This is the History of the World Podcast with me Chris Hasler

And you're listening to volume three the classical world

episode 50

the fall of the Western Roman Empire. Oh, When Constantine established the capital of the entire Roman Empire at Byzantium,

renaming it Constantinople in his own honor, the days of Rome's glory as the center of the mighty Roman Empire

were in the past.

The center of gravity that shifted eastwards to a position where the major threats to the

Roman Empire could be better dealt with.

During the years of the Tetraaki, the main Augustus of the Roman Empire, whether it be Diocletian or Galerius,

ruled from the east, leaving Rome as the antiquated old center of the empire.

Three hundred years earlier, Augustus and Agrippa

were building a modern city that was the envy of the world. Now it was full of historical baggage and unattractive.

Even the imperial city of the Roman Empire in the West had been moved to Madeleolenham, modern Milan by this time.

This only left the Senate in Rome and the Senate was not comparatively important anymore in any case.

However, you still had to be very brave to take on the Roman Empire at this stage with its highly effective military

and its organised constitution. It was an empire with a lot of resource and it was an altering empire at the time of Constantine's death in 337.

The next chapter of this story is about Constantine's sons of which he had four. One of the sons

was already mentioned in episode 48 that was Christmas who played an important role in assisting his father to become the sole emperor

of the Roman Empire by helping him to defeat Licinius in 324.

However, just two years later, Constantine had his own wife,

Fausta and his son Crispus executed in very mysterious circumstances.

Some historians suggest an affair may have taken place between Crispus and his stepmother, but it is unknown for sure.

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