Aiming at a definite presentation of the really conclusive scopes the author
enlarges and revises here his earlier radical new examinations of the
controversial issues of Late Roman military organization and agrarian taxation:
the two fields of West Roman decay. He enriches the topics by expan?ding the
scope through his sourcemicroanalytic method that results in additional new
insights in both themes. Their spectrum is extended also by involvement of
modern experiences. The work not only contributes to looking at the epochal
process of historical change to the Middle Ages far more adequately, but also
opens new perspectives to assessing the present age.