The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire is a six-volume work by the English historian Edward Gibbon.It traces Western civilization (as well as the Islamic and Mongolian conquests) from the height of the Roman Empire to the fall of Byzantium.Volume I was published in 1776 and went through six printings. Volumes II and III were published in 1781; volumes IV, V, and VI in 1788–1789.
Edward Gibbon (1737–1794)The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire is a six-volume work by the English historian. It traces Western civilization (as well as the and conquests) from the of the to the of. Volume I was published in 1776 and went through six printings. Volumes II and III were published in 1781; volumes IV, V, and VI in 1788–1789.The six volumes cover the history, from 98 to 1590, of the, the history of and then of the, and the history of Europe, and discusses the among other things. — Edward Gibbon. The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Chapter 38 'General Observations on the Fall of the Roman Empire in the West'Like other thinkers and citizens of the age steeped in institutional, Gibbon held in contempt the as a priest-ridden, superstitious.
It was not until his own era, the 'Age of Reason', with its emphasis on rational thought, it was believed, that human history could resume its progress. Style Gibbon's tone was detached, dispassionate, and yet critical. He can lapse into moralisation and:As long as mankind shall continue to bestow more liberal applause on their destroyers than on their benefactors, the thirst of military glory will ever be the vice of the most exalted characters. — Gibbon, Edward (1890). 3 (Chandos ed.).
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Citations and footnotes Gibbon provides the reader with a glimpse of his thought process with extensive notes along the body of the text, a precursor to the modern use of footnotes. Gibbon's footnotes are famous for their idiosyncratic and often humorous style, and have been called 'Gibbon's table talk.' They provide an entertaining moral commentary on both and 18th century. This technique enabled Gibbon to compare ancient Rome to his own contemporary world. Gibbon's work advocates a and view of history.Gibbon's citations provide in-depth detail regarding his use of sources for his work, which included documents dating back to ancient Rome. The detail within his asides and his care in noting the importance of each document is a precursor to modern-day historical footnoting methodology.The work is notable for its erratic but exhaustively documented notes and research., following him 113 years later with his own History of the Later Roman Empire, commended the depth and accuracy of Gibbon's work.
Unusually for 18th century historians, Gibbon was not content with second-hand accounts when primary sources were accessible. 'I have always endeavoured', Gibbon wrote, 'to draw from the fountain-head; that my curiosity, as well as a sense of duty, has always urged me to study the originals; and that, if they have sometimes eluded my search, I have carefully marked the secondary evidence, on whose faith a passage or a fact were reduced to depend.' The Decline and Fall is a literary monument and a massive step forward in. Criticism Numerous tracts were published criticising his work. In response, Gibbon defended his work with the 1779 publication of A Vindication. Of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.
His remarks on Christianity aroused particularly vigorous attacks, but in the mid-twentieth century, at least one author claimed that 'church historians allow the substantial justness of Gibbon's main positions.' Gibbon's views on religion Criticism of Quran and Muhammad Gibbon's comments on the and reflected his view of the secular origin of the text. He outlined in chapter 33 the widespread tale of the, and remarked 'This popular tale, which Mahomet might learn when he drove his camels to the fairs of Syria, is introduced, as a divine revelation, into the Quran.' His presentation of Muhammad's life again reflected his secular approach: 'in his private conduct, Mahomet indulged the appetites of a man, and abused the claims of a prophet. A special revelation dispensed him from the laws which he had imposed on his nation: the female sex, without reserve, was abandoned to his desires; and this singular prerogative excited the envy, rather than the scandal, the veneration, rather than the envy, of the devout Mussulmans.' Views on Jews and charge of antisemitism Gibbon described the Jews as ' a race of fanatics, whose dire and credulous superstition seemed to render them the implacable enemies not only of the Roman government, but also of humankind'.Because of his view Gibbon has been accused of. Number of Christian martyrs Gibbon challenged Church history by estimating far smaller numbers of than had been traditionally accepted.
The Church's version of its early history had rarely been questioned before. Gibbon, however, knew that modern Church writings were, and he shunned them in favor of.Christianity as a contributor to the fall and to stability: chapters XV, XVI Historian S.
Foster says that Gibbon:blamed the otherworldly preoccupations of Christianity for the decline of the Roman empire, heaped scorn and abuse on the church, and sneered at the entirety of monasticism as a dreary, superstition-ridden enterprise. The Decline and Fall compares Christianity invidiously with both the pagan religions of Rome and the religion of Islam.Volume I was originally published in sections, as was common for large works at the time. The first two were well received and widely praised. The last quarto in Volume I, especially Chapters XV and XVI, was highly controversial, and Gibbon was attacked as a '. Gibbon thought that Christianity had hastened the Fall, but also ameliorated the results:As the happiness of a future life is the great object of religion, we may hear without surprise or scandal that the introduction, or at least the abuse of Christianity, had some influence on the decline and fall of the Roman empire. The clergy successfully preached the doctrines of patience and pusillanimity; the active virtues of society were discouraged; and the last remains of military spirit were buried in the cloister: a large portion of public and private wealth was consecrated to the specious demands of charity and devotion; and the soldiers' pay was lavished on the useless multitudes of both sexes who could only plead the merits of abstinence and chastity.
Faith, zeal, curiosity, and more earthly passions of malice and ambition, kindled the flame of theological discord; the church, and even the state, were distracted by religious factions, whose conflicts were sometimes bloody and always implacable; the attention of the emperors was diverted from camps to synods; the Roman world was oppressed by a new species of tyranny; and the persecuted sects became the secret enemies of their country. Yet party-spirit, however pernicious or absurd, is a principle of union as well as of dissension. The bishops, from eighteen hundred pulpits, inculcated the duty of passive obedience to a lawful and orthodox sovereign; their frequent assemblies and perpetual correspondence maintained the communion of distant churches; and the benevolent temper of the Gospel was strengthened, though confirmed, by the spiritual alliance of the Catholics. The sacred indolence of the monks was devoutly embraced by a servile and effeminate age; but if superstition had not afforded a decent retreat, the same vices would have tempted the unworthy Romans to desert, from baser motives, the standard of the republic. Religious precepts are easily obeyed which indulge and sanctify the natural inclinations of their votaries; but the pure and genuine influence of Christianity may be traced in its beneficial, though imperfect, effects on the barbarian proselytes of the North.
If the decline of the Roman empire was hastened by the conversion of Constantine, his victorious religion broke the violence of the fall, and mollified the ferocious temper of the conquerors (chap. 38).was deemed to have influenced Gibbon's claim that Christianity was a contributor to the fall of the Roman Empire.