PoliticalBlair Gagnon

Ancient Times

In the Middle East thousands of years ago, for the most part,

control over territories was held by kingdoms. Over time, kingdoms in

the Middle East dominated and destroyed each other. Eventually the system of having kingdoms

changed when the Romans took control. After the Romans lost power, different empires were

formed.

What’s the difference?A kingdom is a domain ruled by a king or

queen.

An empire is a group of diverse regions under common control and run as a single

organization through means of local governors and other branches of

government.

As you can see, an empire is more complicated and advanced than a kingdom.

This is important because it meant that politically, the Middle East was

progressing.

Different empires lasted for many centuries. Some examples are the

Persian and Ottoman empires. The final empire, the Ottoman

Empire, ended after World War I. The impact of the war broke up the different regions because it

had sided with the Germans and the empire lost its power.

InstabilityThe middle east has been almost constantly in a state

of instability at least in one area or another. The crusades caused major fighting and disruption in the

11th through 13th centuries. At some points, the Christian forces controlled many regions in the Middle East such as Persia and what is now Israel. Of course

the Christian forces were driven out eventually by Muslim forces. More recently, there have been major

conflicts that have involved American troops.

Persian Conquests (532 B.C – Present)

Roman-Persian Wars 92 BC – 627 AD

The Crusades

They lasted from 1095 - 1272

World War II

Recent Conflicts

Persian Gulf War, many Arab-Israel conflicts including the very recent

invasion Israel has made into the Gaza strip, and the First Gulf War.

The End