When two different things last close to the same amount of time and go down for similar reasons, it is interesting to see how similar and different the two were before falling apart. With the Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty it is exactly that, and to see the growth and falls of the two separate empires. The fall of the Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty are more similar than what happened before the fall with how they were able to withstand such a long-lasting life as an Empire. But, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t any similarities between the two because there is plenty, the fall of the two just couldn’t be more alike. The two empires were very powerful and influential on their societies during their time and the legacy of the empires lived on in the future. With both becoming very prestigious, taking a look at how the Han became the Han first makes sense.
The Han Dynasty was one of the longest lasting dynasties in China History lasting from 206 BCE-220 CE. The Han succeeded the Qin Dynasty, which was very short lasted and Liu Bang also known as Emperor Gaozu would take over in the Han Dynasty. History.com suggests that Emperor Gaozu would waste zero time as the Emperor of the Han Dynasty by “establishing the Han capital of Chang’an along the Wei River in one of the few surviving palaces of the Qin Dynasty and took the name Emperor Gaozu.” The Han Dynasty was located in Eastern Asia below the Great wall of China and along the coast of the East and South China Seas. The Hans location was very prime with having both the Yellow and Yangzi Rivers, mountains throughout the dynasty, and also having very farmable land. These geographical features are very impactful with their agricultural progress. With time people have found agricultural tools and inventions throughout China and these tools are expected to be from the Han Dynasty. A major tool that has been discovered was the plow but the Han and a more difficult plow than todays. The Han Dynasty plows were ran by large oxen to make the process go by quicker. Agriculture was a big part of the economic growth. The Han Dynasty had a government that was very leveled between the Zhous and Qins government. The government system the Han were able to come up with was a popular reason of why it was able to last so long. The Han was lead by an Emperor who was the most powerful person in the whole dynasty. Confucianism was accepted and very important to the Han Dynasty as it was the dominant political ideology and is what allowed the Han legacy to keep living on even after it has fallen. Although the Han didn’t have a universal oral language, they had a universal written language. During the Han Dynasty the Silk Road came along which was a major trade route used by carts and chariots for faster trading through China. Silk was the Han’s most valuable item and the Han Dynasty was a popular destination for successful trade bringing the name Silk Road into play. Confucianism didn’t accept the middle class of society. The elite classes had much more power and received more money than the lower classes.The fall of the Han was sparked all because the government became corrupt and one thing lead to another, a nomadic tribe then took over the long historic Han Dynasty.
The Han was the popular empire in the east but over in the west there was an empire of similar prestige in the Roman Empire. The Roman Empire began in 27BCE when Augustus Caesar was named the first Emperor of The Roman Empire. With the Tiber River running right through the Roman Empire it allowed fertile lands that was crucial for successful agriculture land. The Roman Empire was always looking for expansion. The Romans had built very developed roads to help with trade and communication around all of the Roman Empire. With the empire being so big internal trade was a popular action across these roads. The Romans did have art that would acknowledge and honor past leaders of the empire. Roman Polytheism and Christianity were the two major religions in the Roman Empire. In the Roman Empire Paterfamilias were the way of life, meaning that the male of the household was the in control of the family. The Empire had a successful militaries, and were able to attack when given the order. Latin was the dominant language for both written text and oral communication. With the Roman Empire’s population expanding as quick as it was, it led to the empire being forced into a slavery situation. When looking at ancient times this is one of the most effective societies with the agricultural strength it had and also because of the prosperous trade activity. All good things do have to come to an end and the Roman Empire is no exception. Just like the Han Dynasty the Roman Empire also fell with a huge part being corruption in the government and a nomadic tribe taking over.
The endings of the two empires ended with more similarities than differences, but throughout their time there were a little bit of both. Religion was a huge difference between the two with Confucianism and Buddhism in the Han compared to Christianity in Rome. They both had very similar landscapes with rivers and good agricultural land across their empires. Big similarities between the two include successful trade routes, transportation system, although different a universal language across the empire, and for the most part both had some sort of citizens rights. The similarities and differences run deeper than these but these topics of interest were a big part of why these two empires still have a legacy today even though they have fallen centuries ago.