That was the downfall of the Roman Empire; the downfall/transition of the Roman Republic (the one with dictators, not emperors) was of a different nature, which

That was the downfall of the Roman Empire; the downfall/transition of the Roman Republic (the one with dictators, not emperors) was of a different nature, which is not quite as easy to sum up: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crisis_of_the_Roman_Republic http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crisis_of_the_Roman_Republic