The true key to the declension of the Roman empire - which is not to be found in all Gibbon's immense work - may be stated in two words: - the imperial character overlaying, and finally destroying, the national character. Rome under Trajan was an empire without a nation.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The Roman Empire fell because imperial rule erased national identity, leaving an empire without a people.
- In plain terms
- Rome fell because the state destroyed the national character.
- What can you take from it?
- Empires fail when they erase national identity.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What happens when states erase identity?
- How do you define a nation?
Another view
Other factors like economics also contributed to Rome's fall.
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