Rome's Downward Spiral

               Today in class, I first went to go get my shadow from St. Joan of Ark. I actually brought in the wrong shadow at first...so I had to go back and get the right one. Afterwards we took some notes on the downward spiral of Rome. We took notes on things like:

•        Country dwellers are getting bankrupted by endless tax collection. New farming system: peasants work for elite landlords on large farms

•        Peasants can avoid paying taxes, but they are getting hit just as hard by the landlords

•        Paying off debts and being "allowed" to live on the land, in exchange for endless back breaking work when you can never get ahead

•        Landowner had local power as counts and bishops, wielding more real power than the faraway empire

•        Foreshadowing feudalism

•        Rome's power is decreasing while nomadic barbarians gain power

•        Western empire is too poor, beings to be neglected

•        Huns migrate from china to eastern Europe

•        Visigoths take over, Spain and actually capture and loot Rome itself in 410

•        Vandals control Carthage and the western Mediterranean 

•        Other barbarian tribes:

•        Ostrogoth in Italy

•        Franks in Gaul

•        Anglo Saxons in Britain

•        End of an era

•        From the beginning

•        500 B.C. - the monarchy is abolished

•        450 B.C. - twelve tables are established

•        Through the glory days

•        44 BC - end of Julius C

•        27 BC- 180 AD Pax Romana

•        To bitter end

•        Constant 5th century invasions by barbarian tribes left the western Roman Empire shattered and crumbling

•        The last emperor was a tonnages boy installed in 475 BC by his father

•        Barbarians deposed Romulus Augustulus bothering to kill him

After we took notes we got with a partner and researched the Huns, Ostrogoths, Visigoths, Vandals (etc)