> but it seems to have started a terminal decline that continued all the way through the Early Middle Ages (with no clearly identifiable "fall" event, albeit th

> but it seems to have started a terminal decline that continued all the way through the Early Middle Ages (with no clearly identifiable "fall" event, albeit the convention of picking 476 CE, being roughly at the midpoint, is arguably as good as any!) This isn't really true. The Roman Empire recovered substantially during the 4th century; economic output and population (at least as well as we can measure them) stabilized at levels below those of the first two centuries C.E., but significantly higher than during the crises of the third century. It wasn't until the late 4th century that things really started going downhill.