Variations on a Theme of Empire: Comparing Mediterranean Imperial Systems in the Longue Durée

Abstract

Empires require a functional infrastructure and sustaining resources, but there are many ways in which these can be achieved, and they have implications for the stability and persistence of imperial systems. This paper will compare and contrast key aspects of Mediterranean empires. It begins with the territorial states of Mycenaean Greece, which may or may not have formed a loose federal empire, then progresses through the Early Roman Empire to that of Late Roman antiquity, the Byzantine Empire, and ends with the Early then Late Ottoman Empire. Political structure, demography and economy will be given particular attention.