History of the Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire, Abridged (00) by Gibbon, Edward [Paperback (2001)]

by Edward Gibbon

History of the Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire, Abridged (00) by Gibbon, Edward [Paperback (2001)]

Genres: History, Classics, Nonfiction

Paperback

Published January 1, 2001

About the author

Edward 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."

Reviews

[Ryan Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

3/2024.

How often do I think of the Roman Empire? Turns out more than I imagined. But most of my thoughts have usually been about the Republic. I hadn’t touched this one since high school geek Olympics. This book - the gold standard for latter Roman history - looks at the later period, the 2nd-15th centuries AD.

What impact this period and the Roman-centric framing of this period have had on Western culture that we still use phrases like “vandals” and “barbarians” to denote groups we think less of! Rome’s power politics haven’t aged much at all and many Senators of antiquity would find themselves playing from the same playbook in today’s political landscape.

The organization of this much information is itself a feat. It’s heavy and ponderous, but the focus shifts from small decisive moments to broad generalities (especially when dealing with the growth of Christianity in the empire), but fails to give a sense of what life was like in that time and place. The focus here is palace politics and military conquest - so much more could be written about economic and environmental issues that also contributed to Rome’s final collapse.

Much like Hemingway describing bankruptcy, the collapse was gradual at first then all at once. Ups and downs, moments of sheer guile and gall, and finally too many military conquests for an unprepared tax base.

There’s also very astute politic analysis, certainly for the age it was written. Nevertheless, the book is not a truly helpful guide for the modern novate reader looking to understand Rome. Different names for some of the emperors are used here than in modern custom. That presents difficulties. A modern annotated version could be useful.

I wonder how Gibbon compared his own time and empire to this. Certainly there are warnings we could all learn to spot. He was writing as the American revolution took form- Rome was no stranger to faraway colonies declaring independence and waging civil war.

[AJO · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's very difficult to review this work, my main criticisms are not of Gibbon's writings but the abridgement.
The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire is a triumphant work, the narrative marches through the centuries and Gibbon has an eye for the great and small revolutions of peoples and characters which drive forward the narrative. His balance is to be applauded and it's clear from his notes on citations that he was just as skilled at evaluating the work of historians as he was in creating it.
The abrdigement however was somewhat of a letdown, in attempting to put forth the best or more famous chapters, and overly focusing on the portraits of influential individuals causes the neglect of events which Gibbon himself gives the most important to, such as the division of East and West by Diocletian and Constantine's movement of the capital to Constantinople. I think this work should be treated as less of an abridgement and more of a "best moments" compilation because of this, as the intention of describing the Roman Empire's decline and fall is replaced by the editor's wish to showcase the work on a meta level. It's more well suited for the study of Gibbon as a historian than for the study of Rome.