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Chapter 4 Sections 1 & 2 Outlines
Chapter 4 Sec. 1: The Empires of Egypt and Nubia Collide (pgs. 83 – 87)
1) The New Kingdom of Egypt
- Egypt fell into war because of weak pharaohs and power struggles among rival nobles.
- The country fell to invaders, the Hyksos, who ruled Egypt from 1640 to 1570 B.C.E.
- By 1600 B.C.E., a group of rulers, including Queen Ahhotep, drove the Hyksos out of Egypt.
- The New Kingdom sought to strengthen Egypt by building an empire from 1570 to 1075 B.C.E.
- During this third period of glory, Egypt was wealthier and more powerful than ever.
a) Egypt’s Empire Builders in the New Kingdom
i) Pharaohs set up armies with archers, charioteers, infantry, and bronze weapons.
ii) Hatshepsut, who declared herself pharaoh in 1472 B.C.E., encouraged trade instead of war.
iii) Armies also pushed further south into Nubia, a region of Africa surrounding the Upper Nile.
iv) From Nubia, Egyptian soldiers returned carrying gold, cattle, ivory, and many captives.
b) The Egyptians and the Hittites
i) By 1400 B.C.E., Egyptians had crossed the Sinai Peninsula and conquered parts of Syria and
Palestine. Here, they came into contact with the Hittites.
ii) The two armies met at the Battle of Kadesh in 1285 B.C.E. where pharaoh Ramses II and a
Hittite leader made a treaty that promised “peace and brotherhood between us forever.”
c) An Age of Builders
i) The New Kingdom build palaces, temples, and tombs beneath desert cliffs.
ii) Ramses II stood out from other New Kingdom builders and built a temple in the red
sandstone cliffs near Abu Simbel. He decorated the temples with statues of himself.
2) The Empire Declines
a) Invasions by Land and Sea
i) Egyptians and Hittites were attacked by “the People of the Sea” who caused great
destruction. Scholars are not sure, but some identified them as the Philistines.
ii) The tribes of Palestine rebelled from the east and Libyans raided in spite of the desert.
b) Egypt’s Empire Fades
i) After these invasions, Egypt broke into regional units and numerous small kingdoms arose.
ii) Powerless at home and abroad, Egypt fell to its neighbors’ invasions.
iii) Libyans ruled Egypt from 950 to 730 B.C.E. and erected cities.
iv) Nubians came north to seize power too and adopted Egyptian religion, manners, and culture.
3) The Kushites Conquer the Nile Region
- Egypt dominated the Nubian kingdom of Kush until 1000 B.C.E. when Kush rose in power.
a) The People of Nubia
i) Several Nubian kingdoms served as a trade corridor linking Egypt to the Mediterranean
world to the north and Africa and the Red Sea to the south.
ii) The first Nubian kingdom, Kerma, buried their kings in chambers larger than those in any
Egyptian pyramid. Red-and-black Kerma pottery sold for high prices to Egyptian nobles.
b) The Interaction of Egypt and Nubia
i) Kush’s capital, Napata, became the center for the spread of Egyptian culture.
ii) Kushite princes went to Egypt to learn the Egyptian language and worship their gods.
iii) They adopted royal rituals, hieroglyphic writing and built pyramids modeled after Egypt.
iv) When Egypt started to decline, Kushites viewed themselves as guardians of Egyptian values.
c) Piankhi Captures the Egyptian Throne
i) In 751 B.C.E., a Kushite king name Piankhi overthrew the Libyan dynasty ruling Egypt.
ii) He united the entire Nile Valley from the delta in the north to Napata in the south.
iii) However, in 671 B.C.E., the Assyrians conquered Egypt and the Kushites retreated south.
4) The Golden Age of Meroë
- The Kushite ruling family moved south to Meroë, which lay closer to the Red Sea than Napata.
a) The Wealth of Kush
i) Here, there was significant rainfall and an abundant supply of iron ore, which led Meroë to
become a major center of iron weapon and tool manufacturing.
ii) These goods were transported to the Red Sea where they were traded fro jewelry, fine cotton
cloth, silver lamps, and glass bottles.
iii) These luxury goods from India and Arabia let the Kushite kings live like pharaohs, except
their succession was determined by the agreement of the leaders and nobles.
b) The Decline of Meroë
i) After four centuries of prosperity, Meroë began to decline in 150 C.E..
ii) Aksum, a rival power with a seaport on the Red Sea defeated Meroë in 350 C.E.
Chapter 4 Sec. 2: Assyria Dominates the Fertile Crescent (pgs. 88 – 91)
1) A Mighty Military Machine
- Around 850 B.C.E, Assyria acquired a large empire through sophisticated military organization.
a) The Rise of a Warrior People
i) Assyrians came from northern Mesopotamia with few natural barriers. This forced them to
develop a strong army to allow their empire to keep invaders out.
ii) One Assyrian king, Sennacherib bragged about sacking 89 cities and 820 villages, burning
Babylon, and killing most of its inhabitants.
b) Military Organization and Conquest
i) Soldiers covered themselves in stiff leather and metal armor. They had copper helmets,
padded loincloths, and iron-pointed spears. Huge shields were used to protect themselves.
ii) Before attacking, Assyrians dug beneath the city’s walls to weaken them. Foot soldiers
marched in formation and on command fired showers of arrows.
iii) To prevent rebellions, Assyrians forced captives to leave their homelands and settle in exile.
2) An Expanding Empire
a) Assyrian Rule
i) At its peak around 650 B.C.E., the Assyrians organized their conquered territories into an
empire. Kings influenced dependent regions by choosing their rulers.
ii) Military campaigns added new territory, which brought in taxes and tribute to the treasury.
iii) If conquered people refused to pay, Assyrians destroyed their cities and exiled the people.
b) Assyrian Culture
i) Nineveh, a great walled city was the largest city of its day and was along the Tigris River.
ii) Sculptures showed brutal military campaigns and lion hunts.
iii) Nineveh also held one of the ancient world’s largest libraries. King Ashurbanipal prided
himself in being able the read several languages. He collected over 25,000 clay tablets.
3) The Empire Crumbles
a) Decline and Fall
i) In 612 B.C.E., a combined army of Medes, Chaldeans, and others rammed open the city’s
gates, burned, and destroyed Nineveh.
ii) So thoroughly did the armies destroy Nineveh that two centuries later only mounds remained.
b) Rebirth of Babylon Under the Chaldeans
i) In 600 B.C.E., Babylon became the center of a new empire.
ii) A Chaldean king named Nebuchadnezzar restored Babylon and created the famous hanging
gardens, one of the Seven Wonders of the World.
iii) The city was a wonder, with walls so thick a four-horse chariot could wheel around on top.
iv) The highest building was a ziggurat more than 300 feet high where priests could observe the
stars and keep records of how the stars and planets seemed to change position.
v) Nebuchadnezzar’s empire fell shortly after his death. The Persians who came next stabilized
the region and adopted many Assyrian military, political, and artistic inventions.