How Did the Greeks, Romans and Han Chinese Deal with a Lack of Technology, Upholding Armies, and Maintaining Bureacracies?

The classical societies of the Greeks, Romans and Hans all had to deal with the same four issues. They faced administering large territories without advanced technology, military challenges, maintenance of bureaucracies and armies and equitable land distribution. Despite the societies facing similar problems, they each dealt with them in their own unique way.

The Greeks faced a problem when it came to administering their territory. Not only was Greece isolated by mountains which caused different rates of growth among societies, but also their civilization consisted of separate communities scattered throughout the peninsula and the numerous Aegean islands. The Greeks dealt with this by dividing into city-states called poleis. Dividing the territory allowed for a very strong allegiance to form among its citizens, making its people have a sense of responsibility in regards to guiding their poleis. Another way that the Greeks administered their territory was by allowing each city-state to set up its own form of government. Most were oligarchies; however Athens introduced an early form of democracy.

The Greeks also faced military challenges. Athens and Sparta were neighbored by the powerful Persians and in the face of battles where they were largely outnumbered developed tactics to overpower the Persians. At the Battle of Marathon, the Greeks weakened the center of their line, strengthened the two sides, and outflanked the Persians. The Greeks also took a running start when facing the Persians which threw them off guard. While these were not technological advances, these changes the Greeks made in the way they fought allowed them to be victorious against their enemies. The Greek phalanx, siege towers, and catapults were all ways that the Greeks dealt with military challenges.

Maintaining bureaucracies and armies in Greece was another problem that the Greeks faced. The Greeks maintained bureaucracy because of the strengths of their city-states. Because each city-state was allowed to create its own form of government, they were all run differently. Athens developed the earliest form of democracy and divided the citizens into groups based on their wealth. An Athenian aristocrat, Solon, helped develop this system. Based on the wealth of the citizen they could hold different positions in the government. Solon's reforms were refined by a nobleman Cleisthenes and led Athens into direct democracy. However, Sparta was a military state that kept authority in the hands of the elders. The first step in maintaining the armies was taken when the Greeks realized that their best chance of protecting themselves against the Persians would be to control the Aegean Sea. This is when the creation of the Delian League occurred. The Delian League was a defensive league where the members would contribute money in order to maintain a fleet large enough to defend all who were involved. Another way that the Greeks maintained their armies was demonstrated in Athens. The city-state of Athens was very strong during the Persian Wars, and they organized their armies. The elected strategoi were citizens who were officials that commanded the tribal armies. The Greeks maintained their bureaucracies and armies through strong city states and organized armies and leagues.

The Greeks had also had to deal with equitable land distribution. Because the Greeks founded the colonies as independent states there was never a need for the government to get involved to distribute the land. However, upon the death of Alexander the Great, his successors did not wait to be instructed in regards to distributing the land, but instead took over the regions for themselves. This resulted in the development of three kingdoms the Seleucid, the Ptolemaic and the Antigonid.

The second classical society was the Romans. They Romans also faced a problem when it came to administering their territory. The Romans called their form of government a republic. They believed that the power belonged to the people that assembled and that magistrates were responsible for serving the state. The problem with the republic was that there was a struggle of orders. The poor were oppressed, abused and enslaved by the rich, and the rich plebeians wanted to participate in the government. The Greeks solved this by creating a Tribal Assembly which became the principal legislative body. In the Pax Romana, Julius Caesars adopted son, Octavian (later known as Augustus) established a government that was called the prinicpate. It was run by many, but in order to administer to an empire Augustus kept authority for himself.

The military challenges faced by the Romans were dealt with by the formation of strong armies. The republic developed a very strong, loyal, strict army that legally bound themselves to fight, and the principate established a military dictatorship.

When it came to maintaining bureaucracies and armies the Romans faced challenges. During the republic, the Triabal Assembly which was the ultimate law making body helped to maintain the bureaucracy. The laws passed by this assembly did not need Senate approval. This led to the development of three social classes that included the patricians, wealthy plebeians and the poor plebeians. The bureaucracy was also maintained in the republic because the rich and poor both had a voice. The bureaucracy in the Pax Romana was maintained through continued use of the Senate to take over elections and maintain provinces and the creation of the position entitled princeps. The princeps was the citizen whom everyone relied on. It was more difficult to maintain the armies of the Republic, because the Romans had a hunger for land and dominated the Italian peninsula; however the army they did have was incredibly organized. The soldiers of the republic were extremely loyal men who took oaths that would bind themselves to the army until the war was over or until they died. They were extremely disciplined and were led by strict commanders, ultimately maintaining the army. The Romans maintained the armies in the Pax Romana through the princeps who controlled the army. Also under a new ruler, Septimius, the principate became a military dictatorship. The army was increased in size and the soldiers were paid more.

The Roman republic dealt with equitable land distribution very well. They fought many territorial wars, and they successfully expanded. The people the Romans conquered were allowed autonomy in their territories and only had to supply troops for Rome's armies. Many who were conquered only had to give up territory so Rome could add more colonies because of its quest for land. The Pax Romana held a lot of imperial power. To deal with equitable land distribution was difficult because the borders of the lands had to be guarded, and these lands were far away. The Romans solved this problem by giving land to veterans and providing them with amenities, that allowed the distances separating the colonies to be erased.

The third classical society was the Han Chinese, and they also dealt with administering large territories without advanced technology. The leader of the early Han dynasty Gao Zu did this by attempting to consolidate his centralized power through diplomacy and force. Also, the later Han period had to deal with administering large territories. The leader Guang Wu Di who was a firm ruler who helped restore stability following the Red Eyebrows revolt, helped with administering large territories.

The military challenges the Han Chinese faced were dealt with by the use of shields and pikes and new organization. They began to keep a garrison on duty at all times, and the Great Wall had a permanent defense. They also used smoke signals to communicate and indicate emergency's, and police dogs were used. They also manufactured weapons such as arrows, and made bricks to keep the Great Wall in top condition.

The Han Chinese also dealt with maintaining bureaucracies and armies. The Han maintained bureaucracy by having an emperor who was all powerful. If an emperor was weak, or gained the position as a child people fought for the title. Bureaucracy was also maintained through the empress dowager. This was the wife of the emperor whose child was heir to the thrown, the empress dowager held a great amount of power and helped maintain control. The Han maintained armies by keeping them organized and providing them with weapons, and encouraging them to protect the Great Wall, which they extended all the way to the branches of the Silk Road.

When it came to equitable land distribution the Han's had a similar system as the Romans did. The Han's had government sponsored land where veterans lived. In return this land was located along the Great Wall in order to protect it. In the later Han period, the first three emperors expanded outwardly. To please the ex-nomads and the mountaineers that felt they were being exploited by the Chinese expansion they tried to change their land into military territories , and eventually administrative circuits, so they would be like the rest of China. The later Han period did not deal with equitable land distribution as well, because they essentially only wanted to turn those whose land they took into farm land so they could tax them and make money.

The Greeks, Romans, and the Hans all had similarities. The Greeks and Romans struggled not only because of their size but because of their geography, and the Hans and Romans both attempted to distribute land the same way. All three societies also developed new weapons and fighting tactics in the time of war. The three societies also all had differences. Their governments were different and their armies were administered differently.

These societies shared so much yet differed so much, because while they faced the same four problems that made them similar, they all looked at the problems and solved them from different aspects ultimately making them different. The societies could not deal with the all the issues in the same manner, because each classical society was being led by different rulers who had different goals in mind for the outcome of his empire.