Eusebius's groundbreaking History of the Church, remains the single most important source for the history of the first three centuries of Christianity and stands among the classics of Western literature. His iconic story of the church's origins, endurance of persecution, and ultimate triumph--with its cast of martyrs, heretics, bishops, and emperors--has profoundly shaped the understanding of Christianity's past and provided a model for all later ecclesiastical histories. This new translation, which includes detailed essays and notes, comes from one of the leading scholars of Eusebius's work and offers rich context for the linguistic, cultural, social, and political background of this seminal text. Accessible for new readers and thought-provoking for specialists, this is the essential text for anyone interested in the history of Christianity "Here is a fresh, sparkling translation of Eusebius of Caesarea's The History of the Church. It is distinguished by Jeremy Schott's ability to highlight the literary dimensions of the work, to help contemporary readers understand and appreciate the cultural influences that shaped Eusebius's story of Christian writers and their writings."--Gregory Allen Robbins, Professor of Religious Studies, University of Denver "The introductory material in this book is an extremely effective distillation of many of the most insightful scholarly investigations into Eusebius's text, its themes, and its reception. Schott has done an excellent job of balancing the clarity of flow of his English and fidelity to the Greek. In sum, Schott has created the new standard English translation for The History of the Church."--Edward Watts, Alkiviadis Vassiliadis Endowed Chair in Byzantine Greek History, University of California, San Diego "Jeremy Schott is the ideal translator for Eusebius's The History of the Church. Schott thoroughly contextualizes Eusebius in the most important cultural, ecclesiastical, and political currents. This new translation will be indispensable for teaching the early history of the Christian church as well as late Roman history and courses on Late Antiquity. This will be the definitive English translation for decades to come."--Elizabeth DePalma Digeser, Professor of History, University of California, Santa Barbara