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Empires of Mesopotamia. 3500 BCE to 530 BCE. Geography. The land between two rivers (Tigris and Euphrates Modern day Iraq South was a flat flood plain with unpredictable floods. The upside was rich fertile land. North was more mountainous with resources of Iron, wood, gold and silver.
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Empires of Mesopotamia 3500 BCE to 530 BCE
Geography • The land between two rivers (Tigris and Euphrates • Modern day Iraq • South was a flat flood plain with unpredictable floods. The upside was rich fertile land. • North was more mountainous with resources of Iron, wood, gold and silver
Sumer 3500 - 1900 • Migrated from the northeast (Iran) • Established independent city-states (Define) • Ur would be the largest city-state at 24 000 people • The city-states of Sumer would unite under Etana of Kish. Their success made them attractive to outsiders. • Enter Sargon the Great.
Sargon 2340-2305 • Came from Semetic tribes in the mountains • He would rule over all of Sumerian and would conquer from the Persian Gulf to Egypt.
Technology • Cuneiform- first written language using wedges and symbols. • The wheel – used chariots for warfare • Math based on the number 60 • The oldest piece of literature – The Epic of Gilgamesh • The shoulder yoke for using animals to plough fields
Babylonia • With the death of Sargon, Sumer would fight for power. This made them weak and open to invasion. • The Amorites were a Tribe from the west (Syria) • The First great king was Hammurabi (1792-1750). He created the first codified system of law. • The Babylonians were seen as great traders, trading as far away as India and Egypt. • After Hammurabi there came a series of invasions. The Hittites from Turkey, Indo Europeans from Russia and the Kassites from the east.
Assyria 1300-609 • Capital is Ashur • Sargon II attacks Israel (722) • Esarhaddon captures Egypt • Ashurbanipal is their greatest ruler • A violent war like people who ruled through fear • Built the Palace of Nineveh, a library with 22000 clay tablets, sewage system, and a postal service.
Neo-Babylonia- Chaldea • Combined forces with the Medes to defeat Assyria. • Great ruler was King Nebuchadnezzar. It is said that he built the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. • Turned Babylon into a great walled city. • Nebuchadnezzar would crush Jerusalem, destroy the Temple and force the Hebrews into slavery. • Belshazzar would be the last King of the Mesopotamians. Cyrus the Great would establish the mighty Persian Empire.
