Goal 2 Early Empires

The First Empires Between 3000 and 2000 BC, there were several city states in Sumer and they were almost always at war with each other. In 2350 BC a conqueror names Sargon defeated the city state states of Sumer. By taking control of all the city-states, Sargon had created the worlds first empire. An Empire is when several independent states are under the control of one ruler.

Early River Valley Civilizations Mesopotamia means “land between the rivers” It is the area where the civilization of Sumer was. Mesopotamia is between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. This area is known as the Fertile Crescent because it created large harvest of food. To provide water, the citizens dug irrigation ditches to carry water from the rivers to the city.

For defense they built city walls with mud and bricks. They traded their hand made goods for raw materials with people in the mountain regions By 2500 BC new cities were arising all along the Fertile Crescent and the Sumerian culture was spreading. 500 years after Sargon had united the city-states into an empire, a group of nomadic warriors known as the Amorites took over the Empire.

Sumer became known as the Babylonian Empire Sumer became known as the Babylonian Empire. Its most famous ruler was King Hammurabi Hammurabi is most famous for having the first set of written laws. The law code was carved in stone and placed around the empire. About 200 hundred years after the Babylonian Empire fell, another empire was forming on the Nile River

Hammurabi’s Law Code

Ancient Egypt The Egyptian Empire started like the Sumer with many different villages. By 3200 BC, the villages became 2 separate kingdoms. The Egyptian Kingdoms formed along the Nile River. The Nile was much more dependable than the Rivers of Mesopotamia. Eventually Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt united to form an Empire that would last for about 3000 years.

In Mesopotamia the Kings were considered representatives of the gods but in Egypt the were gods. The Egyptian God Kings were called Pharaohs. They were the head of religion and the government. This type of government is called a Theocracy. They believed their kings ruled even after their death and had eternal life, therefore their tombs were very important.

The final resting place, or tomb for the Pharaohs were called Pyramids. The Egyptians were polytheistic and had more than 2000 gods. The main god was Re, the sun god. Egyptians believed in an afterlife. To make sure that their bodies reached the other world they preserved the body by mummification

They developed a system of writing known as Hieroglyphics. At first they wrote on stone and clay but eventually they developed papyrus reeds which was like paper. Egyptians also developed a calendar with 365 days and 12 months. They Egyptians did have social classes and slavery, but people could move from one social class to another with hard work.

Assignment # 1 Use the chart on the next screen to write your name in Hieroglyphics

Assignment #2 In the World History text book, answer questions 1 – 5 on page 41 about ancient Egypt. Put your answers on the same paper as your name in hieroglyphics and turn it in at the end of class.

Indus Valley Civilizations While Egyptians were building the Pyramids, bricks were being laid for India’s first cities. Civilizations in the Indus Valley started about 2500 BC, however less is known about it than Mesopotamia and Egypt because the language has not been translated. This civilization first formed along the Indus River and took up a larger area than Egypt and Mesopotamia.

One of the biggest achievements of the Indus Valley people were their well planned cities. They built strong levees to keep water out, man made islands to raise the cities above flood waters While the cities in other civilizations were a jumble buildings and winding streets, the Indus cities were on a grid system.

Houses featured bathrooms with plumbing Houses featured bathrooms with plumbing. Waste water ran through the streets in drainage ditches and then into sewage pits. There were not great social differences and few weapons were found which suggest that they were mostly peaceful. Around 1750 BC the Indus cities declined. It is believed that earthquakes and floods caused this decline along with droughts possibly invaders.

River Dynasties in China About 1,000 years after the civilizations of Mesopotamia, Egypt and India started, China’s first cities started. Unlike the others, these civilizations still thrive today. The river that China’s first cities formed along was the Huang He, also known as the yellow river.

About the time the other major civilizations were falling to invaders, a group of people known as the Shang rose to power in China. The Shang were the first to leave written records and lasted from 1700 BC to 1027 BC. They built many elaborate palaces and tombs, but unlike other civilizations they built their cities mainly of wood. Each city was surrounded by walls of earth 118 ft. wide circling an area 1.2 sq. miles.

In the ancient Chinese culture, marriages were arranged for girls when they were between 13 and 16 years old. The Shang society was divided into 2 main social classes. Nobles and Peasants. The nobles on the land and lived inside the walls. The main god was Shang Di. To consult with him, kings used oracle bones.

In Chinese writing each character was a symbol In Chinese writing each character was a symbol. There was no links between the spoken language and the written. A person needed to know 1500 symbols to be barely literate.

Around 1027 BC people called the Zhou overthrew the Shang and started a new dynasty. They claimed that the gods told them to do this. This is called a Mandate from Heaven While they kept many parts of the Shang culture they also brought new ideas and inventions Under the Zhou many roads and canals were built and the first coined money was made.

Assignment Get a world History book and answer questions 9 – 17 on page 56. You do not need to write the questions.

Pyramid Foldable You will each make a pyramid with 3 sides. For the outside choose 3 out of the 4 river valley civilizations that we talked about this chapter and decorate one side for each one On the inside, give detailed information about the civilizations that are on the outside of the pyramid. Include information about geography, culture, religion and time period.

This will count as a project grade so make it neat, colorful and full of information.