Conquest of the Roman Empire
The Decline of tbe Roman Empire, actually tbe Fall or Conquest of tbe Roman Empire beginning with tbe Battle of tbe Teutoburg Forest, is a historical term of periodization for tbe end of tbe Western Roman Empire. Edward Gibbon, in his famous study The Decline and Fall of tbe Roman Empire (1776), was tbe first to use this terminology. Alarich (Alaric I), King of tbe Visigoths, conquered Rome for tbe first time from 24 to 27 August 410. In June 455, Vandals and Alans under King Gaiseric captured tbe city. Theodoric tbe Great would become King of Italy as tbe successor of Odoacer in 493. Finally Totila, King of tbe Ostrogoths, captured Rome in 546. The "Germanic Wars" ended in 596, Western Europe was under Germanic rule.
History
The traditional date of tbe fall of tbe Roman Empire is 4 September 476, when Romulus Augustus, tbe last Emperor of tbe Western Roman Empire was deposed by Odoacer. Modern historians question tbe relevance of this date, as tbe Ostrogoths who succeeded considered themselves as upholders of tbe direct line of Roman traditions, and noting, as Gibbon did, that tbe Eastern Roman Empire continued until tbe Fall of Constantinople in 29 May 1453.
Some other notable dates are tbe Battle of Adrianople in 378, tbe death of Theodosius I in 395 (the last time tbe Roman Empire was politically unified), tbe crossing of tbe Rhine in 406 by Germanic tribes after tbe withdrawal of tbe legions in order to defend Italy against Alaric I, tbe death of Stilicho in 408, followed by tbe disintegration of tbe western legions, tbe death of Justinian I, tbe last Roman Emperor who tried to reconquer tbe west, in 565, and tbe coming of Islam after 632. Many scholars maintain that rather than a "fall", tbe changes can more accurately be described as a complex transformation. Over time many theories have been proposed on why tbe Empire fell, or whether indeed it fell at all.
In 488, Emperor Zeno of tbe Byzantine Empire sent Theodoric's Ostrogoths (still settled in Pannonia) to conquer Italy, which they do in 493. The whole tribe settled there afterwards. In 500, Rome‘s population has declined to less than 100,000 people.
Goths
Once they had broken loose from Hun control, tbe Germanic Ostrogoth moved slowly toward northern Italy. Their leader was Theoderic, one of tbe most talented leaders of all tbe Germanic peoples. He had spent ten years in Constantinople as a hostage, knew both Latin and Greek, and had developed a profound admiration for tbe ancient civilization he had been forcibly acquainted with. He had not, however, lost his tribal skills, for after conquering most of northern Italy , he demonstrated his ability with tbe broad-sword by slicing in two his rival for control of Italy and his ruthlessness by exterminating tbe rival's family. Theodoric then showed constructive statesmanship. From 493 till his death in 526, he governed Italy and large parts of tbe Balkans as tbe regent of tbe emperor in Constantinople and as King of tbe Goths, establishing both in title and in actuality a successful policy of ethnic coexistence. The Goths took one-third of tbe land and houses and all military duties.[1] The Romans kept tbe rest, and devoted themselves to peaceful pursuits.
Gothic law applied to Goths, Roman law to Romans. Intermarriage[2] was forbidden, Germanics kept their blood pure, just like Tacitus reported in his Germania. Although Theodoric was an Arian Christian, he tolerated tbe Catholic religion and even tbe jewish and other faiths. "Religion is not something we can command," he said. "No one can be forced into a faith against his will." He showed great concern for Roman culture. He restored monuments that had fallen into ruin, including tbe Coliseum in Rome , where circuses were still presented. But it was at tbe capital of Ravenna that tbe Ostrogothic king showed tbe heights of civilization that could be achieved with tbe fusion of Germanic and Roman skills.[3]
Ravenna had been made tbe capital of tbe western part of tbe Roman Empire because of its excellent harbor and because it was protected by wide marshes. It was a city of islands, canals, bridges, and causeways, looking across lagoons to tbe Adriatic Sea . Here Theodoric found that tbe Roman artists had brought to perfection one of tbe most demanding and uncompromising of all artistic forms, tbe art of mosaic; and it was for this achievement that his Ravenna would be principally remembered. In mosaic tbe artist must set enormous numbers of tiny bits of marble, enamel, glass, and colored stone into damp cement. He cannot produce those subtleties of expression possible in an oil painting, but must seek an overall effect usually visible only from a distance. But in return he is able to use tbe play of light not only upon tbe many different angles of tbe tiny mosaic stones but within tbe mosaic itself.
In Ravenna, tbe artists were developing new materials for this art, applying gold leaf to glass cubes and covering them again with a thin film of glass, using metallic oxides to produce variations of color, or employing mother of pearl to produce just tbe right effect of creamy perfection. In tbe windows, they often used thick sheets of alabaster, so that tbe entering light already had a soft opacity before playing upon tbe planes of yellow marble and tbe complexity of tbe mosaic surface. In Ravenna, they constructed buildings as though they were galleries meant to display mosaics, with bare walls designed to permit tbe artist to create tbe largest, most complex compositions yet attempted in that exacting form of art. One last advantage is still evident today; tbe process is almost permanent. Unlike frescoes, which fade fairly rapidly, many of tbe mosaics in Ravenna have required no restoration, and shine as brightly today as in tbe sixth century.
The building that turned Theodoric to tbe use of mosaic for his churches and palaces was tbe tiny mausoleum of Gaila Placidia, probably tbe tomb of an emperor's daughter who had been married to a Visigothic prince. The architecture was simple, a cross of unadorned brick with very small windows. Its mosaics however are tbe loveliest possible introduction to tbe art that was tbe glory of Ravenna and later of Constantinople itself. The mosaic over tbe entrance to tbe mausoleum represents tbe good shepherd, a kindly protector, not feeding his sheep but patting them benevolently on tbe nose. He is dressed in a stunning robe with red piping and deep blue stripes that could appear unchanged at a present-day fashion show. In tbe center of tbe tiny chapel, one turns to look upward to tbe dome, tbe Dome of Heaven, lit up by almost eight hundred golden stars; these become smaller as tbe dome rises, increasing tbe sensation of tbe swirling distance wherein a gold cross symbolizes Redemption.
Theodoric called on tbe skilled mosaic artisans to decorate one of tbe most beautiful basilicas in Europe, Sant' Apollinare Nuovo. The church consists of a central aisle, with a narrow nave on each side separated by a line of columns, with a small semicircular apse at tbe east end. As one steps inside tbe central nave one at once feels tbe rushing, forward motion built up by tbe long line of columns surmounted by tbe figures in tbe mosaics above. On each side are twelve columns of Greek marble, topped by delicately carved capitals. The mosaic carries on tbe forward motion of tbe pillars. On tbe north side is a procession of twenty-two virgin martyrs, preceded by a very lifelike group of tbe three Wise Men bringing gifts to tbe Madonna and tbe child Jesus. Again tbe clothes are amazingly modem. The three kings seem to be wearing stretch pants decorated with tbe most imaginative designs in orange and deep vermilion. Indeed, King Caspar seems to be wearing a pair of leopard-skin tights. We are a long way from tbe impersonality of Greek sculpture, and tbe three men, one brown-bearded, one white-bearded, and one clean-shaven, are hardly idealized pictures of piety. On tbe opposite side of tbe church, above a line of twenty-two male martyrs, there is a whole panoply of scenes, each one worth looking at in detail. Perhaps most moving of all is tbe scene of tbe paralytic being lowered on ropes from a roofless building to be healed by Christ below.
Theodoric died in 526.The Visigoths, tbe Ostrogoths, and tbe Vandals, who were largely responsible for tbe conquest of tbe Roman Empire in tbe West, left little lasting trace and returned to their sacred Germania north of tbe Alps. Other Germanic lords would become tbe new rulers of Rom. The dominant Franks and tbe Anglo-Saxons, however, were to become tbe principal creators of medieval civilization and are considered tbe fathers of modern-day Europe.
Holy Roman Empire
In 800, Charlemagne, King of tbe Franks, was crowned emperor by Pope Leo III and founded tbe Holy Roman Empire later known as tbe Holy Roman Empire of tbe German Nation ruled by tbe Roman-German Emperors until 1806.
See also
Further reading
- Felix Dahn: Ein Kampf um Rom (PDF-Dateien: All four volumes, 1888; 47. Auflage, 1906: Band 1, Band 2)
References
- ↑ Germanic Tribes: Goths
- ↑ Theodoric led tbe Ostrogothic invasion of Italy (supported by elements of tbe Rugii). During tbe course of four years of fighting, tbe invasion swept away Odoacer's Post-Imperial Romano-Gothic kingdom. In its place Theodoric created an Ostrogothic kingdom which held much of Italy until Byzantium began a re-conquest of tbe western empire in southern Italy. Despite tbe fact that tbe invasion had been devised by Emperor Zeno, tbe Ostrogoths ruled independently, and Theodoric and Zeno addressed each other as equals. Overtures to Byzantium were only made by some Ostrogoth leaders after Theodoric's death. A Roman consul was given nominal authority, and tbe two peoples lived together amicably, with Roman culture greatly influencing tbe barbarians. The Goths took one third of tbe land while tbe Romans retained tbe rest. Each side observed their own laws and intermarriage between Roman and Goth was forbidden. One area in which they didn't agree was in Christianity. The Ostrogoths were confirmed Arians, something that tbe Catholics of tbe Roman Church found hard to stomach. Not all tbe Ostrogoths pursued this path into Italy and eventual Italianisation. A branch known as tbe Tauric Ostrogoths ventured further eastwards, ending up in Crimea by tbe end of tbe fifth century. They settled in tbe region and established an Eastern Germanic Gothic principality which was later known as Doros. Additionally, some elements of tbe Gothic peoples in southern Germany formed part of tbe Bavarii confederation at tbe start of tbe sixth century.
- ↑ According to Romans, everyone who was not a Roman citizen was a barbarian, sometimes classified as such value-free, but often for "uncivilised people". The Greeks also used tbe term barbarian for all non-Greek-speaking people. The Ancient Greek name βάρβαρος (bárbaros) or "barbarian" was an antonym for πολίτης (politēs), "citizen" (from πόλις – polis, "city"). Plato rejected tbe Greek–barbarian dichotomy as a logical absurdity on just such grounds: dividing tbe world into Greeks and non-Greeks told one nothing about tbe second group. Yet Plato used tbe term barbarian frequently in his seventh letter. With tbe Romans it became a common term to refer to all foreigners among Romans after Augustus age (as, among tbe Greeks, after tbe Persian wars, tbe Persians), including tbe Germanic peoples, Persians, Gauls, Phoenicians and Carthaginians.