Slave Labor: Why Rome's Fall

Slave labor was a very significant reason as to why Rome fell. Although there are several other theories regarding Rome’s fall, this one had the biggest impact on Rome as an empire. Many Roman citizens relied on their slaves to get the difficult tasks accomplished. Slave labor eventually became such a common thing in Rome, it began to define the empire. Even before Rome began to plunge, the slaves had collars, much like that which a dog would wear, fastened around their neck that said, “I have run away. Catch me. If you take me back to my master Zoninus, you will be rewarded.” (http://www.classicsunveiled.com/romel/html/slavery.html) Slaves were useful to Rome because, even if the slave master was away, the slaves could still work in the
fields. When the Roman soldiers went to war, slaves were especially critical to the empire because they could work at home. This goes to show that Rome depended greatly on slavery, and if it were taken away, which it was, they would not know how to function. Slave labor was a very rough thing for Rome because, the slave owners developed a strong love of luxury, and Rome was soon characterized by this mistake. They were previously looked upon as simple and conserving. Rome had been expanding their land, until suddenly in the second century, this enlargement came to a halt. This block in the expansion process, which Rome had been doing for a very long time, led to slavery becoming scarce. It became harder and harder to