How did the Roman Empire fall?

The fall of the Western Roman Empire (476 AD) resulted from multiple interconnected causes:

Internal factors:

• Political instability — frequent civil wars, assassinations, and corrupt leadership
• Economic decline — heavy taxation, inflation, trade disruption
• Military weakening — reliance on mercenaries, difficulty defending vast borders
• Social decay — declining civic virtue, widening gap between rich and poor

External factors:

• Barbarian invasions — Visigoths, Vandals, Huns pressured borders for centuries
• In 410 AD, Visigoths sacked Rome
• In 476 AD, Germanic leader Odoacer deposed the last Western emperor

Note: The Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantine Empire) continued for another 1,000 years until 1453.