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The Invasion of Europe by the Barbarians
In 410 AD Rome was overrun by barbarians. But what really happened as the lights of Europe went out and the dark ages began? In the early twentieth century J. B. Bury delivered a series of lectures at Cambridge University explaining the transfer of Europe from Rome, in the fourth century, to the mediaeval era of the sixth. Collected here are those lectures, which detail the activities of the Germans, Visigoths, Gauls, Ostrogoths and Franks. Under the military reforms of Emperors Diocletian and Constantine, who created a mobile Roman army, the Empire met the German powers with equal force. Yet the German influence was a kind of ‘peaceful penetration’, with the Empire becoming Germanised over those two centuries. The Romans suffered a defeat against the Goths at Hadrianople, thanks to their opponent’s powerful cavalry. The Visigoths and their leader Alaric also showed aggression in their desire to expand their own empire, followed by both the Vandals and Franks, and their own hostile attitude to the Roman Empire. The Huns, led by the famous Attila, slowed down the pace of German domination, though they expanded into Gaul and Spain after the Hun Empire collapsed. Other great men who ruled Italy at the time, including Odovacar and Theoderic of the Ostrogoths, and the Frank king Clovis, are chronicled in great detail. ‘The survey is enriched by valuable interpretations which represent the fruit of long study.’ The Classical Review J.B. Bury (1861-1927) was a Cambridge professor whose career was dedicated to the Roman Empire. He worked on sections of the Encyclopaedia Britannica and published many studies on the Middle Ages, including a biography of St. Patrick and the later Roman Empire. Albion Press is an imprint of Endeavour Press, the UK's leading independent digital publisher. For more information on our titles please sign up to our newsletter at www.endeavourpress.com. Each week you will receive updates on free and discounted ebooks. Follow us on @EndeavourPress and on Facebook via We are always interested in hearing from our readers. Endeavour Press believes that the future is now.
176 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1928
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632 people want to read
About the author
John Bagnell Bury
453 books50 followersJohn Bagnell Bury (often published as J.B. Bury) was a classical scholar, historian, and philologist. He held the chair in Modern History at Trinity College, Dublin, for nine years, and also was appointed Regius Professor of Greek at Trinity, and Regius Professor of Modern History at Cambridge University.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews
January 6, 2020
I guess you could call this a golden oldie from the turn of the 20th Century. A series of lectures by a British professor, it was pompous at the start, somewhat interesting and informative in the middle and littered with names and dates with little help to make sense of them at the last third. The only really notable takeaway for me was his description of the attitude of the Goths toward the Romans:
Absolutely no maps of any kind and this book really needed maps to make any sense of his lectures. 3 Stars but just barely.
Absolutely no maps of any kind and this book really needed maps to make any sense of his lectures. 3 Stars but just barely.
September 29, 2015
_The Invasion of Europe by the Barbarians_ by J. B. Bury is a very readable and well written book that outlines the sequence and consequences of the migratory movements of the northern barbarians into Roman territory, migrations of the third through sixth centuries AD that eventually lead to Germanic peoples occupying the western half of the Roman Empire, from Britain to North Africa and ultimately largely dismembering the Empire.
It would be difficult for one to guess how old this work is from reading it; the book was basically a compilation of lectures Bury gave on the subject originally in 1903 (Bury himself passed away in 1927). The book read quite well for the most part as it had a brisk pace and the author a rather dry wit. My only complaints are that the final sections delved too much into what were for me the esoteric nature of Roman versus Lombard law (not as interesting or as useful to me at least as his coverage of the migrations and their consequences) as well as the complete lack of maps.
One of Bury's main themes was that the barbarians became a threat from inside the Empire's borders - what he called disintegration from within - as various Germanic peoples became federates of the Empire, invited to settle within its boundaries and in return generally for some form of tribute protected the frontiers and supplied contingents of troops. Nearly all the German peoples were for a time federates of the Empire before becoming independent masters of the lands they seized. Sometimes the rulers of the various tribes worked closely with the Emperor, at other times they were actually kings of their people and only nominally within the Empire. A system of establishing federate states within the Empire paved the way for the system of independent states that eventually replaced the Empire, a process that though not without conflict was also not cataclysmic either.
The Germanic federati became quite important in part because as Bury wrote the population of the old civilized lands around the Mediterranean had become "too highly civilized, and not physically fit enough" and thus were "quite useless for military service." The bulk of the army came from frontier provinces and from adventurers, many of which were barbarian volunteers from outside the Empire. Before Germanization of the lands under the federates began a dangerous Germanization was underway in the military (a military which was increasingly important, particularly in the West), a Germanization he called a "peaceful penetration," as by the end of the fourth century Germans had largely replaced most of the peoples from within the Empire and due to their ability had risen to hold the highest officer posts as well. This "grave danger" was overlooked by too many Emperors, too liberal in their policies in allowing Germans to occupy positions of supreme command due to their desire to attract the best men for the job. Eventually when the Empire had to face not only the threat of Germanic invaders from without but from the Germanic peoples already within the Empire military leadership fell predictably to Germans. Two of the chief actors of the fifth century for instance - the enemy leader Alaric and the Roman military leader Stilicho - were both German.
The traditional end given for the Western Roman Empire (AD 476) is addressed by Bury and in a manner supporting some of his key points. First, he said "Western Empire" is improper; it was the western provinces of the Empire, as there was really only one Empire. Second, on several occasions in the fifth century the death or deposition of an emperor in the west was followed by a considerable span of time with no emperor in Rome or Ravenna. Third, the rule of the Germans Odovacar and later that of Theoderic the Ostrogoth in Italy was not at all unlike that of other federates leaders; they acted with some coordination with the Emperor in Constantinople and both leaders respected Roman laws with regard to their Roman subjects; they were but intermediary stages between Italy being part of the Roman Empire and being a true Germanic kingdom.
Bury spent some time analyzing the populations of the Germanic peoples during the migrations and comparing military sizes with that of the Romans, noting that from the fourth to the sixth centuries most battles were fought by roughly even numbers of troops; the problem of military defense was not all hopeless or even "superlatively difficult," and it was not through battle alone that the Empire was dismembered.
For their part the Germans did not feel like hostile invaders, but rather regarded the Empire as a great institution that they had a rightful place within, their struggles less that of hostile external enemies but more a disenfranchised segment of society struggling for its rights. Alaric marched through Italy and attacked Rome not to destroy the Empire but to put pressure upon the imperial government to meet his various demands.
An interesting thread was the real legacy of the Huns. The Huns defeat of the Visigoths lead the latter to seek the shelter of the Roman Empire, an unprecedented decision as Emperor Valens permitted a nation of 80,000+ people to settle within his borders, allowing in essentially a foreign nation of a warlike nature and with strong national unity, a situation that eventually resulted in a war, culminating in the battle of Hadrianople in AD 378, one of the greatest disasters that befell Rome due to the Germans (and by the way the last battle the Romans fought mainly with infantry, as cavalry prevailed as a result and Europe did not see much infantry use again until the fourteenth century). Also the Hun invasion served to delay the process of German dismemberment of the Empire, both by the Huns controlling many of the East German peoples beyond the Danube (the ones most a threat to Rome) and by providing Roman generals with auxiliaries that proved an invaluable resource against their German enemies.
It would be difficult for one to guess how old this work is from reading it; the book was basically a compilation of lectures Bury gave on the subject originally in 1903 (Bury himself passed away in 1927). The book read quite well for the most part as it had a brisk pace and the author a rather dry wit. My only complaints are that the final sections delved too much into what were for me the esoteric nature of Roman versus Lombard law (not as interesting or as useful to me at least as his coverage of the migrations and their consequences) as well as the complete lack of maps.
One of Bury's main themes was that the barbarians became a threat from inside the Empire's borders - what he called disintegration from within - as various Germanic peoples became federates of the Empire, invited to settle within its boundaries and in return generally for some form of tribute protected the frontiers and supplied contingents of troops. Nearly all the German peoples were for a time federates of the Empire before becoming independent masters of the lands they seized. Sometimes the rulers of the various tribes worked closely with the Emperor, at other times they were actually kings of their people and only nominally within the Empire. A system of establishing federate states within the Empire paved the way for the system of independent states that eventually replaced the Empire, a process that though not without conflict was also not cataclysmic either.
The Germanic federati became quite important in part because as Bury wrote the population of the old civilized lands around the Mediterranean had become "too highly civilized, and not physically fit enough" and thus were "quite useless for military service." The bulk of the army came from frontier provinces and from adventurers, many of which were barbarian volunteers from outside the Empire. Before Germanization of the lands under the federates began a dangerous Germanization was underway in the military (a military which was increasingly important, particularly in the West), a Germanization he called a "peaceful penetration," as by the end of the fourth century Germans had largely replaced most of the peoples from within the Empire and due to their ability had risen to hold the highest officer posts as well. This "grave danger" was overlooked by too many Emperors, too liberal in their policies in allowing Germans to occupy positions of supreme command due to their desire to attract the best men for the job. Eventually when the Empire had to face not only the threat of Germanic invaders from without but from the Germanic peoples already within the Empire military leadership fell predictably to Germans. Two of the chief actors of the fifth century for instance - the enemy leader Alaric and the Roman military leader Stilicho - were both German.
The traditional end given for the Western Roman Empire (AD 476) is addressed by Bury and in a manner supporting some of his key points. First, he said "Western Empire" is improper; it was the western provinces of the Empire, as there was really only one Empire. Second, on several occasions in the fifth century the death or deposition of an emperor in the west was followed by a considerable span of time with no emperor in Rome or Ravenna. Third, the rule of the Germans Odovacar and later that of Theoderic the Ostrogoth in Italy was not at all unlike that of other federates leaders; they acted with some coordination with the Emperor in Constantinople and both leaders respected Roman laws with regard to their Roman subjects; they were but intermediary stages between Italy being part of the Roman Empire and being a true Germanic kingdom.
Bury spent some time analyzing the populations of the Germanic peoples during the migrations and comparing military sizes with that of the Romans, noting that from the fourth to the sixth centuries most battles were fought by roughly even numbers of troops; the problem of military defense was not all hopeless or even "superlatively difficult," and it was not through battle alone that the Empire was dismembered.
For their part the Germans did not feel like hostile invaders, but rather regarded the Empire as a great institution that they had a rightful place within, their struggles less that of hostile external enemies but more a disenfranchised segment of society struggling for its rights. Alaric marched through Italy and attacked Rome not to destroy the Empire but to put pressure upon the imperial government to meet his various demands.
An interesting thread was the real legacy of the Huns. The Huns defeat of the Visigoths lead the latter to seek the shelter of the Roman Empire, an unprecedented decision as Emperor Valens permitted a nation of 80,000+ people to settle within his borders, allowing in essentially a foreign nation of a warlike nature and with strong national unity, a situation that eventually resulted in a war, culminating in the battle of Hadrianople in AD 378, one of the greatest disasters that befell Rome due to the Germans (and by the way the last battle the Romans fought mainly with infantry, as cavalry prevailed as a result and Europe did not see much infantry use again until the fourteenth century). Also the Hun invasion served to delay the process of German dismemberment of the Empire, both by the Huns controlling many of the East German peoples beyond the Danube (the ones most a threat to Rome) and by providing Roman generals with auxiliaries that proved an invaluable resource against their German enemies.
June 14, 2020
Even at the height of their power the Romans had trouble holding back the Germans on the Rhine frontier. As time passed the Empire weakened both internally and externally, the waves of barbarians kept coming, and the empire inevitably began shrinking under the pressure. Unable to stem the tide, the Romans settled many of the tribes along their borders and made them foederati, allies that received some of the benefits of being affiliated with the empire in exchange for military service. In addition, they brought many of them into the Roman army itself, until by the 300s there were few Romans left in their own armies. The ranks were now filled with Germans, Dacians and Thracians from what is now Romania, Bulgaria, and Macedonia, and a multitude of fortune seekers from Asia Minor and beyond.
The Goths had come out of Scandinavia and headed southeast. At the Black Sea they split into the Ostrogoths and the Visigoths. The Ostrogoths split further, some continuing to eastern Anatolia, and others going southwest, sacking Rome in 410. The Visigoths headed south, ravaging the European provinces of the Eastern Empire and continuing through Greece. They then headed northwest through the Balkans and also reached Rome. Meanwhile the Vandals, originally from what is now Germany, moved southeast, then turned west across Europe, through Gaul, then through Spain, to North Africa, eventually taking Carthage before sailing to Italy and sacking Rome in 476.
The Huns came out of the east laying waste to everything in their path all the way to what is now central France. The Angles, Saxons, and Jutes invaded England, and the Franks left Germany and conquered Gaul as far as the Pyrenees. Those are just the major clans. There were also many minor groups capable of wreaking havoc on the Roman borders, such as the Alemanni, the Lombards, and the Avars, who were kin to the Huns. On top of all this, the resurgent Persian Empire in the east exerted continual pressure, which drew off troops which could have been used to protect other parts of the empire.
One by one the foederati realized they no longer needed to be allies of Rome, and set out to found nations of their own. Over time the Roman provinces were absorbed, including Gaul, Spain, North Africa, and the Danube. With each loss imperial authority and tax revenues declined. This was especially true with the loss of Africa, which was the breadbasket of Italy. Around 500 the Justinian would succeed in re-establishing temporary control over both Italy and North Africa, but it did not last long.
The traditional end of the Roman empire is dated to 476, when Odovacar entered Rome and deposed the child emperor Romulus Augustus, but it was not as dramatic a change as it is often depicted. Odovacar presented himself as a client of the emperor in Constantinople, and showed a modicum of respect to the official imperial successor, though allowing him no say in governing. He even gained the approval of the Roman senate and initiated some reforms, although he himself was overthrown and murdered by Theodoric a few years later. For most Roman citizens the only change was that large landowners had to give up one third of their property to provide homesteads for barbarian settlers.
One of the more interesting aspects of the barbarians was religion. Most of them became Christians, but not members of the Church of Rome. They were mostly Arians, which had a simpler and more easily understood doctrine than Roman Catholicism. In Arianism there is no Trinity; Jesus Christ was a separate and later creation of God. As the Arian barbarian tribes conquered and settled, they had little support from their Catholic subjects, and their hold on power was tenuous. When Clovis, the first Frankish king to convert to Catholicism invaded Gaul he quickly destroyed the vast and seemingly powerful Visigothic kingdom.
One by one the Roman provinces were lost, and even Italy had become a mixture of various peoples, more Italian now than Roman. The final assault was by the Burgundians, who conquered much of Italy, moved in, and established their own laws. The emperors in Constantinople could do nothing to prevent the losses in the west, and turned their attention to saving what they could of their Balkan and Asian lands. The age of Rome was over.
The Goths had come out of Scandinavia and headed southeast. At the Black Sea they split into the Ostrogoths and the Visigoths. The Ostrogoths split further, some continuing to eastern Anatolia, and others going southwest, sacking Rome in 410. The Visigoths headed south, ravaging the European provinces of the Eastern Empire and continuing through Greece. They then headed northwest through the Balkans and also reached Rome. Meanwhile the Vandals, originally from what is now Germany, moved southeast, then turned west across Europe, through Gaul, then through Spain, to North Africa, eventually taking Carthage before sailing to Italy and sacking Rome in 476.
The Huns came out of the east laying waste to everything in their path all the way to what is now central France. The Angles, Saxons, and Jutes invaded England, and the Franks left Germany and conquered Gaul as far as the Pyrenees. Those are just the major clans. There were also many minor groups capable of wreaking havoc on the Roman borders, such as the Alemanni, the Lombards, and the Avars, who were kin to the Huns. On top of all this, the resurgent Persian Empire in the east exerted continual pressure, which drew off troops which could have been used to protect other parts of the empire.
One by one the foederati realized they no longer needed to be allies of Rome, and set out to found nations of their own. Over time the Roman provinces were absorbed, including Gaul, Spain, North Africa, and the Danube. With each loss imperial authority and tax revenues declined. This was especially true with the loss of Africa, which was the breadbasket of Italy. Around 500 the Justinian would succeed in re-establishing temporary control over both Italy and North Africa, but it did not last long.
The traditional end of the Roman empire is dated to 476, when Odovacar entered Rome and deposed the child emperor Romulus Augustus, but it was not as dramatic a change as it is often depicted. Odovacar presented himself as a client of the emperor in Constantinople, and showed a modicum of respect to the official imperial successor, though allowing him no say in governing. He even gained the approval of the Roman senate and initiated some reforms, although he himself was overthrown and murdered by Theodoric a few years later. For most Roman citizens the only change was that large landowners had to give up one third of their property to provide homesteads for barbarian settlers.
One of the more interesting aspects of the barbarians was religion. Most of them became Christians, but not members of the Church of Rome. They were mostly Arians, which had a simpler and more easily understood doctrine than Roman Catholicism. In Arianism there is no Trinity; Jesus Christ was a separate and later creation of God. As the Arian barbarian tribes conquered and settled, they had little support from their Catholic subjects, and their hold on power was tenuous. When Clovis, the first Frankish king to convert to Catholicism invaded Gaul he quickly destroyed the vast and seemingly powerful Visigothic kingdom.
One by one the Roman provinces were lost, and even Italy had become a mixture of various peoples, more Italian now than Roman. The final assault was by the Burgundians, who conquered much of Italy, moved in, and established their own laws. The emperors in Constantinople could do nothing to prevent the losses in the west, and turned their attention to saving what they could of their Balkan and Asian lands. The age of Rome was over.
July 9, 2020
Bu puanı elbette Bury'e değil bu kitabı Türkçe'ye çevirdiklerini iddia eden iki zat-ı muhtereme veriyorum. Bir katliam gerçekleştirmişler. Latince olan hiçbir kelimeyi -istisnasız hiçbir kelimeyi- doğru çevirememişler. Kronik gerçekten beğendiğim bir yayınevi ama be güzel kardeşim, şu kitabı sevabına okuyacak bir tanecik eski çağ tarihi çalışan tanıdığınız yok muydu? Dişe dokunur bir editör, bir redaktör yok muydu şu hataları düzeltelim diyecek? Yazık.
Not: Bir kişi dahi demedi mi Gallia'yı -yani günümüz Fransa'sını- Galler diye çeviremezsiniz diye. Galler neresi, Gallia neresi. En çok buna takıldım.
Not: Bir kişi dahi demedi mi Gallia'yı -yani günümüz Fransa'sını- Galler diye çeviremezsiniz diye. Galler neresi, Gallia neresi. En çok buna takıldım.
December 13, 2016
Shows well how civilisation advances from the dialectic of order and chaos..
December 7, 2025
An interesting and easily digestible collection of lectures examining the Germanic migrations of the 3rd to 9th centuries A.D that reshaped the Roman Empire. Bury focuses on the complex interactions, cultural clashes, and political shifts between the Roman Empire, its Roman subjects, and the Goths, Vandals, Franks, and Lombards. He argues that these migrations weren't sudden invasions but gradual movements that fundamentally formed modern Europe by establishing new kingdoms and cultural blends. The "barbarians" didn't just destroy Rome, but participated in its transformation, laying the groundwork for medieval European civilization.
July 9, 2019
Џон Бегнел Бјури (1861-1927) је био ирски историчар и класични филолог. Довео је византијску историју (коју је он сматрао и називао, изричито, римском) до својеврсног препорода.
Иако врло питко написана, Варварска инвазија на Европу има известан број пропуста. Наиме, доста важних државно-политичких догађаја и последица које су они оставили, аутор једноставно подразумева и самим тим их изоставља. Бјури се усредсређује на најважније догађаје везане за период који покушава да опише, али му, чини ми се, измиче оно најважније – описати дух епохе. Можда се тако нешто и не може очекивати од књиге чији обим једва да прелази две стотине страница. Написана је у XV глава, од којих свака има по неколико поглавља. У свакој глави, аутор је покушао да нам, на свега десетак страница, приближи утицај варварских племена на формирање тадашњих политичких прилика и сложене државне односе као и многобројне бракове истакнутих породица. Избачене су не толико неопходне хронологије (нпр. године владавине општепознатих владара).
Један од недостатака ове књиге представља и чињеница да су ово белешке са предавања које су сакупљене, сређене и објављене годину дана након смрти аутора (1928), тако да текст обилује лакунама, нејасностима и сувишним понављањима које се понекад протежу и кроз читав пасус. Предности су врло питак, непосредан стил који лагано допире до читалаца, опија их и са лакоћом одржава пажњу, везујући их за штиво које није писано академским стилом; лишено је сувопарности која се често очекује уз овакву тему.
Дотично дело је поникло на историјским ресурсима XIX века, на које се у поговору кратко осврће проф. др Милош Антоновић, који је уједно и стручни рецензент ове књиге. Многа Бјуријева схватања и питања етногенезе народа данас су застарела и научно одбачена, што је Утопијиним издањем из 2010. године и исправљено. „Варварска инвазија на Европу“ је ипак врло значајна књига, упркос наведеним недостацима, јер једна од ретких, која се монографски бави питањем Сеобе народа и тиме је себи обезбедила почетно место за истраживање епохе која је „судбински одредила изглед Европе какав је данас познат“ према речима рецензента проф. др Милоша Антоновића.
Иако врло питко написана, Варварска инвазија на Европу има известан број пропуста. Наиме, доста важних државно-политичких догађаја и последица које су они оставили, аутор једноставно подразумева и самим тим их изоставља. Бјури се усредсређује на најважније догађаје везане за период који покушава да опише, али му, чини ми се, измиче оно најважније – описати дух епохе. Можда се тако нешто и не може очекивати од књиге чији обим једва да прелази две стотине страница. Написана је у XV глава, од којих свака има по неколико поглавља. У свакој глави, аутор је покушао да нам, на свега десетак страница, приближи утицај варварских племена на формирање тадашњих политичких прилика и сложене државне односе као и многобројне бракове истакнутих породица. Избачене су не толико неопходне хронологије (нпр. године владавине општепознатих владара).
Један од недостатака ове књиге представља и чињеница да су ово белешке са предавања које су сакупљене, сређене и објављене годину дана након смрти аутора (1928), тако да текст обилује лакунама, нејасностима и сувишним понављањима које се понекад протежу и кроз читав пасус. Предности су врло питак, непосредан стил који лагано допире до читалаца, опија их и са лакоћом одржава пажњу, везујући их за штиво које није писано академским стилом; лишено је сувопарности која се често очекује уз овакву тему.
Дотично дело је поникло на историјским ресурсима XIX века, на које се у поговору кратко осврће проф. др Милош Антоновић, који је уједно и стручни рецензент ове књиге. Многа Бјуријева схватања и питања етногенезе народа данас су застарела и научно одбачена, што је Утопијиним издањем из 2010. године и исправљено. „Варварска инвазија на Европу“ је ипак врло значајна књига, упркос наведеним недостацима, јер једна од ретких, која се монографски бави питањем Сеобе народа и тиме је себи обезбедила почетно место за истраживање епохе која је „судбински одредила изглед Европе какав је данас познат“ према речима рецензента проф. др Милоша Антоновића.
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August 5, 2022Simple read on the - well - invasion of Europe by the Barbarians, specifically dating from the third and fourth centuries AD, with a little trip back past this era. First published in 1928 - so read with that in mind.
September 25, 2020
لم أكمل الكتاب. عبارة عن مجموعة من المحاضرات للمؤلف عن هجوم البرابرة على الدولة الرومانية. معقد وملئ بالأسماء الجديدة علي!
July 25, 2017
In case anyone should ever wonder about the relevance of ancient history to current events, I quote the following passage from the book:
"The [Visigoths] were seized by panic and firmly believed that there was no safety for them [from the invading Huns] north of the Danube. They determined to withdraw southward beyond that river and seek the shelter of the Roman Empire. This was a very critical decision: it led to events which determined the course of the history of the Roman Empire. Accordingly they sent an ambassador to the Emperor Valens, who was then staying at Antioch, beseeching him to allow the nation to cross the river and grant them lands in the provinces of the Balkan peninsula. It was the year 376. In the meantime their families abandoned their homes and encamped along the shores of the lower Danube, ready to cross the moment the Romans permitted them. The situation was highly embarrassing for the Emperor and his government. It was unique: they had no experience to guide them in dealing with it. It was pressing; some decision must be come to immediately; there was no time for ripe deliberation. The opinion of ministers and councillors was naturally divided, but it was finally decided to accede to the request of the Goths and to receive them as new subjects on Roman soil. The decision was reached with much hesitation and only after many searchings of heart; but we may be certain that the Emperor and his advisers did not in the least realise or imagine the difficulties of the task to which their consent committed them. To settle peacefully within their borders a nation of perhaps 80,000 or more barbarians was a problem which could be solved only by most careful organisation requiring long preparation. In recent times Europe has had some experience of the enormous difficulties of dealing with crowds of refugees, and of the elaborate organisation which is necessary. Take, for instance, the case of the thousands of Asiatic Greeks who fled from the Turks and sought refuge in European Greece. [Bury refers here to the expulsion of Anatolian Greeks from the Turkish mainland that took place, roughly, in the years 1914 to 1922.] Here it was simply a case of affording food and shelter to people of the same race, but it taxed the whole resources of the Greek Government to solve it. The problem that met Valens was vastly different and more difficult. Quite suddenly, without any time for thinking out the problem or for any preparation, he was called on to admit into his dominions a foreign nation, of barbarous habits, armed and warlike, conscious of their national unity: to provide them with food, and to find them habitations. The Roman state was highly organised, but naturally there was no organisation to deal with an abnormal demand of this kind, which could not have been anticipated. As might have been expected, when the barbarians crossed the river and encamped in Lower Moesia (Bulgaria) all kinds of difficulties and deplorable incidents occurred. The military and civil officials were quite unequal to coping with the situation, and no wonder. War was the result, a war lasting nearly two years and culminating in A.D. 378 in the great battle of Hadrianople, which is one of the landmarks of history."
As Wikipedia observes, the battle of Hadrianople, in which the recently admitted Goths defeated the army of their host, the Emperor Valens, "is often considered the start of the process which led to the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century."
The scenes are all too familiar. Visigoth refugees huddle on the northern banks of the Danube, fleeing the onslaught of the Huns behind them and longing to reach the opposite southern shore, which is controlled by the "civilized" Romans. In our own day, Syrian refugees huddle on the shores of the Mediterranean in Turkey, fleeing the onslaught of ISIS behind them and longing to reach a Greek island or the European mainland across the water. In both situations, officials are confused about what to do. Should the refugees be admitted? Their plight is heart-wrenching. But in ethnicity, language, culture, and religion they are vastly different from the local residents who will be forced to take them in. Also, they come from a place where warfare is a way of life and they are habituated to the ways of violence. Finally, the decision is made to admit them. They flood in. "All kinds of difficulties and deplorable incidents" ensue. As a result, the refugees become alienated from their hosts and turn against them. An act of humanitarianism on behalf of helpless refugees ends up undermining the stability of the very regime that welcomed them in.
As the old saw goes, history doesn't repeat itself, but it does rhyme.
"The [Visigoths] were seized by panic and firmly believed that there was no safety for them [from the invading Huns] north of the Danube. They determined to withdraw southward beyond that river and seek the shelter of the Roman Empire. This was a very critical decision: it led to events which determined the course of the history of the Roman Empire. Accordingly they sent an ambassador to the Emperor Valens, who was then staying at Antioch, beseeching him to allow the nation to cross the river and grant them lands in the provinces of the Balkan peninsula. It was the year 376. In the meantime their families abandoned their homes and encamped along the shores of the lower Danube, ready to cross the moment the Romans permitted them. The situation was highly embarrassing for the Emperor and his government. It was unique: they had no experience to guide them in dealing with it. It was pressing; some decision must be come to immediately; there was no time for ripe deliberation. The opinion of ministers and councillors was naturally divided, but it was finally decided to accede to the request of the Goths and to receive them as new subjects on Roman soil. The decision was reached with much hesitation and only after many searchings of heart; but we may be certain that the Emperor and his advisers did not in the least realise or imagine the difficulties of the task to which their consent committed them. To settle peacefully within their borders a nation of perhaps 80,000 or more barbarians was a problem which could be solved only by most careful organisation requiring long preparation. In recent times Europe has had some experience of the enormous difficulties of dealing with crowds of refugees, and of the elaborate organisation which is necessary. Take, for instance, the case of the thousands of Asiatic Greeks who fled from the Turks and sought refuge in European Greece. [Bury refers here to the expulsion of Anatolian Greeks from the Turkish mainland that took place, roughly, in the years 1914 to 1922.] Here it was simply a case of affording food and shelter to people of the same race, but it taxed the whole resources of the Greek Government to solve it. The problem that met Valens was vastly different and more difficult. Quite suddenly, without any time for thinking out the problem or for any preparation, he was called on to admit into his dominions a foreign nation, of barbarous habits, armed and warlike, conscious of their national unity: to provide them with food, and to find them habitations. The Roman state was highly organised, but naturally there was no organisation to deal with an abnormal demand of this kind, which could not have been anticipated. As might have been expected, when the barbarians crossed the river and encamped in Lower Moesia (Bulgaria) all kinds of difficulties and deplorable incidents occurred. The military and civil officials were quite unequal to coping with the situation, and no wonder. War was the result, a war lasting nearly two years and culminating in A.D. 378 in the great battle of Hadrianople, which is one of the landmarks of history."
As Wikipedia observes, the battle of Hadrianople, in which the recently admitted Goths defeated the army of their host, the Emperor Valens, "is often considered the start of the process which led to the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century."
The scenes are all too familiar. Visigoth refugees huddle on the northern banks of the Danube, fleeing the onslaught of the Huns behind them and longing to reach the opposite southern shore, which is controlled by the "civilized" Romans. In our own day, Syrian refugees huddle on the shores of the Mediterranean in Turkey, fleeing the onslaught of ISIS behind them and longing to reach a Greek island or the European mainland across the water. In both situations, officials are confused about what to do. Should the refugees be admitted? Their plight is heart-wrenching. But in ethnicity, language, culture, and religion they are vastly different from the local residents who will be forced to take them in. Also, they come from a place where warfare is a way of life and they are habituated to the ways of violence. Finally, the decision is made to admit them. They flood in. "All kinds of difficulties and deplorable incidents" ensue. As a result, the refugees become alienated from their hosts and turn against them. An act of humanitarianism on behalf of helpless refugees ends up undermining the stability of the very regime that welcomed them in.
As the old saw goes, history doesn't repeat itself, but it does rhyme.
August 25, 2017
It's amazing how much we (I) don't know about the history of Europe during Roman times and following "barbarians" invasions. We learn some things in school but it's all very superficial. There are so many peoples that lived in Europe and Asia and that influenced the evolution of the continent and the countries and populations formation.
The book is written in a way that can be easily understood, even though it's necessary to keep track of the many tribes and dates to follow the relevant events and to decipher some specific terms. Nothing that can prevent our enjoyment.
The author was a Cambridge professor dedicated to the Roman Empire study. He also worked on sections of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. I'll look for other books by the same author and/or the subject.
The book is written in a way that can be easily understood, even though it's necessary to keep track of the many tribes and dates to follow the relevant events and to decipher some specific terms. Nothing that can prevent our enjoyment.
The author was a Cambridge professor dedicated to the Roman Empire study. He also worked on sections of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. I'll look for other books by the same author and/or the subject.
December 28, 2020
Muhteşem bir tarih kitabı 1928 yılında yazıldığını okuyunca gerçekten şok geçirdim İnanamadım önce, yani aynı zamanda elimizde türkçeye tam neredeyse 100 yıl sonra 2020’de tercüme edilen çok önemli bir tarih kitabı baş yapıtı var. Herşeyden önce çevirmen öğretim Üyeleri İslam ve Yusuf beyleri tebrik etmek gerekir. Nispeten genç olan bu iki hocamızın CVlerini Ve girişteki ön sözlerini okuyunca hayretim & mutluluğum daha da arttı, İslam hocanın Arapça yanında Latince bilmesi muhteşem bir birikimi ve şimdiye kadar türkçeye çevrilmesi düşünülmemiş olan bu önemli kitabın kazanılmasını sağlamış. Türkçeye çevrilmesi oldukça zor olduğu anlaşılmasına rağmen kitabın dizaynı tarih sırasını takip etmesi açısından diğer okuduğum tarih kitaplarından daha anlaşılır durumda olmuş. Tarihle ve Özellikle erken orta çağı tarihi ile ilgilenen herkesin okuması gereken bir kitap ve bu tercüme için çevirmenlere ne kadar teşekkür etsek azdır.
Tabii ki kitabın yazıldığı yıllardan bugüne değişen çok olmasa da değişimler olduğu açıktır üstelik kitabın yazılması sonrası ikinci Dünya Savaşı gibi ırkçılığın da devrede olduğu bir dönemi Avrupa’nın geçirmesine rağmen yazar JB Bury’nin Gayet ilımlı bir yaklaşım içinde olduğunu gördüm.
Roma İmparatorluğu’nun çöküşü ile Avrupa’nın oluşması döneminin başlangıcını anlatan kitabın bir çok bakımdan teferruatlı,irdeleyici ve bilimsel olduğu kadar yazarın yorumlarını da bolca katması dikkatimden kaçmadı. Doğu Germenler ile batı Germenler arasındaki farklar, Hıristiyanlığı kabul eden Gepid Ostrogod Vizigot Vandal Franklar ve Lombardların Batı ve Doğu Roma‘yla ve birbirleri ile savaşması yanında batı Roma‘yı kurumları yasaları ile içselleştirmeleri örnekleri ile teferruatlı olarak anlatılmış.
Özellikle Bizans dönemi uzmanı olan Prof Bury Bu dönemi yöneticiler (krallar fatihler komutanlar) dışında kültürel ve dini tarih açısından daha teferruatlıca inceliyor ve anlatıyor.
Tabii bir de Hunlar var.. “ Attila’nın ölümüyle birlikte doğal bir bağa sahip olmayan Hun imparatorluğu dağıldı....... Hunların toplumsal yapıları ve tüm toplumsal içgüdüleri imparatorluğun kalıcılığını sürdürecek bir araya gelme ve örgütlenmeye karşıydı.... hun egemenliği tek darbede aniden doğduğu boşluğun içinde kaybolsa da bir an düşününce göreceğimiz gibi tarihin seyrini derinden etkilemişti.... germenlerin [Roma] imparatorluktan ayrılma sürecini yavaşlattı. Bu iki şekilde oldu: ilk olarak Tuna’nın ötesindeki doğu germen halklarını kontrol ederek ikinci olarak germen düşmanları ile Savaşan Roma generallerine paha biçilemez yardım kaynağı sağlayarak....Töton krallıklarına dönüşecek topraklarda imparatorluk yönetiminin uzun bir süre devam etmesini sağlayan bu gecikme medeniyetin lehine oldu çünkü her durumda birleşik olarak imparatorluk ile ilişki kurmak zorunda olan [barbarlar] bu bağlılık ilişkisini giderek bağımsızlığa dönüştür”düler.
Son olarak bu krallık arasındaki aile ilişkileri çok ilginç ama tanıdık: “Theodoric kızlarından birini Vizigot kralı ile evlendirdiyse diğerini de Burgonya kralı ile evlendirdi, kendisi ikinci eş olarak Frank prensesini Clovis’in kız kardeşini aldı, dahası kendi kız kardeşi Vandal kralı ile evlendi ayrıca yeğeni de Turingia kralı ile evlendi”
Tabii ki kitabın yazıldığı yıllardan bugüne değişen çok olmasa da değişimler olduğu açıktır üstelik kitabın yazılması sonrası ikinci Dünya Savaşı gibi ırkçılığın da devrede olduğu bir dönemi Avrupa’nın geçirmesine rağmen yazar JB Bury’nin Gayet ilımlı bir yaklaşım içinde olduğunu gördüm.
Roma İmparatorluğu’nun çöküşü ile Avrupa’nın oluşması döneminin başlangıcını anlatan kitabın bir çok bakımdan teferruatlı,irdeleyici ve bilimsel olduğu kadar yazarın yorumlarını da bolca katması dikkatimden kaçmadı. Doğu Germenler ile batı Germenler arasındaki farklar, Hıristiyanlığı kabul eden Gepid Ostrogod Vizigot Vandal Franklar ve Lombardların Batı ve Doğu Roma‘yla ve birbirleri ile savaşması yanında batı Roma‘yı kurumları yasaları ile içselleştirmeleri örnekleri ile teferruatlı olarak anlatılmış.
Özellikle Bizans dönemi uzmanı olan Prof Bury Bu dönemi yöneticiler (krallar fatihler komutanlar) dışında kültürel ve dini tarih açısından daha teferruatlıca inceliyor ve anlatıyor.
Tabii bir de Hunlar var.. “ Attila’nın ölümüyle birlikte doğal bir bağa sahip olmayan Hun imparatorluğu dağıldı....... Hunların toplumsal yapıları ve tüm toplumsal içgüdüleri imparatorluğun kalıcılığını sürdürecek bir araya gelme ve örgütlenmeye karşıydı.... hun egemenliği tek darbede aniden doğduğu boşluğun içinde kaybolsa da bir an düşününce göreceğimiz gibi tarihin seyrini derinden etkilemişti.... germenlerin [Roma] imparatorluktan ayrılma sürecini yavaşlattı. Bu iki şekilde oldu: ilk olarak Tuna’nın ötesindeki doğu germen halklarını kontrol ederek ikinci olarak germen düşmanları ile Savaşan Roma generallerine paha biçilemez yardım kaynağı sağlayarak....Töton krallıklarına dönüşecek topraklarda imparatorluk yönetiminin uzun bir süre devam etmesini sağlayan bu gecikme medeniyetin lehine oldu çünkü her durumda birleşik olarak imparatorluk ile ilişki kurmak zorunda olan [barbarlar] bu bağlılık ilişkisini giderek bağımsızlığa dönüştür”düler.
Son olarak bu krallık arasındaki aile ilişkileri çok ilginç ama tanıdık: “Theodoric kızlarından birini Vizigot kralı ile evlendirdiyse diğerini de Burgonya kralı ile evlendirdi, kendisi ikinci eş olarak Frank prensesini Clovis’in kız kardeşini aldı, dahası kendi kız kardeşi Vandal kralı ile evlendi ayrıca yeğeni de Turingia kralı ile evlendi”
March 3, 2021
Originally published in 1928, this short history of the so-called Barbarian invasions of the Roman Empire (notably excluding Britain) provides a very high-level approach to the matter, eschewing details of dates, battles, and rulers, to look at the dynamic sweeps of events, and the slow-moving cultural and economic changes over centuries, to demonstrate that the fall of the Empire was not one event but a progression over centuries, lasting almost as long as the Empire itself.
Where specific names and dates become important to the narrative, it is to demonstrate that almost all the chief events of confrontation between imperials and invaders (there being little to distinguish the one from the other, all being federates of the Empire) were caused by unfortunate political decisions and by the personal ambitions of warlords. These events belong to the succession of civil wars of the Empire itself, as if the movement of peoples was merely incidental to the struggles for power of a few influential people. These struggles were framed by circumstances outside of any one person’s control. None of the leading actors of the time (except perhaps Attila or the Lombards) were thinking of invading or dismembering the Empire. They were all seeking high office within the Empire, of maintaining the Empire, like countless Roman generals before them, using their command of migrating peoples as leverage in their quest for imperial patronage.
Interestingly, the author holds that the main invaders (Visigoths and Ostrogoths as well as the Burgundians) failed in their effort to maintain their imperial pretensions due to being Arians and not having the support of their large Catholic populations. The same applies to the Vandals who could not hold on to their conquests in Africa. The main exception were the Franks who cannily adopted Catholicism and as a result thrived where the others floundered. The fall of the Empire in the West would seem to be more about power and authority, or legitimacy, transferring from the emperors to the Church than transferring from the Empire to invaders.
This is a very clearly written popularisation of history, summarising and melding narrowly focused sources to form a very broad, sweeping perspective. It’s a pleasure to read and very instructive, a good platform to begin more detailed reading into more specific events and biographies. Definitely a book to read and reread with pleasure.
Where specific names and dates become important to the narrative, it is to demonstrate that almost all the chief events of confrontation between imperials and invaders (there being little to distinguish the one from the other, all being federates of the Empire) were caused by unfortunate political decisions and by the personal ambitions of warlords. These events belong to the succession of civil wars of the Empire itself, as if the movement of peoples was merely incidental to the struggles for power of a few influential people. These struggles were framed by circumstances outside of any one person’s control. None of the leading actors of the time (except perhaps Attila or the Lombards) were thinking of invading or dismembering the Empire. They were all seeking high office within the Empire, of maintaining the Empire, like countless Roman generals before them, using their command of migrating peoples as leverage in their quest for imperial patronage.
Interestingly, the author holds that the main invaders (Visigoths and Ostrogoths as well as the Burgundians) failed in their effort to maintain their imperial pretensions due to being Arians and not having the support of their large Catholic populations. The same applies to the Vandals who could not hold on to their conquests in Africa. The main exception were the Franks who cannily adopted Catholicism and as a result thrived where the others floundered. The fall of the Empire in the West would seem to be more about power and authority, or legitimacy, transferring from the emperors to the Church than transferring from the Empire to invaders.
This is a very clearly written popularisation of history, summarising and melding narrowly focused sources to form a very broad, sweeping perspective. It’s a pleasure to read and very instructive, a good platform to begin more detailed reading into more specific events and biographies. Definitely a book to read and reread with pleasure.
October 10, 2020
Audiobook (Audible) edition, produced by Audio Connoisseur and narrated by Charlton Griffin.
Audiobook stuff: This production is absolutely stellar. The narrator must've had a fantastic time with this book, doing what I can only imagine was his best Winston Churchill impression while throwing in enough eccentric pronunciations ("peninchula" for "peninsula" stood out) to bring an ancient dust-covered antiquarian of the British Museum to mind. I don't know what exactly they did to the audio but it captured the sound of midcentury film narration perfectly. I was half-expecting the MGM lion to roar at any time.
Enough gushing about the audio.
The book is a solid, if somewhat outdated, collection of lectures on that period sometimes referred to as "the Dark Ages," "late Antiquity" or "the early Medieval Period." Here are the Franks, the Vandals, the Goths, the Saxons and all their friends, running around Roman Europe making alliances and backstabbing each other, just looking for a place to settle, preferably with an ample supply of slaves and easy access to trading routes to raid. It's fantastically entertaining and I cannot recommended enough, although it should preferably be consumed in tandem with a more modern history of the period if you want up-to-date scholarship.
Audiobook stuff: This production is absolutely stellar. The narrator must've had a fantastic time with this book, doing what I can only imagine was his best Winston Churchill impression while throwing in enough eccentric pronunciations ("peninchula" for "peninsula" stood out) to bring an ancient dust-covered antiquarian of the British Museum to mind. I don't know what exactly they did to the audio but it captured the sound of midcentury film narration perfectly. I was half-expecting the MGM lion to roar at any time.
Enough gushing about the audio.
The book is a solid, if somewhat outdated, collection of lectures on that period sometimes referred to as "the Dark Ages," "late Antiquity" or "the early Medieval Period." Here are the Franks, the Vandals, the Goths, the Saxons and all their friends, running around Roman Europe making alliances and backstabbing each other, just looking for a place to settle, preferably with an ample supply of slaves and easy access to trading routes to raid. It's fantastically entertaining and I cannot recommended enough, although it should preferably be consumed in tandem with a more modern history of the period if you want up-to-date scholarship.
April 10, 2021
Roma İmparatorluğu’nun son yılları ve bir noktada da erken Orta Çağ’ın oluşumunu merak edenlerin okuyabileceği seminerler bütünlüğünden oluşan bir eser.
Okuyucunun iki şerh altında ilgili esere yaklaşması iyi olur:
1- Eser kaleme alınış ve dayandığı verilerle aslında çok da güncel bir eser değil, kimi noktalar geçen zaman içindeki yeni bilimsel araştırmalarla ya aydınlandı ya da değişti. Bu nedenle mutlak bilgiyi sunmuyor. Rezervli yaklaşmakta fayda var.
2- Konunun bileni olsanız dahi eğer ki kapsayıcı okuma yapmamışsanız öncesinde, eser çok ama çok karışık gelecek. İsimler-kavimler-kurumlar sınırlı bir zaman - mekan içinde iç içe geçmiş. Ama bu durumu yazar iyi bir şekilde netleştiriyor. Bu açıdan da görece rahat takip edilebilecek bir izleğe sahip. Konuya ilk kez temas edecekler için önemli bir yön bu ve fakat okurken sabır etmek gerek.
Nihayetinde, Roma İmparatorluğu nasıl/neden bölündü? Barbar kavimler kimdir/nedir/eylemleri nelerdir ve Orta Çağ/Feodalite’nin erken dönem temelleri nasıl atıldı sorularına cevap arayanları çokça tatmin edecek bir eser.
Okuyucunun iki şerh altında ilgili esere yaklaşması iyi olur:
1- Eser kaleme alınış ve dayandığı verilerle aslında çok da güncel bir eser değil, kimi noktalar geçen zaman içindeki yeni bilimsel araştırmalarla ya aydınlandı ya da değişti. Bu nedenle mutlak bilgiyi sunmuyor. Rezervli yaklaşmakta fayda var.
2- Konunun bileni olsanız dahi eğer ki kapsayıcı okuma yapmamışsanız öncesinde, eser çok ama çok karışık gelecek. İsimler-kavimler-kurumlar sınırlı bir zaman - mekan içinde iç içe geçmiş. Ama bu durumu yazar iyi bir şekilde netleştiriyor. Bu açıdan da görece rahat takip edilebilecek bir izleğe sahip. Konuya ilk kez temas edecekler için önemli bir yön bu ve fakat okurken sabır etmek gerek.
Nihayetinde, Roma İmparatorluğu nasıl/neden bölündü? Barbar kavimler kimdir/nedir/eylemleri nelerdir ve Orta Çağ/Feodalite’nin erken dönem temelleri nasıl atıldı sorularına cevap arayanları çokça tatmin edecek bir eser.
May 14, 2020
This is a coincise account of the barbarian invasions of the 4th to 6th century of the germanic tribes in the western Roman empire.
It focuses mainly on the relationship between the empire and the different germanic people and their leaders. It shows that the last centuries of the western Roman empire were characterized by a mass migration of different germanic tribes which were initially hosted on the empire's borders as federates and served in the military but ended up in laying much waste on the roman provinces, becoming ultimately their new masters. The relationship between the germans and the empire were most ambiguous and characterized by always shifting alliances.
The writing is clear and enjoyable, even tough sometimes the author spends too much details on some marginal facts.
It focuses mainly on the relationship between the empire and the different germanic people and their leaders. It shows that the last centuries of the western Roman empire were characterized by a mass migration of different germanic tribes which were initially hosted on the empire's borders as federates and served in the military but ended up in laying much waste on the roman provinces, becoming ultimately their new masters. The relationship between the germans and the empire were most ambiguous and characterized by always shifting alliances.
The writing is clear and enjoyable, even tough sometimes the author spends too much details on some marginal facts.
June 18, 2017
A solid collection of lectures and essays, but has a few annoyances. The two that stand out the most are the frequent references in Latin to sayings or people we're assumed to know (like anyone really learns Latin anymore :( ) which would've been nice to have footnotes for, and secondly there really isn't a through-line to the book, which leaves it sort of trailing off in the end with a 10 page discourse on the parallel legal systems of the Lombards and Romans.. great, but how does THIS period of post-Empire set up Europe for what came next? That's the lecture I wanted to finish the book with.
February 27, 2024
The book I have actually belonged to my fiancé Father. He was a history teacher. I wish I could have met him because he sounded like a cool dude with similar interests.
The Invasion of Europe should just be called the Invasion of the Mediterranean and Central Europe because that's all it focuses on. I did learn a ton of info on the Gauls and Germany. But I wanted to learn more. I'm so over people and scholars obsessing over Roman History. But maybe it's the Celt in me that is annoyed. For Queen Boudicca! This is yet another scholarly book on the Romans. But at least it's about their downfall.
All in all, it was an interesting book.
The Invasion of Europe should just be called the Invasion of the Mediterranean and Central Europe because that's all it focuses on. I did learn a ton of info on the Gauls and Germany. But I wanted to learn more. I'm so over people and scholars obsessing over Roman History. But maybe it's the Celt in me that is annoyed. For Queen Boudicca! This is yet another scholarly book on the Romans. But at least it's about their downfall.
All in all, it was an interesting book.
July 7, 2023
Unremarkable unless you have an intense desire to understand the inner workings of various Germanic groups throughout Europe in the latter period of the Roman Empire and the following 100-200 years.
Hard to understand parts without maps unless you have a deep knowledge of European rivers.
The first part - the synopsis of the various Germanic groups and their origins was probably the most interesting to me.
Hard to understand parts without maps unless you have a deep knowledge of European rivers.
The first part - the synopsis of the various Germanic groups and their origins was probably the most interesting to me.
February 15, 2019
Since I'm studying History, this book was the part of the literature.
And, precisely this book has really made me get more interested in the Early Middle Age.
Really enjoyed the way Bury showed the world and the migrations of the Barbarians into Europe as well how they changed the "rutin" of the life that Europe had by then.
And, precisely this book has really made me get more interested in the Early Middle Age.
Really enjoyed the way Bury showed the world and the migrations of the Barbarians into Europe as well how they changed the "rutin" of the life that Europe had by then.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 24, 2017
The Invasión of Europe ny the Barbarians
Permite conocer de manera ágil porque se desmembro el Imperio Romano de Occidente y conocer los pueblos bárbaros que lo promovieron. Falta un mapa que abarque los territorios qué conformaron el Imperio Romano.
Permite conocer de manera ágil porque se desmembro el Imperio Romano de Occidente y conocer los pueblos bárbaros que lo promovieron. Falta un mapa que abarque los territorios qué conformaron el Imperio Romano.
June 27, 2018
Good solid read delivered with a unique perspective. It certainly educated me to look at the barbarians as peoples with their own history and perspectives. Lessons for today when we look at our own empire surrounded (yes, not politically correct I know)
July 3, 2018
Likes this period of history. I am fascinated by the devolution of the Roman state to the nation-states of Western Europe, and the evolution of the Eastern Empire to Byzantium. The appearance of the Frankish Kingdom (France) was a key development in this process.
March 30, 2020
Great book.
May 29, 2020
Very interesting, though a bit dry. I felt like I was sitting in a classroom absorbing this key period of European history.
August 21, 2020
İcerik olarak iyi bir kitap, fakat daha profesyonel tercüme edilebilirdi.
September 18, 2020
Some good parts and other parts that sounded like "how many angles can stand on the head of a pin"
March 14, 2021
Çeviri çok kötü. Cümle cümle "translate" edilmiş, okurken çok zorlandım.
October 6, 2021
Not sure why people are giving low ratings. Any claims that are not fully corroborated are mentioned as such. Great, informative read.
December 16, 2021
If you have to read one book about the Migrations, this be the one.
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