Roman Empire An ancient Roman state that occupied the entire Mediterranean region from 27 BC to 476 AD. In 395, the Roman Empire split into two parts. The Western Roman Empire fell in 476, which is generally regarded by Marxist historiography as the end of the social history of slavery in Western Europe; the Eastern Roman Empire (see Byzantine Empire) gradually evolved into a feudal state, which was destroyed by the Ottoman Empire in 1453.
The history of the Roman Empire is the history in which the classical slave system reached its highest level in the Mediterranean region and eventually declined. The empire is usually divided into the early empire (27 BC-AD 192) and the later empire (193-476), and sometimes the "third-century crisis" period (193-284) is divided from the latter empire.
Early Empire G. Octavian, the victor of the Civil War at the end of the republic, held a series of top positions according to the republican tradition, and actually set the highest power in the country. On January 13, 27 BC, the Senate awarded him the title "Augustus" (meaning "Holy", "Great"). Augustus adopted the title of "Fuhrer" (meaning "first citizen" or "chief elder"), so history calls the political system he established a "Fuhrer system". The head of state is actually a monarchy in the guise of a republic. Its establishment marked the transformation of Rome from a city-state of privileged status by Roman citizens in Italy into an empire that included all slave owners in each province. The long-term rule of Augustus created a relatively stable political situation throughout the empire, ushering in the so-called "Roman Peace" period that lasted for more than a hundred years, laying the foundation for the further development of slavery in the vast area in the 1st and 2nd centuries. Base.
Augustus died in AD 14 and was succeeded by his adopted son Tiberius (reigned 14-37 AD). After that, Caligula (reigned 37-41), Claudius I (reigning 41-54), and Nero (reigning 54-68) successively became emperors. From Augustus to Nero, known as the Claudius dynasty. The throne of the dynasty was inherited by the emperor's relatives. From the reign of Tiberius to Nero, the imperial power was continuously strengthened, the autocratic rule was consolidated, the bureaucracy was developed, and the opponents were brutally suppressed. The result of the emperor's reuse of the Guards led to the participation of the Guards in political affairs, which played a major role in the issue of the emperor's abolition. Nero's profligacy and reckless behavior led to a large-scale Jewish uprising in Palestine in AD 66 and the support of troops of many provincial governors later. After a civil war in which some provincial governors competed for the throne in 1968-69, the Flavian Dynasty was established by TFS Vespasian (reigned 69-79). The throne of the dynasty was also inherited by the emperor's relatives, Titus (reigned from 79 to 81) and Domitian (reigned from 81 to 96) successively became emperors. They further pursued a policy of strengthening imperial power and weakening the power of the Senate. Vespasian and Titus inherited and developed the policy of granting Roman citizenship to the inhabitants of the provinces and attracting the provincial nobles to participate in the imperial administration, which was implemented by Augustus and Claudius. The nobility of the province participated in the Roman Senate. After Domitian's death, MC Nerva (reigned from 96 to 98) succeeded to the throne and created the Antony dynasty in Roman history. Most emperors of this dynasty, such as MU Trajan, PA Hadrian (reigned from 117 to 138), M. Antony, and Marcus Aurelius (reigned from 161 to 180), were born in the province, because of their talents Adopted by their predecessor as an adopted son, he later ascended the throne. When Trajan was in power, a large proportion of the members of the Senate came from the provinces, and it became an institution that reflected the interests of the slave-owning class throughout the empire. He continued to pursue a policy of foreign expansion that brought the empire to its greatest size: Mesopotamia in the east, the Sahara Desert in North Africa in the south, Britain in the west, North to the Carpathian Mountains, and the northern shore of the Black Sea. Hadrian worked to strengthen the imperial power, reorganize the internal affairs, and finally complete the work of establishing the imperial bureaucracy that began with Augustus. The Roman Empire reached its peak during the reign of Antony. He adopted a defensive policy externally (see the copper plate with the rules of Roman religious ceremonies engraved in the color map), maintained peace internally, strengthened the management of the province, rectified the finances, and built roads, thus promoting the prosperity of the province and the development of commerce. However, the "Golden Age" of the empire that emerged in the Antony Dynasty did not last long, and the latent contradictions and struggles developed day by day. By the time of Marcus Aurelius, the Roman Empire was in crisis. The Parthian Empire repeatedly violated the frontier, and the northern barbarians also took advantage of it. Although the invaders were thwarted, the Roman power was insufficient, the imperial treasury was empty, and the emperor was forced to sell his treasures. In 192, the emperor LAA Commodus (who reigned from 180 to 192) was killed and the Antonine dynasty ended.
late empire From 193 to 284, the Roman slavery society was in a comprehensive crisis, known in history as the "Crisis of the Third Century". The root of the crisis lies in the increasingly decadent production relations of slavery, which has become a shackle for the development of productive forces, leading to social and economic stagnation and shrinking, and political chaos. From the Severus dynasty (193-235), the rule of the empire began to falter. LS Severus (reigned from 193 to 211) maintained his rule by increasing military salaries, preferential treatment of soldiers, and bribing the army. After his son MA Antoninus (also known as Caracalla, reigned from 211 to 217) ascended the throne, in order to ease conflicts and expand tax sources, he issued a decree in 212, granting Roman citizenship to all free people in the empire. After the fall of the Severus dynasty, the political situation fell into chaos. "(259-273), the Palmyra Empire (262-272) between Syria and Mesopotamia was born in the east. At the same time, slave and peasant revolts spread throughout Italy and the provinces, especially the Bagau movement in Gaul, which was powerful and long-lasting. The barbarians also broke through the frontier and poured into the territory of the empire (see the ruins of cities in the Roman era on the Mediterranean coast of North Africa), (see the Roman Legion vs. Barbarians), (see the altar of the gods in Rome). Large numbers of barbarians settled in the Roman territory as military immigrants or were absorbed into mercenaries. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, although the social and political crisis of the empire eased temporarily, the social contradictions deepened. As a result of the long-term crisis and social unrest, the municipality and the small and medium-sized landowners in the municipality are declining day by day. The imperial power was concentrated in the hands of big slave owners and big landowners, and the contradictions between them and the vast masses of the oppressed people became more and more acute. In 284, the guard commander GAV Diocletian took the imperial regime (reigned 284-305). He changed the system of heads of state to "Domina special system" (that is, the monarchy), adopted the court ceremonies of the eastern monarchs, and completely abandoned the vestige of the republic. In order to strengthen the rule, the "four emperors system" was implemented, and administrative, military, taxation, and currency reforms were carried out (see Diocletian's reforms). He brutally suppressed the uprisings in Gaul and North Africa, persecuted Christians, and fought actively abroad to temporarily stabilize the situation. But after he abdicated, the empire fell back into a strife of pretenders. In 324 Constantine I reunited the empire. Due to the eastward shift of the economic and cultural center of the empire, in 330 Constantine I moved the capital from Rome to Byzantium and renamed it Constantinople. He continued to implement Diocletian's policies in many aspects, reorganized state institutions, expanded the bureaucracy; promulgated a series of laws, tried his best to maintain slavery, and made the situation of slaves and slave farmers worse. In order to use Christianity to consolidate the reactionary rule, Constantine I issued the "Milan decree" in 313, recognizing the legal status of Christianity, making Christianity gradually become an important pillar of the empire.
The reigns of Diocletian and Constantine I failed to save the fall of the Roman Empire. After the death of Constantine I in 337, the struggle for the throne resumed. Theodosius I (who reigned from 379 to 395) was once restored to unity, but after his death, the empire was divided into two parts: the Western Roman Empire (the capital Rome) and the Eastern Roman Empire (the capital Constantinople). Years of wars in the western half, economic decline, loose urban-rural ties, and increasingly weak governance.
From the middle of the 4th century onwards, the revolts of the oppressed people and the invasions of foreign tribes occurred one after another in the Roman Empire, and the two cooperated with each other to form a huge torrent that impacted the foundation of the empire. The Bagao movement in Gaul rose again, and the Argonist movement also broke out in North Africa, involving slaves, peasants, and poor people. In 376, the Visigoths moved across the Danube to Rome, and revolted in anger because they could not bear the oppression and extortion of Roman officials. In 378 the Visigoths defeated the Roman army, then captured the city of Rome in 410, and established the Visigoth kingdom in southwestern Gaul in 418. The Vandals first moved to Gaul and Spain, and then crossed the sea into North Africa under the pressure of the Visigoths, and established the Vandal-Aran Kingdom in 439. After ravaging the Balkans, the Huns invaded Italy in 452, dealing a heavy blow to the Western Roman Empire. In 455, the Vandals captured Rome and looted it. In southeastern Gaul, the kingdom of Burgundy appeared in 457. In September 476, Odoac, the German mercenary chief, deposed the last Western Roman Emperor, Romulus Augustus, and the Western Roman Empire fell (see Great Migration). The Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire was destroyed by the Ottoman Empire in 1453.
