Faculty Publications

Document Type

Article

Publication Version

Published Version

Journal/Book/Conference Title

Polish Journal of Biblical Research

Volume

21

Issue

1-4 (41-44)

First Page

47

Last Page

60

Abstract

The tragic story of the Roman Empire’s decline and fall has captivated the imaginations of countless artists, scholars, and filmmakers, among others. The many rulers of the Roman Empire—regardless of whether they were competent or not to hold office—dealt with insurmountable problems such as frequent invasions, numerous civil wars, attempted coups, unchecked immigration, racism, economic downturns, inept government officials, political corruption, changing values, religious violence, and sexism. Yet, despite overwhelming odds, the Roman Empire managed to survive these and other threats until September of 476 A.D. when a Roman of Gothic origin, Odoacer, forced the emperor Romulus Augustulus, to abdicate. This event has long been viewed as the final moment of the Western Roman Empire’s decline and fall. What is overlooked in this story is Romulus Augustulus’s predecessors who delayed its inevitable collapse. Among the most important and neglected of these is a woman named Galla Placidia who guided several of its emperors, presided over the Roman Empire as its de facto ruler, shaped its military policies, and even helped select a pope. This study proposes that she accomplished these and many other feats largely thorough a creative interpretation of the biblical Book of Daniel.

Department

Department of History

Original Publication Date

12-2022

Object Description

1 PDF file (14 pages)

Repository

UNI ScholarWorks, Rod Library, University of Northern Iowa

Copyright

©2022 Enigma Press. Permission to post the article to the institutional repository granted by the publisher.

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

Download

Comments?

Share

COinS