WH 1
The Fertile Crescent Revisited – Guided Notes - Part 1
Same Place – New Empires
The Hittites
As the Babylonian Empire declined, other civilizations prospered in and around the Fertile Crescent.
One of the first of these new Empires was that of the ___________. The Hittites were one of the IndoEuropean peoples believed to be from the Steppes, near the ___________________. The Hittites were a
________________ Indo-European tribe.
Among the Hittites strengths were their _______________________________ and iron weapons. Due
to their military strengths they sacked Babylon and established an Empire beyond Asia Minor including
most of the Anatolian Peninsula, and the Fertile Crescent including what became the modern nations of
__________, ___________ , __________, and ___________.
The Hittites, like the Akkadians and Babylonians, blended with the cultures around them in a process
called ________________. The used cuneiform to write their language and developed a legal code very
similar to _________________.
Eventually, the Hittites conquered ad expanded their Empire southward along the coast of the
Mediterranean Sea and came in conflict with __________, who was expanding their Empire northward.
They fought many battles but the most famous one was ________________________________ near
what is now the nation of Syria. Neither the Egyptians nor the Hittites could win the war so after this
battle the Hittites and the Egyptian forged a peace treaty vowing to help each other fight off any future
invaders.
Eventually the Hittite Empire fell and was defeated by the ________________, who also defeated many
Egyptian forces and greatly reduced its Empire as well.
Achievements of the Hittites:
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First people to master ____________________ .
War Chariots, iron weapons and tools.
The Assyrians
Originally from ________________________________________.
Adopted much of the Sumerian culture (this process is called :________________________.) Initially an
agricultural society (Barley and cattle) but because of their location along major __________ routes,
many tribes attempted to invade and control the area so the Assyrians became very ________________.
When the ___________________________ defeated the Hittites and Egyptians, there was a power
vacuum in the region – with no-one controlling it. The Assyrians took advantage of this situation and
took over control of the area and more – establishing a huge empire over the much of the former Hittite
Empire in Anatolia, the Fertile Crescent, and even most of Egypt.
WH 1
Assyria’s power relied on ____________________________. It was a _________________ society. Their
military strength included chariots, foot soldiers (infantry), archery units (men with __________&
__________) and developed _______________ (horse riding soldiers used for powerful attacks,
reconnaissance and speed.
The Assyrians also developed siege warfare and many powerful siege weapons. Siege weapons are
designed to _______________________ and ____________ over walls.
Assyria ruled their Empire through _____________________, each of whom governed small areas.
Local leaders collected taxes, enforced laws and raised troops for the Army.
Assyrians constructed a large ________ of roads to link the distant parts of the Empire. They had an
effective messenger system of horseback riders.
To maintain peace, the Assyrians ____________ anyone that opposed them. They usually _______
and/or ____________________ the people they defeated. In order to prevent revolt, some Assyrian
Kings would force people to _______________ to other areas in the Empire. The Assyrians were very
cruel and used ___________ and _______________ to terrorize populations into order.
Assyrian Achievements:
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Libraries – The Assyrian Kings constructed libraries where they collected thousands of
__________ tablets from across the Empire. Some of the books included ________________,
myths and literature.
Dictionaries were very important because the provided ________ to reading many languages of
the ancient world.
Built cities such as their capital ____________ , Ashur, Tarsus, and extensive roads.
Assyrian Decline
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As the Empire grew larger – it became ___________ to control.
The Chaldeans and the Medes saw an opportunity and joined forces – they defeated the
Assyrians and burned the capital Nineveh to the ground.
NEXT CLASS !! The Chaldeans & The Phoenicians !!