The collapse of the Roman Empire is a complex historical event with multiple causes, often debated among historians.
There are however, MANY similarities to which the United States seems to be paralleling. For example, the United States set up its entire structure of the Senators and Congress as well as the financial systems to replicate that of the Romans. In fact, you can look at the building structures around Philadelphia and Washington DC and see they also replicate ancient Rome.
Is history repeating itself?
Key factors include:
1. **Political Instability:** Frequent changes in leadership, civil wars, and a lack of effective governance weakened the empire. The system of succession was often unclear, leading to power struggles.
2. **Economic Troubles:** Heavy taxation, reliance on slave labor, and economic inequality strained the empire. Rome also faced inflation, especially in the 3rd century, partly due to overproduction of currency.
3. **Military Problems:** The Roman military faced challenges such as overreliance on non-Roman mercenaries (who were less loyal to Rome), frequent battles on multiple fronts, and the difficulty of defending a vast border.
4. **Barbarian Invasions:** The pressure from various "barbarian" groups like the Visigoths, Vandals, and Huns was a constant threat. Rome's weakening military struggled to fend off these invasions.
5. **Internal Decay:** Moral and societal decay, as some historians argue, led to a weakening of the Roman civic spirit and contributed to the empire's downfall.
6. **Religious Changes:** The rise of Christianity changed the Roman cultural and social landscape, possibly weakening the traditional Roman civic and spiritual values and diverting attention from civic duty.
7. **Plague and Population Decline:** Diseases, possibly including a form of plague, led to significant population decline, impacting agricultural and military capabilities.
8. **Administrative Overextension:** Governing the vast Roman Empire was logistically challenging, leading to inefficient administration and difficulty in responding to crises.
9. **Division of the Empire:** The division into Eastern and Western empires after the reign of Emperor Diocletian made the Western Roman Empire more vulnerable.
One other factor that is commonly overlooked is the climate. During the time leading up to the collapse, there was a volcano that erupted which caused many of the conditions to begin such as crop failure, famine and plague that set up the perfect storm.
It's important to note that the collapse of Rome didn't happen overnight but was a gradual process. The fall of the Western Roman Empire is conventionally dated to 476 AD when the Germanic chieftain Odoacer deposed the last Roman emperor, Romulus Augustulus. Meanwhile, the Eastern Roman Empire, known as the Byzantine Empire, continued for nearly another thousand years until the fall of Constantinople in 1453.
There is but one other similarity…now hear me out on this as I am not by any means saying Donald Trump is in any way shape or form comparable to the perfection of Jesus Christ, but Ancient Rome persecuted an innocent man because they were told to do so, one that did not see eye to eye with their world views, and one who challenged the status quo. The United States is attempting to do the same thing to a single man, Trump, all because he is standing up against corruption and shining light on the darkness. If today’s Sanhedrin equivalent in their mightier-than-thou fashion (ie the Deep State) have their way, Trump will be headed to the gallows, and We The People will be following him as they pick us off one by one.
Again, I don’t think Jesus and Trump compare on any level other than the persecution of one man, but the evil that existed in that day still exists today, and that is what we are truly up against.
In closing, the parallels between the fall of ancient Rome and what we are seeing in the United States seem to be very close in nature. As I have said many times in the past, forget your history and you are bound to repeat it.
Monkey out.