Dethronement of Romulus Augustulus

In 476, in Ravenna the military leader Odoacer of Germanic descent deprived Romulus Augustulus (475-476), the last ruler of the Western Roman Empire, of his throne. Historical tradition regards this event as the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the end of Antiquity. However, the transition from Antiquity to the Middle Ages was in fact the result of a long process lasting centuries. Ancient classical cultures continued to affect many fields of life.