symmachus: never has any man written so much to say so little

from Cesar time, the trade routes and action bipassed Rome in favor of
constantinople-danube-rhine axis.

The emperor needed to be present there to facilitate effective control
Also two emperors, occasionally 4 were neded to govern tye empire

Milan/Trier became more important, Rome senate less important: emperors
steadily eroded its powet. Beauteacrats that followed the emperor gained in
number and prestige at the rxpense of romean senate. Another mirror senate
apeared in Constantinople

Roman two stage education:(latin) grammar 6-7 yrars of study and
interpretation of classic latin literature.
tge several years of rethoric school: public and written speaking.

This schooling is exported to outside provinces and became the mark of
edicated elite regardless of ethnicity

Battle of Teutonburg Forest 9ad: destruction ov three getman legions
Varus, Arminius

Jastorf culture vs celtic culture

The Empire border is settled on the Rhine because the lands beyond it were
not productive enough to conquer

Themistius - spin doctor of the roman empire
negotiation of Valens and Athanaric

Persia
- Achemenid Empire: 550 - 330 bc
- Selecid
- Parthuan 427bc - 224 ad
- Sasanian/Sasanid Empire 224-651ad

ulfilas: gothic bible author
escape from curias: readjustment of control from local town to provincial
bureacrats

taxation, to some level, causes more intensive cultivation: peasants are
forced to work hader

most of roman agriculture: slightly above subsistence level

4th century: seems the most prosperous and densely populated times, italy
may be the exception, wasnt taxed fir a while and was eventually
outcompeded by provincial producers

Goths were willing to fight and forgo trade with the Roman Empire for the
right not to send their troops to fight Persians

Huns horse archers
recurve vs  straight limb bow
composite vs self bow
asymmetric bow

Gothic groups: Thervingi, Greuthungi

Chernyalov vs  Schmersk populations

rodagasis

revolt in endland that took over gallic france, Constantine III

vandals marched through gaul and settled in spain

Flavius Stillicho vs. Alaric

goths under Alaric gently sacked rome as a way to pressure to get
recognition from the roman state, then located in ravenna

Honorius

Augustine's "City of God"

Constantius Flavius

Placidia

Vandal&Alan's conquest of North Africa,
Carthage: 3d largest city of the roman empire: Gaiseric

Aeteus

palimsest

Attila the Hun's incursion into the Danube region made the expeditionary
force of the Eastern Western Roman Empire  stop their attack on the vandals
in North Africa

Alans and sarmatians were persian-speaking

Huns, unlike goths were capable of storming walled cities

Atilla unified huns, tuned them from nomads into raiders, monopolized
tribute from roman state, used germanic tribes as his soldiers


Atilla the Hun died of birst blood vessel on one of his first nights

Huns state quickly disintegrated after the death of Atilla, successor
groups fought for control and caused trouble for the empire. Plus had to
keep tropps while spain and north afrika slipped further from empire's grasp

struggle for power after the assasination of Aeteus by Valentinian III

Gaiseric

attempt to recapture North Africa by Basiliscus, East Roman Emperor

Sedonius
Euric, the visigoth king
roman landowners supporting barbarian kings to preserve their posessions

Anthemius, Ricimer

thesis: germanic barbarians behind the rhine were driven to organization by
interaction with roman empire itself: raiding, trade, defence, service,
slaves.