Chapter 4.2 Mesopotamian Empires

6.8 On a historical map, locate and describe the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, Zagros and Caucuses Mountains, Persian Gulf, Caspian and Black Sea, Dead Sea and Sea of Galilee and explain why the region is referred to as the Fertile Crescent. (G) 6.9 Summarize Sumer, Babylon, and Assyria as successive civilizations and empires and explain the development of city-states, identify Kish, Akkad, Ur, and Nineveh, and the significance of Sargon and Hammurabi. (G, H) 6.10 Trace the development of agricultural techniques that permitted economic surplus and the emergence of cities as centers of culture and power. (C, E, H) 6.11 Explain the significance of polytheism (the belief that there are many gods) as the religious belief of the people in Mesopotamian civilizations. (C, H) 6.12 Explain the effects of how irrigation, metal-smithing, slavery, the domestication of animals, and inventions such as the wheel, the sail, and the plow on the growth of Mesopotamian civilizations. (C, E, H) 6.13 Analyze the important achievements of Mesopotamian civilization, including its system of writing (and its importance in record keeping and tax collection), literature (Epic of Gilgamesh), monumental architecture (the ziggurat), and art (large relief sculpture, mosaics, and cylinder seals). (C, E, G, H) 6.14 Write an informative piece explaining the significant contributions of Mesopotamian leaders, including Hammurabi and Sargon, and explain the basic principle of justice in Hammurabi’s Code (“an eye for an eye”). (C, E, H, P) Primary Documents and Supporting Texts to Read: excerpts from the Epic of Gilgamesh; digital collections of the ancient Mesopotamian plow, wheel, sailboat, cuneiform tablets, and the stylus Ancient Egypt: c.

The First Empire As Sumer’s city-states decline-Empires arose Empire is a group of many different lands under one ruler

Rise of Babylon Babylon had once been a Sumerian city-state but eventually developed its own powerful government. Babylon is located where present day Baghdad, Iraq is. Babylonians were ruled by monarchs (ruled by one).

Who was Sargon? Sargon was the leader of Akkad-called Akkadians Conquered Sumerian city-states Became king of Akkad and Sumer Created the world’s first empire Empire lasted for 200 years

Who was Hammurabi? Amorites conquered Mesopotamia Built their own cities Babylon was the grandest – located on eastern bank of Euphrates in Iraq Hammurabi was the Babylonian King Created the Babylonian Empire Stretched north from Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea

Hammurabi and his Code of Laws Hammurabi was Babylon’s greatest king. In addition to being a brilliant war leader, he was also an excellent governor. He oversaw many building projects, improved irrigation, created a tax system, and increased trade throughout the region. However, he is most famous for his set of laws, known as Hammurabi’s Code.

Hammurabi’s Code Hammurabi was a just ruler Created the world’s first set of written laws The Code of Hammurabi was strict laws that demanded an “eye for an eye”-means that the punishment should match the crime Contained 282 laws

Hammurabi’s Code Hammurabi’s Code was a set of 282 laws that dealt with every aspect of daily life. Some of the laws were viewed as extremely harsh. His set of laws were the 1st set of governing laws to be written for all to see.

Fall of the Babylonians Hammurabi ruled for 42 years. While under his rule, Babylon was the most powerful and most important city in Mesopotamia. However, after his death the kings that followed faced many challenges and eventually the empire collapsed…once again without great leadership, nothing can be sustained.

And Others Several minor civilizations developed around the Fertile Crescent. The Hittites from Asia Minor ruled Mesopotamia The Hittites introduced iron weapons and war chariots to the region. The Hittites conquered Babylon in 1595 BC. but it didn’t last long as their king was assassinated. The Kassites were people who lived north of Babylon. They captured the city and ruled for nearly 400 years before the Assyrians entered the region.

The Assyrians Assyrian was a large empire extending into four present-day countries: Turkey, Syria, Iran, and Iraq Built a large and powerful military to defend their hill and then around 900 BC they began taking over Mesopotamia

The Assyrians… Lead, follow,.…or get out of the way Around 1200BC the Assyrians, who were from northern Mesopotamia, began their initial conquest of Mesopotamia. However, it wasn’t until around 900BC that business picked up for them.

The Assyrian Army Army of Assyrian Well trained and disciplined 50,000 soldiers Infantry or foot soldiers Charioteers Fought with slingshots, bows, and arrow, swords, and spears

The Conquest of the Fertile Crescent Like the Hittites the Assyrians used iron weapons, war chariots, and had a very well organized army where every individual knew his role. The Assyrians were fierce in battle. They burned crop fields, stole from villages, and anybody who dared to resist them was killed. By 650BC the Assyrians had established an empire that included: Mesopotamia, the entire Fertile Crescent, and Egypt.

Kings and Government Assyria extended from Persian Gulf to the Nile River in the west and the capital was Nineveh along the Tigris River Divided the empire into provinces Government built roads to connect the provinces Kings chose officials to govern, collect taxes and carry out laws. Soldiers stood guard to protect traders

Life in Assyria Assyrians had laws, but they were harsher Based their writing on Babylonian writing Worshipped Babylonian gods Built world’s first library in Nineveh It held 25,000 tablets of stories Historians have learned much about ancient civilizations from this library

Library of Nineveh

It’s not all bad The Assyrians ruled the empire from Nineveh, which was located on the Tigris River. They collected taxes and anybody who resisted was punished…okay, so it is kinda bad. Assyrian kings assigned governors to each region of the empire to collect taxes, enforce laws, enlist soldiers, and built roads to link the empire together.

Civil War! Around 650BC the Assyrians were fighting each other over who should rule the empire. (Civil War, fighting among each other) These wars greatly weakened their armies.

If you live by the sword, chances are you will die by the sword. To the Rescue About 50 years earlier around 700BC a group of people known as the Chaldeans and Medes came into the region and took advantage of an opportunity. Sensing the weakness in the Assyrians, they took full advantage of the situation and joined forces and destroyed Nineveh in 612BC, the heart of the Assyrian Empire. This marks the end of Assyrian rule. If you live by the sword, chances are you will die by the sword.

The Chaldean Empire- A New Empire Chaldeans hated the harsh rule of the Assyrians When Assyrians were fighting each other, the Chaldean king, Nabopolassar reclaimed his kingdom Nabopolassar and his son, Nebuchadnezzar created a new empire

The Chaldeans/Neo-Babylonians After the defeat of the Assyrians, the Chaldeans setup a new empire of their own….and its capitol city was Babylon. They controlled the Mesopotamian region from their newly rebuilt capitol city of Babylon. The Chaldean civilization adopted many of the cultural traits of the Babylonians, which is why they are also known as the Neo-Babylonians.

The Greatness of Babylon Babylon was larges and richest city in the world Huge brick walls surrounded the city

Ishtar Gate The Ishtar Gate was constructed by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar II circa 575 BCE. It was the eighth gate of the city of Babylon (in present day Iraq) and was the main entrance into the city.

Hanging Gardens of Babylon  One of the 7 Ancient Wonders of the World, the Hanging Gardens were a huge collection of plants that 'hung' from a balcony in a large palace in Babylon, the capital of many Mesopotamian empires. The Gardens were built at the direction of the Chaldean king Nebuchadnezzar, who was said to have order them built to remind his wife of her homeland. The great mystery of the Hanging Gardens was how enough water to support the plants was transported so high in the air.

King Nebuchadnezzar The most famous Chaldean ruler was King Nebuchadnezzar. According to legend his grand palace featured the famous Hanging Gardens of Babylon, which he built for his wife. The Chaldeans admired Sumerian culture, studied their language, and worshipped their gods. At the same time Babylon became a center for astronomy, created the calendar, and used a form of geometry to solve problems. Collected high taxes to pay for building projects and army

The Fall of the Empire After Nebuchadnezzar died a series of weak kings ruled the Chaldean empire Poor harvest and slow trade further weakened the empire Persians took advantage of weaknesses and captured Babylon

Not to be forgotten…. The Phoenicians At the western end of the Fertile Crescent, along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea was the land of Phoenicia. The Phoenicians did not possess great military power and had very few resources in their land. However, they created a very wealthy trading society.

Overcoming the obstacles Problem The Phoenicians had very few resources and overland trade was difficult because of the mountainous region. Solution One resource they had plenty of was cedar and everybody wanted it. To solve the problem of travel they looked to the waters and became great seafarers.