Скачать или смотреть How Money Destroyed Ancient Rome

We often imagine the fall of the Roman Empire as a dramatic collapse under the swords of barbarian invaders. This narrative, however, misses a deeper and more instructive truth. New research in economic history suggests the Western Empire was hollowed out from within long before its final political dissolution, and the primary culprit was the systematic debasement of its own currency.

This documentary traces the slow-moving financial crisis that unraveled Roman society. It begins with the emperors' fateful decision to dilute the silver content of the denarius, a move intended to solve short-term budget deficits. This single act triggered a relentless cycle of inflation, collapsing trade, and evaporating trust. We examine how the resulting economic chaos reshaped the empire's very foundations: forcing a shift from a monetary tax system to one of goods and labor, empowering local warlords over the central state, and transforming free citizens into a dependent peasantry. The story culminates in the empire's inability to pay its frontier armies, leading to the fatal reliance on "barbarian" federate troops who would ultimately become its undertakers.

The narrative is not merely about coins and taxes, but about the fragile social contract that binds a civilization together. It explores how the integrity of a currency is foundational to military loyalty, civic duty, and economic vitality. When Rome broke faith with the money in its citizens' hands, it set in motion a chain of events that made its political collapse not just possible, but inevitable.

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This video is for educational and documentary purposes only. It is not financial advice.