Mesopotamia
Lesson 1: The Land Between the Rivers
Mesopotamia was an ancient civilization located in an area of the world we now
know as the Middle East. It was bordered by two rivers—the Tigris in the east
and the Euphrates in the west. In fact, the name Mesopotamia means "the land
between the rivers".
The Tigris and Euphrates begin in the mountains near the Black Sea. As they
wind their way south towards the Persian Gulf, they deposit silt (fine sand and
earth) onto the surrounding lands. This makes the soil in Mesopotamia very
fertile. Blessed with good farmland, the Mesopotamians were able to grow
enough food to support a large population. An advanced civilization gradually
emerged.
Mesopotamia was part of a region known as the Fertile Crescent. The Fertile
Crescent stretched like an arc (crescent) from the Mediterranean Sea in the west
to the Persian Gulf in the east. This whole region was excellent for farming.
Mesopotamia was ruled by four different empires. You will learn about each of
these empires in the next several lessons.
Lesson 2: Sumer
The first major civilization in Mesopotamia was in a
region called Sumer. The Sumerians were able to
settle and prosper because they learned how to
irrigate the land. By bringing water to the fields,
they turned Mesopotamia into a prime agricultural
region.
The Sumerians grew several kinds of crops. The
most valuable one was barley, which was used to
make flour and bread. Dates were also very
valuable to the Sumerians. They were eaten once
ripe or else they were dried for future consumption. Dates also made an excellent
wine. Date trees were also an excellent source of leaves for house thatching,
while the wood from the trunk was used for building. Another important crop was
the sesame seed. It was used in baking and seasoning, but its real value was as
a cooking oil. Other crops were wheat, onions, cucumber and other fruits and
vegetables. The Sumerians also raised goats, pigs, sheep, and cattle.
Although agriculture was the chief industry of Sumer, commerce with distant
lands also flourished. The Mesopotamian plain was lacking in resources such as
metals, timber, stone, and grapevines, so the Sumerians had to trade abroad to
get them. Initially, the Sumerians traded surplus barley for these goods. This
soon became too expensive and difficult because the sacks of barley were large
and heavy. As a result, the Sumerians began to manufacture trading goods that
they could transport more easily, such as cloth and bronze ornaments.
Sumer thrived for many centuries, largely because of their advanced irrigation
system. However , this irrigation system may have led to the downfall of Sumer.
The water diverted from the rivers to irrigate the soil also carried harmful salts
and other mineral matter. The soil became more acidic and the crops started to
die. Sumer lost its economic strength, which in turn led to a loss of political and
military strength. Sumer was soon too weak to fight off invaders and was
conquered.
Lesson 3: Babylonia
As Sumer weakened, invaders began to overrun its cities. One group of invaders
took over the small town of Babylon, located near the point where the Tigris and
Euphrates flow close together. This previously insignificant town became the
centre of a new Mesopotamian empire known as Babylonia.
The Economy of Babylonia
When we speak of the economy of a country, we mean the system which that
country uses to produce, distribute, and consume goods. The economy of
Babylonia was based, like that of Sumer, on agriculture. In Sumer, agricultural
products such as grain and wool were often traded for goods the Sumerians
could not produce themselves. This system was known as
bartering.
Bartering was used in Babylonia, too, but money gradually replaced
it as a means of exchange. The money was in the form of bars of
precious metals—silver, copper, or gold. The Babylonians even had
banks to manage their money. Money had many advantages. For
example, it is easier to handle and exchange than grain.
The Babylonians were shrewd businesspeople. Their boats sailed up and down
the Tigris and Euphrates rivers and into the Persian Gulf, carrying goods that
kept the Babylonian markets busy and the country wealthy.
Land Ownership
In Babylonia, individuals were able to own the land, while in Sumer they could
only rent the land from the priests on behalf of the gods. There were several
advantages to individual ownership. For example, profits from crops went to the
landowners. Land owners were also more likely to want to improve crop yields
because they would receive the profits.
Lesson 4: Hammurabi's Code
Hammurabi was an important king of the
Babylonian Empire. One of his most significant
contributions was to draw up a set of laws that
everyone in the empire had to follow. This was
known as Hammurabi's Code.
Many of Hammurabi's laws were about business,
but others gave protection to women, children, and
the poor. It was evident, though, that a noble was
considered more important than a common person,
for "If a man has stolen an ox, or a sheep, or a pig
from the priests or the king, let him pay thirtyfold.
But if he has stolen from a poor man, he shall
repay tenfold."
Some of Hammurabi's laws seem harsh and cruel to us today. There were thirtyfour crimes that were punishable by death. Other punishments were match to fit
the type and severity of the crime. For example, "If a man puts out the eye of
another man, his eye shall be put out. If he knocks out the teeth of his equal, his
teeth shall be knocked out."
Hammurabi had his code of laws carved on a huge block of stone that he set up
in the main temple in Babylon. Today it is housed in the Louvre Museum in Paris.
Lesson 5: Assyria
After Hammurabi's death, Babylonia was ruled by a series of weak kings. Then
around 1300 BCE, a group of people known as the Assyrians defeated Babylonia
and conquered all of Mesopotamia. Assyria built an empire that reached as far as
Egypt.
The Assyrians enjoyed going to war and were very good at it. Their success was
due in part to their use of iron weapons. Most of Assyria's opponents were still
using bronze weapons, which were much weaker. The Assyrians also used
chariots, which allowed them to move quickly on the battlefield. The charioteers
were usually armed with iron swords and spears, and protected by shields and
body armour. No other army used chariots, so the Assyrians had a distinct
advantage.
The Assyrians planned their invasions very carefully, studying both the climate
and landscape prior to attacking. They had an intricate spy system as well. The
Assyrians even had war reporters travel with them during their battles and
observe what happened. Later these people carved scenes from the battles onto
flat stone slabs.
The Assyrians fought wars in order to obtain new lands, seize trade from other
nations, to steal the wealth of other lands, and to add slaves to their workforce.
The Assyrians forced the people they conquered to pay taxes and forced
prisoners of war to build canals, palaces, temples, and city-walls.
Eventually the Assyrian rule of fear began to crumble. Civil wars broke out,
rebellions by subjected people arose, and military defeats occurred. Finally, in
612 BCE, the Assyrian empire was conquered.
Lesson 6: Chaldea
The fourth and final great civilization of Mesopotamia was Chaldea. Chaldea, or
New Babylonia, was to a certain degree a recreation of the old Babylonian
empire. However, this second Babylonian empire was even greater and more
glorious than the first.
Under Nebuchadnezzar, the most famous of the Chaldean kings, the city of
Babylon was rebuilt with great splendor. It became one of the most magnificent
cities in the Middle East and the Mediterranean. The city had beautiful gates of
brass engraved with intricate designs. Its streets were laid with great blocks of
red and white stone. The city walls were also enlarged. The walls were so thick
that an eight-horse chariot could turn around on the
top of them!
Babylon also became home to one of the seven
wonders of the ancient world: the Hanging Gardens.
These gardens were a series of earth-covered
terraces in which beautiful trees,flowers, and shrubs
were planted. Water was pumped from the
Euphrates River and used to make waterfalls and
pools throughout the gardens. Nebuchadnezzar had
these gardens built to look like a mountain in order to make his queen happy
(she had been raised amongst the mountains and missed her home). From a
distance, the gardens looked as if they were hanging in the air.
The kings who followed Nebuchadnezzar were unable to hold power for long.
One after another, the countries that Chaldea had conquered rebelled and
became free. Then the Persians, mighty conquerors from the east, captured
Babylon, and the last great Mesopotamian civilization fell.
Mesopotamia is often called "the cradle of civilization." It was here that people
first settled in large numbers, created laws, established a system of government,
and developed a common culture.
The Mesopotamians were also the first people to use a system of writing. They
kept track of their farming and trading by making marks on wet clay with sharp
reeds. When the clay dried, a permanent record was created. This is known as
cuneiform (wedge-shaped) writing because the marks were shaped like long, thin
triangles, or wedges.
Mesopotamia has left us with other important innovations as well, such as units
of measurement like the foot, the pound, and ounces. Until the metric system
was introduced, these units of weight and length were widely used in Canada
and many other countries.
The Mesopotamians also had a highly accurate lunar calendar that allowed them
to divide the year into weeks, and the day into hours and minutes. This paved the
way for the invention of the sundial, which allowed the Babylonians to measure
time on an individual basis.
In Mesopotamia all numbers were expressed as parts or multiples of sixty. Some
parts of the base-sixty system still exist today, such as 360 degrees in a circle,
sixty seconds in a minute, sixty minutes in an hour.