The Barbarian invasions that brought about the fall of the Roman Empire in the West laid the foundations of Europe as we know it. But the historian who tried to understand this crucial period in European history is faced with a daunting task. The written documents are few, and often ambiguous; and he must fall back on the still more vague evidence provided by archaeology, epigraphy, numismatics, linguistics, and toponymy. This book, by one of the foremost experts on the Dark Ages, provides authoritative guidelines to the bewildering flux of the period and recharts the fundamentals of such knowledge as the historian can obtain. The original French edition of Professor Musset's work--published under the title Les Invasions: les vagues germaniques--was hailed by scholars everywhere as a work that brilliantly summarized modern scholarship on the invasions and their consequences. In Part One Professor Musset establishes the framework of his study, tracing the history of each wave of invasions. In Part Two he outlines the frontiers of knowledge in areas of major importance where no consensus has been reached, and indicates lines of desirable future research. Part Three provides a thorough and up-to-date bibliography, arranged according to topic and area. This book makes an outstanding contribution to a field of study in which interest is growing. It will be found indispensable both as an introduction and as a definitive summary of its subject.