In Western Rome and the Han Dynasty, both had increased taxation on the poor and had little to no taxation on the wealthy. In the Han Dynasty the poor would flee and then come back when the tax collectors left. In Western Rome, when Marius came around, he rallied the poor into his army. This caused them to not pay their taxes either. Without people pay their taxes, the government had low funds to support the armies against the two empires enemies. Without money, it was difficult for the armies to be at their most. Low funds lead to not being able to spend as much which lead to having fewer defense weapons. The Han Dynasty also expanded the great wall to defend themselves, which costed more money, along with supporting the army.
