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Early River Civilizations 3500 BC to 450 BC •Review – Rise of Civilizations •5000 BC – Neolithic Revolution & 3000 BC– Bronze Age •Mesopotamia = City States •Egypt = Upper & Lower Egypt •Indus = Planned Cities •China = Dynasties Learn Role of geography Earliest civilizations Main characteristics for each Dynasties & Empires (and leaders) Hammurabi’s Code & other laws Science & Technology Religion Africa & Asia The earliest civilizations formed along the river valleys of the Fertile Crescent, Egypt, India, and China. Each of these societies had to overcome environmental challenges in order to create a stable social organization. These people experimented with new government institutions, from city-states and kingdoms to early empires. They also developed breakthroughs in science and technology. They spread their ideas and innovations to distant lands through trade. Early River Valley Civilizations Environment Mesopotamia • Flooding of Tigris and Euphrates unpredictable • No natural barriers • Limited natural resources for making tools or buildings Egypt • Flooding of the Nile predictable; “Gift of the Nile” • Nile an easy transportation link between Egypt’s villages • Deserts were natural barriers. Indus Valley China • Indus flooding unpredictable • Monsoon winds. Rains ½ the year. Drought ½ the year. • Himalaya mountains & deserts were natural barriers • Huang He flooding unpredictable; “River of Sorrows.” • Yangtze River flooding unpredictable. • Mountains, deserts natural barriers • Geographically isolated from other ancient civilizations Early River Valley Civilizations Power & Authority Mesopotamia • Independent city-states, often warring • City-states governed first by priests, then by generals who became kings • City-states eventually united to first empires by conquerors Egypt • Kingdom with strong government organization • Theocracy, with pharaohs ruling as gods • Flexible social system; talent rewarded with advancement Indus Valley • Strong centralized government • Planned cities • Social divisions not significant. China • Community and family more important than individual • Sharp divisions between nobles and peasants • Inflexible social system. Once a peasant…… Early River Valley Civilizations Science & Technology Mesopotamia Egypt Indus Valley China • Irrigation • Cuneiform • Bronze • Wheel, sail, plow • Hieroglyphics • Pyramids: Tombs not used on everyday basis • Mathematics, geometry, astronomy • Medicine • Writing (not yet deciphered) • Cities built on precise grid • Plumbing and sewage systems • Writing • Silk • Coined money • Cast iron Early River Valley Civilizations Legacies/Additional info Mesopotamia Egypt Indus Valley China • Ziggurat-temples/city centers used every day • Epic of Gilgamesh; oldest novel • Hammurabi’s Code; first legal system set down in stone. • Home to many civilizations over time. • Egyptians polytheistic/immortality/life after death. • Civilization survived for longest period of time • Knowledge of hieroglyphics died out for centuries. • Not sure how pyramids/etc. built. • Writing (not yet deciphered) • Cities built on precise grid. Plumbing and sewage systems • Trade with Mesopotamia, accurate weights & measures • Long distance trade w/Rome drained Rome’s wealth. • Great Wall may have pushed Huns into Europe. • Emperors trying to isolate China ended up weakening it. • Emperors sought immortality. “Terra-cotta army.” Ancient Middle East •Babylonians: Hammurabi’s Code, astrology, polytheism •Hittites: Iron tools, Chariots, less severe laws •Hebrews: Judaism, monotheism, 10 commandments •Phoenicians: sailors, traders, the alphabet •Assyrians: effective government, library at Nineveh •Chaldeans: Hanging Gardens, astronomy •Persians: better government, roads, cultural diffusion, Zoroaster Sum It All Up Due to Agricultural/Neolithic Revolution man transitioned from HuntingGathering to settled agricultural societies. The most logical places for these civilizations to arise is along rivers which provided water for crops, mud for building materials and transportation. Sum It All Up Four civilizations arose around 6 rivers. The geographic circumstances of the rivers and surrounding lands played a huge part in shaping the cultures that lived in/on them. Sum It All Up Lack of natural barriers (Mesopotamia) allows for constant invasions but easier trade of goods and ideas. Formidable natural barriers (India, China, Egypt) kept civilizations safe, but isolated, possibly vulnerable. “Friendly” geographic conditions (Egypt) help civilization survive for centuries.
