Cylinder seal – Sargon’s brother

Sargon

The Akkadians, a Semitic people, lived in

the southern region of Mesopotamia.
Sargon became their ruler around 2334
BCE. Stories vary as to how he came to power;
some believe he organized the military to
overthrow his king, while others believe power
was passed down to him.
 Prior to Sargon I,
the land between the
rivers was controlled
locally by kings and
royal families.

King Sargon I was

the first ruler to
organize and unite the
city-states of Sumer
and Mesopotamia
under the Akkadian
Empire.
 Sargon’s Military Technology

Sargon introduced two new forms of

military technology to the battlefield.
These were the keys to his success.

Prisoners of war

The first was the

composite bow made from
strips of wood and horn. It
was capable of firing arrows
further and faster than
conventional wooden bows. An Akkadian using
composite bow
 Sargon also
introduced the phalanx
structure of military
combat. The phalanx
was made by arranging
the soldiers into equally-
spaced rows of men with
overlapping shields and
leveled spears.
The phalanx easily defeated unorganized
armies. Soldiers protected each other by
forming a human wall of spears and shields.
Most other armies at the time had no
discipline or formation.
* Cities were organized into the world’s first empire.
* They had one language, the Akkadian.

* They entirely dependent in the agricultural systems

of the region.

Cause of Rise: * Good governance led by Sargon

* They had better communication and organization.
Cause of Downfall: After 200 yrs., Sargon’s dynasty
declined due to internal fighting invasion and severe
famine.

* First Empire
* Military Technology; Composite Bow and Phalanx
Formation
How did the military
skills of Sargon I help in
the development of
Akkadian civilization?
* The epic of Enuna Elish and Gilgamesh were
written.
* Marduk was their greatest god.
* Social Classes: Nobleman, Freeman, Slaves

* They made jewelries made of precious stones and

metal.
* They used contract in their business transactions.
Cause of Rise: * Good governance * Code of
Hammurabi * Cooperation between the government
officials and military force.
Cause of Downfall: Hittites who invaded them had
more superior weapons made of metal.

* Code of Hammurabi
* Epic of Enuna Elish (myth about Marduk) and
Gilgamesh (about the hero of Uruk)
 What should be done to the
carpenter who builds a house
that falls and kills the owner?
If a builder builds a
house for a man and
does not make its
construction sound,
and the house which
he has built collapses
and causes the death
of the owner of the
house, the builder
shall be put to death.
 What should happen to a
boy who slaps his father?

If a son strikes
his father, they
shall cut off his
hand.
How did the
implementation of law
help in maintaining
peace and order in the
Babylonian civilization?
* They discovered metal
* Great King/Sun” was the term used for Hittites’
leader.
* The head of the Hittite state was the king, followed
by the heir-apparent
* They used 7 languages
* They considered metal 5x more important than gold
and 8x more important than silver
* Agriculture was their main industry.

Cause of Rise: * Their discovery of metal * More

superior weapons * Better law implementation
Cause of Downfall: * The king focused more in
religious activities than in military aspect.

* Discovery of iron metal * Land titling *

Implementing taxes in lands * Respect in different
languages
How did the discovery of
iron help in the
development of Hittites
civilization?
The Assyrian military was one of the
strongest in the ancient world. They used
fierce iron weapons and psychological
warfare. The Assyrians would often attempt
to get an area to surrender before attack.

If people refused and were defeated they were

treated harshly.

King Ashurnasirpal once stated

“3,000 of their combat troops I felled with
weapons. . . Many I took alive; from some of these I
cut off their hands to the writs, from others I cut off
their noses, ears and fingers; I put out the eyes of
many of the soldiers. . . . I burned their young men
and women to death.”
 SCOURGE OF THE NATIONS
* Ashurbanipal built the first library with 200,00 clay
tablet. * Major gods: Ishtar and Marduk. * The king
has an absolute power. * Nineveh was the capital
city.

* Effective way of collecting taxes. * * Good postal

system * They improve the transportation and road
construction. * They got their wealth by invading
their neighbor kingdoms.

Cause of Rise: * Strong military force * Effective

system in ruling the empire
Cause of Downfall: * Because of their cruelty and
harshness, the Chaldeans, Medes and Persian worked
together and invaded the Assyrians.
* Improvement in road constructions * Development
in education because of its library. * They serve as an
example for other kingdoms that if the government is
cruel and corrupt, it will not last long.
 He was the
last strong king of
the Neo-Assyrian
Empire (934-609
BC). He was known
as a tenacious
martial commander;
however, he was
also a recognized
intellectual who was
literate, and a
passionate collector
of texts and tablets.
The Royal Library of Ashurbanipal
holds the collection of thousands
of clay tablets and fragments
containing texts of all kinds from
the 7th century BC. Among its
holdings was the famous Epic of
Gilgamesh. Due to the sloppy
handling of the original material
much of the library is irreparably
jumbled, making it impossible for
scholars to discern and reconstruct
many of the original texts, although
some have survived intact.
How did the Assyrians
gain the title “Scourge of
Nations”?
 He was king of the Neo-
Babylonian Empire, who reigned
c. 605 BC – 562 BC. He is credited with
the construction of the Hanging
Gardens of Babylon which was one of
the Seven Wonders of the Ancient
World, and the only one whose location
has not been definitely established.
Nebuchadnezzar II built the
grader for his Persian wife,
Queen Amytis because she missed the
green hills and valleys of her homeland.
* They created the tallest zigggurta, “Etemenanki”
that was believed to be the, “Tower of Babel”.
* They believed in astronomy and astrology.
* There were used to beautiful houses and grand
palaces.
* Agriculture was their main livelihood
* They got their wealth by invading their neighbor
kingdoms.

Cause of Rise: * King Nebuchadnezzar chose wise young man

from the conquered cities to help him rule the empire.
Cause of Downfall: * Death of King Nebuchadnezzar

* The Hanging Gardens of Babylon

* The concept of Zodiac Sign and Horoscope
11 Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. 2 As people
moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar[and settled there.

3
They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.”
They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. 4 Then they said, “Come, let
us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we
may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of
the whole earth.”

5
But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower the people were
building. 6 The LORD said, “If as one people speaking the same language they
have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for
them. 7 Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not
understand each other.”

8
So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped
building the city. 9 That is why it was called Babel—because there
the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there
the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth.
Why the Chaldeans were
known as the
“Stargazers of the
Babylon”?
 In 550 B.C, the ruling of King Cyrus
started.

 Under his rule the Persian Empire

expanded from the Indus river to
Anatolia.

 He was a very kind person and he

allowed people to freedom in their
religion.

 He also permitted Jews to return to

Jerusalem, resulting in the Jews
being able to continue their rituals
and reconstruct their city.
 He expanded the empire by gaining
control of Egypt.

 In contrast to his father, he did not

accept all religions. He treated the
Egyptian religion very low and this
action caused rebellion in the empire.

 After dying, he left the thrown to his

heir, Darius.
 Darius was actually the guard of
Cambyses before he died. A group of
well-trained soldiers called the Ten
Thousand Immortals helped him
achieve power in 521 B.C.

 The first couple of years of his reign,

he had to clean up the numerous
rebellions in the empire.

 One of his greatest accomplishments

was the establishment of many
provinces (satrapy) in the Persian
Empire.
 He was the son and successor of
Darius the Great.

 He was best known for his massive

invasion of Greece around 480 BCE.

 He fought the battles of

Thermopylae, Salamis, and Plataea.

 His ultimate defeat from the Greco –

Persian Wars was the beginning of
the decline of the empire.
 In Zoroastrianism, the
creator Ahura Mazda (Supreme
God) is all good, and
no evil originates from him. Thus,
in Zoroastrianism good and evil
have distinct sources, with evil
(druj) trying to destroy the creation
of Mazda (asha), and good trying to
sustain it
* Equal rights of its people * They believed in
teachings of Zoroaster * They copied the Assyrians’
form of government and made more improvements

* Like Assyrians, Persians also have strong military

force they invaded their neighboring kingdoms to
acquire wealth.

Cause of Rise: * Cyrus ruled the empire * They have

strong military force
Cause of Downfall: * After Cyrus, Darius and Xerxes,
there was no one left to rule the empire who is strong
and wise enough.

* Zoroastrianism * The concept of “Satrapy” in their

empire.
How did the Persians
effectively manage/
maintain their whole
empire?
Phoenicia was
located
between the
eastern
Mediterranean
coast and the
Lebanon
Mountains.
 The “Royal Purple”
Dye

This dye was used in

royal robes, other
kinds of special
ceremonial or ritual
garments, or
garments indicating
high rank
Phoenician Alphabet
 The Traders of Antiquity
* They carried their civilization and culture where
they traded * They were not a unified nation because
the empire was consisted on independent city-states.

* They were the leading sailors and traders of ancient

world. They traded cloth, purple dye, glass and
potteries.

Cause of Rise: * They earned big profit from their

unique and high quality products.
Cause of Downfall: * They didn’t focus in political and
military aspects

* Purple Dye (from shellfish murex), Phoenicians

Alphabet, they sailed and colonized throughout the
Mediterranean Gades (Cadiz, Spain) and Carthage
(Tunis, Tunisia) beginning 1000 B.C.E.
Why were the
Phoenicians known as
the “Traders of
Antiquity”?
Lydia was ruled by a king
– The most famous king of Lydia was
Croesus
– “As rich as Croesus”

Sardis
They were an Anatolian people living
in Lydia, a region in western Anatolia,
Turkey.

* Their capital was Sardis and also

considered as their trading center.
* They controlled Asia Minor’s trade routes

Cause of Rise: * They were able to

established 400 years of prosperity.
Cause of Downfall: * They were conquered
by the Persians.

* Coined Money
Before the Lydians, goods had to be traded for
other goods
– Only thing close to money were lumps of
gold and silver, which had to be repeatedly
weighed and tested for purity
Lydians made standard-sized pieces of gold and
silver and stamped them with their value
– Invention of money
Use of money spread quickly
– It helped to spread international trade
How did the Lydians
gain their wealth?
* They believed and worshipped one God. *They had
patriarchal form of family. * It was the obligation of
the family to teach the books of the Old Testament:
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers at Deuteronomy.

* Agriculture (farming and husbandry) was their main

livelihood. * The government collected taxes * They
adapted the caravan trading of the Egyptians.

Cause of Rise: * According to the Old Testament,

Hebrews followed God’s will
Cause of Downfall: * They levied huge taxes to the
people that pushed people to rebel.

* Bible * 10 Commandments of God *Monotheism *

Moses and
the tablets
of law
After the Ten Plagues,
Moses of
Plague ledblood
the Exodus of
the Israelites
Plague of frogsout of Egypt
and across
Plague the
of lice orRed Sea,
gnats
after which
Plague they
of flies or based
wild
themselves at Mount Sinai,
animals
where Moses
Plague received
of pestilence
the TenofCommandments.
Plague boils
Plague
After 40ofyears
hail of
Plague of locusts
wandering in the desert,
Plague
Moses of darkness
died within sight of
Death of the firstborn
the Promised Land.
Founding of Israel

Resistance in Canaan
– Canaanites in the north
 Conquered by the Hebrews
– Philistines in the south
 Driven out by the Hebrews,
but never fully conquered
During the fighting, the 12 Tribes
united under a single kingdom- Israel
– Saul  1st king
– David  succeeded Saul and
made Jerusalem a religious
center
– Solomon brought Israel to its
height in wealth in power
Divided Kingdom

After Solomon’s death in

the late 900’s B.C., the
kingdom divided due to
struggles for political
power
– Northern tribes formed the
kingdom of Israel
– Southern tribes formed the
kingdom of Judah
Lacking unity and strength,
the two kingdoms were
conquered
– 722 B.C. Assyrians
conquered Israel
– 587 B.C.  Chaldeans
conquered Judah
 Freedom

When Cyrus the

Great of Persia
conquered the
Chaldeans, he allowed
the Hebrews to return
to their homeland
The Hebrews
rebuilt Jerusalem
– Torah- The first 5
books of the Old
Testament
– Includes the Hebrew
code of Laws
What was the greatest
contribution of the
Hebrews to the modern
world? Prove your answer.