Gibbon’s Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

by D.M. Low (Editor), Edward Gibbon

Genres: History, Classics, Nonfiction

944 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1960

About the author

David Morrice Low was a British academic and biographer of Edward Gibbon.

Reviews

[Gerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book became a friend to me over the course of months it took to finish. It was the book I read on early mornings on days off; and, the book I carried during my commute to work on the Metro Subway so I could read to and from the office. At times, “readers” in different seats would look and attempt to read the spine title of the book as I was reading quietly (quiet pride was an ever internal moment during those times). Carrying a nearly 1,000-page book to work on a daily basis reminded me of how old I am getting – struggle on I did as this was a book I had to read and one that I insisted on finishing.

Sir Edward Gibbon received in his era a rash of criticism for his not so favorable opinion of the development of the Catholic Church and his abrasive descriptions of Christians; but, he gave a very telling account of the Apostles and of Aleppo – one of the first cities on the planet converted to Christianity in the ancient world. The criticisms of this work have continued in various forms and styles but the value to History for future generations from primary sources cannot be ignored – Sir Gibbon was an “author” in every sense of the word. There are simply too many points of significance in this work to reflect all of them in one simple and humble review. Some points of interest are listed below that I found very interesting to me on a personal level.

There are some standout points of this history in art, science, agriculture, and politics. There is also as we know a time of a civilization that was exposed to lengthy periods of time to wickedness, cruelty, punishment with no just cause, and rife with indulgences that were blatantly a scene of debauchery. There was; however, many benefits to mankind as well from the Roman Empire – Gibbons acknowledges this with “The Improvement of Agriculture”. Take for example the apple, a fruit native to Italy. When Romans had tasted for example the flavors of the apricot (prunus armeniaca), the peach (prunus persica), the pomegranate (prunica granatum), the citron (lemon to citrum), the orange (aurantiaco and likely placed “prunus” in the front of the term) they named these all the “apple” the difference being the name of the origin to which the Romans discovered the fruit after the “apple” name is presented. “Prunus” is too close to prune in English and as I am not a linguist by profession I am simply employing my own interpretation to what “likely” was the case.

The first political reference that stands out is early in chapter 3 Gibbon opens the chapter with “The obvious definition of a monarchy seems to be that of a state in which a single person, by whatever name he may be distinguished, is entrusted with the execution of the laws, the management of the revenue, and the command of the army. But unless public liberty is protected by intrepid and vigilant guardians, the authority of so formidable a magistrate will soon degenerate into despotism.” The prose is not only telling of the direct time to which Gibbon lived (the work was conducted between 1776 and 1788), but is also telling of the future; in our past is the Second World War of course, it was the future and unbeknownst to Gibbon of the era. The masterpiece continues in this chapter with other prose such as “The principles of a free constitution are irrevocably lost when the legislative power is nominated by the executive.” Yet, we can also see a possible contradiction to his thinking when he writes in Chapter 21 that “….Corruption, the most infallible symptom of constitutional liberty….” And, in all fairness this reference was used in his description to the Councils of Arles and Milan. Another interesting written description was of Nero and the infamous “Nero playing his fiddle whilst Rome was burning…” (it begged the question answered here “what song was Nero playing while Rome was burning?” Sir Gibbon’s answers this but admits it isn’t quite confirmed – it is the best answer ever postulated however.) Over the course of history any person can align any stage of this work to any period, and to any leader of any nation. What is amazing is Gibbon use of primary source material.

There were several touching passages throughout – the burning of the library in Alexandria, Egypt certainly was of personal interest to me. Though I have “finished” reading this work, I am a long way off from ever putting it onto the shelf for good – the references, additional reading interests that have now developed within will carry me for many years to come. This work is more a masterpiece of art than it is anything else; I am most thankful for the unintended consequence of increased comprehension and other critical thinking assets it provided to me personally. Five Stars – nothing less will do and Mr. D. M. Low was quite the independent professional in dissecting the full work for persons who were interested in the overall effort.

[Nicki Markus · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll be honest and say, while I'm reviewing and rating today, I've not completely finished this book yet. It is a big, stodgy read. Interesting, but heavy-going. Therefore, after getting fifty pages in, I have decided to shelve it. I will finish, but rather than have it as my principal read, I will dip into it when I have a free moment, reading a chapter or two at a time until I am done.
I'm giving this book four stars for the interesting subject matter and the fact that I was delighted to find this abridged version so I could experience this classic text without having to commit to all those volumes!

[Mohammad · Rating 4 out of 5]

نسخه ای که زنده یاد نمازی ترجمه کرده بود این نسخه است

[Kassandra O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

Painful. But you've gotta get through it once before you die.

[Daniel Clemence · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gibbon's: The Decline and the Fall of the Roman Empire is massive even for the abridged version. I won't lie to say that I skim read this book. When there are many more books waiting to be read, I cannot afford to stay on one book. In any case, Edward Gibbon's epic is a tome dedicated to approximately 1500 years of history from the heights of the empire under Trajan to the fall of Constantinople and the impact of the Eastern Romans on Western Europe.

Gibbon's epic dedicates a lot of time to the causes of the Fall of the Roman Empire including political instability, religious unrest and economic decline. Worth a read if you are into Roman history.

[Tom Nixon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I threw the towel in on this book-- my first DNF in a long time. I could have maybe lived with Gibbon's very dry writing style, but the abridgement on this one was slice-and-dice and not at all smooth. (And I don't know-- maybe that's a me problem-- I do have a one-volume abridgement of Winston Churchill's A History of The English Speaking Peoples, and that's much better, abridgement-wise wise than this is.)

[Fred Dameron · Rating 5 out of 5]

The greatest history of Rome, the Empire, and what became of it all

[Warren · Rating 5 out of 5]

I kept dipping into this book over a period of 3 years before finally finishing it. Unless you're already at least generally familiar with the entire period of decline, Gibbon is best read in conjunction with other material. He is frequently dense, and often vague, and to read him directly without preparation can be an exercise in frustration. The Decline And Fall is not a text book. It is Gibbon's great tale. He can be oblique, almost impenetrable at times, but if you are not fettered by having to decipher his references, or the effort of keeping up with the flood of his thoughts, he suddenly comes alive in the most magical way. You can't put him down. You discover that you're caught in the spell of a master of entertainment, comment, critique and dry wit.

Low's masterful abridgement concentrates on removing sections rather than condensing Gibbon's extraordinary prose. As a primer for full fat Gibbon, I don't believe it has been bettered.

[Don Heiman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Edward Gibbon published his classic "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" in 1776. In 1960 D. M. Low published an outstanding abridgment of Gibbon's 6 volume research. Low's work is important for people who seek to understand the roots of today's Middle East conflict and forces affecting a turbulent world deeply steeped in the history of religions, East/West philosophies, and mysticisms from 27 BC to 1453 AD. Low's index is excellent and his 900 page abridgment is captivating.