Cycle of an Empire - The Roman Empire

Every culture has an innate, natural ebb and flow that comprises their society. One of the most remarkable examples is that of the Roman Empire. They grew to great measures politically, socially, and religiously. They sought expansion, and financial promise as an empire. All great things, however, come to an end. The Roman Empire was not an all powerful, all knowing society - and the empire fell in exhaust, after a steady decline in power (PBS).
Mistakes in the Roman Empire.

Every civilization implements changes that impact the citizens of the nation. One of the mistakes made amongst the Roman Empire was its drastic expansion and constant need to acquire growth. The surrounding empires became aware of the power that Rome had, and its threat was an ever-growing presence. The senate as a unit defaulted when they allowed an individual to stake claim for power, rather than keeping the senatorial state and decision making a unified control system for the Roman Empire. Once the distribution of power was fought over amongst themselves, societal changes easily affected the masses.

Societal Changes

Societal changes occurred in every large empire. In China, legalism battled Confucianism beliefs; which caused dissent amongst many. The same situation occurred in Rome, with the spread of Christianity. Religion has played an essential role in either unifying or separating classes of individuals in multiple societies, including China, Rome, and Greece.

Financial difficulties also separate classes. Trade is easily affected, which adds hardship to farmers and plebians. Due to the negative impact of trade, local businesses lost potential to thrive, which caused a domino affect in the ability of Rome to continue to succeed and grow. The end result of the domino effect was inflation of Roman funds. Eventually this dissention caused Rome's power to separate. There was a division of power and Rome wasn't necessarily serving as the effective capital of the nation. There was a large following for Constantine, and he had a great influence in separating beliefs amongst Roman citizens. With the separation of power, militia was segregated and easily influenced change. Constantine inspired Roman's and motivated them to change in hopes of an ever-powerful society.

By the time Constantine attempted to implement what would have been positive changes for the residents, the damage to the existing empire had already been ingrained. The empire had already foreseen great change that could not be rebuilt, causing the inevitable downfall of Roman society.

Time dictates how much a society can change and adapt before their purpose is compromised. The Roman Empire left a lasting impression on culture and society all around the world. The successes of the Empire are valued and even implemented into later civilizations.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Roman Empire rose to great power and is the epitome of a successful civilization at its peak. I believe the influence of Christianity to the political foundations of the empire caused much dissention amongst the Romans, which resulted in much debate, and broke a once unified nation. I think as the power started to yield to the Christian belief system, the government stronghold that existed in Rome started to crumble, as did the rest of the empire. All roads led to Rome, which allowed for easy attack on a great nation.

References
Upshur, et all. (2002) World History Before 1600: The Development of Early

Civilization, Belmont, CA: Thomson Learning

PBS. Retrieved January 28, 2008, from http://www.pbs.org/empires/romans/

about.com. Retrieved January 28, 2008,
from
http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/fallofr
ome/a/EndofRome.htm