Download ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA

ANCIENT MESOPOTAMIA
The Geography of Sumeria
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Unpredictable flooding, frequent
drought
No natural protecting barriers (e.g. hills)
Few natural resources (no wood, stone,
metal ore)
The Geography of Sumeria
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Sumerians overcame their problems by
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Irrigation systems
City-walls built of mud brick
Trade up-river for raw materials
Sumerian Government
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City-states
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Ruled at first by priests
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An independent city with the farmlands
surrounding it
Crops depend on blessing of the gods
Gods can do much harm to humans
Polytheism
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Belief in many gods
Sumerian Government
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Later rule moved to warrior leaders
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Wars between city-states grew more
frequent
First dynasties established
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Royal power passed from father to son
Cultural Diffusion
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Sumeria the very first civilization in the
western world
Sold grain and artifacts up-river
Trade led to cultural diffusion
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Spread of ideas, technology, beliefs,
customs, products from one culture to
another
The First Empires
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Empire
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One ruler or nation controlling several
nations or peoples
Babylonian Empire
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Established about 2000 BC
Warriors from north conquered
Mesopotamia
Set up capital at Babylon
Hammurabi
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Ruled the Babylonian empire 1792 –
1750 BC
Famous for the first great code of laws
issued by a king
Hammurabi’s Code focused on
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Trade issues
Personal violence
Family relationships/responsibilities
The Assyrians
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Conquered Babylon
Ruled whole Middle East 850 –612 BC
A violent, war-like people
Used iron weapons and armor
Killed or enslaved conquered peoples
Moved them away from their homelands
The Assyrians
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Capital at Nineveh, in the north of
Mesopotamia
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Assyrian carvings focus on war, lion-hunting
King Ashurbanipal collected a library of
20,000 clay tablets
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Organized and cataloged by subject
Epic of Gilgamesh and other Sumerian
documents
The Chaldean Empire
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Chaldeans conquered Nineveh 612 BC
Returned capital to Babylon
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Sometimes called Second Babylonian
empire, 612 – 550 BC
Nebuchadnezzar
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Hanging Gardens of Babylon
Chaldean Astronomy
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Chaldeans set up observatories on top
of ziggurats
Recorded movement of stars
Deduced existence of the solar system
Created astrology
The Persian Empire
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Cyrus the Great conquered whole
Middle East, 550-539 BC
Persian empire lasted 550 – 331 BC
Destroyed by Alexander the Great
The Persian Empire
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Ruled with tolerance
Conquered peoples stayed on their own
land, worshiped own gods
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Provided they were obedient, paid taxes
The Persian Empire
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First great bureaucracy
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Royal satraps sent throughout empire to
govern provinces
Provinces match boundaries of conquered
peoples
Each province had military ruler and tax
collector
Royal Road built to allow swift passage
of royal commands, soldiers
The Persian Empire
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Unified monetary system – one set of
standard coins
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Stimulated trade across the empire
Zoroastrian religion
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Universe divided in struggle between
forces of good and evil, light and darkness
Influenced Christian heresies