My class notes say that Rome was having problems with having a loyal and strong army. For example, there were, “military leaders fighting among themselves”(Data Set). Another example was that there were, “troops in battle, exposed to wounds because they have no armor, think about running and not about fighting”(Document 2). Also, “Hosts of senators, bureaucrats, and clergymen were entitled the avoid the draft…”(Document 3). The Romans were so successful that they started laying back. Because of this, helmets and breastplates were not being made, causing soldiers to die in battle. The army started strong but soon plummeted into failure, because of their inertia. This caused military leaders to run away from the draft and back down. My mom told me that, “The United States, today, does not have problems with keeping a loyal and dependable army because there are army camps that train soldiers to fight for our country and America has an alliance with many other countries. Also, many veterans today are willing to die for America.” So based on this information, I think the United States may not fall because it is different to Rome on having military problems. Sources say that Rome was having troubles with maintaining a healthy empire. …show more content…
For example, “the population of Rome decreased from a million people to 250,000”(Document 5). Another example was, “disease spreads in Rome”(Data Set). Also, “economic life worsened in consequence,”(Document 5). The plague was so deadly that it wiped out ¾ the population of Rome. This may have been caused because of the many immigrants entering Rome, in order to become a Roman citizen. Because of this decrease, the Roman army deteriorated and more money was spent. This was another main reason of the decline of the Roman Empire. My mom stated that, “Our country does not have issues with health today, because we have scientists and technology to help us find cures and reduce the number of diseases. Even though America is a “land of immigrants”, it is much stronger than Rome.” Based on this data, I think the United States may not fall because it is disparate to Rome when it comes to health issues. Rome also did not have correct way of choosing a good leader. Their political issues kept ascending. An example of this is, “Florianus, 276 AD, Assassination...Probus, 276-82 AD, Assassination...Carus, 282-83 AD, Assassination.” In a period of seven years, there were four rulers. This shows that Romans killed each other to become a leader. Another example that shows Rome’s political problems was that the, “emperor’s elected by bribery”(Data Set). If the Romans were paying to rule the country, there was no guarantee that the empire was in safe hands. The Brainpop video explained to us that a cause of the decline of Rome was bad ruling. A leader by the name of Commodus, in 180 CE, decided to take his decisions by ignoring the Senate. This cause tension and later, another cause of the fall