Boris Johnson has made headlines after making a statement during Italy’s G20 Summit that’s more out of whack than The Leaning Tower of Pisa.
Speaking to members of the media near Rome’s Colosseum, the prime minister attempted to use a historical analogy to warn of the dangers of climate change, only to frustrate historians and academics instead.
He told Channel 4 News: “If you increase the temperatures of the planet by four degrees or more … you’ll have seen the graphs, then you produce these really very difficult geopolitical events.
“You produce shortages, you produce desertification, habitat loss … those are things that are going to be politically very difficult to control.
“When the Roman Empire fell, it was largely as a result of uncontrolled immigration. [It] could no longer control its borders, people came in from the east and all over the place, and we went into a Dark Ages, or Europe went into a Dark Ages that lasted a very long time.
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“The point of that is to say it can happen again.”
There’s a handful of reasons behind the fall of the Roman Empire – from government corruption and tribal invasions to military overspending and economic troubles.
Indeed an article from History.com, reads: “The most straightforward theory for Western Rome’s collapse pins the fall on a string of military losses sustained against outside forces. Rome had tangled with Germanic tribes for centuries, but by the 300s ‘barbarian’ groups like the Goths had encroached beyond the Empire’s borders.
“The Romans weathered a Germanic uprising in the late fourth century, but in 410 the Visigoth King Alaric successfully sacked the city of Rome. The Empire spent the next several decades under constant threat before ‘the Eternal City’ was raided again in 455, this time by the Vandals.
“Finally, in 476, the Germanic leader Odoacer staged a revolt and deposed the Emperor Romulus Augustulus. From then on, no Roman emperor would ever again rule from a post in Italy, leading many to cite 476 as the year the Western Empire suffered its deathblow.”
It could well be that argued that said invasions may be what Mr Johnson was referring to, but that’s more of a stretch than putting pasta dough into a roller.
Thankfully, historians, academics and other experts in Roman history were able to quickly step in and remind people why the prime minister was wrong:
WTAF
— Dan Hicks (@profdanhicks) October 31, 2021
“When the Roman Empire fell, it was largely as a result of uncontrolled immigration. The empire could no longer control its borders, people came in…and Europe went into a dark ages that lasted a very long time. The point is that it can happen again”pic.twitter.com/og7UP5jJck
Can I say, I appreciate modern politicians having an historical perspective. But it’d be a woeful misunderstanding of the “fall” of Roman Empire (in the west) to suggest that it was because of uncontrolled immigration, or that the consequence was the west forgot how to draw.
— mary beard (@wmarybeard) October 30, 2021
Ps. There are arguments for and against brexit. Personally I find the “against” arguments much the stronger. But it nothing to do with the fall of the Roman Empire. Get real folks.
— mary beard (@wmarybeard) October 30, 2021
The thing is that everything Johnson has just said is incorrect, but you know that. We all know that, and he does these things on purpose in order to distract from the fact that his government is responsible for the needless deaths of thousands of people. I am tired of this. https://t.co/PT3rblfAjj
— Dr Eleanor Janega (@GoingMedieval) October 31, 2021
This is baaaaad history, used for nasty ends. Our PM should know better, but it's hardly surprising from him https://t.co/JSp42IqXWo
— Greg Jenner (@greg_jenner) October 31, 2021
WTAF
— Dan Hicks (@profdanhicks) October 31, 2021
“When the Roman Empire fell, it was largely as a result of uncontrolled immigration. The empire could no longer control its borders, people came in…and Europe went into a dark ages that lasted a very long time. The point is that it can happen again”pic.twitter.com/og7UP5jJck
It's impossible to read anything written about the Roman Empire in the last 50 years and walk away believing the kind of racist garbage Johnson is peddling. Shocked he didn't slip in a reference to homosexuality eroding manly virtue which usually comes along with crap like this.
— Mike Duncan (@mikeduncan) October 31, 2021
Then there were those who were just there to ridicule the Tory leader:
Two possibilities.
— Otto English (@Otto_English) October 31, 2021
Either Boris Johnson really believes the Roman Empire fell... because of uncontrolled immigration... and that Europe was then plunged in the "dark ages"...
Or he's saying this because he thinks we're all stupid https://t.co/DJYeqrQRNO
The Roman Empire fell "largely as a result of uncontrolled immigration"?? What’s he ranting on about? How dishonest of him. https://t.co/AutS0Eb6dj
— Elena Remigi #In Limbo 🇪🇺🇮🇹🇬🇧 (@ElenaInLimbo) October 31, 2021
“Uncontrolled immigration” was the cause of the demise of the Roman Empire. How on earth does the British public school system produce people like this? https://t.co/9akgbXxZw8
— John O’Brennan (@JohnOBrennan2) October 30, 2021
Boris Johnson talks about how the Roman Empire fell as a result of “uncontrolled immigration” (a blatant historical inaccuracy), while forgetting that the spread of diseases was one of the main causes.
— Andrea Carlo (@andcarlom) October 31, 2021
Maybe he should look at his handling of Covid first… https://t.co/bg3OH0Wc1B
The Roman Empire fell… because of uncontrolled immigration? You might as well say the Nazis fell because of the uncontrolled immigration of Russian, American and British soldiers into Germany. It’s gibberish https://t.co/srUr6lwHk7
— Peter Jukes (@peterjukes) October 31, 2021
The comments about the Roman Empire weren’t the only blunder from the prime minister, who also said during the summit that “we’re 5-1 down at half time” when it comes to climate change.
Now, I’m no football expert, but making up such a significant score difference in such a short space of time as just 45 minutes (give or take) is pretty much impossible. Just ask Liverpool after what happened last week…
Given that former UK Government ministers have previously sparked a culture war around “activists” rewriting history, it’s rather ironic that the prime minister appears to have done so here.
