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The Portable Gibbon: The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
Still considered the most important empire in human history, this is the basic source we use to examine its loss.
- GenresHistory
691 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1952
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About the author
Edward Gibbon
1,995 books601 followersEdward Gibbon (8 May 1737 – 16 January 1794) was an English historian and Member of Parliament. His most important work, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, was published in six volumes between 1776 and 1788. The Decline and Fall is known for the quality and irony of its prose, its use of primary sources, and its open criticism of organised religion.
Gibbon returned to England in June 1765. His father died in 1770, and after tending to the estate, which was by no means in good condition, there remained quite enough for Gibbon to settle fashionably in London at 7 Bentinck Street, independent of financial concerns. By February 1773, he was writing in earnest, but not without the occasional self-imposed distraction. He took to London society quite easily, and joined the better social clubs, including Dr. Johnson's Literary Club, and looked in from time to time on his friend Holroyd in Sussex. He succeeded Oliver Goldsmith at the Royal Academy as 'professor in ancient history' (honorary but prestigious). In late 1774, he was initiated a freemason of the Premier Grand Lodge of England. And, perhaps least productively in that same year, he was returned to the House of Commons for Liskeard, Cornwall through the intervention of his relative and patron, Edward Eliot. He became the archetypal back-bencher, benignly "mute" and "indifferent," his support of the Whig ministry invariably automatic. Gibbon's indolence in that position, perhaps fully intentional, subtracted little from the progress of his writing.
After several rewrites, with Gibbon "often tempted to throw away the labours of seven years," the first volume of what would become his life's major achievement, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, was published on 17 February 1776. Through 1777, the reading public eagerly consumed three editions for which Gibbon was rewarded handsomely: two-thirds of the profits amounting to approximately £1,000. Biographer Leslie Stephen wrote that thereafter, "His fame was as rapid as it has been lasting." And as regards this first volume, "Some warm praise from David Hume overpaid the labour of ten years."
Volumes II and III appeared on 1 March 1781, eventually rising "to a level with the previous volume in general esteem." Volume IV was finished in June 1784; the final two were completed during a second Lausanne sojourn (September 1783 to August 1787) where Gibbon reunited with his friend Deyverdun in leisurely comfort. By early 1787, he was "straining for the goal" and with great relief the project was finished in June. Gibbon later wrote:
It was on the day, or rather the night, of 27 June 1787, between the hours of eleven and twelve, that I wrote the last lines of the last page in a summer-house in my garden. ... I will not dissemble the first emotions of joy on the recovery of my freedom, and perhaps the establishment of my fame. But my pride was soon humbled, and a sober melancholy was spread over my mind by the idea that I had taken my everlasting leave of an old and agreeable companion, and that, whatsoever might be the future date of my history, the life of the historian must be short and precarious.
Volumes IV, V, and VI finally reached the press in May 1788, their publication having been delayed since March so it could coincide with a dinner party celebrating Gibbon's 51st birthday (the 8th). Mounting a bandwagon of praise for the later volumes were such contemporary luminaries as Adam Smith, William Robertson, Adam Ferguson, Lord Camden, and Horace Walpole. Smith remarked that Gibbon's triumph had positioned him "at the very head of [Europe's] literary tribe."
Gibbon returned to England in June 1765. His father died in 1770, and after tending to the estate, which was by no means in good condition, there remained quite enough for Gibbon to settle fashionably in London at 7 Bentinck Street, independent of financial concerns. By February 1773, he was writing in earnest, but not without the occasional self-imposed distraction. He took to London society quite easily, and joined the better social clubs, including Dr. Johnson's Literary Club, and looked in from time to time on his friend Holroyd in Sussex. He succeeded Oliver Goldsmith at the Royal Academy as 'professor in ancient history' (honorary but prestigious). In late 1774, he was initiated a freemason of the Premier Grand Lodge of England. And, perhaps least productively in that same year, he was returned to the House of Commons for Liskeard, Cornwall through the intervention of his relative and patron, Edward Eliot. He became the archetypal back-bencher, benignly "mute" and "indifferent," his support of the Whig ministry invariably automatic. Gibbon's indolence in that position, perhaps fully intentional, subtracted little from the progress of his writing.
After several rewrites, with Gibbon "often tempted to throw away the labours of seven years," the first volume of what would become his life's major achievement, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, was published on 17 February 1776. Through 1777, the reading public eagerly consumed three editions for which Gibbon was rewarded handsomely: two-thirds of the profits amounting to approximately £1,000. Biographer Leslie Stephen wrote that thereafter, "His fame was as rapid as it has been lasting." And as regards this first volume, "Some warm praise from David Hume overpaid the labour of ten years."
Volumes II and III appeared on 1 March 1781, eventually rising "to a level with the previous volume in general esteem." Volume IV was finished in June 1784; the final two were completed during a second Lausanne sojourn (September 1783 to August 1787) where Gibbon reunited with his friend Deyverdun in leisurely comfort. By early 1787, he was "straining for the goal" and with great relief the project was finished in June. Gibbon later wrote:
It was on the day, or rather the night, of 27 June 1787, between the hours of eleven and twelve, that I wrote the last lines of the last page in a summer-house in my garden. ... I will not dissemble the first emotions of joy on the recovery of my freedom, and perhaps the establishment of my fame. But my pride was soon humbled, and a sober melancholy was spread over my mind by the idea that I had taken my everlasting leave of an old and agreeable companion, and that, whatsoever might be the future date of my history, the life of the historian must be short and precarious.
Volumes IV, V, and VI finally reached the press in May 1788, their publication having been delayed since March so it could coincide with a dinner party celebrating Gibbon's 51st birthday (the 8th). Mounting a bandwagon of praise for the later volumes were such contemporary luminaries as Adam Smith, William Robertson, Adam Ferguson, Lord Camden, and Horace Walpole. Smith remarked that Gibbon's triumph had positioned him "at the very head of [Europe's] literary tribe."
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 19, 2014
-Más allá de lo desactualizado en algunos casos y de la orientación personal de sus conclusiones en otros, una obra que marcó un antes y un después en los trabajos historiográficos.-
Género. Historia.
Lo que nos cuenta. Relato y análisis de los eventos históricos de carácter social, político, militar y religioso (aspecto especialmente importante para el autor) que contribuyeron, desde dentro y desde fuera, al declive y desplome del Imperio Romano (en concreto el de Occidente, en el que se centra). Esta edición corresponde a la versión abreviada que realizó Dero A. Saunders sobre la larga obra de Edward Gibbon en seis volúmenes. El 96% del texto proviene del original. El resto es de Saunders para dar coherencia a la condensación, que omite la mayoría de las notas a pie de página del original, la parte de historia de la Antigua Roma menos relacionada directamente con su desplome en Occidente, capítulos que se alejan de la temática básica para ir hacia otros derroteros aunque relacionados y otras pequeñas cosas, siempre respetando la coherencia del relato original y su espíritu.
¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:
http://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com/...
Género. Historia.
Lo que nos cuenta. Relato y análisis de los eventos históricos de carácter social, político, militar y religioso (aspecto especialmente importante para el autor) que contribuyeron, desde dentro y desde fuera, al declive y desplome del Imperio Romano (en concreto el de Occidente, en el que se centra). Esta edición corresponde a la versión abreviada que realizó Dero A. Saunders sobre la larga obra de Edward Gibbon en seis volúmenes. El 96% del texto proviene del original. El resto es de Saunders para dar coherencia a la condensación, que omite la mayoría de las notas a pie de página del original, la parte de historia de la Antigua Roma menos relacionada directamente con su desplome en Occidente, capítulos que se alejan de la temática básica para ir hacia otros derroteros aunque relacionados y otras pequeñas cosas, siempre respetando la coherencia del relato original y su espíritu.
¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:
http://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com/...
December 17, 2025
A DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE for the fainthearted, or just not enough time, Edward, there just wasn't enough time. Caveat: I do not recommend a one volume abridgment of Gibbon in place of the six volume opus. This condensation should be just to wet your appetite for more. Editor Dero Saunders does just that, by focusing on the first few chapters of DECLINE, showing the extent of the empire in the third century, "when mankind was at its most happiest" according to Gibbon. The other chapters included here relate the damage done by Christians, first to the empire and then themselves in civil wars over heresy. Of special note is a late chapter on Mohammed, the rise of Islam, and the inevitable conflict with the Eastern Empire or Byzantium. The Introduction by Saunders does a splendid job of placing Gibbon in the context of British Enlightenment and conservative thought. Yes, Virginia, there really are and were right-wing atheists.
October 12, 2016
This was an extremely readable work that taught me many new things and also brought up memories of long-ago classes. When Gibbon is on, he is the master of prose and points. This work still has much to teach us and remind us. One thing that popped out was his belief that isolation and xenophobia hastened the ruins of Athens and Sparta (p. 55). Wise words for those in America, Britain and elsewhere, who would turn their eyes inward and create artificial barriers between members of the single human race.
Gibbon writes a great deal about religion, especially the rise of Christianity and its impact on the decline and eventual fall of the Empire. He frames his task as: “The theologian may indulge the pleasing task of describing Religion as she descended form Heaven, arrayed in her native purity. A more melancholy duty is imposed on the historian. He must discover the inevitable mixture of error and corruption which she contracted in a long residence upon earth, among a weak and degenerate race of beings” (p. 261).
Chapter VIII (XV-XVI in the original) is hardcore, discussing literally fanatic Christians and how much they actively stood apart from all others (p. 271, etc.) This included refusing to participate in civil and military service. Polytheists asked why these Christians shouldn’t have to contribute to the public welfare (p. 291). Virgil, Homer, poetry, music or even sayings in Greek or Latin, were seen as evil, demonic and corrupting (p. 272). Prior to the rise of this sect, Rome respected, or at least tolerated, many religions, incorporating foreign gods of conquered peoples into their own pantheon. Christians had no respect or toleration for any other religion but their own. Early Christians were not as persecuted as the later Church claimed (p. 325), though harsh repression did occur at the end of Diocletian’s reign (p. 326). Finally, under Gratian and Theodosius, Christianity was made the privileged religion and paganism was outlawed (p. 547).
Gibbon writes a great deal about religion, especially the rise of Christianity and its impact on the decline and eventual fall of the Empire. He frames his task as: “The theologian may indulge the pleasing task of describing Religion as she descended form Heaven, arrayed in her native purity. A more melancholy duty is imposed on the historian. He must discover the inevitable mixture of error and corruption which she contracted in a long residence upon earth, among a weak and degenerate race of beings” (p. 261).
Chapter VIII (XV-XVI in the original) is hardcore, discussing literally fanatic Christians and how much they actively stood apart from all others (p. 271, etc.) This included refusing to participate in civil and military service. Polytheists asked why these Christians shouldn’t have to contribute to the public welfare (p. 291). Virgil, Homer, poetry, music or even sayings in Greek or Latin, were seen as evil, demonic and corrupting (p. 272). Prior to the rise of this sect, Rome respected, or at least tolerated, many religions, incorporating foreign gods of conquered peoples into their own pantheon. Christians had no respect or toleration for any other religion but their own. Early Christians were not as persecuted as the later Church claimed (p. 325), though harsh repression did occur at the end of Diocletian’s reign (p. 326). Finally, under Gratian and Theodosius, Christianity was made the privileged religion and paganism was outlawed (p. 547).
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September 10, 2016**** Reading Notes during progress *****
(9/10) Facing Gibbon is not unlike facing a marathon with only a regular three-miler on daily basis. The sheer volume of Gibbon's masterpiece daunts both the industry and persistence of a reader, particularly this one. However, Dero A. Saunders has done much to provide the first entry, humanized first in his introduction of Gibbon with the following passages: "Before the event [the publication of the first volume], they had no reason to assume that the little fat man with the red hair, the high voice, the fancy clothes, and the absurd mannerisms was writing the greatest history that has ever been published in any of the languages of mankind." Doesn't it both whet one's appetite while raise one eye-brow of suspicion?
Gibbon himself has described how to understand history: "among a multitude of historical facts ... the majority ... prove nothing more than that they are facts," while the function of a capable historian is to find the links along a whole system, "to distinguish them, amidst the vast chaos of events where in they are jumbled, and deduce them pure and unmixt from the rest." Well, then -- Now, Voyager, sail thou forth, to seek and find!
December 22, 2016
A useful abridgment of approximately the first, and most important, half of the great work. Running from the origins of the Roman Empire in the Augustan reforms through to Alaric's reduction of the 'Eternal' City in 410 CE - focusing, of course, on the latter part of that span -this book is an invaluable resource in setting out the sweep of the decline of antiquity's most powerful empire. One day, I shall bite the bullet and read the original, but until I have a month or so spare to set aside, this will do very nicely
March 20, 2022
This is an abridged version of Gibbon‘s monumental work. It is complete enough to give lots of detailed information but edited enough so that it doesn’t feel like reading a text book. This version is a bit dated (probably more recent editions would have more corrections to some of the misinformation) but overall is an excellent source.
March 21, 2013
A looooong classic. Some really lively parts. And some... Not so much. The church division and the Aryan crisis?... Snore. Can't argue with old-school research though.
July 13, 2017
Schwere Entscheidung, teilweise ungeschickte Kürzungen ziehen den Klassiker auf drei Sterne runter. Ausführliche Begründung später.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews