The Roman Empire, from Caesar's reign through Augustus, and finally the infiltration of the Germanic barbarians. 7-8 pages, double spaced, 10pt Times New Roman, with 'quick references'.

After serving in Spain as proconsul in 61 BC, Caesar returned to Rome in 60 BC, ambitious for the consulate. Against senatorial opposition he achieved a brilliant stroke--he organized a coalition, known as the First Triumvirate, made up of Pompey, commander in chief of the army; Marcus Licinius Crassus, the wealthiest man in Rome; and Caesar himself. In 59 BC as consul, he secured the passage of an agrarian law providing Campanian lands for 20,000 poor citizens and veterans, …

…y in ruins, and by 440, the Roman army had, in fact, become little more than a barbarian army in itself. "As Rome became barbarianized, it lost its tactical superiority, and Rome fell to the onrush of barbarianism." (page 169--Ferrill) Books Referenced in addition to required readings: Ferrill, Arther. The Fall of the Roman Empire. New York: Thames and Hudson Inc., 1986. Keppie, Lawrence. The Making of the Roman Army: From Republic to Empire. London: Routledge Limited, 1998.