The rise of the Roman Empire was sparked by a massive volcanic eruption - 6,000 miles away in the Arctic, according to new research.
It sounded the death knell for the republic and the rise of the empire by triggering climate change, famine and disease - ultimately spawning the western world.
Alaska's Mount Okmok blew its top in 43BC - a year after the assassination of Julius Caesar, the study shows. The after effects even reached Egypt where the 300 year rule of the Ptolemaic dynasty ended with the death of Queen Cleopatra.
Professor Joe McConnell, of the Desert Research Institute in Reno, Nevada, said: "To find evidence a volcano on the other side of the earth erupted and effectively contributed to the demise of the Romans and the
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