Chapter 6: Barbarians at the Gate (0-250)
Questions
1. For the entire chapter: Draw a mental map. Reconstruct how the major powers interacted
and how especially Eurasia grew more connected.
The different major powers of Eurasia around the first two and half centuries CE were all in contact
with each other, each of them pursuing their own interests. Whether it was about trade, fertile land
or expansion, the fact stands that Eurasia grew more connected than ever before.
Rome and Parthia: Rome saw Parthia (an empire between the Euphrates and the Hindu Kush) as its
most significant opponent and Roman historians have described the world as divided between the
Roman empire Roman Empire Han Empire Kushan Empire Parthia Kingdom of Armenia (bufferstate)
Independent Kingdoms (coast) of India + IndoGagnetic plain Xiongnu and Parthia. They tried to
maintain peace, but to no avail. Initially, Rome’s territorial ambitions stopped at the Euphrates
border, but emperor Trajan crossed it in 115. Besides the territorial issues, there was also some
conflict over the kingdom of Armenia, which operated as a buffer state. After the death of the
emperor Trajan, they backed away under Hadrianus, but returned trying to conquer Parthia under
Septimus Severus and Caracalla. This went on until Parthia fell apart into a small vasal Kingdom,
which would later evolve into the Sassanian Empire.
Parthia: Although weakening, Parthia remained an important trading hub between the
Mediterranean and Asia. Specialized trade (each region special for something) could possibly smooth
political relations. In reality, it was not so peaceful. Parthia tried to protect its position as gatekeeper
of Asian commerce and its monopoly on the silk road. Rome also combatted Parthian monopoly on
trade by annexing important trade hubs and promoting maritime trade via the red sea. This also
sparked some interest from the Han empire.
Kushan Empire and India: On the same time, at the coast of India, independent city states and parts
of smaller kingdoms with ports connected by rivers to the hinterland, began to trade with the roman
empire. The hinterland of India and central Asia was still dominated by war and conflict which the
Kushan empire of Luezi used to their advantages to expand. They conquered kingdoms of Indo-
Gangetic plain one by one. Romans may have believed that there were only two large empires
(Parthia and Rome) but Kushan emperors regarded themselves as equal. Its richness and strength
came from an immense trading surplus with other empires and kingdoms. Most of this was realized
by constant war with other empires for fertile land and trade (e.g. green valleys of eastern Zagros
mountains with Parthia). Even without the Kushan empire, south Asia, central Asia, the middle east,
the Mediterranean and China remained more connected than ever.
China/Han empire: In the east China Plain, the relative stability and peace under the Pax Sinica of the
Eastern Han Empire contributed to a good atmosphere for trade and travel. Towards the late 2nd
century internal turmoil and war against the Xiongnu and the nomadic Qiang lead inevitable to the
demise of the Han empire and the closing of the Jade Gate. This meant the end of an era of
flourishing trade with China.
Both the Pax Romana and the Pax Sinica were strong factors in stimulating long distance travel and
trade in Eurasian History. Trade, culture and travel brought Eurasia closer together than ever before,
due to the fact that the east became interested in the west and the west in the east. Kushan Empire
and Parthia both functioned as important gatekeepers in this exchange. Trade and travel caused
immense diplomatic relations, but there was still more war than discussion, because the more trade
travelled down the silk road, the more competition over monopolies and trading hubs.
, 2. For the entire chapter: Compare the Pax-Sinica and the Pax-Romana. Compare how the
empires dealt with neighbouring people. How did the internal social and political situation
affect their power?
The Pax Romana is a period of Roman peace. At the end of the Roman empire, the dynasty was kept
together by the superior organisation and mobility of its armed forces on land and at sea, as well as
by the immense lure of trade. Italy, the heart of the empire, enjoyed a period of stability known as
the Pax Romana. Augustus believed that: peace is only born out of military victory. Rome was
entering a period of prosperity tanks to its military success. And Augustus made sure that the
Romans continued to regard themselves as the chosen people. Augustus had a record of number of
Colonies, he encouraged young men and veterans to try their luck elsewhere in the empire, there
was distribution of wheat, he built more temples, etc. At the same time, Virgil described punitive
campaigns against those who opposed the establishment of the Pax Romana. Leaders of defeated
tribes were forced to prostate themselves in submission. In return for clemency, they paid an
indemnity and regular tax, accepting Roman Law, and often surrendered their children as hostages.
Beyond the empire, Augustus sought to stabilize relations with foreign powers, he negotiated a
peace with Parthians. Augustus’ strategy, to deal with his neighbouring people, was one of
moderation: he combined hardness and softness, conciliation and repression. August sought to
stabilize relations with foreign powers. So Rome dealt with neighbouring people by using expansion
as its defence (in the south as far as the Sahara, in the east as far as Mesopotamia, and in the north
along the shores of the Black Sea, the Danube, and the Rhine and the fringes of the Scottish
Highlands). It’s power dependent on the control of agriculture and trade around the Mediterranean.
Yet, at the same time he fierce punitive campaigns against those who opposite the establishment of
the Pax Romana. The emperor took the emperor took the important decisions himself; the senate
handles what was left. But the peace was shaky (the Roman legions had not a lot of rest)
The Pax Sinica is a period of peace in East Asia, under leadership of the Han Dynasty in China. After
the fall of the Qin dynasty and the rise of the Han Empire, the Hans decided to reform the empire.
After the death of emperor Ai of Han, the empire collapsed into turmoil over succession that fed into
the bitter resentments of poor farmers. A military commander, Wang Mang, made a particular bid to
win over the masses. The reforms he proposed were sweeping (he outlawed slavery, nationalized
farmland, and embarked on infrastructure work) but his radical reforms were halted by floods,
famine etc. Meanwhile Liu Xiu turned the chaos to his own advantage. He displayed remarkable
military leadership to achieve the victory that won him most of the North China Plain. In 25 BE, he
proclaimed of a restored Han Dynasty and called himself Guangwu. His first strategy was to Disarm
Chinse society and so make civil war more difficult. And second due to the socio-political situation of
the empire, they were incapable of maintaining such a great army. They decreased the number of
soldiers to spend those resources on social reforms. The Han empire kept the diplomatic tools of
pinning barbarians up against each other because they had not enough warriors to defend all their
borders. This period seems a period of prosperity and stability but it was not. The social unrest in the
empire, due to periodization of the elite of the empire led to unrest. Those unrest would also have an
influence on the foreign policy of China, where at the end, that switched to an isolationist policy.
Imperialism initially brought security to the heartland, but subsequently caused destabilizing
inequality and decadence in the elite. Under emperor Ming and Zhang, China lived through a golden
age with internal stability and low taxation. New manifesto for governance based on Confucian
principle
Domestically, the power of the emperor was consolidated following the devastation of the feudal
system. The Rule of Zhang were periods of societal stability and economic prosperity. Externally,
Questions
1. For the entire chapter: Draw a mental map. Reconstruct how the major powers interacted
and how especially Eurasia grew more connected.
The different major powers of Eurasia around the first two and half centuries CE were all in contact
with each other, each of them pursuing their own interests. Whether it was about trade, fertile land
or expansion, the fact stands that Eurasia grew more connected than ever before.
Rome and Parthia: Rome saw Parthia (an empire between the Euphrates and the Hindu Kush) as its
most significant opponent and Roman historians have described the world as divided between the
Roman empire Roman Empire Han Empire Kushan Empire Parthia Kingdom of Armenia (bufferstate)
Independent Kingdoms (coast) of India + IndoGagnetic plain Xiongnu and Parthia. They tried to
maintain peace, but to no avail. Initially, Rome’s territorial ambitions stopped at the Euphrates
border, but emperor Trajan crossed it in 115. Besides the territorial issues, there was also some
conflict over the kingdom of Armenia, which operated as a buffer state. After the death of the
emperor Trajan, they backed away under Hadrianus, but returned trying to conquer Parthia under
Septimus Severus and Caracalla. This went on until Parthia fell apart into a small vasal Kingdom,
which would later evolve into the Sassanian Empire.
Parthia: Although weakening, Parthia remained an important trading hub between the
Mediterranean and Asia. Specialized trade (each region special for something) could possibly smooth
political relations. In reality, it was not so peaceful. Parthia tried to protect its position as gatekeeper
of Asian commerce and its monopoly on the silk road. Rome also combatted Parthian monopoly on
trade by annexing important trade hubs and promoting maritime trade via the red sea. This also
sparked some interest from the Han empire.
Kushan Empire and India: On the same time, at the coast of India, independent city states and parts
of smaller kingdoms with ports connected by rivers to the hinterland, began to trade with the roman
empire. The hinterland of India and central Asia was still dominated by war and conflict which the
Kushan empire of Luezi used to their advantages to expand. They conquered kingdoms of Indo-
Gangetic plain one by one. Romans may have believed that there were only two large empires
(Parthia and Rome) but Kushan emperors regarded themselves as equal. Its richness and strength
came from an immense trading surplus with other empires and kingdoms. Most of this was realized
by constant war with other empires for fertile land and trade (e.g. green valleys of eastern Zagros
mountains with Parthia). Even without the Kushan empire, south Asia, central Asia, the middle east,
the Mediterranean and China remained more connected than ever.
China/Han empire: In the east China Plain, the relative stability and peace under the Pax Sinica of the
Eastern Han Empire contributed to a good atmosphere for trade and travel. Towards the late 2nd
century internal turmoil and war against the Xiongnu and the nomadic Qiang lead inevitable to the
demise of the Han empire and the closing of the Jade Gate. This meant the end of an era of
flourishing trade with China.
Both the Pax Romana and the Pax Sinica were strong factors in stimulating long distance travel and
trade in Eurasian History. Trade, culture and travel brought Eurasia closer together than ever before,
due to the fact that the east became interested in the west and the west in the east. Kushan Empire
and Parthia both functioned as important gatekeepers in this exchange. Trade and travel caused
immense diplomatic relations, but there was still more war than discussion, because the more trade
travelled down the silk road, the more competition over monopolies and trading hubs.
, 2. For the entire chapter: Compare the Pax-Sinica and the Pax-Romana. Compare how the
empires dealt with neighbouring people. How did the internal social and political situation
affect their power?
The Pax Romana is a period of Roman peace. At the end of the Roman empire, the dynasty was kept
together by the superior organisation and mobility of its armed forces on land and at sea, as well as
by the immense lure of trade. Italy, the heart of the empire, enjoyed a period of stability known as
the Pax Romana. Augustus believed that: peace is only born out of military victory. Rome was
entering a period of prosperity tanks to its military success. And Augustus made sure that the
Romans continued to regard themselves as the chosen people. Augustus had a record of number of
Colonies, he encouraged young men and veterans to try their luck elsewhere in the empire, there
was distribution of wheat, he built more temples, etc. At the same time, Virgil described punitive
campaigns against those who opposed the establishment of the Pax Romana. Leaders of defeated
tribes were forced to prostate themselves in submission. In return for clemency, they paid an
indemnity and regular tax, accepting Roman Law, and often surrendered their children as hostages.
Beyond the empire, Augustus sought to stabilize relations with foreign powers, he negotiated a
peace with Parthians. Augustus’ strategy, to deal with his neighbouring people, was one of
moderation: he combined hardness and softness, conciliation and repression. August sought to
stabilize relations with foreign powers. So Rome dealt with neighbouring people by using expansion
as its defence (in the south as far as the Sahara, in the east as far as Mesopotamia, and in the north
along the shores of the Black Sea, the Danube, and the Rhine and the fringes of the Scottish
Highlands). It’s power dependent on the control of agriculture and trade around the Mediterranean.
Yet, at the same time he fierce punitive campaigns against those who opposite the establishment of
the Pax Romana. The emperor took the emperor took the important decisions himself; the senate
handles what was left. But the peace was shaky (the Roman legions had not a lot of rest)
The Pax Sinica is a period of peace in East Asia, under leadership of the Han Dynasty in China. After
the fall of the Qin dynasty and the rise of the Han Empire, the Hans decided to reform the empire.
After the death of emperor Ai of Han, the empire collapsed into turmoil over succession that fed into
the bitter resentments of poor farmers. A military commander, Wang Mang, made a particular bid to
win over the masses. The reforms he proposed were sweeping (he outlawed slavery, nationalized
farmland, and embarked on infrastructure work) but his radical reforms were halted by floods,
famine etc. Meanwhile Liu Xiu turned the chaos to his own advantage. He displayed remarkable
military leadership to achieve the victory that won him most of the North China Plain. In 25 BE, he
proclaimed of a restored Han Dynasty and called himself Guangwu. His first strategy was to Disarm
Chinse society and so make civil war more difficult. And second due to the socio-political situation of
the empire, they were incapable of maintaining such a great army. They decreased the number of
soldiers to spend those resources on social reforms. The Han empire kept the diplomatic tools of
pinning barbarians up against each other because they had not enough warriors to defend all their
borders. This period seems a period of prosperity and stability but it was not. The social unrest in the
empire, due to periodization of the elite of the empire led to unrest. Those unrest would also have an
influence on the foreign policy of China, where at the end, that switched to an isolationist policy.
Imperialism initially brought security to the heartland, but subsequently caused destabilizing
inequality and decadence in the elite. Under emperor Ming and Zhang, China lived through a golden
age with internal stability and low taxation. New manifesto for governance based on Confucian
principle
Domestically, the power of the emperor was consolidated following the devastation of the feudal
system. The Rule of Zhang were periods of societal stability and economic prosperity. Externally,
