Barbarians Quote by Edward Gibbon
![“The peace of the Eastern church was invaded by a swarm of fanatics [monks], incapable of fear, or reason, or humanity; and the Imperial troops acknowledged, without shame, that they were much less apprehensive of an encounter with the fiercest Barbarians.” quote by Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/15b/edward-gibbon-710_barbarians_the-peace-of-the-eastern-church-was-inva_2066326.jpg)
“The peace of the Eastern church was invaded by a swarm of fanatics [monks], incapable of fear, or reason, or humanity; and the Imperial troops acknowledged, without shame, that they were much less apprehensive of an encounter with the fiercest Barbarians.”
About This Quote
Source History: The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Volume I, 1776
The Eastern Church's peace was shattered by fanatical monks, while imperial troops admitted they feared the barbarians less than the zealots.
In simple terms: Fanaticism can destabilize even the most peaceful societies.
Key Takeaway
Beware of extremism within institutions.
Themes
religion
politics
fear
extremism
Mood
cautionary
critical
Type
historical
philosophical
When to use this quote
- church councils
- military leadership
- public policy
Key Concepts
fanaticism
military complacency
cultural clash
Questions to Reflect On
- What drives groups to become fanatical?
- How can institutions guard against internal threats?
A Different Perspective
It simplifies complex historical dynamics into a single moral lesson.
![“[All] the manly virtues were oppressed by the servile and pusillanimous reign of the monks.” quote by Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/cb5/edward-gibbon-710_manly_all-the-manly-virtues-were-oppressed-by_2529391.jpg)
![“[The monks'] minds were inaccessible to reason or mercy . . .” quote by Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/c42/edward-gibbon-710_compassion_the-monks-minds-were-inaccessible-to-rea_1531987.jpg)
![“But [the Arabs'] friendship was venal, their faith inconstant, their enmity capricious: it was an easier task to excite than to disarm these roving barbarians; and, in the familiar intercourse of war, they learned to see, and to despise, the splendid weakness both of Rome and of Persia.” quote by Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/d43/edward-gibbon-710_barbarians_but-the-arabs-friendship-was-venal-their_1636211.jpg)
![“As long as mankind shall continue to bestow more liberal applause on their destroyers than on their benefactors, the thirst of military glory will ever be the vice of the most exalted characters”; “[the barbarians’] poverty secured their freedom, since our desires and our possessions are the…” quote by Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/0d0/edward-gibbon-710_applause_as-long-as-mankind-shall-continue-to-bes_1024385.jpg)
![“That country [Carthage] was rapidly sinking into the state of barbarism from whence it had been raised by the Phoenician colonies and Roman laws; and every step of intestine discord was marked by some deplorable victory of savage man over civilized society.” quote by Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/70c/edward-gibbon-710_barbarism_that-country-carthage-was-rapidly-sinkin_393.jpg)
![“[In] the national and religious conflict of the [Byzantine and Saracen] empires, peace was without confidence, and war without mercy.” quote by Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/338/edward-gibbon-710_byzantine_in-the-national-and-religious-conflict-o_29382.jpg)
![“[Every] hour of delay abates the fame and force of the invader, and multiplies the resources of defensive war.” quote by Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/4de/edward-gibbon-710_delay_every-hour-of-delay-abates-the-fame-and_94668.jpg)
