Rome Fell When Guards Went Unpaid

The mightiest city in history crumbled because four security guards didn't get paid.

Back in 546 AD, Rome was a starving mess besieged by the Goth King Totila. The people inside

were literally eating rats to survive while the Byzantine commanders hoarded food and cash.

The city walls were still unbreachable, but the payroll wasn't. On December 17,

four unpaid mercenaries got fed up and cracked the Asinarian Gate open in the middle of the night.

Totila marched in and almost razed the whole city to the ground to make it a sheep pasture.

He eventually spared the architecture but cleared everyone out, leaving Rome completely

empty for forty days. It is a brutal reminder that you can build the highest walls,