The Crisis of the Third Century

<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//IETF//DTD HTML//EN"> <html> <head><script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/bundle-playback.js?v=HxkREWBo" charset="utf-8"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/wombat.js?v=txqj7nKC" charset="utf-8"></script> <script>window.RufflePlayer=window.RufflePlayer||{};window.RufflePlayer.config={"autoplay":"on","unmuteOverlay":"hidden"};</script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/ruffle/ruffle.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> __wm.init("https://web.archive.org/web"); __wm.wombat("http://isthmia.osu.edu:80/teg/50501/4.htm","20060717182740","https://web.archive.org/","web","/_static/", "1153160860"); </script> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/_static/css/banner-styles.css?v=S1zqJCYt" /> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/_static/css/iconochive.css?v=3PDvdIFv" />  <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"> <meta name="GENERATOR" content="Microsoft FrontPage 4.0"> <title>The Crisis of the Third Century</title> </head> <body> 4. THE CRISIS OF THE THIRD CENTURY During the period from A.D. 235 to 284 nearly all of the institutions of the Roman world failed to work properly and the Roman Empire nearly fell. Much of later Byzantine history was "worked out" against the framework of the crisis of the third century. A. Political <blockquote> 1. The Roman Empire had built one of the largest and probably the most successful political structures of antiquity. This structure was flexible and based on the strength of the Roman army and willing association of peoples and cities. 2. One of the weaknesses of the system was that the emperor, who was the head of state, was not chosen by any specific "constitution" means; nor process of "legitimation" had been established. 3. This caused some difficulties (i.e. civil wars) in the early empire, and the situation rapidly deteriorated in the third century. </blockquote> <blockquote> <blockquote> a. During the third century usurpations and civil wars became commonplace. b. No emperor could be secure on the throne, and during the 50-year period from A.D. 235 to 284 there were approximately 35 emperors, of whom only one died a natural death. c. Emperors had to spend most of their time fighting would-be usurpers. d. Furthermore, at just this time the state had to face and administrative crisis, as it had to provide more and more services because of the weakening and ultimate demise of the old city-state, polis, as the basis of local government. </blockquote> </blockquote> B. Military <blockquote> 1. Obviously there was the problem of nearly constant civil war. 2. With Roman troops busy fighting each other, foreign enemies took advantage of the situation to attack the empire. </blockquote> <blockquote> <blockquote> a. The Germans, the Goths, threatened the northern frontier of the empire. b. The Persians, under the dynasty of the Sassanids after 226, represented a serious threat in the East. c. At the height of this crisis separatist states emerged in Gaul and Palmyra, which seriously brought into question the unity of the empire. </blockquote> </blockquote> C. Economic <blockquote> 1. The economy of the Roman state was probably never particularly healthy from a modern point of view and a general collapse took place during the third century. Perhaps this was because of a decline in population or a loss of agricultural productivity; there is much uncertainty here. 2. The third century witnessed a tremendous inflation and the currency collapsed; the empire nearly reverted to a "natural economy" (based on barter, with no coinage used). 3. The political and military crisis heightened the economic problem; and the economic problem contributed to the political and military difficulties since the state frequently did not have the money to cover expenses. </blockquote> D. Cultural, Intellectual, and Spiritual <blockquote> 1. Amid these difficulties, it is no wonder that the old values of the ancient world were called into question. 2. In general, there was a rejection of the optimistic and secular orientation of classical civilization and a concern for religious and other-worldly ideals. Personal religious experiences and salvation became increasingly important. </blockquote> <blockquote> <blockquote> a. This was not a totally new phenomenon, but its development was hastened by developments in the third century. b. Particularly important were the "mystery religions," which promised their devotees happiness and salvation by association with the god: Isis, Osirus, Cybele, Mithras, etc. c. Similar developments can be traced in philosophy, where Plotinus and Porphyry emphasized man's striving for union with god and made Neoplatonism the dominant intellectual force among the educated. d. Syncretism was one of the hallmarks of the age and paganism and Christianity moved largely along parallel lines. </blockquote> Back to the<a href="chron.htm"> Chronology main page</a>. </blockquote> </body> </html>

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The Crisis of the Third Century