February 17 1776

1st Volume of Gibbon's "Decline & Fall of The Roman Empire" Published

British parliamentarian and soldier, Edward Gibbon's (1737-1794) conceived of his plan for Decline and Fall while "Musing amid the ruins of the Capitol" on a visit to Rome. For the next 10 years he worked away at his great history, which traces the decadence of the late empire from the time of Antonies and the rise of Western Christianity. "The confusion of the times, and the scarcity of the authentic memorials, pose equal difficulties to the historian, who attempts to preserve a clear and unbroken thread of narration," he writes. despite these obstacles, Decline and Fall remains a model of historical exposition, and required reading for students of European history.