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The Fate of Rome: Climate, Disease, and the End of an Empire (The Princeton History of the Ancient World, 2)
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About The Fate Of Rome: Climate, Disease, And The End Of
Review “Beautifully and often wittily written, this is history that has some of the impact of a great work of dystopian science fiction.”―Tom Holland, BBC History Magazine“Original and ambitious. . . . A panoramic sweep of the late Roman Empire as interpreted by one historian’s incisive, intriguing, inquiring mind.”―James Romm, Wall Street Journal“Harper offers a striking reinterpretation with worrisome implications for the present day.”―Andrew Moravcsik, Foreign Affairs“The Fate of Rome should probably sit on shelves next to Gibbon’s masterwork. In time, one feels, it will be seen every bit as much an essential text.”―Andrew Masterson, Cosmos“Rome, argues Kyle Harper in his sweeping retelling of the rise and fall of an empire, was brought down as much by ‘germs as by Germans.’”―Keith Johnson, Foreign Policy Product Description How devastating viruses, pandemics, and other natural catastrophes swept through the far-flung Roman Empire and helped to bring down one of the mightiest civilizations of the ancient worldHere is the monumental retelling of one of the most consequential chapters of human history: the fall of the Roman Empire. The Fate of Rome is the first book to examine the catastrophic role that climate change and infectious diseases played in the collapse of Rome's power―a story of nature's triumph over human ambition. Interweaving a grand historical narrative with cutting-edge climate science and genetic discoveries, Kyle Harper traces how the fate of Rome was decided not just by emperors, soldiers, and barbarians but also by volcanic eruptions, solar cycles, climate instability, and devastating viruses and bacteria. The Fate of Rome is a sweeping account of how one of history's greatest civilizations encountered and endured, yet ultimately succumbed to, the cumulative burden of nature's violence. Review "One of Medium.com’s Books of the Year 2017""One of The Times Literary Supplement’s Books of the Year 2017""One of the Forbes.com “Great Anthropology and History Books of 2017” (chosen by Kristina Killgrove)""One of The Federalist’s Notable Books for 2017""Honorable Mention for the 2018 PROSE Award in Classics, Association of American Publishers""One of Strategy + Business's Best Business Books in Economics for 2018""One of Choice Reviews' Outstanding Academic Titles of 2018" From the Back Cover "This is the story of a great civilization's long struggle with invisible enemies. In the empire's heyday, in 160 CE, splendid cities, linked by famous roads and bustling harbors, stand waiting for the lethal pathogens of Central Africa and the highlands of Tibet. Yet, under the flickering light of a variable sun, beneath skies alternately veiled in volcanic dust or cruelly rainless, this remarkable agglomeration of human beings held firm. Harper's account of how the inhabitants of the empire and their neighbors adjusted to these disasters is as humane as his account of the risks they faced is chilling. Brilliantly written, at once majestic and compassionate, this is truly great history."--Peter Brown, author of Through the Eye of a Needle: Wealth, the Fall of Rome, and the Making of Christianity in the West, 350-550 AD"In this riveting history, Kyle Harper shows that disease and environmental conditions were not just instrumental in the final collapse of the Roman Empire but were serious problems for centuries before the fall. Harper's compelling and cautionary tale documents the deadly plagues, fevers, and other pestilences that ravaged the population time and again, resulting in far more deaths than ever caused by enemy forces. One wonders how the empire managed to last as long as it did."--Eric H. Cline, author of 1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed"This brilliant, original, and stimulating book puts nature at the center of a topic of major importance--the fall of the Roman Empire--for the first time. Harper's argument is compelling and thoroughly documented, his presentation liv
