We just did a revolution simulation in class. I got to experience first hand what it was like to live in Hierarchy and run such an unbalanced nation.  

Rules of the simulation:

In our Nation X simulation there were 4 social classes, peasants, merchants, law enforcement and royalty. I was in the royalty class with Charlie R and Charlie M (the king).

The peasant class was in charge of doing all the work, they had to write 100 word essays everyday as well as picking up our trash. Despite all the work they did they only made $1 a day.

The merchant class was in charge of the shop. They would get to set all the prices, but with the money they got they would be heavily taxed. The merchants only made $2 a day.

The law enforcement was able to put who ever they wanted in jail (given they had a reason) and they were in charge of making sure the royalty was safe. The law enforcement made a good income of $5 a day.

The royalty class was in charge of making laws and keeping our economy stable. We also had to get our civilization strong enough to fight Nation Y.

Day 1: Today I was not voted king, but the store was filled with vast amounts of food. I was able to buy a lemonade for a cheap deal of 7$. During the day the peasants cleaned the trash and wrote their pages, the store owners were bringing in lots of profit, and the law was putting peasants in jail well me Charlie R and Charlie M (the king) were keeping our civilization organized. When dusk falls we hear a rumour that the peasants and merchants are plotting to kill the king. We must keep an eye out for any suspicious actions.

Day 2:  The store is plentiful again, but the store owners have raised the prices due to higher taxes. We passed many laws, you can now buy chairs for 2$, there will be higher pay (2$ for the peasants, 3$ for the merchants), and there will be a limit to the store prices (no more then $10). Also the peasants have stopped working due to low pay and bad working conditions something must be done about this.

Day 3: As our civilizations economy is crumbling, there was only one lemonade left in the store (which I bought) and the peasants are refusing to do there work (due to them wanting higher pay and better rights). The peasants, merchants and law holders are plotting something against the king. We have to get weapons to protect ourselves.

Day 4: There has been a disease outbreak of Kienbock’s Disease, from the peasants because they are poor and dirty. Kienbock’s is a condition in which one of the small bones in the wrist loses its blood supply and dies. We had to hand out precious cures to keep the disease from spreading. We also kept our weapons to protect us from the rising risk of a regicide. But Charlie R in an act of greed tried to kill me and the king. We were able to flee to a deserted island were we met with Nation Y and decided to betray our sinking civilization. We were able to kill Charlie R and take over Nation x.

Why did our civilization fail?

Our civilization failed because the peasants felt they were being wronged by the government, as they gained more power (with alliances) they began to uprise which ended in a revolution. Because of this revolution Nation X was weak which is why me and the king (Nation Y) were able to take over so easily. A real life example of this is the fall of Austria-Hungary. Austria-Hungary had a huge crop failure which led to an economic crisis. This meant that the government was more vulnerable to revolution. The soldiers refused to fight for a crumbling nation which ended in the collapse of Austria-Hungary in 1918.

The Stages Of Revolution (In Austria-Hungary)

 Incubation Stage- There was an economic crisis and lack of food due to a huge crop failure, this caused the people of Austria-Hungary to get with the government.

Moderate stage- The people of Austria-Hungary formed factions, the leftists and pacifists. They organized strikes in factories and uprisings in the army were had become common. 

Crisis Stage- The soldier’s of Austria-Hungary refused to keep fighting for a crumbling nation  and the Emperor lost power as his empire disintegrated.

Recovery Stage- Austria-Hungary split into separate entities based on nationality: Czechoslovakia, (which later split into current day Czechia and Slovakia), Yugoslavia, Poland,  Romania, Ukraine and most of the land went to creating the current day countries Hungary and Austria.

This was a very fun simulation to do. I got to understand what it would be like to be a ruler and how difficult it is to run a nation in war. I hope you enjoyed reading this post and have a great day!!!