Stop saying the word!!!

The thing that interests me the most in world history is the rise of empires, which we will go over in class soon. Empires play a hugely important role in world history, mainly because of their size and multicultural populations. The mixing of different ideas and cultures in these empires caused many great technological breakthroughs.

The earliest example I can think of is the Persian empire. The Reilly textbook mentions the royal road from Susa into Anatolia. This allowed for faster communication and greater control over the empire. The unofficial motto of the royal messengers of Persia was also adopted by the US postal service. The Persians also acquired coinage when they conquered the Lydians in Anatolia; coins soon spread throughout the empire along with the standard weights and measures of the empire which was a huge economic advantage over barter systems.

The Roman empire was an even greater innovator than Persia. The size of the Empire required a way to move quickly from place to place. the result of this was the extensive construction of paved roads across Europe. These roads had ditches on either side for water to run off and were so well built that they remained in use for centuries after the fall of Rome. They were also great architects, the best example of this is their extensive use of the arch. The arch made possible the construction of the great aqueducts that brought water to Roman cities and made it possible for Romans to have running water and fountains. like the roads these aqueducts outlasted the people that built them; some aqueducts still stand and bring water to European cities. Arches also can be seen in their monuments and the Colosseum. The Romans also invented concrete which enabled them to build great domes like the one in the Pantheon. Even after the fall of Rome Europeans were influenced by the memory of Rome. Great leaders like Charlemagne and Barbarossa tried to build a holy roman empire with limited success. to learn more click here

One more empire came after Rome that played an important role in Europe's history. The Islamic empire controlled everything from Spain to India. The Caliphs in Baghdad established great houses of wisdom for scholars of all faiths and ethnicity's, the best of the best came to Baghdad. The combined Knowledge of three continents lead to great breakthroughs in science and even finance. The Islamic empire was the first to use checks, a check written in Spain could be cashed in India through the Empire's advanced banking system. Arab doctors were the first to use quarantines for infectious diseases and the city of Cordoba in Spain had streetlights while the rest of the continent was in the dark ages. But more important to Europe was the fact that the Islamic Empire had preserved the classic writings of Plato Aristotle and other Philosophers; these writings would eventually return to Europe and spark the renaissance.

The crusades against this empire also changed Europe. the final reconquest of Spain by Cristian soldiers exposed Europe to Islamic architecture which influenced the Gothic cathedrals of Europe. in the holy land crusaders were exposed to soap, silk, spices and other eastern luxuries which led to trade with the far east and eventually the age of exploration. If you want to learn more abut this empire I recommend the documentary "the Golden age of Islam" which covers everything from Muhammad to the Ottomans, I watched it in my MES class.