FERTILE CRESCENT EMPIRE
Section 2
Vocabulary

Empire – an area of many territories and peoples
that is controlled by one government
 Babylonian
 Assyrian
 Chaldean
 Persian

Babylon – the center of the Babylonian empire
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Caravan – a group of travelers
Bazaars - markets
Zoroastrianism – a religion that developed in
ancient Persia
The Babylonian Empire
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Hammurabi created the Babylonian Empire by
conquering, and uniting, the cities of Sumer in 1787
B.C.
Babylonians built roads throughout the empire
 Made
travel easier
 Encouraged trade – which made Babylon rich
Contributions

Hammurabi’s Code of Laws – first legal system
 “An
Eye for an Eye”
The fall of the Babylonian Empire
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Even with all of their wealth, the Babylonian Empire
could not defend itself from invaders.
Hammurabi’s empire was destroyed by invaders in
1500 B.C.
Assyrian Empire

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Ruled by Sargon II – Assyrians were skilled warriors
Since their empire lay open to invaders, their best
method of defense was to attack and gain control
 Assyrians

= Assassins
Their empire stretched from the Fertile Crescent to
the Persian Gulf
Assyrian Contributions

Battering ram – powerful weapon on wheels
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Skilled / Advanced warriors:
Rode horses in battle
 Armor and helmets

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Library at Nineveh – library that held thousands of clay
tablets with writings from Sumer and Babylon
The fall of the Assyrian Empire
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Assyrians had very few allies (friends)
The people they conquered tried to overthrow the
empire
Two groups were finally successful: The Medes and
Chaldeans joined together to defeat the Assyrians
Chaldean Empire
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Ruled by Kind Nebuchadnezzar II
Rebuilt the city of Babylon the Assyrians had
destroyed
Created a beautiful palace and garden for his wife
Contributions

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Center of learning and science
Astronomers charted the paths of the stars
Measured the length of a year
Raised honey bees – “flies that collect honey”
The fall of the Chaldean Empire
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Open to attack
Babylon fell to Cyrus the Great and the Persian
Empire in 539 B.C.
Persian Empire
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Ruled by Cyrus the Great
Built the largest empire that the Fertile Crescent had
ever known
 Stretched
from Greece in the west to India in the east
Contributions

Monotheism – belief in one God

Organized Empire
 Bureaucracy
– complex structure of government offices
 Built a road network – promoted trade

Humane
 Tolerated
people with different beliefs
 Freed Jews captured in Babylon