Major events leading to the end of the Roman Republic

Ancient Rome and the Events of the Late Republic (end of the Republic), you will create a timeline of major events that led to the end of the Republic. Your timeline should have at least 7 events.

200 CE: The rise of populist or democratic sentiments and political philosophy. Rome was not a democracy, although it was a Republic. By the 2nd century CE, populist tribunes started to make waves on the Roman political scene. These populist tribunes were mirrored by the uprisings by local governments and communities in Roman-acquired territories throughout the vast empire. With such a vast empire, and such a relatively weak method of centralized governance, it became increasingly impossible to achieve harmony and authoritative rule. It was not as if Rome usurped idyllic ways of life, so much as populist leaders did recognize the need to start \"reclaiming public land and putting landless poor citizens back on land,\" (\"Fall of the Roman Republic,\" n.d.).

Concurrent with the rise of populist and democratic sentiments was the simultaneous rise of populist armies. Rome fancied itself to be in control of all local political and economic leaders but in fact, local armies remained more fiercely loyal to the leaders they had trusted long before, who spoke the same language and believed in the same things. Rome was a colonizing power -- the hegemon that could not be trusted. Therefore, Rome gradually realized that it lacked the trust of local leaders and most importantly local citizens.

2. 211 CE: Septimus Severus dies.

The Roman expansion into Britain was among the most ambitious of its geo-political campaigns. Although by the time Septimus Severus came to power, Rome might have already heard its own death knoll due to the increasing encroachment of localized political uprisings, but Septimus Severus gave Rome a confidence boost and perhaps a false sense of imperial security. \"Septimius Severus (ruled 193-211), after fighting bloody civil wars to establish his power, managed to extend Roman possessions in Mesopotamia, but was occupied in turning back a tide of barbarian invaders in northern Britain when he died in York.

By this point in the Roman history timeline, the concept of maintaining order and discipline in local regions seemed impossible to actually execute. Rome simply became too big for its britches. Civil wars and local skirmishes became commonplace, as did economic and political corruption. The military remained powerful, but it was also spread thin.

3. 290 CE: Restructuring the Empire

After the obvious shift away from subservience toward local leadership, the political, social, and economic leaders in local territories governed by Rome started to challenge Roman authority by the first several centuries CE. The restructuring of the Roman Empire was one of the death blows to its power. \"Major reorganization of the empire was undertaken by Diocletian (ruled 284-305), who formally divided Roman territory into a Western Empire and an Eastern Empire, each administered by an Augustus (senior emperor) and a junior Caesar (subordinate emperor) -- a system known as the Tetrarchy.\" The Tetrarchy was a sensible solution to a major political problem but the Tetrarchy also failed to accomplish the overarching goals of the Roman Empire in terms of inculcating Roman values and leadership throughout foreign lands. Restructuring the empire offered models for Republican government and gave rise to the exploitative labor models that remain important in the 21s century.

4. 300 CE: Barbarians

Although it seems overly simplistic, the invasion of Barbarian tribes also had one of the most important adverse effects on Rome\'s imperial ambitions. Linked with the rise of populist sentiment in the chronological timeline, the revolts of barbarian tribes meant that Roman leadership was not taken seriously enough by local leaders and people to be of any lasting effect. As Andrews puts it, \"Rome had tangled with Germanic tribes for centuries, but by the 300s \"barbarian\" groups like the Goths had encroached beyond the Empire\'s borders.\" The lands that Rome conquered had already established leaders and landholders. When the Roman authorities presumed control because of their superior weaponry and human resources, the underlying assumption was that the Barbarian peoples would easily succumb. That was not the case, and local tribes were in many cases as bellicose and warlike as Roman warriors. Vandals and Goths led the fight against Rome, and finally in 476 CE, \"Germanic leader Odoacer staged a revolt and deposed the Emperor Romulus Augustulus,\" Andrews 1).

5. 313 CE: Christianity

\"In 313 C.E., Roman emperor Constantine the Great ended all persecution and declared toleration for Christianity.\"

One of the most important events in Roman history is the embrace of Christianity by Constantine. Prior to this event, Christians were a rogue, minority group that had charismatic power and political sway over an underclass in different areas of the Empire. Because of the rhetoric of Christianity, it became increasingly possible to lure local populations away from Roman leadership towards religious authority. Before long, religious authority superseded the political authority of Rome. Roman authorities for years attempted to suppress Christianity but the persecution of Christians only led to the celebration of Christian martyrdom. By the time Constantine converted to Christianity, the local populations in the Roman Empire warmly welcomed the shift in Roman consciousness.