Italy (Roman Empire) - Italia From The 4th To The 6th Century

Italia From The 4th To The 6th Century

When the barbarians became the most important problem, the Emperors were obliged to move out of Rome, and even in other provinces, thus increasing even more the decline of Italia. In 330, Constantine I moved the capital of the empire to Constantinople, with the imperial court, economical administration, as well as the military structures (as the fleets of Misenum and Ravenna).

After the death of emperor Theodosius (395), Italia became part of the Western Roman Empire. Then came the years of the barbarian invasions, and the capital was moved from Mediolanum to Ravenna (402). Alaric, king of Visigoths, sacked Rome itself in 410; something that hadn't happened for eight centuries. Northern Italia was attacked by Attila's Huns, and Rome was sacked again by the Vandals under the command of Genseric in 455.

According to Notitia Dignitatum, a compilation of public civil and military officers that is considered updated to 420s for the western part of the Roman Empire, Italia was governed by a prefectus, Prefectus praetorio Italiae (who governed Gaul, Italia, Illyricum and Africa), one vicarius, and one comes rei militaris. The regions were governed by eight consulares (Venetiae et Histriae, Aemiliae, Liguriae, Flaminiae et Piceni annonarii, Tusciae et Umbriae, Piceni suburbicarii, Campaniae, and Siciliae), two correctores (Apuliae et Calabriae and Lucaniae et Bruttiorum) and four praesides (Alpium Cottiarum, Samnii, Sardiniae, and Corsicae).

With the Emperors controlled by their barbarian generals, the imperial government weakly controlled Italia, whose coasts were continuously under attack. In 476, with the resignation of Romulus Augustulus and the return of the imperial ensigns to Constantinople, the Western Roman Empire had fallen. For 77 years, Italia stayed united first under Odoacer, then under the Ostrogothic Kingdom.

In 554, Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian I reconquered Italia keeping in general the organization of Diocletian. During the lombards invasion in 568 Byzantines were to lose most of Italia, except the territories of the Exarchate (corresponding roughly to today's Romagna), Venetia, Pentapolis (between south Romagna and today's north-central Marche), Latium (with a shallow corridor connecting Rome with Ancona), Naples and parts of the extreme south: Italy ceased to be a Roman unitary state and began to be divided between several entities, and would not be re-united for another thirteen centuries.