A historical resource article by Mary Harrsch © 2018
In the opening pages of this reference work, Peter Davidson tells us about his friend who defined an empire as "murder, incest, and the wearing of expensive jewelry!"
"There is the image here both of glorious conquest and of power held over far-flung lands, and indeed this captures something of what we have come to mean by the term 'empire,'" Davidson observes, "But how, then, does empire come about, what forms can it take, and does it have a defining characteristic?"
These are the questions he attempts to answer as he compiles information about most, if not all, empires that have arisen and collapsed throughout world history.
He begins by dividing up his work into nine main chapters, beginning with early civilizations formed when the social construct of empire was a new concept. The first chapter, entitled "War and Peace", examines the contention between Sumer and Akkad, the rise of Egypt, how the attributes of a military society like Assyria could not achieve stability without advances in administration like those developed by the rulers of Babylonia, and how religion was used to forge unity between disparate peoples by the kings of Persia.
Chapter two focuses on empires of the classical world including Greece and Rome, as well as Alexander's conquests, the Parthians and Sasanians of Iran, the Mauryas and Guptas of India, and the Qin and Han of ancient China.
"The story of Rome is one of adaptation," Davidson points out. "The early growth of Roman power sprange from a zealous and rapacious republicanism that eventually threatened to destroy the republic itself. Unlike Athens, however, Rome restructured to resolve the tension between republic and empire. Subsequently, Rome began to resemble the Persia of Cyrus and Darius in the measures it took to cope with its increasing size and multiculturalism."
In chapter three Davidson leaves the ancient world behind and concentrates on what he terms "Empires of Faith", the Byzantine Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, and the Abbasid Caliphate.
"All the classical empires found ways to supplement control by force with a measure of consent delivered by shared beliefs," Davidson explains. "As the classical world crumbled and people looked for something to hold on to, however, religious ideas promising salvation exerted a stronger pull than political ideas such as citizenship."
Empires of the horse take up Chapter Four as Davidson examines the conquests and achievements of the Mongols, the later empires of the Chinese beginning with the Sui and ending with the Qing, Muslim India with the splendor of the Mughals, and the Ottoman Empire.
"The horse made light work of invading Eurasia's agricultural civilizations but building empires was another matter," Davidson points out. "The steppe riders faced the usual tribal problems of creating a larger community. They also faced the dilemma of what to do with the societies they conquered. If they destroyed they gained little. If they bent themselves to an alien way of life they stood to lose their identity."
Chapter Five looks at what Davidson terms "Empires of Isolation." Three empires are examined here including Mali, the Aztecs, and the Incas. Davidson observes that the empires arising in Eurasia were ultimately linked by trade and religion but such was not the case in sub-Saharan Africa and in Central and South America. And yet, spectacular empires arose even without the use of iron and steel, draft animals or even the wheel, in some cases.
Chapter Six looks at the first global empires, Spain, Portugal, the Dutch, and both Britain and France in the Americas.
"Managing such far-flung empires was a new challenge," says Davidson. "It was partly a question of money. To squeeze profit from the silver mines of Peru or the nutmeg trees of the Est Indies, ships had to be built, voyages that could take two years had to be financed, and things had to keep going at home."
Chapter Seven examines the conquests of Napoleon, the development of Tsarist Russia and the rule of the Austrian Habsburgs.
"As much in opposition to French occupation as in sympathy with French ideals, national independence movements sprouted across the continent," Davidson observes. "The age of the nation-state had arrived, with first Greece, and later Italy, Germany, and others finding their modern form."
The imperialism of Britain and Japan are examined in Chapter Eight.
"By the 1870s, nationalism had become as much a force to serve imperial ambitions as to incite independence movements. A second industrial revolution now gave Continental powers the chance to compete with Brtain, and , as the 19th century drew to a close, a single global empire gave way to a feeding frenzy for colonial possessions ending in the First World War," Davidson states.
In the last chapter, entitled "Empires and Utopias" Davidson looks at the U.S., the Soviet Uniion, and the European Union. In it, Davidson says each of these entities were ultimately searching for a better world but with the world defined differently to different people with widely disparate histories.
Like any good atlas, this one is full of maps I found extremely helpful in understanding the migration routes of various groups that conquered or influenced specific civilizations. There are other illustrations of cultural art and architecture. Davidson also includes an index and suggested readings.
Davidson does a good job of defining and describing key cultural characteristics of each empire and the inherent challenges their leaders faced. He also astutely defines the strengths and weaknesses of each and how these either helped it to achieve greatness or resulted in its ultimate decline and destruction. You will not find descriptions of specific battles or a comprehensive discussion of each emperor's reign. Davidson limits even the most complex empire to about four to five pages including illustrations. But, I think this reference work does an excellent job of providing an overview of peoples and forces that have shaped our world.
In the opening pages of this reference work, Peter Davidson tells us about his friend who defined an empire as "murder, incest, and the wearing of expensive jewelry!"
"There is the image here both of glorious conquest and of power held over far-flung lands, and indeed this captures something of what we have come to mean by the term 'empire,'" Davidson observes, "But how, then, does empire come about, what forms can it take, and does it have a defining characteristic?"
These are the questions he attempts to answer as he compiles information about most, if not all, empires that have arisen and collapsed throughout world history.
He begins by dividing up his work into nine main chapters, beginning with early civilizations formed when the social construct of empire was a new concept. The first chapter, entitled "War and Peace", examines the contention between Sumer and Akkad, the rise of Egypt, how the attributes of a military society like Assyria could not achieve stability without advances in administration like those developed by the rulers of Babylonia, and how religion was used to forge unity between disparate peoples by the kings of Persia.
Chapter two focuses on empires of the classical world including Greece and Rome, as well as Alexander's conquests, the Parthians and Sasanians of Iran, the Mauryas and Guptas of India, and the Qin and Han of ancient China.
"The story of Rome is one of adaptation," Davidson points out. "The early growth of Roman power sprange from a zealous and rapacious republicanism that eventually threatened to destroy the republic itself. Unlike Athens, however, Rome restructured to resolve the tension between republic and empire. Subsequently, Rome began to resemble the Persia of Cyrus and Darius in the measures it took to cope with its increasing size and multiculturalism."
In chapter three Davidson leaves the ancient world behind and concentrates on what he terms "Empires of Faith", the Byzantine Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, and the Abbasid Caliphate.
"All the classical empires found ways to supplement control by force with a measure of consent delivered by shared beliefs," Davidson explains. "As the classical world crumbled and people looked for something to hold on to, however, religious ideas promising salvation exerted a stronger pull than political ideas such as citizenship."
Empires of the horse take up Chapter Four as Davidson examines the conquests and achievements of the Mongols, the later empires of the Chinese beginning with the Sui and ending with the Qing, Muslim India with the splendor of the Mughals, and the Ottoman Empire.
"The horse made light work of invading Eurasia's agricultural civilizations but building empires was another matter," Davidson points out. "The steppe riders faced the usual tribal problems of creating a larger community. They also faced the dilemma of what to do with the societies they conquered. If they destroyed they gained little. If they bent themselves to an alien way of life they stood to lose their identity."
Chapter Five looks at what Davidson terms "Empires of Isolation." Three empires are examined here including Mali, the Aztecs, and the Incas. Davidson observes that the empires arising in Eurasia were ultimately linked by trade and religion but such was not the case in sub-Saharan Africa and in Central and South America. And yet, spectacular empires arose even without the use of iron and steel, draft animals or even the wheel, in some cases.
Chapter Six looks at the first global empires, Spain, Portugal, the Dutch, and both Britain and France in the Americas.
"Managing such far-flung empires was a new challenge," says Davidson. "It was partly a question of money. To squeeze profit from the silver mines of Peru or the nutmeg trees of the Est Indies, ships had to be built, voyages that could take two years had to be financed, and things had to keep going at home."
Chapter Seven examines the conquests of Napoleon, the development of Tsarist Russia and the rule of the Austrian Habsburgs.
"As much in opposition to French occupation as in sympathy with French ideals, national independence movements sprouted across the continent," Davidson observes. "The age of the nation-state had arrived, with first Greece, and later Italy, Germany, and others finding their modern form."
The imperialism of Britain and Japan are examined in Chapter Eight.
"By the 1870s, nationalism had become as much a force to serve imperial ambitions as to incite independence movements. A second industrial revolution now gave Continental powers the chance to compete with Brtain, and , as the 19th century drew to a close, a single global empire gave way to a feeding frenzy for colonial possessions ending in the First World War," Davidson states.
In the last chapter, entitled "Empires and Utopias" Davidson looks at the U.S., the Soviet Uniion, and the European Union. In it, Davidson says each of these entities were ultimately searching for a better world but with the world defined differently to different people with widely disparate histories.
Like any good atlas, this one is full of maps I found extremely helpful in understanding the migration routes of various groups that conquered or influenced specific civilizations. There are other illustrations of cultural art and architecture. Davidson also includes an index and suggested readings.
Davidson does a good job of defining and describing key cultural characteristics of each empire and the inherent challenges their leaders faced. He also astutely defines the strengths and weaknesses of each and how these either helped it to achieve greatness or resulted in its ultimate decline and destruction. You will not find descriptions of specific battles or a comprehensive discussion of each emperor's reign. Davidson limits even the most complex empire to about four to five pages including illustrations. But, I think this reference work does an excellent job of providing an overview of peoples and forces that have shaped our world.
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