Introduction
The growth of ancient cities was instigated by several factors. Many cities grew as a result of exploration or conquest expeditions by famous figures who would build empires and initiate a trade with neighbouring regions. The processes of growth of the Cosmopolitan City of Alexandria, the City of Sagala, and the Caravan City of Petra were related in many aspects to the aforementioned issues (Adelman, Tignor & Aron, 2008). This essay will present coverage of how the three cities grew by specifically evaluating factors of growth and prosperity that were similar in the three cities. This will be followed by an analysis of how the factors or policies particularly contributed to the development of the three cities.
History of growth and development of the three cities
The City of Alexandria was founded by Alexander the Great in the year 332 B.C. Alexander intended to have a city that would supersede Naucratis as a prime Greek centre in Egypt. In addition, Alexandria was meant to act as a link between the resource-abundant Nile Valley and Macedonia (Adelman, Tignor & Aron, 2008). On the other hand, the ancient city of Sagala, the ancient name referring to the modern city of Sialkot, located in Pakistan, gained its status after conquest by Alexander the Great rallying together with Indians. It later flourished due to trade and rich cultures. The other city- the Caravan City of Petra was formed over 1,900 years ago as a result of the Roman conquest. The city also had rich cultures due to the intermingling of people. Thus, even today the core region of the ancient city is still referred to in Arabic as Batraa (Hansen, 1995). The similar occurrences that led to the growth and development of the three cities mentioned are discussed in the following section
Similar factors or policies that contributed to the growth of the three cities
Conquest and development of empires
The city of Alexandria, the city of Sagala, and the Caravan city of Petra were all formed as a result of conquest by individuals or groups. The growth and development of the City of Alexandria commenced when Alexander the Great visited Egypt and decided that the small port of Rhacotis in Egypt would be used as a convenient base for all operations in the Mediterranean. Rhacotis was a resort for fishermen but Alexander the Great occupied it and constituted a treatise called pseudo-Callisthenes that allowed him to conquer five other villages near lake Mareotis as well as Pharaohs, which he walled to include Rhacotis (Adelman, Tignor & Aron, 2008). There is no doubt that by building the city, Alexander achieved his mission of immortalizing his name through the city.
The city of Sagala was formed in many similar circumstances. Although it is believed that the ancient Sagala is located in Pakistan, there is evidence that the region was initially in India. A common belief among many authors is that Sagaka was initiated as a result of Alexander the Great’s conquest of India. He crossed the Ravi River and joined 5000 Indian soldiers and Porus to siege Sagala by killing its inhabitants (Lapidus, 2002).
The Caravan City of Petra or “Rock” in Latin was formed as a result of the Roman conquest. The region has originally been inhabited by Greeks and Persians, who lived in persistent conflict. Nabataean Arabs capitalized on this conflict to conquer the area before they were eventually ousted by the Romans (Lapidus, 2002).
Commerce
After the respective conquests, the three cities grew in part because of commerce. Alexandria was strategically located for business activities in the Mediterranean region. As a harbor, it provided docking facilities for a wide variety of vessels and acted as an entrepot for commerce across Eurasia (Adelman, Tignor & Aron, 2008). The city also had good roads that enabled fast movement of horses transporting goods, thus promoting trade. In the same dimension, the city of Sagala flourished because is immense trade. There was trade in Benares muslin, Kotombara stuffs as well as many other forms of clothing. Items of trade-in Sagala were not limited to clothing- there were also many sorts of perfumes and odors commonly used in Arabian cultures. Sagala was a center of gold and this promoted the early existence of a medium of exchange. Not far from this was Petra’s growth. As a city popular with transnational caravans, Petra quickly due to the commercial activities of traders (Adelman, Tignor & Aron, 2008).
Intermingling of people/diverse cultures
As cities formed by conquest activities, the three cities had diverse peoples, cultures and religions, which spurred growth in different perspectives. Alexandria was a hub of diverse cultures: there was Macedonian culture brought by Alexander himself, Greek culture, Arabic culture, and African culture near the Mediterranean. Sabala was popular for many gods as well as places of worship. On the other hand, Petra’s diversity in terms of people such as Greeks, Persians, and Romans also led to rapid development. The diverse peoples, cultures, and religions promoted the growth and development of the three cities through increased trade, the need for the creation of places of worship, and intermarriages (Lapidus, 2002).
How the factors specifically contributed to the development
Conquest missions led to the development of powerful empires that needed to sustain themselves. This sustenance could be attained through activities such as trade and the development of unique identifying structures such as gods, places of worship, kingdoms, and the creation of unique cultures. The need for self-identity led to the desire to expand the cities as places attributable to particular people.
In conclusion, although the growth and development of ancient cities were spurred by different factors, conquest by visiting individuals or groups was phenomenal in the growth of the three cities as discussed. This was augmented by the need for commerce and self-identity.
References
Adelman, J., Tignor, R. & Aron, S. (2008). Worlds Together, Worlds Apart: A History of the World: From the Beginnings of Humankind to the Present. New York: S W.W. Norton.
Hansen, M. H. (1995). Sources for the ancient Greek city-state: symposium August. Copenhagen: Danske Videnskabernes Selskab.
Lapidus, I. M. (2002). A history of Islamic societies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.