The Problems with Building an Empire

           The changing culture, political structure, and social framework of the eighteenth century enabled the common man to imagine a non-empire; a single people sovereign over a single territory. Empire was the stage not the victim of revolution. As society changed, so did the view of empires. In cities like London and Paris with a strong wealthy upper class, the proletariat formed new political concepts spurned by monarchial regimes and their concept that “rights” came strictly from a monarch. Political thinkers of the time argued that the right to rule came form the people and a monarchs authority emanated directly from his subjects.

            As the concept of natural rights developed, the question of citizenship surfaced. Would citizenship only be granted to those naturally born in the country in question? Would it be national, only for people of a single linguistic, cultural, and territorial area? Or could citizenship be imperial and embrace the diverse people who populated the state?

            The eighteenth and nineteenth centuries fathered revolutions that fueled the spark of change. The Franco-Haitian Revolution started as a squabble over Caribbean colonies and swiftly grew into the French questioning empire as well as their ability and right to govern people not their own. The Spanish encountered similar internal struggles when their colonies began causing a political ruckus. Turns out local peoples don’t appreciate a foreign government decimating regional rule for the sake of expanding empire. England had problems with the pesky American colonies that were peopled by naturally born English citizens, but no longer wished to be ruled by the empire.

 

            Empires are tricky. There are questions of nationality, individual rights, land, and resources, not to mention the right to rule. Imperial rule, ruling empires, monarchial rule; ruling is hard work. Changing political framework and shifting cultural norms help alter social views of empires and change the expectations for rulers, but it does little to truly change the structure. Some things take time to change. Sure the Mongols built an empire in less than half the time it took the Romans, but changing the definition of empire is just a wee bit harder than conquering people groups. Who knew!