Hydraulic empire facts for kids
A hydraulic empire is a type of government or society where rulers keep their power by controlling the water supply. This often happens in places that need a lot of flood control or irrigation for farming. To manage these big water projects, a central government and a special group of officials (a bureaucracy) are needed.
Sometimes, these empires are called a water dynasty. This means a ruling family or group controls important resources like food, water, and energy. They also use their military to keep control.
Contents
What is a Hydraulic Empire?
A hydraulic empire controls its people by managing the water supply. The idea of a "hydraulic civilization" was first described by a historian named Karl August Wittfogel. He was a German-American scholar who lived from 1896 to 1988.
Wittfogel wrote about this in his book, Oriental Despotism: A Comparative Study of Total Power, published in 1957. He believed that these "hydraulic civilizations" were different from those in the Western world.
Examples of Hydraulic Empires
Many of the first civilizations in history are thought to have been hydraulic empires. These include:
- Ancient Egypt
- Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq)
- China
- India
- Pre-Columbian Mexico
- Peru
Most of these empires were in dry or desert areas. However, imperial China also had some of these features. This was because growing rice needed very careful water management.
Water Control in Ancient India
The Maurya Empire in India was seen by Wittfogel as a major hydraulic economy. An ancient Indian scholar named Kautilya wrote about different ways of irrigation. These included using manual labor, carrying water, water lifts, and getting water from lakes and rivers.
Some experts believe that the Arthashastra, an ancient Indian book, mentions canals for irrigation. It talks about water being moved by digging from a river-dam or a tank.
Water Control in Africa
Besides Ancient Egypt and the Kingdom of Kush, the Ajuran Sultanate was another hydraulic empire in Africa. It was located in the Horn of Africa. In the 13th century, the Ajuran rulers started to control the water from the Jubba River and Shebelle River.
They were skilled in hydraulic engineering. They built many limestone wells and cisterns (water storage tanks). Many of these are still used today! The Ajuran rulers also created new systems for farming and taxes. These systems were used in parts of the Horn of Africa until the 1800s.
See also
In Spanish: Despotismo hidráulico para niños
- River valley civilization
- Thalassocracy
- Dune
- Majapahit
