What was a key problem in the history of Rome that undermined its stability?

Answer 1

The fickleness of the Legions was one of the "key problems", especially during the first century B.C., "year of the four emperors" (69 A.D) and the disastrous 3rd century A.D. It not only undermined the vaunted Legions, but Rome as well.

Civil wars was an inescapable problem that plagued Rome from the beginning i.e. the supposed mythical dispute between the brothers, Romulus and Remus. This "problem" was not only due to ambiguity of succession in the principate, but the age old Roman tradition of patronage.

According to Phillip Spann, “Marius and Sulla learnt the Arcanum rei publicae, the secret of the Republic . . . that power and honors lay not in law and traditions of the Republic . . . but in a loyal army made up of men whose experience in war and devotion to their commander had been forged in extended provincial command, of men who were eager for farms and retirement, men ready to conquer Rome and kill Romans for their general and their price.” This secret was later used by others such as Julius Caesar, Augustus, and Vespasian.

They military playing field also became more level as Germanic mercenaries adapted legionary fighting techniques and became as efficient and deadly as their Roman counterparts.

Answer 2

Perhaps the key was Taxation. As Rome successively conquered the then known world the provinces paid tribute to Rome in grain and money. This drove down the price of food, but it also drove down the income of the local farmers. The nobility did not pay taxes on their land, but the commoners did. The nobles were the tax collectors. When the farmers could not pay they transferred their land to the nobility and became little more than serfs. The serfs drifted to the city of Rome where the emperor wishing to keep down unrest of the hungry populace furnished free bread and circuses. The ordinary man who had made such a good soldier in the Roman Legions then had nothing to fight for and little interest in defending Rome. The Roman Emperor became more and more dependent on hired mercenary troops for the Roman Army. Mercenaries had little interest in anything but getting paid. Thus when the Mediterranean pirates burned Ostia, the port city of Rome, the Senate panicked and granted Pompey extraordinary power which the Senate never got back. Over the next 200 years a poorly defended Rome got sacked by the Goths, Visigoths, Vandals and other savage people from North Europe.

Answer 3

There were many factors that worked together to undermine the stability of Rome but I think one of the key ones was the lack of expansion and failure to neither subdue nor negotiate peace with the barbarian hordes on their borders. This meant that there were no new lands being acquired, no new sources of wealth while expensive wars had to be fought and significantly no new slave labour upon which the Roman economy depended heavily.

Answer 4

The other answers are all interesting and good, but I'll take a different direction. Some have made the point that they use of lead in the water supply impacted the mental stability of the population.

Answer 5

The failure of an orderly succession to the throne of Caesar, economic instability, overexpansion of the Empire and the embracing of a pacifist religion- Christianity would be four main factors in the decline of Rome.

Answer 6

The rulers of Rome gained so much power from the Senate, they became dictators for life and ultimately cut so much power from the Senate that the Senate became a title without power to effectively govern. Tyranny or dictatorship cannot withstand the weather of time, and ultimately falls on it's own.

Answer 7

1. It grew too big, and started to have trouble getting enough soldiers.

2. The Barbarians Rome failed to deal with.

3. The Romans over- imposed their culture, eventually causing widespread dissent.

Answer 8

The growing immorality, greed and gluttoness of its leaders wore thin on the underprivileged and caused them to loose the respect of the masses they governed.

Kinda like what's going on in the U.S. these days.

Answer 9

I'm going to have to say the people making up the ruling body (ie the senate) they were all in it for themselves instead of the people. When you sit and squabble you aren't helping anybody.

Answer 10

the german wave and the other barbarian invasions