An empire is a political construct in which one state dominates over another state, or a series of states. At its heart, an empire is ruled by an emperor, even though many states in history without an emperor at their head are called "empires". At its core, an empire is the domination of one state by another.
The student understands the social and cultural effects that militarization and the emergence of new kingdoms had on peoples of Southwest Asia, Egypt, and other areas in the second millennium BCE.
Analyze the major events of the wars between Persia and the Greek city-states and the reasons why the Persians failed to conquer the Aegean region.
Analyze the rise of Macedonia under Philip II and explain the campaigns and scope and success of Alexander’s imperial conquests.
Analyze the character of government and military institutions in Egypt, Mesopotamia, and other regions, and the ways in which central authorities commanded the labor services and tax payments of peasant farmers.
Analyze various causes that historians have proposed to account for the decline of the Han, Roman, and other ancient empires.