how to explain the fall of the Roman Empire in the West?
Note that Empire does not “fall” in the eastern Mediterranean where it continues as the “Byzantine Empire”. Moreover, the concept of Rome persists long after the collapse of the West. More acutely our issue now is what were the factors in the barbarization of the West: • Internal problems • Internal population decline (?) due to: • Plague One such disease, known as the Antonine plague, occurred during the reign of Marcus Aurelius (161-180 A.D.). It was brought back by soldiers returning from the Middle East, and before it abated, it had affected Asia Minor, Egypt, Greece, and Italy. The plague destroyed as much as one-third of the population in some areas, and decimated the Roman army. In 180, Marcus Aurelius caught some type of infection and died in his army camp. There has been some speculation that this infection was the plague. Another plague occurred during the reigns of Decius (249-251 A.D.) and Gallus (251-253 A.D.). This pestilence broke out in Egypt in 251, and from there infe
