Four Empires
Of Mesopotamia
What happened to
Sumer?
• Sumerians lived in many citystates
• They were not unified
• This left them vulnerable to
attack
• Do you remember what
Sumerian city-states fought
about?
Akkadians
• 2300 BCE the Akkadians
conquered Sumer.
• They developed the first
empire, with Sargon as king
• Sargon used military
techniques to conquer the citystates
Akkadians
• Sargon did several things to
ensure his empire flourished:
– Destroyed city walls to
discourage rebellion
– Ensured city-state governors
were loyal to him
– Established his son as the next
king
– Utilized tributes
Akkadian Facts
They spoke a Semitic language
–
A family of languages. Examples:
Assyrian, Akkadian, Babylonian,
Arabic and Hebrew
Sargon ruled for 56 years
• His sons ruled after him.
• Naram-Sin was the most
successful.
Akkadian Facts
• Naram-Sin was the first
Mesopotamian king to claim
divinity. He was called “King of the
Four Quarters” (The world!)
• They adapted cuneiform to the
Semitic language
• They had skilled craftspeople who
made three-dimensional relief
sculptures called steles
Akkadian Facts
• Agade was the capital of the
empire.
• The vast empire grew weak and
was gone by 2190 BCE
• The Akkadian Empire lasted about
200 years.
• The Sumerian city-states briefly
reemerged after the Akkadians fell.
Babylonian Empire
• Babylon was a small city-state in
central Mesopotamia.
• Hammurabi was the ruler of
Babylon.
• Hammurabi conquered
Mesopotamia, bringing an end to
the Sumerian political structure.
• Hammurabi named the new empire
Babylonia, with Babylon as its
capital.
Babylonian Facts
• Babylonian empire began in 1792
BCE
• They spoke Akkadian (a Semitic
language)
• Sumerian language died
• Hammurabi developed his code of
laws
• Babylonians had an extensive trade
system: traded grain and cloth for
wood, gold silver, gems and
livestock
Babylonian Facts
• Hammurabi ensured the
irrigation systems worked, so
food was plentiful
• Women had more rights than
in other ancient cultures
• They utilized silver for
payment, but not in coin form
Babylonian Facts
• Babylonians made achievements in
math
• They developed a system of math
based on the number 60 (has many
divisors)
• Thus, we have 60 second minutes,
60 minute hours, 360 degree circles
(60 x 6)
• Had multiplication tables, square
roots and reciprocals
• Had knowledge of pi and geometry
• Had a mile measurement (appx. 7
miles = 1 Babylonian mile)
Babylonian Demise
• After Hammurabi’s death, the
Babylonian Empire became
weak.
• The Babylonian Empire fell
about 1600 BCE
Hittite Invasion
• The Hittites moved into
Mesopotamia and invaded Babylon
in 1595 BCE
• Hittites were great metalworkers
• They were some of the first people
to utilize iron for making weapons
• Iron weapons were stronger than
their enemies’ bronze weapons.
• By 1200 BCE, iron replaced bronze
• This was the beginning of the “Iron
Age”
Hittites
• Hittites were from Anatolia
(Turkey)
• They had an expansive trade
network
• Internal fighting weakened the
Hittites and led to their demise
The Assyrian Empire
• Located on the upper Tigris
• This empire was built by
conquering with fierce military
strategy
• They used wealth of captured
cities to expand their empire
• They would export conquered
people to avoid coups
Assyrian Empire
• Nineveh and Ashur were capitals
• Ashur was named after the patron
god of war
• They did not consider their kings to
be divine
• They built aqueducts
• Assyria collapsed following the
death of Ashurbanipal (627 BCE)
• Nineveh was sacked in 612 BCE
Assyrian Warriors
• Nineveh was built to withstand
invaders
• Outer city wall was 200 feet high
and three chariots could ride side
by side on top
• Assyrians would ask a city to
surrender. If they did not, they
utilized siege.
Assyrian Warriors
• They were the first to use battering
rams
• Their army used many techniques
and weapons
• Army wasn’t strong enough to
protect entire empire. Internal
dissent and attacks weakened the
empire.
Neo-Babylonian Empire
• After Nineveh fell, Babylonians
rose to power again
• Nabopolassar was the first
king of the empire
• His son, Nebuchadrezzar, was
the most famous NeoBabylonian king.
Neo-Babylonian Empire
• Nebuchadrezzar expanded the
empire
• He conquered Syria and part of
Canaan. He exported the Egyptians
and Hebrews from their lands.
• He created gardens for his palace
now know as the Hanging Gardens
of Babylon
Neo-Babylonians
• They created the first sundial
• The tower of babel is
associated with Etemenaki, a
ziggurat built by Nabopolassar
• The Neo-Babylonian empire
lasted from 612-539 BCE