s time the Roman Empire (especially the west, which was much more economically stricken than the east) would have fallen apart from inner weakness alone. However, there were also other pressures from outer European regions (Mazour, 132). The Roman government and military was now weakening further because of civil wars due to power struggles among leaders. This again portrays very poor leadership and responsibility among the emperors and senators.Along with a weak economy, other problems had occurred in the West that helped cripple the Empire. Like most governments, the Western Roman Bureaucracy was corrupting and inefficient. Constant feuds and civil wars occurred within the government for power helped decline the Roman State and its grip over the land. Also, the citizens of the Empire continued to lose interest and faith in the Empire they had lost their sense of nationalistic pride. One of the most important emperors the army who helped bring to power was Constantine the Great, who came to the throne in 306. In 313, Constantine granted Christians of the Roman Empire freedom of worship. Christ had been born during the reign of the Emperor Augustus and was crucified by the Roman authorities in about A.D. 30, during the rule of Tiberius (Cobishley, 55). The Romans had at times persecuted the Christians. However, after Constantine granted Christians legal recognition, a strong link was formed between the Christian church and the Roman Empire. Emperor Theodosius I proclaimed Christianity the official religion of the empire in the late 300's. A group of historians place the beginning of the end of the Roman Empire at various dates between 395 and 461 and also blame the majority of problems on financial problems faced by the empire (Cornell & Matthews, 78). In the division of the empire, the West received fewer of wealthy provinces. This in turn decreased the taxes collected and paying for enough troops to fight became impossible. ...
