ces were invaded by the Persians. Finally, the discipline of the army in which half Romanized provincials and totally non Romanized barbarians were now serving broke down. In the 50 years from 235 to 284 more than two dozen emperors ruled, all but one of whom suffered a violent death.
Luttwack (1976) describes the imperial system of defense, which was surprisingly less controlled and less comprehensive than might be believed considering the degree of success it had and the stability it enforced. Kitto (1964) finds that the first two centuries of the empire were times of peaceful development, in general agreement with what Luttwack (1976) notes. Kitto (1964) states that some historians have found the period too peaceful, consi
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