The nature of this course is a comparative approach to the cultural history of three major empires that extended from the Indian subcontinent to Vienna. Every class is built to highlight the connections and disconnections between these large empires, the people that inhabit the lands they ruled, and the multiple ways of cultural, social, and political interaction. The student will be able to derived a sound understanding of the history of empires by studying different material and intellectual products, including but not limited to art, literature, religious debates and treaties, poetry, and philosophical discussions.