...areas of similarity when contrasting the United States with the Roman Empire. The greatest nation on earth today is the United States. The main factors supporting this are that the U.S. is the economic leader in the world. At this time, the U.S. has the strongest military of any nation. There is relevance with what is happening in the United States today and what occurred during the fall of the Roman Empire. One common and provable fact is that in many ways history does have a tendency to repeat itself. Not only on a worldwide scale does this happen, but in the lives of individuals as well. After all, governments and their political entities are made up people. And as part of human nature, people are prone to make the same mistakes again and again, as the Roman Empire and the U.S. similarities and differences in the functioning of the state. The Roman Empire established a connection between the state and the people. The people were subjected respectively by pride in their country. Their pride was extremely strong in a nation who offered a stable and profound class society. They government’s hierarchy included a military emperor or Sacrificial King, senate, consuls, and the forum. The Romans also enacted a class society of peasant farmers, patricians and plebeians, who were among the higher level in the class society. Ruled by a dictator, the Roman Empire was under strict control. The early and late Roman Empire was a powerful dominating group in its time. It conquered many other...
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...Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a large empire throughout Europe during the Middle Ages and into the early Nineteenth Century. Its borders changed considerably throughout its history, but at times it spanned most of modern day Central Europe, with borders that covered modern day Germany, France, Austria, The Low Countries, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Northern Italy, and more. The empire also included areas of Southeastern Europe such as Croatia, Slovenia, and Hungary. Eventually, it declined into a loose federation of principalities before dissolving entirely. However, before that, it covered a vast amount of territory for almost an entire millennium, necessarily meaning the empire had a large influence on the history of the Western World. The beginning of the Holy Roman Empire is not clear, but it was usually traced back to crowning of Charlemagne by Pope Leo III in 800. Charlemagne was previously King of The Franks, a group of Germanic tribes in modern day France. Charlemagne’s coronation was supposed to shift the power in Europe back to the West centuries after the power of the Roman Empire shifted east to Constantinople, modern day Istanbul (Kagan). In fact, the early name of the Holy Roman Empire was simply the Roman Empire as it was supposed to be seen as the continuation of the original. After the death of Charlemagne, his succession was disputed for generations until the Holy Roman Empire definitively formed. Otto I, a German who took control in...
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...The name Babylon means “Gate of God”. The location of the ancient city was along the Euphrates River and today is marked by a long stretch of ruins east of the river. Which is ninety kilometers south of Baghdad, Iraq. This was one of the main trading points of the ancient world because of its central location. Some important events that happened there are things that have shaped the way we live today and we still use the 24 hour day they created this form of counting has survived for four thousand years. Another important event that happened there was the building of the tower of Babel the people built this tower to try and reach Heaven. It was most likely that the tower was used as a place of worship and to create a common religious Centre, Gods only merciful alternative was to separate the people into different languages and countries to disable there plans. Because he had also promised himself never to destroy the earth with floods again because of the disobedience of mankind. So the punishment was quite mild compared to the global flood. “Archaeologists have dreamed of finding the ruins of the tower but have been unsuccessful. There may be biblical evidence as to why they have not found this tower of extreme significance” (Encyclopedia, Almanac, Atlas) The story is much more than God simply interrupting a building project but it marks the origins of the languages and nations of the earth. “Babylon is even home to one of the Seven Wonders of the World, The Hanging Gardens...
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...fall of the Roman Empire | How Christianity played a part in the decline of an Empire | | | | 8/1/2014 | Paper outline 1. Introduction 2. Rise of Christianity in the Roman Empire 3. How Christianity played a part in the decline of the Roman Empire 4. The situation after the fall of the Roman Empire 5. The situation in the dark ages 6. Conclusion 7. Bibliography “Why did Rome fall?” still remains one the greatest questions of Western history. Many books have been written about this topic and many theories have been advanced about the reason of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire. Several reasons are issued for the fall. These reasons are issued to be sequacious and interwoven. For example, one of the most influential modern historians, Edward Gibbon wrote “The Decline and fall of the Roman Empire” in 1776, where he stated that the initiation of Christianity was one of the reasons for the decline. The transition of religions in the Roman Empire, from a polytheistic religion to a monotheistic religion, leads to instability within the Empire. (Gibbon, 1782) How Christianity was a factor in the decline of the Western Roman Empire will be discussed more extensively in this paper. In the beginning, Christianity was not more than an insignificant sect of Judaism and began its spread from Roman Judaea during the life of Jesus, but in only four centuries Christianity had become the state religion of the Roman Empire. The rise of...
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...What Makes a Society Great – The Roman Empire as Example It is important to study the characteristics of a great society. Throughout history, there have been many societies that were great and many that were failures. In order to advance mankind and countries today, lessons can be learned from the past. There are many characteristics that are present in great societies. However, some of these qualities are more important than others. The three main characteristics that make a society great are a high quality of life, economic prosperity, and democracy. This essay explains why these three characteristics can make a society great and illustrates these qualities using the example of the Roman Empire. Quality of Life and Basic Needs It is extremely important for a society to meet the essential needs of all citizens and to provide a good quality of life. According to Randy Schutt in Inciting Democracy, in a good society, every person would have their basic human needs met (14). Basic human needs include: air, water, food, clothing, shelter, and safety from harm. A good quality of life includes meeting all basic human needs and also involves living an enjoyable life. According to Panos Mourdoukoutas and Abraham Stefanidis, “quality of life allows people to enjoy their wealth, advancing their personal and public lives.” Roman Empire Example For citizens in the Roman Empire, the quality of life was high and all basic human needs were met. Rome offered various entertainments for...
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...Israel History of World Civilizations 2 December, 2014 The Birth of the Roman Empire If you asked someone to name one of the greatest empires of all time, the Roman Empire would surely come up. It is very well known for how great of an empire that it was with its excellent soldiers, brilliant architecture, and expansive road system. Not many people today know that the Roman Empire was not always an empire, there was a time where the power of the nation wasn't held by a single person. Rome was once a Republic, a place where supreme authority is held by the people and the representatives that they elect. The birth of this great empire rooted from tons of wars. Not only did they fight to earn their own territory in beginning against the Etruscans but they also fought the nation of Carthage for more territory which ultimately caused the birth of the Roman Empire. The history of Rome and the true founding of the nation is less dramatic than the actual story. Rather than the founding of Rome including the god of war and Romulus and Remus, the true story involved three tribes ("Rome, History of"). Around 1,000 B.C.E., in west-central Italy, a village was built in Latium by three tribes. Protected by hills from the sea, the city was in a great location for not only defense but also trading on major routes. The Romans were first ruled by the Etruscans, who were the people from the nation of Etruria. They adopted the Greek language, which was forced upon the Romans and they...
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...The Rise and Fall of Rome The Economics Behind an Empire 4/18/2013 ECO 120 Seb Jaramillo The Rise and Fall of Rome To many people, the ancient world has always been a topic of great interest and study. The ancient world is essentially the explanation for how the world ended up where it is today. Our ancestors laid down the foundation that would help form and mold today’s civilization and the way people live out their lives in modern times. Perhaps no civilization of the past did more for the future than the efforts and contributions of the Roman Empire. For almost a millennia, the Romans controlled the vast majority of the world. Their Empire made it possible to spread wealth and knowledge to the far corners of the world and lay down a base common knowledge that helped pave the path for people to follow. This paper shall look into the background of Rome and see what economic forces helped lead to the formation of such a formidable empire. What allowed these people to become so wealthy and construct a vast territory? Why was it easy for the Romans to do so much while many other nations are still set back in our day and age? The paper shall also look at the forces at work near the end of the Western Empire that brought an end to the glory and majesty of Rome and how this knowledge can perhaps produce a means of prevention of the same fate for the United States. The city of Rome became a Republic around the year 509 BC. By the end of the first century BC Rome controlled...
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...Michelle Lin Global History Throughout history, various cultures have blended together to create vast empires. These cultures relied upon each other in mutually beneficial interactions and exchanges. Sometimes, the refusal to accept diversity leads to conflict. Diversity of culture has impacted many of the past’s greatest empires. Among the empires, the Byzantine and the Mongol are perfect examples of diverse culture due to their capabilities of spreading ideas and trade internationally and in exchange for resulting achievements much more beneficial towards them. The Byzantine Empire, although, was deeply influenced by the Roman administration after being the eastern region of the Roman Empire before the split, it also contained Greek elements due to the majority of Greek speaking citizens. The Byzantine Empire served to preserve Roman and Greek culture, allowed the spread of new religion and achievements through cultural diffusion. When the western region of the Roman Empire collapsed in 475, libraries and places of literature were destroyed under the chaos and much of the records kept by the civilization were lost. The eastern half managed to become an independent empire of its own, known today as; The Byzantine Empire. As a result, the Byzantine alone served to preserve the Roman and Greek culture in place of the diminishing western region. Among the preservation saved by Emperor Justinian, the ones that became most significant were the Roman Laws. Justinian then expanded...
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...alive. History, and the ability to sense impending change works similarly to this. If everything were to go wrong all at once, during a period of, potentially, a few years, it would be noticeable, and people might recognize the change. However, with a drawn out decline, like that of the Roman Empire, that lasted around hundred or more years, it is very difficult to predict or be cognizant of, the dramatic change that is occurring. Like the frog, everything...
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...THE ROMANS AND CHINA Robert King HIEU 201-B05 September 29th, 2014 The West and East both had major super powers at the same time. The Romans in the West and the Han Dynasty in the East. Both had no idea how large the other was. The Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty both had created strong government systems, military and had vast technology advancement. Though they had major differences, they both made a lasting impression on Eastern and Western civilization as we know it today At the height of the Roman Empire it had close to nineteen provinces stretching as far as Syria. "The simple mention of the Roman Empire is sometimes enough to conjure up an image of something that is immensely stable." Roman's had an emperor which ultimately controlled everything. As same to the Han dynasty the emperor came to power with no regards to the law. The Roman empire had a different way to govern a provinces and a cities. they had some freedom on running their government but always had to pay tax and had to take command from a assigned governor. Then Han dynasty like the Roman's used their military power to take over their land. At the height of the Han dynasty they had thirty-one districts, creating law, currency, a weight system and a measurement system. These systems where to overtake old ones in all of the China. This did not go as well as the Romans approach. The Roman empire took control of areas but did not try and change their culture as much. They still had their own...
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...The Ancient Greeks and Romans both began their histories as city-states. While the irregular coastline and the mountainous terrain of the Greek peninsula isolated the various Greek city-states from one another, the city of Rome was located in the geographical middle of a generally north-south plain bordered on the east with mountains and on the west by the sea. Therefore, Rome was exposed to the migrations and invasions of people from the Po River in the north and Sicily in the south. The two primary ethnic and cultural influences upon the Romans were determined to a degree by this geography. That is, the first influence was that of the Etruscans in the north, and the second major influence was that of the Greeks in the south. By the time the city-state of Rome had emerged as a distinct entity out of its Etruscan origins and was prepared to expand its own unique influence, Greek civilization had spread throughout the Mediterranean basin. However, the fierce exclusiveness of the Greek city-states from one another, stemming from their geographical isolation, had determined that Greek colonization of the Mediterranean would be an extension of isolated city-states. The Greek polis did not permit the building of a Greek empire, and the strict barriers to the extension of citizenship prevented any one city-state from becoming dominant. As we have seen from Greek history, the Athenians were on the way to creating an empire through their domination of the Delian League, but this trend...
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... The rise to power of the Papacy in the Roman Empire during the 6-9th centuries is crucial to the history of the church. There were many theories as to why the Papacy earned such central power. Included in these were the rise of the early church, and also the negative and positive effects of individuals related tot he government of the Roman Empire. Altogether it took many steps in a long process for the Papacy to gain such control. What is clear though is that the Papacy held firm control until the reformation. This paper will expand on the reasons for the rise of the Papacy in power, what allowed for it to thrive, and also negative and positive impacts on the empire and even the world. Fall of the Roman Empire There were many factors, and theories that are included when one is speaking of the fall of the Roman Empire. One of the first theories centers around disease and plagues. Some historians maintain that the Empire was crippled, as many diseases and plagues circled the Empire. They crippled families, workers and even members who were involved with the government. Another small factor may have been the decay of the army. The army say an increase in more German peoples, which may have altered the morale of the army, and even the size of the army itself. One large theory also centers around the government of the Empire. Many historians also believe that the Roman Empire set itself up for failure.(1) In the way that the government was structured...
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...free encyclopedia * Wikipedia portals: Culture * Geography * Health * History * Mathematics * Natural sciences * People * Philosophy * Religion * Society * Technology edit The Ancient Rome Portal Ancient Rome was a civilization which began as a small agricultural community on the Italian Peninsula in the 8th century BC. Rome became a large empire which straddled the Mediterranean Sea. In its twelve centuries of existence, Roman civilization was firstly a monarchy, then a republic that combined oligarchy and democracy, and finally became an autocraticempire. Through conquest and assimilation, it came to dominate Western Europe, the entire Mediterranean Basin including the Near East and North Africa, the Balkans, and the Black Sea.The Roman empire went into decline in the 3rd century AD, and began to collapse in the 5th century AD. Plagued by internal instability and attacked by various migrating peoples, the western part of the empire, includingHispania, Gaul, and Italy, broke into independent kingdoms in the 5th century. The eastern part of the empire, governed from Constantinople, survived this crisis, and remained intact for another millennium, until its last remains were finally annexed by the emerging Ottoman Empire. This eastern, medieval stage of the Empire is usually referred to as the Byzantine Empire by historians.Roman civilization was part of the period of classical antiquity, alongsideancient...
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...or Strict Laws History has seen many Empires, their prosperities and downfalls. There were Empires, which had controlled great territories, had amazing culture and had left the great trace in the world history. In general almost every empire had the same story, but the two most significant empires were Roman and Chinese empires. The two had left most enormous traces in History. Roman and Chinese empires had many similarities and differences, but the Roman Empire lasted for only 500 years, while Chinese empire lasted for about 16 centuries. Actually Chine as an Empire had never ruined, it just transformed into a Republic of Chine in 1912. There was simple advantage of Chinese empire over Roman that made it everlasting, China as an Empire was united not only by the laws and military force but also by the culture, ideology and religion, what made Chinese empire one whole nation, whereas Romans were only united by the military forces and not by the cultural heritage that made Chinese empire so united. There are many theories why did Roman Empire collapsed, some of them might seem stupid for example some people think that Romans went crazy because they used led in pots and they ate food which was cooked in pots made of led, so they were poisoned by led and that’s why this huge Empire ruined. Despite these kinds of theories, almost every scholar and historian says that Rome failed as an Empire because of military exhaust, the new religion in the Empire, the division of society...
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...territorial height in the first and second century CE, the Roman Empire may have contained between 45 million and 120 million people. The Roman military can be viewed as one of the greatest armies in world history. Historian Edward Gibbon estimated that "the size of the Roman army most probably formed a standing force of three hundred and seventy-five thousand men, at the Empire's territorial peak in the time of the Emperor Hadrian." The Roman population slowly decreased because many barbaric tribes settled along the borders of the Empire and began sacking cities and attacking villages. By the end of the fourth and the beginning of the fifth century, the Roman military began to decay into tons of problems. Many factors contributed to the military decline of the Roman Empire, including a lack of discipline, financial problems, and poor military tactics and decisions by the empire. In result of these factors, barbarians were able to attack the walls of the empire with more ease because of the lack of defense. These barbarian attacks helped prone the efficiency of the army's defenses and tactics which impart the major downfall of the empire. A change in military tactics during the third and fourth century CE was central in the decline of the Roman Army. This left commanders and soldiers confused, this resulted as well in casualties and loses in war. Because of a controversial change in tactics and weapons, the Romans were virtually useless against these barbaric tribes...
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