[Condor51]

Don't forget Colleen McCollough's "Masters of Rome" series on the fall of the Roman Republic.

I don't know about your above reference but what I do know that technically the Roman Empire really didn't "fall" at least not as is commonly 'taught'.

The wildly held misconception is that Rome 'Fell' shortly after the sacking of Rome in 410 AD by Attila (but more accurately it would be 475 AD with the 'last' emperor Julius Nepos). However that's incorrect as by that time the empire was split into two parts₁, Western and Eastern with two Emperors. The Eastern Roman Empire became the Byzantine Empire and lasted until 1453, when it fell to the Ottoman Turks.

So if one starts with the first emperor, Julius Caesar, "Rome" lasted 1500 years.
(Hitler's 1000 year Reich reference was to Rome and Julius Caesar and Heil Hitler was akin to Hail Caesar and Russian Czar is derived from 'Caesar')

Also, about the time when Rome was sacked in 410, the Visigoths who were then Roman 'citizens' moved almost en masse to present day Spain. So todays 'Spaniards' are really descendants of Eastern 'Europeans'. Oh, and Hungarians are descended from the Huns.

1- In 330 AD the Roman emperor Constantine I, in an attempt to strengthen the empire, refounded Byzantium as Constantinople, the 'New Rome' and capital of the eastern half of the empire.

At his death in 395 Emperor Theodosius I divided the empire between his two sons, and it was never reunited.

Theodosius also made Christianity the sole religion of the empire, and Constantinople assumed preeminence over other Christian centers in the East as Rome did in the West.

Note: I'm not trying to be a smart ___ or anything, I'm just slightly irked at the education system in general, in that 'we' were all taught incorrect history in school.

[Sans-Culotte]

So if one starts with the first emperor, Julius Caesar, "Rome" lasted 1500 years.

Julius Caesar: the only Roman Emperor who was never Roman Emperor....

[jalisco555]

I don't know about your above reference but what I do know that technically the Roman Empire really didn't "fall" at least not as is commonly 'taught'.

I'm aware of that. The books I referred to deal with the end of the Roman Republic and it's transition into a full-fledged empire. The series began with the rise of Marius and Sulla and ended with Octavian (not yet Augustus) and Antony agreeing to share rule. Even though there should be one more novel dealing with the Octavian vs. Antony and Cleopatra civil war McCollough ran out of gas and decided to end the series. Still highly recommended, though.

[Modernman]

The Eastern Roman Empire became the Byzantine Empire and lasted until 1453, when it fell to the Ottoman Turks.

Some historians have made the argument that the Ottoman Empire was just an Islamic extension of the Roman/Byzantine Empire.

Oh, and Hungarians are descended from the Huns.

Not really. The Huns were a pretty small tribe. They settled down and were assimilated by the local population. Hungarians are mostly descended from the Magyars, who came later.

[Aetius]

I agree with your general point, but it was Alaric who sacked Rome in 410, and wasn't Romulus Augustus the last Western Emperor, deposed in 476? And technically, wasn't Augustus the first Roman Emperor?

[Polonius]

The wildly held misconception is that Rome 'Fell' shortly after the sacking of Rome in 410 AD by Attila

Actually, it was Alaric who sacked Rome in 410.