Summary Of The Decline And Fall Of Roman Empire By Edward Gibbon

The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire is a six volume set written by Edward Gibbon. The six volumes were written from a Roman point of view between the years 1776 and 1788. Edward Gibbon was an English historian writer and a Member of Parliament. Gibbon’s work is considered to be outdated due to the central idea of this popular work. Throughout the set of books, he uses irony and criticism of organized religion. The thesis of his work is the falling of Rome was caused by embracing Christianity. Gibbon wrote these books to show the history and the Roman Empire’s declining years. The Roman Empire had great relevance to the rest of the world.
Throughout the history of Rome, there are many emotions that could describe the different time periods. …show more content…
The Euphrates River was significant to the Middle East. The Euphrates River provided the Romans with an abundance of resources that were sent to several provinces to keep peace with the Barbarians. Over time the resources began to dwindle down and the Barbarian attacks were going to soon begin. Rome allowed the Visigoths, a barbarian tribe, to move into the south for protection against other Barbarian groups. Even though the Visigoths were allowed to live in Rome, the Romans treated them very poorly. The Visigoths were forced to sell their children into slavery in exchange for food. The Huns and many other Barbarian tribes began forming alliances for a future plan to take over Rome. The Barbarian groups began migrating into Roman territory which heavily influenced the Empire’s downfall. Not only were they just moving into Roman territory, the Barbarians also began attacking. Territory was beginning to be lost throughout North Africa and in many parts of Europe. The loss of territory began to affect Rome in negative ways. Once North Africa was seized from Rome, there was a lack of trade. The lack of trade led to many issues due to a shortage of supplies and resources the Romans relied on North Africa to provide. The grain supplied by North Africa was a staple crop because it fed majority of the population. Since trade was cut off, many Romans had to figure out where their next …show more content…
Gibbon wrote a great amount about religion playing a major role in the fall of the Roman Empire. I agree that Christianity influenced the fall of the empire, to a certain extent. Christianity was only one of the many influences that drug the empire downward. Along with Christianity, the economy and politics played a significant role. In my opinion, all of the influences were significant to the downfall because they are all key components in a successful or unsuccessful empire. I searched throughout the first and second volumes of the six Edward Gibbon wrote to find what his opinions were on the decline and fall of the Roman Empire. Gibbon included many of histories’ facts, as well as his own opinions about the fall of the Western Empire. Gibbon used primary sources to write the six volume collection. After writing them, Gibbon became the first modern historian of ancient Rome. Although he is criticized, Edward Gibbon wrote on what he thought was accurate. Many writers attempted to discourage the idea of organized religion, but none of them were successful like Gibbon. His books in the set The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire are now criticized and disagreed with. Many people today do not agree that Christianity and religion was the main issue of the downfall of Rome. I, myself, disagree with Gibbon, but just about Christianity. His other points are well supported