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Empires
Introduction
An empire is a ruling system where people are ruled over by an emperor or another type of monarch. The region being ruled usually is large and may consist of several countries. Most empires consist of diversified groups, for instance, ethnic groups, religious and cultural groups. People have had different opinions about empires, some being distasteful, while others have approved the system. Over the years, empires have risen and fallen due to various reasons. Some of the reasons why they are due to the availability of resources such as weapons, greater political strength, and also greater military power as they can conquer other states (Dower). Overextension of the empires, thereby losing control, is one of the reasons why an empire may fall. Examples of empires include the Roman Empire and early imperial China. For an empire to be successful, it has to have a strong military, efficient leader, stable government, and a strong economy. These factors will, therefore, determine the success of an empire in the ruling.
Body
Empires are different from polities in that empires are much larger as emperor givers, a vast region comprised of many countries, whereas polities are small. There is greater organization in polities such as tribal policies since they are small and, therefore, easy to control, whereas the organization in empires is less since one person is in charge of an extensive area, and hence there may be no coordination. Empires are also considered dictatorial as force is applied when ruling, whereas polities are considered to be democratic as the will of the people is applied (Malešević, 7). The last difference is that empires are diversified in that the regions ruled have different religious, ethnic, and cultural groups. Polities’ on the other hand, for instance, tribal polities have one tribe that has the same culture, and hence they are not diversified.
Empires are not as effective for governing and exploiting resources as they are very had to control. Since the emperor is tasked to oversee a vast area, it becomes tough for them to coordinate as they may not be able to have their eyes on all areas. People who resist the regions may also be hard to control as they may be from different regions, which make empires not so effective in governing. The Roman Empire, for instance, fell due to invasions by Barbarian tribes that attacked the military, and after the military losing the Roman Empire fell (Gibbon). Also, governing many territories makes it difficult to control the overall economy. For an empire to be strong, the economy has to be good. Most empires are involved in constant wars and hence spend most of their money in war. When regions being governed are smaller, it becomes easier to exploit resources as all areas are explored. Empires are, therefore, not so useful in administering and exploiting resources as they are large, subject to many attacks and resistance, and are also very hard to control.
Empires are more inclined to fall since the loss of control over an empire due to the expansion may make them fall. Issues such as economic, political, environmental, and cultural issues can make empires fall. Gupta Empire, for instance, collapsed due to economic problems that were, in turn, caused by military issues. Therefore empires are more inclined to fall as controlling empires is very hard.
Conclusion
An empire is a group of nations or territories that are governed by one person. Since they rule over large areas, there are diversified groups, for example, religious, ethnic, and cultural groups. They can grow due to strong military and political bases, strong leaders, and also favorable economic conditions. They can also fall due to issues related to economic, political, and cultural issues. They are not so effective in governing and exploring resources as compared to polities as they are large, making it hard for one person to control.
Works cited
Dower, John W. Empire, and the aftermath. Brill, 2020.
Gibbon, Edward. EDWARD GIBBON: Historical Works, Memoirs & Letters (Including” The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire”): Including” The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. e-artnow, 2017.
Malešević, Siniša. “Empires and nation-states: Beyond the dichotomy.” (2017): 3-10.