Rome And China Similarities

Although Rome and China were never in direct contact, they existed simultaneously in Eurasia at the beginning of the Christian era and both had numerous similarities as well as differences. China, which lasted from 206 BC to 220 AD, and Rome, which lasted from 27 BC to 476 AD, both had similar situations in their society in terms of how they utilized theologies for their rulers and used militaries for protection against enemies. However, Rome and China had two very different views of government and political systems such as how they dealt with their problems, views on society as a whole, and religions. In the end, both empires ultimately fell due to the inability to manage such a large territory and defend such extensive borders.
In both Rome and China, the rulers used political theologies to describe and validate their rise to power. In China, the emperor was in control with power, and not one could take that power away, but the people needed another reason to convince them of it. The concept of the “Mandate of Heaven” was used to tell the people why rulers were allowed to do this. The “Mandate of Heaven” describes how an emperor and his ancestors could stay in control of power as long as he kept the kingdom happy, prosperous, and stable. If the kingdom was safe and happy, the ruler was allowed to remain in control of power because that meant the gods were content with the ruler, but if disasters were to start to occur, that signified that a new ruler needed to be in order. In Rome, the emperors would declare themselves as the “Princeps”, or the highest person among equals, and followed the Principate to maintain power over everyone else and justify their dishonest rise to power. Another similarity both civilizations shared, although they were not aware of each other’s existence, was their use of militaries and large armies to control the population and surrounding territories. They utilized these tools because the empires were so vast and diverse that they were needed to control the enemies. In Rome, their military was used to patrol the borders of the empire, maintaining “Pax Romana”, or Roman peace, which allowed for trade to bloom throughout the region. In China, men were required to serve for at least two years in the military, protecting the border, building forts, and keeping tabs on surrounding neighbors. The militaries of both empires were used as a sign of power over both enemies and citizens of the civilizations, as well as was used to prevent invasions and breaking of laws with the fear of consequences. A difference between both civilizations was how they viewed government and political control. …show more content…
The Romans and Chinese had different views on who should participate in the government and these reasons can be attributed to their society and culture. In Rome, a Senate was allowed to be elected, but only certain people could run. This gave the people the illusion that they were being included to avoid and prevent uprisings from occurring. The emperor was the only person in control and they were the ones who made all of the important decisions. China had a supreme monarch with no citizen involvement allowed within the government. This form of ruling is used to control the people, rather than allowing democracy to influence the