Houghton Mifflin Social Studies
Chapter 2, Lesson 1: The Fall of the Roman Empire (pp. 26-31)
I. The Empire in Prosperity
B. At its greatest size, the Roman Empire stretched from Britain to Africa and from Spain to Syria.
C. Rome's provinces provided trade, taxes, and buffer zones.
II. The Empire in Crisis
B. Generals and politicians fought for control of the Roman Empire, straining the treasury and food supply.
B. In A.D. 324, Emperor Constantine tried to stabilize the empire by establishing a stronger eastern capital city at Byzantium.
C. In A.D. 395, the Roman Empire split in two, with the Roman Empire in the west and the Byzantine Empire in the east.
D. The Byzantine Empire prospered for the next 1,000 years, but the last Roman emperor eventually fell in A.D. 76.
Lesson at a Glance Outline
A. From 27 B.C. to A.D. 14, Augustus ruled the Roman Empire, ending power struggles and expanding into new territories.
A. In the late A.D. 300s, thousands of barbarians entered the empire for protection from the Huns.
III. The Empire in Transition
A. In A.D. 284, Emperor Diocletian tried to reform the empire by dividing it among four rulers in four capitals and by increasing the size of the Roman army.
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