Athens and Rome were both city-states that became empires through warfare. Athens did not survive long, due to the dissolution of the Delian League, while the Roman Empire lasted for centuries, from around 31 BC to 476 AD (Mark) The Roman Empire was different from the Roman Republic, and the republic was similar to the Athenian Empire. Although Rome took many ideas from Athens for both political and religious life, Rome did not make the same bad decisions as Athens. This made the Roman Empire more successful than the Athenian one. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The Athenian Empire was part of the Delian League, but their imperialism isolated them from allied nations, and the Peloponnesian War increased tension on relations between Athens and the rest of the Delian League. Sparta rebelled against Athens in 405 BC, effectively dissolving the Delian League. Without the Delian League, nothing would have stopped Athens from retaliating against Sparta and putting an end to classical Greece. (British) Athens wanted too much power for its empire and tried to take it by force, but was simply too small to successfully demand loyalty from the conquered territories. However, democracy in Athens was better than the democracy of the early Roman Republic. It was under the leadership of Pericles that the Athenian government was the most free and truly pro-people. The first Roman Republic had the same basis of government as Athens, but it was not as free and was reserved only for the rich. Politics was a constant battle between nobles and commoners. Commoners eventually gained some power, granted to them by nobles, who could still veto anything they didn't feel was beneficial to them as nobles. Political life began to crumble under the weight of the rapidly growing empire. The problems between rich and poor became increasingly greater as wealthier landowners began to push farmers off public lands, and the government became more pro-rich and less pro-common people. Any attempt to reform these social problems ended in the death of the reformers. The Punic Wars were the turning point for the Roman Empire. The empire was already vast and powerful, but after the Third Punic War, the Roman Empire extended from the border between Greece and Asia Minor to the Atlantic coast of Spain. The Punic Wars were some of the most violent and bloodiest wars in history. At the time of the First Punic War, Rome was the dominant power in the Italian peninsula. The only obstacle to Roman expansion was Carthage, the dominant power in North Africa. (History.com) Throughout the century, the Romans were involved not only in the Punic Wars. The Macedonian Wars began when Philip V of Macedonia became a threat to Rome's success by allying himself with Carthage in the Second Punic War. But instead of trying to avoid war, Rome provoked Philip V into war by sending an ultimatum, “ordering him not to attack any Greek city and to pay reparations to Pergamum.” Philip refused and two years later Rome had to send a general, Flaminius, to drive Philip out of Greece. With Greek support, Flaminius defeated Philip. (Kagan, pg. 103) The end of the Punic Wars came when the Carthaginians surrendered “after seven days of horrible bloodshed.” With all threats to the empire defeated, Rome was the most dominant power in the world. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay The Roman Empire was larger than the Athenian Empire, even when Rome was still a republic. It was through violent bloodshed that.