I love history so much, it's an obsession of mine. But there are certain events that I don't yet understand and the fall of rome is one.
I was wondering if someone could, in very simple terms, explain how, not why, it fell. When and why did the helm of the empire go from Romulus to the first barbarian ruler. What was this barbarian called at the time? Was he called the emperor?
We see this as a pivotal event where history changed in a moment but was it really such a fast and drastic change from one day to the other at the time? Or was it more of a gradual change?
Thank you.
in very simple terms, explain how, not why, it fell
...welp. The thing is, this exact question is, as I understand it, a matter of debate up there in academia-land, so depending on who we're consulting, we might get a particular slant of answer. Indeed, specifically to challenge preconceptions, I've taken to calling it "the so-called 'Fall' of Rome". More can always be said if anyone would like to address this matter; for the meantime, here are some previous posts for your perusal:
For reading about the so-called 'Fall' and the effects thereof,