The History of The Decline and Fall of The Roman Empire - Controversy: Chapters XV, XVI

Controversy: Chapters XV, XVI

Volume I was originally published in sections, as was common for large works at the time. The first two were well received and widely praised. The last quarto in Volume I, especially Chapters XV and XVI, were highly controversial, and Gibbon was attacked as a "paganist". Gibbon challenged Church history by estimating far smaller numbers of Christian martyrs than had been traditionally accepted. The Church's version of its early history had rarely been questioned before. For Gibbon, however, the Church writings were secondary sources, and he shunned them in favour of primary sources contemporary to the period he was chronicling. This is why Gibbon is referred to as the "first modern historian".

He compared the reigns of Diocletian (284–305), and Charles V (1519–1556) and the electorate of the Holy Roman Empire, making the argument that the two were remarkably dissimilar. Both emperors were plagued by continuous war and compelled to excessive taxation; both chose to abdicate as Emperors at roughly the same age; and both chose to lead a quiet life upon their retirement. However, Gibbon argues these similarities are only superficial and the underlying context and character of the two rulers is markedly different.