Most Important/Infulential Cities Throughout History (ancient, Roman, greatest, influence)

[PatDJohns]

I was just thinking about the most important cities throughout history today. What do you think are the most important/influential cities during each period? Below is what I came up with.

Ancient Era - Ur, Memphis, Thebes, Babylon, Nineveh, Persepolis, Athens, Xi'an, Alexandria, Carthage, Rome

Middle Ages - Constantinople, Baghdad, Kaifeng, Samarkand, Hangzhou, Beijing, Venice, Delhi, Tenochtitlan

Early Modern - Madrid, Amsterdam, Paris, London

Modern - New York, Moscow, London, Tokyo, Beijing

What do you guys think? Are there any cities that I missed that you would consider influential/important to world history?

[NJGOAT]

I think the in the Early Modern era, you need to add Vienna. As the traditional seat of the Hapsburgs, Holy Roman Empire and Austrian Empire it was an immesely important hub polticially, militarily and culturally. Vienna was the bulwark of Christendom resisting several attempts of the Ottoman Empire to penetrate deeper into Europe. It was also the epicenter of the "classical" music world.

[ben86]

Maybe Jerusalem in the Middle Ages for the Crusades?

[Irishtom29]

Florence was of considerable cultural importance; that's part of history too.

[Irishtom29]

Originally Posted by NJGOAT

Vienna was the bulwark of Christendom resisting several attempts of the Ottoman Empire to penetrate deeper into Europe. It was also the epicenter of the "classical" music world.

I read where some wag said the greatest achievments of the modern Austrians were convincing so many that Hitler was a German and Beethoven an Austrian.

I suppose it's trite but I think it's funny.

[NJGOAT]

Originally Posted by Irishtom29

Florence was of considerable cultural importance; that's part of history too.

I think Florence is an excellent addition to the Middle Ages list.

Originally Posted by Irishtom29

I read where some wag said the greatest achievments of the modern Austrians were convincing so many that Hitler was a German and Beethoven an Austrian.

I suppose it's trite but I think it's funny.

it definitely made me chuckle.

[PatDJohns]

Originally Posted by ben86

Maybe Jerusalem in the Middle Ages for the Crusades?

Jerusalem is certainly important spirtual city but I dont know how much influence the city itself has had over history, I would argue that Rome has been more influential for Christians than Jerusalem has ever been.

[NJGOAT]

FWIW this is the current classification of the top alpha or better world cities:

• • Alpha++ world cities:
    • New York, London

  • Alpha+ world cities:
    • Hong Kong, Paris, Singapore, Tokyo, Sydney, Milan, Shanghai, Beijing

  • Alpha world cities:
    • Madrid, Moscow, Seoul, Toronto, Brussels, Buenos Aires, Mumbai, Kuala Lumpur, Chicago

[diogenes2]

On a recent PBS travelogue, Rick Steves mentioned something that was surprising: During the Middle Ages, Cordoba, Spain, was a city with a population of almost ten times that of Paris. Cordoba was a cultural bridge between East and West. It was a great center of learning and religious toleration, where Jews, Christians and Muslims lived and worked in relative harmony. The work in arts and sciences made it a magnet for European scholars. Even today, the architecture is still impressive.

[Dayton Sux]

Shouldnt Venice be in there somewhere?

(agree about Vienna)