The Decline and Fall of the Roman Emp..., Edward Gibbon
The Decline and Fall of the Roman Emp..., Edward Gibbon
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The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Volume V

Author: Edward Gibbon

Narrator: David Timson

Unabridged: 27 hr 19 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Naxos

Published: 09/01/2014


Synopsis

The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire has always maintained its initial appeal to both the general public and scholars alike. Its sheer scale is daunting, encompassing over a millennium of history, covering not merely the Western Empire from the days of the early emperors to its extinction in AD 476, but also the Eastern Empire, which lasted for another thousand years until the Turks vanquished it in 1453. But Gibbon’s style, part historical fact and part literature, is enticing, and the sheer honesty of the man, who endeavours to be scrupulously impartial in his presentation, endears him to the reader. In this recording, David Timson incorporates the most salient of Gibbon’s footnotes. In Volume V (Chapters XLVII-LVI), Gibbon further explores the influence of Christianity on the fall of the Roman Empire. He looks at the growth of the worship of Christian images and the resulting persecution by Leo III, emperor of the East. The conflict is intensified as a split develops between the Eastern and Western churches, a weakness that encourages attacks from Lombardy. Gibbon then moves to the foundation of the Moslem religion and the attempts of the Arabs to besiege Constantinople.

About Edward Gibbon

Edward Gibbon (1737–1794), an English historian and member of Parliament, had little formal education. He went to Oxford, but was forced to leave when he converted to Roman Catholicism. His family then sent him to Lausanne, where he was reconverted to Protestantism. His most important work, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, was published in six volumes between 1776 and 1788.


Reviews

Goodreads review by David on April 13, 2017

Such an incredible journey it has been, reading one of the great masterpieces of historical writing. I wondered, at the outset, at the prospect of tackling such a voluminous work; yet, here I am at the conclusion of Volume 5, with one more to go! The more I read (actually in my case, listen, on Audib......more

Goodreads review by Arnis on September 06, 2020

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Goodreads review by Richard on January 13, 2025

Gibbon doesn’t put dates on anything. He just narrates it all out. Volume V seems to cover the 500-600 AD period, which contained the reign and laws of Justinian. My favorite aspect of this period was the astoundingly competent general, Belisarius, who somehow re-conquered much of the western empire......more

Goodreads review by D a n n y on March 14, 2023

This fifth volume of Edward Gibbon’s The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (Folio Society edition) begins in 474 CE and ends in 641 CE. Picking up where volume IV left off: Odoacer, king of Italy, who had overthrown the Western Empire, is assassinated in the first ten pages. I was......more

Goodreads review by Sajith on April 30, 2023

This volume is vast in its geographical and chronological extent. In one giant leap, Gibbon crosses six centuries of time and the great expanse of land from Spain to Afghanistan. The author continues the tale from Heraclius when Islam reared its head in Arabia and stops just short of the Latin conqu......more