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Background
The Roman Empire started in 27 B.C.E when Augustus Caesar came into power as the first Emperor of Rome. The empire grew and lasted for about 500 years until it fell in 476 C.E. under the rule of emperor Romulus Augustus.
Government
The Roman Empire was governed by an autocracy (government by one person) centered on the position of the emperor. The Senate, the dominant political institution of the Roman Republic, which preceded the empire, was retained by the emperor but lacked real political power. The highlight of the Roman Empire was its extensive system of imperial administration, which included a hierarchy of magistrates and provincial governors. The Roman Empire at its height was the most extensive political and social structure in western civilization. In 285 C.E. the empire had grown to big to be ruled from central government at Rome and divided by Emperor Diocletian into two separate regions; their was a Eastern Roman empire and a Western Roman empire. "In the east, it continued as the Byzantine Empire until the death of Constantine XI and the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453 CE". The western empire fell in 476 C.E and that marks the end of the Roman empire.
The Five Good Emperors
"Domitian's successor was his advisor Nerva who founded the Nervan-Antonin Dynasty which ruled Rome 96-192 CE. This period is marked by increased prosperity owing to the rulers known as The Five Good Emperors of Rome. Between 96 and 180 CE, five exceptional men ruled in sequence and brought the Roman Empire to its height: Nerva (96-98), Trajan (98-117), Hadrian (117-138), Antoninus Pius (138-161), and Marcus Aurelius (161-180). Under their leadership, the Roman Empire grew stronger, more stable, and expanded in size and scope. Lucius Verus and Commodus are the last two of the Nervan-Antonin Dynasty. Verus was co-emperor with Marcus Aurelius until his death in 169 CE and seems to have been fairly ineffective. Commodus, Aurelius’ son and successor, was one of the most disgraceful emperors Rome ever saw and is universally depicted as indulging himself and his whims at the expense of the empire. He was strangled by his wrestling partner in his bath in 192 CE, ending the Nervan-Antonin Dynasty and raising the prefect Pertinax (who most likely engineered Commodus’ assassination) to power."
The Roman Empire started in 27 B.C.E when Augustus Caesar came into power as the first Emperor of Rome. The empire grew and lasted for about 500 years until it fell in 476 C.E. under the rule of emperor Romulus Augustus.
Government
The Roman Empire was governed by an autocracy (government by one person) centered on the position of the emperor. The Senate, the dominant political institution of the Roman Republic, which preceded the empire, was retained by the emperor but lacked real political power. The highlight of the Roman Empire was its extensive system of imperial administration, which included a hierarchy of magistrates and provincial governors. The Roman Empire at its height was the most extensive political and social structure in western civilization. In 285 C.E. the empire had grown to big to be ruled from central government at Rome and divided by Emperor Diocletian into two separate regions; their was a Eastern Roman empire and a Western Roman empire. "In the east, it continued as the Byzantine Empire until the death of Constantine XI and the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453 CE". The western empire fell in 476 C.E and that marks the end of the Roman empire.
The Five Good Emperors
"Domitian's successor was his advisor Nerva who founded the Nervan-Antonin Dynasty which ruled Rome 96-192 CE. This period is marked by increased prosperity owing to the rulers known as The Five Good Emperors of Rome. Between 96 and 180 CE, five exceptional men ruled in sequence and brought the Roman Empire to its height: Nerva (96-98), Trajan (98-117), Hadrian (117-138), Antoninus Pius (138-161), and Marcus Aurelius (161-180). Under their leadership, the Roman Empire grew stronger, more stable, and expanded in size and scope. Lucius Verus and Commodus are the last two of the Nervan-Antonin Dynasty. Verus was co-emperor with Marcus Aurelius until his death in 169 CE and seems to have been fairly ineffective. Commodus, Aurelius’ son and successor, was one of the most disgraceful emperors Rome ever saw and is universally depicted as indulging himself and his whims at the expense of the empire. He was strangled by his wrestling partner in his bath in 192 CE, ending the Nervan-Antonin Dynasty and raising the prefect Pertinax (who most likely engineered Commodus’ assassination) to power."