The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Volume I

By: Edward Gibbon

Narrated by: David Timson

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 I (chapters I-XV), Gibbon opens by setting the scene with the Empire as it stood in the time of Augustus (d. AD 14) before praising the time of the Antonines (AD 98-180). The death of Marcus Aurelius and the accession of Commodus and his successors ushers in turbulent and dangerous times which were only occasionally marked by a wise and temperate ruler. The volume ends in AD 324, with Constantine the Great becoming undisputed Roman emperor, uniting both the East and Western Empires.

Download the accompanying reference guide.Public Domain (P)2014 Naxos AudioBooks

Map

I will get a map or maps for the remaining volumes so I can see where Gibbons has jumped to.

If you want detailed and meticulously researched history, you hit the jackpot with this. Otherwise, I do not recommend it.

Density

This was a struggle for me, not for the narration or writing style (which are both excellent), but due to density and breadth of the information presented. This must be one of the most thoroughly researched and executed historical works of all time. Truly epic.

Expand Your Vocabulary in Just 146 hours

Since all six volumes are of a piece I am reviewing it as such. This is a massive work and I will not attempt to extol all its virtues here. I have always had this on my reading list but knew that I would never devote months of reading time to tackling this history. This is a prime example of the superiority of the audio format in facilitating the assimilation of such lengthy books.

Here are my general impressions:

History is primarily an account of the leaders and ruling class. The vast unwashed masses pass through the halls of recorded history in abject silence.

The Roman Empire persisted for a very long time in many different forms. It is beyond my attention span to try to hold the entire span in my head. I admire Edward Gibbon for his ability to seemingly relate all these different eras with equal perspicuity. I will require a second pass through to more fully grasp

The influence of Christianity is the primary cause for the decline of the Roman Empire. One cannot hope to understand the underlying causes of the Roman Empire’s downfall without having a firm grasp of the doctrinal battles within the church. In order to make his reasoning clear to the listener Gibbon is careful to explain the fine points of Christian doctrine. He expounds, at length, the Arian heresy and its political implications. And, in a related episode, he relates the origins and expanse of the Mohammadan religion because of its impact on the Romans.

This is not merely a narrative history. Gibbon writes with high style and great aplomb. His humor is witty and droll and quite pervasive. The byzantine convolutions of this history are made beautiful by his flowing prose. This is a work of literature.

Either the common vocabulary of people in the eighteenth century was higher than that of people today or Gibbon has an incredible mastery of the English language, uncommon in any time. I prefer the latter.

David Timson has a wonderful sonorous voice; one quite suitable to hours of critical listening. His enunciation is crisp and his inflection perfectly suited to delivering Gibbon’s frequent backhanded compliments.

Narration turned me off early

How could the performance have been better?

For Pete sakes...the narration was terrible....constantly reverting to footnote....end of footnote....couldn't take it any longer and gave up.....much better to just read it

Genial. Para amantes de la historia,ç.

Increíble como escribe el auto y como es narrado. No me di cuenta de la antigüedad del libro hasta que llevaba ya unas horas. Nada esto engancha tanto que de cabeza a por los siguientes volúmenes. La leche que gusto.

one of the best

Timson's dlivery of Gibbons'
magnificent work captures its true escense . I think Gibbons would approve.

good

epic and interesting, except for the chapters on early christians. those I could do without

DAVID TIMSON IS AMAZING!

What did you love best about The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Volume I?

Everything.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Volume I?

Too many to count.

What does David Timson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

On paper Gibbon's prose can appear dauntingly monumental, but David Timson's reading makes it come alive. You feel almost as if Gibbon were chatting with you. An absolutely marvelous job!

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Again, too many to count.

Any additional comments?

Unfortunately Audible has adopted a policy of appending the Amazon.com reviews as a default if there are no reviews of the audiobook they are trying to sell. In the case of Gibbon, this means that anyone curious about this audiobook found himself wading through one-star reviews of a defective ebook version of Gibbon. So pay no attention to the Amazon.com reviews. The Naxos Gibbon is one of the great achievements of the "audible age," thanks to incredible reading of David Timson. (His Dickens is also wonderful.)

good read

easy to fall asleep to. so if you want to study this have the great courses study guide.

A Classic Book that worths to be listen

Edward Gibbon is a classic writer and an Historian classic. He has the ability to build historical texts using beautiful images and should be a poet. Audible Amazon Co. certainly hits a point of excellence offering us this masterpiece of History read by David Timson, who is a fantastic reader. His accent, his voice, his own interpretation of the text take us to the Ancient Rome, following the armies, watching the battles, listening the great roman orators, admring the archicteture of the big cities. The listening of these volumes let us learn the History of Rome through his decline and, finally, the fall of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. The ascension of the Germanic Kingdoms is explained also in an historic romantic way, showing the palacian coups and intrigues. You probably will stop only when David annouces: the end.