What do all empires have in common? Above all, they eventually collapse. But does their fall always go hand in hand with crisis? And what does such a crisis look like “from the inside”? These questions will be addressed by Prof. Maria Nowak from the UW Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology (PCMA), recipient of a prestigious ERC Consolidator Grant.

On the 9th December, Prof. Maria Nowak was awarded an ERC Consolidator Grant worth 1.9 million euros for her project A provincial capital polis at the end of the Roman era. Periphery or centre of power? (acronym: PeriPolis). The project aims to present the late Roman Empire as a state struggling with challenges strikingly similar to those faced by modern societies.

“The aim of the project is to determine whether crisis is an intrinsic feature of the collapse of empires, or whether the two phenomena may occur independently. I also want to gain a deeper understanding of everyday life in times of decline – both for ordinary inhabitants and political elites. I am interested in whether elites realised the impending collapse and tried to counteract it, or whether the end came as an unavoidable shock,” says Prof. Nowak.

Crisis or collapse?

The late Roman Empire experienced rising economic inequality, impoverishment of urban elites, abuse of taxation, corruption, and growing power of quasi-corporate institutions. The state attempted to respond primarily through legislation – but the key question remains: was it strong enough to enforce the law?

Throughout the centuries, scholars have proposed hundreds of explanations for the fall of Rome – from anecdotal theories such as “overly warm baths” or moral decay to serious arguments rooted in political, economic and military crises.

“In popular perception, the fall of an empire is associated with a multidimensional crisis. Today, in times of growing polarisation and global tensions, that question returns with renewed urgency,” emphasises Prof. Nowak.

Zooming in on the end

The project focuses on the 5th–7th centuries, when Constantinople gradually lost control over its territories. The research will investigate whether the capital was still able to govern remote regions effectively – especially in the fundamental state function of law enforcement.

“In other words: was the loss of its mega-empire status the result of institutional failure, or can crisis and collapse occur independently?” – adds the researcher.

To answer this, PeriPolis combines a macro-perspective (analysis of imperial laws) with a micro-perspective: case studies of three well-documented provincial capitals – Antinoopolis (Egypt), Petra (Jordan) and Ravenna (northern Italy).

“Thanks to the wealth of preserved sources, I can examine whether legislative frameworks established by the government were actually functioning at the local level,” explains Prof. Nowak.

Using a “zoomed-in” and “synecdoche” method – first examining a limited historical slice in detail, then drawing conclusions about the larger whole – the project promises a nuanced understanding of imperial decline.

Lessons for the present

The PeriPolis project may significantly reshape our understanding of how empires collapse – both ancient and contemporary.

Its findings should not only offer a fresh interpretation of events from 1,500 years ago, but also help us better understand how large political structures function in moments of upheaval – and how societies cope in “end times”.