Customer Reviews

The Later Roman Empire

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Salutations all. I have read this book for a college course at UC Riverside. I admit Cameron's book is difficult to digest, but it is intigueing nonetheless (read the last chapter for a preview of our own civilization's collapse. The book scans the Western Empire: Diocletian, Constantine, Julian, Theodosius, and prominent barbarians. That said, it focuses primarily on the West although signifigant portions are alotted to the city of Constantinople and its military catastrophes up until the dynsty of Theodosius. There are at lesat two chapters covering the West's society& culture and government. There is one chapter set aside for Christianity with some startling evidence of the harsh behavior Christians held towards humanity. Worth reading

Averil Cameron's up-to-date summation on the Later Roman Empire covers the turbulent world of fourth-century Rome. The author rather wisely bases her work on the most recent studies in the field, while remaining true and quite at home with the original sources. Cameron also has a good feel for the social and political spheres of the "divided" empire of East and West. With the coloring of her own insights, this work presents a more than satisfactory account of the subjects treated. This is a readable and reliable book which would feel most comfortable in the hands of beginner students.

I thought the book was boring, and it depicted the role of Constantine. Constantine helped preserve Christianity and the Roman Empire.I thought that all the author did was put footnotes in and then give her opinion of those footnotes.