Rome

Rome Was Eternal, Until It Wasn’t: Imperial Analogs of Decay

~ admin ~ 1 Comment

Rome Was Eternal, Until It Wasn't: Imperial Analogs of DecayCharles Hugh Smith – In response to my recent post What If There Are No Analogs for 2024?, an astute reader nominated the Roman Empire as a fitting analog. Longtime readers know I’ve often discussed the complex history of Western Rome’s decay and collapse, for example, Why Rome Collapsed: Lessons For the Present (August 11, 2023).

Dozens of other posts on the topic stretch back to 2009: Complacency and The Will To Radical Reform (February 12, 2009)

What conclusions can we draw from recent research and the voluminous work done by previous generations of historians? Our first conclusion is simply to state the obvious: it’s complicated. There was no one cause of Western Rome’s decay and collapse. A multitude of factors generated feedback loops and responses over hundreds of years, some more successful than others. Continue reading →

Earned Knowledge – Closing Out The Ancient Era

~ admin ~ Leave a comment

Earned Knowledge, L5, P1Paul Rosenberg – What we’re calling the ancient era is the period before the great collapse of 1,200 BC. Following that was an intermediate period of breakup and change that ran from 1,200 BC to 800 BC, sometimes called “the dark age of the Greeks.” The time after about 800 BC is what people call Classical Civilization; it was the era of the famous civilizations of Greece and Rome.

All of these dates are approximate, of course. And there were always variations and exceptions.

But before we move into the Classical era, and from there into Western civilization, we need to look at some areas we haven’t examined very closely up till now. It’s important to get a as full an understanding of these people as we can before we move on. Continue reading →

Tourists Who Sit on Rome’s Spanish Steps Face a Steep Fine

~ admin ~ Leave a comment

These steps aren’t made for sitting. Roman police have begun enforcing a law that makes it illegal to sit, eat, or drink on the city’s iconic Spanish Steps; those who run afoul of the new rule, which went into effect last month, risk incurring a fine of up to €400 ($447). That’s a heavy price to pay for catching a breather during your vacation.

Spanish Steps

It’s also a bit ironic considering that Rome’s own tourism website refers to the steps as “a place for meeting and a pleasant rest,” but that’s neither here nor there. Continue reading →

French Government Outraged As Italy’s Deputy PM Meets Yellow Vest Leaders

~ admin ~ Leave a comment
Rome
Luigi di Maio

Niamh Harris – France has recalled its ambassador from Rome after Italy’s deputy prime minister Luigi di Maio met with leaders of the French Yellow Vest Movement

The French foreign ministry said that Di Maio’s meeting with leaders of the yellow vest movement was an “unacceptable provocation”  and that it undermined relations between the two European countries.

Continue reading →

Don’t Diss the Dark Ages

~ admin ~ Leave a comment

empireCharles Hugh Smith – Once dissed as The Dark Ages, the Medieval Era is more properly viewed as a successful adaptation to the challenges of the post-Western Roman Empire era. The decline of the Western Roman Empire was the result of a constellation of challenges, including (but not limited to) massive new incursions of powerful Germanic tribes, a widening chasm between the Western and the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium), plague, an onerous tax burden on the non-elite classes, weak leadership, the dominance of a self-serving elite (sound familiar?) and last but not least, the expansion of an unproductive rabble in Rome that had to be bribed with increasingly costly Bread and Circuses.

In effect, The Grand Strategy of the Roman Empire ran out of time and money.The Grand Strategy, successful for hundreds of years, relied heavily on persuading “barbarian” tribes to join the Roman system for the commercial and security benefits. This process of integration worked because it was backed by the threat of destruction by military force.

The Empire maintained relatively modest military forces given its vast territory, but its road system and fleet enabled relatively rapid concentration of force to counter an invasion. It also maintained extensive fortifications along active borders.

All of this required substantial tax revenues, manpower and effective leadership, not just for fortifications, the army, roads and the fleet, but to maintain the commercial and political benefits offered to “barbarians” who chose integration in the Empire.

Continue reading →