Most civilizations throughout history have been taken over or replaced by other civilizations due to disunity and chaos. Although an empire may seem prosperous, the decline and fall of empires are sometimes inevitable. Even though an empire may seem invincible, there are many factors that could lead to the sudden decline or fall of an empire. Over many centuries, historians have composed many reasons, such as weak military forces, economic burdens, dynastic successions, and external enemies, which are known to have contributed to the rise and fall of many once successful empires. One of the most common causes of the decline of an empire stems from the weakness of military power and martial spirit. For an empire to succeed, that empire must exhibit a strong will to fight or sacrifice property and life to defend its state. If an empire does not possess this characteristic, it will often decline rapidly. For example, the Roman Empire succeeded due to the willingness of males to defend the state. Soon after, males lost the will to defend themselves, and the empire had to recruit unreliable mercenaries to fight in the war. Unlike the victorious army of the past, these mercenaries had no real loyalty to Rome. Due to constant warfare, the Romans had large military expenses. The Roman Empire had become too large to be controlled without effort. Families and soldiers in some parts of the Roman Empire adopted local customs. The Roman Empire was not only made up of indigenous people from the Italian peninsula, but was also made up of barbarians from conquered lands. The barbarians were very knowledgeable when it came to Roman warfare and military tactics. Corruption has spread throughout Em...... middle of paper ...... of money and the inability to repay officials. Without money, an empire cannot prosper. The rich stop paying taxes and the burden falls on the poor. Poor taxpayers get angry and eventually start riots. Anger and inhumane acts contribute to the loss of valued ethics and traditions. The citizens of an empire begin to ignore the difference between good and evil. This will begin to cause chaos and corruption in an empire, causing it to rapidly decline. Sometimes, as in the case of the Roman Empire, the Emperor is unable to control the amount of corruption and chaos that occurs. Without an effective emperor capable of controlling such matters throughout the empire, the empire will gradually begin to weaken. The rise and fall of great empires are the result of many complex reasons such as moral decline and escapism, but the above-mentioned factors are often inevitable.