Wars with ever-expanding Russia and the lost status as essential middleman in lucrative Europe to China/India/Indies (as sea routes around Africa were increasingly used) were probably the biggies. This allowed the other factors (local nationalism, local bosses, bloated bureaucracy, decreasing tax base as property placed in charitable trusts, European colonialism, resistance to economic and technological innovations, superior European armaments, foreign debt) to form a perfect storm fatal to the failing empire.I read it in books, not easily encapsulated in a 45-minute (sans commercials) TV show. Books answer lots of questions.