Download KS2: Baghdad AD 900 (6 lessons)

KS2: Baghdad AD 900 (6 lessons)
Contents Include:
An Introduction to Mesopotamia
Building Baghdad
The House of Wisdom
The Mongol Attack on Baghdad in 1258
This pack of lessons has been designed for Key Stage 2. The content can be easily adapted for
specific year groups.
Please note: Every effort has been made to seek permission to use the images included in this pack. Please contact us if
you have any questions. This pack is for educational purposes only.
Lesson 1: Setting the Scene: Mesopotamia
In the continent of Asia, there are two important rivers named the Tigris and the Euphrates. In the past, like the Nile, these rivers would flood, giving the
gift of rich soil. The good soil and the water supply meant that the people who lived beside or between the rivers could farm, grow plenty of food and
build their homes. This warm and pleasant region was called Mesopotamia, meaning the place between two rivers. The region is known as the ‘cradle of
civilisation’ because many early societies developed here. The system of writing that developed in Mesopotamia was one of the first, if not the first, the
world had ever seen. The writing system was made up of a series of wedge-shaped marks which would have been made by a stylus in soft clay. The word
cuneiform means ‘wedge-shaped’, from the Latin ‘cuneus’ meaning wedge and ‘forma’ meaning shape. As an extension children could find out about
Hammurabi, the King of Babylon. Hammurabi collected laws from many different kingdoms and recorded them in a list. This record is called The Code of
Hammurabi and is one of the very first examples of written laws. Some of the laws may seem shocking to us today, but they were considered just and fair
at the time.
Learning Objective
Core Knowledge
To understand that an
ancient civilisation began
in Mesopotamia.
The Tigris and the Euphrates
rivers flood, creating fertile
land.
An ancient civilisation began
in Mesopotamia.
A long time ago, people in
Mesopotamia began to use
cuneiform writing.
Activities for Learning
Look at a map of the world and identify the
region that was Mesopotamia. Look at the paths
of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and discuss why
civilisation was able to develop in the region.
Try out some cuneiform writing on squares of
clay. This is a helpful alphabet to use. Children
could try to write their names.
Look at some of the laws from the Code of
Hammurabi and discuss how they may have come
about. Explain the difference between criminal
law (to do with punishing someone who has done
something wrong) and civil law (to do with
settling disputes). Discuss what laws children
think are important and record their ideas (on
stone or slate if possible).
Resources:
This website gives some helpful instructions for making a cuneiform clay tablet.
Related
Vocabulary
Tigris
Euphrates
fertile
Mesopotamia
civilisation
cuneiform
Hammurabi
code
laws
Assessment Questions
Why did people start to
settle and live in
Mesopotamia?
What does civilisation
mean?
What is cuneiform writing
and why is it important?
What did the King of
Babylon, Hammurabi, do
that was important?
Lesson 1
The Code of Hammurabi
Some of these laws might seem terrible to us today, but life
was very different in Ancient Mesopotamia. These were rules
made for a very different time. Think about what these laws
tell you about the following:

Fairness

Punishment

Protecting others
Some examples of the laws in the Code of Hammurabi:

If a son should hit his father, his hands shall be cut off.

If a man puts out the eye of another man, his eye shall be put out too.

If any man should hit a man of higher rank, he shall receive sixty blows
with an ox-whip.

If a builder builds a house for someone and that house collapses killing
them, then the builder shall be put to death.

If a man owes some money, but he can’t pay it back, he must sell his wife,
son or daughter.

If a woman does not keep her house clean and look after her husband, she
should be thrown in the water.
(During this time, people believed that the river had the power to show if someone
was innocent or guilty. Those who had been accused of a crime would often be thrown
into the Euphrates River. If they drowned, they were considered to be guilty, but if they
survived then the river had shown they were innocent.)
Lesson 1
Name:
Cuneiform Alphabet
Can you find out what the letters of our alphabet would look like in cuneiform writing?
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
Lesson 2: Baghdad: The City of Peace
Many years after civilisation began in Mesopotamia, a city was built. The construction of Baghdad began in 762 AD when Caliph Al-Mansur laid the first
brick. The caliphs (pronounced kah-leaf) were the chief civil and religious leaders who were regarded as the successors of Muhammad. Caliph Al-Mansur
selected the location for building a city as it was close to the Tigris River and was a crossing point for many trade routes. The proximity to the Tigris River
also created fertile land around the city which was required for farming. Baghdad was designed to be a circular city with four gates connecting to routes
from the north, south, east and west. The trading routes across land and sea created a flow of knowledge, wealth and craftsmanship from China, India
and Armenia. Baghdad was known as the City of Peace and many important scholars came from around the world to think, study and talk.
Learning
Objective
Core Knowledge
To know that
Baghdad is a city
that was built a long
time ago.
Baghdad is a city that was built
near the Tigris River, in
Mesopotamia, a long time ago.
Baghdad was built in this
location because lots of people
could travel through that land.
People came to Baghdad buy
and sell things and also to
study.
Activities for Learning
Look at the location of Baghdad on a map and
talk about where traders might have come
from. This map indicates some trade routes as
does this one. Explain that the city was the
capital of an empire (the Abbasid Caliphate) so
many people wanted to visit.
Related
Vocabulary
Caliph Al-Mansur
Tigris River
trade route
fertile
City of Peace
Write a letter from one scholar in Baghdad to
another elsewhere in the world explaining why
Baghdad is such an exciting city to study in.
Design a capital city- what buildings and
natural features would a city need? Children
can consider trade, food, defence, religion,
water, homes etc.
Write a speech for Caliph Al-Mansur explaining
his dreams for the city and what he wants it to
look like.
Resources:
This article from The Spectator: Baghdad’s rise, fall - and rise again is useful for enhancing subject knowledge.
This is a short video introducing the city of Baghdad.
Assessment Questions
Why was it important to build
Baghdad near to the Tigris River?
Can you describe what the city of
Baghdad would have looked like
in AD 900?
Why did people come to Baghdad
during this time?
Name:
Date:
Learning Objective: To know that Baghdad is a city that was built a long time ago.
Write a letter from a Baghdad scholar to his friend encouraging him to come and study in Baghdad.
Lesson 2
Name:
Caliph Al-Mansur’s Speech
Write a speech for Caliph Al-Mansur describing his plans, hopes
and dreams for the city of Baghdad. Explain why the city has been
designed in a round shape and describe what it might look like
when it has been built.
Lesson 3: Baghdad: Building a City
In this lesson, children will learn how the city of Baghdad was planned and built. They will find out about the different buildings that could be found
inside the city walls. They will explore the reasons why Baghdad’s location enabled it to become a cultural capital. Children will also find out about the
different jobs people may have had at the time when Baghdad was growing. As children have learned in the previous lesson, Baghdad was built in a
circular shape. At the centre of this round city was the Mosque and a palace, in the surrounding areas were government buildings and accommodation
for guards. Outside the city walls were markets and homes. Four avenues of trees spanned out from the centre of the city stretching to each of the four
city gates. This enabled people to access the city from whichever direction they were travelling in.
Learning Objective
Core Knowledge
To recognise Baghdad in
AD 900 as a round city.
The ancient city of Baghdad
was a round city.
In the centre of the city there
was a Mosque and a palace.
Around the outside of the city
were markets and homes.
Activities for Learning
Draw and label a diagram of the original layout of
Baghdad.
Write a description of the original layout of Baghdad
from the point of view of a builder working on the
construction of the city.
Write a description of Baghdad from the point of view
of a trader coming into the city. Look at the size of the
Abbasid Empire and discuss what produce you may
have been able to buy in a market in Baghdad.
Extension: Look at other examples of circles in Islamic
architecture. Circles play an important role in Islamic
Architecture as they have no end, reminding Muslims
that Allah is infinite.
Resources:
This image shows the layout of Baghdad when it was first constructed.
These slides explain how geometry is used in Islamic architecture.
Related
Vocabulary
location
Mosque
Palace
government
accommodation
guards
avenue
Assessment
Questions
Describe the shape of
Baghdad in AD 900.
What could be found
inside the city walls in
AD 900?
What could be found
outside the city walls at
this time?
When designing a city,
what do you think it
might be important to
consider?
Lesson 4: Baghdad: A Centre for Learning
It is important for children to understand that Baghdad became a hugely significant city by AD 900. People came from all over the world to study maths,
science, medicine, philosophy and law. Baghdad’s location near to a river made paper production easier and lowered the cost of producing books. A
Chinese method of making paper from flax and hemp also arrived in the region around this time adding to the availability of paper for book making.
Libraries and book shops sprung up all over the city. Translation of important texts was a vitally important activity and many people worked on
translating texts from Greek, Aramaic, Persian and Sanskrit into Arabic. Acting as a library, translation centre and school, the House of Wisdom brought
together scholars from many countries. Language, ideas and cultures were shared which led to Baghdad’s development as a truly cosmopolitan city. Not
only did people bring together knowledge, but they also built on this knowledge and made scientific and mathematical discoveries of their own. In AD
900, Baghdad had the largest collection of books in the world.
Learning Objective
To understand that many
people came to Baghdad
from around the world to
trade, teach and learn.
Core Knowledge
In AD 900 people came from all
over the world to learn in
Baghdad.
One of the places where people
went to learn was called the
House of Wisdom.
In AD 900 Baghdad had the
largest collection of books in the
world.
Activities for Learning
Look again at the location of Baghdad on a map and
look at where traders might have come from.
This map indicates some trade routes as does this
one. A good illustration of the extent to which trading
occurred with Europe is the story of Offa’s coin.
Look at some of the original translations and other
work completed in the House of Wisdom. Discuss the
importance of translation in sharing knowledge. Find
out about al Tabari who was a historian who wrote
and taught in Baghdad.
Related
Vocabulary
AD 900
medicine
philosophy
law
translation
House of
Wisdom
scholar
Assessment
Questions
Why did people come
from all around the
world to Baghdad in
AD 900?
What sort of things did
people learn about in
Baghdad?
Why was translating
important in Baghdad?
Design an advertisement or prospectus for the House
of Wisdom explaining all the things people can learn
there. Include information about the library and the
translation work.
Resources:
How to make medicine from honey, Text from the Qu’ran, Text from an Arabic translation of a Hindu story, Medicines in Arabic.
This video explains how Baghdad became a centre for learning.
Offa’s Coin
Kingdom of Mercia, England, AD 773-96
Offa was a King of the Anglo-Saxon
kingdom of Mercia.
This gold coin is very important because it gives us some clues
about the time when it was made.

It has been made to look like a gold dinar from Baghdad in the
Abbasid Caliphate. This is interesting because it means that
people in Anglo Saxon England had either seen dinar brought
to England by traders or perhaps they had travelled to places
where people had used them.

There is Arabic text on the coin, but the person that inscribed
it probably didn’t read Arabic. We know this because it is not
copied very well. The English writing ‘Offa Rex’ means King
Offa but it has been written upside down in relation to the
Arabic.

Although it is a copy of a gold dinar, it is close enough to the
original that it would have been accepted for trading. At that
time in the Mediterranean, dinars were rare and valuable. By
including his name on the coin, Offa ensured that people in
far lands would know of his importance.

Offa made lots of other coins but they were mostly of a
Roman style. The gold dinar coin was something much more
special.
Latin
Greek
Arabic
Farsi
Sanskrit
geography
medicine
What could be studied in the House of Wisdom?
Use these flashcards to support content when writing about the House of Wisdom.
poetry
stories
maths
science
philosophy
astronomy
Scholars at an Abbasid library
Maqamat of al-Hariri Illustration by Yahyá al-Wasiti, Baghdad 1237
Explain that later civilisations also had centres of learning for example The Academy
at Athens and the Library in Alexandria.
Lesson 5: The Mongol Attack on Baghdad
This lesson covers the fall of Baghdad in 1258. The Mongols (originally from Mongolia) were a tribe of nomads who rode on horseback across central and
northern Asia. One army of Mongols, led by Hulagu Khan, were set a target of conquering Syria, Persia and Egypt. To do this they needed to destroy the
Abbasid Caliphate who ruled Baghdad. Over several hundred years before this point, Baghdad had been in decline. Other centres of learning had sprung
up around the world and the city was no longer the cultural centre that is was before. In 1258 the Mongols entered Baghdad and complete destruction
ensued. Baghdad’s Mosque, hospitals, libraries and palace were completely destroyed. Thousands of books are said to have been thrown into the Tigris
River, making the river run black with ink. Over 200,000 people were killed during this time. Entire regions were depopulated and were left uninhabitable
as means of irrigation and growing crops were ruined. The Caliphate was destroyed and Baghdad’s golden age had come to a violent end.
Learning
Objective
Core Knowledge
To know that the
Mongol attack on
Baghdad
destroyed the
city.
The Mongols attacked Baghdad in
1258.
Look at this tapestry showing the invasion of Baghdad
in 1258.
The Mongols destroyed the city and
killed its inhabitants.
Create some art work showing the tribesmen on
horseback attacking the city. Children could include
details such as the Tigris River running black with the
ink from the books that were thrown into it. Show
children how ink from a page (use an ink pen to write
on some paper) can be washed into water.
Thousands of books were thrown
into the Tigris River and lost forever.
Activities for Learning
Children could write some accounts of the attack
from different perspectives, for example from a
Mongol tribesman, from a trader who escaped the
invasion, or from a child living in Baghdad at the time
who escaped during the invasion.
Resources:
Teacher Knowledge- The Mongols Invade Baghdad
Related
Vocabulary
Mongols
Asia
Abbasid
Caliphate
depopulate
uninhabitable
irrigation
Assessment
Questions
Who were the
Mongols?
What did the Mongols
do in 1258?
How did Baghdad
change after 1258?
Name:
Date:
The Mongol Invasion of Baghdad in 1258
The Caliph
Mongol
Tribesman
Market trader
Child living
outside the city
Lesson 6: Assessment Task
In this lesson, children will apply the knowledge they have learned throughout the unit. Some possible activities are suggested, but any relevant form of
assessment can be used at this stage. Children should now understand that Baghdad is a city that was built a very long time ago in a place called
Mesopotamia which is now called Iraq. They should be able to describe the shape and layout of the city. Children will have learned about the House of
Wisdom and should be able to explain that people from all around the world came to Baghdad to study. Finally, children should be able to explain what
happened when the Mongols invaded Baghdad in 1258. You may want to extend this unit by reading some of the stories from 1001 Nights, such as The
Blind Beggar of Baghdad.
Learning Objective
To write a report.
(Change as appropriate)
Core Knowledge
Activities for Learning
Baghdad is a city that was
built a long time ago in
Mesopotamia.
-Write a report organised into paragraphs. Give
children tools for organising their ideas, such as
picture prompts or mind maps.
Lots of people came to
Baghdad to trade and to
study.
-Create an information book with pages on each of
the areas studied.
Baghdad was invaded in 1258
and much of the city was
destroyed.
Resources:
Blank map of Iraq from Enchanted Learning.
Text to retell the story of The Blind Beggar of Baghdad.
-Present what children have learned to an audience
(recording on film, parents, other classes etc.)
-Create a booklet or fact file split into three stages:
the construction of Baghdad, the growth of
Baghdad and then finally the destruction of
Baghdad in 1258. Children can show what they
have learned about how the city changed during
this period.
Related
Vocabulary
All previously
covered
vocabulary.
Assessment
Questions
Why did Caliph AlMansur decide to build
Baghdad in that
specific location?
Explain why people
came to Baghdad
around AD 900?
How was Baghdad
destroyed in 1258?
Name:
Baghdad Assessment Task
The Construction of Baghdad- AD 762
The Growth of Baghdad– AD 900
Date:
The Destruction of Baghdad– AD 1258