Religion always plays a key role in societies, so it is no wonder that these societies had similar religions to begin with, but influences from different religions separated them from each other. The Earth has seen the rise and fall of many empires, and Han China and Rome are no exceptions. As gravity clearly shows, what goes up, must come down. At the root of the whole problem was the need for more military might. The empires were expanding, causes the need for more soldiers, which drained their coffers. This lead to economic collapse due to the need of higher taxes causing less economic growth. This economic collapse was the onset of many civil wars and disputes which further weakened these empires. Commerce was hindered and many people moved from the city back into the country, causing an economic regression. However, these civil wars and economic collapses had different effects on these two empires. In Han China, the empire totally collapsed. The han dynasty was terminated by General Cao Cao and the former empire moved into a state of political fragmentation that would last for 400 years. The empire in Rome however, did not fully collapse. Instead it was reformed and split in two. The western half collapsed when it was overrun by Germanic nomads. The eastern half however continued to flourish, but it was never quite as powerful as the former empire. Many see this split as the fall of the Roman empire, even though