The Barbarian Invasions of Rome

The Barbarians1) Read through the information below carefully.2) Use the click down menu to fill in the blanks. The word ‘barbarian’ originally meant ‘foreigner’ and was used by the Greeks and later the Romans. Since the Romans did not approve of foreigners, the word barbarian soon became associated with those outside the Roman Empire who, in the Roman view, were ignorant, savage and uncivilized. The term itself eventually became synonymous with those tribes who lived beyond the Rhine and Danube Rivers. These tribes were all Germanic and included the Visigoths, Ostrogoths, Vandals, Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Franks. Despite several attempts, the Romans had never been able to completely conquer these people, mainly because they were not united and lived in small tribal groups. They built no great cities and did not concentrate all their forces in one or two large strongholds. The Romans thus could not concentrate all their forces in one area and defeat them with ease, as they had done with other civilizations. As a result the Romans resorted to launching punitive raids in barbarian lands, capturing slaves and intimidating them into staying well clear of the Roman Empire.Although the barbarians lived on the border lands of the Roman Empire, beyond these border lands lived other powerful tribes, the nomadic Huns. By the mid fifth century the Huns had been united under the leadership of a man named Attila. Attila had transformed the Huns from separate independent nomadic tribes into a nation seeking power and riches. Attila used his power to raid both the Western and Eastern Roman Empires, playing one off against the other. The Barbarian Tribes - Map Interpretation Activity 1) Look carefully at the maps below. - Map #1 Visual representation of the Barbarian Invasions of the Roman Empire. - Map #2Map of Modern Day Europe.2) Match the Barbarian Tribe with the description of their place of origin.(Where they came from when they invaded the Western Roman Empire.)Map #1Map #2 Franks Northern Europe Angles, Saxons and Jutes Northern Europe, Modern day Denmark. Goths Northern Europe, Modern day Norway and Sweden Visigoths and Ostrogoths, North Eastern Europe Huns Eastern Europe, Modern day China and Russia Vandals Carthage Dividing The Western Roman Empire into Barbarian Kingdoms1) Read through the information below carefully.2) Use the click down menu to fill in the blanks. The Western RomanEmpire and the Eastern Roman Empire had, since their creation, been great rivals. At first Attila raided the West to gain Roman gold. The leaders of the Western Empire then paid him with gold and encouraged him to stay away from the west and raid the eastinstead. Attila then led his Hunsagainst the Eastern Roman Empire and captured many cities and hoards of gold. The emperor of the east then bribed Attila to go back and raidthe west. In AD 451, learning of Attila’s plans, the Romans in the west forged an unlikely alliance with the barbarian tribeswho lived just outside Roman land. They both fought and defeated Attila’sarmy. Attila withdrew his forces, and after his death, the Hun tribes once again became separate. However they continued to raid Roman and, more importantly, barbarian lands at will, seeking supplies and riches.The barbarian Germanic tribes, now unable to live peacefully and produce enough food, entered the lands of the Western Roman Empireseeking refuge. However the Romans did not treat them very fairlydespite their earlier alliance. For example, Roman officials forced hungry barbarians to sell their children into slavery for dog meat to eat. This drove the barbarians to the point of hysteria and the situation escalated into a full scale rebellion. The various barbarian tribes then fought and defeated Rome’s legions. They were able to achieve this because they had previously trainedand fought with the Romans and knew their weaknesses. So powerful was their attack that Roman soldiers defending Britain from the Angles and Saxons had to be eventually recalled home when the Visigothsattacked the city of Rome itself. In 476Odacer, a Gothic king, forced Romulus Augustulus, the lastRoman emperor in the west to hand over his power to him.By about AD 500 the Western Roman Empire had virtually ceasedto exist. The modern map of Western Europe was beginning to take shape at this time. The Huns who began this movement of peoples in Europe remained nomadsand never created a lasting kingdom, but the Germanic tribes settled down in the areas they conquered. The Franks created ’Frankland’ which is modern day France. The land occupied by the Visigoths became Spain and the land occupied by the Ostrogoths would one day be Germany. Ostrogoths as well as some Vandals and Visigoths settled in Italy. The Anglo-Saxons and Jutes invaded modern day England. Where did the Barbarian Tribes Settle? - Matching Activity 1) Use the information from the cloze to match the Barbarian Tribe with the Kingdom they created/ place they settled after the collapse of the Roman Empire. Franks France (Frankland) Huns Remained Nomads Visigoths Spain Ostrogoths Germany Vandals, Visigoths and Ostrogoths Italy Anglo-Saxons and Jutes England Defining Key Words - Multiple Choice 1) The following words all appeared in the above activities. 2) Match the key term with the correct definition. 1) Which phrase best defines the word "Empire"? Rough and uncultured. A large group of countries under the control of one Powerful country. A member of a warlike nomadic group who raided Roman lands. 2) Which phrase best defines the word "Huns"? Rough and uncultured. An uncivilized or brutish person, the Roman word of "foreigner". A member of a warlike nomadic group who raided Roman lands. 3) Which phrase best defines the word "Nomads"? A member of a tribe that roams from place to place. An uncivilized or brutish person, the Roman word of "foreigner". A member of a warlike nomadic group who raided Roman lands. 4) Which phrase best defines the word "Uncivilized"? Rough and uncultured. An uncivilized or brutish person, the Roman word of "foreigner". A member of a warlike nomadic group who raided Roman lands. 5) Which phrase best defines the word "Barbarians"? Rough and uncultured. An uncivilized or brutish person, the Roman word of "foreigner". A member of a warlike nomadic group who raided Roman lands.