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The Roman Empire: Difference between revisions
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** Theodosius (379 - 395): Last emperor to rule over east and west. Split the Empire after his death, the west going to Honorius and the east going to Arcadius.
** Honorius (395 - 423): Emperor of the Western empire. Most notable moment of his reign was the Sack of Rome in 410 by the Visigoths, lead by Alaric.
** Valentinian III (423-455): Nephew of emperor Honorius, and ascended to the throne at the age of four. Like his uncle, he was considered an incapable ruler, a puppet for his entire reign. He was subjected to the whims of his mother, Galla Placidia, and his reign saw the collapse of roman dominion in North Africa, Gaul, and most of Iberia. His reign also saw the destruction of most of the west at the hands of the Hunnic Invasions. In a foolish act spurred on by some of his most trusted councilors, he murdered Flavius Aetius, the roman general who defeated Attila, and considered by some historians the 'last true roman'. His actions earned him the ire of Aetius's loyal troops, who proceeded to assassinate the emperor as soon as they had their chance. The palace guard did not help the mortally wounded emperor, leaving him to his fate.
** Majorian (457-461) General who became emperor after the fall of Avitus. Oversaw partially succesful attempts of retaking Gaul and Hispania, yet was thwarted in his attempt on retaking North Africa from the Vandals due to a conspiracy in his army. His attempts to curb some of the practices that were putting a strain on the Empire drew the ire of both the aristocracy, and the current magister militum Ricimer, who hoped to use Majorian as his puppet. Ricimer captured the upstart emperor, and subjected him to torture, before executing him. His death ended any hope for survival that the Western Empire once had, ensuring that its inevitable downfall would only be a matter of when.
* Romulus Augustulus (475 - 476): A kid who was the puppet of his father Flavius Orestes, who himself had violently supplanted the previous emperor Julius Nepos. When Orestes denied the barbarian troops that had helped him to dethrone Nepos the promised rewards -- specifically to grant them a third of Italy for settlement -- he was in turn overthrown by the German(ic) general Odoacer, who deposed the puppet Romulus and assumed the title "commander of Italy". Romulus is usually identified as the last emperor in the west, although some insist that Julius Nepos, who ruled in Dalmatia until 480, was the last one.<ref>Romulus' prominency in the history books is somewhat boosted by his name, which ironically recalls Romulus the mythic founder of Rome.</ref>
* Justinian (527 - 565): Emperor in Constantinople, he reconquered much of what had been the western Empire. Also known for compiling Roman law in the Corpus Juris Civilis, which became the basis for law in civil law jurisdictions.
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