Roman German States

Location: the Western Roman Empire (the red color)

                                         
                                               

Political characteristics: the roman written law combined with the Germanic costumes.


Economic characteristics: the economy was based on agriculture and commerce, while commerce was not very developed by the Roman Empire, because it was more developed in the Byzantium.


Social characteristics:  Latin and barbarians languages mixed creating the origin of the Spanish, French, Italian, and Rumanian among others in the Roman territory. Over the Germanic territory, Latin and barbarian mixed creating the origin of English, German, and others. After the fall of the Roman Empire, the Germanic civilization consolidated into kingdoms.

The major kingdoms were:
*the Franks: The military power of the Franks developed rapidly after the middle of the Third Century. A characteristic is that the Frankish expansion was more a matter of conquest than colonisation and though some Franks did settle in northern Gaul, there was little upheaval of the native population.

 *the Visigoths: The Visigoths, also known as the Goths, were a barbaric tribe. A characteristic is that Alaric decided to invade Italy, but was defeated by the Roman general Flavius Stilicho, and the Visigoths were forced to withdraw from Italy. After a while period of time Alaric die, and the Visigoths were vulnerable to attacks.

 *the Lombards: originated in the lower Elbe Valley, a characteristic is that for a whole generation, the Lombards behaved in the worst traditions of barbarian conquerors. Italy had no government in the proper sense of the word and the Emperor was powerless to intervene.

                                                    

Cultural characteristics:

•  Over time, Germanic states transformed their beliefs in favour of the catholic religion.
• The most important artistic legacy was the creation of jewelry with precious stones and gold.

Important characters:

• The Germans; that lived beyond the boundaries of the Roman Empire and as the Western Roman Empire crumbled, the barbarian warlords who had conquered the provinces.
• Romulus Augustulus, that was deposed by Odoacer and bringing the Western Roman Empire to an end.

                                                          

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Sources used to write the post:
Roman German States in http://www.lycos.com/info/roman-empire--western-roman-empire.html consulted the 15th of June 2011.

Video related to this topic:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4yZDB0qwx4&feature=related