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Census Greatest Empire in history

Discussion in 'Community' started by Ender Sai, Oct 1, 2015.

?

Imperialism is good, Darth Guy, stop it.

  1. The Roman/Holy Roman Empire

    36.4%
  2. Persian

    2.3%
  3. Ottoman

    2.3%
  4. Mongol

    9.1%
  5. Han Dynasty

    2.3%
  6. The Russian Empire (no, not the USSR...)

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  7. THE BRITISH EMPIRE

    45.5%
  8. French Empire

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  9. Austro-Hungarian (I'm kidding guys, relax)

    2.3%
  1. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    I mean, we know the real answer, I just want to see how many of you are wrong.

    EDIT: And in before Darth "Killjoy" Guy comes in to make a sad post about imperialism being bad.
     
    Ezio Skywalker likes this.
  2. Darth Guy

    Darth Guy Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Aug 16, 2002
    You're conflating the Roman Empire with those German posers? Constantinople would like a word. Rome continued for 1,000 years after the West fell!

    [​IMG]



    Also, imperialism is bad.
     
    MrZAP, Abadacus, harpua and 8 others like this.
  3. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    Imperialism was bloody tops.

    And I happen to know that it will drive Iello mad, Even. My god man, do I have to spell everything out for you? I didn't even segregate the various stages of the French Empire out! It will be like nails on a bloody chalkboard for him!
     
  4. Coruscant

    Coruscant Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Feb 15, 2004
    [face_flag][face_flag][face_flag][face_flag][face_flag] REPUBLIC OF AMERICA!!!! [face_flag][face_flag][face_flag][face_flag][face_flag]

    BANE OF EVERY EMPIRE EVER! **** YOU, ENDER, YEAAAAAHHHHH!!!! HAVE SOME FREEDOM YOU ANGLOFETISHIZER
     
  5. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    I would argue that America's more of a hegemony than an actual empire, Cor. But thank you for selecting the deliberately absent "Other" option. Murican educayshun at its finest.
     
    PRENNTACULAR likes this.
  6. Coruscant

    Coruscant Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Feb 15, 2004
    I would argue that America's more of a hegemony than an actual empire, Cor.

    When you say "bane of every Empire" - I mean, come on now. Your so called independence heroes were just pawns on the chessboard of empires. Proxies for the Frogs. Your entire nationhood has a very faint odour, like garlic and d'affinois.

    D'AFFINOIS? I DIDN'T KNOW YOU WERE FRENCH HAHAHA
     
  7. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    I will fight you.
     
  8. Coruscant

    Coruscant Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Feb 15, 2004
    AT DAWN... I BRING MY [face_flag][face_flag][face_flag] GUNS[face_flag][face_flag][face_flag] , YOU BRING YOUR SHARPEST NAILS, FRENCHIE
     
  9. GrandAdmiralJello

    GrandAdmiralJello Comms Admin ❉ Moderator Communitatis Litterarumque star 10 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Nov 28, 2000

    I WAS JUST ABOUT TO POST AN ANGRY RANT TOO HOW DARE YOU PLAY ME LIKE NERO'S FIDDLE*


    *HE DID NOT ACTUALLY HAVE A FIDDLE
     
  10. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    So vote for the one you know was best. Do it for Victory.

    EDIT: I see Jabba#1 went for a very solid, sensible choice in the form of the Han Dynasty. Unified China, big achievement. Well played.

    I think the scope of the Mongol empire has to be considered, but the cost is a bit high for me to vote for it.
     
  11. solojones

    solojones Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 27, 2000
    I wouldn't say the Mongols were the greatest in terms of ethics (though in fairness they weren't much worse than anyone else in their time period, and at least they let people keep their cultural and religious traditions).

    However, I do think the Mongol Empire was the most impressive. Their military was possibly the greatest land army in history until the widespread use of firearms.

    I mean, it only took them 50 years to take over this much of the world (aka the vast majority of populated areas and cities at the time):

    [​IMG]


    But in terms of overall best for the world... Tough one. There are good cases for British, Roman, and Han. But I had to go for Persian. Particularly the Achaemenid Dynasty, who added a tremendous amount to the world in terms of culture and knowledge.
     
  12. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    I'm sorry, the Mongols weren't any worse or that much worse?

    The siege of Baghdad alone would beg to differ! It was wholesale butchery, nothing more. We tend to romanticise or justify Temujin's actions, but he was a barbarian in every sense of the word.
     
  13. GrandAdmiralJello

    GrandAdmiralJello Comms Admin ❉ Moderator Communitatis Litterarumque star 10 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Nov 28, 2000
    The Mongol Empire was more theoretical than real on that map, anyway. And the Mongols were barbaric and monstrous even by contemporary standards, and even by the standards of antiquity.

    Went with the only valid answer, which was Roman. The Persians were cool and all, but Achaemenid rule was rather brief. That said, they were pretty cool -- building on the Assyrians, Neo-Babylonians, and Medes to create something unique and interesting. Certainly their system was very compelling and influenced that crossroads of east and west for... like ever.
     
  14. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    <snicker>

    You mean the Roman/Holy Roman empire?

    [​IMG]
     
    The_Four_Dot_Elipsis likes this.
  15. GrandAdmiralJello

    GrandAdmiralJello Comms Admin ❉ Moderator Communitatis Litterarumque star 10 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Nov 28, 2000
    The trick's on you! By combining them together you've created a monster that is the most influential entity in history.
     
  16. solojones

    solojones Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 27, 2000
    I mean, basically all I said was "they deserve credit for having an incredible army". As you can see, I didn't vote for them. I don't have any romantic ideas about the Mongols, I just think it's worth noting that they not only had great prowess, they also had several incredible generals.

    And yeah, what they did to Baghdad was absolutely awful. Again, I'm just saying they deserve more military credit than they get. They didn't just overwhelm their enemies. They were smart, strategic, and able to conquer in some cases even with inferior numbers. And part of their strategy with complete destruction was to encourage other cities and Empires to either surrender or agree to form trade alliances. These weren't the simple barbarians we sometimes think of. The fact is they were very smart. Some of their most famous generals were former rivals whose potential they realized and brought on-board. They only cared about how helpful you could be to them, not what your lineage was or what your culture was like. They weren't just about brute strength.

    And the reason I say they weren't that much worse is that there were plenty of armies of their day that would have done exactly what the Mongols did if they could have. The practice of utterly decimating a city was common, it just didn't normally happen to cities of the size that the Mongols were able to somehow overtake. I still said the Mongols were worse than others of their time.

    Still, it doesn't make the Mongol practice of total warfare any better or wiser. They used such total war to strike fear into hearts and encourage other enemies to join them as allies. But while fear and ruthlessness can help in the short term, they don't inspire loyalty. It's one of the reasons their empire didn't last that long. But the fact that they were able to create it at all is still kind of mind-boggling. Hence why I simply posted that the span of their empire was "impressive" but not "great". Hope that clarifies what I meant.

    Again, I voted for the people known for intellect, not just war.
     
    Violent Violet Menace likes this.
  17. GrandAdmiralJello

    GrandAdmiralJello Comms Admin ❉ Moderator Communitatis Litterarumque star 10 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Nov 28, 2000
    Too late, you've already got the label of Mongol apologist now. Might as well put it in your sig, because you'll wear it for all time! :D
     
  18. solojones

    solojones Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 27, 2000
    Yeah, I don't really care :p
     
  19. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    I dunno, probably the Season 1 Finale? It seems a little early to be asking this.
     
  20. solojones

    solojones Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 27, 2000
    And Jay, although the Achaemenids may have only been around a few hundred years, the Roman Empire was only really at its height for about that length of time. I mean, you've admitted to me yourself that most of the Emperors were terrible.
     
  21. GrandAdmiralJello

    GrandAdmiralJello Comms Admin ❉ Moderator Communitatis Litterarumque star 10 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Nov 28, 2000
    Yes, but unlike the Persian Empire I'm not lauding a civilization that was hugely ruler-centric. I'm talking about the accomplishments of actual people. And the "height" of the Empire is misleading, as some of its best contributions and literature came from times of crisis (late republic, late antiquity). I mean hell, just think of the influence that it's had on the world due to religion alone. :p

    We had a guy come to down last week who's the pontifex maximus for goodness sakes, that's influence for ya. Meanwhile, seen any war rhinos around? :p
     
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  22. Dark Lord Of The Empire

    Dark Lord Of The Empire Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 28, 2013
    I have to give this to the Brits. Literally an empire on a global scale, the likes of which has never been matched. Having one fifth of the world's population and almost a quarter of the world's land mass at its height. Having had the best navy for so long certainly helped. No contest, it's the Brits.
     
  23. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
  24. Point Given

    Point Given Manager star 7 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Dec 12, 2006
    It also means that it took Napoleon to end that behemoth.
     
  25. grd4

    grd4 Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 11, 2013
    I keep forgetting: Which empire got severely spanked by a half-naked Hindu pacifist?