Glossary of Key Terms
Adrianople: Site of a major battle in 378 AD where the Goths decisively defeated a large Roman army, signaling increasing barbarian threat.
Alaric: King of the Visigoths who led them in sacking Rome in 410 AD.
Alexander Severus: Roman emperor (222-235 AD) known for his wisdom and justice.
Arcadius: Son of Theodosius I, who became emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire when the empire was divided in 395 AD.
Attila: Famous leader of the Huns who launched attacks on Gaul and Italy in the mid-5th century.
Augusti: The senior emperors in Diocletian's Tetrarchy system.
Aurelian: Roman emperor (270-275 AD) who briefly restored the unity of the empire and was victorious over Goths and Germans.
Byzantium (Constantinople/Nova Roma): A city refounded by Constantine the Great as a new capital for the Roman Empire, eventually becoming the capital of the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire.
Caesars: The junior emperors in Diocletian's Tetrarchy system, with the right of succession to the Augusti.
Caligula: Roman emperor (37-41 AD) known for his extravagance, including reportedly spending vast sums on banquets.
Caracalla: Roman emperor (211-217 AD) noted for his brutality and for granting Roman citizenship to all freemen to impose taxes.
Chalons: Site of a battle in 451 AD where the Huns under Attila were defeated by a coalition of Romans and Visigoths.
Christianity: A monotheistic religion that, according to Will Durant, undermined and exposed the weak underpinnings of the corrupt Roman Empire, and was later adopted as the official state religion by Constantine.
Claudius II Gothicus: Roman emperor (268-270 AD) who successfully drove back the Goths.
Concilia: A group with significant authority in the Roman provinces, composed of deputies responsible for enforcing emperor worship, building altars, and punishing those who refused.
Constantine the Great: Roman emperor (312-337 AD) who reunited the Western Empire, adopted Christianity as the official state religion, and established Constantinople.
Decadence: A state of moral or cultural decline, often cited as an internal factor in Rome's fall.
Diocletian: Roman emperor (284-305 AD) who introduced the Tetrarchy system of government and implemented numerous reforms.
Dole System: A government welfare system in Rome that provided public support (bread) to the idle poor.
Domitian: Roman emperor (81-96 AD) who strictly enforced emperor worship and demanded deification.
Edward Gibbon: An influential historian, whose work "The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" details five reasons for its collapse, cited in the text.
Emperor Worship: The practice of deifying and worshipping Roman emperors, which became a test of loyalty to the state, particularly for Christians.
Gaiseric: King of the Vandals who led their conquests of Spain and Africa and later sacked Rome in 455 AD.
Goths: Barbarian tribes, including the Visigoths, who put significant pressure on the Roman frontiers and played a key role in the Empire's fall.
Heliogabalus: Roman emperor (218-222 AD) known for his debauchery.
Honorius: Son of Theodosius I, who became emperor of the Western Roman Empire when the empire was divided in 395 AD.
Hsiung-nu (Huns): Nomadic people from northwestern Asia whose westward migration exerted pressure on other barbarian tribes, leading to their movements into Roman territory.
Julian the Apostate: Roman emperor (361-363 AD) known for his renunciation of Christianity.
Mediterranean: The "middle of the terrain," central to the Roman Empire's geography and commerce.
Nero: Roman emperor (54-68 AD) infamous for his moral depravity, including homosexuality, murders, and public performances.
Odoacer: Barbarian mercenary leader who deposed Romulus Augustulus in 476 AD, effectively ending the Western Roman Empire, and became King of Italy.
Oraefactus Urbi (Praefectus Urbi): An organized group in each city empowered to enforce worship of the emperor.
Pagan Rome: Refers to the Roman Empire before its official adoption of Christianity, characterized by polytheistic religion and emperor worship.
Pestilence: Widespread disease or plague, cited by Will Durant as a cause for Rome's fall.
Revelation 13:5, 17:1, 17:15, 18:11-14: Biblical passages cited in the text to describe the power of Rome, its perceived idolatry, and its eventual downfall, particularly in relation to Christian persecution.
Ricimer: A Suebe general known as "The Kingmaker," who held significant power in the final years of the Western Roman Empire (died 472 AD).
Romans 1:18-32, 12:1-2, 13:1-7: Biblical passages cited to illustrate the moral decline of Rome and the Christian admonition to avoid worldly conformity while submitting to governing authorities.
Romulus Augustulus: The last Western Roman Emperor, deposed in 476 AD.
Sanctity of the Home: The sacredness and importance of the family unit, which Gibbon argued was undermined by rapid divorce rates.
Seneca: A Roman philosopher and statesman who, despite preaching against riches, amassed a large fortune, illustrating moral inconsistency.
Septimius Severus: Roman emperor (193-211 AD) who founded the Severan dynasty and was an able ruler.
Slaves: A significant part of Roman society, used for labor, service, and as a display of wealth, with many being more cultured than their masters.
Theodosius I, the Great: Eastern Roman emperor who divided the empire between his two sons upon his death in 395 AD.
Vandals: A Germanic tribe who conquered parts of the Roman Empire, including Spain and Africa, and famously sacked Rome in 455 AD.
Visigoths: A Germanic tribe, led by Alaric, who sacked Rome in 410 AD and later settled in Gaul.
Will Durant: A renowned American historian, whose work "Caesar and Christ" provides an analysis of the causes for the fall of Rome, cited in the text.
