The terms Empire and Kingdom: are sometimes used interchangeably as people often think that these mean the same. These terms are: related to a part of land or area and their people ruled by a superior identity. But here: one refers to many different countries being ruled: by a single person, while the other means the region within the same country ruled by a person.
Empire v/s Kingdom
The main difference between Empire and Kingdom is that an empire is comprised of: a collection of various countries, which are ruled over: by a single person known as the Emperor/Empress. On the other hand, a kingdom is an empire that is comprised of various areas of the same region: that is ruled: by a King or Queen.
An empire is a collective group of nations and its people, that is being ruled over: by an emperor, empress, or some other powerful minister or government. An empire: is usually a geographical territory that is greater and larger than a kingdom. Some examples of an empire are The British Empire, French Empire, Russian Empire, etc.
A kingdom is the smaller version of an empire; and land within a country ruled: by the king or queen. The other name from which a kingdom: is now known: is the monarchy. The term monarchy means a person who has inherited his position by his birth or marriage and is born to become the leader of that land.
Comparison Table Between Empire and Kingdom
| Parameters of Comparison | Empire | Kingdom |
| Definition | An empire is a group of different countries ruled by a single person. | A kingdom is a different region in the same country ruled by a single person. |
| Geographical area | Larger | Smaller |
| Ruled by | Emperor/Empress | King/Queen |
| Constitutional monarchy | It is ruled by aristocrats. | It is ruled by a body of ministers. |
| Examples | Roman Empire, Mauryan Empire. | The Odrysian Kingdom, Etruscan kingdom. |
What is an Empire?
An empire: is referred to as a political unit that is consists of many regions and their people. An empire: is usually built through the means of invasion; is divided between subordinate peripheries and a superior center. In simple words, an empire is a state that has a leader or a person ruling over them known as an Emperor.
Not all the invaded regions under the rule of a powerful authority; are termed an empire or controlled by the emperor; and not every self-described empire: is accepted as one by historians. There have been all kinds of empires in the history of mankind: be it ancient and modern to brutal and relatively benign. Apart from being used to denote a territory: in the modern context; the word empire describes; a large-scale business enterprise or a political firm that is controlled by: a single person or group of people. The Empires are originated: as different states that began as superior monarchies.
Empires were built with separate units with diversification in their ethnic, culture, religion, nation and imply some differences between the rulers and the ruled population. Many empires that we have studied are the results of military conquest, combining the conquered region into a union, etc. The term empire is used by: Europeans to denote non-European monarchies like the Mughal Empire and Qing Empire.
What is a Kingdom?
A kingdom is a territory within a country ruled by a king or a queen. It is also known as a monarchy. The term monarchy means a ruler who inherited his position through birth or marriage. Kingdoms are known as one of the earliest established societies. In history, there have; been more than a thousand kingdoms.
Kingdoms are huge but not greater than an empire, but smaller than Delaware: a state of U.S. Kingdoms is divided: into smaller regions like cities or provisions; that is looked after by officials who report about its state: to the monarch or the king. The first-ever kingdom: was established thousands of years ago when kings started to conquer and control the cities. These kings provided safety to their people, and in return, these people paid taxes to the king. Kingdoms also had the authority to make and enforce new laws. About 3000 BCE back; in the city of Sumer: Egypt, the first kingdom was made.
The people of Sumer were known as the Sumerians and had their language, and these people undertook projects for constructing irrigation canals; great temples named ziggurats for their kingdom. After thousand years, a new kingdom was developed in North America that was known: the Teotihuacan kingdom. The capital of this kingdom was Mexico City, and it had more than 100,000 inhabitants: due to which it was known as the largest kingdom in the world at that time.
Main Differences Between Empire and Kingdom
- An empire refers to a group of different nations ruled over by a single powerful authority. On the other hand, a kingdom refers to the regions within the nation that: are being ruled over by a single powerful authority.
- In terms of geographical areas, an empire has a larger area as compared to a kingdom.
- The person who rules an empire is known as the Emperor of that empire. On the other hand, a person who rules over the kingdom is known as a king.
- Other than the emperor, the constitutional monarchy is ruled by aristocrats. On the other hand, a body of ministers was appointed in a kingdom to look after the constitutional monarchy.
- Arab Empire, British Empire, and French Empire are some examples of Empire. On the other hand, the United Kingdom, Etruscan Kingdom are examples of the kingdom.
Conclusion
In conclusion, an empire and a kingdom are territories ruled by superior power or authority. An empire: is larger: and greater: than a kingdom. An empire is comprised: of diversified people with diversified cultures. A kingdom is a land under the same area, which means that, unlike an empire, it consists of the people who belong to the same culture and religion.
In terms of power and strength, an empire is above the kingdom as an empire controls more population. An empire is sometimes inherited in the family and sometimes made through conflicts. On the other hand, the title of king is passed on: to the next through hereditary.
References
- https://books.google.co.in/books?hl=en&lr=&id=fVdVpfTsgfAC&oi=fnd&pg=PA12&dq=empire+and+kingdom&ots=X0RvOWrYLk&sig=Wzq2Y9qAg4bHDDqrNqatDHBwg14
- https://books.google.co.in/books?hl=en&lr=&id=smGyDgAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT5&dq=empire+and+kingdom&ots=-j_0YGvjGm&sig=xwOZvTzktm3MBzTvE6oHbqzvYRQ