Barbarians to Angels : The Dark Ages Reconsidered (Hardcover)

from DavidGoldsteen

I always enjoy this sort of history -- not a simple linear retelling of the facts, but a good argument. Wells has an interesting perspective on European history. I'm not sure I agree with him in all his points, but basically his argument is that the physical record shows no evidence of a major br...

from

There are so many lengthy difficult books about the Early Middle Ages, written for and by specialists, what a delight to find a short and easy to read summary of the latest scholarship of this rapidly changing multi-disciplinary field, written for a general audience by a medieval scholar with an ...

from Steve.Bivans

As the defender of barbarian complexity and contribution, Peter Wells stakes a claim in the larger debate on the nature of the Fall of Rome, and with some interesting modifications, comes down on the side of continuity and gradual transition. Barbarians to Angels continues the basic thesis of his...

from Chris_El

A little dry. Not written for the causal read. Discusses why people think of the middle ages as the dark ages and why that view is influenced by the Roman writers in their days of waning power and influence and the influence of Gibbon's classic work, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Howe...

from adamclaxton

Wells essay supports the growing belief that the collapse of empires & civilisations does not necessarily occur overnight. Instead of an immediate 'switching off the light' empires generally decline over time with gradual breakdowns in the rule of law, dynastic certainty and/or environment. Citin...