Various Empires that occurred and thrived in different historical periods provide significant knowledge of how civilizations develop. The Emperors’ activities, wars, inventions, social and political structures, cultural and religious beliefs – all impacted the modern world and humanity’s values. The Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Spanish Empires were selected to analyze their similarities, differences, and experiences to explore how the influence developed. The examples of the European ancestors are crucial to consider in identifying if the modern globalized civilization experiences similar economic, political, or environmental problems necessary to be solved (Kemp, 2019). This paper aims to compare and contrast the development and fall of the Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Spanish Empires and discuss their influence on today’s society.
The three Empires were created and thrived to decline in the European lands in different historical periods. For a millennium, the Roman Empire had reached unconditional success in civil rights, economy, politics, and military. The civilization declined within the loss of control among the governors and failure to protect the nation from external threats (Scheidel, 2019). Anglo-Saxon Empire occurred with the unity of several countries in the British Islands’ part of Europe near the sixth century. The tribes needed to increase their military and economic powers, thus the kingdoms existed together for almost 600 years until the decline (Rippon, 2018). The Spanish Empire developed and spread outside the European continent in the sixteenth century, with Portugal and Spain increased their colonizing powers (Campoy-Cubillo, 2017). Being stretched in the Americas, lacking centralized governance, and losing control in Europe quickly led Spain to decline. Nevertheless, the examples of the three Empires reveal the tendencies in social values, politics, and economy that are applicable in the modern world.
The creation of the Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Spanish Empires was caused by various reasons like economic improvement and the need for empowerment to address the external threats. Indeed, the Roman Empire started as a republic of multiple villages, unity, and centralized governance that helped citizens live in safer conditions (Gibbon, 2017). Similarly, Germanic tribes that escaped to the British Islands from the Roman rule in the fifth century connected into kingdoms (Rippon, 2018). Establishing an Empire was the best approach to decreasing the internal conflicts, reaching stability, and throwing more forces into protecting the new walls and borders. In contrast to these Empires, the Spanish formed in demand for controlling the expanded lands while conquering the American lands. Spain and Portugal increased their influence in Europe by economic enforcement that became possible with colonization (Campoy-Cubillo, 2017). The events that led to the creation of the Empires reveal that people strive to be united for addressing their basic needs in being fed and safe.
Another crucial factor in analyzing and comparing the tribes or nations’ need for unity is the cultural background. Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Spanish Empires were created by societies with similar values, traditions, and religions, while their rivals had different beliefs (Kemp, 2019). Romans and Anglo-Saxon Empires’ establishment occurred among Greek colonies’ inhabitants and the Germanic tribes, respectively, and Spain sent thousands of citizens to the discovered lands to spread their culture. Such a similarity reveals that people tend to unite with the same cultures expressed through language, religion, and morals.
The Roman Empire remains the example of the bright rise and dramatic decline, thus comparing the others’ collapse to it is suitable. The reasons for the fall of Rome were the leaders who could not keep the country united, the economic crisis, and the external threat from the Barbarian tribes (Gibbon, 2017). The democracy that thrived in the Empire turned into corruption, and the lands’ expansion made it difficult to rule and address the region’s economic needs. Likewise, the Spanish Empire experienced problems governing lands far from the capital and eventually lost its power on the American continent (Campoy-Cubillo, 2017). The similarity between the Roman and Anglo-Saxon Empires’ decline is that the kings’ power and authority decreased, leading to internal conflicts. Indeed, the factors to the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms’ collapse were the absence of royal heirs and the Conquest of 1066, which forced the nation to conquer the Normans (Rippon, 2018). The civilizations formed in the analyzed countries eventually declined to cause the Empires to fail, internal wars, and economic crises.
The similarity for the three Empires’ fall is that it was initiated by the internal crises in the economy, politics, and society. Indeed, the Roman Empire’s politics who praised democracy drowned in corruption and severely influenced all other institutions (Gibbon, 2017). Anglo-Saxons weakened their power while trying to choose the throne successor, leading to the increased threat from the Vikings and further defeat to the Normans (Rippon, 2018). The Spanish Empire eventually lost its power over colonies when the inadequate forces’ separation caused economic problems in the capital lands while the American ones remained inefficient (Campoy-Cubillo, 2017). Although the analyzed Empires existed in different times, the decline factors are relatively similar. They include the problems that the modern developed countries experience, such as corruption, governmental issues, and failure to address the economic needs adequately.
All the three empires’ influence can be noticed in modern history because the globalization trend spreads the European values worldwide. The formation of the Spanish Empire and the legacy of Anglo-Saxon culture impacted the development of the American continents, changing the economic and political landscape of the whole world. The Spanish colonization’s consequences are still visible in the affected countries with the problems like racial disparities, political and economic instability (Campoy-Cubillo, 2017). The Roman Empire’s civilization is seen as the example of diversity and democracy in the modern history-based resources, therefore many societies still apply Rome’s moral, legislative, and political practices (Gibbon, 2017). The Anglo-Saxon Empire’s influence is significant because the English language and many Christian traditions thrived in its kingdoms (Rippon, 2018). Moreover, the country was the foundation of the powerful medieval British Empire which led Europe to cultural and economic development.
Based on comparing the selected Empires and their legacies, the Roman Empire has the most significant influence on today’s society. Firstly, it was the most ancient, therefore the Anglo-Saxon and the Spanish developed on their roots and used the government and military approaches created in Rome. Secondly, the Empire’s expanse among the European lands formed the countries’ boundaries and nations’ cultures that are still actual (Scheidel, 2019). Lastly, many modern societies are built according to democracy, diversity, and equality, which were primarily promoted in the ancient Roman Empire.
The civilizations went through rising and declining stages throughout the history of humanity. How modern society operates now, what people value, and how they are being governed were developed in the Empires that occurred to achieve stability and safety. Comparing and contrasting the development and fall of the Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and Spanish Empires revealed that the factors influencing their well-being apply to modern countries. The ancestors’ experiences must be considered in today’s societies as learning the lessons and avoiding the fatal mistakes repetition are the fundamental purposes of history.
References
Campoy-Cubillo, A. (2017). Global goods and the Spanish Empire, 1492–1824: Circulation, resistance and diversity. Journal of Spanish Cultural Studies, 17(3), 315-317.
Scheidel, W. (2019). Escape from Rome: The failure of Empire and the road to prosperity (Vol. 94). Princeton University Press.
Rippon, S. (2018). Kingdom, civitas, and county: the evolution of territorial identity in the English landscape. Oxford University Press.
Gibbon, E. (2017). The decline and fall of the Roman Empire: Volume six. Sheba Blake Publishing.
Kemp, L. (2019). Are we on the road to civilization collapse?. BBC Future.