He is best known for his book History of Greece, which includes a sceptical viewpoint of Homer's Iliad and Odyssey.
He was educated at Balliol College, Oxford, where he excelled both academically and in sports, winning the Gaisford Prize for Greek Verse in 1864, but after a fall in 1866 his legs became paralysed.
His best-known work is his History of Greece in three volumes (1888–1900), where he presents a sceptical view of the Iliad and the Odyssey.
Among his other works are Elements of Greek Accidence (1874), and translations of several German books on ancient history, language and philosophy.
Abbott died at Knotsford Lodge, Great Malvern, in 1901, and was buried at Redlands Cemetery, near Cardiff.