The Growth and Decline of the Western Roman Empire
Quantifying the Dynamics of Army Size, Territory, and Coinage
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 13100899 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Sabin Roman (0000-0002-7513-3479, Romanian Institute of Science and Technology, corresponding author), Erika Palmer (0000-0002-6357-5130) |
| Year | 2019 |
| Volume | 10 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Publication date | 2019-12-30 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Cliodynamics The Journal of Quantitative History and Cultural Evolution (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2373-7530 • E-ISSN: 2373-7530 |
| Publisher | California Digital Library (CDL) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.21237/c7clio10243683 |
| OpenAlex | W2997099192 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 26 |
We model the Western Roman Empire from 500 BCE to 500 CE, aiming to understand the interdependent dynamics of army size, conquered territory and the production and debasement of coins within the empire. The relationships are represented through feedback relationships and modelled mathematically via a dynamical system, specified as a set of ordinary differential equations. We analyze the stability of a subsystem and determine that it is neutrally stable. Based on this, we find that to prevent decline, the optimal policy was to stop debasement and reduce the army size and territory during the rule of Marcus Aurelius. Given the nature of the stability of the system and the kind of policies necessary to prevent decline, we argue that a high degree of centralized control was necessary, in line with basic tenets of structural-demographic theory. This article was updated on 01/09/2020 to correct an error in equation (3.5). Page numbers were updated on 01/05/2021
Ancient history · Dynamics (music · Econometrics · Economics · Economy · Empire · Interdependence · Mathematical economics · Political science · Roman Empire · Set (abstract data type · Sociology · Stability (learning theory · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Computer Science · Economic theories and models · History · Law · World Systems and Global Transformations
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| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,2 |
| Citation span | 2021 - 2021 (1) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |