Tributary Empires in Global History is one of the very few works to pioneer comparisons between the great historical empires of agrarian societies, such as the Roman, Mughal, and Ottoman empires, among others. It serves as an exercise in global and comparative history over time. The book examines and interrogates our basic historiographical, theoretical, and comparative models and conceptions regarding how large pre-colonial empires expanded, operated, and declined. In 14 chapters, all explicitly comparative, a group of leading historians, sociologists, and anthropologists illuminate tributary empires from diverse perspectives, ranging from the character of the state and fiscal organization to imperial households, royal rituals, provincial societies, as well as shared historiographical traditions and tropes. The essays highlight the importance of these earlier forms of imperialism to broaden our perspective on modern concerns about empire and the legacy of colonialism.