Comparing the Roman Empire and the United States of America

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“While stands the Coliseum, Rome shall stand; When falls the Coliseum, Rome shall fall; And when Rome falls - the World.” Lord Byron. This essay will discuss the similarities of military, economics and systems of government between the Roman Empire of the 6th century BCE and the United States of America of the 20th century. History has revealed that all superpowers fall eventually, although much time has passed since the glory days of Rome we see in 2015 the largest superpower in charge, the United States. There are many similarities that can be drawn between the American superpower and the Roman Empire such as the same founding of government and both dominated in military, as well as economic similarities. This leads to the conclusion that because the rise to power between the two powers was so similar, the downfall will be equally parallel.

Rome's Republican era began after the overthrow of the last Roman King Tarquin Superbus by Lucius Brutus in 509 BC(1), the Senate was ruled the by the people of Rome. The Roman Republic was governed by a largely complex constitution, which established many checks and balances, so no man could have complete control. The evolution of the constitution was heavily influenced by the struggle between the patricians and the other prominent Romans who were not from the nobility. Early in Rome’s history, the patricians controlled the republic, over time, the laws that allowed these individuals to dominate the government were repealed, and the result was the emergence of a the republic which depended on the structure of society, rather than the law, to maintain its dominance. This is similar to the creation of the American system of government. Starting with the over throw of t...

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... the fall of Rome should be a warning to the United States. In addition, because the domination of the USA happened much faster than Rome, arguably the fall may be much more swift as well.

Works Cited

1. Tim Cornell, John Matthews, Atlas of the Roman World, Facts On File Inc, 1982. (pg.216)

2.Guglielmo Ferrero, Ancient Rome and Modern America: A Comparative Study of Morals and Manners, G. P. Putnam's Sons Publishing, New York, 1914. (pg. 130-143)

3. Tom Holland, Rubicon: The Triumph and Tragedy of the Roman Republic, Abacus Publishing, 2004. (Pg. 50)

4. Suetonius, Robert Graves (translator), The Twelve Caesars, Penguin Classics, 2007. (pg. 27)

5. Lesley Adkins, Roy A Adkins, Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome, Oxford University Press, 1998. (pg. 304)

6. Lewis M. Simons, Panama’s Rite of Passage and American Trade, National Geographic, November 1999.

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