The Axum Empire, Byzantine And Aztec Empires

The Aztec empire was located in central Mexico. In approximately 1200 A.D. is when the civilization was started. Their capital was the city called Tenochtitlan. Their economy wasn’t very good in the beginning. The Aztecs weren’t able to support themselves since their village was so small. The Aztecs did their farming in a method of agriculture called chinampa. This was a method of agriculture used throughout all of Mesoamerica. Soon their population grew began to grow. Their economy depended on the areas that were surrounding them because they still couldn’t fully support themselves. Most of the Aztec’s population were farmers and another good part of their economy depended on the extensive trade of important luxury items. Their

The post-classical era in history (600CE- 1250CE) saw the rise and fall of many great empires. In the early part of the era, the Islamic Caliphates acted as a core region in the Middle East, heavily influencing the region around them. On the other side of the world, the Aztec Empire rose to power in the later part of the era with minimal trans-regional influence. Although on different sides of the world, both empires found similar ways to adapt to their diverse environments. In the post-classical era, the rise of the Islamic Caliphates and the Aztec Empire were similar in that they established cohesion through their respective cultures and used military conquest to come to power. Although there are similarities in the rise of power in the Caliphates and the Aztec Empire, there is a difference in the speed of expansion given that the Caliphates were located in a central trading region while the Aztec Empire was not.

The Byzantine Empire was a primarily Christian empire whose reign started in 330 A.D and ended in 1453 A.D with the capturing of the its capital Constantinople by the Muslim Sultan Mehmed II. In the years following the fall of the Byzantines, many of the Christian basilicas were transformed into mosques for Islamic worship, inspiring many artists to create works that embodied their religious politics. One of the pieces created following the fall of the Byzantine Empire is Yusuf Fleeing Zulayhka, created in 1488 by Kamal al-Din Bihzad, a famous Persian painter who worked under the patronage of several Persian sultans. The illustration depicts Yusuf’s struggle to escape his master’s wife Zulaykha as she chases him through her elaborate palace in an attempt to seduce him. The representation was made using paint, ink and gold, and features jewel-like colors in order to portray the extravagancy of the palace Zulayhka has built specifically for the seduction of Yusuf (Stokstad 286).

People are born into the caste of their parents and are not allowed to cross into another one. They are also expected to marry in the same caste. The unequal distribution of money, influence, pain and suffering are seen as a natural consequence for ones previous actions, both in this life and in previous lives. Hindus can be reborn at a higher level through pure acts, good thoughts and devotion. They can also be reborn at a lower level through bad deeds. It is even possible to be reborn as an animal. Arizona State University (2004) lists the five social castes. They are: Brahmins (priests and academics); Kshatriyas (military); Vaishyas (farmers and merchants); Sudras (peasants and servants); and Harijan (outcasts or untouchables).

On my second day, I have visited Axum, in Eastern Africa. A place that in the first century CE, became the wealthiest, most influential market city on the coast of Ethiopia, it finally became a kingdom in the third century CE. I also learned from the locals there that in fourth century CE, missionaries had introduced Christianity to the city of Axum and King Ezana became the first known Christian king in all of Africa, and finally in seventh century CE, Axum has come to a close end. Arabs eventually came and conquered Adulis and cut off Axum’s Red Sea trade route. Also, Axum became successful by trading gold, glass, ivory, metal and agricultural gods with African, Mediterranean and Asia trade networks, along with the Roman Empire, Egypt, Arabia and India.

Inside any atrocious act committed by a group of people onto another for the sake of greed there’s a message they must spread to justify their actions, for the Spanish onto the Aztec it was ridding the world of heretics worshiping Gods of blood. The Aztec and Inca Empires fell with relative ease to the Spaniards due to a variety of contributing factors. Hesitate action from leadership may have played a role at least for the Aztecs as according to Hernan Cortez; Moctezuma believed that he possibly was a God. Superior weaponry such as steel based weapons/armor played a significant role, as both the Inca and Aztec empires still relied on weapons made from stone and wood. European diseases like small pox also played a heavy hand in the decimation of the native population, as the natives had no immunities to such ailments. The Spanish who arrived with very few men to fight also utilized subject people to fight on their side due primarily to the irritation of the Native Empires long dominance of them. This was mainly utilized in the Aztec Empire’s conquest as they had long sacrificed large portions of their subjects to their Gods in order to appease them. Along with sacrifices, the Aztec required large payments of goods & labor from their subjects further creating tensions.

The caste system was often used to maintain order and provided guidance for the citizen’s role in society. It also adapted to the newly arrived migrants like Turks, and Muslim merchants and established codes for behavioral to others and those in the same class. However, as merchants and manufacturers became influential in the economic state, powerful guilds grouped themselves by working within the caste system, and established themselves as jatis (“sub-castes”), specializing themselves in different types of commerce like silk, cotton, spice trade production. Although, Hinduism was embraced in southeastern area of Asia, ruling elites in Southeast Asia showed no interest in the social class of

After reading the text book about the Roman Empire. I found that the Roman Empire was divided into two parts. The Western half, ruled by Rome, fell to the tribal Germanic peoples in the 5th century. The Eastern half, known as the Byzantine Empire, until it began to decline in power, the Byzantine Empire was one of the leading civilizations in the world. The first Christian emperor became sole ruler of the Roman Empire. He set up his colony of Byzantium. The city, renamed Constantinople after its founder, It became the capital of the Byzantines after the Roman Empire was formally divided.

The term aristocracy comes from the Greek word aristos, meaning the best. Aristocracy therefore is roughly translated into meaning ‘rule by the best’ (Hooker R 1997). This encompasses the ideas of an aristocratic society. Within Plato’s book, The Republic, he outlines the basis of an aristocratic society being split into three groups. Socrates describes them as being the gold, silver and bronze or iron (Plato 380 BC). Though the gold class rules over the others it is not considered and more valuable than the others classes. Whether someone was a warrior or a blacksmith they all had a key job to uphold within society and none were considered above an others for things like status and wealth, unlike that of an oligarchic society. In an aristocracy people are placed into careers and hierarchies almost from birth, normally, but

Caste system: A social system where your occupation and position in society is based on your ancestry.

The Byzantine Empire was the successor of the Roman Empire during the time period of Late Antiquity and the Medieval Ages. The Byzantine Empire was also called Eastern Roman Empire, so this proves that it was a continuation of the Roman Empire, but they were speaking Greek, and did not forget about the Greek tradition. According to Browning, the physicians during the Byzantine Empire like Oreibasios, who was “the Emperor Julian’s physician and friend”, use the scientific and old version of Greek medicine to treat patients, and this means that medical doctors did not forget about their Greek roots. Starting from Basil I, a Byzantine Emperor between 867 and 886, the Byzantine Empire entered its Golden Age, and according to Browning, Basil I established a very good Empire time that would last two centuries with his precious energy and rules. After decades, this Golden Age began to give place to decline because, according to Browning, within the eleventh century, the attitudes and the thoughts that were primitive, spoilt, and lack of imagination of the future of the Empire began to become strong among the aristocratic society, and this began to harm Byzantine’s economic and military power. This kind of harm to the centralized government of the Byzantine Empire did not show itself as a poisonous snake till 1060 because the Empire could not function itself as usual. Therefore, the enemies of the Byzantine Empire took an advantage of this weakness. Hungarians took Belgrade

Mesoamerica was once a place filled with growing, ruthless empires and civilizations, although not one was like the Aztecs and their empire. Although they started off with a humble beginning, they quickly grew into a great civilization that dominated present day Central Mexico. They conquered and expanded into an empire stronger than the other neighboring empires. The heart of the Aztec empire, Tenochtitlan, was a grand capital filled with many people and astounding temples. The Aztecs were also ahead of their time with fully-functional government and irrigation systems. They continue to astound many historians with their diverse way of life. They impacted the way of life for many people today with their customs and ways of life. Throughout the years, the Aztecs were able to grow and prosper with their sufficient supply of agriculture and blessed fertile lands of the Mexican Valley, and demonstrated to be an important part of Mexican heritage. Because of their history, unique culture, and beautiful architecture, the Aztec Civilization truly is one of Mesoamerica’s most influential early empires.

The caste system itself is a system of social stratification, based on two concepts, varna and jati. Varna

Vedic society was divided into four different classes, Brahmans, nobles, commoners and the serfs. These classes are part of the cosmic hierarchy and were based on purity. This gave way to the caste systems. Castes are arranged in the following order of the polarity of purity; Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas and the shudras. With a fifth group called the untouchables at the very bottom. They are the untouchables because they are the most impure. The caste of an individual cannot be removed. Each caste has strict rules on caste endogamy.

What are the four major castes? What implications does the caste system have for everyday life? How does the caste system relate to Hindu ideas of spiritual life? “The four major castes of Hindu society are; seers ( brahmins ), administrators ( kshatriyas ), artisans or farmers ( vaishyas ), and followers or servants ( shudras)”( Smith 56). Smith writes, religious leaders, teachers, artists, and philosophers are members of the first caste, brahmins, khatriyas, the second caste, first known as warriors are now managers. The tillers of the land, the makers of bricks, and the builders are part of the third caste, vaishyas. The fourth caste is made up of servants, those who will take care of the other castes’ needs (56)”. While I was working in India, summer of 2001 and there at the invitation of the richest family in India and staying at one of their compounds, some of my co-workers and I were playing snooker. A young boy walked into the room where we were playing. He stopped and talked to us for a few minutes before continuing to bed. Accompanied by a man of about twenty years old, the boy’s shudra, who had been the boy’s personal servant for ten or more years. The shudra’s purpose was to protect and serve his charge’s every need. Although there is inequality between castes, Smith denotes.“ within each caste, there is equality, opportunity, and social insurance ( 57)”. Although the text