The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire: Volumes 1-3 of 6 (Everyman's Library)

Typical Twenty-first Century hubris, suggesting that this work should be read in the bite-sized edition and should not be seen as valid or even potential historical analysis. Gibbon was commenting on his time (not that far from our time and the same intellectual environment that produced this country) as much as Roman times and making splendid observations about various dangers that lurked within any organized society. Gibbon comments at length, for example, on how the early Emperors shunned ostentatious display in order to present the illusion of a still-functioning Republic. The Emperors had so much power (he notes, and I roughly paraphrase) that they did not have to show it off. Sounds a bit like the American Presidency, doesn't it? The most powerful man in the world in a jogging suit? George W. Bush, member of a wealthy ruling elite, pretending to be a "regular Joe" and flimflamming half a nation? Personally I prefered wealthy patrician Presidents--they were at least honest about themselves and, as obliged members of a certain class, were expected to meet certain high standards of behavior and intellect. Both Hitler and Stalin were "of the people" (and startlingly like some of the worst Emperors described in Gibbon!) In fact much of this 300-year-old gloss on 2000-year-old-goings-on echos the current crisis of the West. Read in this light, this can be an uncomfortable, vaguely dangerous, and politically incorrect book. It explains why Western intellectuals up until relatively recently--all familiar with Gibbon--tended to agree on a lot of basics. Today, people of both the Left and the Right have lost sight of too many of the essentials of freedom and liberty. Gibbon, again, notes how the Empire reached a point where contending sides on any issue weren't debating Liberty versus Empire but simply how the Empire should be administered. Gibbon also makes some interesting observations on how a large, but not overwhelming, military can dominate and control an exceptionally large population; also how a standing army can begin to control the leadership. This isn't banana republic stuff, it's commentary on the pitfalls of Great Republics. His books are stuffed to the gills with this sort of wisdom. Why would you avoid any of it? Allow me to be insulting: I'm not thrilled with the, again, contemporary predilection toward being patronizing to older Western standard texts. Gibbon was verbose for a reason; this was no modern marketing scheme to entice you to buy volumes you didn't really need. Read all of Gibbon, read it critically, but also read it with humility. Remember that better, more active, and more lucid minds than ours encountered these books and were highly impressed. In the last decades I've watched, horrified, as midgets and munchkins passed vicious judgement on the Western canon. Gibbon comments on that phenomenon too, how the little and often nasty minds--the sort similar to the co-conspirators Shakespeare surrounded Brutus with--eventually gain sway. Western Culture has been hauled down not by sophisticated minds with better to offer but by the jealous and rage-filled, by the greedy, by religious ignoramuses (few excluded), by the mindless mob. No wonder we've been losing our way as a culture. Finally, the book is written in English, uses few if any words not in the contemporary lexicon, and maintains other accepted standards of syntax. This is not a "tough read" unless you've been raised on milk-soaked bread. In fact if you've managed your way through some of those hideously written jargon riddled texts required in most college courses, modern French philosophers, or somebody like Adorno, then you'll find Gibbon a master of clarity and an utter delight. How anybody in this age of jibberish, buzzwords, and portentious intellectual tripe can complain about the style of this book is a mystery to me! I have little pity for those who stumble and fall off the road whenever they hit a subordinate clause, inverted word order, or a lengthy sentence. So, read this in full. It's a terrific read. Read Tocqueville, read the Federalist Papers, stop whining about the electoral college and instead find out why it exists. Sit down sometime and try to understand the political reasoning behind the American Civil War, not just the video-game level intellectuality of the feud between the slave-holders and abolitionists. Essentially stop trying to turn History into a one-volume "History for Idiots" manual before forming rock-solid opinions on major issues. You might surprise yourself, you might help prevent a distant future Gibbon from writing unkind words about all of us.

This work is just as important now as it was two centuries ago. Gibbon provides a sweeping overview of the times that laid the groundwork for our civilization, delving into details whenever appropriate and bringing history to life. There are too many specific things to call out here. It doesn't read like history, it reads like a really good story - but an exhaustively verified story, with specific factual evidence backing up every single statement. We could toss out half the public schools' history curriculum and replace it with this one work and come out far ahead in terms of educating students.

edited by Hans-Fredrich Mueller I finally finished this massive treasure, which isn't even exhaustive. And I can't imagine the colossal task in both time and energy it took to write it. It took Gibbon twelve years, from 1776 to 1788. I find it more than a coincidence that he began writing in the year of our independence. Even in this abridged form (which is what you will more likely come across) it is still a huge undertaking; though Mueller, in his critical forward, tells us it is necessary for it to become readable. Mueller also says he prided himself in being meticulous and accurate while still being manageable. And very helpful is the addition of dates bracketed throughout the text. An index would have been useful. In Boorstin's introduction he cites the major impact this work had on him; he calls it intimate. I would have never thought of it in that way, but now after ingesting all six volumes I understand why he calls it intimate. Gibbon does not mince words either. His work will always be remembered and its impact can still be felt today. He is an artist, like no one I have read before. Keep a dictionary handy. I also recommend reading the forward and the introduction, especially after studying Gibbon's great work. They take into question Gibbon's devotion to Christianity and his offensiveness towards it. I see Gibbon as mixed in his beliefs, though he wrote as he saw it; and I find that he saw the truth when he found it. Did he believe infrastructure was valued over its people? The role of emperor was not a secure job. "Such was the unhappy condition of the Roman emperors that, whatever might be their conduct, their fate was commonly the same." The polytheistic Roman Empire was very much a melting pot (half slaves) and within it were many schisms. I see parallels---such as the oppressive taxes, the corrupt politicians, the tyrannical government, the effemination, and the endless warfare---to our United States, and a warning for our future. So what caused the fall? For Gibbon, the gradual decline began after Christ, until the eventual fall some fifteen hundred years later. Chapters are built upon the reigns of the emperors as they came to power, except where he periodically inserts chapters concerning the Christian influence, the Christian persecutions, the corrupt church, the persecution of the church toward others, the Crusades, the rise of Islam, the debilitating taxes and, towards the end, he concentrates on the impact by the surrounding nations. The Empire became a black hole and split to form an East and a West---the West to totally collapse. There were many causes: the slow introduction of Christianity over Paganism and the conversion to it, the collapse of the military, the always and increasing threat of outside peoples, alienating allies and provoking enemies, the corruption within (the people), and of course the self righteous emperors. Entropy would take over and finally lead to the collapse of the infrastructure. Rome was both a curse and a blessing for Christianity. Many were converted, but the power of Catholicism and the Pope led to the eventual corruption and apostasy of the church. We have our many deists and polytheists just as the Romans. Do you not find a familiarity to us and the Romans? LORD bless Scott

Having recently struggled with which edition of Gibbons' masterpiece to purchase, let me share that I'm very happy with this (the Everyman's Library) edition. Comparing it to the Modern Library edition which I borrowed from the library, here's what I prefer: 1) much clearer Garamond typeset is easier one the eyes; 2) a header on every page says what year is being discussed; 3) helpful map in the back of every volume; 4) an actual explanation of who wrote the mysterious "O.S." footnotes which appear in both editions. (This was a major aggravation for me -- reading a running debate in the footnotes between Gibbon and O.S. and not knowing who he was.) And, silly as it sounds, biting off such a large undertaking seems easier in 6 shorter volumes than 3 larger ones. Lastly, unlike the Penguin edition, this one is hardcover and therefore likely to put up with more abuse. Update: Note that the volume breaks here are different than those that Gibbon intended. If you only desire to read the first three volumes (up to the end of the western empire, where Gibbon originally stopped writing), you'll actually end up a few chapters into the 4th volume in this series.

Gibbon is an amazing writer and historian. His in-depth knowledge of the Roman Empire, is in my opinion unmatched by anyone. Gibbon`s writing style is also a pleasure to read. He quietly slips in a lot of social commentary on the Romans and Christianity. The reader will often find themselves smiling at some of Gibbon`s dry wit and social observations. There are two sets of history in these three volumes. The first is of course, the Roman Empire. The second is the formation of the new Christian religion. Gibbon is not afraid to expose, the rather dark side of the Christian religion. The early Christians did suffer from Roman persecution. But as the new religion gains power, the Christians themselves persecute without mercy. In fact, the Christians soon take on very Roman characteristics. Just as the Romans set out to annihilate various rival tribes. The Roman Christians, also set out to destroy the competing Christian sects. Practice our Christian faith, or we will burn you at the stake. Gibbon`s review of Christian practices, will forever change your image of Christianity. His descriptions of the Roman society, will at times feel a little too close to home. The changes over the later empire, will be very familiar to modern readers. The Roman issues sound a lot like the current problems we hear about on a daily basis. These three volumes get my highest recommendation. Anyone with an interest in Roman history, will love reading Gibbon`s first three volumes.

Ich darf zunächst mit einigen Informationen zu dieser Ausgabe (Everyman's) beginnen, die wirklich hervorragend gestaltet ist. Sie erscheint in zwei Kassetten mit jeweils drei Bänden. Die unterschiedlichen Rückseiten erklären sich dadurch, dass nur Band 4 bis 6 noch einen Schutzumschlag haben, Band 1 bis 3 nicht. Als ich mir die Ausgabe bestellte, war mir nicht ganz klar, ob die Edition dem alten typographischen Bild des Originals folgen würde oder nicht. Zum Glück ist dies nicht der Fall; die Ausgabe ist lesefreundlich auf annehmbar schönen Papier gesetzt und vermittelt auch durch die gute Handlichkeit der nicht zu schwer ausfallenden Einzelbände ein großartiges Leseerlebnis. Zu Gibbon selbst nur so viel: Sicherlich bewegen sich seine Analysen auf einem sehr frühen Kenntnisstand, was den ein oder anderen manchmal etwas freudlosen Leser mit gespitztem Korrekturstift lesen lässt. Aber Gibbon hat so eindeutige Stärken, dass die Lektüre bis heute bereichert und einfach große Lesefreude bereitet. Ausschlaggebend ist zunächst sein sarkastisch-lakonischer Stil. Mit minimalen Mitteln erzielt er dabei oft die größte Wirkung und entlockt dem Leser mindestens ein Schmunzeln, nicht selten einen Heiterkeitsausbruch. Die zweite große Stärke liegt in der Fähigkeit Gibbons zu ausgeprägt strukturellem Denken. Vielleicht handelt es sich nur um einen persönlichen Eindruck, aber gerade in neueren Werken scheinen mir die Autoren oft etwas zu krampfhaft bemüht, das Material "für sich" sprechen zu lassen. Heraus kommen dabei Faktensammlungen, die oft nur schwer lesbar sein. Gibbon stellt sein Material stets in große gedankliche Ordnungszusammenhänge und bezieht den Leser somit eine analytische Auseinandersetzung ein. Jeder Interessierte kann dies leicht nachvollziehen, wenn er nur in der Internetausgabe von Gibbon das ersten Kapitel des ersten Buches liest, in dem als besondere Leistung des Augustus herausgestellt wird, der jahrhundertelangen kriegerischen Expansionspolitik eine auf Bewahrung gerichtete Friedenspolitik gegenüber zu stellen. Die Leistung - nach Gibbon - besteht gerade darin, diese Umstellung überhaupt bewerkstelligt zu haben. Die dritte Stärke schließlich liegt im Farbenreichtum der Darstellung: Gibbon vermittelt dem Leser kein dürres Skelett der antiken Quellen, wenn er etwa über die Vergangenheit von Theodora berichtet, oder von den Untaten der Gattin Belizars, sondern lässt den Leser an der prallen Fülle des Lebens teilhaben. Dafür muss man dieses Werk einfach lieben. Man kann ein Leben lang in ihm lesen!

Just a beautifully written book that make history really come to life.

Excellent printing binding and materials even turning the pages is a pleasure