Ancient Mesopotamia

Ancient Mesopotamia

Early Humans • Theory: Humanity begins in Africa. • The theory states: • Humanity begins as Pangea breaks apart. • Continental drift is what caused people to be on different parts of the globe. • Fact: Early humans were hunter-gatherers and lived in bands. • Hunter-gatherers: Hunted animals & gathered plants for food. • Bands: Group of families traveling together.

Early Humans • Early bands were nomadic and often migrated by season. • Nomadic – Move from place to place. • Migrated – Moving from one place to settle in another. • Bone/stone tools and fire were the new “technology” of the time. • Use of tools allowed early humans to hunt and butcher animals better.

Early Humans • Fire provided: • Heat • Light source • Protection • Ability to cook • With better food & protection, life spans grew quickly.

Beginnings • Agriculture develops in area where water is available. • Irrigation becomes vital for growing crops. • Irrigation – watering dry land using ditches, pipes, or streams. • Fertile soil attracts farmers to areas where bigger, better crops grow.

Homework #1 – 9/26/2013 • According to theory, where did humanity begin? • What are bands of people? • Why were stone/bone tools so useful? • What 4 uses did fire provide early humans? • Why was irrigation important to early farmers?

First Communities • With agriculture taking over, bands of people stop migrating. • Villages develop; able to hold thousands of people. • Village life had advantages: • Food was plentiful • Easily defended from nomadic bands

First Communities • With villages developing, the first type of houses are constructed. • Houses were made from dried mud brick and wood. • Houses didn’t have doors or windows, just opening in roof to enter/leave. • Houses were also usually 1 room; sometimes 2 room for “upper” class.

First Communities • As agriculture techniques improved, farmer produced surplus of crops. • Surplus – more than what is needed to survive. • With surplus of crops, people could specialize in other types of work. • Specialization – skill in one kind of work. • First type of specialized jobs: • Pottery • Weaving

First Communities • Specialization and surplus leads to trade among different villages • Villages could trade crop surplus for a weaving/pottery surplus from another village. • Social classes developed within villages based on specialization. • Ex. – Artisans (potters, weavers, etc.) made one class.

Ancient Mesopotamia • Mesopotamia lies between two rivers (Tigris & Euphrates); present-day Iraq. • Name means “land between two rivers”. • Often called “Fertile Crescent”. • The two rivers would flood every year, depositing fertile soil on the floodplain. • Farmers would use this silt to grow their crops. • Silt – fine, dusty soil deposited by flooding rivers.

Homework #2 – 10/1/2013 • What were 2 advantages of villages being created? • What 2 materials were early houses made of? • What two jobs were the first specialized jobs created in villages? • What did specialization and surplus create between villages? • What present-day country is Ancient Mesopotamia located in? • What were the two rivers Ancient Mesopotamia located between? • Define the following terms: SiltSpecializationIrrigationNomadicMigrated Hunter-GathererBands

Ancient Mesopotamia • Mesopotamia had an annual rainfall total of 10 in., making irrigation vital. • Floods were unpredictable: • Could wipe out newly-planted crops if happened too late • No flood caused droughts (very common) • Farmers controlled flood waters by creating irrigation canals & basins

Ancient Mesopotamia • Mesopotamian villages traded with other cultures for supplies they lacked. • Traded: • Grains • Dates • Misc. farm products • Traded for: • Stone • Wood • Metals • Ivory • Ebony • Precious Gems

Ancient Mesopotamia • As villages grew in numbers, village leaders emerged (typically older members). • Village leaders were responsible for settling village disputes. • Leaders organized workers for: • Building and cleaning irrigation canals • Harvesting crops • Building village/city walls

Ancient Mesopotamia • As villages grew in number, they morphed into cities. • Cities became the center of culture for surrounding villages and farms. • The first-known civilization in history started in Sumer (3300 B.C.), a region in southern Mesopotamia. • Sumerian cities were centers of: • Trade • Religion • Education

Ancient Mesopotamia • Based on influence, cities began to rule surrounding lands and villages. • These city-states acted more like independent countries, not cities. • City-states – A community that included a city and its surrounding lands. • At center of each city-state was a ziggurat • Ziggurats were centers of: • Religion • Trade • Education

Ancient Mesopotamia • By 3000 B.C., Sumer had 12 known city-states; located near Tigris & Euphrates. • Land surrounding those city-states was extremely fertile; farmers grew more crops. • Food surplus’ supported larger populations.

Ancient Mesopotamia • Food surplus also led to city-states trading with each other. • City-states would form alliances based around trade or protection. • City-states would also fight one another for control of land or resources.

Homework #3 – 10/3/2013 • What was vital to Ancient Mesopotamians due to very little rainfall? • What group of people were used as village leaders? Why were they chosen? • What is unique about Sumer? • What is a city-state? • Where were ziggurat’s located? What were ziggurats the center of? • Where were the 12 Sumerian city-states built near? • What were alliances between city-states based on? • Why would city-states attack each other?

Ancient Mesopotamian Society • City-states had 3 social classes • Movement among classes was limited. • Upper class consisted of: • Kings • Priests • Landowners • Gov’t officials • Rich merchants • Priests & kings were believed to have a link to the gods, so they had tremendous influence.

Ancient Mesopotamian Society • Middle class consisted of: • Farmers • Artisans • Other misc. free people • Lower class consisted of: • Slaves

Ancient Mesopotamian Society • Women were part of each class and had rights as well. • Free women could: • Own land • Work as merchants or artisans • Main role for women was still raising children and running household.

Ancient Mesopotamian Society • Sumerians were responsible for creating: • Plow • Wheel • Mathematics/Simple arithmetic • Written language • Plows were used to break up firm soil making it easier to plant seeds. • Wheels were used for: • Wagons • Pottery

Ancient Mesopotamian Society • Sumerian math was used to keep records of crops and trades. • Sumerians used writing to keep record of business deals & trades • Cuneiform was used to keep records and write down history of Sumer. • Cuneiform – wedge-shaped style of writing. • Those who specialized in cuneiform were called scribes.

Homework #4 • How many social classes were there in Sumer? • What did priests and kings have a “link” to? • What 4 inventions did Sumerians create? • Why was cuneiform important to Sumerians? • What were people who specialized in writing cuneiform called?

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • Because land was flat, Sumerian city-states had no natural protection from others. • Around 2371 B.C., Sargon of Akkad took control of the entire Sumerian region. • Created the world’s first empire. • Empire – Many different lands under control of one leader.

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • Sargon’s Akkadian empire lasted 200 yrs.; was overtaken by Amorites • Hammurabi, leader of Babylonian empire, overtakes Amorites. • Hammurabi used a code of law to keep his empire in order. • Code of law – Set of written laws for people to obey.

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • Hammurabi’s code was fair, but bloody. • The goal of his laws were to bring justice to his empire. • Justice – fair treatment of people. • Hammurabi’s laws created the idea that: • Society should be run by rule of law. • Laws should be applied to everyone, not just few.

Hammurabi’s Code of Law • Hammurabi’s code of law states: • If a son strikes his father, his hand shall be cut off. • If a man put out the eye of another man, his eye shall be put out. • If a man breaks another man’s bone, his bone shall be broke as well. • If the slave of a freed man strike the body of a freed man, his ear shall be cut off. • If a man steals from another man, his hand shall be cut off. • If a carpenter builds a house that collapses, killing the son of a freed man, the carpenter’s son shall also be killed.

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • Babylonian empire falls in 1500 B.C., 500 yrs. following its creation. • Assyrians gain control of Fertile Crescent in using military power. • Assyrian soldiers were armed with iron swords and iron-tipped spears.

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • Assyrian empire reached its height under rule of Ashurbanipal (668-627 B.C.) • Ashurbanipal chose governor’s to rule certain parts of kingdom. • Governor’s sent tributes(payments for protection) to Ashurbanipal. • City-states that didn’t pay were destroyed by Assyrian army.

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • In 609 B.C., Assyrian empire falls to Chaldeans (w/ help of Medes). • Babylonis chosen to be center of new empire. • Chaldean’s reached their height under ruler Nebuchadnezzar (602-562 B.C.)

Hanging Gardens of Babylon • To please his wife, Nebuchadnezzar built gardens in his palace to remind her of home. • The gardens were planted on an artificial mountain placed in Babylon. • The plants & trees seemed to grow as if they hung in mid-air.

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • Even though Nebuchadnezzar was kind to his wife, he (like the Assyrians) was an unkind ruler. • Under his rule, Chaldeans did the following to their people: • Took over Jerusalem from the Hebrews (capital of Hebrews) • Destroyed a sacred religious temple of the Hebrews in Jerusalem. • Held thousands of Hebrews as prisoners in Babylon for 50 years. • Like Assyrians, made people pay for protection of Chaldean army (those who didn’t pay were destroyed).

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • Weak rulers followed Nebuchadnezzar, leading to the end of the Chaldean empire.

Homework #5 • What kinds of weapons did the Assyrians use to conquer the Fertile Crescent? • What is a tribute? • Who was the leader of the Assyrian empire when it had reached its height? • What group of people took over the Assyrian empire? Who was their leader at the height of their empire? • What did Nebuchadnezzar build for his wife?

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • East of the Fertile Crescent was Medes, home of the Persians. • Persians were nomadic herders who thrived through trade; their leader was named Cyrus (a.k.a. Cyrus the Great). • Cyrus had a vision of controlling all lands around Persia; combining them into one empire.

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • Cyrus quickly controlled the crumbling Chaldean empire and added it to his growing empire. • The Persian army totaled over 300,000 people; was made up of the following: • Persian officers. • Soldiers (native Persians & conquered people)

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • The best fighters in the Persian army were labeled the Immortals. • Earned this name because they never totaled less than 10,000 soldiers. • When an Immortal became sick, injured, or wounded, another soldier took his place. • Immortals were given the honor of leading the Persian army into every battle.

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • Cyrus ruled with his empire through peace, not force. • A gov’t policy was created called toleration. • Allowing people to keep their customs & beliefs. • Cyrus was able to keep his massive empire in control using toleration; people still paid tributes.

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • After Cyrus’ death, a cruel ruler named Cambyses took over the Persian Empire. • While he expanded the empire, Cambyses had to deal with more rebellion due to his cruel ways. • Once Cambyses died, Darius took control of the empire. • After ending the rebellions, Darius began expanding the empire even further.

Homework #6 • Who was the 1st leader of the Persian empire? • How many soldiers were in the Immortals? • What is toleration? • Despite the peacefulness of Cyrus’ empire, what did people still pay? • Who were the two leaders that followed Cyrus after his death?

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • During his rule, Darius grew the empire to stretch 2,800 miles wide. • In order to ensure stability & peace in empire, Darius divides empire into 20 provinces. • Satraps (governors) ruled the provinces for Darius along with a military leader to keep order.

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • In order to ensure the empire was safe, Darius sent out spies called “king’s eyes & ears”. • These spies would tell Darius: • If satraps were being unfair. • Which laws worked/which didn’t. • How trade throughout empire was going. • If taxes were too steep/not enough.

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • To unify the empire, Darius created: • The Royal Road • Minted coins • The road was used for: • Mail • Royal messengers • Royal army • Minted coins were used to: • Pay taxes • Make trade easier

Ancient Mesopotamian Empires • Darius had plans to fight against Egyptian rebels, but died (486 B.C.) before being able to fight. • Darius’ son, Xerxes, took control of the empire and the rebellion in Egypt & Greece.

Homework #7 • In order to keep the empire in order, what did Darius divide his empire into? How many were there? • What are satraps? • What were the spies that Darius sent throughout the empire called? • What was the Royal Road used for? • What were minted coins used for? • Who took over the Persian Empire following Darius’ death?

Ancient Mesopotamia