Differences Between Han China And Imperial Rome

Rome and Han China were classical civilizations that built centralized empires, which eventually expanded. Both Rome and Han experienced unequal land distribution which led to political instability, and both suffered from invasions of nomadic tribes due to political instability which would lead to the collapse. However, only the western portion of the Roman Empire collapsed whereas the entire Han met its demise.
Both Rome and Han experienced great times of prosperity. However, both regions also suffered political instability due to unequal land distribution, which led to their demise. Both Rome and Han developed monarchies with aristocrats as aides to the emperors. In these systems the wealthy controlled a majority of the land, thus causing
Owners of latifundias operated at lower costs than did owners of smaller holdings. These owners often resulted to mortgaging their lands to aristocrats due to the fact that they could not compete with the latifundias. Thus, causing unemployment and famines for this class. These peasants moved to cities, where they became “mobs”. Wealthy patricians often hired people into personal armies. Civil wars i.e. Caesar and Pompey, often broke out between high ranking officials, thus leading to political instability. During the first and second century CE of Rome, there were social tensions due to the unequal land distribution. As a way to mend the unequal land distribution issue, reformers attempted to redistribute the land, i.e. Gracchi Brothers, Tiberius and Gaius. Unfortunately these men did not succeed due to the fact that most members of the wealthy and ruling classes disagreed with the ideas of the brothers and found their way around their redistribution method. In fact, this action caused them to pay a high price – their lives. For fear that the brothers would have a greater effect on Roman affairs, their enemies had them assassinated. Wang Mang, just as the Gracchi Brothers had attempted with Rome, tried to reform the distribution of land in China.
Factions emerged when marriages between imperial and aristocratic families occurred. A number of Individuals from these marriages were only seeking to benefit themselves in imperial government, as a result, constant betrayal and double-crossing occurred. This, of course, should not be a surprise; it happens quite regularly in the politics of society today. This internal issue could not be solved, for these families were the ruling elites. Just as the Han dynasty, internal political problems take a great part in explaining the fall of the Roman Empire. The claimants to the imperial throne were known as the “barracks emperors”. These were generals who seized power, held it for a brief period, and then lost it to their own troops or rivals. Both empires faced these political and social issues therefore could not manage the empire, thus weakening both and bringing the empires a step closer to their falls. While watching for nomadic tribes on the eastern half of the empire, the already incredibly weakened and unstable western half of Rome was left unprotected, allowing the military threat from the Germanic tribes to easily invade and end the western half of the Roman Empire. The greatest challenge that the Han faced were the Xiongnu. These were nomadic peoples that had a highly disciplined army and concerned the Han emperors. The Han attempted to establish a peaceful and