Let's make Britain great again

[Hermit]

The pretensions and preoccupations of my school History teacher put me off the subject for years.

I know what you mean. My English teacher almost managed to put me off Shakespeare.

[Forty Two]

the history of the second half of the Roman Empire is far more complex than simply "financial decline, social collapse and upheaval, loss of security, civil war, divisions of state and general chaos."

Yes, you could dissect "financial decline, social collapse and upheaval, loss of security, civil war, divisions of state and general chaos." into ever smaller parts. You'd finish up with a list similar to this:

Abolition of gods; Abolition of rights; Absence of character; Absolutism; Agrarian question; Agrarian slavery; Anarchy; Anti-Germanism; Apathy; Aristocracy; Asceticism; Attack of the Germans; Attack of the Huns; Attack of riding nomads; Backwardness in science; Bankruptcy; Barbarization; Bastardization; Blockage of land by large landholders; Blood poisoning; Bolshevization; Bread and circuses; Bureaucracy ; Byzantinism; Capillarite sociale; Capitals, change of; Caste system; Celibacy; Centralization; Childlessness; Christianity; Citizenship, granting of; Civil war; Climatic deterioration; Communism; Complacency; Concatenation of misfortunes; Conservatism; Capitalism; Corruption; Cosmopolitanism; Crisis of legitimacy; Culinary excess; Cultural neurosis; Decentralization; Decline of Nordic character; Decline of the cities; Decline of the Italian population; Deforestation; Degeneration; Degeneration of the intellect; Demoralization; Depletion of mineral resources; Despotism; Destruction of environment; Destruction of peasantry; Destruction of political process; Destruction of Roman influence; Devastation; Differences in wealth; Disarmament; Disillusion with stated goals of empire; Division of empire; Division of labor; Earthquakes; Egoism; Egoism of the state; Emancipation of slaves; Enervation; Epidemics; Equal rights, granting of; Eradication of the best; Escapism; Ethnic dissolution; Excessive aging of population; Excessive civilization; Excessive culture; Excessive foreign infiltration; Excessive freedom; Excessive urbanization; Expansion; Exploitation; Fear of life; Female emancipation; Feudalization; Fiscalism; Gladiatorial system; Gluttony; Gout; Hedonism; Hellenization; Heresy; Homosexuality; Hothouse culture; Hubris; Hypothermia; Immoderate greatness; Imperialism; Impotence; Impoverishment; Imprudent policy toward buffer states; Inadequate educational system; Indifference; Individualism; Indoctrination; Inertia; Inflation; Intellectualism; Integration, weakness of; Irrationality; Jewish influence; Lack of leadership; Lack of male dignity; Lack of military recruits; Lack of orderly imperial succession; Lack of qualified workers; Lack of rainfall; Lack of religiousness; Lack of seriousness; Large landed properties; Lead poisoning; Lethargy; Leveling, cultural; Leveling, social; Loss of army discipline; Loss of authority; Loss of energy; Loss of instincts; Loss of population; Luxury; Malaria; Marriages of convenience; Mercenary system; Mercury damage; Militarism; Monetary economy; Monetary greed; Money, shortage of; Moral decline; Moral idealism; Moral materialism; Mystery religions; Nationalism of Rome's subjects; Negative selection; Orientalization; Outflow of gold; Over refinement; Pacifism; Paralysis of will; Paralysization; Parasitism; Particularism; Pauperism; Plagues; Pleasure seeking; Plutocracy; Polytheism; Population pressure; Precociousness; Professional army; Proletarianization; Prosperity; Prostitution; Psychoses; Public baths; Racial degeneration; Racial discrimination; Racial suicide; Rationalism; Refusal of military service; Religious struggles and schisms; Rentier mentality; Resignation; Restriction to profession; Restriction to the land; Rhetoric; Rise of uneducated masses; Romantic attitudes to peace; Ruin of middle class; Rule of the world; Semieducation; Sensuality; Servility; Sexuality; Shamelessness; Shifting of trade routes; Slavery; Slavic attacks; Socialism (of the state); Soil erosion; Soil exhaustion; Spiritual barbarism; Stagnation; Stoicism; Stress; Structural weakness; Superstition; Taxation, pressure of; Terrorism; Tiredness of life; Totalitarianism; Treason; Tristesse; Two-front war; Underdevelopment; Useless eaters; Usurpation of all powers by state; Vain gloriousness; Villa economy; Vulgarization

That done, you'll need to summarise again in order to come up with a meaningful statement, and that summary in turn could be summarised. It'll likely look something like this: "The Roman empire fell after around 350 years of financial decline, social collapse and upheaval, loss of security, civil war, divisions of state, and general chaos."

Though the common people probably were not particularly aware of it at the time - their everyday existence would not have changed markedly with Odoacer's crowning - it's fair to say that the (western) Roman Empire ceased to exist when the last person that could remotely be regarded as a Roman Emperor (no, it was not Julius Nepos) was toppled on September 4 476 AD.

"All right... all right... but apart from better sanitation and medicine and education and irrigation and public health and roads and a freshwater system and baths and public order... what have the Romans done for us?"

[Brian Peacock]

[Hermit]

the history of the second half of the Roman Empire is far more complex than simply "financial decline, social collapse and upheaval, loss of security, civil war, divisions of state and general chaos."

Yes, you could dissect "financial decline, social collapse and upheaval, loss of security, civil war, divisions of state and general chaos." into ever smaller parts. You'd finish up with a list similar to this:

Abolition of gods; Abolition of rights; Absence of character; Absolutism; Agrarian question; Agrarian slavery; Anarchy; Anti-Germanism; Apathy; Aristocracy; Asceticism; Attack of the Germans; Attack of the Huns; Attack of riding nomads; Backwardness in science; Bankruptcy; Barbarization; Bastardization; Blockage of land by large landholders; Blood poisoning; Bolshevization; Bread and circuses; Bureaucracy ; Byzantinism; Capillarite sociale; Capitals, change of; Caste system; Celibacy; Centralization; Childlessness; Christianity; Citizenship, granting of; Civil war; Climatic deterioration; Communism; Complacency; Concatenation of misfortunes; Conservatism; Capitalism; Corruption; Cosmopolitanism; Crisis of legitimacy; Culinary excess; Cultural neurosis; Decentralization; Decline of Nordic character; Decline of the cities; Decline of the Italian population; Deforestation; Degeneration; Degeneration of the intellect; Demoralization; Depletion of mineral resources; Despotism; Destruction of environment; Destruction of peasantry; Destruction of political process; Destruction of Roman influence; Devastation; Differences in wealth; Disarmament; Disillusion with stated goals of empire; Division of empire; Division of labor; Earthquakes; Egoism; Egoism of the state; Emancipation of slaves; Enervation; Epidemics; Equal rights, granting of; Eradication of the best; Escapism; Ethnic dissolution; Excessive aging of population; Excessive civilization; Excessive culture; Excessive foreign infiltration; Excessive freedom; Excessive urbanization; Expansion; Exploitation; Fear of life; Female emancipation; Feudalization; Fiscalism; Gladiatorial system; Gluttony; Gout; Hedonism; Hellenization; Heresy; Homosexuality; Hothouse culture; Hubris; Hypothermia; Immoderate greatness; Imperialism; Impotence; Impoverishment; Imprudent policy toward buffer states; Inadequate educational system; Indifference; Individualism; Indoctrination; Inertia; Inflation; Intellectualism; Integration, weakness of; Irrationality; Jewish influence; Lack of leadership; Lack of male dignity; Lack of military recruits; Lack of orderly imperial succession; Lack of qualified workers; Lack of rainfall; Lack of religiousness; Lack of seriousness; Large landed properties; Lead poisoning; Lethargy; Leveling, cultural; Leveling, social; Loss of army discipline; Loss of authority; Loss of energy; Loss of instincts; Loss of population; Luxury; Malaria; Marriages of convenience; Mercenary system; Mercury damage; Militarism; Monetary economy; Monetary greed; Money, shortage of; Moral decline; Moral idealism; Moral materialism; Mystery religions; Nationalism of Rome's subjects; Negative selection; Orientalization; Outflow of gold; Over refinement; Pacifism; Paralysis of will; Paralysization; Parasitism; Particularism; Pauperism; Plagues; Pleasure seeking; Plutocracy; Polytheism; Population pressure; Precociousness; Professional army; Proletarianization; Prosperity; Prostitution; Psychoses; Public baths; Racial degeneration; Racial discrimination; Racial suicide; Rationalism; Refusal of military service; Religious struggles and schisms; Rentier mentality; Resignation; Restriction to profession; Restriction to the land; Rhetoric; Rise of uneducated masses; Romantic attitudes to peace; Ruin of middle class; Rule of the world; Semieducation; Sensuality; Servility; Sexuality; Shamelessness; Shifting of trade routes; Slavery; Slavic attacks; Socialism (of the state); Soil erosion; Soil exhaustion; Spiritual barbarism; Stagnation; Stoicism; Stress; Structural weakness; Superstition; Taxation, pressure of; Terrorism; Tiredness of life; Totalitarianism; Treason; Tristesse; Two-front war; Underdevelopment; Useless eaters; Usurpation of all powers by state; Vain gloriousness; Villa economy; Vulgarization

That done, you'll need to summarise again in order to come up with a meaningful statement, and that summary in turn could be summarised. It'll likely look something like this: "The Roman empire fell after around 350 years of financial decline, social collapse and upheaval, loss of security, civil war, divisions of state, and general chaos."

Though the common people probably were not particularly aware of it at the time - their everyday existence would not have changed markedly with Odoacer's crowning - it's fair to say that the (western) Roman Empire ceased to exist when the last person that could remotely be regarded as a Roman Emperor (no, it was not Julius Nepos) was toppled on September 4 476 AD.

"All right... all right... but apart from better sanitation and medicine and education and irrigation and public health and roads and a freshwater system and baths and public order... what have the Romans done for us?"

"OH, SHUT UP!"

[Tero]

no vocals there

original