Crisis of the Third Century

The breakdown of Roman imperial power from debased coinage, army usurpations, increased invasions from both Germanic peoples and the resurgent Persian empire, along with climate change and disease outbreaks, the crisis is a major turning point in history, essentially beginning the slow transition to the medieval world. The era spans the assassination of the emperor Alexander Severus in 235 CE, through the ascension of Diocletian in 286 CE. Notably, the Roman Empire split into three different parts at one point during the crisis, and was reconstituted under the reign of the emperor Aurelian. The breakdown of imperial authority led to greater localization and the contraction of trade routes across the Mediterranean. While the empire would recover, it would be transformed into a new form of government, the Dominate, under Diocletian.