The Fall of the Roman Empire

The Fall of the Roman Empire by Grant, Michael. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780760769997.

The fall of the Roman Empire has always been regarded as one of the most significant transformations in the whole of human history. A hundred years before it occurred, Rome was an immense power defended by an invincible army. A hundred years later, the power and the army had vanished. The Fall of the Roman Empire succinctly describes the invasions from outside -- and the weaknesses that arose within -- that finally reduced the Empire to total paralysis. He (Michael Grant) pinpoints thirteen defects that, in his view, combined to reduce the Empire to its final state of ruin. Each defect consists of a specific disunity that splits the Empire wide apart, thereby crippling Romes capacity to handle outside aggressors. The social and political differences within the Empire became so irreconcilably violent that the entire structure of society was threatened and eventually destroyed. Hailed by Alan Massie (The Caesars) as "the greatest popularizer of this century." Michael Grant presents in The Fall of the Roman Empire a dynamic, incisive discussion of one of historys most impressive empires and its dramatic demise.