Han China vs. Imperial Rome The methods of political control used in Han China (206 B.C.E-220 C.E.) were similar to that of Imperial Rome (31 B.C.E-476 C.E. ); however, these societies greatly differed on their oppositions of governing and the techniques used in maintaining control over citizens, expansions, and their falls. Han China and Imperial Rome had similar governments because they were ruled under one central leader, however, Han China had an emperor that enforced policies and Imperial Rome had a republic because they felt the monarchy did no good to the people. The Senate of Rome had most control over the citizens.
The geography of these two societies was a large influence. The hilly terrain of Greece led to the clear separation of areas within Greece and other civilizations surrounding it. This made it safe from many other outside areas. Due to the many hills, Greece was split up into many city states that had their own different government systems and ideas, yet held under one central authority. On the other hand, Rome did not have the safety of rolling hills and was more of a united society, yet open to invasion.
Hellenic Athens and Sparta The barbaric stereotypes people think of when referring to the Spartan society makes the Athenian civilization seem to correspond to our modern society. However, the savage imagery we conceive of the Spartans prevents the exploration of their civility. Even though they did have an extremely militaristic state of mind, they also had an incredibly well organized government system. Politically, socially, and culturally, the two Hellenic city-states of Greece had many differences, but simultaneously were very similar. In the eighth century B.C.E., Hellenic Athens was an oligarchic government.
Each had a very strong sense of individualism, and even when they had bonded for a short period of time, such as during the Persian invasion, they had quickly divided once again. This was because each city-state had their own set of laws and how to be ruled, and they did not find a way to unify with each other. The Ancient Greeks did have other forms of unifications, such as the same religion, language and basic culture, but none of these factors
Although Spartan women were not active in the military, they were educated and enjoyed more status and freedom than other Greek women. Because Spartan men were professional soldiers, all manual labor was done by a slave class, the Helots. Despite their military prowess, the Spartans’ dominance was short-lived: In 371 B.C., they were defeated by Thebes at the Battle of Leuctra, and their empire went into a long period of decline. The Spartan Military Unlike such Greek city-states as Athens, a center for the arts, learning and philosophy, Sparta was centered on a warrior culture. Male Spartan citizens were allowed only one occupation: solider.
The water also gave both empires access to trading with each other but the Persians had the Royal Road, a 1700 mile long trade route across the empire. The geographical location of both these empires eventually led them to their downfall as the Greeks were in the mountains and the Persians at the east of them. Although the Greeks were in a worse geographical location than the Persians, both of them were able to prosper. The differences of the political systems of these two empires are astonishing. The Greeks were a collection of around 1,500 city states as the Persians were under the rule of one king.
Throughout the Periclean Age (461 - 429 B.C.) Athens was ruled by their most influential statesman, Pericles. Thucydides went as far as to describe him as “the first citizen of Athens”. Pericles introduced important changes to Athenian democracy and formulated a new definition of citizenship. There were different social classes, they consisted of six groups: - male citizens - female citizens - the slaves - the metics - the thetes - the aristocrats also known as the nobles.
They created branches so they can all have control. Another way of creating equal power is a system of checks and balances. The three branches of government each have a way to limit the others powers. The President can check the Legislative Branch by vetoing a law. This means the President can reject a law.
SPARTA'S POLITICS During the classical period Sparta's politics were different from Athens' politics. Athens used tyranny in their government and also used a form of democracy. Sparta did not like the way tyranny worked so they produced a different form of government. The Spartans had a constitution or what they called a rhetra, which came from the Great Rhetra . The Spartans formed a very complex government mixing democracy and oligarchy, and this form of government was a model for other poleis.
Of all the great city-states (poleis) of Ancient Greece, the two most popular are Sparta and Athens. While there were advantages to be had with their respective styles of government, economics, military, and society, there were distinct disadvantages to be had as well. The Spartan form of government was that of an oligarchy; a state in which power is held by a small group. There would be five elected officials and two “kings” who inherited their positions, who made all of the decisions regarding the welfare of the state. The land-owning citizens were permitted to attend these government sessions but were not were allowed to voice their opinions.