Essential History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

In 1787, Edward Gibbon's "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" was published. Over the past two hundred years, "The History of Decline and Decline" has become a supreme classic with its three essences: 1. A summary of the great changes in history; 2. An incisive and unique analysis; 3. Beautiful writing. It is these three essences that make it still the supreme classic in the field of literature and history. However, the original work of 5 million words has deterred many readers. To this end, the Essence Edition condenses twelve original works, retaining the three essences of the original works at one-tenth the thickness. Every article is about turning points and great changes The era of the Five Good Emperors → Military intervention in politics → Diocletian and Constantine turned the tide → The east-west division of the empire → Barbarian invasion, Alaric captured Rome → Destruction of Western Rome → The glory of Justinian → The war between Heraclius and Persia → The rise of Arabia → The Crusades → The invasion of Venice → In 1453, Mehmed II captured Constantinople. The grand themes that have lasted for thousands of years in these original works are still presented one by one in the essence. Each chapter has unique analysis Edward Gibbon deeply explored the issues of instability in the imperial throne and military interference in politics in the middle period of the Roman Empire - the collapse of the Republic led to the loss of the authority of the Senate, and there was no new inheritance law to fill it, which fostered the ambition that "everyone can be emperor". The Roman soldiers worshiped power, were highly organized, and mastered violence, which led to the widespread phenomenon of soldiers deposing and establishing emperors. The essence version retains a large amount of such analysis in the original work and strives to combine history and theory. This makes this book not just a general narrative, but also a wise reading of history. Every page is beautifully written "The wheel of fate has completed a cycle, and the sacred ground is once again overgrown with thorns and desolate. We stand on the Capitol Hill, which was originally the nerve center of the Roman Empire and a fortified city unparalleled in the world. Many kings died here The Yellow Spring... Is now in such a state of decline that not only has the country changed, but it has also become unrecognizable. The triumphal avenue is buried in the dead vines and grass, and the senator's seat is buried under the dirt..." - Page 475, Epilogue: The face of Rome.