Empires

[RuralMisanthrope]

Okay, so I searched the forums and I didn't find a thread specifically about this, so here we go. My first new thread, yay me! My question is this:

Has there ever been a truly great empire? Now, by that I mean has there ever been a period of history where a country has started expanding and only good things happened and everything then got better? I've been thinking about it and I don't think there has been. There's always death, horror, usually slavery, prolonged wars, genocides and other nastiness involved. Us kindly Brits were horrible bastards at the best of times, and particularly so during the Imperial days.

So yeah, discuss, providing examples, diagrams and jokes where necessary.

 

[Cherry Cola]

Alexander the Great had a fucking awesome empire!

 

[Curtmiester]

There is ALWAYS death, horror, slavery, wars, and other kinds of great fun. Empire or no.
That said I am grateful for the British one. Being Canadian and all.

 

[Jedoro]

Well, for it to be TRULY great, it couldn't be an empire, since the people don't choose the emperor.

 

[LeonLethality]

Alexander the Great had a fucking awesome empire!

Seconded, also STOP BEING IN THE FIRST 5 POSTS OF EVERY THREAD!

 

[joschen]

SPQR? The empire of rome?

 

[Cherry Cola]

Alexander the Great had a fucking awesome empire!

Seconded, also STOP BEING IN THE FIRST 5 POSTS OF EVERY THREAD!

YOU WILL NOW SUFFER A SEIZURE IN 3...2..1.. GO!

I love my avatar.

 

[orangebandguy]

I'd have to say my own country's empire.

The British Empire.

An empire built on tea, crumpets, top hats and monocles.

Pip pip, cheerio and whatnot.

 

[Nwabudike Morgan]

Well, there has been a China for the past 5000 years, so that has to count for something.

 

[APPCRASH]

Alexander the Great had a fucking awesome empire!

Yes, awesome, until he died a few years later. Boy, did that crumble fast.

As for long period empires, the Roman had a nice golden age for a few centuries before shit started sliding down hill. America has had a few rough times but seems to always pop out on top. China, maybe?

I'd put my money on the old Persian Empire. They had the largest sum of land, and held it, and added a lot in terms of culture and tech.

 

[Xpwn3ntial]

There is ALWAYS death, horror, slavery, wars, and other kinds of great fun. Empire or no.
That said I am grateful for the British one. Being Canadian and all.

As am I, being an American.

 

[Cherry Cola]

Alexander the Great had a fucking awesome empire!

Yes, awesome, until he died a few years later. Boy, did that crumble fast.

As for long period empires, the Roman had a nice golden age for a few centuries before shit started sliding down hill. America has had a few rough times but seems to always pop out on top. China, maybe?

I'd put my money on the old Persian Empire. They had the largest sum of land, and held it, and added a lot in terms of culture and tech.

Well, when he died it wasn't really his empire anymore. So I still think I am right.

 

[APPCRASH]

Alexander the Great had a fucking awesome empire!

Yes, awesome, until he died a few years later. Boy, did that crumble fast.

As for long period empires, the Roman had a nice golden age for a few centuries before shit started sliding down hill. America has had a few rough times but seems to always pop out on top. China, maybe?

I'd put my money on the old Persian Empire. They had the largest sum of land, and held it, and added a lot in terms of culture and tech.

Well, when he died it wasn't really his empire anymore. So I still think I am right.

An empire that can't withstand the death of it's leader for more than a few years doesn't sound very structurally sound.

 

[Cherry Cola]

Alexander the Great had a fucking awesome empire!

Yes, awesome, until he died a few years later. Boy, did that crumble fast.

As for long period empires, the Roman had a nice golden age for a few centuries before shit started sliding down hill. America has had a few rough times but seems to always pop out on top. China, maybe?

I'd put my money on the old Persian Empire. They had the largest sum of land, and held it, and added a lot in terms of culture and tech.

Well, when he died it wasn't really his empire anymore. So I still think I am right.

An empire that can't withstand the death of it's leader for more than a few years doesn't sound very structurally sound.

It crumbled due to having bad leaders after Alexander. So I say that Alexanders ideology of ruling an empire makes it the best.

 

[Shru1kan]

The Khan Empire was the largest in history, spanning most of the Eurasian landmass.

Too bag Genghis died. Most great empires fall with their leader.

 

[AWC Viper]

The Mongol Empire Ruled by Genghis Kahn (spelling?) was pretty large, followed by the Roman and then Alexander the Greats.

MODERN: the British Empire was quite large in the day followed by the French.

 

[ReincarnatedFTP]

No.

Empires are built on conquest, and the exploitation and pain of others. There's really no way around it. If resources are denied to you, you fuck the foreigners up and take it anyway. You keep the masses down, by any means possible until things start to crumble.

That's just how it works.

All countries/nations/states that have committed horrible things aren't empires. But all empires have done horrible things.

Not to say they didn't have unintended consequences that could have been for the better, but they're based on greed or, worse because they don't even realize what they're doing, the arrogance that everyone will be better under your rule.

 

[ElephantGuts]

I'd have to nominate Rome, for almost unquestionably being the most advanced civilization in its time (in the Western world anyway), and effectively ruling over and perhaps even uniting so many different cultures and lands for such a long period of time.

 

[Delta 088]

Hmmm... The greatest empires I can think of are:

- Alexander the Great's (fell apart under poor leadership)

- Roman Empire (fell apart under poor leadership and civil wars)

- Mongolian Empire (expanded too quickly, then contracted under poor leadership after Ghengis Khan died)

- Chinese Empire (one of the longest lived empires in history, fell to revolutionaries)

- British Empire (members all decided to become republics/federate, the Commonwealth was set up as a twilight organization)

- Empire of Japan (didn't really have too much territory for it's self originally, then was crippled after WWII. As a side note, the Japanese Emperor is the only sovereign to still have a title that translates directly into "Emperor" in English.)

- Mayan/Aztec empires (crushed by the Spanish when they settled in the Americas)

So no, there aren't really any empires that have come along happily. All of them have had civil wars, and then been fragmented by poor leadership or cultural revolutions. The closest you would get is either the Chinese Empire or the Roman Empire.