Highlands Ranch High School - Mr. Sedivy
Highlands Ranch, Colorado

World History - Ancient Civilizations
Sargon the Great, Mesopotamian Advances,
And the Fall of Mesopotamia

Akkad - 2350 to 2150 BC
Akkad is another city of Mesopotamia and had its own Semitic language. Akkad built an army and concerned other cities. Akkad had the religious practice, "King for a day." Every year a king was to be killed to rid them of evil.

Bronze Head of Akkadian King Who Ruled in Mesopotamia 4500 years Ago.

Sargon the Great
Sargon was king for a day! He was smart; he knew he had two choices: either to die or take control. "If I do nothing, I die. If I don't succeed, I die. How can I loose?" So, Sargon took control of the army and built the first empire in history. In 2350 BC Sargon the Great captured the city states.

The first empire - all territory under one ruler, Akkad, lasted 100 years. Akkad adopted Sumerian culture and blended it with their own. Later, Akkad fell to barbarians and chaos lasted for 100 years.

Mesopotamian Advances

Writing

Written laws

Mathematics. Number system based on 60 - from this came the 360 degree circle and 60 minutes in an hour, tables for multiplication, division, square roots, quadratic equations, had equivalent of zero, could compute angles of right triangles, etc.

Astronomy. Lunar calendar of seven day weeks; five planets, a sun and a moon.

Trade. Since they had few resources (stone, trees, and metal), they had to trade.

Ur c. 2060 BC - 1950 BC
Ur reunited Sumeria and Akkad. Established centralized government. This union was destroyed by invaders in 1950 BC.

Carved Stone from 1800 BC is Inscribed with Laws Made by
King Hammurabi of Babylonia.

Hammurabi - 1792 to 1750 BC
The Babylonian, Hammurabi, captured and united Mesopotamia. Hammurabi set up laws - the earliest major written law code. This was the first time in history that we have a written set of laws. The laws were displayed on a block of stone, 8 feet high, so everyone could see them.

Ruins of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon

The laws were coordinated by one central body. Hammurabi called for just treatment. If someone damages you: You may damage them only to the extent of what they did to you. An eye for an eye; a tooth for a tooth. The Babylonians valued honesty, hard work, personal responsibility, fairness, upper class people, children, etc.

Hittites
The Hittites had iron weapons and took control in 1450 BC.

The following contributed to the fall of Mesopotamia:

1. Overcrowding led to pollution.

2. War-like tribes trying for geographic influence.

3. Too much irrigation. They had irrigated all the way to the sea and the soil was ruined by salt. After the Hittites withdrew, nothing much was known about the next four centuries, a dark ages.

The Assyrians - c. 900 BC to c. 612 BC
Superb army, efficient government, terrorist policies

Assurians - Built a huge empire Assur and Ninereh - Major cities with lots of construction. Largest empire in the world at the time.

New Babylonian Empire - 625 to 538 BC

Gudea of Lagash; Dragon of Marduk at the Ishtar Gate

Chaldean Dynasty - 605 to 562 BC Nebuchadnezzar captured what was left, overthrew the Assyrians (joined with the Medes). Babylon became one of the "Seven Wonders of the World" - The Hanging Gardens, and the Ishtar Gate. Lost Egypt, but captured Tyre and Jeruselum. Fell to the Persians in 538 BC.

Babylonian Captivity - 538 BC Cyrus the Great 538 BC

Greek - Alexander the Great - 330 BC

Alexander the Great, Mosaic from a House in Pompeii