Compare and contrast

October 4, 2014
Eurasian Empires, 500 BCE- 500 CE
Definitions:
Empire: A very large business or group of businesses under the control of one person or company.
Tribute: Something that proves the good quality or success of something
Imperial: Relating to or suggestive of an empire or an emperor
Commercial Exchange: Connected with trade or commerce
Absolute Monarchs: someone who wields unrestricted political power over the sovereign state and its people
Beuraucry: It’s a system of government in which important decisions are made by a state official and not by elected representatives
Infrastructure: the basic physical and organizational structures and services
Centralized: Means control under a single authority
Emigration: The act of leaving a country with the intent of settling permanently in another one.
Popular participation: A public participation or practice that may be also recognized as a right.
Democracy: A system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state
Debt slavery: A person’s pledge of their labor for a balance due or other obligation
Despotism: The use of absolute power in a cruel and unfair way
Dissemination: The act of spreading rumors or information widely
Cosmopolitan: Being familiar with many different countries and cultures
Assimilation: The process by which a person acquire the social and psychological characteristics of a group
Autocratic: Relating to a ruler who has absolute power
Republic: A state in which supreme power is held by the people and their representatives
Aristocracy: The highest class in certain societies specially those holding hereditary titles
Civil Service: The administrative service of a government of the armed forces
Eunuchs: A man who may have been castrated typically early enough in his life
Barbarians: A member of a community or tribe not belonging to one of the greatest civilizations
Regionalism: Interest in or loyalty to a particular region
Darius: The third king of the Persian Empire
Athens and Sparta: The two city-states that best represent each form of government were Sparta is oligarchy and Athens democracy

Alexander the Great: He was the king of ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon

Caesar Augustus: The founder of the Roman Empire and also became its emperor from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD

Pax Romana: The peace that existed between nationalities within the Roman Empire

Qin Shihuangdi: The king of the state of Qin who conquered states and united china

Legalism: Strict conformity to the law or to a religious or moral code
Mandate of Heaven: An ancient Chinese belief that Gods granted emperors the right to rule based on their ability to govern well and fairly

Wudi: He was the seventh emperor of the Han Dynasty of China ruling from 141 to 87 BC

Byzantine Empire: It was the Eastern half of the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages

Xiongnu: The Chinese name for the confederacy of Turkish-speaking peoples who were nomadic herders of horses, sheep, and camels in Central Asia

Aryans: Indo-European nomadic pastoralists who replaced Harappan civilization; militarized society

Ashoka: Grandson on Chandragupta Maurya; took Mauryan dynasty to its heights; converted to Buddhism and preached nonviolence

QUESTIONS:
1. What are the political characteristics of the Persian Empire? The Persian Empire had an absolute monarchy meaning that the ruler can make any decisions he wanted to and whatever he decided was final. They were mostly, run by kings and allowed a the satrapy system. A satrapy system was an administrative group. A satrap (governor) administered the region, a general supervised military, and estate secretary kept official records. The general and the state secretary reported directly to the central government. The Persian Empire had 23 satrapies and they used a silver and gold coinage system.

2. Compare Greek political organization to Persian political organization. What accounts for the differences? The government in Persia was relatively consistent over that time span. It had been a benevolent dictatorship, First under the Achaemenids, then the Parthian, and then the Sassanids. The Greeks, on the other hand, lack the unity of Persia. Yunanistan, at first, was a collection of diverse city states, ranging from the civil, cultured, and free Athenians, to the tyrannical regimes of Corinth and Argos. Later in, Sophists propelled the Greeks to accept Christianity, and from that point forth, Greece went down the toilet. The Byzantines, Christian heirs to the Greeks and Romans, had a tyrannical government and it paid for its foolishness when Ibn Khalid marched in and defeated them against all odds.
3. What were the political foundations of the Roman Empire? How did the foundations of Rome change over time? What stayed the same? The empire's foundations started out as a kingdom. It then switched to a republic because of tyrannical kings. Later, it became an empire due to the conquest of Julius Gaius Caesar. Thus, under the empire, the senate didn't have as much power. What stayed the same is giving the public a specific amount of voice in government.
4. Compare the political characteristics of the Roman Empire to Han China Two empires that were taking shape at the same time that the Greeks and Persians collided were the Roman Empire and China's imperial state. The Roman Empire was located on the far western side meanwhile China's imperial state was located on the far eastern end. They had some similarities such as their population size from 50 million to 60 million people. At their time they were the giant empires that's shaped the lives of close to half of the worlds population. Around 509 B.C.E the Roman aristocrats have thrown off the monarchy and established a republic. The republic was taken charge of the patricians which were known as the wealthiest class. They have as well created a written code of law that offered plebeians, a poor class, some protection from abuse. Romans took great pride in this political system. China as well adopted a political philosophy called Legalism, which taught clear rules and harsh punishments as a means of enforcing the authority of the state. Between 264 and 146 B.C.E Roman resulted victorious in the Punic wars with Carthage which extended Roman control over the western Mediterranean and made roman a naval power. Meanwhile China launched a military campaign to reunify China and in just ten years soundly defeated the other warring states. The Chinese process of empire formation was far more compressed than the Roman effort, but it was no less dependent on military force and no less brutal scholars who opposed Shihuangdi's policies.
5. What were the similarities and differences in the collapse of the Roman and Chinese empires? The Han Dynasty and the Roman Empire were two of the most powerful entities to rule their respective parts of the world. Both states controlled a large portion of the world population and produced political and cultural legacies.The Roman Empire became steeped in debt as emperors tried desperately to buy the loyalty of the army, and the moral condition of its subjects continued to spiral downward. They both fell because of weak leaders and power hungry individuals. The Han practice of concubinage led to much violence and strife in the royal family, causing disunity and internal conflict. Regents often attempted to seize power. Love of money led to the precarious situations of Rome’s later emperors, as soldiers demanded gold for loyalty. In both empires, corruption of government contributed to the bitterness of the common people. All of these things arise from the selfishness in the human heart. 6. What were the political characteristics of classical India? Why did India’s government differ from Rome and China? Indian plains divided into powerful regional states in India: some monarchies, others republics dominated by assemblies of priests’ warriors. China and India have followed radically different approaches to economic development. China's resulted from a conscious decision; India more or less happened upon its course.