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The Philosopher, Who With Calm Suspicion Examines The Dreams And Omens, The Miracles And Prodigies, Of Profane Or Even Of Ecclesiastical History, Will Probably Conclude That, If The Eyes Of The Spectators Have Sometimes Been Deceived By Fraud, The Understanding Of The Readers Has Much More Frequently Been Insulted By Fiction.

-Edward Gibbon

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The Philosopher, Who With

Edward Gibbon

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The Philosopher, Who With Calm Suspicion Examines The Dreams And Omens, The Miracles And Prodigies, Of Profane Or Even Of Ecclesiastical History, Will Probably Conclude That, If The Eyes Of The Spectators Have Sometimes Been Deceived By Fraud, The Understanding Of The Readers Has Much More Frequently Been Insulted By Fiction.

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The Distinctions Of Personal Merit And Influence, So Conspicuous In A Republic, So Feeble And Obscure Under A Monarchy, Were Abolished By The Despotism Of The Emperors; Who Substituted In Their Room A Severe Subordination Of Rank And Office, From The Titled Slaves Who Were Seated On The Steps Of The Throne, To The Meanest Instruments Of Arbitrary Power.

Extreme Distress, Which Unites The Virtue Of A Free People, Imbitters The Factions Of A Declining Monarchy.

In Everyage And Country, The Wiser, Or At Least The Stronger, Ofthetwosexes, Hasusurped Thepowers Ofthe State, And Confined The Other To The Cares And Pleasures Of Domestic Life.

A False Modesty Is The Meanest Species Of Pride.

The Pathetic Almost Always Consists In The Detail Of Little Events.

To A Lover Of Books The Shops And Sales In London Present Irresistible Temptations.

[whole] Generations May Be Swept Away By The Madness Of Kings In The Space Of A Single Hour.

Yet The Experience Of Four Thousand Years Should Enlarge Our Hopes, And Diminish Our Apprehensions: We Cannot Determine To What Height The Human Species May Aspire In Their Advances Towards Perfection; But It May Safely Be Presumed, That No People, Unless The Face Of Nature Is Changed, Will Relapse Into Their Original Barbarism.

Women [in Ancient Rome] Were Condemned To The Perpetual Tutelage Of Parents, Husbands, Or Guardians; A Sex Created To Please And Obey Was Never Supposed To Have Attained The Age Of Reason And Experience. Such, At Least, Was The Stern And Haughty Spirit Of The Ancient Law . . .

A Reformer Should Be Exempt From The Suspicion Of Interest, And He Must Possess The Confidence And Esteem Of Those Whom He Proposes To Reclaim.

The Philosopher, Who With Calm Suspicion Examines The Dreams And Omens, The Miracles And Prodigies, Of Profane Or Even Of Ecclesiastical History, Will Probably Conclude That, If The Eyes Of The Spectators Have Sometimes Been Deceived By Fraud, The Understanding Of The Readers Has Much More Frequently Been Insulted By Fiction.

To The Love Of Pleasure We May Therefore Ascribe Most Of The Agreeable, To The Love Of Action We May Attribute Most Of The Useful And Respectable, Qualifications. The Character In Which Both The One And The Other Should Be United And Harmonised Would Seem To Constitute The Most Perfect Idea Of Human Nature.

The Value Of Money Has Been Settled By General Consent To Express Our Wants And Our Property, As Letters Were Invented To Express Our Ideas; And Both These Institutions, By Giving A More Active Energy To The Powers And Passions Of Human Nature, Have Contributed To Multiply The Objects They Were Designed To Represent.

Among The Innumerable Monuments Of Architecture Constructed By The Romans, How Many Have Escaped The Notice Of History, How Few Have Resisted The Ravages Of Time And Barbarism! And Yet Even The Majestic Ruins That Are Still Scattered Over Italy And The Provinces, Would Be Sufficient To Prove That Those Countries Were Once The Seat Of A Polite And Powerful Empire.

To A Philosophic Eye, The Vices Of The Clergy Are Far Less Dangerous Than Their Virtues.

If We Contrast The Rapid Progress Of This Mischievous Discovery [gunpowder] With The Slow And Laborious Advances Of Reason, Science, And The Arts Of Peace, A Philosopher, According To His Temper, Will Laugh Or Weep At The Folly Of Mankind.

Corruption, The Most Infallible Symptom Of Constitutional Liberty.

A Jurisdiction Thus Vague And Arbitrary Was Exposed To The Most Dangerous Abuse: The Substance, As Well As The Form, Of Justice Were Often Sacrificed To The Prejudices Of Virtue, The Bias Of Laudable Affection, And The Grosser Seductions Of Interest Or Resentment.

The Ruin Of Paganism, In The Age Of Theodosius, Is Perhaps The Only Example Of The Total Extirpation Of Any Ancient And Popular Superstition; And May Therefore Deserve To Be Considered, As A Singular Event In The History Of The Human Mind.

Sixty Thousand Blacks Are Annually Embarked From The Coast Of Guinea, Never To Return To Their Native Country; But They Are Embarked In Chains: And This Constant Emigration, Which, In The Space Of Two Centuries, Might Have Furnished Armies To Overrun The Globe, Accuses The Guilt Of Europe And The Weakness Of Africa.

Amiable Weaknesses Of Human Nature.

The Voice Of History Is Often Little More Than The Organ Of Hatred Or Flattery.

The Love Of Study, A Passion Which Derives Fresh Vigor From Enjoyment, Supplies Each Day, Each Hour, With A Perpetual Source Of Independent And Rational Pleasure.

The Law Of Nature Instructs Most Animals To Cherish And Educate Their Infant Progeny. The Law Of Reason Inculcates To The Human Species The Returns Of Filial Piety.

The Fierce And Partial Writers Of The Times, Ascribing All Virtue To Themselves, And Imputing All Guilt To Their Adversaries, Have Painted The Battle Of The Angels And The Demons.

History Is Indeed Little More Than The Register Of The Crimes, Follies, And Misfortunes Of Mankind.

Every Person Has Two Educations, One Which He Receives From Others, And One, More Important, Which He Gives To Himself.

The Fabric Of A Mighty State, Which Has Been Reared By The Labours Of Successive Ages, Could Not Be Overturned By The Misfortune Of A Single Day, If The Fatal Power Of The Imagination Did Not Exaggerate The Real Measure Of The Calamity.

The Historian Must Have Some Conception Of How Men Who Are Not Historians Behave.

I Was Never Less Alone Than When By Myself.

A Nation Ignorant Of The Equal Benefits Of Liberty And Law, Must Be Awed By The Flashes Of Arbitrary Power: The Cruelty Of A Despot Will Assume The Character Of Justice; His Profusion, Of Liberality; His Obstinacy, Of Firmness.

But The Works Of Man Are Impotent Against The Assaults Of Nature . . .

The Roman Government Appeared Every Day Less Formidable To Its Enemies, More Odious And Oppressive To Its Subjects.

According To The Faith And Mercy Of His Christian Enemies, [chosroes] Sunk Without Hope Into A Still Deeper Abyss [hell]; And It Will Not Be Denied, That Tyrants Of Every Age And Sect Are The Best Entitled To Such Infernal Abodes.

But How Shall We Excuse The Supine Inattention Of The Pagan And Philosophic World To Those Evidences Which Were Presented By The Hand Of Omnipotence, Not To Their Reason, But To Their Senses? During The Age Of Christ, Of His Apostles, And Their First Disciples, The Doctrine Which They Preached Was Confirmed By Innumerable Prodigies. The Lame Walked, The Blind Saw, The Sick Were Healed, The Dead Were Raised, Daemons Were Expelled, And The Laws Of Nature Were Frequently Suspended For The Benefit Of The Church.

So Natural To Man Is The Practice Of Violence That Our Indulgence Allows The Slightest Provocation, The Most Disputable Right, As A Sufficient Ground Of National Hostility.

The Most Sublime Efforts Of Philosophy Can Extend No Farther Than Feebly To Point Out The Desire, The Hope, Or, At Most, The Probability, Of A Future State, There Is Nothing, Except A Divine Revelation, That Can Ascertain The Existence, And Describe The Condition Of The Invisible Country Which Is Destined To Receive The Souls Of Men After Their Separation From The Body.

Style Is The Image Of Character.

Hope, The Best Comfort Of Our Imperfect Condition, Was Not Denied To The Roman Slave; And If He Had Any Opportunity Of Rendering Himself Either Useful Or Agreeable, He Might Very Naturally Expect That The Diligence And Fidelity Of A Few Years Would Be Rewarded With The Inestimable Gift Of Freedom.

The Separation Of The Arabs From The Rest Of Mankind Has Accustomed Them To Confound The Ideas Of Stranger And Enemy.

It Is Incumbent On Us Diligently To Remember That The Kingdom Of Heaven Was Promised To The Poor In Spirit, And That Minds Afflicted By Calamity And The Contempt Of Mankind Cheerfully Listen To The Divine Promise Of Future Happiness; While, On The Contrary, The Fortunate Are Satisfied With The Possession Of This World; And The Wise Abuse In Doubt And Dispute Their Vain Superiority Of Reason And Knowledge.

A Warlike Nation Like The Germans, Without Either Cities, Letters, Arts, Or Money, Found Some Compensation For This Savage State In The Enjoyment Of Liberty. Their Poverty Secured Their Freedom, Since Our Desires And Our Possessions Are The Strongest Fetters Of Despotism.

All That Is Human Must Retrograde If It Does Not Advance.

A Nation Of Slaves Is Always Prepared To Applaud The Clemency Of Their Master Who, In The Abuse Of Absolute Power, Does Not Proceed To The Last Extremes Of Injustice And Oppression.

The Progress Of Despotism Tends To Disappoint Its Own Purpose.

[the Goths'] Poverty Was Incurable; Since The Most Liberal Donatives Were Soon Dissipated In Wasteful Luxury, And The Most Fertile Estates Became Barren In Their Hands.

Whenever The Offence Inspires Less Horror Than The Punishment, The Rigour Of Penal Law Is Obliged To Give Way To The Common Feelings Of Mankind.

Of The Various Forms Of Government Which Have Prevailed In The World, An Hereditary Monarchy Seems To Present The Fairest Scope For Ridicule.

British Monarchy

It Was Here That I Suspended My Religious Inquiries (aged 17).

That Country [carthage] Was Rapidly Sinking Into The State Of Barbarism From Whence It Had Been Raised By The Phoenician Colonies And Roman Laws; And Every Step Of Intestine Discord Was Marked By Some Deplorable Victory Of Savage Man Over Civilized Society.

[we Should] Suspend Our Belief Of Every Tale That Deviates From The Laws Of Nature And The Character Of Man.

Of Human Life, The Most Glorious Or Humble Prospects Are Alike And Soon Bounded By The Sepulchre.

The Decline Of Rome Was The Natural And Inevitable Effect Of Immoderate Greatness. Prosperity Ripened The Principle Of Decay; The Cause Of The Destruction Multiplied With The Extent Of Conquest; And, As Soon As Time Or Accident And Removed The Artificial Supports, The Stupendous Fabric Yielded To The Pressure Of Its Own Weight. The Story Of The Ruin Is Simple And Obvious: And Instead Of Inquiring Why The Roman Empire Was Destroyed We Should Rather Be Surprised That It Has Subsisted For So Long.

According To The Law Of Custom, And Perhaps Of Reason, Foreign Travel Completes The Education Of An English Gentleman.

Boethius Might Have Been Styled Happy, If That Precarious Epithet Could Be Safely Applied Before The Last Term Of The Life Of Man.

My English Text Is Chaste, And All Licentious Passages Are Left In The Decent Obscurity Of A Learned Language.

In The Most Rigorous [roman] Laws, A Wife Was Condemned To Support A Gamester, A Drunkard, Or A Libertine, Unless He Were Guilty Of Homicide, Poison, Or Sacrilege, In Which Cases The Marriage, As It Should Seem, Might Have Been Dissolved By The Hand Of The Executioner.

A Sentence Of Death And Infamy Was Often Founded On The Slight And Suspicious Evidence Of A Child Or A Servant: The Guilt [of The Defendant] Was Presumed By The Judges [due To The Nature Of The Charge], And Paederasty Became The Crime Of Those To Whom No Crime Could Be Imputed.

It Is The First Care Of A Reformer To Prevent Any Future Reformation.

In Old Age The Consolation Of Hope Is Reserved For The Tenderness Of Parents, Who Commence A New Life In Their Children, The Faith Of Enthusiasts, Who Sing Hallelujahs Above The Clouds; And The Vanity Of Authors, Who Presume The Immortality Of Their Name And Writings.

The Slightest Force, When It Is Applied To Assist And Guide The Natural Descent Of Its Object, Operates With Irresistible Weight; And Jovian Had The Good Fortune To Embrace The Religious Opinions Which Were Supported By The Spirit Of The Times And The Zeal And Numbers Of The Most Powerful Sect. Under His Reign, Christianity Obtained An Easy And Lasting Victory; And, As Soon As The Smile Of Royal Patronage Was Withdrawn, The Genius Of Paganism, Which Had Been Fondly Raised And Cherished By The Arts Of Julian, Sunk Irrecoverably In The Dust.

If We Are More Affected By The Ruin Of A Palace Than By The Conflagration Of A Cottage, Our Humanity Must Have Formed A Very Erroneous Estimate Of The Miseries Of Human Life.

The Simple Circumstantial Narrative (did Such A Narrative Exist) Of The Ruin Of A Single Town, Of The Misfortunes Of A Single Family, Might Exhibit An Interesting And Instructive Picture Of Human Manners; But The Tedious Repetition Of Vague And Declamatory Complaints Would Fatigue The Attention Of The Most Patient Reader.

But [the Arabs'] Friendship Was Venal, Their Faith Inconstant, Their Enmity Capricious: It Was An Easier Task To Excite Than To Disarm These Roving Barbarians; And, In The Familiar Intercourse Of War, They Learned To See, And To Despise, The Splendid Weakness Both Of Rome And Of Persia.

The Urgent Consideration Of The Public Safety May Undoubtedly Authorize The Violation Of Every Positive Law. How Far That Or Any Other Consideration May Operate To Dissolve The Natural Obligations Of Humanity And Justice, Is A Doctrine Of Which I Still Desire To Remain Ignorant.

[but] The Man Who Dares Not Expose His Life In The Defence Of His Children And His Property, Has Lost In Society The First And Most Active Energies Of Nature.

As Long As Mankind Shall Continue To Bestow More Liberal Applause On Their Destroyers Than On Their Benefactors, The Thirst Of Military Glory Will Ever Be The Vice Of The Most Exalted Characters.

A Society In Which Marriage Is Encouraged And Industry Prevails Soon Repairs The Accidental Losses Of Pestilence And War.

The Most Successful Of The Tartar Princes Assumed The Military Command, To Which He Was Entitled By The Superiority Either Of Merit Or Of Power. He Was Raised To The Throne By The Acclamations Of His Equals; And The Title Of Khan Expresses, In The Language Of The North Of Asia, The Full Extent Of The Regal Dignity. The Right Of Hereditary Succession Was Long Confined To The Blood Of The Founder Of The Monarchy; And At This Moment All The Khans, Who Reign From Crimea To The Wall Of China, Are The Lineal Descendants Of The Renowned Zingis.

The Authority Of Plato And Aristotle, Of Zeno And Epicurus, Still Reigned In The Schools; And Their Systems, Transmitted With Blind Deference From One Generation Of Disciples To Another, Precluded Every Generous Attempt To Exercise The Powers, Or Enlarge The Limits, Of The Human Mind.

The Orator, Who May Be Silent Without Danger, May Praise Without Difficulty And Without Reluctance; And Posterity Will Confess That The Character Of Theodosius Might Furnish The Subject Of A Sincere And Ample Panegyric. The Wisdom Of His Laws And The Success Of His Arms Rendered His Administration Respectable In The Eyes Both Of His Subjects And Of His Enemies. He Loved And Practised The Virtues Of Domestic Life, Which Seldom Hold Their Residence In The Palaces Of Kings.

I Have Somewhere Heard Or Read The Frank Confession Of A Benedictine Abbot: "my Vow Of Poverty Has Given Me A Hundred Thousand Crowns A Year; My Vow Of Obedience Has Raised Me To The Rank Of A Sovereign Prince." - I Forget The Consequences Of His Vow Of Chastity.

The Incapacity Of A Weak And Distracted Government May Often Assume The Appearance And Produce The Effects Of A Treasonable Correspondence With The Public Enemy. If Alaric Himself Had Been Introduced Into The Council Of Ravenna, He Would Probably Have Advised The Same Measures Which Were Actually Pursued By The Ministers Of Honorius.

I Understand By This Passion The Union Of Desire, Friendship, And Tenderness, Which Is Inflamed By A Single Female, Which Prefers Her To The Rest Of Her Sex, And Which Seeks Her Possession As The Supreme Or The Sole Happiness Of Our Being.

Our Work Is The Presentation Of Our Capabilities.

Constantinople Was The Principal Seat And Fortress Of Arianism; And, In A Long Interval Of Forty Years, The Faith Of The Princes And Prelates Who Reigned In The Capital Of The East Was Rejected In The Purer Schools Of Rome And Alexandria.

To An Active Mind, Indolence Is More Painful Than Labor.

The First And Indispensable Requisite Of Happiness Is A Clear Conscience.

To The University Of Oxford I Acknowledge No Obligation; And She Will As Cheerfully Renounce Me For A Son, As I Am Willing To Disclaim Her For A Mother. I Spent Fourteen Months At Magdalen College: They Proved The Fourteen Months The Most Idle And Unprofitable Of My Whole Life.

We Stand In Need Of Such Reflections To Comfort Us For The Loss Of Some Illustrious Characters, Which In Our Eyes Might Have Seemed The Most Worthy Of The Heavenly Present. The Names Of Seneca, Of The Elder And The Younger Pliny, Of Tacitus, Of Plutarch, Of Galen, Of The Slave Epictetus, And Of The Emperor Marcus Antoninus, Adorn The Age In Which They Flourished, And Exalt The Dignity Of Human Natures.

As Long As The Same Passions And Interests Subsist Among Mankind, The Questions Of War And Peace, Of Justice And Policy, Which Were Debated In The Councils Of Antiquity, Will Frequently Present Themselves As The Subject Of Modern Deliberation.

But A Law, However Venerable Be The Sanction, Cannot Suddenly Transform The Temper Of The Times . . .

[a] Military Force Was Collected In Europe, Formidable By Their Arms And Numbers, If The Generals Had Understood The Science Of Command, And The Soldiers The Duty Of Obedience.

The Difference Of Language, Dress, And Manners . . . Severs And Alienates The Nations Of The Globe.

Such Events May Be Disbelieved Or Disregarded; But The Charity Of A Bishop, Acacius Of Amida, Whose Name Might Have Dignified The Saintly Calendar, Shall Not Be Lost In Oblivion.

The Chaste Severity Of The Fathers In Whatever Related To The Commerce Of The Two Sexes Flowed From The Same Principle -- Their Abhorrence Of Every Enjoyment Which Might Gratify The Sensual And Degrade The Spiritual Nature Of Man. It Was Their Favourite Opinion, That If Adam Had Preserved His Obedience To The Creator, He Would Have Lived For Ever In A State Of Virgin Purity, And That Some Harmless Mode Of Vegetation Might Have Peopled Paradise With A Race Of Innocent And Immortal Beings.

But The Wisdom And Authority Of The Legislator Are Seldom Victorious In A Contest With The Vigilant Dexterity Of Private Interest.

The Division Of The Roman World Between The Sons Of Theodosius Marks The Final Establishment Of The Empire Of The East, Which, From The Reign Of Arcadius To The Taking Of Constantinople By The Turks, Subsisted One Thousand And Fifty-eight Years In A State Of Premature And Perpetual Decay.

In The End, They Wanted Security More Than They Wanted Freedom.

It Has Always Been My Practice To Cast A Long Paragraph In A Single Mould, To Try It By My Ear, To Deposit It In My Memory, But To Suspend The Action Of The Pen Till I Had Given The Last Polish To My Work.

The Sentiment Of Fear Is Nearly Allied To That Of Hatred.

The Germans, In The Age Of Tacitus, Were Unacquainted With The Use Of Letters; And The Use Of Letters Is The Principal Circumstance That Distinguishes A Civilised People From A Herd Of Savages Incapable Of Knowledge Or Reflection. Without That Artificial Help, The Human Memory Soon Dissipates Or Corrupts The Ideas Intrusted To Her Charge; And The Nobler Faculties Of The Mind, No Longer Supplied With Models Or With Materials, Gradually Forget Their Powers; The Judgment Becomes Feeble And Lethargic, The Imagination Languid Or Irregular.

I Will Not Dissemble The First Emotions Of Joy On The Recovery Of My Freedom, And, Perhaps, The Establishment Of My Fame. But My Pride Was Soon Humbled, And A Sober Melancholy Was Spread Over My Mind, By The Idea That I Had Taken An Everlasting Leave Of An Old And Agreeable Companion, And That Whatsoever Might Be The Future Date Of My History, The Life Of The Historian Must Be Short And Precarious.

The Gravest Of The Ecclesiastical Historians, Eusebius Himself, Indirectly Confesses That He Has Related Whatever Might Redound To The Glory, And That He Has Suppressed All That Could Tend To The Disgrace, Of Religion.

To Resume, In A Few Words, The System Of The Imperial Government, As It Was Instituted By Augustus, And Maintained By Those Princes Who Understood Their Own Interest And That Of The People, It May Be Defined An Absolute Monarchy Disguised By The Forms Of A Commonwealth. The Masters Of The Roman World Surrounded Their Throne With Darkness, Concealed Their Irresistible Strength, And Humbly Professed Themselves The Accountable Ministers Of The Senate, Whose Supreme Decrees They Dictated And Obeyed.

[the Monks'] Minds Were Inaccessible To Reason Or Mercy . . .

It Has Been Sagaciously Conjectured, That The Artful Legislator Indulged The Stubborn Prejudices Of His Countrymen.

His Manners Were Less Pure, But His Character Was Equally Amiable With That Of His Father. Twenty-two Acknowledged Concubines, And A Library Of Sixty-two Thousand Volumes, Attested The Variety Of His Inclinations, And From The Productions Which He Left Behind Him, It Appears That The Former As Well As The Latter Were Designed For Use Rather Than Ostentation.

The Various Modes Of Worship Which Prevailed In The Roman World Were All Considered By The People As Equally True; By The Philosopher As Equally False; And By The Magistrate As Equally Useful.

I Sighed As A Lover, I Obeyed As A Son.

The German Huts, Open On Every Side To The Eye Of Indiscretion Or Jealousy, Were A Better Safeguard Of Conjugal Fidelity Than The Walls, The Bolts, And The Eunuchs Of A Persian Harem. To This Reason, Another May Be Added Of A More Honourable Nature. The Germans Treated Their Women With Esteem And Confidence, Consulted Them On Every Occasion Of Importance, And Fondly Believed That In Their Breasts Resided A Sanctity And Wisdom More Than Human.

This Variety Of Objects Will Suspend, For Some Time, The Course Of The Narrative; But The Interruption Will Be Censured Only By Those Readers Who Are Insensible To The Importance Of Laws And Manners, While They Peruse, With Eager Curiosity, The Transient Intrigues Of A Court, Or The Accidental Event Of A Battle.

The Communication Of Ideas Requires A Similitude Of Thought And Language . . .

The Mathematics Are Distinguished By A Particular Privilege, That Is, In The Course Of Ages, They May Always Advance And Can Never Recede.

Bizarreness Masqueraded As Creativity.

[the Monks'] Credulity Debased And Vitiated The Faculties Of The Mind: They Corrupted The Evidence Of History; And Superstition Gradually Extinguished The Hostile Light Of Philosophy And Science.

Such Was The Unhappy Condition Of The Roman Emperors, That, Whatever Might Be Their Conduct, Their Fate Was Commonly The Same. A Life Of Pleasure Or Virtue, Of Severity Or Mildness, Of Indolence Or Glory, Alike Led To An Untimely Grave; And Almost Every Reign Is Closed By The Same Disgusting Repetition Of Treason And Murder.

To Maintain The Harmony Of Authority And Obedience, To Chastise The Proud, To Protect The Weak, To Reward The Deserving, To Banish Vice And Idleness From His Dominions, To Secure The Traveller And Merchant, To Restrain The Depredations Of The Soldier, To Cherish The Labors Of The Husbandman, To Encourage Industry And Learning, And, By An Equal And Moderate Assessment, To Increase The Revenue, Without Increasing The Taxes, Are Indeed The Duties Of A Prince . . .

I Am Indeed Rich, Since My Income Is Superior To My Expenses, And My Expense Is Equal To My Wishes.

The Revolution Of Ages May Bring Round The Same Calamities; But Ages May Revolve Without Producing A Tacitus To Describe Them.

If This Punic War Was Carried On Without Any Effusion Of Blood, It Was Owing Much Less To The Moderation Than To The Weakness Of The Contending Prelates.

Fanaticism Obliterates The Feelings Of Humanity.

But The Desire Of Obtaining The Advantages, And Of Escaping The Burdens, Of Political Society, Is A Perpetual And Inexhaustible Source Of Discord.

The Pains And Pleasures Of The Body, Howsoever Important To Ourselves, Are An Indelicate Subject Of Conversation

The Theologian May Indulge The Pleasing Task Of Describing Religion As She Descended From Heaven, Arrayed In Her Native Purity. A More Melancholy Duty Is Imposed On The Historian. He Must Discover The Inevitable Mixture Of Error And Corruption Which She Contracted In A Long Residence Upon Earth, Among A Weak And Degenerate Race Of Beings.

A Philosopher May Deplore The Eternal Discords Of The Human Race, But He Will Confess, That The Desire Of Spoil Is A More Rational Provocation Than The Vanity Of Conquest.

A Martial Nobility And Stubborn Commons, Possessed Of Arms, Tenacious Of Property, And Collected Into Constitutional Assemblies Form The Only Balance Capable Of Preserving A Free Constitution Against The Enterprise Of An Aspiring Prince

During The Games Of The Circus, He Had, Imprudently Or Designedly, Performed The Manumission Of A Slave In The Presence Of The Consul. The Moment He Was Reminded That He Had Trespassed On The Jurisdiction Of Another Magistrate, He Condemned Himself To Pay A Fine Of Ten Pounds Of Gold, And Embraced This Public Occasion Of Declaring To The World That He Was Subject, Like The Rest Of His Fellow-citizens, To The Laws, And Even To The Forms, Of The Republic.

The Retirement Of Athanasius, Which Ended Only With The Life Of Constantius, Was Spent, For The Most Part, In The Society Of The Monks, Who Faithfully Served Him As Guards, As Secretaries, And As Messengers; But The Importance Of Maintaining A More Intimate Connection With The Catholic Party Tempted Him, Whenever The Diligence Of The Pursuit Was Abated, To Emerge From The Desert, To Introduce Himself Into Alexandria, And To Trust His Person To The Discretion Of His Friends And Adherents.

Persuasion Is The Resource Of The Feeble; And The Feeble Can Seldom Persuade . . .

If The Emperor Had Capriciously Decreed The Death Of The Most Eminent And Virtuous Citizen Of The Republic, The Cruel Order Would Have Been Executed Without Hesitation By The Ministers Of Open Violence Or Of Specious Injustice. The Caution, The Delay, The Difficulty With Which He Proceeded In The Condemnation And Punishment Of A Popular Bishop, Discovered To The World That The Privileges Of The Church Had Already Revived A Sense Of Order And Freedom In The Roman Government.

The Patient And Active Virtues Of A Soldier Are Insensibly Nursed In The Habits And Discipline Of A Pastoral Life.

The Most Distinguished Merit Of Those Two Officers Was Their Respective Prowess, Of The One In The Combats Of Bacchus, Of The Other In Those Of Venus.

The Ancients Were Destitute Of Many Of The Conveniences Of Life Which Have Been Invented Or Improved By The Progress Of Industry; And The Plenty Of Glass And Linen Has Diffused More Real Comforts Among The Modern Nations Of Europe Than The Senators Of Rome Could Derive From All The Refinements Of Pompous Or Sensual Luxury.

Language Is The Leading Principle Which Unites Or Separates The Tribes Of Mankind.

These Idle Disputants Overlooked The Invariable Laws Of Nature, Which Have Connected Peace With Innocence, Plenty With Industry, And Safety With Valour.

In The Various States Of Society, Armies Are Recruited From Very Different Motives. Barbarians Are Urged By The Love Of War; The Citizens Of A Free Republic May Be Prompted By A Principle Of Duty; The Subjects, Or At Least The Nobles, Of A Monarchy, Are Animated By A Sentiment Of Honor; But The Timid And Luxurious Inhabitants Of A Declining Empire Must Be Allured Into The Service By The Hopes Of Profit, Or Compelled By The Dread Of Punishment.

The Revenge Of A Guilty Woman Is Implacable.

[the] Emperor Of The West, The Feeble And Dissolute Valentinian, [had] Reached His Thirty-fifth Year Without Attaining The Age Of Reason Or Courage.

If Julian Had Flattered Himself That His Personal Connexion With The Capital Of The East Would Be Productive Of Mutual Satisfaction To The Prince And People, He Made A Very False Estimate Of His Own Character, And Of The Manners Of Antioch. The Warmth Of The Climate Disposed The Natives To The Most Intemperate Enjoyment Of Tranquillity And Opulence; And The Lively Licentiousness Of The Greeks Was Blended With The Hereditary Softness Of The Syrians.

The Spectator And Historian Of [belisarius's] Exploits Has Observed, That Amidst The Perils Of War, He Was Daring Without Rashness, Prudent Without Fear, Slow Or Rapid According To The Exigencies Of The Moment; That In The Deepest Distress He Was Animated By Real Or Apparent Hope, But That He Was Modest And Humble In The Most Prosperous Fortune.

The Sectaries Of A Persecuted Religion, Depressed By Fear, Animated With Resentment, And Perhaps Heated By Enthusiasm, Are Seldom In A Proper Temper Of Mind Calmly To Investigate, Or Candidly To Appreciate, The Motives Of Their Enemies, Which Often Escape The Impartial And Discerning View Even Of Those Who Are Placed At A Secure Distance From The Flames Of Persecution.

In The Second Century Of The Christian Era, The Empire Of Rome Comprehended The Fairest Part Of The Earth, And The Most Civilised Portion Of Mankind. The Frontiers Of That Extensive Monarchy Were Guarded By Ancient Renown And Disciplined Valour. The Gentle But Powerful Influence Of Laws And Manners Had Gradually Cemented The Union Of The Provinces. Their Peaceful Inhabitants Enjoyed And Abused The Advantages Of Wealth And Luxury.

The Principles Of A Free Constitution Are Irrecoverably Lost, When The Legislative Power Is Nominated By The Executive.

The Criminal Penalties [for Suicide] Are The Production Of A Later And Darker Age.

The Indian Who Fells The Tree That He May Gather The Fruit, And The Arab Who Plunders The Caravans Of Commerce Are Actuated By The Same Impulse Of Savage Nature, And Relinquish For Momentary Rapine The Long And Secure Possession Of The Most Important Blessings.

The Dark Cloud, Which Had Been Cleared By The Phoenician Discoveries, And Finally Dispelled By The Arms Of Caesar, Again Settled On The Shores Of The Atlantic, And A Roman Province [britain] Was Again Lost Among The Fabulous Islands Of The Ocean.

The Brutal Soldiers Satisfied Their Sensual Appetites Without Consulting Either The Inclination Or The Duties Of Their Female Captives; And A Nice Question Of Casuistry Was Seriously Agitated, Whether Those Tender Victims, Who Had Inflexibly Refused Their Consent To The Violation Which They Sustained, Had Lost, By Their Misfortune, The Glorious Crown Of Virginity. There Were Other Losses Indeed Of A More Substantial Kind And More General Concern.

The Possession And The Enjoyment Of Property Are The Pledges Which Bind A Civilised People To An Improved Country.

The Manly Pride Of The Romans, Content With Substantial Power, Had Left To The Vanity Of The East The Forms And Ceremonies Of Ostentatious Greatness. But When They Lost Even The Semblance Of Those Virtues Which Were Derived From Their Ancient Freedom, The Simplicity Of Roman Manners Was Insensibly Corrupted By The Stately Affectation Of The Courts Of Asia.

Many A Sober Christian Would Rather Admit That A Wafer Is God Than That God Is A Cruel And Capricious Tyrant.

Metellus Numidicus, The Censor, Acknowledged To The Roman People, In A Public Oration, That Had Kind Nature Allowed Us To Exist Without The Help Of Women, We Should Be Delivered From A Very Troublesome Companion; And He Could Recommend Matrimony Only As The Sacrifice Of Private Pleasure To Public Duty.

I Have But One Lamp By Which My Feet Are Guided, And That Is The Lamp Of Experience. I Know No Way Of Judging Of The Future But By The Past.

An Absolute Monarch, Who Is Rich Without Patrimony, May Be Charitable Without Merit; And Constantine Too Easily Believed That He Should Purchase The Favour Of Heaven If He Maintained The Idle At The Expense Of The Industrious, And Distributed Among The Saints The Wealth Of The Republic.

The Laws Of War, That Restrain The Exercise Of National Rapine And Murder, Are Founded On Two Principles Of Substantial Interest: The Knowledge Of The Permanent Benefits Which May Be Obtained By A Moderate Use Of Conquest, And A Just Apprehension Lest The Desolation Which We Inflict On The Enemy's Country May Be Retaliated On Our Own. But These Considerations Of Hope And Fear Are Almost Unknown In The Pastoral State Of Nations.

Active Valour May Often Be The Present Of Nature; But Such Patient Diligence Can Be The Fruit Only Of Habit And Discipline.

Antoninus Diffused Order And Tranquility Over The Greatest Part Of The Earth. His Reign Is Marked By The Rare Advantage Of Furnishing Very Few Materials For History; Which Is, Indeed, Little More Than The Register Of The Crimes, Follies, And Misfortunes Of Mankind.

The Primitive Christians Perpetually Trod On Mystic Ground, And Their Minds Were Exercised By The Habits Of Believing The Most Extraordinary Events

The Terror Of The Roman Arms Added Weight And Dignity To The Moderation Of The Emperors. They Preserved The Peace By A Constant Preparation For War.

The Mixture Of Sarmatic And German Blood Had Contributed To Improve The Features Of The Alani, To Whiten Their Swarthy Complexions, And To Tinge Their Hair With A Yellowish Cast, Which Is Seldom Found In The Tartar Race.

The Elegance Of Dress, Of Motion, And Of Manners Gives A Lustre To Beauty, And Inflames The Senses Through The Imagination. Luxurious Entertainments, Midnight Dances, And Licentious Spectacles, Present At Once Temptation And Opportunity To Female Frailty. From Such Dangers The Unpolished Wives Of The Barbarians Were Secured By Poverty, Solitude, And The Painful Cares Of A Domestic Life.

[courage] Arises In A Great Measure From The Consciousness Of Strength . . .

Every Man Who Rises Above The Common Level Has Received Two Educations: The First From His Teachers; The Second, More Personal And Important, From Himself.

[the] Liberty Of Divorce Does Not Contribute To Happiness And Virtue. The Facility Of Separation Would Destroy All Mutual Confidence, And Inflame Every Trifling Dispute . . .

The Barbarians Of Germany Had Felt, And Still Dreaded, The Arms Of The Young Caesar; His Soldiers Were The Companions Of His Victory; The Grateful Provincials Enjoyed The Blessings Of His Reign; But The Favourites, Who Had Opposed His Elevation, Were Offended By His Virtues; And They Justly Considered The Friend Of The People As The Enemy Of The Court.

From The Paths Of Blood (and Such Is The History Of Nations) I Cannot Refuse To Turn Aside To Gather Some Flowers Of Science Or Virtue.

The Imprudent Maximus Disregarded These Salutary Considerations: He Gratified His Resentment And Ambition; He Saw The Bleeding Corpse Of Valentinian At His Feet; And He Heard Himself Saluted Emperor By The Unanimous Voice Of The Senate And People. But The Day Of His Inauguration Was The Last Day Of His Happiness.

It Was Rome, On The Fifteenth Of October, 1764, As I Sat Musing Amidst The Ruins Of The Capitol, While The Barefooted Friars Were Singing Vespers In The Temple Of Jupiter, That The Idea Of Writing The Decline And Fall Of The City First Started To My Mind.

The History Of Empires Is The Record Of Human Misery; The History Of The Sciences Is That Of The Greatness And Happiness Of Mankind.

Religion Is A Mere Question Of Geography.

At That Time The Archiepiscopal Throne Of Alexandria Was Filled By Theophilus, The Perpetual Enemy Of Peace And Virtue; A Bold, Bad Man, Whose Hands Were Alternately Polluted With Gold And With Blood.

[the] Vain And Transitory Scenes Of Human Greatness Are Unworthy Of A Serious Thought.

Theodosius Was Chaste And Temperate; He Enjoyed, Without Excess, The Sensual And Social Pleasures Of The Table, And The Warmth Of His Amorous Passions Was Never Diverted From Their Lawful Objects. The Proud Titles Of Imperial Greatness Were Adorned By The Tender Names Of A Faithful Husband, An Indulgent Father; His Uncle Was Raised, By His Affectionate Esteem, To The Rank Of A Second Parent.

Passion, Interest, Or Caprice, Suggested Daily Motives For The Dissolution Of Marriage; A Word, A Sign, A Message, A Letter, The Mandate Of A Freedman, Declared The Separation; The Most Tender Of Human Connections Was Degraded To A Transient Society Of Profit Or Pleasure.

I Darted A Contemptuous Look At The Stately Models Of Superstition.

[in] The National And Religious Conflict Of The [byzantine And Saracen] Empires, Peace Was Without Confidence, And War Without Mercy.

My Early And Invincible Love Of Reading I Would Not Exchange For All The Riches Of India.

Philosophy, With The Aid Of Experience, Has At Length Banished The Study Of Alchymy; And The Present Age, However Desirous Of Riches, Is Content To Seek Them By The Humbler Means Of Commerce And Industry.

The Subject, However Various And Important, Has Already Been So Frequently, So Ably, And So Successfully Discussed, That It Is Now Grown Familiar To The Reader, And Difficult To The Writer.

The Gauls Were Endowed With All The Advantages Of Art And Nature; But As They Wanted Courage To Defend Them, They Were Justly Condemned To Obey, And Even To Flatter, The Victorious Barbarians, By Whose Clemency They Held Their Precarious Fortunes And Their Lives.

Augustus Was Sensible That Mankind Is Governed By Names; Nor Was He Deceived In His Expectation, That The Senate And People Would Submit To Slavery, Provided They Were Respectfully Assured That They Still Enjoyed Their Ancient Freedom.

I Never Make The Mistake Of Arguing With People For Whose Opinions I Have No Respect.

The Knowledge That Is Suited To Our Situation And Powers, The Whole Compass Of Moral, Natural, And Mathematical Science, Was Neglected By The New Platonists; Whilst They Exhausted Their Strength In The Verbal Disputes Of Metaphysics, Attempted To Explore The Secrets Of The Invisible World, And Studied To Reconcile Aristotle With Plato, On Subjects Of Which Both These Philosophers Were As Ignorant As The Rest Of Mankind.

[instead] Of Inquiring Why The Roman Empire Was Destroyed, We Should Rather Be Surprised That It Had Subsisted So Long.

A Heart To Resolve, A Head To Contrive, And A Hand To Execute.

As For This Young Ali, One Cannot But Like Him. A Noble-minded Creature, As He Shows Himself, Now And Always Afterwards; Full Of Affection, Of Fiery Daring. Something Chivalrous In Him; Brave As A Lion; Yet With A Grace, A Truth And Affection Worthy Of Christian Knighthood.

History Has Scarcely Deigned To Notice [libius Severus's] Birth, His Elevation, His Character, Or His Death.

Let Us Read With Method, And Propose To Ourselves An End To Which Our Studies May Point. The Use Of Reading Is To Aid Us In Thinking.

In The Purer Ages Of The Commonwealth, The Use Of Arms Was Reserved For Those Ranks Of Citizens Who Had A Country To Love, A Property To Defend, And Some Share In Enacting Those Laws Which It Was Their Interest, As Well As Duty, To Maintain. But In Proportion As The Public Freedom Was Lost In Extent Of Conquest, War Was Gradually Improved Into An Art, And Degraded Into A Trade.

The Fortune Of Nations Has Often Depended On Accidents . . .

Discussing The Attempts Of Augustus' Generals To Add To The Extent Of The Roman Empire Early In His Reign: The Northern Countries Of Europe Scarcely Deserved The Expense And Labour Of Conquest. The Forests And Morasses Of Germany Were Filled With A Hardy Race Of Barbarians, Who Despised Life When It Was Separated From Freedom; And Though, On The First Attack, They Seemed To Yield To The Weight Of The Roman Power, They Soon, By A Signal Act Of Despair, Regained Their Independence, And Reminded Augustus Of The Vicissitude Of Fortune.

Yet The People, And Even The Clergy, Incapable Of Forming Any Rational Judgment Of The Business Of Peace And War, Presumed To Arraign The Policy Of Stilicho, Who So Often Vanquished, So Often Surrounded, And So Often Dismissed The Implacable Enemy Of The Republic. The First Moment Of The Public Safety Is Devoted To Gratitude And Joy; But The Second Is Diligently Occupied By Envy And Calumny.

The Monastic Studies Have Tended, For The Most Part, To Darken, Rather Than To Dispel, The Cloud Of Superstition.

But The Sages Of Greece And Rome Turned Aside From The Awful Spectacle, And, Pursuing The Ordinary Occupations Of Life And Study, Appeared Unconscious Of Any Alterations In The Moral Of Physical Government Of The World.

Philosophy Had Instructed Julian To Compare The Advantages Of Action And Retirement; But The Elevation Of His Birth And The Accidents Of His Life Never Allowed Him The Freedom Of Choice. He Might Perhaps Sincerely Have Preferred The Groves Of The Academy And The Society Of Athens; But He Was Constrained, At First By The Will, And Afterwards By The Injustice Of Constantius, To Expose His Person And Fame To The Dangers Of Imperial Greatness; And To Make Himself Accountable To The World And To Posterity For The Happiness Of Millions.

Julian Sincerely Abhorred The System Of Oriental Despotism Which Diocletian, Constantine, And The Patient Habits Of Four Score Years, Had Established In The Empire. A Motive Of Superstition Prevented The Execution Of The Design Which Julian Had Frequently Meditated, Of Relieving His Head From The Weight Of A Costly Diadem; But He Absolutely Refused The Title Of Dominus Or Lord, A Word Which Was Grown So Familiar To The Ears Of The Romans, That They No Longer Remembered Its Servile And Humiliating Origin.

Europe Is Secure From Any Future Irruptions Of Barbarians; Since, Before They Can Conquer, They Must Cease To Be Barbarous.

In A Distant Age And Climate, The Tragic Scene Of The Death Of Hosein Will Awaken The Sympathy Of The Coldest Reader.

The Two Antonines (for It Is Of Them That We Are Now Speaking) Governed The Roman World Forty-two Years, With The Same Invariable Spirit Of Wisdom And Virtue. ... Their United Reigns Are Possibly The Only Period Of History In Which The Happiness Of A Great People Was The Sole Object Of Government.

History, Which Undertakes To Record The Transactions Of The Past, For The Instruction Of Future Ages, Would Ill Deserve That Honourable Office If She Condescended To Plead The Cause Of Tyrants, Or To Justify The Maxims Of Persecution.

Unprovided With Original Learning, Unformed In The Habits Of Thinking, Unskilled In The Arts Of Composition, I Resolved To Write A Book.

The Love Of Action Is A Principle Of A Much Stronger And More Doubtful Nature. It Often Leads To Anger, To Ambition, And To Revenge; But When It Is Guided By The Sense Of Propriety And Benevolence, It Becomes The Parent Of Every Virtue, And, If Those Virtues Are Accompanied With Equal Abilities, A Family, A State, Or An Empire May Be Indebted For Their Safety And Prosperity To The Undaunted Courage Of A Single Man.

Whenever The Spirit Of Fanaticism, At Once So Credulous And So Crafty, Has Insinuated Itself Into A Noble Mind, It Insensibly Corrodes The Vital Principles Of Virtue And Veracity.

In This Primitive And Abject State [of Hunters And Gatherers], Which Ill Deserves The Name Of Society, The Human Brute, Without Arts Or Laws, Almost Without Sense Or Language, Is Poorly Distinguished From The Rest Of The Animal Creation.

Both Moscow And [kiev], The Modern And The Ancient Capitals, Were Reduced To Ashes [by The Tartars]; A Temporary Ruin, Less Fatal Than The Deep, And Perhaps Indelible, Mark, Which A Servitude Of Two Hundred Years Has Imprinted On The Character Of The Russians.

The Gauls Derided The Hairy And Gigantic Savages Of The North; Their Rustic Manners, Dissonant Joy, Voracious Appetite, And Their Horrid Appearance, Equally Disgusting To The Sight And To The Smell.

The Romans, Who So Coolly And So Concisely Mention The Acts Of Justice Which Were Exercised By The Legions, Reserve Their Compassion And Their Eloquence For Their Own Sufferings, When The Provinces Were Invaded And Desolated By The Arms Of The Successful Barbarians.

Philosophy Alone Can Boast (and Perhaps It Is No More Than The Boast Of Philosophy), That Her Gentle Hand Is Able To Eradicate From The Human Mind The Latent And Deadly Principle Of Fanaticism.

The Ascent To Greatness, However Steep And Dangerous, May Entertain An Active Spirit With The Consciousness And Exercise Of Its Own Power: But The Possession Of A Throne Could Never Yet Afford A Lasting Satisfaction To An Ambitious Mind.

The Active Cavalry Of Scythia Is Always Followed, In Their Most Distant And Rapid Incursions, By An Adequate Number Of Spare Horses, Who May Be Occasionally Used, Either To Redouble The Speed, Or To Satisfy The Hunger, Of The Barbarians. Many Are The Resources Of Courage And Poverty.

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