Eurasia and Americas

437 Words2 Pages
From 500 to 1500 A.D. complex empires and societies existed in Eurasia and the Americas. The empires of East Asia, the Islamic World and the World of Christendom were utilizing their trade network. In the Americas the Inca and the Aztec relied on agriculture to live. The societies and empires of the Americas had a complex political organization and culture, but in contrast to the Eurasian empires, they were much less complex. In the Americas they had a strong political organization and culture. The Inca and the Aztec had one ruler who was in charge of the whole empire. The people of the empire were forced to pay tribute in the form of labor. The leader used this to help enforce his power. This power was based off of military conquests that were used to capture neighboring lands. The culture of the Americas played a big role in society. The Aztec and Inca were both polytheistic, believing in more than one god, and believed in nature gods. The traditions and beliefs in the Americas helped to unify the strong empire. On the other hand, the political structure and culture were much more complex in the Eurasian empires. These empires had a similar structure of government to the Americas. Although the political structures were similar, the Eurasian empires had more complex bureaucracies and were more successful in their military conquests. The Eurasian empires were a lot more technologically advanced in war and had a strong military, making them more complex than the Americas. They had warriors on horseback while the Americas only had foot warriors. The American armies used their unique tactics in war but were still not as complex politically as the Eurasian empires. The culture of the Eurasian empires also helps support the point that they were more complex than the Americas. The Eurasian empires had monotheistic religions, while the Aztec and the Inca were
Open Document