Part 2 in a series
By Katie Kieffer
Capitoline Sunset. Rome, Italy. Image credit: flickr – MarcelGermain.
If Rome was so prosperous and peaceful during the first and second century AD, why did she fall?
You’ve probably heard people say, “Rome was not built in a day.” Well, Rome also did not fall overnight. It took repeated corruption and poor governance over time for Rome to reach a point of such extreme weakness that German barbarians were able to conquer her.
Given how similar America’s balanced constitution to that of the Roman Republic’s and given America’s similar respect for equality and freedom before the law, it is very important for us to understand why Rome fell so that we do not make the same mistakes that she did.
Today, I’m going to share with you how Rome brought on her own destruction. She weakened herself to the point of no return through inflation, excessive taxation, military over-extension and political corruption.
Subsidies
Rome planted the seeds her own destruction when she began subsidizing bread for all Roman males and raising taxes. As early as 58 B.C., Rome started a policy of distributing free grain to Roman citizens. Over time, emperors expanded the dole to include free pork, oil and even wine. Roman politicians subsidized frivolous items for political gain and helped bankrupt Rome.
'Roma nel bicchiere – Rome in the glass.' Image credit: flickr – Geomangio.
High Taxes
Rome needed to charge high taxes to pay for its growing subsidies and military costs. As Rome expanded geographically and became militarily involved in the Middle East, she needed to pay for an army to keep the people in line and make sure they were paying their taxes. The taxes were high and inconsistent. Eventually, free Romans chose to sell themselves as servants to wealthy Roman landowners because they could no longer afford to pay Rome’s taxes.
The Roman government ended up denouncing individual freedoms entirely and began seizing private property such as food or cattle or land. The free enterprise system eroded and Romans became very unhappy and discontent because they were either forced to perpetually work in an occupation or trade dictated by the state or they were forced to join the army – for life.
Inflation
In order to pay for ever-growing military and government costs, many Roman emperors chose to devalue the Roman currency which led to inflation. In truth, inflation was just another form of taxation.
For examle, the denarious was the basic Roman coin. The denarious started out as a 100% silver coin. However, over time, subsequent Roman emperors reduced the silver content of the denarious so that by the middle of third century AD, it had just a 5 percent silver content.
Intervention in the Middle East
Julius Caesar was a military conqueror and he zealously expanded the Roman empire.
Statue of Julius Caesar. Rome, Italy. Image copyright Katie Kieffer. All rights reserved.
By the second century AD, nearly the entire Middle East was under Rome’s military rule. As you can imagine, the Middle East became a huge drain on Rome’s military and Rome’s citizens. Not only was the Middle East a huge distraction for Rome’s commander-in-chief, but it was a huge drain on Rome’s economy.
Does Rome’s intervention in the Middle East remind you of the U.S. government’s drive to spend time, resources and money it doesn’t have by trying to patrol the world like ‘World Police‘ – as the creators of South Park might say?
The Fall of Rome
Eventually, Rome’s citizens became so poor that they could not afford to pay the government’s taxes and maintain Rome’s military. As Rome’s politicians became increasingly corrupt and dismissive of individual liberty, vice replaced virtue in Roman society. Adultery, divorce, prostitution and broken families supplanted the once stable, family-oriented culture.
In the end, Rome fell because she abandoned her constitution and her cultural values. After she had become both spiritually and economically weak, she was conquered by German invaders. Interestingly, many Romans actually welcomed the takeover because the barbarians allowed Romans to return to relative self-governance.
Stay tuned to find out about “Rome’s Ronald Reagan” and the best hope for American free enterprise. For Part 1 in this series, click here.
Primary Sources:
HERITAGE LECTURES: The Lessons of the Roman Empire of America Today by J. Rufus Fears, PhD.
The Cato Journal: Vol. 14, Number 2, Fall 1994, “How Excessive Government Killed Ancient Rome,” by Bruce Bartlett.
