THE RISE AND FALL OF GREAT EMPIRES: A MULTIFACTORIAL SYSTEMIC ANALYSIS

Abstract

This article provides a comprehensive analysis of the rise, development, and decline of major empires in world history through a multifactorial and systemic framework. The relevance of the study lies in understanding long-term patterns of political and socio-economic transformations that shape global historical processes. The novelty of the research consists in integrating classical historiography with modern interdisciplinary approaches, including complexity theory and environmental history. The study applies a comparative-historical method to examine selected empires, including the Roman Empire, Mongol Empire, British Empire, and Soviet Union. The findings demonstrate that imperial collapse is rarely caused by a single factor but emerges from the interaction of economic decline, political instability, social inequality, environmental stress, and external pressures. The study concludes that imperial decline should be interpreted not as abrupt failure but as a gradual process of systemic transformation. The research contributes to filling the gap in comparative and integrative models of imperial decline.