1. Do Now: What major rivers are seen on this map?
Why is this region called “the Fertile Crescent”?
What civilizations were located here?

2. RIVER VALLEY CIVILIZATIONS
MESOPOTAMIA

3. Essential Question: Warm-Up Question:
What were the important characteristics of the civilizations in Mesopotamia?
Warm-Up Question:
Why was the Neolithic Revolution such a big deal?
Which of the 5 characteristics of civilizations do you think is most important?

4. RIVER VALLEY CIVILIZATIONS
The discovery of farming during the Neolithic Revolution allowed nomadic people to settle into villages and towns; these eventually became civilizations

5. The world’s first civilizations all began in river valleys
Ancient Egypt
China
Indus Valley
The first civilization began in an area known as Mesopotamia

6. The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers flooded once per year, leaving behind fertile soil ideal for farming (a perfect place to start a civilization)
Mesopotamia means “land between the rivers” and is often called the “Fertile Crescent” or referred to as the “Cradle of Civilization”

7. The first civilization that developed in the “Fertile Crescent” of Mesopotamia was the kingdom of Sumer
Surrounding deserts and the lack of natural barriers attracted outsiders to Mesopotamia and made the Sumerians vulnerable to attack; this led to other kingdoms rising in Mesopotamia

8. LASTING CONTRIBUTIONS
ADVANCED CITIES:
Sumerian city-states were protected by high walls
At the city center was a temple called a ziggurat

9. LASTING CONTRIBUTIONS
SPECIALIZED WORKERS:
At the top of society were priests, and then kings
In the middle were skilled workers, like merchants
At the bottom, were common farmers and slaves

10. LASTING CONTRIBUTIONS
(COMPLEX INSTITUTIONS) RELIGION:
Sumerians and Babylonians were polytheistic (many gods)

11. LASTING CONTRIBUTIONS
(COMPLEX INSTITUTIONS) RELIGION:
The Hebrews in Palestine were the first monotheistic (single god) faith in history (Judaism)
The holy book of Judaism is the Torah; God gave Moses the Ten Commandments which serve as moral laws

13. LASTING CONTRIBUTIONS
GOVERNMENT:
Babylonian King Hammurabi created the first legal code
Hammurabi’s Code had 282 laws based on justice and retaliation (for example: “an eye for an eye”)
The code had different punishments for the various levels of society

14. LASTING CONTRIBUTIONS

15. LASTING CONTRIBUTIONS
WRITING: Sumerians made the world’s first writing called cuneiform

16. WRITING:
Phoenicians simplified cuneiform to a 22 letter alphabet
Phoenician merchants spread the alphabet throughout the Mediterranean world
The alphabet influenced Greek, Latin, and English

17. LASTING CONTRIBUTIONS
TECHNOLOGY: Sumerian inventions include the wheel, sail, plow, and bronze metalwork

18. After thousands of years of civilization in river valleys, the world’s first empires appeared
River valley civilizations were complex societies with advanced technologies, cities, workers, writing, and institutions (religions and governments)

19. Like river valley civilizations, empires were advanced societies with well-organized, centralized governments
The difference is that empires conquer and rule over a variety of formerly independent people
“EMPIRE” defined: a group of several different nations or people united and ruled over by a monarch (like an emperor or king)

20. The nations that are ruled over obey and serve the mother country of the empire
In the first ancient empire we learn about, the mother country of the empire was Persia

21. Mauryan and Gupta Empires in India
Major Empires
Han Dynasty in China
Persian Empire
Mauryan and Gupta Empires in India

22. Mesopotamia: River Valley to Empire
The fertile soil and lack of natural boundaries (like mountains) in Mesopotamia led to the Mesopotamian civilizations being the target of frequent invasions and conquests

23. One of the most important ancient empires was Persia (present-day Iran)

24. The Persians grew into a powerful empire under Kings Cyrus and Darius

25. The “10,000 Immortals”: Persia’s elite fighting force
With a powerful army, the Persians conquered Mesopotamia, Egypt, and India
The “10,000 Immortals”: Persia’s elite fighting force

26. Persia’s religion was Zoroastrianism (based on the teachings of the prophet Zoroaster)
This religion viewed life as a struggle between good and evil; the Persians believed in Heaven and Hell as consequences for how they lived their lives

27. Zoroastrianism influenced the views of the afterlife in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam

28. The Persian Empire at its Height
How did the Persians control such a massive empire?

29. PERSIA’S SYSTEM OF CONTROL
Persia controlled their lands in a variety of ways
Persian kings were tolerant; they allowed conquered people to keep their languages and religions
This kept the conquered people content and less likely to rebel

30. PERSIA’S SYSTEM OF CONTROL
Rather than destroying or looting conquered cities, King Cyrus would show respect for local customs
As the mother country of the empire, the Persians were definitely in charge
However, life was tolerable under Persian rule, so this made most conquered people content

31. THE PERSIAN EMPIRE AT THE HEIGHT OF ITS POWER
At the centre of ancient Persian administration was the king, controlling a network of satraps (governors). As well as governing, satraps were responsible for securing tribute and delivering it to the royal palace. The Greek writer Herodotus reported that at one time Cilicia (in south-east Turkey) paid 500 talents of silver (about 14 metric tons) and provided 360 white horses, and Babylon and Assyria paid 1000 talents of silver (about 28 metric tons) and gave 500 boys to be eunuchs.
King Darius divided the empire into twenty provinces, each one was ruled by a satrap (local governor)

32. PERSIA’S SYSTEM OF CONTROL
Satraps served as the “eyes and ears” of the Persian kings in their respective provinces
PERSIA’S SYSTEM OF CONTROL
They collected taxes from the people of the provinces and informed the king of any uprisings

33. PERSIA’S ORGANIZED EMPIRE
The Persians built a network of roads in order to collect taxes, improve communication, and facilitate trade throughout their empire

34. PERSIA’S ORGANIZED EMPIRE
The Persians used metal coins with standardized values to help promote trade
Metal coins with standardized values helped promote trade