Mesopotamian Empires

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Chapter 4.2

• Mesopotamian Empires

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• 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
  Hammurabis 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.

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The First Empire

• As Sumers city-states decline-Empires arose
• Empire is a group of many different lands under
  one ruler

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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).

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Who was Sargon?

• Sargon was the leader of Akkad-called Akkadians
• Conquered Sumerian city-states
• Became king of Akkad and Sumer
• Created the worlds first empire
• Empire lasted for 200 years

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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

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Hammurabi and his Code of Laws

• Hammurabi was Babylons 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 Hammurabis Code.

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Hammurabis Code

• Hammurabi was a just ruler
• Created the worlds 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

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Hammurabis Code

• Hammurabis 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.

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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
  collapsedonce again without great leadership,
  nothing can be sustained.

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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
  didnt 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.

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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

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The AssyriansLead, follow,.or get out of the
way

• Around 1200BC the Assyrians, who were from
  northern Mesopotamia, began their initial
  conquest of Mesopotamia.
• However, it wasnt until around 900BC that
  business picked up for them.

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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

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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.

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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

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Life in Assyria

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

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Library of Nineveh
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Its 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
  punishedokay, 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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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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.

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The Greatness of Babylon

• Babylon was larges and richest city in the world
• Huge brick walls surrounded the city

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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.
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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.

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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

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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

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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.

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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.

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