All shapes and sizes

We generally think of empires as being really big. The British Empire certainly was. It controlled around a quarter of the entire world! But many empires were actually quite small. The Akkadian Empire of Mesopotamia (2330–2200 BCE) only controlled an area about the size of South Carolina. Yet, it was a historically important empire. Empires are better measured by their power and wealth than by their size.

Developing a definition

What exactly is an empire? An empire is a political system in which a strong central state controls weaker peripheral (outer) states. Nearly any kind of state can have enough power over other states to create an empire. However, not all empires are the same. The center’s control over its peripheries can be either strong or weak. It can change over time.

The earliest known empire was the Akkadian Empire. For around 1,000 years, Mesopotamia was divided into city-states. These were small political units, in which each city controlled its surrounding area. In 2330 BCE, Sargon of Akkad took control of southern Mesopotamia. He ruled from the city of Akkad, the center of his small empire. The other city-states kept their own separate cultures. However, they became the periphery of Sargon’s empire, whether they liked it or not.

Compare this to what happened in Egypt. Between 3100 and 3000 BCE, a ruler of Upper Egypt conquered Lower Egypt. But Egypt didn’t become an empire. It became a kingdom. Upper and Lower Egypt became politically and culturally united. The people of both regions thought of themselves as “Egyptians,” rather than as citizens of a particular city or region.

In general, the drive to win greater power is what leads to empires. In Mesopotamia, city-state rulers won more power by conquering their neighbors. In China, the Qin conquered all the other kingdoms around them. They then created the first Chinese empire in 221 BCE.

So why empire?

Why would rulers want an empire in the first place? Running an empire is complicated. Empires create inequality, as peripheral peoples are not given the same rights as people in the center. Often, peripheral peoples are oppressed. That leads to rebellions that need to be put down. Keeping the periphery under control is expensive. Empires need to be worth the high cost.

There is no single reason empires existed. In the case of Mesopotamia, empire was a solution to a problem. The region lacked hard wood, stone, metal ore, and other important resources. True, these things could be gotten through trade. However, conquering regions with these resources was easier. It gave the empire a cheaper and more dependable supply.

For other empires, the main goal wasn’t resources. Sometimes, the goal was safety. Other times it was riches. Rome first expanded out of Italy because it feared the states that surrounded it. The Romans decided to attack and defeat these neighboring states before they could hurt Rome. As their empire grew, resources such as grain, ore, and slaves flowed into Rome. This made the Roman Empire immensely rich.

Center vs. Periphery

The relationship between center and periphery is defined by inequality. The center considers itself superior. This provides an excuse for the center’s control of the periphery. Inequality is often reinforced through laws. People living in the periphery usually do not have the same rights as those in the center.

Peripheral peoples are generally not seen as true citizens. Therefore, the laws do not protect them. Roman governors were allowed to rob, beat, and even kill peripheral peoples. China’s Han Empire also mistreated its peripheral peoples.

Challenges to empire

Running an empire is not easy. The earliest Mesopotamian empires fell apart fairly quickly. Their rulers didn’t yet know how to run an empire. Ruling and feeding millions was no easy trick. Nor was defending an empire against its enemies. There was a lot for rulers to learn.

Then there is the periphery problem. We’ve mentioned how the strong center often oppresses the weak outsiders. But when the periphery is strong, it’s difficult for the center to control it. Each time an Akkadian Emperor died, the new emperor faced uprisings in the periphery.

Nomadic peoples living beyond an empire’s borders could also be a problem. These wandering groups did not live permanently in any one place. They needed resources from the empire. However, they were generally treated as “barbarians.” They often had to attack the empire to get anything.

Another problem empires can face is becoming too large. As empires grow, controlling the periphery becomes harder. People living far from the center generally do not feel very connected to the empire. Large armies are needed to stop them from breaking away. Another problem is that as an empire expands, so do its borders. Longer borders cost more to defend against outsiders. The Roman Empire struggled to protect its very long borders against invaders. So did the Han Empire.

Conclusion

Empires have formed across the world throughout history. The earliest were short-lived. Over time, empires became better at holding on to their control over other people. But running an empire is expensive. When empires fall, it is usually because they can no longer pay the necessary costs.