Rise and fall of World Empires - Term Paper Example

Rise and fall of World Empires The phenomena and issue of the fall and rise of empires has been discussed by researches for a long time. The reason for this renewed interest has been the fact that the fall and rise of most empires is dependent on similar factors. In the recent past, researchers have concentrated their focus on the role of politics, religion, economics, military, infrastructure, environment and science in the rise and fall of world dynasties. Although each of these factors plays a significant role in the rise and fall of empires, the issue of religion, military and economics played a bigger role in determining whether empires stood and fell (Scheidel 50). This paper discusses the role played by the military, economics and religion in the rise and fall of the Roman and China empires. Religion plays an important role in any society and its value cannot be underestimated in any realm. Although the running of state matters is supposed to be separate from religion, the two are deeply interrelated and that is why the decline in the ‘state religion’ often leads to the fall of empires. On its part, economics is an important factor in the rise and fall of empires since the empires rely on its resources to be able to run effectively. In the event that the economies of these dynasties take a plunge, the empires end up falling for lack of suitable means to support them. Lastly, the military plays a very significant role in determining the rise and collapse of any dynasty. The reason for this is that most empires muster a strong military to compel everyone within the empire to be loyal. In most cases, the military is used as a tool of terror by the leaders of the empire and for executing their strategies majority of which are not favored by the community. However, as the empire ages, some people in the military carry out coups against the leadership something that ends the empire (Scheidel 51). Economics of the Roman and China Empires Just like numerous other empires of its time, the Roman Empire relied heavily on agriculture to boost its economy. The empire owned large tracts of agricultural land that not only provided food for the urban population but which also offered employment to a large section of individuals in the empire. The surplus food gotten from the agricultural sector was used for trade with other nations in the region. In order to facilitate trade, an extensive road network was built in the region and this made the region to have one of the best transport infrastructures in the region. This infrastructure enabled commerce in the region to flourish something that led into the region’s economic stability (Maddison 12). The Roman Empire trade and economic prosperity enhanced during the Pax Romana era, the empires well laid road and sea network made it ideal for merchants to go to every region belonging to the Roman Empire. However, this network was not stable since after the Pax Romana ended, merchants were no longer assured of their safety of their goods while in transit. The collapse of the Pax Romana and the expansion that they had engineered also brought to an end the loss of the loot that came out of the numerous conquests engineered by the emperor, and this in many ways accelerated the collapse of the emperor (Maddison 13). In order to fund their operations, the different emperors would occasionally alter laws and come up with varied currencies something that brought chaos in the empire. Due to a lack of an effective budgetary system and restraints in the introduction of new currency, there was a massive devaluation of the currency and this brought about upheavals on the economy. By the 5th century, the Roman economy had failed leading to the mass depopulation of large areas. While the economy was instrumental in fast spread of the Roman Empire, its mismanagement was also central to its collapse (Maddison 16). Apart from the Roman Empire, the economic factor was also critical to the rise and fall of the China Dynasty. After the Warring states era, the Qin and Han dynasties, which formed the china empire backed free farmers, which owned tracts of land and could be taxed. In order to enlarge its revenues, the state pumped in huge sums of money into the agricultural sector. I order to ensure that trade flourished in the region, the Empire standardized weights and the currency that was used in the whole region. This greatly aided trade, which had already been doing well during the warring states era (Maddison 48). In addition to this, the region also had a well-established road network that enabled merchants to carry out trade on a large magnitude. In addition to this, the constant victories of the Chinese especially in Xiongnu gave room for the expansion of trade to the west. This was a bargaining point for the Chinese since their goods were in high demand in areas inhabited by the Romans. Due to a centralized government, there was a sense of political tranquility that led to an increase in trade. This increased trade generated more income for the Empire and consequently its influence in the region (Maddison 50). In order to ensure a constant flow of revenue, the government maintained monopolies of salt and iron. However, there was a major challenge in the dying years of the China Empire that destroyed its economy thus leading to the empires’ collapse. Due to the huge accumulation of land by the landowners coupled with the hefty government fines, the number of poor people increased significantly leading to violent rebellions. These rebellions made it impossible for the government to collect taxes and they made trade in the region to be impossible. With the collapse of the economy, the dynasty could not support itself and this marked the end of the China Empire popularly known as the Han Dynasty (Maddison 52). Religion in the China and Roman Empires According to historians, religion played a very central role in the rise of the Roman and China Empires. Although the religion in the two empires varied greatly, they both played a significant role in the region. In the Roman Empire, the rulers had an official state religion that every citizen was supposed to adhere to. In the early period of the Empire, the entire religion adhered to the laws and institution of the Roman stat religion. Due to this unity of purpose, it was easy for the people to forge ahead with one purpose. Given that the Roman religion was sponsored and run by the state, it was easy for the empire to spread its doctrines through the churches and this strengthened the Empire even further. However, as Christianity continued to spread, the Roman state religion began to weaken as people were looking for an alternative to the existing religion that had repressed them for a long time. Historians point out that the influence of Christianity had a far-reaching effect on the stability of the Empire and contributed to its fall (Scheidel 90). Although the China Empire was not serious about the practice of religion, this factor also had a great contribution into the rise of the Empire. The main ideology of the empire was Confucian thought, which placed a great emphasis on the welfare of the citizens. Apart from placing a great emphasis on the people’s welfare, Confucius also emphasized on honor and respect to the authorities thus explaining the great respect that people in the Empire accorded their rulers. Due to its insistence on morality, the Confucius thought ensured that no corrupt elements held any leadership positions and this made the Empire’s economy to prosper. During the last part of the dynasty, the Tianshi Dao and the Yellow Turbans religious factions gained prominence and due to its teachings, the people’s loyalty shifted from the state thus sparking revolts that led to the collapse of the Empire (Scheidel 98). Military in the Roman and China Empires Historians have repeatedly pointed out that the military made a major contribution in the epic rise of both the China and Roman Empires. For the influence of these two empires to keep on soaring, they had to conquer more territories that had been inhabited by other empires. For this to be possible, there was the need of a strong military since this endeavor involved long and bloody wars both at home and abroad. Ideally, majority of the revenue generated by these Empires was utilized in funding the military and ensuring that it was prepared to protected their Empires. Despite the strong military, the growing influence of mercenaries, which made up a large section of the Roman military led to the collapse of the Roman organizations. Largely abandoned by the state, the Huns mercenaries within the Roman army attacked the German tribes that were residing on the northern side of the empire something that led to a war between the empire and these tribes. Afterwards, the Huns led an attack on the empire itself and the already feeble army could not cope with the internal threat. This led to the abrupt demise of the empire (Scheidel 101). The same case that was witnessed in the Roman army was also replicated in the China military. After the Jin succeeded in uniting China, they brought a large number of barbarians to settle in the northern part of the Empire. When the Jin plunged into civil war, these barbarians were the first to lead a rebellion. This internal revolt led to the weakening of the empire and this is considered by historians to have sowed the seeds that finally led to the fall of the empire (Li Bo 252). Conclusion The rise and fall of world empires have fascinated researchers for a long time. Although there are numerous factors that lead to the rise and fall of world emperors, economics, religion and the military are considered some universal factors that led to the rise and collapse of nearly all empires. This case can best be seen in the China and Roman empires where these three factors combined to bring the downfall of empires that were once flourishing. Works Cited Li Bo, Zheng. 5000 years of Chinese history. Inner Mongolian Peoples Publishing Corp, 2001. 200-585. Print. Maddison, Angus. Contours of the World Economy, 1–2030 AD: Essays in Macro-Economic History. Oxford University Press, 2005. 12-53. Print. Scheidel, Walter. From the Great Convergence to the First Great Divergence: Roman and Qin-Han State Formation and its Aftermath. Cambridge University Press, 2007. 50-136. Print. Read More