The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon

‘Gibbon expressed the hope that his book would be read for two centuries.’

I first dipped into various volumes of this work in 1972, when I was studying Ancient History (Greek and Roman) at Launceston Matriculation College.  I’d read it at the Launceston Library, initially as part of my search for different sources of information about the Roman Empire.  No, I didn’t (then) read the entire six volumes.  I didn’t have time.  I was busy imagining my future, studying hard, wondering about possibilities.

Now, 47 years later, I’ve read the work (the Folio Edition, in eight volumes).  As I read, I remembered the idealistic teenager who first picked up those books.  I remembered wondering about how history was written (and by whom) about the influences on historiography.  In 1972 Edward Gibbon’s work sparked my interest in Byzantine history (not his intention I am sure, but I was ever contrary).

Edward Gibbon’s History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire was published between 1776 and 1789.  It took him seventeen years to write.  While Gibbon’s views on the fall of the Roman Empire may be challenged by some modern historians, the History was (and remains) a remarkable achievement.  I love it for two reasons.  Firstly, opening the pages takes me back some 47 years in my own life into a time of (seemingly) endless possibility and into worlds far more interesting than the one I then inhabited.  Secondly, Gibbon’s footnotes add such value to the text.

I read the History slowly, over a period of months.  I could not have read it more quickly: I had both Gibbon’s journey and my own to undertake.  And at the end, while I don’t completely agree that the Roman Empire failed solely because of its own weakness and the influence of Christianity, it makes sense in Gibbon’s worldview.

Will I read it again?  No.   My journey is complete.  But I am tempted to revisit the Greek side of Ancient History, with Thucydides and Herodotus.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

 

2 thoughts on “The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon”

  1. I’ve haven’t read Gibbon, though we’ve got him somewhere, but I have slowly read my way through The Landmark Herodotus and I’ve dawdled through bits of The Landmark Thucydides. I read bits of both of these at uni in different translations, but never read the whole thing, and was delighted by my journey through The Landmark Herodotus (on my blog if you’re interested) because it has maps, and notes, and explanatory asides, and it’s just the best way to read it. It’s also nice to read when you’re not doing it for study purposes because you can just relax and enjoy it.
    I usually try and read my way through something Big each year, so maybe this will be Thucydides’ year, but maybe not because I have been meaning to read David Marr’s bio of Patrick White forever too…
    So many books…

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  2. I want to reread Herodotus and Thucydides at some stage. You are right: it’s much more enjoyable reading when it’s not for study purposes. I found Gibbon interesting because when I first picked him up my teenaged self was focussing on the future while my senior self is now reflecting on the past. And history has always been an important part of my reading adventures. David Marr’s biography of Patrick White is one of the best biographies I’ve read. I adored Patrick White’s novels (studied ‘Voss’ at Launceston Matriculation College) and have since read most of the others. As you say, so many books …

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