A complicated series of civil wars in Rome between during the 3rd century is finally ended by the victory of the Emperor Constantine who rules as sole emperor after 324 AD. Constantine renamed the city of Byzantium as Constantinople and made it the new capital of the empire. After his death, order broke down again and the empire was effectively divided into two halves, the Western Empire ruled from Rome, and the Eastern Empire ruled from Constantinople. Constantine was probably the first Roman emperor to adopt Christianity. Julian, the last pagan emperor, tried to halt the spread of the Christianity, but after his death, it was made the official state religion of the empire.

The North African bishop, Augustine (354-430 AD), writes the Confessions, and The City of God, two of the most important Christian books. Augustine dies in the Vandal attack on Africa.

German tribes invade Italy. The Goths capture and pillage Rome in 410 AD. The Vandals sail to North Africa and found an independent kingdom (lasting from 429-534 AD). The general Odoacer, a German in the service of the empire and commander over a mixed Roman- German army, rebels and takes over real rule in Rome, although the Roman emperor is kept on as a puppet ruler.

In 476 AD, the last Roman emperor, Romulus Augustulus, is removed from power and the Goths under king Theoderic now form an independent kingdom in Italy. This is usually considered the end of the Western Roman Empire.

It was now more common for Roman troops to be paid in coins. The name of a common coin was the solidus, and because of this, fighting men were nicknamed after the coin, which has changed over time to become our word soldier. Before, troops were often paid in salt, which was then a scarce and valuable commodity. The Roman word for salt is salarium, which in English has been turned into "salary".

Justinian (527-565 AD), emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, temporarily recaptures Italy, Spain and Africa, destroying the Vandal and Gothic kingdoms here. However, he is best remembered for collecting and codifying all the Roman laws into four books, called the Institutes (the text of the laws), Digests (legal writings and opinions of important jurists or lawyers), Codex Justinianus (collection of imperial constitutions) and Novellae (constitutions issued during Justinian's reign). Much of our legal system today is founded on Roman law.

Benedict of Nursia founds the monastery of Monte Cassino in Italy in 529 AD. What became known as the Benedictine Rule became the foundation for most of the other monastic orders that flourished in medieval Europe. With the break down in the central government from Rome, people began to look towards local sources of power for peace and protection. These included monasteries, which were often built like small fortresses, local church leaders, and the owners of large villas (who could mobilize the manpower of their estate for defence).

Monasteries also became centres of learning. But even before, only wealthy Roman children went to school. Poor boys would learn a trade from their father, be hired out as an apprentice, or join the army. Even in rich families, girls rarely went to school, usually learning only the skills needed to run a household. A group of German children show what a Roman school was like