The Falls of Rome : Crises, Resilience, and Resurgence in Late Antiquity

This book is essential reading for understanding what happened to Rome at the end of antiquity. By focusing on the actions of senatorial aristocrats, I explore the restoration of the city of Rome and the slow growth of the influence of the papacy at the beginning of the middle ages.

Over the course of the fourth through seventh centuries, Rome witnessed a succession of five significant political and military crises, including the Sack of Rome, the Vandal occupation, and the demise of the Senate. Historians have traditionally considered these crises as defining events, and thus critical to our understanding of the ''decline and fall of Rome.'' In this volume, Michele Renee Salzman offers a fresh interpretation of the tumultuous events that occurred in Rome during Late Antiquity. Focusing on the resilience of successive generations of Roman men and women and their ability to reconstitute their city and society, Salzman demonstrates the central role that senatorial aristocracy played, and the limited influence of the papacy during this period. Her provocative study provides a new explanation for the longevity of Rome and its ability, not merely to survive, but even to thrive over the last three centuries of the Western Roman Empire.