During the early stages of the Roman Empire under the Princep Augustus, certain events established a destructive pattern which made inevitable the decline and fall of the empire. I chose one salient nexus point, the accidental death of the superb general Nero Claudius Drusus in the summer of 9 BCE as the point when the decline began to be inevitable.

Drusus had already conquered western Germania to the Elbe River and planned to subjugate all of Germania, which at the time extended through Poland to the Vistula River. A civilized Germania would over time consist of fortified cities, and a stable population base. This Germania would add strength to the army with the potential of millions of skilled warriors, and be a strong bulwark against barbarian invasions.

Drusus was also a powerful voice of the Roman Republic. I believe that his leadership would have opened the potential for a Constitutional Princep. That concept could have minimized the potential for the corruption and decay which followed Augustus.