Top-Rated Free Essay
Preview

Han Dynasty vs. the Roman Empire

Good Essays
429 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Han Dynasty vs. the Roman Empire
The Han dynasty of the southeastern region of Asia and the Roman Empire located around the Mediterranean prove their major significance to modern-day history. However, the Han Empire was a greater military power, they had created more unified state, and created a better cultural legacy than the Roman Empire.
The Han dynasty’s showed a greater amount of both military power and preparation. The Han dynasty produced an aggressive military that would allow the expansion of Han territory to Fujian, Guangdong, northern Vietnam, Manchuria and northern Korea, whereas the Roman military merely spread to Germanic lands and the Balkans. Along with that, Rome succumbed to more invasions and conflicts than the Hans did. Rome was invaded by Muslims, the Huns, and Visigoths, but the Han dynasty merely lost a single conflict with the Xiongnu people. Additionally, the Han people were more prepared for disaster by storing food up for a time of desperate need. Meanwhile, there is no record of citizens from the Roman Empire investing a great deal of interest in the concept of preparation for what may happen.
Politically, Han China was more unified than the Roman Empire. Both empires functioned under the rule of a leader, like Augustus Caesar for Rome, and Han Wudi for Han; however, Rome had several areas that did not seem to follow the current leader, like the distinct state of Judaism, before the religion of Christianity exploded in popularity. These areas in the Roman Empire suggest that the government did not effectively exert its power. The simpler political structure of the Han Empire allowed for easier governance of its subjects who lived in an area much bigger than the Roman Empire.
Culturally, the Han Empire left a stronger legacy than the Roman Empire. Most notably, the Han dynasty engineered the merit system for civil service, still in use today by several world powers. Additionally, the Han dynasty perfected the process of casting iron, a development that would prove its use throughout history. Other notable inventions include: paper, time-keeping devices, and calendars. In addition, the Han dynasty is famous for domesticating horses, and under the power of Han Wudi, transforming them into a stronger species.
In conclusion, the Han dynasty proves its greater importance over the Roman Empire. The Han dynasty successfully formed a powerful military force and organized an emergency plan. This dynasty also was more unified than Rome, while the Roman Empire contained several fragmented states. Lastly, the Han dynasty created many inventions that remain useful today like the merit system, iron, paper, time-keeping devices, and calendars.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    DBQ Essay The Han Empire had a very positive outlook on the advancement of technology such as irrigation systems while the Roman Empire seemed to have a lot of opposition regarding the advancement of technology. The Roman elites viewed technology as tools for the weak. Both Empires acknowledged the change in technology in some way or another.…

    • 378 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Both empires established effective centralized governmental control over their vast regions and huge populations. But the Chinese, in opposition to the Romans,…

    • 644 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    AP World History DBQ The Han dynasty stressed effectiveness in their tools, as well as using technology to prevent natural disasters and thrive in their society. The Romans, however, marveled at their civilization’s innovations, but rejected idolizing those who worked with tools and crafts.…

    • 804 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Han and Imperial Rome both exercised political control through similar government structures and social hierarchies. There were many elites who supported Han China’s emperor, Wu di and the “mandate of Heaven.” In Han, their government hierarchies were based on confusium. The followers of this included many bureaucrats, common people, and peasants. Imperial rome had a had a very similar way of ranking these people. Rome had a main leader. Emperor Augustus Ceasar. The top class in Rome was then bureaucrats and politicians, much like Han China. Below them came merchants, common people, and peasants. Then even below them came Slaves used for labor, but this was only used in Imperial Rome. This ranking system was a major similarity between these two civilizations political structure, and structure both civilizations greatly.…

    • 394 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Han dynasty was the most influential dynasty in Chinese history and led to china becoming a country as we know it today. They extended Chinese rule from southern Mongolia to northern Vietnam and as far west as Nepal. One of the main reason for the prosperity and solidity of the Han dynasty was the relationship between the imperial family and the elite. Each group supported each other economically as well as socially, leading to a stable and prosperous empire.…

    • 893 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A similarity between Han China and Imperial Rome was their religious policies. Both China and Rome blocked the spread of other religions from nearby empires to come into their nations such as Hinduism from India or Stoicism from the Greeks. The religion that was practiced in Rome (after being legalized in 312) was Christianity by the Emperor Constantine while the religious practice of Buddhism was incorporated with Confucianism and Daoism. Another similarity between the two empires was the significance of their army. Both China and Rome were ruled by generals and the armies were a crucial part in maintaining political stability against their enemies. Han China and Imperial Rome were often threatened by surrounding opponents who frequently attempted to assert their authority upon them. Also, the high cost of the armies often caused for bankruptcy in the empires and forced the taxes of the people to go up. Both of these empires also struggled from retaliations from the people because of these high taxes and poor treatments to the less fortunate. In both China and Rome, the emperor received many revolts against his policies. The revolts were mostly from the people of lower status such as the slaves in Rome and the peasants in China. Finally, the role of the emperor was very similar in these two empires as well. Both Han China and Imperial Rome believed that not one single imperial family should rule forever. The Romans chose their emperors based of whoever was their best general while China…

    • 689 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Han and Roman Empire

    • 778 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Both civilizations had very strong central governments which allowed for powerful and expanding kingdoms. Both empires had to develop road systems for their expanding military. The Roman army men were experienced and privileged and held high ranks in their class system and played an important role, along with the senate, in choosing an emperor. The center power for the Roman empire was generally the senate. The ruler for the Han dynasty was hereditary. The Han dynasty's military wasn't as loyal. Most of the soldiers were newly drafted and didn't have much experience. China had two capital cities which served as seats of power for emperors and they were Louyang (located in the east) and Chang'an (located in the West). The merchant class in Han was restricted by the government unlike the middle class in Rome whom were free from government constraints which allowed economic mobility. The imperial model was only revived in China later but it never revived in Rome.…

    • 778 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The roman and Han Empire were different in their political and governmental control through the use of the monarchy and the republic system. The monarchy of the Han Empire was a method of political control because it really strengthened the power of the government to really crackdown on the citizens to make sure that there were no protests or any riots. This control also showed the kinds of beliefs that they had in Han China. Also another type of political control that they used was the filial piety. Filial piety is the respect for your father and elders. This kept the people in check because they had to respect all their elders and the people that were above them. In the Roman Empire the republic method was more based on keeping the society happy then using political authority power. They would hold bread circuses and different events such as the gladiatorial games to keep them happy and prevent riots. The effectiveness of the system in Rome is demonstrated by the explosion of art, giving credit to people that…

    • 497 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Han Dynasty and The Roman Empire both were able to expand and develop their empires with their distinctive governing methods and control. To China, the centerpiece that supervised everything was knows as Confucianism. With all dependability focused on the emperor and society serving as a family unit, Han China's political system was known for a centralized, closed unit. It was ruled by an emperor who greatly observed the Mandate of Heaven. The Han developed a supply of soldiers, which kept their borders secured and made them capable to exchange with others from time to time. On the other hand, Rome had a centralized, blended structure. The main focus points of the Roman Society were operated by a Roman Republic, which was more like a monarchy, who controlled their complex structure. The Roman Society had more residents and rights than the Hans, Roman's political control lay in the hands of the wealthy, which then they were elected to a political seat. The governors were picked from family networks. The only way Romans could accomplish anything big in a certain time span was to make strong changes in their community. It was an enormous weight on Rome's resources and power, when they had to stress over big wins. For example, when there was barely any food to support the developing empire. The Romans and the Hans both had their wealthiest people control over their peasants, which caused a social distribution to each and every one, and could have leaded to outbreaks in little battles, wars between the communities, and what not. This was entirely not beneficial on each empire's part and especially their social interaction.…

    • 808 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Han China was one of the longest dynasties in Chinese history, however, the Imperial Roman empire lasted even longer. Han China and Imperial Rome share many similarities as well as many differences. Although Han China and Imperial Rome had many similarities (patriarchy, expansion), the differences (recruitment, system of who is in authority) in methods of political control outweigh the similarities because of they had little interaction with each other.…

    • 720 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Roman and Han Empires were the most powerful empires among the Classical Empires. The Han Dynasty and Roman Empire were similar in their falls because they both fell to nomadic invaders, and because they both fell because of a decline in economic trade. The Han and the Roman Empires were different in their falls because the Han suffered from serious revolts whereas the Romans did not; also the effects of their falls were different because China was able to make a fairly quick comeback whereas Rome was never able to do so.…

    • 535 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There was a myriad of factors that led to the collapse of classical China and Rome including: different types of political decay, large impersonal forces, and cultural factors.…

    • 455 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Both Han China and Imperial Rome were controlled under one central leader. The leader of the Han Dynasty had the overall power, but set up administrative districts governed by officials. The emperor also used Confucianism as a means to train people to become educated bureaucrats, who would then enforce his policies. However, the ruler of Imperial Rome set up a monarchy, disguised as a Republic, so that he could maintain complete control over his citizens. This allowed the citizens to feel as if they were contributing to government, and also allow the emperor to maintain control over his empire. Both societies also created more centralized governments by developing vast expanses of roads to promote trade, as well as levying taxes to stimulate economic prosperity.…

    • 419 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Most societies that developed in ancient civilizations were centered around some form of imperial administration and Imperial Rome (31 B.C.E.-476 C.E.) and Han China (206 B.C.E.-220 C.E.) were no different in this sense. Both civilizations had a network of cities and roads, with similar technologies that catalyzed cultural amalgamation and upgraded the standard of living, along with comparable organizational structures. Additionally, both civilizations had problems managing their borders and used similar tactics for defense. However, the Chinese Emperor was interpreted as a God while the Roman Emperor was a lugal, or big man, who had to fight not only to gain power, but to push through his initiatives. The similarities and differences of the control and management of both regions may be attributed to the philosophical ideas and belief systems that existed at the time, influencing political structure in similar ways with only a few minor differences that set the two cultures apart.…

    • 957 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Han China and Rome did not have the same beliefs, Rome believed in Christianity while Han China believed in Confucianism. (DIF) Han Chinas belief brought the empire to unity under Han Wudi’s Ruling for 54 years. As opposed to Rome where their belief tore the empire apart. When Christianity triumphed the Edict of Milan was proclaimed under the ruling of Theodosius the Great. (EV) As the Romans tried to send out the message of Jesus the Romans had been persecuting the religion. Constantine ends the persecution in 313 ad, as he became the first Christian Emperor. This followed the Jewish Diaspora, the dispersal of Jews from their homeland because the temples were being destroyed. Christianity brought the Roman Empire to an end by dividing it into two, the Jewish and the Christians. These empires had very distinct types of ruling in the aspect of Religion which led them to either success or failure just by a believe.…

    • 585 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays