Gibbon on Public Virtue and the Decline of Empires

Definition: Public virtue, termed "patriotism" by the ancients, originates from a profound awareness of individual self-interest in safeguarding and ensuring the prosperity of the free government one belongs to.
Impact on the Roman Republic: This sentiment, according to Gibbon, rendered the legions of the Republic "almost invincible."
Contrast with Despotism: This principle could only make a "very feeble impression" on the mercenary servants of a despotic prince, highlighting the importance of free government for its flourishing.
Contribution of Classical Antiquity: Gibbon considers "public virtue," expressed through active participation in public life, as the greatest contribution of classical Antiquity.
Major Theme: The extinction of this virtue in imperial times and its subsequent transfer (as Machiavelli observed) to the "barbarian" successor-states in Western Europe constitutes a major theme in Gibbon's work.

Byzantine Decay: Gibbon explicitly illustrates the decline of public virtue by contrasting Constantinople in its "last moments of her decay" with Athens at its most flourishing era.
- Constantinople: Was "doubtless more opulent and populous" than Athens, with its wealth divided among many more citizens.
- Athens: Despite lesser wealth and fewer citizens, each Athenian citizen was a freeman who:
  - "Dared to assert the liberty of his thoughts, words, and actions."
  - Had their person and property "guarded by equal law."
  - "Exercised his independent vote in the government of the Republic."
- Byzantine Subjects: Described as presenting a "dead uniformity of abject vices," neither tempered by human weakness nor invigorated by "memorable crimes," thereby "dishonoring the names both of Greeks and Romans."
Gibbon's Historical Approach: This stark contrast led Gibbon to "quicken his pace" when recounting Byzantine history, as he found no evidence of Machiavelli's virtu (civic vitality or excellence) there. His interest thus shifted to the barbarians, whom he believed possessed "seeds of growth" within their societies.

Origins: Virtue is fundamentally dependent on the "discovery, cultivation, and systematic teaching of the natural dignity and equal rights of man."
Environmental Conditioning: Drawing on Montesquieu's argument, man is conditioned by his environment and the "spirit" of his institutions. This means that ideas of natural dignity and equal rights are not universally inherent.
Threats to Virtue's Survival: Such ideas are often inconvenient to rulers, hence there is always a danger that they will be suppressed and extinguished by "orthodoxy and interested power." This threat persists even under liberal rulers, as illiberal successors pose a constant risk.
Conditions for Assured Survival: For virtue to endure, it requires:
- A continuous tradition of freedom.
- A plural society.
- The division of power between separate authorities.
- Ideal Scenario: Independent, competing states (preferably with diverse political systems), autonomous authorities within individual states, and vigorous economic and intellectual competition.
Failure of the Roman Empire: These ideal conditions were absent in the Roman Empire. The emperor held a complete monopoly of power, which, by stifling freedom, inevitably suppressed all forms of progress.

Distinction from Stoicism: Gibbon's understanding of virtue differs from that of the Stoics. For Stoics, virtue was merely a private possession enabling an individual to endure the blows of fortune with equanimity.
Active Nature: To Gibbon, virtue is "essentially an active principle." It is intrinsically linked to freedom:
- It depends on freedom.
- It demands freedom.
- It creates freedom.
Consequences: This active virtue also nourishes science and propels material progress.

Monopoly as an Adversary: Conversely, any form of monopoly is an enemy of virtue.
- Monopoly of power.
- Monopoly of wealth.
- Monopoly of knowledge.
- Monopoly of alleged access to truth.
Imperial Bureaucracy: The centralized power of the imperial bureaucracy served as a significant impediment to virtue. "By its mere structure the empire of the Caesars undoubtedly checked the activity and progress of the human mind."

Motive Force of Progress: For Gibbon, "public spirit" and "public service" constituted the fundamental human motive force behind progress.
Nurturing Society: This public spirit was fostered by and, in turn, created and preserved a "plural, mobile society."
- This societal structure gave rise to the city-states of Greece and the Roman Republic.
- Crucially, the intellectual means for the preservation of virtue originated from these city-states and the Republic, not from the Roman Empire.
Internal Decay of the Roman Empire: The Roman Empire's "centralization, the immobility, the monopoly" gradually eradicated pluralism and stifled intellectual ideas.
Consequences of Decay: This process retarded progress, led to a decline in public virtue, and ultimately resulted in an "inert, top-heavy political structure" that succumbed to external pressures.
Rejection of External Blame: Gibbon explicitly dismisses the notion that "innocent barbarians" were the destroyers of the Western Empire. He asserts, "If all the barbarians conquerors had been annihilated in the same hour, their total destruction would not have restored the empire of the West."
Core Reason for Fall: The empire was not conquered from without, but rather "rotted from within."