Did the Roman Empire Really Fall?

The Roman Empire was one of the most powerful empires of its time. So why did it seem like it fell more quickly than it grew? Did it really fall at all? From the people who took over the empire to the people of today, everyone uses some of Ancient Rome’s culture. From the Roman Republic, to columns on museums and houses, we can clearly see that remnants of the Roman Empire occupy our everyday lives, proving that it never really fell at all.
When Rome was ransacked by the Vandals, it seemed like the rule of Rome was finally coming to an end. However, a new era was just beginning for Europe, which would eventually shape it into what it is today.
The Vandals did not stay under power of Rome. Many people would come and go as ruling empires or republics. Finally, we come to the area called Rome today. It is not as vast a territory as it once was, covering only a location with an area of about 1,285.31 km2 (496.3 sq mi). (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome). However, we can see remnants of the Roman Empire’s culture all over the world today.
Firstly, we can see remnants of the Roman Republic in the government of the United States today. For instance, the Roman Republic consisted of a Senate, just like the Senate that we see in our government. The Senate of Ancient Rome took care of all public affairs that had to do with money, just as the Senate of today does as well. England, Italy, and Canada have parliaments, which are based on the idea of the Senate of Ancient Rome. We can clearly see from only a small part of these countries’ legal systems that Rome did, in fact, leave a big impression on our ideas for government.
We can also see remnants of Roman culture in our architecture. Things such as columns and the invention of apartments were invented by Romans and are still used today. Look anywhere in your town or city and you will surely see an apartment; look at museums or nice houses and you will definitely see some columns. The Romans were the ones who invented these things, and it is a sure sign that the Roman Empire did not ever really fall away completely. The Romans truly came up with some incredible ideas, things that not even the technology of today have replaced. Apartments evolved from the Roman insula, which was a few stories high building with different rooms over the top of shops. The insulas in the beginning were not the nicest places to live, as it was hard to escape from fires if you were on a higher floor. So it was better to live on a lower floor for this reason. However, when living on a lower floor of an insula, one would always have the worry of the upper apartment collapsing on top of them, as a result of weaker construction than the one above. The poor were mostly the ones who lived in insulas, because they had no other option. Living in houses was much too expensive, though much safer. People living in insulas also had to deal with cramped surroundings and loud noises from the street. Over the course of time, apartments were developed into what they are today, but Romans can be credited with the invention of them.
Finally, we can see remnants of Roman culture in our personal lives, such as our gardens and other personal aspects of our lifestyles. Roman pleasure gardens are becoming more and more popular for people to have in their backyards, as ways to enjoy the outdoors. Roman pleasure gardens were so beautiful that when the Barbarian tribes destroyed the cities of Rome, they kept the gardens and learned from the design of them. We know what these gardens consist of thanks to this fact and also well documented sources from then telling what a Roman pleasure garden looked like. Roman pleasure gardens were used for relaxation and rejuvenation, as well as having a centered theme of entertainment. The gardens were used to entertain guests as well as the owners of them. They were used to show the landscape and the beautiful views surrounding it.
They each featured a transition area between the house and the garden. Many Romans incorporated marble into patios to form this area. They would also have a large wall depicting Roman life in this area. Then, in the garden there would be a dining area with low tables and couches, stone planters, and a water feature such as a chalice well, basin, or fountain. Past the patio and dining area, the area would open up to a great landscape that went off in every direction. There would most likely be a terraced section, orchard or vineyard (or both, depending on the wealth of the person), a kitchen garden for herbs or vegetables, and various sections that would contain plants such as roses and other flowers. The center of the garden would have something in it such as a large fountain or other special element. Shrines and grottos might also have been present in the gardens. There would be many water features in the property, as Romans were the builders of the great aqueducts. Romans would often use plants such as roses, cypress, rosemary, mulberry and fig trees, dwarf variety trees, tall trees, marigolds, hyacinths, narcissi, violets, saffron, cassia, thyme, and many others too.
Today, many people still use the ideas from Roman pleasure gardens to create relaxing spaces to entertain guests and enjoy company in. This is yet another fact of the many that proves that though the Roman Empire technically fell, but its ideas remained. How could it have fallen, really, if so many of its ideas, from government to architecture to gardens remain in our culture today? The real question is: what about the Roman Empire truly did fall? Its culture certainly did remain, and with all the ways that we use it, there is no way it could have really fallen.
Web Citations:
1. "ORB Online Encyclopedia--Overview of Late Antiquity." Nipissing University. Web. 23 Mar. 2010. .
2. "Ancient History Sourcebook: Polybius : Rome at the End of the Punic Wars [History, Book 6]."FORDHAM.EDU. Web. 23 Mar. 2010. .
3. http://depthome.brooklyn.cuny.edu/classics/dunkle/romnlife/insulae.htm
4. http://www.lifeinitaly.com/garden/roman-garden.asp
Image: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/The_Roman_Gardens_Chester_-_geograph.org.uk_-_9684.jpg