abstract
| - The Roman Empire (La: Imperium Romanum) or Senate and People of Rome, a caesaropapist constitutional republic, covers a third of the planet. The most powerful sovereign state in the modern world and the largest and oldest country in history, Rome controls land on every continent and shares borders with every sovereign state. The Roman Imperium was founded, along with its capital, Rome, on the Tiber in 753 BCE by the eponymous Romulus. Shortly thereafter, the city was taken over by Etruscan kings. The last one, Tarquinius Superbus, was overthrown by Brutus of the Junii clan in 509 BCE in revolt against recent disrespect to a noble. This series of events created the First Republic. The Republic's history was tumultuous, defined by long periods of unrest and dictatorship. But it upheld the democratic principles on which it was established until a general named Gaius Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon River into Italy in 49 BCE. His actions plunged the Republic into civil war. Fighting did not end until 27 BCE. Rome was reborn from the fire like a phoenix into a magnificent new entity, the Roman Empire. Rome's new empire experienced numerous wars in the last two millennia without major losses. But the state almost met its downfall in the Second Civil War, splitting it in twain. The upheaval ended with the fusion of the papal and imperial thrones in 1066 CE. The power of this caesaropapacy ensured the persistence of the Imperium under its leader's near absolute religious and civil authority. No country in history compares to the modern Imperium. It has control over land, air and space that is unmatched by states on this Earth or nearly any alternate Earth. The Caesar's domain encompasses a third of the planet's surface, and a fourth of the human race. In 1837, Alexander XIV reportedly told a Muscovite ambassador, "I am called the most powerful monarch in the world. The sun never sets in my dominion."
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