactly dead as a idea. It was just "cloaked" in other ideas.. The whole way to 1806 when Napoleon Bonaparte was abdicating the last Holly Roman Emperor of the Germans, the idea of an unified western roman empire was there. Charlemagne was maybe the last western european to ever came that far as making most of the old, and much of the "Germania" a Roman Empire.. Even that many after him tried it was no power again for t. And the history was changing and the national states who was made out of all the tribes who had entered the former roman provinces would never accept a sovern Emperor to rule as before. But in the end the Western Roman world, was ended, when the last roman emperor, had abdicated - he was a young man, almost a boy and just a puppet for his family by the way, and was not murdered or something like that, but rather given a pension, and told to leave for a better place.. And he kind of walked out of the history, no one know what happened to him in the end.. But our sources doesn't tell if he was killed, si I guess he and his family was living peacefully all their life.. And that the barbarians respected and made them safe.. In practice, the last 7 or so roman emperors had just ben weak minded, and often people who was more busy with their hobbies than to rule a empire. And who was put into this high office more because other wanted it, than that THEY wanted to be Emperors.. The future of the roman world, was in the East, who in most of the middle ages was a light in a pretty dark place. Where education, where the old knowledge to a high degree was been put forward, and where in many cases the clings of Europe was holding when the barbarians was getting restless and was hammering hard on the doors of Constantinople.. Constantinople existed as an empire in more than 1000 year AFTER the last roman emperor abdicated to the barbarians in 476.
Diclotican
Sorry my bad english, not my native language.
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