Barbarians historians

Who are the historians for barbarians? (9)

• Bryan Ward-Perkins

• Goffart

• Piagnol

• Saunders

• Gibbon

• Halsall

• Sarris

• Peter Heather

• Lenski

Who notes that the language to talk about the fall of Rome as moved towards ‘transformation’?

B W-P

Who mentions the idea that the barbarian invasions sped up the inevitable?

B W-P

Who notes that the Romans had a negative view of the barbarians? (eg. statues depicting them in negative lights)

B W-P

Who argues that the barbarians tipped an already vulnerable Empire over into failure?

B W-P

Who argues that much of Italy was already in decline due to a decreasing tax base, alliances with barbarians and political instability (Honorius)?

B W-P

Who argues that the fall was neither sudden nor catastrophic, but that barbarian invasions did represent a break with tradition?

Goffart

Who argued that the ‘fall’ took place over at least 200 years?

Goffart

Who blames a mix of Christianity and the barbarian invasions on the fall of the West?

Goffart

Who argues that the West had always been politically unstable, a springboard for generals to make power grabs?

Goffart

Who writes that Roman civilisation was ‘murdered’?

Piagnol

Who writes that the military weakness of the Romans was the prime cause for the fall of the West?

Piagnol

Who writes that disagreements between Christians and pagans caused disunity in the Empire?

Piagnol

Who writes that the Romans couldn’t decide if the barbarians were friends of foes, and that the ‘fortress was betrayed from within?’

Saunders

Who argues that the Huns triggered the invasions and that the resources of the West were unable to withstand the invasions?

Saunders

Who argues that Christianity was not an important factor and that the shift towards it happened in the East within the existing imperial framework?

Saunders

Who uses the Theodosian Code as evidence of economic weakness, decay in industry, and the burden of taxation?

Saunders

Who argued that ‘the triumph of the church [is] inseparably connected with…decline’?

Gibbon

Who argued that the strength of the barbarians was the most significant factor?

Sarris

Who argues for the ‘shakers’ line of argument (barbarians a symptom of weakness in the Empire)?

Halsall

Who discusses the poor financial situation in the Empire before and during the invasions? (loss of territory —> loss of revenue, weakened ‘state machine’, Vandal capture of Carthage, Aetius’ laws, 4% sales tax)

Peter Heather

Who argued that invasions opened up a pre-existing fault line between imperial power and elites?

Peter Heather

Who argues that the collapse of Rome was a revolution?

Peter Heather

Who writes that the Age of Attila saw an increase in captivity and enslavement?

Lenski

Who talks about the monk Callinicus who said ‘Thrace could never possibly have ben repopulated’?

Lenski

Who writes that Attila created a zone of depopulation, getting rid of a generation of tax payers? (confirmed archaeologically)

Lenski

Who writes that the Huns targeted wealth and powerful people for ransom?

Lenski

Who argued that Rome’s inability to defend frontiers allowed the Huns to exploit the population of taxpayers?

Lenski

Who argues that neither Attila no any barbarian group single-handedly dealt a death blow to Rome?

Lenski