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| | Empire (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-09) |
 | | An empire comprises a region or a set of regions ruled by an emperor or, by extension, any large, multi-ethnic state which maintains its political structure by coercion. |
 | | For many centuries, the term "Empire" applied exclusively to states which considered themselves to be successors to the Roman Empire, such as the Byzantine Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, or the Russian Empire. |
 | | Many ancient empires maintained control of their subject peoples by controlling the supply of a vital resource, usually water; historians refer to such régimes as "hydraulic empires." The introduction of a common religion also often strengthened empires, as occurred (pace Edward Gibbon) with the adoption of Christianity under Constantine I of the Roman Empire. |
| www.brainyencyclopedia.com /encyclopedia/e/em/empire.html (888 words) |
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