The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire: Volume 3

A splendid masterpiece! Gibbon wraps up the monumental Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire with the end of the Empire of the East and a survey of the states of the various nations that had been born at the time. It is, like the first two volumes, written with an incredible vocabulary and such perfe......more

As this is my fourth review of Gibbon, and as I am not as inexhaustible as that great man, this review will be somewhat scatterbrained—just a few casual observations and some final reflections. First, it occurred to me, after reading Gibbon’s memoirs, that one of the largest influences on his writin......more

Volumes V and VI include probably the most interesting period for my taste, while also including the worst individual chapter and even more unnecessary Byzantine-bashing (Constantinople's "decline is almost coeval with her foundation") and even clearer bias on Gibbon's side. It's fascinating to read......more

Ok I'm onto volume III and starting to shake because it's coming to the end. By now I am a complete addict, just a few thousand pages in. What can I do when I get to the last page? Is there a centre that treats people for Edward Gibbon withdrawal? It is a great shame that the Roman empire collapsed......more

The Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire, Vol.III With three volumes finished now, still Edward Gibbon's narrative style is a favourite. While it may be hard to stay focused on every detail, one must realise that when they own a copy of his work it is like they hold in their library the entirety of R......more