> The thing that finally did the Roman empire in was that there was nobody left who wanted it to continue as it was gradually taxed by crises. Well, there were

> The thing that finally did the Roman empire in was that there was nobody left who wanted it to continue as it was gradually taxed by crises. Well, there were some who wanted to continue it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Roman_Empire https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Roman_Empire - of course, after a 300+ year gap, it's more a revival (or reusing a powerful trademark to boost your importance) than a continuation...