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<p>[QUOTE="Marsyas Mike, post: 7946730, member: 85693"]Interesting thread. I thought I'd weigh in with a bit of fiction: <i>Lest Darkness Fall</i> by L. Sprague de Camp. It is an alternative history of Rome at the time of the Gothic Wars, 5th century A.D. - it was first published in 1939 and I think still in print. </p><p><br /></p><p>Wikipedia has an article on it with a rundown of the plot. The author sees the final "fall" as happening later than 476 A.D. - </p><p><br /></p><p><font size="5"><b>Plot summary</b></font></p><p>American <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archaeology" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archaeology" rel="nofollow">archaeologist</a> Martin Padway is visiting the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantheon,_Rome" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantheon,_Rome" rel="nofollow">Pantheon</a> in Rome in 1938. A thunderstorm arrives, lightning cracks, and he finds himself transported to Rome in the year 535 AD. At this time, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_Peninsula" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_Peninsula" rel="nofollow">Italian Peninsula</a> is under the rule of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ostrogothic_Kingdom" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ostrogothic_Kingdom" rel="nofollow">Kingdom of the Ostrogoths</a>. The novel depicts their rule as a relatively <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benevolent_despotism" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benevolent_despotism" rel="nofollow">benevolent despotism</a>, allowing freedom of religion and maintaining the urban Roman society they had conquered, though slavery is common and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torture" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torture" rel="nofollow">torture</a> is the normal method of interrogation by what passes for law-enforcement agencies.</p><p><br /></p><p>In the real timeline, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_Empire" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_Empire" rel="nofollow">Byzantine</a> or Eastern Roman Empire temporarily expanded westwards, embarking on what came to be known as the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_War_(535%E2%80%93554)" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_War_(535%E2%80%93554)" rel="nofollow">Gothic War (535–554)</a>. They overthrew the Ostrogoths and the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vandals" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vandals" rel="nofollow">Vandals</a> in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Africa" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Africa" rel="nofollow">North Africa</a>, but this war devastated the Italian urbanized society that required the support of intensive agriculture and by the end of the conflict Italy was severely depopulated: its population is estimated to have decreased from 7 million to 2.5 million people. The great cities of Roman times were abandoned and the Byzantines never fully consolidated their rule over Italy, which faced further invasions by the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lombards" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lombards" rel="nofollow">Lombards</a>; Italy fell into a long period of decline. Some historians consider this the true beginning of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Ages_(historiography)" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Ages_(historiography)" rel="nofollow">Dark Ages</a> in Italy. The city of Rome was besieged three times and many of its inhabitants did not survive to the end of the war. Thus Padway, finding himself in this Rome and knowing what the near future holds in store, must act not only to preserve the future of civilization, but to improve his personal chances of survival.</p><p><br /></p><p>Padway initially wonders whether he is dreaming or delusional, but he quickly accepts his fate and sets out to survive. As an archaeologist, he has enough understanding of various devices used before his time but after the sixth century to be able to reproduce them by the means available. He can speak both modern Italian and <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_Latin" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_Latin" rel="nofollow">Classical Latin</a>, and quickly learns enough <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulgar_Latin" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulgar_Latin" rel="nofollow">Vulgar Latin</a> (which was spoken at that time) to communicate effectively. Most crucially, Padway has read with great attention the book of the historian <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procopius" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procopius" rel="nofollow">Procopius</a>, who described the very war at whose outset Padway finds himself. Though not in possession of a physical copy of Procopius when hurled back in time, Padway has memorized his book in great detail, down to the precise details of the time and route of the various armies' moves and their tactical and strategic considerations, as well as the convoluted and violent power struggles of the various contenders for the Gothic Kingship. Thus Padway, in effect, knows the direct, immediate future of the country where he lives and often of individual people whom he meets (at least, until he acts in a way that changes that future). In addition to this specialized and uniquely useful knowledge of the current war, Padway has taken a general interest in military history, which he is eventually able to put to very practical purposes.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lest_Darkness_Fall" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lest_Darkness_Fall" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lest_Darkness_Fall</a>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="Marsyas Mike, post: 7946730, member: 85693"]Interesting thread. I thought I'd weigh in with a bit of fiction: [I]Lest Darkness Fall[/I] by L. Sprague de Camp. It is an alternative history of Rome at the time of the Gothic Wars, 5th century A.D. - it was first published in 1939 and I think still in print. Wikipedia has an article on it with a rundown of the plot. The author sees the final "fall" as happening later than 476 A.D. - [SIZE=5][B]Plot summary[/B][/SIZE] American [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archaeology']archaeologist[/URL] Martin Padway is visiting the [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pantheon,_Rome']Pantheon[/URL] in Rome in 1938. A thunderstorm arrives, lightning cracks, and he finds himself transported to Rome in the year 535 AD. At this time, the [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_Peninsula']Italian Peninsula[/URL] is under the rule of the [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ostrogothic_Kingdom']Kingdom of the Ostrogoths[/URL]. The novel depicts their rule as a relatively [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benevolent_despotism']benevolent despotism[/URL], allowing freedom of religion and maintaining the urban Roman society they had conquered, though slavery is common and [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torture']torture[/URL] is the normal method of interrogation by what passes for law-enforcement agencies. In the real timeline, the [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_Empire']Byzantine[/URL] or Eastern Roman Empire temporarily expanded westwards, embarking on what came to be known as the [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_War_(535%E2%80%93554)']Gothic War (535–554)[/URL]. They overthrew the Ostrogoths and the [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vandals']Vandals[/URL] in [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Africa']North Africa[/URL], but this war devastated the Italian urbanized society that required the support of intensive agriculture and by the end of the conflict Italy was severely depopulated: its population is estimated to have decreased from 7 million to 2.5 million people. The great cities of Roman times were abandoned and the Byzantines never fully consolidated their rule over Italy, which faced further invasions by the [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lombards']Lombards[/URL]; Italy fell into a long period of decline. Some historians consider this the true beginning of the [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Ages_(historiography)']Dark Ages[/URL] in Italy. The city of Rome was besieged three times and many of its inhabitants did not survive to the end of the war. Thus Padway, finding himself in this Rome and knowing what the near future holds in store, must act not only to preserve the future of civilization, but to improve his personal chances of survival. Padway initially wonders whether he is dreaming or delusional, but he quickly accepts his fate and sets out to survive. As an archaeologist, he has enough understanding of various devices used before his time but after the sixth century to be able to reproduce them by the means available. He can speak both modern Italian and [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Classical_Latin']Classical Latin[/URL], and quickly learns enough [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulgar_Latin']Vulgar Latin[/URL] (which was spoken at that time) to communicate effectively. Most crucially, Padway has read with great attention the book of the historian [URL='https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Procopius']Procopius[/URL], who described the very war at whose outset Padway finds himself. Though not in possession of a physical copy of Procopius when hurled back in time, Padway has memorized his book in great detail, down to the precise details of the time and route of the various armies' moves and their tactical and strategic considerations, as well as the convoluted and violent power struggles of the various contenders for the Gothic Kingship. Thus Padway, in effect, knows the direct, immediate future of the country where he lives and often of individual people whom he meets (at least, until he acts in a way that changes that future). In addition to this specialized and uniquely useful knowledge of the current war, Padway has taken a general interest in military history, which he is eventually able to put to very practical purposes. [URL]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lest_Darkness_Fall[/URL][/QUOTE]
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