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helenS · 36-40, F
To me, the greatest empire of them all is the [u]Roman Empire[/u]. Here's why:
1. They united the Mediterranean world. They made the Mediterranean world one culture, united in diversity. (1500 years after the fall of the Roman Empire it is still not possible to travel around the Mediterranean without problems!)
2. The Empire changed over time. Nothing was static. Culture was evolving and developing all the time. Compare the culture of Late Antiquity with the culture of Julius Caesar and you know what I mean. Huge change!
3. They were open-minded (until Christianity took over). Nobody was forced to believe in a certain deity. The Roman Empire was multi-cultural.
4. The Romans accepted superior cultures. Hellenism became the de-facto philosophy, and Greek became the de-facto [i]lingua franca[/i] of the Empire, at least in its Eastern parts.
5. They were the first to develop a separation of forces. Legislative, administrative and judicial authorities were clearly separated (more or less at least).
There are more points, but I'll leave it at this. If I had a choice I would want to live in the 2nd century AD, in the Roman Empire, and study Greek geometry and astronomy.
1. They united the Mediterranean world. They made the Mediterranean world one culture, united in diversity. (1500 years after the fall of the Roman Empire it is still not possible to travel around the Mediterranean without problems!)
2. The Empire changed over time. Nothing was static. Culture was evolving and developing all the time. Compare the culture of Late Antiquity with the culture of Julius Caesar and you know what I mean. Huge change!
3. They were open-minded (until Christianity took over). Nobody was forced to believe in a certain deity. The Roman Empire was multi-cultural.
4. The Romans accepted superior cultures. Hellenism became the de-facto philosophy, and Greek became the de-facto [i]lingua franca[/i] of the Empire, at least in its Eastern parts.
5. They were the first to develop a separation of forces. Legislative, administrative and judicial authorities were clearly separated (more or less at least).
There are more points, but I'll leave it at this. If I had a choice I would want to live in the 2nd century AD, in the Roman Empire, and study Greek geometry and astronomy.