The Roman Empire: Fall of the West; Survival of the East

The Western Roman Empire collapsed more than 1500 years ago, while the Eastern Roman Empire survived for almost a thousand more years. When the west collapsed, no one questioned why. It was simply the way things were. Than about 500 years ago scholars begin to question just why the west should fail and the east survive. A long list of reasons have been presented, but they are seen as contributors to the fall, and were not the primary cause. The Roman Empire was a military nation that was bu...