The End of the Roman Empire?

Orestes, a Roman politician, was appointed "master of soldiers” by the Western Roman Emperor in 475. That same year, Orestes made a deal with Odoacer, the chief of several Germanic tribes. Odoacer was essentially a mercenary who worked for the Western Roman Empire.

Orestes promised land to Odoacer and his soldiers if they would help him overthrow the current emperor. With Orestes’ and Odoacer’s forces joined together, the emperor had no chance of standing against the two, and so he fled without putting up much of a fight.

For some unknown reason, Orestes did not become emperor himself. Instead, he appointed his young son to the throne. Romulus Augustus was either a child or in his early teens when he became an emperor. His father was the real power behind the thrown. As a result his people did not respect Romulus.

But only ten months after Romulus became emperor, Odoacer revolted against Rome. He and his troops had not been given the land that was promised by Orestes. Odoacer’s troops defeated the imperial forces and had Orestes killed. His son, Romulus, was forced to abdicate on September 4, 476.

Odoacer called himself the “King of Italy,” and did not take the title of “Roman Emperor.” In effect, the Western Roman Empire had already ceased to exist even before Odoacer had killed Orestes. In any case, the Eastern Roman Emperor, Zeno, recognized Odoacer as the ruler of Italy, and no emperor ever ruled again from Rome.

Other “Roman Emperors” who were not “Roman”

During the late 700s, a Frankish ruler, by the name of Charlemagne, gained great power in Europe. His empire spread across modern day France and Germany. He was the most powerful man in Western Europe. In the year 800, on Christmas Day, Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne, as the Roman Emperor (even though the Roman Empire had not existed in that part of Europe for over 300 years). Charlemagne’s grandsons would eventually break Charlemagne’s empire apart, but for hundreds of years, there remained a kingdom in Europe which called itself the “Holy Roman Empire.”

Centuries later, Mehmed II, who was the Sultan and ruler of the Ottoman Turks, led an attack on Constantinople in 1453. Constantinople was the capital of the Byzantine Empire. It was one of the best defended cities in the world at that time. Mehmed attacked Constantinople and took over the city. Mehmed renamed the city Istanbul, and he claimed he was the new Roman Emperor because of his victory.

Meanwhile in Russia, Ivan the Great began using the title of “Czar” (related to the word “Caesar”) hinting that his country should be considered the “Third Rome.”

Many other rulers throughout European history would continue to use Roman symbolism to define their leadership over their people.

Figure 1 - Roman Empire around 395

Figure 2 - The Eastern Roman Empire around 500

Influences of the Roman Empire

Many aspects of today's society have been affected by ancient Rome. Creation of law, development and organization of a democratic government, influences in language, literature, art, infrastructure (roads/water works/etc.), and city-planning are all areas influenced by Roman ideas.

One important area of influence was Roman law. The first law code was the Twelve Tables setting rules and guidelines for taxation, property ownership and disagreements between people. This is the beginning of what is now known as civil law. As the republic developed so did their laws. Laws were developed to

protect citizens from one another and from the power of the government. The ideas of equal treatment under the law, a person being innocent until proven guilty, the burden of proof resting with the accuser, and the idea that a law that seems grossly unfair or unreasonable can be set aside underlies the United States' criminal justice system and also came from those early Roman ideas.

The Roman process of organizing government, keeping a balance of powers, and making laws also had a deep influence on modern democratic political systems and influenced our founding fathers deeply as they drafted the Constitution (Bill of Rights/Laws) of the United States of America in 1787.

Other influences from Rome:

Language: Rome was responsible for the spread of the Latin Language, which has formed the basis for many western languages including English, Spanish, Italian, French, and Romanian. Latin is also the formal language used in medicine, science, and law. Latin roots form the foundation of many of our common words.

Literature: Roman authors followed the famous Greek authors, often developing and building upon Greek writing. Many writers have been influenced by the Romans including famous Renaissance writers such as Milton who wrote Paradise Lost and Shakespeare who wrote plays like Julius Caesar and Antony and Cleopatra.

Art: Roman Art has also influenced today's society. The use of pictures of leaders on money, sculpture as monuments and decoration, mosaics and friezes are some areas where Roman influence can be seen.

City Planning and Infrastructure: Roman cities were laid out in a highly organized pattern or grid system of streets to make sure that traffic of people and horses could easily get into and out of the cities as well as move around efficiently inside. The use of Roman roads, gutters, and sewers were so innovative the same design is used in all modern cities around the world. Romans used street signs, mile markers, addresses, underground pipes for carrying clean water to the cities as well as a network of aqueducts to bring water in from great distances. Cities also had parks, public libraries, fountains, baths, market places, fast food, sports stadiums and plazas.

Architecture: Can you spot Roman influences by looking at the government buildings of Washington D.C.? (large in size, domes, arches, columns, made of marble, ionic and Corinthian pillars, Roman key design, pediments, friezes, statues, and engravings)

Religion: Ironically, Romans also spread Christianity. Once made legal by Constantine, the religion was freely practiced by many and spread throughout the empire by missionaries and merchants along trade routes around the entire Mediterranean. When the empire split so did Christianity into Eastern Orthodox Christians in Constantinople and Roman Catholic Christians in Rome.

Many aspects of our everyday life can be traced back to ancient Rome, such as components of language, architecture, art, and Western government.

From McDougal Little (Medieval World History)