The fall of the Western Roman Empire, also called the fall of the Roman Empire or the fall of Rome, was the loss of central political control in the Western Roman Empire, a process in which the Empire failed to enforce its rule, and its vast territory was divided among several successor polities. The Roman Empire lost the strengths that had allowed it to exercise effective control over its Western provinces; modern historians posit factors including the effectiveness and numbers of the army, the health and numbers of the Roman population, the strength of the economy, the competence of the emperors, the internal struggles for power, the religious changes of the period, and the efficiency of the civil administration. Increasing pressure from invading peoples outside Roman culture also contributed greatly to the collapse. Climatic changes and both endemic and epidemic diseases drove many of these immediate factors.
The disintegration of the Western Roman Empire unfolded gradually during the Migration Period (c. 400–800 CE), as waves of migrating and invading peoples reshaped Europe. After the death of Theodosius I (reign 379–395 CE), the last emperor to govern both East and West, the empire was formally divided, leaving the weaker Western half vulnerable. Over the following decades, military defeats, economic strain, and internal instability combined with external pressures from Visigoths, Vandals, Huns, and other groups, eroding imperial authority. The conventional “fall” is often dated to 476 CE, when Romulus Augustulus (reign 475–476) was deposed, or to 480 CE, with the assassination of Julius Nepos (reign 474–480), the last legitimate Western emperor.
Yet Roman power and traditions did not vanish overnight. Latin remained the language of administration, Roman law and coinage persisted, and successor kingdoms drew heavily on Roman models of governance and military organization. Italy, Gaul, Hispania, and North Africa came under the control of groups such as the Ostrogoths, Visigoths, Vandals, and later the Franks, who both disrupted and assimilated Roman traditions. Rather than a sudden collapse, the Migration Period marked a protracted transformation, blending imperial legacies with emerging medieval political and cultural structures that would define Western Euroasia’s future.
Megathreads and spaces to hang out:
- 🐻 Link to all Hexbear comms https://hexbear.net/post/1403966
- 🐼 Hexbear Matrix Chat https://matrix.to/#/#Hexbear:matrix.org
- 📀 Come listen to music and Watch movies with your fellow Hexbears nerd, in Cy.tube](https://live.hexbear.net/c/movies
- 🔥 Read and talk about a current topics in the News Megathread https://hexbear.net/post/9372756
- ⚔ Come talk in the New Weekly PoC thread https://hexbear.net/post/9254422
- 🏳️⚧️ Talk with fellow Trans comrades in the New Weekly Trans thread https://hexbear.net/post/9370231
- 👊 New Weekly Improvement thread https://hexbear.net/post/9319653
- 🧡 Disabled comm megathread https://hexbear.net/post/9370038
- ☕ Parenting Chat https://hexbear.net/post/9275956
- 🐉 Anime & Manga discussion thread https://hexbear.net/post/9194724
reminders:
- 💚 You nerds can join specific comms to see posts about all sorts of topics
- 💙 Hexbear’s algorithm prioritizes comments over upbears
- 💜 Sorting by new you nerd
- 🐶 Join the unofficial Hexbear-adjacent Mastodon instance toots.matapacos.dog
Links To Resources (Aid and Theory):
Aid:
Theory:
Financial Support to the Bearsite
Someone on Lemmy claimed Russia likely destroyed its own pipeline to cut off Germany as a customer and weaken it, as though the pipeline was a big straw Germany was using to suck up all of Russia’s natural gas without permission or something, as though Russia couldn’t just stop providing natural gas. New favorite theory, lmao
got called racist against chinese people for supporting china
truly
genius is almost frighteningI can’t comprehend how easily flock was able to cover my town with cameras just this summer :/ I’m starting to think the days of anonymity are numbered. I also worry how long sites like this can last
Feels like it’s getting really bad y’all, ICE has also been here all week along with their own unpaid (and wholly ideologically muddled) cheerleaders. It’s such a powerless position to be in
In my more paranoid moments, I wonder about the timing of the rise of Flock et al pretty much right after the killing of that health care CEO.
For a little bit of hope several towns in the area around me have removed their flock cameras recently
The fall of the Western Roman Empire
BORN TO LOOT
AQUEDUCTS ARE A FUCK
KILL ALL ROMANS 1229
I AM AN ATTILA MAN
1000000000 HEAPS OF TRIBUTE GOLD
I added a day/night cycle and text boxes to the proof of concept for my game, Kon Kon!
I think the next thing will be prototyping the battle system. All of my game dev experience so far is with making physics-based arcade games, so switching to a jrpg turn based combat system similar to the Pokemon games is going to be !fun!
Currently reading The Tyranny of Structurelessness after a comrade here recommended it and its so fucking good
Id also recommend it to anyone who’s autistic because it does explain some group social dynamics
Boss is on vacation and the guy filling in ends his first email message to everyone with.
“Thank you for your attention to this matter.”
I don’t feel like bringing it up but there’s a 100% chance he’d say he didn’t realize it was a trump thing. He’s ignorant enough about the world around him for that to be plausible, but he’s also the kind of dipshit asshole that would intentionally do that to fuck with people and act like they’re the weird ones for noticing or bringing it up.
Hexbear randomly unblocked at my work
Last message in a group chat is from a meetup plan that fell through 7 years ago, tempted to ask when everyone is going to get here
wanted to do an activity with my partner so i got us a jigsaw puzzle to try together and it was an absolute hit. wasn’t sure about it at first cause i thought she would get bored but she really loved it like a lot and i’m having fun too
My headlight went out and it’s like a $300 repair because they designed it so you need to remove like half the fucking car to replace it so I’m gonna be at work for the next 3 days knowing it’s all going toward this bullshit scam
Fuck cars
Reading Scattered Minds by Gabor Maté. Not sure how I feel about it. On the one hand he clearly understands ADHD and the way he describes the symptoms resonates with me a lot more than other descriptions I’ve seen, but tracing everything back to childhood trauma and specifically the relationship with your parents seems… off? Idk how to say it. I’ll definitely keep reading it because I just really want to stop ADHD from ruining my life, I’ll take anything at this point. Just a crumb of executive function pls.
If I could trade in an arm to get rid of my ADHD I would take the deal without hesitation. Probably even an arm and a leg. I’m that desperate.
If I could trade in an arm to get rid of my ADHD I would take the deal without hesitation. Probably even an arm and a leg. I’m that desperate.
Yeah I don’t think most ADHD professionals agree with that assessment. I understand it is mostly neurobiological and genetic. I think that book came out like 20+ years ago so enjoy the read but keep that in mind. I like the website additudemag.org for learning and resources.
He doesn’t claim it’s not neurobiological. His argument is that your early childhood heavily influences your brain’s development, specifically your ability to regulate your own emotions in this case.
I will say, my own parents’ attempt to raise me as if I were neurotypical had major negative effects on me and my ability to regulate my emotions.
