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131 sats \ 2 replies \ @mallardshead 9 Oct 2023 \ on: Why did Rome fail? meta
I mean, Rome went through many very different iterations (dynasties)
- kingdom
- republic
- empire
- dual empire (byzantine)
They all failed for different reasons. To say "Rome" failed because of money debasement is an over-simplification. It exacerbated things, but with plagues, climate change destroying farmland, spread of christianity, invasions, rise of the Ottoman Empire, ineffective dictators, etc, it was always going to fail, and power was always going to distribute. I mentally stop thinking about Rome shortly after the Civil Wars, even though the empire lasted another 12 centuries. It's really that period between the Punic Wars and Civil Wars that's classic Hollywood romantic Rome. The rest is just bullshit trying to imitate it.
100%. As per your post in the other thread, you can draw any lesson you want from Rome, as it encompassed most of life and Western civilization at its peak.
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I'm not expert on Rome but ANYTIME someone tries to tell you some complex system failed because of one simple thing... they are probably leaving a LOT out. We want everything to be simple black and white but it rarely is that simple.
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