Escape from Rome

The Failure of Empire and the Road to Prosperity

By: Walter Scheidel

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Paperback | 25 May 2021

At a Glance

Paperback
704 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
20.6 x 13.7 x 5.4

Paperback

RRP $39.99

$37.75

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"One of the Financial Times' Best Books of 2019: Economics"

"One of the Evening Standard's Best Books of 2019"

"Finalist for the PROSE Award in Archaeology and Ancient History, Association of American Publishers"

The fall of the Roman Empire has long been considered one of the greatest disasters in history. But in this groundbreaking book, Walter Scheidel argues that Rome's dramatic collapse was actually the best thing that ever happened, clearing the path for Europe's economic rise and the creation of the modern age.

Ranging across the entire premodern world, Escape from Rome offers new answers to some of the biggest questions in history: Why did the Roman Empire appear? Why did nothing like it ever return to Europe? And, above all, why did Europeans come to dominate the world? In an absorbing narrative that begins with ancient Rome but stretches far beyond it, from Byzantium to China and from Genghis Khan to Napoleon, Scheidel shows how the demise of Rome and the enduring failure of empire-building on European soil launched an economic transformation that changed the continent and ultimately the world.

About the Author

Walter Scheidel is the Dickason Professor in the Humanities, Professor of Classics and History, and a Kennedy-Grossman Fellow in Human Biology at Stanford University. His many books include The Great Leveler (Princeton).

Industry Reviews

'An outstanding, epic history of the fall of the Roman Empire and rise of the European West.'
Simon Sebag Montefiore Evening Standard

'A remarkable book.'
Peter Brown New York Review of Books

'Scheidel marshals his facts with verve and force.'
Robert Colvile The Times

'Makes a bracing case...What did the Romans do for us? Scheidel does not give the usual answers.'
Peter Stothard Financial Times

'Escape from Rome deserves to be taken very seriously...This is a fiercely intelligent, closely argued book.'
Peter Thonemann Times Literary Supplement

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Non-Fiction History Regional & National History European History General & World History Specific Events & Topics in History Social & Cultural History Earliest Times to Present Day Ancient History to the Year 500 Economics Economic History

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Escape from Rome

The Failure of Empire and the Road to Prosperity

At a Glance

Paperback

Industry Reviews

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

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