Ancient Rome was the largest town in the then known world. It is assumed that Rome’s population was over 1 million folk when the town was at the height of its power. From Rome, the heart of govt beat ; army calls were taken and the vast wealth Rome earned was invested in a series of superb buildings.

To begin with, many buildings in Rome were built round the forum. Traditionally, this had been a market place and an area where people met. Therefore , it would have been a natural place to put govt buildings, churches and palaces. As Rome grew the forum became more crowded. Therefore , a second town centre was planned and built some distance from the forum but still in Rome itself.

Rome itself had some superb buildings erected in the town. Some exist to this day, all be it in a less excellent state. The most renowned is maybe the Colosseum where thousands of Roman voters would gather for their entertainment - be it animals fighting or gladiators etc . Such grand buildings were constructed so that emperors would be recalled by future generations. The Colosseum was built on the orders of the Emperor Vespasian and completed when the Emperor Titus was in power. The building was finally finished in AD 80.

Rome also had countless triumphal arches constructed across the town to celebrate army victories. These served a twin purpose. First, they used to be a party of the army victories the Romans had and, 2nd, they used to be a reminder to the people of Rome of how powerful the regiment was.
As with any town, Rome had its poor and prosperous areas. The poor could only afford to live in wooden houses which were a serious fire risk in a hot country like Italy. On a number of occasions, Rome suffered severe damage as a result of fires beginning in the town’s slums. The slums were also perilous places to go to if you had any money as crime was common. The Emperor Augustus created a police force to patrol the town but the poor areas stayed all but untamed. However , for the influential folk of Rome, this was of tiny importance as they never visited such areas.

The decline of ancient Rome started from about AD 190. The Roman Empire was attacked by tribes like the Goths and the Vandals. Civil wars in parts of the empire further weakened the rule of Rome and respect for Roman law dwindled as a consequence.
Why was the empire attacked by cruel clans people? Clans like the Goths wanted to move south into parts of Europe that experienced a better climate that would aid their farming. This could only bring them into conflict with the Romans. At about AD 190, Rome also experienced a succession of poor emperors who simply were not capable of doing the job.

Diocletian faced more than only executive Problems. More army defences needed to be built across the whole empire. This cost cash that Rome did not have. To pay for these, taxes were increased and additional coins were minted. This lead to inflation causing costs to rise. Therefore , the people of Rome were less than favourable towards those that led them.
With threats from tribes in northern Europe, fiscal issues in Rome itself and a civilian population becoming more discontented, Rome could ill afford further major issues.

In AD 307, Constantine became emperor. He ruled from AD 307 to AD 337. Constantine was Rome’s first Christian emperor and he is considered to have once been a robust ruler.
He suspected that Rome as a town was too far away from vital areas of the empire to be valuable from a governmental level. Constantine, therefore , moved the capital of the empire to a new town - Constantinople. This was a new town that was built on the old town of Byzantium. Whatever the motives were, Constantine’s decision was a poor one. Constantinople was much further east than Rome and forcibly in the eastern empire. This left the western empire really exposed - though the eastern empire was barely free from attacks.

however , in AD 398, the leader of the Visigoths, Alaric, realised the Roman army was so thinly spread, that Rome itself was to have. Alaric moved carefully south but in AD 410 he captured the town of Rome. The town was sacked. Roman held territory in Spain, France, northern Africa and Britain all slipped to the assorted clans that attacked them.

In AD 455, Rome was attacked again. This time the damage was done by the Vandals. The town suffered serious damage. In AD 476, the last Roman emperor in the west, Romulus Augustulus, was removed from power by Odovacar, leader of the Goths. This date is mostly utilised by historians as the year the Roman Empire finished. However , Roman rule continued in the eastern empire for a number of years after this date - in modern Greece, Turkey, the Middle East and northerly Egypt. Even if the ancient Rome fell, today it is a cosmopolitan city. If you like to see the old and modern parts of the city do not hesitate and book your Appartment Rome. All the Appartments Rome are a good starting point to make the most out of the city.