[Avoiding_Sulla]

But what do you mean by your statement "since classical theories of history did not assume continuing progress" ?

I think he may have been referring to the ancient view, prior to the influx of Judeo-Christian thought, that life was cyclical, repetitive, rather than progressive.

[Lucius Cornelius Sulla]

I think he may have been referring to the ancient view, prior to the influx of Judeo-Christian thought, that life was cyclical, repetitive, rather than progressive.

That was my main point, but many ancients did not presume to have a 'philosophy of history', they told a story, like Herodotus, or analyzed an historical event, like Thucydides. With Polybius, the idea of the rise and decline of cultures (Roman and Greek/Hellenistic, respectively) became more widespread. Christian historians were more interested in the bioigraphies of martyrs and church leaders, less interested in civil history, and inclined to leave historical purposes to Divine benevolence.