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Ancient and Medieval World
From Evolution of Humans to the
­Crisis of Feudalism

Rakesh Kumar
Associate Professor, Department of History,
Ram Lal Anand College, University of Delhi, New Delhi

TE TS
Copyright © Rakesh Kumar, 2018

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including
photocopying, ­recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

First published in 2018 by

TE TS
SAGE Publications India Pvt Ltd
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Mathura Road, New Delhi 110 044, India
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Published by Vivek Mehra for SAGE Publications India Pvt Ltd, typeset in 10/12 pt Century Book by Zaza Eunice, Hosur, Tamil Nadu,
India and printed at <>.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Available

ISBN: 978-93-515-0870-0 (PB)

SAGE Team: Amit Kumar, Indrani Dutta, Sunil Koli, Kumar Indra Mishra and Ritu Chopra 
 Contents

List of Figures and Mapsxi

Prefacexiii
About the Authorxv

1. Evolution of Humans: Palaeolithic and Mesolithic Cultures 1

2. Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 47

3. Bronze Age Civilisations I: Mesopotamia and Egypt 83

4. Bronze Age Civilisations II: Shang and Minoan 127

5. Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia: Advent of Iron and

Its Implications 151

6. Ancient Greece 187

7. Ancient Rome I: Rome Under Republic, Principate and Empire 232

8. Ancient Rome II: Religion and Culture in Ancient Rome and

the Crisis and Decline of the Roman Empire 274

9. Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe: Eighth–Fourteenth

Centuries ce312

10. Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 358

11. Islamic Societies in West Asia 384

IndexI–1
 Detailed Contents

List of Figures and Mapsxi

Prefacexiii
About the Authorxv

1. Evolution of Humans: Palaeolithic and Mesolithic Cultures 1

Evolution of Humans 1
Palaeolithic Cultures 17
Mesolithic Cultures 31
Summary41
Keywords44
Review Questions 44
References45

2. Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 47

Theories on Transition from Hunting-Gathering to Farming 47
The Terms ‘Neolithic’ and ‘Neolithic Revolution’ 53
Neolithic Cultures 56
Animal Husbandry 71
Summary77
Keywords80
Review Questions 80
References81

3. Bronze Age Civilisations I: Mesopotamia and Egypt 83

Defining ‘Civilisation’ 83
The ‘Urban Revolution’ 84
Mesopotamia (Until the Akkadian Dynasty) 85
Egypt (Until the Old Kingdom) 102
Summary120
Keywords124
Review Questions 125
References125
viii Ancient and Medieval World

4. Bronze Age Civilisations II: Shang and Minoan 127

Bronze Age in China (The Shang Civilisation) 127
Bronze Age in Eastern Mediterranean (The Minoan Civilisation) 137
Summary145
Keywords149
Review Questions 149
References150

5. Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia: Advent of Iron and

Its Implications 151
Conceptualising ‘Pastoral Nomadism’ 152
Nomadic Groups 155
Advent of Iron 172
Implications of the Advent of Iron Technology 176
Summary180
Keywords185
Review Questions 185
References185

6. Ancient Greece 187

Geography and the People of Greece 187
Political Formations in Ancient Greece: ‘Dark Age’ and the Emergence of Polis 189
The Persian and Peloponnesian Wars 201
Slavery in Ancient Greece: Economy and Society 203
Ancient Greek Culture and Religion 213
Summary224
Keywords230
Review Questions 230
References230

7. Ancient Rome I: Rome Under Republic, Principate and Empire 232

Geographical Setting and Early Rome 232
Roman Republic 236
Roman Principate and Empire 254
Slave Society in Ancient Rome 262
Agrarian Economy 266
Urbanisation267
Trade268
Summary270
Keywords272
Review Questions 273
References273
 Detailed Contents ix

8. Ancient Rome II: Religion and Culture in Ancient Rome

and the Crisis and Decline of the Roman Empire 274
Part I: Religion and Culture in Ancient Rome 274
Religion in Early and Republican Rome 275
Religious Life in Rome Under the Principate and Empire 281
Culture in Early Rome and Under the Republic 286
Roman Culture Under the Principate and the Empire 290
Part II: Crisis and Decline of the Roman Empire 295
Political Crisis 296
Economic Crisis 297
Social Tension 304
Tribal Invasions 305
Summary307
Keywords310
Review Questions 310
References310

9. Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe:

Eighth–Fourteenth Centuries ce 312
The Germanic Setup 312
Feudal Polity, Society and Economy (Eighth–Fourteenth Centuries ce)314
Crisis of Feudalism (Fourteenth–Fifteenth Centuries ce)331
Towns and Trade 336
Technological Developments 346
Summary350
Keywords356
Review Questions 356
References356

10. Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 358

Religion in Early Medieval Europe 359
Culture in Early Medieval Europe 364
Religion in Late Medieval Europe 366
Culture in Europe During the High Middle Ages 372
Summary377
Keywords382
Review Questions 382
References383
 x Ancient and Medieval World

11. Islamic Societies in West Asia 384

Rise of Islam and Making of Political Authority 384
Religious Traditions 413
Adab Literature 421
Urbanisation and Trade 423
Summary426
Keywords434
Review Questions 434
References434

IndexI–1
 List of Figures and Maps

Figures
3.1 Evolution of Writing in Mesopotamia (3200–1000 bce)100
3.2 Egyptian Hieroglyphs with Corresponding Phonetics and Meaning 109
3.3 Hieratic and Their Corresponding Hieroglyphic Writing and Phonetics 110

4.1 Chinese Oracle Bone Characters 138

10.1 Notre-Dame la Grande, Poitiers, France, c. 1086 (Romanesque Style) 376

10.2 Notre-Dame de Reims Cathedral, France, Built c. 1220–99 (Gothic Style) 377

11.1 Family Tree of Prophet Muhammad 391

Maps

2.1 Early Neolithic Sites of Southwest Asia 58

3.1 Transitional Cultures of North Mesopotamia 87

3.2 Transitional Cultures of South Mesopotamia 90
3.3 Map of Pre-dynastic and Dynastic Egypt 105

4.1 Neolithic and Early Bronze Age Cultures in China 128

4.2 China Under Shang Dynasty (c. Mid-1700s–Mid-1000s) 133
4.3 The Aegean Civilisations of Second Millennium bce140

5.1 Central Asia During the Bronze Age 156

5.2 West Asia and Eastern Mediterranean During the Middle Bronze Age 164

6.1 Regions and City-states of Ancient Greece 189

7.1 Important Linguistic Groups of Italy and Etruscan Cities (750–500 bce)234
 xii Ancient and Medieval World

7.2 Expansion of the Roman Republic (510–27 bce)242

7.3 Roman Empire at Its Greatest Extent Under Trajan (98–117 ce)  259

9.1 Important Towns and Trade Routes in Medieval Europe 346

11.1 Pre-Islamic Arabia, Its Neighbours and Trade Routes 386

11.2 Expansion of the Islamic Empire During 632–750 ce405

Disclaimer: These maps are not to scale. It does not represent any authentic national or inter-
national boundaries and is used for illustrative purposes only.
 Preface

T
he present book has been written keeping in mind the needs of students of history who
are studying the paper on social formations and cultural patterns of ancient and medieval
world at various universities across India. This work is a result of my long-standing inter-
est in the subject. My teacher, Professor Amar Farooqui, kindled this interest during my gradu-
ation days in Hansraj College, University of Delhi. Teaching this paper at the graduate level for
more than a decade further motivated me to write a textbook on this subject. Amar Farooqui’s
work, Early Social Formations (2001), already exists on this paper and has been well received
by students. But since the publication of this book, several new researches and monographs
have appeared. Many of these have provided new dimensions on various themes of this paper.
Through this book, an attempt has been made to introduce these recent researches to students
in as simplified a manner as possible. It deliberately avoids the methodology of a well-
researched monograph. Instead, the present work incorporates a wide range of secondary
sources for the benefit of the students with the objective of exposing them to several dimen-
sions in which different themes have been analysed. Further, the book covers a vast span of
time: from the evolution of humans until the end of Middle Ages in Europe, covering several
aspects of human progress. An attempt has been made for the book to be student friendly by
providing maps, tables and boxes wherever essential. Summary, keywords and representative
questions have been provided at the end of each chapter, which would help students connect
with the topic better. A detailed list of chapter-end references is provided with a hope that stu-
dents would be motivated to read more to gain a better understanding of the themes associated
with this paper.
This book has taken a long time to materialise, which has been mainly due to my commit-
ment towards my institution, my students and my university for which I offer sincere apologies
to the publisher. But at the same time, I would like to appreciate the continuous pressure
applied on me by the team at SAGE Publications through various deadlines that kept me
focused on the project. Their understanding is also worth appreciating. My colleagues and
friends have helped me through their continuous motivation. Special gratitude has to be
reserved for my wife, Sarbani, and my children, Sangini and Snehil, who have borne the brunt
of my lack of attention due to my focus on the project. Their unstinted support has helped me
concentrate fully on the project.
 About the Author

Rakesh Kumar has done his graduation, post-graduation, MPhil and PhD in history from the
University of Delhi. He has 28 years of teaching and evaluation experience at the undergraduate
level. His area of specialisation is medieval Indian history, but his interest area goes beyond to
cover studies dealing with ancient and medieval world. He has written on several themes
related to medieval Indian history such as ‘Nature of the Mughal State’, ‘Currency System during
the Mughal Age’, ‘Art of Printing and Painting of Cloth during the Mughal Period’, ‘Ghalib’s
Contribution towards Urdu Literature’, ‘Indo-Persian Literature: Works of Amir Khusrau’ to
mention a few. His passion for teaching and care for students has meant that most of his publi-
cations have been aimed towards benefitting the students. The present work is a move in the
similar direction with a difference that while his earlier publications had readership primarily
among students of the University of Delhi, this book, it is hoped, would benefit students at the
pan-India level. His devotion towards teaching has earned him the ‘Teaching Excellence Award’
conferred by the University of Delhi on its Foundation Day (1 May) in 2014. Dr Kumar’s MPhil
dissertation was entitled Labourers and Artisans in the City of Agra (16th–17th Centuries)
and his PhD thesis was entitled Towns, Bazars and the Working Population in the Ahmadabad
Region during the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries. Rakesh Kumar has also presented
papers in international seminars organised by the Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Lal
Nehru University. As a member of the courses committee of the University of Delhi, Dr Kumar
has been actively involved in the university’s syllabus revision and curriculum framing exer-
cises. Presently, he is working as an Associate Professor, Department of History, Ram Lal Anand
College (University of Delhi).
CHAPTER
Evolution of Humans:

1 Palaeolithic and
Mesolithic Cultures

Chapter Contents

• Evolution of Humans
• Palaeolithic Cultures
• Mesolithic Cultures
• Summary

EVOLUTION OF HUMANS

H
uman evolution and its related aspects have been a topic of much debate among histo-
rians, archaeologists, and anthropologists as well as palaeontologists. Among the earli-
est of these debates is the issue whether humans were a part of God’s readymade
creation or they evolved from earlier species over a long period of time. The notion that humans
were a part of God’s creation just like other species and the earth itself emanated from genea-
logical calculations based on Biblical sources such as the Old Testament. In the mid-17th cen-
tury, relying on this methodology, an Irish Archbishop (James Usser) supported by a leading
Cambridge scientist (Dr John Lightfoot), even provided a definite date and year of Earth’s cre-
ation, that is, 23 October 4004 bce. However, the growth of geology and archaeology from the
mid-18th century raised serious doubts over the Biblical chronologies as their research and
findings presented evidence of changes in earth and animal species, including humans, much
before 4004 bce. By the mid-19th century, the moral binding of accepting Biblical explanation of
human creation was loosened in the light of several findings of tools and bones (of both humans
and animals) which put human existence tens of thousands of years in distant past. Findings of
the fossils of Neanderthal man (the first archaic human ancestor) from Dusseldorf in Germany
(1856) and stone tools from the gravels of the Somme River in Northern France (1859) further
strengthened the arguments in the favour of evolution of humans. The publication of Charles
Darwin’s On the Origin of Species (1859) and later The Descent of Man (1871) dealt a severe
blow to the conservative scientists (the creationists) by providing a theory of natural selection
 2 Ancient and Medieval World

of species and human evolution. By the end of the 19th century, a series of events related to new
findings not only provided a scientific basis for human evolution but also scientific tools to
study the evolutionary process of humans.
Humans are considered a part of the group of organisms that have evolved on the planet
earth since about 3,500 million years ago (mya). But unlike other organisms, humans have dis-
played better adaptability in the face of several climatic changes that the earth has been wit-
nessing since its formation about 4,500 mya. Better adaptability of the human species has been
attributed to certain physiological features but more importantly acquisition of culture or adap-
tive strategies unavailable to other species. This effectively means that both biological and
cultural aspects are closely associated with the human evolutionary process. Bipedalism (abil-
ity to walk erect on two feet) and a large brain size are considered as the two fundamental
physiological changes in the course of human evolution. Whereas ability to make tools, social
interactions and acquisition of language fall in the category of prominent cultural traits dis-
played by the early humans. However, we must keep in mind that biological and cultural
aspects of human evolution were not isolated but interrelated processes, each influencing the
other at crucial stages of this process. Another crucial determinant in the evolutionary process
of humans was the climatic factor that had a bearing on both biological and cultural aspects
and so needs to be analysed first.

Environment and Human Evolution

The environmental changes that occurred in different periods of earth’s history had a profound
impact on the emergence and extinction of several organisms. These climatic changes, particu-
larly long cycles of cold and warm climates, that occurred on a millennial scale while on the
one hand allowed migration from one continent to the other, it also forced these organisms to
adjust constantly to unusual weather conditions as well as drought and floods. Only organisms
with better adaptability could survive these climatic changes that became more frequent
around the time of the origin of human species.
The geologists, on the basis of environmental conditions prevailing during the course of the
evolution of earth, have divided the history of earth into several ‘eons’, ‘eras’ and its smaller
divisions ‘periods’ and ‘epochs’ in a chronological sequence (see Table 1.1). From the point of
view of human evolution, the Cenozoic era (also known as the age of mammals) is of prime
concern to us. The Cenozoic era began about 65 mya when the landmasses of the earth assumed
its present form and primates began to emerge. The term ‘primate’ has been used to classify
certain mammals having special physiological characteristics such as vertebrae (backbone in
the column of discs) and females possessing mammary glands to feed milk to their off springs.
The Cenozoic era has been further divided into ‘tertiary’ and ‘quaternary’ periods each repre-
senting several epochs. The tertiary period includes five epochs—Paleocene, Eocene,
Oligocene, Miocene and Pliocene. The quaternary has been divided into two epochs—
Pleistocene and Holocene.

The Ice Age

For any study related to the emergence of humans, the Pleistocene epoch (1.6 mya until 11,000
years ago) is regarded as of supreme importance. The Pleistocene period has been termed as the
 Evolution of Humans 3

TABLE 1.1  Geological Divisions of the Earth from the Evolution of Species

EON ERA Period Epoch Developments
Holocene Growth of human civilisation until
Quaternary 11,000 years ago present day
(The age of until today
humanity) Pleistocene Evolution of human species
1.6 mya until (Last Ice Age) (Homo Erectus, Homo sapiens,
today 1.6 mya until Homo sapiens sapiens)
11,000 years ago Extinction of large mammals
Pliocene Emergence of early hominid
P Cenozoic 5–1.6 mya (Australopithecines)
H (The age of And first homo species (Homo
A mammals) habilis)
N 65 mya Emergence of modern forms of
E until today whales
R Tertiary Miocene Emergence of horses, dogs and
O 65–1.6 mya 23–5 mya bears; emergence of apes
Z Oligocene Extinction of old and emergence of
O 35–23 mya new mammals
I
C Eocene Mammals expand, emergence of
(540 mya until 56–35 mya rodents and primitive whales
present day) Paleocene Emergence of large Mammals and
65–56 mya primitive primates (Prosimii)
Upper Continents assume modern day
98–65 mya form, extinction of dinosaurs
Cretaceous
146–65 mya Lower Dinosaurs flourish, first crocodiles
Mesozoic 146–98 mya and earliest known butterflies,
(The age of snakes, ant, bees emerge
reptiles)
248–65 mya Jurassic Age of giant dinosaurs, evolution of
208–146 mya birds and flowering plants
Triassic Emergence of dinosaurs and
248–208 mya mammals, extinction of amphibians
Paleozoic Age of amphibians and reptiles,
540–248 emergence of winged insects,
mya formation of coral reefs
 4 Ancient and Medieval World

‘age of humanity’ because it was during this geological time that the process of human evolution
not only gathered momentum but the humans also populated most of the areas of the world.
From the point of view of the environment, this period marked the climax of the glacial phase
of earth’s history that began about 35 mya. Prior to the Pleistocene phase, the world climate had
become much cooler, bringing down the sea level and leading to the formation of glaciers. The
period after 2.5 mya was the phase of intense glaciation until about 1.64 mya when the earth
entered into a phase of frequent climatic changes. These changes (from 1.64 mya onwards)
varied between warm (interglacial) to extremely cold (glacial) phases in frequent intervals. It
has been estimated that in the last 800,000 years there have been nine glacial periods, each last-
ing about 90,000–100,000 years with brief phases (lasting between 20,000–40,000 years) of inter-
glacial. This is the reason why the Pleistocene epoch is also called as ‘the Great Ice Age’.
This constant fluctuation between warmer and extremely cold conditions had profound
impact on the plant and animal life on the earth. The period of glaciation was marked by lower-
ing of the sea levels and the interglacial by their corresponding rise. These climatic variations
besides affecting the shape of landmasses also brought about significant changes in flora and
fauna. For example, in the temperate zones, the glacial phase resulted in the decline of forests
and growth of open grasslands, and in the animal world, this resulted in the replacement of
forest species (sylvan species) with those who were more suited to tundra (areas with no veg-
etation) or steppe (grasslands). Alternatively, during the interglacial period, the spread of rain
forests brought about converse floral and faunal changes. Prior to the Pleistocene period
(between 4 mya and 2 mya), the climate was more stable and in the African savanna region,
where humans are supposed to have emerged, was the homeland of substantial number of
mammals both large and small. But the frequent climatic changes starting from the Pleistocene
period, bringing with it resultant floral and faunal changes, meant that human species had to
continuously adapt themselves while competing with other animal species for the same
reserve of food resources for his subsistence. Palaeontologists (those who study fossils)
inform us that as many as 113 mammal species appeared on earth during the last 3 million
years. In the face of such a competition, the adaptive strategy of early humans constitutes what
is known as ‘culture’.
The adaptive strategy of the humans was not sufficient in itself to compete with other animal
species. The climatic changes went parallel with anatomical changes in the various organisms,
including humans, to bring it in balance with the environment. Variations among the species,
caused by continuous and consistent mutation, was a part of the process of natural selection.
These mutations sometimes provide advantage to certain species, particularly during ecological
transitions. Among the humans, these physiological changes relate to bipedalism, an increased
brain size and related changes that facilitated toolmaking which in turn enabled the humans to
broaden their diet (including meat eating), putting them in an advantageous position over other
terrestrial (those who exploit resources on land) primates. Thus, it can be argued that environ-
ment not only facilitated natural selection of the human species but also shaped their adaptive
strategy, which had a decisive impact on the human evolutionary process.

Origin of Human-like Species

As mentioned earlier, humans belonged to the order of primates that emerged around 69 mya.
Primates have been divided into two suborders—Prosimii, which include lemurs, tarsiers,
 Evolution of Humans 5

lorises and tree shrews, as well as species that fall in the category of ‘pre-monkey’ and
Anthropoidea/Anthropoids, which include monkeys, apes and humans. While prosimians are
called primitive primates, Anthropoids are considered as advanced primates. The Prosimii spe-
cies emerged 69 mya, and in present times are restricted to parts of Africa, Southeast Asia and
Madagascar. Prosimians are mainly suited to arboreal habitat (tree living) which has been made
possible due to features such as their prehensile hands and feet, extensive use of forelimbs and
stereoscopic vision (ability to see three-dimensionally due to binocular disorder). On the other
hand, except monkeys, anatomical features of all other Anthropoids make them suitable for
terrestrial habitat (living on land).
Anthropoidea or advanced primates are said to have separated from Prosimii around 40 mya
with the evolution of monkeys. The suborder Anthropoidea is further divided into
Cercopithecoidea (Old World monkeys), Ceboidea (New World monkeys) and Hominoidea
(apes and humans). Hominoidea separated from monkeys around 30 mya and further branched
into Pongidae (apes including chimpanzees, gorillas, gibbon and orangutans) and Hominidae
(modern humans and all extinct earlier human subspecies and their ancestors). It is the
Hominoidea group with which we shall be principally concerned with in the process of our
analysis of human evolution. However, a brief description of the point of divergence between
monkeys and apes and that between non-human primates (apes) and human-like species is
necessary to understand the crucial stages in the evolution of genus homo.
It is generally believed that apes diverged from monkeys in the Miocene epoch (about
23 mya) and also that the place of divergence was Africa. But the earliest evidence of this diver-
gence goes back to the Oligocene period (about 30 mya) with the emergence of a small ape
called Aegyptopithecus in the Nile valley in Egypt which had a small brain but its visual capa-
bilities were better than earlier primates, and its bones resembled those primates that emerged
in East Africa from about 23 mya. A large number of primates emerged in Africa from 23 mya
to 20 mya, and it is believed that the number of ape species in Africa was larger than that of the
monkeys. It would be worthwhile to mention here that while monkeys are exclusively adapted
to tree living due to their small size, long and highly developed forelimbs, better vision and abil-
ity to jump with precision from one tree to the other, the modern apes are adapted to living on
the ground due to their large size, longer hind limbs in comparison to forelimbs, large canine
teeth and powerful body structure, though they can exploit food resources of the trees as well.
However, the earliest known apes that emerged in Africa around 20 mya, called Proconsul had
ape-like teeth but had body like monkeys and could easily move from the branch of one tree to
the other.
It is largely accepted by the geologists that about 17 mya world climates became cooler,
mountain ranges, such as the Alps, were formed and a continental drift linked Africa and Arabia
with Europe and Asia, which were earlier separated by sea. This enabled animal species of
these regions to come into contact with each other through the land bridges. This not only cre-
ated new habitats for these species but the intermixing of species opened up new path of evolu-
tion too. It is believed that an ape named Dryopithecus, dating about 20 mya, moved to Asia and
around 14 mya, separated into several species, one of them having evolved into Ramapithecus,
known as Asian ape. Around the same time, a semi-terrestrial, hard fruit and grass-seed eating
and knuckle-walking ape named Kenyapithecus flourished in Eastern Africa. For some time, it
was believed that hominids have evolved from Asian apes around 14 mya. But new dating meth-
ods (for different dating methods, see Box 1) involving molecular biology from the 1960s
onwards completely changed this belief. The DNA analysis of the albumin protein substances
 6 Ancient and Medieval World

found in primate blood revealed a different path of human evolution. The analysis is based on
the scientific assumption that albumin protein in the primates changes at a constant rate. Thus,
the time of separation of two primates (the existing ones) can be calculated on the basis of dif-
ference between the albumins of a pair of primates. This analysis has suggested that humans
are closer to apes than monkeys. A further refining of this analysis led to further suggestions
that monkeys and apes separated around 25 mya, the bigger apes from smaller apes around
17 mya, gorillas from chimpanzees around 8 mya and chimpanzees from humans around 7 mya.
The molecular evidence thus shows that Chimpanzees are closest to our human ancestors.
Another significant revelation was that humans are much closer to African apes than to Asian
apes. Since this chronology put forward by the molecular biologists is largely accepted, it is
now a firm belief that hominids emerged first in Africa.
One of the most important aspects of divergence between apes and hominids is the latter’s
ability to walk straight on two feet, that is, bipedalism. It is generally believed that bipedalism
developed over a long period of time possibly as a result of spending more time exploiting food
resources on the ground in a savanna type of climate, which was marked by reduction of forests
and emergence of open grasslands interspersed with trees. But exactly at what point hominids
developed bipedalism is a matter of intense debate. This divergence of opinion is largely due to
complete lack of fossil (imprints of plants and animals on rocks formed during the process of
hardening of rocks) records between 8 and 4 mya. However, the later fossil evidences and inputs
from molecular biological studies have led scholars to reach the conclusion that bipedalism
among early hominids started around 7 mya. It was around this time that the Hominidae group
split into two further divisions forming two different lineages, that is, ancestors of modern chim-
panzees and modern humans. The ancestors of modern humans have been further divided into
two categories: (a) Australopithecus/Australopithecines (Southern Ape) and (b) Homo.
The process of evolution of hominid species is now considered as more complex than hith-
erto believed. A number of bipedal ape-like hominids evolved between 7 and 4 mya. One of the
earliest among these, according to the available fossil evidence, was Ardipithecus ramidus
(named so as to distinguish them from the later Australopithecus species). The fossils of this
species have been found from the Awash region in Ethiopia (East Africa) and are dated 4.5 mya.
Although it stood upright, it had ape-like skull resembling that of the chimpanzees.
Australopithecus anamensis, specie, fossils of which have been found in the Anam Lake in
Turkana (East Africa) and is dated 4.2 mya, had a mix of ape and human-like anatomy. Although
it was fully bipedal, it had short legs and was not as efficient a walker as later hominids. With
the fossil findings of several bipedal Australopithecus species from East and South Africa dated
between 3.75 mya and 1 mya, it was firmly established that Australopithecus represented the
final stage of bipedalism. One of the lines of Australopithecus evolved into Homo species
around 2.5 mya.
Based on the fossil evidence of fully bipedal Australopithecus species, which have been
discovered so far, Australopithecus afarensis (‘Southern Ape of Afar’) is considered as the
oldest of this order. Fossils of this species have been found from Hadar in the Afar region of
Ethiopia (East Africa) and Laetoli in Northern Tanzania (South Africa). These fossils, based on
potassium–argon dating method (for various fossil dating methods, see Box 1.1), have been
dated between 3.75 mya and 3 mya. A complete skeleton of female afarensis specie, nicknamed
‘Lucy’ was found at Hadar. While ‘Lucy’ was a small size (1 to 1.2 meters) specie, other fossils
of the same species found from this region are much larger in size. All of them were bipedal
which are confirmed by fossils and fossil footprints found at Laetoli. The brain size of afarensis
 Evolution of Humans 7

BOX 1.1  Dating Methods for Prehistoric Findings

1. Potassium–argon dating: It is a radiometric method applied on volcanic rocks, which is used

to date early prehistory. It is based on the theory that volcanic rocks contain radioactive potas-
sium-40, which constantly decays and turns into an inert gas, argon-40. For every 100 potassium
atoms that decay, 11 per cent turn into argon gas that escapes from the rock when it is in a molten
state. As volcanic rocks cool down and become hard, the argon-40 concentration drops to zero
and gets trapped in the rocks but potassium decay continues. With the help of a spectrometer, it
is possible to measure the concentration of argon-40 trapped since the formation of volcanic
rocks. Human tools found along with lava ash in volcanically active areas can thus be dated.
Using this method, fossil existing between 2.6 billion years ago to about 100,000 years ago can be
dated. Findings at Olduvai Gorge and other sites in Eastern Turkana in Kenya have been dated
using this method.
2. Radiocarbon dating: Among the radioisotopic dating methods, radiocarbon dating technique
is the most well-known. It is based on the theory that sun’s radiation converts a small amount
of atmospheric nitrogen into radioactive carbon-14 (C-14) that is absorbed by the living organ-
isms at a constant rate so that the percentage of radioactive C-14 in them equals that in the
atmosphere. Upon the death of an organism, the C-14 present in the cells of these organisms
disintegrates back as nitrogen at a known rate. Thus, the date of the death of the living organism
can be established by measuring the amount of C-14 left in the sample discovered. Since the
dates arrived at through this method is prone to error due to alterations in the solar activity
affecting the concentration of radiocarbon, scientists have recalibrated them to get correct
dates using radiocarbon dated tree rings. Antiquity of organic materials such as charcoal, shell,
wood, hair, and so on can be established through this method. But using this method, one can
get the reliable dates only up until 50,000 years ago as, beyond this period, the radioactive
carbon left in the organisms is too little to be measured.
3. Dendrochronology (tree-ring dating): This method is used to date prehistoric sites where
woods of trees such as pines and oaks were used by humans as beams of their dwellings and for
other purposes. These trees have rings that are formed during the early growth of the trees and are
a common site. The concentric rings keep on increasing with each passing year and maintain almost
similar structure, depending upon temperature, humidity and age of the trees. For the purpose of
dating, each of these ring structures is plotted against the year of their formation calculated from
the outermost ring dated to the year of its cutting. The pre-historic sample is compared for its ring
structures with already identified structure to estimate its date. This method has proved to be quite
effective in dating the sites of the Mediterranean region and Western Europe. As mentioned here,
this technique has also proved quite efficient in recalibrating radiocarbon dates. Using this method,
sites existing between 10,000 years ago and present times can be dated with some accuracy.
4. Obsidian hydration: It is a geochemical method of determining the age of an artefact made of
obsidian. Obsidian is a glassy rock, also sometimes referred to as volcanic glass. This was used
by humans in early prehistory as raw materials to make variety of sharp tools such as projectile
points, knives and cutting tools. When obsidian glass is broken, it absorbs water from the envi-
ronment forming a hydration layer on the exposed parts. The rate of hydration formation can
be measured in the laboratory. The thickness of hydration layer on the available sample can be
converted into years, using the data on rate of hydration. The principle behind this method is
longer the artefact surface has been exposed, thicker the hydration band will be. Through this
method, dates of artefacts in existence between 1,000,000 years ago until about just the begin-
ning of Christian era can be established. Though an inexpensive method, it has limited applica-
bility as its efficacy is limited to artefacts made of obsidian.
Besides the dating methods mentioned in this box, there are several others such as uranium–
thorium, thermoluminescence, archaeomagnetic dating, and so on, but they do not have univer-
sal application.
 8 Ancient and Medieval World

approximated that of a chimpanzee, that is, 410 cc (cubic centimetre). Its lower limbs, though
showing bipedalism, were smaller than their upper limbs. It also had ape-like face, forward
thrusting jaws, brow ridges, and although it might have foraged for plant foods including hard
and fibrous fruits, it spent larger time on the trees. The fossil evidence also suggests that
females, like humans, had narrower birth canal (a direct result of bipedalism) indicating early
birth of the newborn. Australopithecus afarensis was thus, to use Brian Fagan’s (2010) termi-
nology, an ‘anatomic mosaic’ of apes and humans. It became extinct around 3 mya.
It is generally believed that 3 mya the descendants of afarensis split into two lines, one of
which led to the evolution of Homo. One line of descent led to the evolution of Australopithecus
africanus (‘Southern Ape of Africa’), the fossils of which were found by Raymond Dart in 1924
mostly from South Africa. A. africanus, supposed to have lived between 3–1 mya, was a small
gracile (slender) creature that walked upright. It had strong neck muscles and its brain size
(450 cc) was not much different from the apes but had a delicate skull and a different brain
structure than that of the apes. Its gracile bones (like humans which ensures easy movability)
and existence of what has been identified as ‘area 10’ in the brain, which plays a major role in
decision-making, advance planning and initiative, brings them closer to the line of Homo than
later other Australopithecines species.
Another line of descent from A. afarensis led to the evolution of robust Australopithecines
species in the form of Australopithecus robustus and Australopithecus boisei. A. robustus
(‘Robust Southern Ape’) also known as paranthropus (‘beside man’) was larger and strongly
built species than Africanus. It is supposed to have lived between 2.5–1.5 mya and fossil find-
ings suggest that it inhabited both Eastern and Southern Africa. It was much taller (averaging
about 5.3 feet) and heavier (average weight being 50 kg) with a bigger brain of 500 cc and a flat-
ter skull. It had large teeth specialised for chewing coarse and fibrous plant foods as well as
hard seeds. The skull comparison has led some scholars to suggest that it was ancestral to
modern Gorilla. A. Boisei (‘Boise Southern Ape’), named after founder of its fossils, Charles
Boise, also known as zinzanthropus (East Africa Man), was a massive version of robustus. Its
height ranged between 5.3–5.8 feet and the weight between 60–80 kg. It lived between 2.5–1 mya
and inhabited Tanzania (South Africa) where its fossils have been found in Olduvai Gorge as
well as East Africa with its fossils having been found in Omo valley near West Turkana in Kenya.
It had a slightly bigger brain than robustus measuring 550 cc. It walked up right yet it was built
on the lines of a gorilla, and like them, males were much taller than females. This is called
sexual dimorphism that was also found among early Homo species. It had a large skull with
brow ridges, flatter face and small canine teeth but immense molars and premolars. Crude
stone tools found along with the bones of this species led few scholars to suggest that it may
have been the earliest toolmaker. But others have rejected this notion on the ground that with
a small brain size A. Boisei was not capable of designing crude tools that require certain
amount of imagination and planning.
Recently discovered Australopithecine species named Australopithecus garhi (‘garhi’,
meaning surprise in the local dialect) from Awash desert of Ethiopia in East Africa has been
classified neither in gracile nor robust category. Dating about 2.5 mya, this species stood about
4.1 feet and had a brain size of 500 cc and had several features like that of a chimpanzee with
long lower limbs like humans and upper limbs like an ape. Butchered animal bones near the
fossil bones of garhi have led to suggestions that they were not only meat eaters but were also
efficient users of stone tools. Brian Fagan (2010) has suggested that a high protein diet in the
form of meat may have led to an increase in the brain size seen among early hominids. This also
 Evolution of Humans 9

must be seen in the background of the fact that major changes in the hominid skull and face
occurred after 2.5 mya, many of which were a direct outcome brain enlargement. It is also pos-
sible that increasing use of stone tools to scavenge meat from the dead animals may have
played an important role in this crucial stage of human evolution. Yet, it has not been conclu-
sively established that A. garhi directly led to the evolution of first human.

Homo Species
All hominids other than Australopithecines have been classified under the single order ‘Homo’.
The early species of genus homo is said to have evolved either from the more gracile forms of
Australopithecines such as A. africanus or those Australopithecine species displaying more
human characteristics such as A. garhi. Whatever the case may be, the homo species are dis-
tinguished by their larger brain size, ability to acquire language, an opposite thumb facilitating
precision grip, small and crowded teeth, their ability to manufacture (not simply use) stone
tools and better social interaction. The homo group has been divided into four major subgroups,
that is, Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Homo sapiens and Homo sapiens sapiens (modern man).
These species evolved between 2.5 mya and 40,000 years ago. But even among these, bifurca-
tion sometimes is made between H. habilis on the one hand and later Homo species on the
other. The rationale behind this is the similarity between Australopithecines and H. habilis due
to a combination of terrestrial bipedalism and expert tree climbing and arboreal adaptation. A
low body mass, similar tooth design and sexual dimorphism among male and female species are
the other criteria. Other homo species have been placed in separate category based on shared
characteristics of larger body mass, a more human-like physique, larger brain size, suitability
with terrestrial living and limited ability to move around trees and tooth and jaw design more
akin to that of modern humans.

Homo Habilis
All early homo species evolving from about 2.5 mya have been conveniently placed in the cat-
egory of H. habilis or ‘Handy Man’. The earliest fossil of habilis was found in 1960 by Louis and
Mary Leakey at Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania (East Africa). Although most of the fossils of habilis
species have been found in East Africa but few fossils of the same species have also been recov-
ered from South Africa and Southeast Asia where the terms Telanthropus and Meganthropus
have been used for the H. habilis species.
As pointed out earlier, H. habilis had many similarities with the Australopithecines species
as, besides other similarities, both weighed about 40 kg (average weight) and had a similar aver-
age height of about 4.3 feet. Researches have suggested that both were bipedal and primarily
fruit eaters too. But the major difference lied in the cranial capacity and its structures as well
as the facial features. H. habilis had a larger brain with an average cranial capacity of 650 cc in
comparison to the Australopithecines species that had average cranial capacity of 450–500 cc.
The habilis head was also higher and rounder had a smaller jaw and a less protruding face.
Although it had a powerful grasping hand like chimpanzees, existence of an ape-like thumb
permitted both powerful gripping as well as manipulation of fine objects, which helped them
manufacture tools even though found technologically crude. Another major evolutionary
 10 Ancient and Medieval World

advantage that the habilis had over Australopithecines was the existence of speech producing
and control area termed as ‘Broca’s area’ in the brain which allowed this species to produce a
variety of sounds. Though H. habilis is believed to be capable of taking out limited sounds only
yet this biological feature subsequently enabled the growth of articulate speech among the later
Homo species. Sexual dimorphism, however, was only slightly reduced among the habilis
species.
Apart from few crucial physiological differences, the other and more important aspects of
divergence that distinguished H. habilis from earlier hominids was the acquisition of culture,
represented chiefly, among other things, by their ability to manufacture tools. A detailed discus-
sion on the cultural achievements of H. habilis and the subsequent Homo species would be
taken up later in the chapter but here it would suffice to say that the ability to manufacture tools
and display of rudimentary form of social organisation proved to be an extremely efficient
adaptive strategy. These enabled habilis not only compete better with other animal species
while exploiting limited natural food resources but also enabled later Homo species to move
out of Africa and settle in extreme climatic conditions in different parts of the old world.
Large number of crude tools made from pebbles along with hominid and animal bones was
found at Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania) dated around 2 mya, making it the earliest designated human
culture, that is, the Oldowan culture. The artefacts found during excavations at Olduvai
between 1935 and 1959 by a team led by Louis Leakey suggests that H. habilis used chipped
stones to shape them into crude choppers, scrapers, burins and hammer stones. They used
these tools to cut, scrape or dig. The tool marks on the animal bones found from the same site
suggests that meat was a part of regular diet of habilis, distinct from exclusively vegetable/
plant diet of the apes. However, the small size and crudeness of the tools found at Olduvai has
led scholars to conclude that H. habilis was not an expert hunter but scavenged meat and bone
marrow from animal carcasses killed by other carnivores. Since the tools were not standardised
nor made with a predetermined design, it has been argued that habilis did not possess an
articulate speech. The evidence of rudimentary social organisation and cooperation among the
habilis species comes from Olduvai itself. A huge assemblage of animal bones and stone tools
have been found here and a careful analysis of these have led scholars to conclude that animal
carcasses were brought to this place from a distance and butchered for meat, and extraction of
bone marrow with the help of variety of tools were also stored here. It has been argued, on the
basis of primitive tools and primitive language that habilis possessed, that they were not big
game hunters, but the findings of stone balls at Olduvai do indicate hunting of small animals
such as antelopes by them. With these cultural traits, the habilis species was not only able to
adapt to the savanna-type environmental conditions of East Africa but also compete better with
contemporary animal species. H. habilis became extinct around 1.5 mya, paving way for the
evolution of much advanced Homo species.

Homo Ergaster and Homo Erectus

Based on the recent discoveries and a more scientific analysis, scholars argue that possibly
there were five to six hominid species along with H. habilis in existence before the beginning
of the Pleistocene period (1.64 mya). Connection of these with habilis is unquestionable, but
the evidence from Koobi Fora in Kenya (East Africa) of the coexistence of H. habilis (latest
fossil having been dated to 1.44 mya) and H. erectus (which emerged around 1.64 mya) have
 Evolution of Humans 11

raised doubts about the belief that the latter directly evolved from the former. A species named
H. ergaster (‘working man’) emerged in East Africa and is said to have flourished between
1.8 mya and 1.4 mya. The fossil of this species (in the form of a complete skeleton of a boy) was
discovered in 1984 by Richard Leakey and others from Nariokotome near Lake Turkana (there-
fore named ‘Turkana boy’ or ‘Nariokotome boy’) in Kenya dated about 1.6 mya. A careful analy-
sis of the fossil has suggested that it was a powerfully built human with massive brow ridges,
large face with a low skull, which accommodated a larger brain than habilis, averaging about
800 cc. More importantly, it had larger legs and shorter arms suggesting an exclusively terres-
trial living, and their narrower hips enabled them to run faster over long distance, which was
crucial for hunting and scavenging.
Tools found near the skeletal remains of H. ergaster suggest that they made such tools as
hand axe and cleavers which is considered as advancement over the crude tools fashioned by
H. habilis. The tools belong to the Acheulean industry that fully developed during the time of
H. erectus. H. ergaster is also known to have used natural fire, supposedly for protection
against cold and carnivores as well as for cooking. Sexual dimorphism diminished (estimated
to be 20 per cent) among the ergaster and a narrower birth canal among the females meant that
newborn was born early and was heavily dependent on the mother for its initial physiological
growth. From the present day experiences of modern humans, it can be assumed that this must
have increased the bond between mother and the child. While few scholars tend to put H.
ergaster and H. erectus in the same category, others consider ergaster an altogether different
species. But recent researches do find a link between the two species and suggest that ergaster
was the direct ancestor of erectus.
Homo erectus (‘Upright man’) emerged with the beginning of Pleistocene period, though the
earliest erectus fossil has been dated 1.7 mya. During this time, great mountain chains such as
Alps and Himalayas were formed, landmasses were raised and new species of animals such as
horses, wild cattle, elephants, camels and so on came into evolution. H. erectus emerged in
Africa and then radiated to Asia and Europe. In Africa, the earliest specimen of H. erectus has
been discovered from Eastern Turkana (Kenya) and is dated 1.75 mya. In Asia, the erectus fos-
sils have been found from Trinil beds on the Solo River in Northeastern Java (Indonesia) by a
Dutch man E. Dubois. The fossil was named Pithecanthropus erectus (‘upright ape man’ or ‘Java
man’) and is dated about 700,000 years ago. Another significant erectus fossil discovery in Asia
was in Zhoukoudian (formerly Choukoutien) caves near Beijing (formerly Peking). The fossil
was named sinanthropus (‘Peking man’) and is dated between 500,000–250,000 years ago. In
Europe, erectus fossils have been found spread over Spain, France, Germany, England and
Hungary, dated between 1 mya and 400,000 years ago. Their radiation suggests that H. erectus
species were adapted to different environmental conditions, from tropical savanna in East
Africa to forested parts of Indonesia, temperate climates in North Africa and Europe and the
extreme cold conditions of China and Northern Europe. Such a wide distribution brought about
physical variations among the different erectus species. The erectus ability to adapt in these
diverse climatic conditions arose from some significant physiological changes (since H. habilis)
and acquisition of crucial cultural traits.
Homo erectus possessed a bigger brain (average cranial capacity being 1,000 cc) and a bigger
body than habilis. While the average height of erectus species was between 5–6 feet, its weight
ranged between 40–75 kg and resembled a strongly built version of H. habilis. Its skull was long
and low with a bony bump behind, a sloping forehead, thick brow ridges, big projecting jaws,
smaller teeth than habilis and strong neck muscles at the back of the neck, which joined the
 12 Ancient and Medieval World

rear bump of the head stopping the head from sagging forward particularly while running. But
perhaps even more significant than these physiological features was the well-developed Broca’s
area and more advanced vocal tract facilitating articulate speech which had significant social
and economic consequences for further human evolution.
The ability of the erectus species to colonise different habitats and climates largely resulted
from an improved tool technology, big game hunting, efficient use of fire and improved building
methods that put them much ahead of former hominids. Their tool culture, broadly termed as
Acheulean culture, based on the findings of large number of erectus tools at St. Acheul in
Northern France, was a marked improvement over habilis tools. The most prominent tool of
erectus species was the hand axe, which was a multipurpose hunting and meat processing tool.
They also fashioned a wide range of flake tools and choppers. Unlike habilis tools, these were
standardised (made on a similar pattern) suggesting an articulate speech necessary to pass on
the technology to the same or the next generation. A well-developed speech also helped the
erectus species in better cooperation, enabling them to hunt big animals such as horses, rhinoc-
eros, boars, bisons and so on. The opportunistic use of fire by erectus assured not only protec-
tion against extreme cold climates and carnivores but also enabled them to add to their diet
foods that are uneatable (when raw) until now. An improved communication skill, besides
facilitating big game hunting, also helped in gathering activities, storage of food as well as shel-
ter building activities. Such significant advances achieved by the erectus species indicate that
cultural attributes became a major determining factor in the future human evolution. Homo
erectus became extinct around 400,000 years ago and prepared way for the evolution of more
advanced human species termed Homo sapiens.

Homo Sapiens
Homo sapiens (‘wise man’) definitely branched out of H. erectus line of descent but there is no
unanimity among scholars regarding the time period of this transition. While few have consid-
ered the period of transition about 400,000 years ago, others have given a much later time period
of 200,000 years ago. The earliest fossils of archaic H. sapiens, found from Atapuerca in Spain,
have been dated 300,000 years ago and are considered as intermediate between H. erectus and
Neanderthals to distinguish them from modern humans or H. sapiens sapiens. In view of the
limited fossil evidence, our knowledge about H. sapiens is largely dependent on the fossil
records related to Neanderthal species and cultural developments associated with them.
The Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) emerged during 135,000–125,000 year ago.
Fossils of this species have been found mainly in Europe and Eurasia, the earliest being the
deposits at Neander valley (hence the name Neanderthals; ‘thal’ or ‘tal’ means valley in German)
near Dusseldorf in West Germany. Neanderthal fossils have also been found from other parts of
Europe, such as France, Yugoslavia, Italy, Belgium, Britain, Spain and Czechoslovakia, and in
Russia as well as in Southwest Asia, Africa and Central Asia. Since these fossils belong to dif-
ferent time periods of the existence of Neanderthal during 135,000–35,000 years ago and since
the later fossils suggest anatomical variations in the same species, therefore a distinction has
been made between archaic and advanced Neanderthals. Neanderthals were robustly built
humans with an average height of 5.5 feet and weight of about 70 kg. They had a large, thick and
long skull with a bigger brain than that of modern humans averaging about 1,500 cc. They had
a sloping forehead with brow ridges, distinct cheekbones, a large nose, either flat or bulbous,
 Evolution of Humans 13

and chinless projecting jaws. These features termed as ‘classical’ however were mainly con-
fined to Western Europe, particularly in Dordogne area of Southwest France, whereas later
Neanderthal fossils found from Shanidar caves in Iraq and Mount Carmel and Qafzeh caves in
Israel show considerable variation.
Although a little archaic than modern humans, Neanderthals possessed many cultural traits
akin to the modern humans which the earlier Homo species were incapable of. As the
Neanderthals inhabited the earth during last phase of the Ice Age, their reliance on meat
increased in order to survive the harsh winter climates. Their short and stocky body is also con-
sidered as having adapted to winter climates. Their tool culture, known as Mousterian culture
(from the finds at Le Moustier rock shelter in Southwest France), was an improvement over the
Acheulean chopper and handaxe industries. Use of a variety of tools from flakes made
Neanderthals an expert and opportunistic hunter. Animal bones found near their habitation
areas (cave, rock shelters and open camps) suggest that they killed such large animals as bison,
cave bears, horses, reindeer, wild cattle and other woolly mammoths. They also caught birds by
using snares and fish with the help of composite tools (tools made of more than one component,
e.g., a point, a shaft and a binding to secure the head to the shaft to make it a spear). It is need-
less to mention here that such diverse hunting activities required careful planning as well as
greater cooperation than even before.
Another significant cultural aspect attributed to Neanderthal species is their ability to make
fire by striking sparks from iron pyrites. This was even more significant than the use of natural
fire by the erectus species as they could now light fire instead of making opportunistic use of
the natural forest fire. The choice of their settlement—caves, rock shelters and open
­encampments—enabled them not only to survive in different climatic conditions but also to
exploit diverse economic resources offered by nature due to varying climatic conditions of the
last Ice Age. Neanderthals are also said to have possessed abstract thoughts like the notion of
‘life after death’ as reflected in the careful burial of the dead along with grave goods such as
stone tools, stone pillows, flowers and roasted joints of meat. Earliest signs of religious beliefs
and rituals, art form (although debatable) and social awareness (like compassion) is also seen
as a part of the cultural practices of the Neanderthals. A further elaboration of these aspects of
Neanderthal existence in the next section on Palaeolithic cultures would make it clear that
what is termed as ‘culture’ became more visible and more significant than biological features in
the further human evolutionary process. Regarding the language and speech capabilities of the
Neanderthals, however, it has been argued by few scholars like Brian Fagan (2010) and others
that they did not possess a well-developed language. Basis of this argument is the fact that the
Neanderthal culture remained unchanged throughout the period of their existence whereas
language, by promoting exchange of ideas and a complex thought process, becomes a major
catalytic force for change.
The Neanderthals became extinct about 30,000 years ago. The reason behind extinction of
Neanderthals and emergence of fully modern human is an issue of much debate among the
scholars. The evidences from the Western Europe have indicated that the Neanderthals disap-
peared soon after the arrival of the first species of H. sapiens sapiens whereas those from West
Asia suggest that they disappeared after a long period of cohabitation with latter. This has led
to belief among some that Neanderthals were wiped out by the emergent fully modern man who
had evolved somewhere else, while others point out that either they interbred with the other
contemporary H. sapiens species or they themselves evolved into H. sapiens sapiens. But
despite this debate, there is a near unanimity among the scholars on two important aspects.
 14 Ancient and Medieval World

First, the disappearance of Neanderthals was not sudden, and second, that they definitely con-
tributed a small share in the gene pool of modern humans.

Homo Sapiens Sapiens

As indicated before, the emergence of H. sapiens sapiens (‘fully modern humans’) has been a
highly debatable issue among the paleoanthropologists (those engaged in the study of human
origin). The present debate can be classified into three major hypotheses: (a) ‘Out of Africa’ or
‘African Origin’ or ‘Total Replacement’ model, (b) ‘Multiregional Evolution’ or ‘continuity’
model and (c) ‘Intermediate’ or ‘Assimilation’ model. These theories have developed at different
points of time depending upon the quantity and quality of fossil records found from Europe,
Asia and Africa. Recent archaeological discoveries supplemented by a more scientific study
involving molecular biology have further contributed to this debate.
The African Origin model hypothesises that fully modern humans evolved first only in
Africa and that too only few hundred thousand years ago. Once they evolved as anatomically
modern humans, H. sapiens sapiens travelled out of Africa to explore and colonise other parts
of the world, replacing all other hominid forms with little or no genetic interchange with other
older forms. This model thus assumes a single source of the origin of modern humans. The
Multiregional Evolution model on the other hand refutes the notion that modern human origin
occurred only in Africa and argues that human population throughout the old world (Africa,
Asia and Europe) evolved independently first into archaic H. sapiens and then to fully modern
humans. According to this model, between 2 and 1 mya, a generic Homo ancestor of ours
spread out across the warmer latitudes of Africa, Middle East, Asia and perhaps southern
Europe. Although there was divergence due to local and differential environment, across the
whole range of the genus Homo, they were evolving towards H. sapiens as a result of gene flow
through mating and mutation that connected all human groups to some extent. Since all of them
were hunters and foragers, they all emerged in the last 30,000 years as one species—H. sapiens
sapiens—even though some of them evolved into fully modern humans earlier than the others
and had physical differences that distinguish modern Europeans, Asians and Africans. The
‘Intermediate’ or ‘Assimilation’ model accepts an African origin for modern humans but rejects
the notion of total replacement or migration of Africans as the mechanism for evolution of
modern humans. Instead, this model suggests genetic hybridisation, gene flow and regional pat-
tern of evolution as factors leading to the evolution of H. sapiens sapiens. Thus, modern
humans in some places (like Asia) could be largely ‘African’ in genetic terms but show some
regional genetic continuity over the past million years.
Until recently, the ‘Multi-regional Evolution’ model had assumed wide acceptance mainly
due to the fact that largest number of fossils of early and later H. sapiens were found from the
Western Europe and Southwest Asia, suggesting at least two points of origin of H. sapiens
sapiens. The anatomical variation between the European Neanderthals (archaic) and
Neanderthals of Southwest Asia (more modern) provided further evidence to support multire-
gional model. However, more recent researches, based on biochemical evolutionary record
contained within human gene (DNA analysis), have strengthened the case for an African origin
of modern humans. An investigation of the pattern of genetic variation among modern humans
supports African origin of H. sapiens sapiens. For the purpose of such an investigation,
modern researchers like Cann, Stoneking and Wilson (1987) have particularly used
 Evolution of Humans 15

mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) as a tool for arriving at mutation rates. The mtDNA is passed on
only through females or maternal line and does not get diluted by paternal DNA. Thus, it proved
to be an effective tool to establish a reliable link of present with ancestral population. A study
by Cann et al. of 182 women from Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Guinea has suggested
that differences among them were very small and that all material lineages can be traced back
to a single female ancestor (nicknamed as ‘mitochondrial Eve’) or a very small group that lived
in Africa 200,000 years ago. The study also suggests that this small population migrated to the
rest of the world with little or no interbreeding with the existing archaic H. sapiens. Another
similar research undertaken by F. Cruciani et al. (2011) has suggested a most common male
ancestor (nicknamed as ‘Y-chromosomal Adam’) also living in Africa about 144,000 years ago.
Like the mtDNA, Y-chromosomes can only be passed through paternally—from father to son—
and like the study of mtDNA, mutations of Y-chromosomes can also be calibrated and dated to
reveal a reconstruction of ancestral Y-chromosomal DNA sequences.
Scholars like J. G. D. Clark (1977) and Brian Fagan (2010) argue that these molecular biologi-
cal studies, though yet to be refined, show greater likelihood that the modern gene pool (of
H. sapiens sapiens), originated in one nuclear region (Africa) from where it spread very rapidly
than that of modern humans, evolved independently from archaic forms in each of the main
regions of the old world. Further evidence from the same study that Africans display more
diverse types of mtDNA than other present day population suggests that they had more time to
develop such mutations. This study along with the database of normal DNA (known as nuclear
DNA), which involves blood groups and enzymes has also suggested that there was a primary
split between Africans and non-Africans and then a later one between Eurasians and Southwest
Asians. The African origin studies have also demolished the earlier notion of Europe being the
cradle of modern humans and Africa being backwater.
The H. sapiens sapiens emerged from the early and later H. sapiens, showing anatomically
archaic and modern physiological features respectively. Archaic H. sapiens emerged about
200,000 years ago, whereas anatomically modern species of the same genus started evolving
about 100,000 years ago. Prominent among the fossils of this species are the ones that have
been found at Omo Valley in Ethiopia by Richard Leakey dated 195,000 years ago, a skull found
at Broken Hill (Kabwe) in Zambia dated 110,000 years ago and those found at Qafzeh in Israel
dated about 92,000 years ago. Here, it must be pointed out that the designation of archaic or
modern assigned to these fossils is largely based on the structure of the skull and does not
imply major cultural differences. Prior to the emergence of H. sapiens sapiens, these several
species of H. sapiens displayed a high level of cultural adaptability.
The earliest evidence of H. sapiens sapiens comes from the findings at a rock shelter named
Cro-Magnon near Les Eyzies village in Southwestern France. The Cro-Magnon man (as the earli-
est species of H. sapiens sapiens was called) evolved around 40,000 years ago and is said to be
the white ancestors of today’s Europeans. The Cro-Magnon specie, with a height ranging
between 5.6 and 5.8 feet, was taller, had thinner bones and less rugged features than the
Neanderthals who may have co-existed with the former at least up to 5,000 or 10,000 years.
Compared to the Neanderthals, the Cro-Magnon head was relatively tall but small with a more
rounded brain case containing a slightly smaller brain of 1,400 cc average capacity. Besides
these, other significant physiological changes were an upright forehead, not forward-jutting but
a straight face, only slight brow ridges, smaller nose and jaws, a more crowded teeth and a well-
developed chin.
 16 Ancient and Medieval World

In cultural terms too, the H. sapiens sapiens displayed remarkable variety and improvement
over that of the Neanderthals. A versatile tool technology of this species enabled them to sur-
vive the extreme climatic variations of the last phase of the last Ice Age that began about
116,000 years ago. They colonised all the continents of the Old and the New World (America
and Australia) except Antarctica. To effectively exploit the vegetation and food resources in
different climatic conditions in these continents at different points of time, the early H. sapiens
sapiens made extensive use of stone, bone, antler and wood to manufacture tools with a new
technology of making blades, thus, giving rise to distinct cultures such as Perigordian/
Chatelperronian, Aurignacian, Gravettian, Solutrean and Magdalenian.
Along with innovations in tool technology, the period of early H. sapiens sapiens has been
termed as one of ‘cultural explosion’ by scholars such as Steven Mithen (1996). This term has
been used in the context of several developments such as increased economic specialisation,
development of fully articulate speech, restructuring of social relations between various groups
and above all, the development of art as means of expression and communication. The tech-
nique and the new behavioural pattern of the early H. sapiens sapiens transformed the human
way of life and brought about explosive population growth. Endowed with superior intellectual
capabilities, they pushed earlier human species into extinction. Grahame Clark (1977) has
remarked that one can assume from their art and complexity of their technology that the men-
tality of the Cro-Magnon man could hardly have differed from the existing human races. The
racial differences among the modern humans were mainly an outcome of genetic variations
linked with widespread colonisation of new territories towards the end of the Pleistocene
period and particular climatic conditions in these areas.
From the above description of the evolution of humans, it is clear that there was a close
interrelationship between biological endowments and cultural achievements of the evolving
species. Elaborating it further, bipedalism or an erect posture for example, was a response to
thinning of forests in the savanna region and the consequent need to crossover from there to
the forested lands that facilitated acquisition of culture. Bipedalism led to freeing of hands from
the locomotion and made them available for first tool, using and ultimately for tool manufactur-
ing. At the same time, an erect posture had reduced the tree climbing abilities of the hominids
and had therefore exposed them to dangers from the wild animals. Under these circumstances,
only those hominid groups survived who were capable of intelligent use of tools and weapons.
These activities precipitated development of brain. Brain development was also facilitated by
changes in the architecture of the skull due to shortening of teeth that led to lighter jaws,
enabling the brain case to expand for housing a larger size brain. The shortening of the teeth
itself was due to dietary changes among early human species, reducing the role of big teeth
which was a cultural attribute. At the level of human social relations too, we see an intercon-
nection between biological and cultural traits. The narrowing of birth canal among female
hominid species (a direct outcome of bipedalism) led to the delivery of babies much before
their brain development. The longer dependence of the baby on the mother accounted for
greater social bondage between the two. Last but not the least, acquisition of language resulted
from some crucial changes in the brain structure, providing for sound producing abilities of the
hominids. This directly impacted the nature of tools manufactured by early humans, bringing
about more uniformity and technological advancement besides promoting better social coop-
eration in hunting and foraging activities. But having mentioned these, we must, at the same
time, concede that by the time of the evolution of advanced hominids, biological features of the
human species were taken over by their cultural developments.
 Evolution of Humans 17

PALAEOLITHIC CULTURES
The previous section included a brief analysis of the biological and cultural evolution of
humans and an attempt was made (again a brief one) to point out the interrelationship
between the two. The present section would include a detailed description of the cultural
attributes of various human species (from H. habilis to H. sapiens sapiens) during what is
known as the Palaeolithic Age. Although culture can be and has been defined in several
manner, the most accepted definition of the term among the anthropologists is that culture is
a sum total of learned behaviour of man which evolves out of the need to adapt within a given
environment. More than any other hominid group, this definition quite appropriately fits into
the cultural life of the early Homo species, including early modern humans who had to survive
in varying climatic conditions in the process of their colonisation of different continents of the
Old and New World.
Human cultural progression is invariably linked with their technological progress, and
during the time of early humans, this has been associated with the tool technology. Use of terms
like Stone Age, Copper Age and Iron Age to describe various human social formations are also
attempts to divide human cultural accomplishments based on particular technical stages. The
term ‘Palaeolithic’ is a combination of Greek words ‘paleos’ (old) and ‘lithos’ (stone), thus
derivatively meaning ‘Old Stone Age’. Likewise, Neolithic refers to ‘New Stone Age’ represent-
ing a marked improvement in the stone technology whereas Mesolithic is a period now consid-
ered as intermediate between the Old and New Stone Ages. Based on the tool technology and
the level of socio-economic development, the Palaeolithic Age has been classified into
(a) Lower Palaeolithic (roughly dated between 2.5 mya to 300,000 years ago) (b) Middle
Palaeolithic (between 300,000 years ago and about 35,000 years ago) and (c) Upper Palaeolithic
(between 35,000 years ago and 12,000 years ago). Although this classification may not fit all the
regions of early human colonisation but has been found to be appropriate markers of the tech-
nological achievements of early human species such as H. habilis, H. erectus, H. sapiens
(Neanderthals) and H. sapiens sapiens. Hence, the present section would be devoted largely
to the description of tool technology and partly to other cultural traits of the above human spe-
cies during these three phases of the Paleolithic.

Tool Culture
Lower Palaeolithic
The earliest group of human toolmaking cultures has been termed as Lower Palaeolithic cul-
tures. Toolmaking began with the emergence of H. habilis about 2.5 mya, even though
Australopithecus robustus and boisei may have made use of naturally available stone or
wooden tools. The bigger brain size of H. habilis has been considered by scholars such as
Richard Leakey (1994) as the key factor facilitating manufacture of tools. Besides a larger brain,
highly specialised hands and a bipedal posture also played an important role in the toolmaking
exercise. A broader diet of this species in comparison to that of the Australopithecine species,
which included meat was an additional factor. The label of ‘handy person’ associated with
H. habilis basically relates to their toolmaking abilities. Tools made by H. habilis have been
found from Gona in Ethiopia dated 2.6 mya, Koobi Fora areas of East Turkana (Kenya) dated
 18 Ancient and Medieval World

1.8 mya and Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania) dated about 1.75 mya. Since large number of hominid
and animal bones, along with a huge pile up of artefacts, have been found from Olduvai and
most of our knowledge of the material culture of the earliest Homo species also come from this
site, the earliest Palaeolithic culture has been termed, by Mary Leakey (the founder of the site)
and others as the Oldowan culture.
The tools found at Olduvai and other site of East and North Africa are simple stone tools
made from pebbles or lava cobbles. The pebble was first struck with a heavier stone near the
natural edges of the pebble to remove flakes and subsequent blows on the ridges formed near
the earlier flakes to produce several tools that have been identified as choppers, scrapers,
burins and hammer stones. The studies of Mary Leakey (1979) and Nicholas Toth (1994) sug-
gest that these tools were extremely crude and their classification into distinct tool types is
difficult because their manufacture was not based on any standardised pattern unlike the later
tools of the Lower Palaeolithic period. The H. habilis tool technology has been categorised as
‘core’ technology where the core (pebble) was itself turned into a tool by the above-described
flaking method. However, Nicholas Toth’s (1994) research has shown that even though simple
and fashioned out of practical requirements, these tools required careful selection of the raw
material (for proper flaking), a high degree of motor skills and coordination of different parts
of the body (eyes, limbs and fingers) in order to exercise precise control over the force and
direction of the blows to the stone as well as certain measure of conceptualisation (mental
image) before it could be given a definite shape. Recent researches have suggested that the
habilis species consciously used igneous rocks and quartz pebbles as raw materials to fashion
their tools according to their requirement and had good understanding of the flaking properties
of the stone.
The Oldowan culture is dated between 2.6 mya and 1.5 mya, and for a long times, it was
believed that this culture represented a static technology without any distinguishable change
during its existence. But more archaeological discoveries and more scientific analytical tools
have suggested that this technology was simple but highly effective and became more complex
in the later periods. These tools were used by the habilis species to procure and process plant
and animal foods. Recent studies of the Oldowan tools have suggested butchering and cutting
meat, sawing and scraping wood, cutting soft plants, breaking nuts, digging roots and extracting
bone marrow from the carcasses of animals as the possible usages of such tools as choppers,
scrapers, burins and hammer stones. The microscopic study of the bones found at Olduvai and
considering the simplicity and size of these tools, it has been argued that though a meat eater,
H. habilis could not have been an expert hunter and possibly could have been able to kill only
such small animals as antelopes. Thus, from the nature of discovered tools, H. habilis appears
as an opportunistic scavenger (scavenging meat from carnivore kills) and a plant forager. The
absence of any predetermined design on the large number of habilis tools found from several
sites in East and North Africa also indicates that this species had not yet developed an articu-
late speech which was crucial for passing on information to the present and the next genera-
tion. Apart from stones, the habilis species could also frequently have made use of bone and
wood which were easily available.
Regarding the social organisation of the earliest human species, it has been argued that in
the savanna (grassland interspersed with isolated trees) environment of East Africa, the habilis
species could not have been able to compete with other animals without better social coopera-
tion and successful reproduction. However, evidence of social cooperation is limited to archae-
ological evidence from Koobi Fora and Olduvai Gorge in the form of cluster of bones of both
 Evolution of Humans 19

big (like hippopotamus) and small (mainly antelopes) animals. Few scholars like Louis Leakey
(1980) had argued that these were ‘central place’ or ‘home base’ of the habilis species where
they slept, manufactured tools and butchered dead animals brought to this place from some
distance. This notion was based on the assumption that H. habilis was an accomplished hunter
and gatherer. But the recent microscopic studies of these tools, controlled experimentation and
other sophisticated research methods have ruled this out. It is now suggested that these were
not ‘home bases’ but transitory camps where the human groups butchered the dead animals
with tools carried from a distance further away or manufacturing it on the site itself due to
abundant supplies of toolmaking stones in the area. However, scholars do agree that these
transitory camps may have preceded ‘central places’ of the later hunter-gatherer societies.
H. habilis primarily lived in the savanna interspersed with forested areas of tropical Africa
where both games and predators were in plenty. Competing for natural resources with other
animals and the need for protection must have forced them to live in groups and near water
resources (like the shallow lake at Olduvai) where animals routinely appeared for drinking
water. The larger brain size of the habilis also helped in the further evolution of their social
intelligence. According to a rough estimate, H. habilis flourished in larger groups of about
80–85 to 65–70 of Australopithecines. Living in larger groups, besides providing security, also
facilitated efficient foraging and sharing of plant and other food resources, individually or in
pairs. This had far reaching consequences for humans in terms of prolonged mortality and
increased reproduction.
The emergence of H. erectus around 1.64 mya brought about some significant changes in the
Lower Palaeolithic tool technology. As mentioned in the previous section, the erectus species
did not remain confined to Africa but radiated to Europe as well as Asia and followed different
adaptive strategies to survive in diverse climatic conditions of these regions of the Old World.
Although erectus tool technology did not fundamentally differ from that of the habilis, it dis-
played more complexity and diversity, making the former an expert hunter and gatherer. The
tools of H. erectus have not only been found in East and North Africa but also in Central Europe
(France and Hungary), Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Thailand, Burma and Malaya), China
(Beijing) and Northwest part (Soan Valley) of India. These tools were standardised and were
found to be made according to a repeated pattern. This suggests that tools of this period were
made with a predetermined design, indicating an articulate speech, pooling of experience,
transfer of knowledge and a higher level of intelligence on part of the erectus species. With the
emergence of this species, hunting became well established and it, along with foraging, became
the basis of their economy.
The tool technology practiced by the erectus species is also classified under the ‘core’ tech-
nology but was more complex and advanced than that of the early Lower Palaeolithic period.
The most distinctive tool of this period was the hand axe. Discovery of large numbers of hand
axes along with other artefacts at St. Acheul in Northern France has led scholars to term the
erectus tool culture as Acheulean culture. Acheulean hand axes have been found in different
shapes and sizes, ranging from crude teardrop shaped forms to a refined bifacial form. It was
made from a larger core (stone) where the core itself was carefully trimmed with hammer
blows to get the desired shape. Scholars are in broad agreement that hand axe was a multipur-
pose tool used for cutting meat and skinning prey, digging up roots and working on wood. Few
scholars such as Eileen O’Brien (1981) have argued that if thrown like a discus, the pointed side
of the hand axe could work like a weapon to hit an object or animal with great force. Thus, it
could be used for both hunting prey and defending oneself. The popularity of this tool can be
 20 Ancient and Medieval World

gauged from the fact that originating in Africa, it reached Asia and Europe and continued to be
used until about 150,000 years ago. Robert J. Wenke and Deborah I. Olszewski (1985) are of the
opinion that the Acheulean hand axe may not seem like a marvellous bit of technological
advancement but had several features that seem to reflect human intellectual evolution. It
required more processing, that is, a more actual step of manufacturing and was also more stan-
dardised in proportion than earlier tools. The manufacture of hand axe also indicates that
H. erectus had a geometrically accurate sense of proportion imposed accurately on stone.
Besides hand axe, the erectus species also fashioned choppers, cleavers, bola stones and
some small flake tools such as side scrapers, knives and bores for skinning, working on wood
and other purposes. In Southeast Asia, hand axe has not been found in significant numbers.
Here, choppers dominated the tool types that reflect greater human concentration on plant
foods in the warmer and more vegetated zones than on meat. In East Asia, such tools were used
to work on bamboo which was available in plenty and which could itself be turned into such
small tools as sharp knives and spears besides being used for making containers, ropes and
dwellings. In the Asian zone, tools like drills, gravers, point and choppers were as efficient as
hand axe in the West in exploiting plant and small animal resources. Similarly, at Clacton in
Southeast England, tree leaf shaped stone tools were manufactured for working on wood. This
200,000 years old culture known as Clactonian culture (based on the site Clacton-on-sea in
Essex, England), has also provided evidence of a wooden spear tip which was used either as a
stabbing spear or digging stick. Another noteworthy tool culture contemporary with H. erectus
was the Levalloisian culture, named after Levallois-Perret, a suburb of Paris in France where
round tools in the shape of an inverted tortoise shell were made from a core by carefully trim-
ming it to produce points and scrapers. The Clactonian and Levalloisian technique became
more complex in the Middle Palaeolithic under the Neanderthals.
The diverse tool kits of H. erectus, having a predetermined shape and standardised pattern,
represented improved communication and a high degree of social interaction. This promoted
other cultural developments too. Better social cooperation facilitated big game hunting, a defi-
nite evidence of which has come from Torralba and Ambrona, northeast of Madrid (Spain),
dated between 400,000 and 200,000 years ago. These sites have yielded elephant tusks and
bones along with those of rhinoceros, wild ox, stags and horses. It has been postulated that by
using fire, these animals would have been driven towards swamps and then killed. Evidence of
big game hunting by the erectus stock have also come from Schoningen (Germany), dated about
400,000 years ago, and Boxgrove site (Southern England), dated 500,000 years ago where bones
of large mammals such as rhinoceros, bison, dear, horse and bear have been found. Such find-
ings suggest that H. erectus was an expert big game hunter having an efficient knowledge of the
terrain along with that of the raw materials besides possessing the mental ability to manufac-
ture effective hunting weapons. They also had the precise knowledge of the place where and
when the animals gathered, that is, cliffs, water holes and so on during the summer, autumn,
winter or spring seasons.
Another significant cultural development in the Lower Palaeolithic period coinciding with
the existence of the erectus species was the opportunistic use of natural fire. Use of fire was an
important innovation as an adaptive strategy that had far-reaching consequences for future
human evolution. Fire was used for warmth in extremely cold climatic conditions, for protec-
tion from predators as well as to hunt big and small animals (by scaring them down the cliff
towards swamps or forcing them to come out of their hiding places) and most importantly for
cooking. Use of fire for cooking was of supreme importance in the sense that hitherto inedible
 Evolution of Humans 21

plants and vegetables could now be added to the human diet as roasting them in fire helped to
neutralise toxins present in them. Few scholars have suggested that possibly H. erectus knew
how to conserve fire by using the smouldering tree stumps (fire being caused by lightning
strikes) to kindle flames to light dry grass or bushes. The earliest evidence of the use of fire have
been found in Swartkrans in South Africa and Chesowanja in Kenya’s Rift Valley, dated 1.6 mya
in the form of hearth like arrangement of stone artefacts, fragmentary bones and baked clay.
Another more recent evidence of the same comes from Zhoukoudian caves, west of Beijing in
China, where charred Chinese huckleberry seeds along with other plants such as walnut, hazel-
nut, pine and so on have been found along with many hearths and ash layers. These have been
dated between 500,000 years ago to 250,000 years ago. Although there is a debate among schol-
ars over the issue of fire being used to cook meat but there also is a broad agreement among
them, based on evidence from this and other sites, that H. erectus was an expert hunter.
The settlement pattern of H. erectus varied from region to region, depending upon the cli-
matic condition, but was always close to water sources such as a spring, an artesian well, lake,
river or near beach. Water was necessary for the animals which converged to drink water near
these sources. Besides, these water bodies were also important source of raw materials such
as stones and pebbles to manufacture tools. In different regions of erectus colonisation, human
settlements or camps were set up keeping in consideration climatic conditions and protection
from predators. These included open air, rock shelters or cave settlements. Thus, while erectus
lived in open camps in the temperate climate of Africa, they preferred rock shelters or settle-
ments deep inside the cave in the cold climate of Europe and China.
The absence of H. erectus burials and rituals have led scholars to suggest that since this human
species was capable of articulate speech and hence displayed better social cooperation in hunting
and other community activities such as gathering and setting up camps, its smaller brain size
(1,000 cc compared to 1,500 cc of the H. sapiens and 1,470 cc of the H. sapiens sapiens) meant
that they may have lacked the mental capabilities to generalise and symbolise their experiences
unlike later human species. In addition, their language skills may also have been quite limited
unlike modern humans, who are capable of taking out variety of sounds due to particular posi-
tioning of larynx in the speech producing area.

Middle Palaeolithic
The Middle Palaeolithic period saw the emergence of H. sapiens, both archaic and advanced.
Among the latter, the most prominent in terms of cultural acquisitions were the Neanderthals.
Neanderthals lived during 135,000 years ago until about 35,000 years ago. They had to adapt in
warmer climatic conditions immediately preceding the last Ice Age that began about 118,000
years ago. They lived in such environmental conditions when big games were in abundance.
Further, seacoasts, streams and rivers had provided additional aquatic food resources in the
form of fishes and water mammals such as whales, sharks, seals and so on. Exploitation of such
resources required modification in the existing tool technology of the Lower Palaeolithic.
A larger brain size of the Neanderthals along with other physical attributes facilitated this
process.
The Middle Palaeolithic tool is identified with the Mousterian culture attributed to the
Neanderthals. The name has been derived from the Neanderthal site of Le Moustier rock shelter
situated in Southwest France where large deposits of tools associated with this species have
been found. However, the Middle Palaeolithic technology should not only be associated with
 22 Ancient and Medieval World

Neanderthals as the H. sapiens that emerged prior to them around 200,000 years ago had
already began to fabricate tools of various shapes for various purposes which later became
standardised and a part of the tool culture of different H. sapiens groups. Prominent among the
pre-Mousterian culture was the Tayacian culture which was spread across the Mediterranean
France and in Italy. It was characterised by small-sized tools made from pebbles or other stones
by the process of trimming.
The Mousterian tool culture represented an important technological innovation, where sev-
eral flakes were taken out of a prepared core through the Levallois technique to manufacture
several small tools and weapons. Thus, Mousterian tool technology has been termed as ‘flake’
technology that was distinct from the Oldowan and Acheulean ‘core’ technology, where the
core itself was trimmed into the shape of a tool. The Neanderthals developed upon the already
existing Levallois technique to prepare the core by giving it a particular shape to predetermine
the shape of the flake that was to be removed. Such a core is generally referred to as tortoise
core as it resembles a tortoise shell. Through this technique, several flakes, blades or triangular
points could be taken out from a single core. Since this was a complex method and required
careful planning prior to taking out the flakes, this is considered as technological advancement
over the earlier tool technology. Most of the Mousterian and other Middle Palaeolithic tools
were made out of flakes. The flakes were trimmed from the edges to produce a wide range of
side scrapers, points, backed knives, tiny saws and bores.
Another remarkable feature of the Middle Palaeolithic tool technology was the great diver-
sity of tool kits. A French archaeologist, Francois Bordes, has identified 60–63 Mousterian tool
types dated between 90,000–40,000 years ago, while excavating the Combe Grenal cave in
Perigord (France). The Mousterian tool types have also been found in other parts of Europe,
North Africa and Southwest Asia. The tools could be used for killing, cutting up and skinning
prey and also for making wooden tools and clothing. Evidences show that Neanderthals were
skilled hunters and killed such large games as, bison, cave bears, horses, woolly rhinoceros,
wild cattle and reindeer. Hunting of bigger animals was organised in groups. It is quite possible
that individual animal was separated from the herd and brought down. Favourable geographical
terrain such as watering places, gorges or narrow mouths of valleys were used by the
Neanderthals to hunt animals. With the use of composite tools (as explained in the earlier sec-
tion) large animals could be killed at close quarters while swift moving animals could be
brought down by a javelin like hunting weapon. With the help of available tools, animal fur,
bones and sinews were utilised for making cloths, and tents (in open encampments) and snares
were used to catch birds. The first evidence of river and sea fishing also comes from the Middle
Palaeolithic period. Thus, it can be said that Neanderthals were opportunistic hunters using
every possible opportunity to hunt variety of animals. Besides meat, plant food was also an
essential part of their diet.
Even though there is a lot of debate on when the mastery over fire was achieved, traces of
iron pyrites found in the Neanderthal encampments strongly suggest that they were making
fire, not simply using naturally ignited fire, by rubbing iron pyrites together. Numerous evi-
dences of hearths along with burnt and unburnt charcoal (particularly in the cave sites), heated
stone artefacts, burnt bones and heated sediments tend to confirm this notion. Few scholars
have suggested that perhaps the conservation and taming of fire, as much as food sharing and
meat eating, helped to forge close-knit family groups among the Neanderthals. This is evident
from their social behaviour discussed in the following paragraphs.
 Evolution of Humans 23

The social organisation of the Neanderthals was more developed than those of H. habilis
and H. erectus. A major factor contributing to this was the better linguistic capabilities of
Neanderthals though still inferior to the modern humans. Manufacture of diverse tool kits and
opportunistic big and small game hunting could not have been possible without a high degree
of social cooperation. Scholars also suggest a possible existence among the Neanderthals of
sexual division of labour, where men hunted and women gathered and cooked food. Based on
the size of their dwelling units, it has been estimated that Neanderthals must have lived in small
groups of 25–30, which was also ideal from the point of view of provisioning of food. The
Neanderthal settlements included caves, rock shelters as well as open-air dwellings and
exceeded in number than those of H. eretus. In Europe, large number of both caves and rock
shelters were used during greater part of the year as protection against Arctic cold. While open
encampments were used during short summer months in the Tundra plains. Evidences from the
dwelling sites also suggest that a small group of Neanderthals also made repeated use of open
sites as temporary halting places while being away from the main group.
A significant cultural achievement of Neanderthals, indicating their highly evolved thinking,
came from their careful disposal/burial of the dead. Burials provide the most important and
trustworthy archaeological evidence to analyse spiritual life of the prehistoric humans and
social divisions, if any. Mousterian sites have revealed earliest burial traditions (dated between
100,000 and 40,000 years ago) of the human species. Neanderthals did not simply abandoned
the dead but buried them under the dug up earth with stone pillows and other grave goods such
as flint tools, burnt bones, flowers and roasted meat. Most of the Neanderthal burials have been
found in caves or rock shelters in Europe, Southwest Asia and Eurasia. Such ritual burials sug-
gest that Neanderthals had begun to think about the phenomenon of death or ‘life after death’,
which reflects a much higher level of thinking and imagination. While most of these are single
burials, evidence of group burial comes from the rock shelters of La Ferrassie in Southwest
France where two adult Neanderthals have been buried close together alongside four children.
In this context, scholars like Karel Volch (1994) have opined that first evidence of family group-
ing can be seen from here. A Shanidar cave burial in the Zagros Mountains of Iraq provides the
evidence of social consciousness and compassion among the Neanderthals. Here, a 30–40 year
old man, half blind with a crippled right arm and right leg (much before his death) has been
found buried. Since such a person could not have been economically useful for the group, his
long survival reflects the care and support extended to him by his social group.
Neanderthals have also been associated with ritual cannibalism. A broken human skull to get
at the brain found from Moula-Guercy in France lend credence to this hypothesis. At some
places, horns of goat and a bear skull kept in a ring have been linked with goat and bear cult.
But it is a debatable issue among the scholars. Evidence of rudimentary art forms such as bone
amulets, scratched pebbles and tools and lumps of red iron oxide (to paint the body before
burial or on the tools) have also at times been associated with the Neanderthals. Although few
scholars point out that these evidences can hardly be termed as the work of art, it can safely be
concluded that the Neanderthals had reached a much higher level of intellectual capacity and
imagination than their predecessors.

Upper Palaeolithic
The Upper Palaeolithic period saw the emergence of H. sapiens sapiens or the modern man.
This period also coincided with the last phase of the Ice Age which witnessed reduced
 24 Ancient and Medieval World

temperature in Europe, Asia as well as in Africa. Since this was the final part of the last glacia-
tion (termed as Wurm or Weichsel glaciation), there were frequent climatic variations between
colder and warmer seasons of varying intensities. The climatic changes and the geographical
conditions led to the growth of different cultural traditions of the early H. sapiens sapiens. A
well-developed brain, along with some crucial physiological changes in the shape of the thorax
and release of upper extremities allowing rotatory movement in the shoulder joint, a perfect
bipedal motion due to modifications in the pelvis bone to take up the body weight and final
shaping of the hand allowing throwing of objects, great force and accuracy as well as enabling
humans to produce most delicate objects, turned the Upper Palaeolithic period into a period of
accelerated evolution for humanity. It was a period when the prehistoric hunter-gatherer societ-
ies reached the peak of their development largely due to their technological progress.
Technological progress was accompanied by a high degree of spiritual and artistic
achievement.
The Cro-Magnon man, earliest of the H. sapiens sapiens species, developed different cul-
tures with distinctive adaptive strategies. Subsequent to an extensive research of the French
prehistorian Henri Breul on Upper Palaeolithic cultures in Western Europe, different cultures
of early modern humans have been identified as Chatelperronian/Perigordian, Aurignacian,
Gravettian, Solutrean and Magdalenian. Almost all of these cultures have been found concen-
trated in France and Spain and covered a time period between 35,000 years ago and 11,000
years ago. These cultures have differed from each other very slightly, depending upon their
immediate geographical conditions. Among them however, the Aurignacian, Solutrean and
Magdalenian have been considered as crucial for proper understanding of these Upper
Palaeolithic cultures.
The Upper Palaeolithic tool technology, although did not fundamentally differ from that of
the Middle Palaeolithic, but was marked by some crucial innovations in taking out stone blades
that were then reshaped into variety of tools. Besides, there was also an extension in raw mate-
rials used for the manufacturing of tools. Apart from stones, wood, bone, ivory and antler (rein-
deer horn) were now increasingly used for this purpose. The tool technology of this period has
been termed as ‘blade’ technology. To take out stone blades, the toolmaker of this period used
a stone, bone, wood or antler hammer to strike a bone or antler punch resting on one edge of
the prepared core of cylindrical shape. This indirect percussion technique enabled splitting off
of long, flat, narrow and sharp edged flake or blade. This was then delicately trimmed by press-
ing a pointed stick against the blade edge to snap off tiny flakes. This method is known as pres-
sure flaking.
Scholars such as Bohuslav Klima (1994), Brian Fagan (2010) and others have argued that an
important advantage of the blade technology over the previous flake technology was its more
economical use of the raw material. This was an important point in environments where raw
materials may have been harder to find. Further, the blade technology with a portable core
proved to be extremely efficient for late Ice Age hunter-gatherers who exploited resources over
large territories.
Following the above technique, the Cro-Magnon man made a variety of finely crafted tools
such as knives, scrapers, saws, points, bores and, most importantly, a fine-edged graving tool
called burins. Burin was used to manufacture sharp edged bone, antler and ivory tools such as
eyed needles, fishhooks, harpoons, handles of composite tools and spear thrower. Use of
diverse bone and antler points greatly enhanced the hunting effectiveness of the Upper
Palaeolithic men. The use of spear thrower after 20,000 years ago proved to be particularly
 Evolution of Humans 25

effective as it doubled the distance over which a hunter could hurl his spear. Thus, now the
Cro-Magnon man could kill not only prey at a close range but also those at a distance. In this
context, B. Klima (1994) has remarked that humans had ‘empirically detected some laws of
mechanics’. Composite tools made of stone blades fixed with ivory or antler handle also came
to be increasingly used. With the help of these tools, the Upper Palaeolithic men were able to
hunt large number of bison, horses, reindeer, mountain goats as well as mammoths, woolly
rhinoceros and the wild ox. Fishhooks and harpoons were used to exploit aquatic resources
such as fish and sea mammals.
The diversity of Upper Palaeolithic tools also hints towards specialisation in toolmaking as
it is possible to distinguish hunting weapons (spearheads and arrowheads) from tools for pro-
cessing prey (knives and scrapers), implements for working on wood (notches and chisels) and
bones (burins and becks). Besides its functional features, the tools became more stylised and
aesthetically improved as reflected in regular and symmetrical tools. Gradual refinement of the
tools led to these assuming microlithic dimensions which reached its peak during the subse-
quent Mesolithic period.
The Upper Palaeolithic cultures of Europe (as mentioned earlier) developed different tools
according to their environments and the available food resources, but essentially, they followed
the same blade technology. The Chatelperronian/Perigordian culture, named after a site
Chatelperron in Southwest France (roughly dated 40,000–35,000 years ago), was known for
such tools as burins, knives and chisels made from elongated flakes. They also fashioned a
number of bone tools. Few consider their tool technology as the extension of Mousterian cul-
ture while few are of the opinion that this was the earliest H. sapiens sapiens culture. This was
followed by the Aurignacian culture, named after a French site Aurignac (dated between
36,000–30,000 years ago), likewise is famous for making small blades with parallel edges and
such stone tools as scrapers, bores and burins. Aurignacians also shaped bone tools as utensils
or as hunting weapons. The Gravettian culture (dated between 28,000 and 23,000 years ago),
named after the French site of Gravette, was developed around the Chatelperronian region,
covering France and Spain. However, the Gravettian tool technology represented a slightly dif-
ferent technique of shaping tools than the Chatelperronian or Aurignacian, particularly with
respect to hunting weapons. They made large number of projectile points known as ‘Gravette
points’ of thin blades sharpened by steep retouch or pressure flaking. They also manufactured
burins and blunted back knives. The Solutrean culture (dated 25,000–18,000 years ago), named
after Roche de Solutre, a deposit in Burgundy (France), was developed in the coldest phase of
the last Ice Age. It was known for manufacturing of several shaped points, most popular being
the leaf points. These were joined to the wooden rods to make a spear like weapon. Further
refinement of tools can be seen in the Magdalenian culture (dated 18,000–11,000 years ago)
which developed out of the Gravettian culture in the southern region of France. Magdalenians
fashioned tools such as hooked rods, which was used as spear thrower, harpoons (fishing
equipment) and microlithic projectile points, which later perhaps lead to the invention of arrow.
This culture is also marked by an increase in the number of composite tools such as wooden
shafts with harpoon heads or blatelets. The Magdalenian culture is also known as the ‘golden
age’ of bone tools that were often decorated. Thus, technologically speaking, Magdalenian cul-
ture was the most advanced of the Upper Palaeolithic cultures.
A well-developed articulate speech of the H. sapiens sapiens as reflected in their regular and
symmetrical tools had important consequences in the field of social interaction, cooperation as
well as settlement pattern. The Upper Palaeolithic people made hunting their chief subsistence
 26 Ancient and Medieval World

strategy which was practiced in more advanced manner than before. They specialised in hunt-
ing large herbivores, herds of which moved with reliable regularity. With new type of tools, prey
could be killed from long distance too. Besides, the Cro-Magnon man had mastered all tricks of
hunting such as direct attack, deceiving the animals by observing their behavioural character-
istics, laying traps and snares, driving prey into ravines, over cliffs or into swamps. With the
help of specialised tools, fish and other aquatic mammals were also included in their diet along
with variety of plant foods. Such a variety of food resources and efficient exploitation of these
must have had major implications for the population growth.
As for their settlement pattern, the evidences from almost 90 per cent of the sites suggest
that Upper Palaeolithic men tended to choose their settlement sites close to plentiful water
supply and places of animal presence such as river confluences, animal paths and watering
places. Many caves have been found facing south to receive sunshine and protection from cold
northerly winds. Most of the open encampments have indicated a tent like structure, sheltered
with wooden framework and covered by animal skins. Mammoth bones, reindeer antler, wood,
earth and stone were other alternative building materials. The dwellings were of different
shapes (oval, kidney, circular or irregular) and dimensions (small for winter months and very
big during the summers). Some sites in Southern France were occupied for a major part of the
year, even though Upper Palaeolithic men are considered to be highly mobile in general. This
indicates high concentration of food resources in such settlements. Few scholars have sug-
gested that perhaps towards the end of the Palaeolithic period, some feeling of close relation
to a given region and tendency towards semi-permanent or permanent settlement may have
developed. Most of these dwellings have been found with hearths inside or outside of it, and
distribution of ash around these suggest that food (including meat) was regularly cooked.
Regarding the size of the Upper Palaeolithic social group, evidences from Gravettian culture
suggest that they lived in five or six independent shelters in close proximity to each other.
Assuming that each household contained 20 members (according to the size of the dwellings),
the typical social community has been estimated to be consisting of 100–120 members. Such a
community could have sustained for a longer period of time at a particular place with adequate
food supply made possible by an advanced tool technology. The Magdalenian culture, consid-
ered to be the most advanced among the Upper Palaeolithic cultures, may have witnessed a
larger social group and a tendency towards sedentism or semi-permanent settlement. It has
been hypothesised that this type of settlement could have brought about social changes leading
to growth of a person with authority that would have organised communal hunts, distribution
of food as well as regulating the interaction with extended kin groups and other neighbouring
groups or bands living in the same ecological zone. From this, one can also envisage greater
interaction between communities on such occasions as common rituals, exchange of goods
(like sea shells, bracelets, exotic raw materials etc.) as well as mating partners and framing of
rules of such interaction by a person or persons of authority. While in the absence of definitive
evidence, such assumptions are mere conjectures, but scholars such as Paul Mellars (1991)
have argued that such social changes were inevitable when hunter-gatherer lived in a large
group in a relatively small territory at a particular site for a longer period of time.
The evidence of religious beliefs and rituals among the Upper Palaeolithic men has been
deduced from numerous decorative objects and ornaments discovered from several sites.
Depending upon their shape and supposed function they were put to, these have been classified
as pendants, necklaces, broaches, headbands, bracelets, rings and so on. On the basis of ethno-
graphic studies of modern day hunter-gatherers, these decorative items have been associated
 Evolution of Humans 27

with the worship of some higher, supernatural forces. These objects were supposed to mediate
between humans and their environment both of which were imagined to be inhabited and
directed by some invisible supernatural power. Human beings among themselves tried to find
an intermediary who was supposed to gain favour of the supernatural powers by means of
magic, rituals or sorcery such as shamanism. Similarly, red pigment coating on the corpses
indicates their belief in ‘life after death’, the red colour of the pigment representing blood and
hence an attempt to restore the life of the dead.
As for the burial customs of the Upper Palaeolithic humans, very few of them have been
found from the Magdalenian sites. This has led a few scholars to assume that only prominent
persons were given ritual burial, leading to the notion of hierarchy in the society. However,
large number of Upper Palaeolithic burials (dated between 30,000 and 25,000 years ago) have
been excavated from Eastern Europe (particularly from the open sites of Moravia and Russia),
which have casted doubts over the notion of social hierarchy having developed in this period.
The mass burial at Moravia and Russia shows such burial goods as mammoth skulls, animal
bones and blade tools along with human skeleton. At places, corpses have been found covered
with large quantities of red ochre and wearing necklaces of fox teeth and small ivory pendants.
The evidence of grave goods such as ivory bracelets and beads for both older men’s and chil-
dren’s burial further refute the social differentiation hypotheses.
Thus, to conclude, it can be said that Upper Palaeolithic was a period when the human genus
reached its present form and developed an advanced economy leading to better utilisation of
the natural resources. Their economy was of a non-productive character, based on efficient
hunting and foraging. Their needs did not require any interference with nature (food produc-
tion). They exploited the available natural resources without having to enlarge their needs. The
available resources and its effective exploitation provided them with enough leisure time to
produce excellent work of art (discussed in the following section) which is representative of a
very high degree of imagination and intellectual growth on the part of the H. sapiens sapiens.

Palaeolithic Art
Besides technological advancement, the other significant human cultural accomplishment in
the Palaeolithic Age was the development of art. The discovery of various art forms attributed
to H. sapiens sapiens reflect the intellectual evolution of the human mind, particularly with
regard to the power of imagination and their ability to associate themselves with their natural
surroundings. The Upper Palaeolithic sites provide the earliest and definite evidence of true art
forms. The supposedly earliest evidence of art from the Mousterian findings in the form of
scratched pebbles and bones have been dismissed by the modern art historians. It is only from
the Upper Palaeolithic sites that we get the evidence of representational form of art. These art
forms developed between 35,000–10,000 years ago and appeared simultaneously in several
regions of Cro-Magnon. But nowhere is it as pronounced as in Europe. The Upper Palaeolithic
art, scholars believe, began evolving in Eastern Europe (Hungary and Yugoslavia); it then
spread to Southwest Asia, reaching its climax in Western Europe. Evidence of this art form has
also been found in Siberia and Africa.
The work of art executed by the Upper Palaeolithic artists have been found on stone, antler,
bone, clay, ivory as well as wood. This art form was first discovered in 1875 by a Spanish citizen,
Marcellino de Sautuola, from the caves of Altamira in Spain. Later, Henri Breuil (1979) and
 28 Ancient and Medieval World

others did extensive research on these art forms. Based on these studies, the Upper Palaeolithic
art has been classified into three categories: (a) engravings of animals and people on portable
stone, bone, antler and ivory objects (termed as ‘mobiliary art’), (b) stone, clay or ivory sculp-
tures of humans (especially women) and anthromorphic (part human part animal) figures and
(c) murals (wall paintings), engravings, bas-relief (a method of carving in which the design is
slightly raised from the surface) and ceiling and floor paintings in ochre, manganese and char-
coal in rock shelters or caves. According to an estimate given by Brian Fagan (2010), nearly 200
caves bearing wall paintings, engravings and bas-relief sculpture are known from Southwest
Europe, mainly France and Spain, and nearly 10,000 sculpted and engraved art objects have
been found from Upper Palaeolithic sites across Europe and Siberia.
Until recently, there was a general impression among scholars that the Upper Palaeolithic
art evolved over a period of time from simple beginnings to magnificent polychrome (painted
in different colours) paintings at Altamira in Northern Spain and Lascaux in France. David
Lambert (1987), on the basis of his study of more than 100 caves and rock shelters, had put
forward the view that art in the Upper Palaeolithic period passed through four stages of
development. The first phase (35,000–25,000 years ago) featured animals and other forms,
mostly poorly drawn on small portable objects. Second phase (25,000–19,000 years ago) pro-
duced early cave art, including handprints and engraved and painted silhouettes (outline
portrait) of animals with curved backs. The third phase (19,000–15,000 years ago) marked the
climax of cave art as seen in lively, well-drawn horses and cattle at Lascaux in Southwest
France and relief sculptures elsewhere. In the final phase (19,000–11,000 years ago), the
emphasis shifted to portable art, symbolic marks and superbly painted life-like creatures in
caves such as those of Altamira and Font-de-Gaume in France. However, the recent findings
(1994) at Grotte-de-Chauvet cave in Southeastern France have challenged the prevailing
notion of evolution of Upper Palaeolithic art. The cave paintings at this site have been dated,
through advanced radiocarbon dating method, between 32,000–22,500 years ago. It contains
about 300 wall paintings of black horses, wild oxen with twisted horns, two rhinoceros facing
each other, lions, stags, bison and even owls along with human handprints.
The artist’s knowledge of perspective in the Grotte Chauvet paintings is exemplified by the
overlapping heads of animals to give the effect of movement and numbers. The artists also seem
to have scraped some of the walls before painting them to make figures stand out better. This,
along with another recent evidence in the form of a lion-headed anthromorphic figure carved
in ivory from Stadel Cave in Southern Germany dated 32,000 years ago, and other animal sculp-
tures from the same site present a different picture of simultaneous flourishing of these art
forms in different areas at different times over a period of more than 20,000 years.
Among the Upper Palaeolithic cultures of Western Europe, Aurignacian culture provides
the earliest evidence of representational art. The Vogelherd caves of Swabian Jura in Southwest
Germany have yielded ivory figures of humans and animals in the round, free standing sculp-
tures with all sides shown. The Aurignacian rock shelter sites of Southwest France have yielded
engraved slabs bearing schematic representation of animals along with signs that have been
interpreted as male and female sexual symbols. Beautifully carved ivory beads have also been
found along with a flute like instrument (made of ivory) associated with this culture. Discovery
of ivory flute suggests that music had made its beginning by the Upper Palaeolithic period.
However, no evidence of painting has been found related to the Aurignacians. Yet, from the
available evidence, it can be safely concluded that elaborate symbolic concepts had already
made their headway by this time.
 Evolution of Humans 29

A major advancement in the field of art can be discerned from the findings of Gravettian
culture. This culture had a vast expanse ranging from Russia in the east to Dordogne (France)
in the West. The great homogeneity in the art work of the Gravettians over most of Europe sug-
gests frequent contacts and transfer of ideas. This artistic homogeneity is most prominent in the
making of figurines in the form of sculpture and bas-reliefs, popularly known as ‘Venus’ figu-
rines of females. Most of these have been dated about 23,000 years ago. While few scholars
consider this as a part of a fertility ritual others have associated them with some kind of divina-
tion ceremony. The Gravettian artists also made, incised engraving and handprints on the cave
walls by rubbing pigment on their hands. Scholars, such as Andre Leroi-Gourhan (1984) have
pointed out that the area governed by the Gravettians represents the maximum spread of Upper
Palaeolithic rock (mostly on cave entrances and rock shelters) and mobiliary art in Europe.
Under the Solutrean culture, further refinement in the artistic work witnessed cave painting
emerge as a major art form. This culture was particularly known for bas-relief figures of horses,
bison, reindeer and human beings carved on the cave walls. Here, the representation of the
natural world was more realistic than that of the Gravettians. An interesting aspect of the cave
paintings of the Solutreans, as noticed in the caves of France, is that some of the animals have
been altered (by another hand in later times), such as, bison being changed into horses and wild
boar. While most of the represented animals were engraved, few, such as those of wild horses,
stags, wild cattle and wild boar were painted in red and black. Mobiliary art under the Solutreans
have been found to be of little significance.
The Magdalenian culture represents the high water mark in the Upper Palaeolithic artistic
traditions. According to an estimate, 80 per cent of the Upper Palaeolithic cave paintings have
come from Magdalenian sites, embracing a large area from Northern Spain, across France and
Central Europe to Poland. Caves at Lascaux in Southwest France and Altamira in Northern
Spain are the major sources of Magdalenian art forms. The Lascaux cave paintings (dated about
17,000 years ago) depict wild horses, bulls, reindeer and other animals with one wall exclu-
sively devoted to four wild bulls drawn in thick black lines with some body details. Further
refinement of Magdalenian art is seen in the Altamira caves where they perfected the technique
of painting and engraving deep inside the caves.
In the absence of natural light, animal fats were used for lighting up the caves. Artists mainly
drew animals hunted by them, such as bison, but also predators, small animals, birds and fishes.
It seems that the Magdalenians had good knowledge of the animal anatomy (eyes or hair
colour) as they have depicted animals in a most naturalistic manner. There are also scenes
depicting humans engaged in hunting animals besides those depicting features of several ani-
mals. Mobiliary art was also perfected during this period. This art form—in the form of natural-
istic engravings of wild animals—was carved on spear points, harpoons, spear throwers and
other artefacts.
There is a tremendous amount of speculation among scholars regarding the motives behind
these art forms. One of the views, ‘art for art’s sake’, meaning that these were merely for aes-
thetic pleasure of the artists, has been rejected through a careful analysis of the Upper
Palaeolithic art Works. Far from being primitive, the Upper Palaeolithic humans, as their level
of artistic sophistication show, had a highly evolved thinking process. Brian Fagan (2010) has
opined that in cave after cave, the hunters left frenzies of large and small game and animals,
hand impressions, dot and signs, many of which must have had symbolic significance. In 1952,
Abbe Henri Breuil (1979), based on French Archaeologist Salomon Reinach’s study of modern
hunter-gatherer of Australia, put forward the view that caves were sacred places where the
 30 Ancient and Medieval World

hunters gathered to perform rituals to ensure fertility of the game (depiction of mating animals)
and success of their hunt (paintings of animals with spear stuck in them). It has also been sug-
gested that many of the small painting are in small hidden passages where, in the absence of
natural light, the working condition for the artist were extremely difficult. These art works were
therefore not for public viewing. Breuil (1979) has also suggested that the animals most likely
hunted by humans, such as, bison, reindeer and horses, dominated these paintings. Thus, Henri
Breuil’s association of rituals or magic with the Upper Palaeolithic art can be considered as an
economic interpretation of the motives behind these art forms. However, a careful analysis of
the animals depicted in the caves by other scholars has rejected this theory. As a critique to this
theory, Robert Wenke and Olszewski (1985) have argued that it is significant that animals most
likely to be feared in hunting (such as carnivores and mammoths) have been more frequently
portrayed than less dangerous prey.
Andrei Leroi-Gourhan (1984), rejecting Breuil’s hypotheses, argues that art was not random
but a part of the system of meanings or expression of how the Upper Palaeolithic people viewed
the natural and social world. Gourhan studied the cluster of animals depicted in these cave
paintings rather than individual animals and found that certain groups of animals, particularly
female species, were uniformly depicted in certain parts of the cave or rock shelters or areas
with natural light, whereas male figures were depicted deep inside the caves. Gourhan has
argued that the arrangement of the group of animals in these particular type of depiction sug-
gests that different species of animals were associated with male and female division of nature,
that is, few animals represented ‘maleness’ of nature (e.g., horse and stag) while few repre-
sented ‘femaleness’ (e.g., deer, bison and ox). But Gourhan’s arguments have also been viewed
with scepticism by other scholars mainly on the ground that the time gap of 18,000 years is too
long to analyse the thinking pattern of Upper Palaeolithic humans.
Another scholar, Alexander Marshack (1972), carried out microphotographic studies of the
mobiliary art objects, particularly the pattern of lines, notches, dots and groupings of marks
engraved on antlers or bones. Marshack (1972) argued that these were sequential notations of
events and phenomenon and described these as precursor to modern day calendar. But critics
have argued that to formulate such a system, a highly advanced level of abstract thinking capa-
bilities were necessary which the Upper Palaeolithic people may not have possessed. Steven
Mithen (1996) has argued that these art forms facilitated the information related to tracking of
large mammals and prepared ground for planned hunting activities. He sees a correlation
between the elaboration of art in the late Upper Palaeolithic and the development of specialised
hunting strategies in which art acted as the stimulus for creative thought before carrying these
out. Recently, Günter Berghaus (2004), while analysing the motives behind these art forms
argues that the social and adaptive changes under extreme glacial conditions necessitated alli-
ance networks, social interaction and a well-functioning information exchange. Art, according
to Berghaus (2004), may have played a crucial role in facilitating intragroup cohesion and
improved interaction between larger social groups. Thus according to him, in one culture, dif-
ferent art forms had different conceptual meanings attached with it. An open-air rock art,
Berghaus concludes, may have served as signposts related to migration paths of the animals
and human beings or as markers of group territories; cave art may have fulfilled ritual func-
tions; markings on portable objects may have functioned as notation system; beads may have
been ethnic markers and anthromorphic figurines may have had religious purposes.
Whatever be the motive behind these art forms, there is a general agreement among scholars
that the Upper Palaeolithic artists found a continuity between human and animal life and with
 Evolution of Humans 31

their social world. Their art was a symbolic depiction of these continuities. They deliberately
selected the walls, antler or a piece of bone for their drawings and so were the subjects, that is,
animals and geometric forms, to be depicted. In this context, Peter Bogucki (2000) has opined
that the symbolic depiction of animals and human beings do reflect, besides other things, an
awareness of the complexity of the physical world. These suggest that early modern humans
participated in a complex natural world that they were able to observe with increasing finer
resolution. Bogucki (2000) concludes by saying that they were thoughtful foragers rather than
reflex action hunters.
These art forms also provide a possible evidence of the beginning of Shamanism or witch-
craft. Count Begouen (1912) has suggested that that the act of drawing was a ritual in itself
(cited in Fagan 2010). The basis of his statement is the fact that figures are drawn repeatedly at
the same spot in several caves, sometimes superimposed over previous drawings. Moreover,
many of the paintings have been drawn deep inside the caves, requiring skilled artistry. A person
may have specialised in such drawings as a part of the ritual, thus becoming a ritual expert.
The brilliance of Upper Palaeolithic cave art is supposed to have reached its climax around
12,000 years ago as most of the cave art after this period have been found to be near cave
entrances and in rock shelters, always exposed to the sun light. These paintings and engravings
lack naturalism of the earlier period and are said to have vanished altogether by 11,000 years
ago. After 11,000 years ago, a new climatic epoch, termed as ‘Holocene’, began replacing the
Pleistocene. Holocene was marked by much warmer conditions, which brought about extinc-
tion of Arctic animals (such as reindeer) frequently depicted in the Upper Palaeolithic art and
also led to the covering of plains by forest and rise in sea level. These climatic changes forced
humans to follow a different adaptive strategy (discussed in the following section) suited to
forest, river and coast life. The cave and mobiliary art of the Upper Palaeolithic gave way to a
complex system of symbols recorded on flat pebbles.

MESOLITHIC CULTURES
John Lubbock, a French prehistorian, in 1862, had divided the Stone Age into Palaeolithic and
Neolithic representing old and new Stone Age respectively (cited in Jones 2008). But the sub-
sequent researches and application of more advanced dating methods after 1950, raised doubts
about such a division. These doubts arose from the fact that Neolithic was found to be much
recent than the period of the end of the Palaeolithic, around 12,000 years ago. Moreover, cul-
tural developments of the Neolithic period, consequent upon beginning of food production, was
found to be remarkably advanced than that of the Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers. This led the
prehistorians to reconsider the chronology of human cultural development leading to recogni-
tion of an intermediate stage between Palaeolithic and Neolithic, namely, ‘Mesolithic’ or the
‘Middle Stone Age’. By 1970s and 1980s, it was widely accepted that without the important
adaptations that took place between 12,000 and 8,000 years ago in many parts of the world, the
subsequent development of the human society would have been impossible. Grahame Clark
(1977) is of the opinion that it was the ‘Mesolithic bridge’ that linked the Palaeolithic and the
Neolithic, restoring the continuity of historical record in regions such as Europe and Southwest
Asia, which proved crucial to the development of civilisation. Subsequently, the Mesolithic
period came to be recognised as an independent period in its own right, representing a period
of post-Pleistocene adaptations crucial for the growth of future human society.
 32 Ancient and Medieval World

Post-Pleistocene Climate and the Term ‘Mesolithic’

The post-Pleistocene or the early Holocene climatic condition that coincided with the
Mesolithic was much warmer, very much like the present environmental conditions. This cre-
ated immediate subsistence problems for the post-Pleistocene hunter-gatherers as some spe-
cies of animals, such as reindeer, hunted in large numbers in the late-Palaeolithic period
became extinct. On the other hand, warmer climate led to melting of ice and rise in ocean and
sea levels. With this, the low-lying areas near the seacoasts were submerged whereas areas,
earlier frozen (such as the Baltic region), became habitable. Besides, frozen rivers and streams
melted and became exploitable for aquatic food. In temperate zones (e.g., Northcentral Europe
and North America) and tropical zones (e.g., Southeast and Southwest Asia), wetter conditions
prevailed. A warmer climate and high water level brought about increased humidity that led to
the dense growth of forests, thus, providing terrestrial food resources, and the earlier dry areas
turned into grasslands. The above climatic changes necessitated new adaptive strategies for the
post-Pleistocene hunter-gatherers for better survival.
However, such climatic conditions, with the resultant change in the flora and fauna, were not
witnessed by all the regions of the world but were limited to the sub-tropical, tropical and the
temperate zones at the end of the Ice Age. Thus the term ‘Mesolithic’ has been used in a
restricted sense to describe the hunting-gathering cultures of Northern Europe that developed
between 12,000 years ago up until the beginning of agriculture in this region around 5,500 years
ago. Few scholars use the term ‘Epipalaeolithic’ or ‘Final Palaeolithic’ to describe the develop-
ments in these parts of Europe during 10,000–5,500 years ago and consider this as the final
phase of the preceding social evolution when the humans, while still following a hunting-­
gathering economy, completely adapted to their environment.

Mesolithic Europe
The traditional archaeologists considered Mesolithic in Europe as a period of ‘cultural hiatus’.
It was argued that the European hunter-gatherers went into decline at the end of the Ice Age.
The Pleistocene Arctic animals became extinct, the great Magdalenian artistic traditions van-
ished and the Europeans eked out an impoverished existence in the forests, lakes and sea-
shores. V. Gordon Childe (1958) viewed Mesolithic societies as impoverished descendants of
the Palaeolithic gripped by a ‘state of helpless barbarism’ and contributing nothing to later
European society. It was also suggested that Europe was populated by scattered bands of
impoverished hunter-gatherers who had lost much of their capacity for economic and social
relations and therefore represented a passive society. Critics argue that such notions are based
on long standing view of Mesolithic societies as being dominated by their environment. A recent
and more advanced ecological researches and material records from the coastal Mesolithic
societies that emerged in the 1980s have rejected this traditional notion and have presented a
drastically revised picture of the post-Pleistocene environmental condition. In these areas, evi-
dence of complex societies living in permanent ‘villages’ have led critics to argue that complex
Mesolithic communities were socially powerful than stagnant. The new research data demon-
strate that this was a period of radical change and innovations with respect to human adapta-
tion. This was also the period of colonisation of extensive territories, including those in the
higher altitudes. The technological, social and economic developments of this period facilitated
the growth of future agricultural and urban societies.
 Evolution of Humans 33

Contrary to the traditional views, it has now been suggested that instead of impoverished
environment, each change in the post-glacial forest composition brought about greater ecologi-
cal productivity. This was because, as per scientific estimation, the early Holocene atmosphere
was richer in carbon dioxide than the preceding Ice Age. Enrichment in the carbon dioxide level
increased photosynthesis and seed yield, making post-Pleistocene plants more productive and
more cold and draught resistant. This proved crucial for the early Holocene hunter-gatherers
who were in the process of adapting to different environmental conditions. Plant foods, such
as hazelnuts, water chestnuts, berries, roots, and other types of leafy plants became a part of
the regular diet for the Mesolithic men, and the resultant nourishment proved important for
population growth. Similarly, while the Arctic reindeer, woolly rhinoceros and mammoths van-
ished in the changed climatic condition of Central and Western Europe, these were replaced by
the red and roe deer, stag, elk, wild boar and wild cattle. Likewise, coasts, estuaries, lakes and
rivers provided aquatic food resources such as salmon and other fishes, sea mammals and
water birds. Many of these could be stored facilitating permanent settlement by people in the
areas of such diverse resources. Large population was thus possible in some areas where
people relied on seasonal as well as non-seasonal food resources such as shellfish.
These possibilities have led few scholars like T. Douglas Price (1991) to remark that
Mesolithic was an age of innovation, interaction and successful adaptation among the early
post-glacial hunter-gatherers of Northern Europe. Grahame Clark has gone to the extent of
saying that ‘Mesolithic was prelude to fundamental advances in the development of culture’.
Elaborating further, Clark says that change in relationship between humans, animals and plants
that precipitated the transformation of the social system was accomplished not by Neolithic but
by Mesolithic communities. It was precisely an outcome of this process that men became
Neolithic. Brian Fagan (2010) too has remarked that this was a period when the European popu-
lation enjoyed a wide range of adaptations, from people with highly mobile life ways to perma-
nently settled ‘affluent’ people who dwelt in ‘villages’ or base camps such as those found in
Northwest Europe. Although hunting and gathering remained the basis of the subsistence
economy, the Mesolithic period is particularly known for intensification of hunting-gathering
activities which created conditions for the growth of agriculture in some parts of Europe
between 8,000 and 7,000 year ago.
The evidence of post-Pleistocene adaptations has been found from both old and the new
worlds. These have suggested diversity of adaptations as well as a number of common charac-
teristics spread across the world between 12,000 and 5,000 years ago. The growth of adaptive
strategies across the world has differed in space and time. Talking about this divergence in
adaptive strategy, Stefan Kozlowski (2009) says that the range of societies and environments in
the Mesolithic period was so great that no shared characteristic can reliably define the entire
Mesolithic formation. Supporting this argument, Geoff Bailey and Penny Spikins (2008) too
have argued that the material evidence of Mesolithic Europe reminds us of a complex, multi-
coloured tapestry. Peter Bogucki (2000) is of the opinion that these differences indicate that the
causes of the changes in human society after the Ice Age were not exclusively due to environ-
mental changes alone but these changes offered new possibilities of which humans took advan-
tage in different ways.
The two prominent representatives of such post-glacial adaptation—each with its own dis-
tinct adaptive strategies—were Central and North Europe on the one hand and Southwest Asia
on the other. During glacial times, the Scandinavian ice sheets had covered most of Northern
Europe. But with the retreat of these ice sheets in the post-glacial times, Baltic region (hitherto
 34 Ancient and Medieval World

frozen) and the Northern European coastline became accessible for the humans, and forests
covered most of Europe. In particular, Atlantic Scandinavia and Baltic Sea basin, with their
network of marine coastlines, lakes and rivers provided enough opportunities for fishing, hunt-
ing and gathering. However, Marek Zvelebil (1986) has argued that the post-glacial condition in
Northern Europe was marked by an uneven distribution of resources over both seasons and
space. Such a situation, according to Zvelebil (1986), had two-fold implications for the hunter-
gatherer societies. First, seasonal and long-term fluctuations increased survival risks in the
sense that people had to find their regular food supply from the fluctuating resources and,
second, effective exploitation of seasonally concentrated food resources could generate a food
surplus and raise the population capacity of the area. Within North Europe, most remarkable
changes took place in the coastal areas of Northwest Europe, particularly Southern Sweden,
Denmark and other parts of Southern Scandinavia, such as, Northern Germany and Northern
Poland. The Northern European Mesolithic has been divided into three phases—Maglemose
(9500–7700 bp), Kongemose (7700–6600 bp) and Ertebolle (6600–5200 bp). Here, the abbreviation
‘bp’ refers to ‘Before Present’, and scholars have been using this abbreviation to describe peri-
ods before 1950, this year being reckoned as the ‘Present’ year. But if we add up years until
present, then 12,000 bp would effectively mean 10,000 bce, that is, a gap of 2000 years.
The cultural sites of Maglemose phase were named after a series of settlements found near
Maglemose in Zealand, Denmark. These were discovered first by the archaeologist George
Sauraw in around 1900 and then several such settlements were found in other parts of Denmark
and Britain. Subsistence during this phase was based on seasonal exploitation of aquatic
resources near rivers and lakes along with terrestrial hunting and gathering. Significant aspects
of the culture of this phase have been found in UIkestrup site in Jutland, Eastern Denmark.
Here people lived in large huts having bark and wood floors with hearths near a freshwater
lake. Findings like canoes and wooden paddle alongside bone and elk antler barbed points
strongly suggests importance of fishing in their diet. They also trapped birds, such as pelican,
using nets and snares made of plant fibre. During winters, when fish became scarce, they
hunted elk, red deer, wild ox and wild pig and foraged for hazelnuts and other edible plant
foods. The Star Carr site, located in modern Yorkshire in Northeastern England, is considered
as the most famous Mesolithic site of the Maglemose phase. The site was discovered in 1947
and then extensively excavated by Grahame Clark and his team. Situated near the lake, the site
has been roughly dated between 9500 and 9100 bp. Extensive research on this site since 1947
has revealed that it was a temporary site occupied during March and July. They lived by hunting
and fishing. Evidences also suggest that they burnt reeds to have a clear view of the lake and
also fostered new plant growth to attract animals who fed on them.
The sites associated with Kongemose phase of Mesolithic Europe are mainly located on the
Baltic seacoasts, bays and near lagoons. This phase was marked by significant changes in geog-
raphy, flora and fauna. The sea level rose and the forests were turned into long coastline with
many large and small wooded islands. This brought about a shift from hunting for animals of
the forest to exploitation of aquatic resources such as fish and other such water mammals as
dolphins, seals and whales, and water birds like duck, swan, crane and seagull. Marine
resources were supplemented by hunting of such animals as red and deer, elk, aurochs, fox and
wild boars. Thus, it was a combined forest and coastal culture that demonstrated technological
advancement over the Maglemosian phase. One of the better known sites of this phase is
located at Segebro outside Malmo on the Southwestern Swedish coast. This was much larger
 Evolution of Humans 35

than the Maglemosian settlements (estimated to be 164 feet by 84 feet) and is said to have been
occupied all year round with heaviest congregation during spring and summer seasons.
Findings such as small stone microlithic arrow barbs as well as artefacts and weapons of bone,
antler and wood along with reported findings of bones of 66 species of animals indicate a highly
successful adaptation by humans.
The Ertebolle phase is considered as the zenith of hunter-gatherer life in Europe in general
and Southern Scandinavia in particular. The sites of this phase are mainly concentrated in
Southern Scandinavia but are closely related to contemporary cultures in Northern Germany
and Northern Netherland. The Ertebolle settlement, named after a kitchen midden (heaps of
oyster shells) in Ertebolle in Northern Jutland (Southern Scandinavia), was primarily coastal
and was occupied all year round. The carbon isotope analysis of the human bones found from
here indicated a pronounced maritime lifeway of the Ertebolle people. Terrestrial animals were
used as supplements to the huge marine resources in the form of fish, shellfish, whales and
seals. Red and roe deer, wild boar, aurochs, wild cat and fox constituted the land mammals
hunted by them. Excavations here have also yielded small and seasonal settlements perhaps for
deep water fishing. In Denmark, both coastal and inland sites have been found, big or small,
depending upon the season summer or winter respectively. The Ertebolle technology was far
more elaborate than the earlier Mesolithic cultures of Europe. A large variety of antler, bone
and wooden tools were used for specialised purposes. Besides Jutland, the other prominent
Ertebolle sites have been discovered at Vedbaeck (in Zealand, Denmark) and Stakeholm
(Sweden) which give us important information about the Mesolithic burial rites. Towards the
end of this phase, there are also evidences of exchange (trade) between the Ertebolle foragers
and the farmers in the form of ornaments and potteries suggesting wider social interactions
negating some of the notions related to the ‘cultural hiatus’ theory.

Tool Technology and the Subsistence Economy

The Mesolithic tool kits of Europe were designed to cope with local environmental variations
in the post-Pleistocene period as well as to meet challenges of local population growth whose
sustenance required efficient exploitation of all available food resources. Variety of available
resources in Northern Europe, including both aquatic and terrestrial, led the Mesolithic men to
fashion diverse tool kits. An important feature of the Mesolithic tool technology was reduction
in the size of tools or microlithisation of tools whether made from stone, bone, antler or wood.
Microliths were geometrically shaped barbs that could be used in different types of weapons
such as harpoons.
A significant tool used by the Mesolithic people of Europe was bow and arrow. Trapeze-
shaped microliths were used as arrow barbs. There were several advantages of using this com-
bination weapon. These weapons had a point that could penetrate the prey deep and also inflict
a wide wound that would cause the prey to bleed to death quickly. Besides, these were also
more accurate and portable, and several arrows could be shot in quick succession. These weap-
ons were also more versatile than the barbed spear as hunters could carry more arrows with
them in a small quiver, enhancing the chances of successful hunting. Bow and arrow could also
be used for killing birds and for fishing. Use of this weapon also had social consequences as
now individual hunters could also kill large animals without the aid of a large group of hunters.
Importance of fishing in the subsistence economy of Mesolithic people, particularly those
 36 Ancient and Medieval World

inhabiting Baltic Sea regions, is suggested by such findings as fish hooks, nets and basket traps
tipped by stone barbs from this area. Another important innovation in toolmaking during this
period, as highlighted by Grahame Clark (1977), was equipment for breaking the ground and for
felling and utilising timber, such as axes and adzes. These were made from thick flakes, sharp-
ened by striking burin-like blows. The wood obtained by using these tools were used for making
dugout boats, handles, bows, arrows, spear shafts, hut floors and so on.
Another significant aspect of the Mesolithic tool industry was increase in the use of bone,
antler and wooden tools and diminution of stone tools. Kent Flannery (1969) is of the opinion
that this was reflective of specialisation in tool kits as now more versatile tools were fashioned
to suit local needs. The new local tools were part of the process whereby humans coped not
only with long-term climatic changes but also with the constant uncertainties of local climates.
This led to intensive exploitation, in some areas, of seasonal food resources such as salmon fish
or nuts that had to be gathered in a short span of time and stored for later use. With this devel-
oped the technology to store food. Fishes were sun-dried and kept in front of fire on wooden
racks while nuts and other edible plants and cereals were kept in baskets (which later became
prototypes for Neolithic potteries).
Thus, it can be said that the European Mesolithic hunter-gatherers used different weapons,
means and technique to obtain food resources in different climatic conditions. In some areas,
intensification of hunting and gathering activities with specialised tools have been noticed,
particularly in relation to certain foods such as salmon fish, nuts, seeds, sea mammals and so
on, allowing few groups to settle in one area all year round which had major consequences for
food production in the subsequent centuries. A sedentary settlement and intensive hunting of
certain animals also brought about a change in human–animal relationship. An interesting find
at Stakeholm is of eight dog burials. The dogs were buried in the similar fashion as humans with
identical grave goods and red ochre. This would also indicate a much closer relationship
between humans and animals. In this context, Bohuslav Klima (1994) has made an observation
that human–animal relationship was much closer than the usual one of hunter–prey, which was
the first indication towards domestication of animals and animal husbandry that developed
subsequently alongside farming. In this sense, the Mesolithic economy, though still based on
hunting and gathering, can be termed as transitional between Palaeolithic and Neolithic.

Settlement Pattern, Burials and Social Organisation

As mentioned earlier, most of the North European Mesolithic settlements were located near
bays or near lakes, rivers or reservoirs. Some settlements were occupied round the year
depending upon the availability of food resources. In locations where plentiful resources, both
terrestrial and aquatic were available, such as those in Segebro site of Kongemose phase, small
animals, birds and fishes could be easily consumed with the help of advanced tools. This kind
of hunting could be undertaken by single individuals and large groups were unnecessary.
Mesolithic Europe had a number of such small settlements, more widely spread than the
Palaeolithic period. Bohuslav Klima (1994) is of the opinion that since food resources were
more diverse so the social groups were smaller. However, we also have evidence of large settle-
ments particularly from the sites located in Scandinavia where ‘affluent’ people lived in large
coastal ‘villages’ or ‘base camps’. Large population was possible in these areas because here
people relied not only on regularly available resources but also on seasonal food resources,
such as shellfish, which could be stored and eaten in times of need. Such big settlements are
 Evolution of Humans 37

indicative of increased population density necessitating intensification of hunting and gathering

activities in these areas. In the Baltic region (Sweden, Latvia and Finland), Dennell, Domanska
and Zvelebil (1986) have identified two broad types of settlements—coastal and inland. In
coastal areas, the organisation of settlement consisted of the main ‘village’ and ‘base camps’ for
exploitation of seasonal resources. In the inland settlements, on the other hand, people relied
heavily on terrestrial resources.
A large and sedentary settlement with a dense concentration of population has been consid-
ered as a factor for the growth of a complex social organisation. Theoretically, a complex society
is identified as one in which a large hunter-gatherer group leads a sedentary or semi-sedentary
lives in sizeable settlements (which can be termed as ‘villages’). People build durable houses
which can be used over a longer period of time. Inhabitants of this kind of settlement store and
preserve food thus altering the availability of food supply. Such societies also display division of
labour, both sexual and functional, and some form of social hierarchy is indicated through wealth,
diet and burial customs. Other features of a complex society include regular exchange of exotic
objects and raw materials with neighbouring groups and elaborate rituals and ceremonies.
Such type of social complexity is generally associated with settled agricultural societies.
However, recent few researches have suggested that signs of complexity existed in pre-­
agricultural societies too. With reference to Mesolithic Europe, it has been argued that plentiful
supply of such aquatic resources, such as, freshwater and marine fishes, shellfish and sea mam-
mals in some areas (particularly in Scandinavia), provided people the incentive to adopt seden-
tary life ways along rivers, lakes and ocean shores. Scholar, Lewis Binford, has termed the
oceans as the ‘Garden of Eden’ as the great supply of marine resources (particularly shellfish)
allowed such societies to become sedentary and to sustain larges population densities. Citing
evidence from large settlements in the Baltic coast region, Marek Zvelebil (1986) argues that
these indicate high degree of sedentism and social complexity not usually associated with
hunting-gathering communities. But he also points out that the inland settlement pattern was
marked by greater residential mobility. Penny Spikins (2008) too is of the opinion that although
Mesolithic sites of Scandinavia and Baltic coasts show many signs of social complexity and
many instances of social distinctions, yet the aspects of social stratification, intensification of
hunting and gathering and increased sedentism is not clear cut from other Mesolithic sites. On
the other hand, archaeologist, Clive Gamble (1986) tend to believe that aquatic resources were
used as adaptive strategy only as the last resort when the terrestrial resources (games and plant
foods) failed to sustain the population pressure. Adopting a slightly different approach, David
Yesner (1987) argues that the shift to exploitation of aquatic resources occurred during the
period of rapid environmental change, when population pressure led to food shortage. Even
though exploitation of aquatic resources required specialised hunting involving hard work, it
was as productive as terrestrial hunting. Thus, despite differing opinions, this debate on social
complexity with respect to Mesolithic Europe does subscribe a significant role to marine
resources in bringing about social complexity among the early Holocene age hunter-gatherers.
The evidence for social differentiation (though inconclusive) in the complex societies of
post-Pleistocene Europe comes from their burials. Most of these burials have been found in
coastal or riverine zones with marked concentration of aquatic resources and cover the entire
Mesolithic period. Archaeologists such as Marek Zvelebil and Peter Rowley-Conwy (1986) are
of the opinion that the distribution of the burial sites suggests favourable ecological condition
for the hunter-gatherers and also that the burial grounds may have acted as territorial markers,
indicating increased sedentism, territoriality and claims to ownership of land and resources
 38 Ancient and Medieval World

therein. Burials were both group (in the shape of a cemetery) and single. Most of the burial sites
have been located in North, East and West Baltic region. In many graves, traces of red ochre
have been found sprinkled over the dead and in few of the graves believed to be that of older
people, red deer antler were made a part of the grave goods. Females were buried with neck-
laces and belts of beads made from shell and animal teeth and tooth pendants. Few children
graves have also been found with rich grave goods. Graves with similar goods have been found
in larger cemeteries (two cemeteries containing 85 graves) at Stakeholm situated at the south-
ern tip of Sweden. Here younger females and old men have been found buried with richest
grave goods. These differing grave goods represent different aspects of social complexity in
these Mesolithic societies. According to Marek Zvelebil (1986), these burials reflect several
social dimensions such as band membership, age, sex, personal wealth along with specialised
ranks such as ritual specialists or shamans, individuals interred with effigy figures (suggesting
clan identity) and males buried with bone points (suggesting their links with a hunting group).
He elaborates that both men and women (on account of being child bearers) could acquire high
status positions, although men tended to acquire higher rank more often than women. Based on
sex-specific variation in the grave goods and age and sex associations in collective burials,
Zvelebil (1986) has concluded that these societies had both patrilineal and dual-descent social
structure. However, archaeologists and ethnographers generally tend to agree that these evi-
dences of social differentiation are only limited to sedentary coastal societies where the degree
of economic complexity was higher than in the inland areas. In the interior regions, groups
were highly mobile that promoted egalitarian rather than a differentiated society.

Religious Beliefs and Art Forms

Analysing the belief system of people of Mesolithic Europe is a difficult proposition, primarily
due to lack of artefacts with symbolic content. However, archaeologists, on the basis of few
artefacts found from circum-Baltic Europe (including mostly Eastern and Northeastern Baltic
region covering Finland, Latvia and parts of Germany) and drawing an analogy of the belief
system of modern-day North European and Siberian hunter-gatherer communities with those of
the prehistoric communities, have come to some definitive conclusion about the material cul-
ture of Mesolithic Europe and its symbolic meaning. The basis of this analogy is (a) the histori-
cal continuity of North European and Siberian hunter-gatherer culture and (b) both material
cultures operating in similar ecological and economic conditions. Based on this, Marek Zvelebil
and Peter Jordan (2016) have pointed out that the North European Hunter-gatherer believed in
a Three-Tier world—the upper world (sky), the middle world (earth) and the underworld
(underground) referring to air, land and water respectively—and all three were perceived to be
interrelated through animal (elk, bear and water birds) and human (shaman) mediums. The
rock carving sites, carved objects and burial rituals have been related to this belief system. The
rock carvings display the ritual distinction between land and water, and water birds have been
found to be associated with the dead. At Vedbaek site, a child’s grave has been found with a
swan’s wings and burial ground in the islands has been associated with burial of the dead
‘beyond the water’.
The rock art, in the form of several images, of the Mesolithic European hunter-gatherers have
been associated with the worship of natural world as these images represent anthromorphic
deities along with images of animals such as sea mammals, bears, water birds and fish and
 Evolution of Humans 39

boats and hunting weapons. Images of animals, such as elk and bear, have been symbolically
associated with an attempt to not only restore them but also to bring luck in the hunt. Similarly,
choice of particular animal tooth for making tooth pendants, keeping antlers with the dead,
burial of dogs as memorials and ritual treatment of animal bones after consumption have all
been associated with attempts at resurrection of animals and regeneration of resources.
Evidence of the existence of shamanism has been found in the form of anthromorphic figures
as well as choice of place of rock carvings that were not random but were located in specially
selected natural landscape denoting holy places where shamanistic rituals may have taken
place on a regular basis. Exceptionally reach burials of certain individuals (such as the one
found in Stakeholm) have also been cited as an example of existence of shamanism. Whatever
little evidence of the religious belief of the Mesolithic Europeans that we have suggests a broad
continuity with the belief system of the Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers in terms of linkages
between natural, human and animal world.
The features of Northern European Mesolithic cultures are not so well defined in other parts
of Europe. A possible reason cited for this is that in comparison to Northern Europe, climatic
changes were less extreme in other parts of Europe and therefore there were fewer opportuni-
ties for coastal adaptation. The Mesolithic is supposed to have ended with the beginning of
farming in Southeast Europe around 6000 bce from where it spread to Central Europe (4500 bce)
and then to Northwest Europe by about 3500 bce. The late arrival of agricultural technology in
Northwest Europe has also been explained in terms of availability of sufficient and diverse food
resources, obviating the necessity of changing the existing adaptive strategy of hunting and
gathering. Although economy in Mesolithic Europe remained hunting and gathering, it defi-
nitely represents a transitional phase between Palaeolithic and Neolithic. This is exemplified by
intensification of hunting and gathering efforts, tendency towards sedentism, beginning of
social complexity and wider social interactions noticed during this period.

Developments in Southwest Asia

During early Holocene period, while Europe was still engaged in hunting and gathering,
although in an intensified manner, West Asia had already started experimenting with wild cere-
als leading to early growth of agriculture. The post-Pleistocene climatic changes in West Asia
were even more pronounced than Northern Europe. West Asia (also known as the Near East)
was extremely cold and dry during 20,000–15,000 bp. During these harsh conditions, people
survived on intensive hunting of gazelles and wild wheat and barley seeds. Between 15,000 bp
and 11,000 bp, temperature in this region warmed up considerably, leading to increase in rainfall
and moist weather conditions. These environmental changes also brought about changes in
vegetation. Wild emmer wheat and barley along with oaks, almonds and pistachio trees now
colonised coastal and highland areas of present day Israel and Syria as well as the steppe and
deserts of Negev and Sinai peninsula. These denser cereal strands were more resistant to short-
term climatic changes and could be harvested over a longer period in a year. Thus, in the post-
Pleistocene period, the hunter-gatherers of West Asia developed a more complex hunting-gathering
societies eventually turning into a farming society by 10,500 bp, much earlier than other parts of
the world.
The most prominent post-Pleistocene culture of Southwest Asia was the Natufian culture,
named after a valley in Israel. This culture, dated between 12,800 bp and 10,300 bp, flourished
 40 Ancient and Medieval World

over much of coastal Southern Turkey to the fringes of Nile River, covering the present day
Palestine/Israel, Syria and Jordan. In the earlier archaeological works, the Natufian culture was
recognised as hunter-gatherer culture that was modified to suit the post-glacial environment.
But now it has been placed in the category of pre-Neolithic culture which created preconditions
for beginning of agriculture in the Near East. The Natufian culture succeeded the Kebaran
Culture, named after the site of Kebara cave on Mount Carmel (Israel) that developed in Levant
(Syria/Palestine/Israel) during 15,000–13,000 bp. But the Natufians developed a more complex
and intensive hunting-gathering strategy than the Kebarans. Besides intensive hunting of
gazelles (possibly domesticated too) and other animals such as wild goat, ibex, wild cattle, roe
and red deer, they also intensively exploited wild wheat (emmer) and barley along with acorn,
almond and pistachio. These were highly productive and nutritive food resources which could
also be stored. Archaeologists have identified two phases of this culture—early, dated between
12,800–10,500 bp and later, dated between 10,500–10,300 bp. The major difference between these
two phases has been found to be in their settlement pattern with more or less similar adaptive
strategies.
The tool kits of the Natufians were designed to exploit animal, aquatic as well as plant food
resources. They fashioned microliths, burins, bores, scrapers and blades to fit into handles as
well as picks and arrowheads. Flintstone, antler and bones were used as the main raw material
to manufacture tools. A significant Natufian innovation in the field of tool technology was
manufacture of flint sickle blades set in handles of bones with its edges resembling that of goat
teeth. These were quite suitable for cutting wild cereal grasses. A. M. T. Moore (1985) points out
that use of sickles instead of beaters and baskets has the advantage of maximising the yield
harvested from a limited area in a limited period. Commenting on the subsistence strategy of
the Natufians, Israeli archaeologist, Ofer Bar-Yosef (1994) says that evidence from the animal
bone collection point towards hunting, fishing and gathering as the basis of their economy. But
the strontium–calcium ratio found from the human bone analysis suggests that Natufians were
more of cereal consumers than meat eaters. The intensive gathering of wild cereals is also evi-
denced by a particular sheen (‘sickle gloss’) on the sickle blades caused by the silica present in
the cereal grass stalks. Findings of other plant-processing tools such as stone utensils, querns,
grinding slabs, pestles and mortars further point towards importance of cereals in their subsis-
tence strategy. Bone tools were used to work on hide and for making baskets. Bone barbs were
used in spears or arrows while hooks and gorgets were used for fishing.
The Natufian settlements were located mainly near the hilly woodland region close to the
Mediterranean, which was the natural habitat of wild cereals and nut-bearing trees. However,
large settlements were established at the boundary between coastal plains or grassland valleys
and the hill zone in order not only to exploit spring cereal crops, nut harvest during winter and
the forest game but also to get easy access to toolmaking stones. The Natufian sites, such as
Ain Mallaha (Northern Israel) provide evidence for a fairly permanent settlement. Here, circular
houses on stone foundation have been found with paved floors, use of lime mortars and few of
them having storage chambers. The large cemeteries found in the caves of Mugharet-al-Wad and
Shuqba (87 and 45 burials respectively) and at open encampment of Eynam and Nahal Oren (82
and 50 burials respectively), dated in different years, suggests that these were base camps
where regular returns were made in a year after a brief interval. These burials also indicate
sustained attachment to particular locations, a strong hint towards sedentary settlement.
 Evolution of Humans 41

Such a sedentary life style and plentiful food resources in some regions covered by the
Natufian culture, naturally presupposes a high population density and more social complexity.
A large number of cemeteries found across the Natufian sites provide a glimpse of social dif-
ferentiation/ranking. In few burials, artefacts such as seashell or household goods such as stone
bowls and, in few graves, decorated body with personal ornaments such as head decorations,
necklaces, bracelets, earrings and pendants made of marine shells, bone teeth and beads have
been found. The absence of such burial goods on other graves has been considered by few
scholars as signs of social hierarchy, although it has been contested by others. Signs of social
differentiation have also been deduced from size of the houses as also from few of them having
kiln for preparing lime plaster.
The abundance of marine shells and other stones found from the graves and several Natufian
sites indicates a higher level of social interaction within and between groups, including those
situated at a fairly long distance which was an essential survival mechanism for early sedentary
communities of Southwest Asia. Evidence of long-distance exchange is provided by the findings
(most of them at Ain Mallaha) of marine shells brought from the shores of Mediterranean Sea,
tusk shell from the Atlantic area, greenstone beads from Syria and obsidian from Anatolia.
The above analysis of Mesolithic Northern Europe and the pre-Neolithic Southwest Asia over
a similar timeframe of post-Pleistocene period suggests that while Mesolithic Europe advanced
to the stage of an intensive hunting and gathering economy, displaying its transitional character,
the Near Eastern occupants were already preparing the background towards food production
by modifying their hunting and gathering strategy. This, besides other factors, also explains why
agriculture developed in Southwest Asia at least two millennia before.

Summary
1. Humans, like other organisms of the earth, have evolved over a period of time.
Biological and cultural attributes of humans have enabled them to compete better
with other species.
2. Biological and cultural evolution of humans was an interrelated process. Biological
evolution involved crucial physical changes (due to the process of mutation) in
humans like bipedalism and increase in the brain size besides other physiological
changes. Cultural evolution of humans was mainly related to their toolmaking abili-
ties, acquisition of language and social interactions that was crucial for survival in
changing climatic conditions.
3. Environment too played a crucial role in the evolution of humans as increase or
decrease in the temperature brought about corresponding changes in flora and fauna
necessitating changes in the adaptive strategy. Early hominids emerged in the
Pliocene epoch of the Cenozoic era and the process of human evolution speeded up
during this period, also known as the Great Ice Age.
4. Humans belong to the order of primates that emerged about 69 mya in the form of
Prosimii or primitive primates. Anthropoids (monkeys, apes and humans) or
advanced primates separated from Prosimii about 40 mya with the emergence of Old
(Continued)
42 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)
World and New World monkeys. Hominoidea (apes and humans) separated from
monkeys around 30 mya and branched into Pongidae (apes) and Hominidae (earliest
hominids and human-like creatures). Hominidae were further separated into
Australopithecines (early hominids) and Homo (human beings and their ancestors)
around 7 mya. Homo species started emerging around 2.5 mya.
5. Australopithecus species were the earliest bipedal hominids, divided into five broad
categories—A. afarensis, A. africanus, A. robustus, A. boisei and A. garhi—based
on their physiological features. Based on their gracile and other human-like features,
africanus and garhi have been considered as probable ancestors of the homo spe-
cies while robustus and boisei are considered as ancestors of modern apes.
6. Homo species have been separated from Australopithecine group on the basis of
former’s larger brain size and other cultural attributes such as toolmaking. Homo
group has been divided into four subgroups—H. habilis, H. ergaster/erectus,
H. sapiens and H. sapiens sapiens. All homo species evolved between 2.5 mya and
40,000 years ago.
7. Homo habilis emerged around 2.5 mya in Africa and most of its fossils have been
found in East and South Africa. It had ape-like physical features but its larger brain
size (averaging 650 cc) and other cultural attributes made it the first toolmaker. It
made crude tools from the stone cores and gave rise to earliest tool culture
(Oldowan) of the Lower Palaeolithic period. The size of their tools and the possible
usages suggest that they were not expert hunters but opportunistic scavengers and
foragers. Since their tools were not standardised, therefore, they also did not seem
to possess an articulate speech, which was crucial for social cooperation particularly
while hunting. This species became extinct around 1.5 mya.
8. Homo ergaster/erectus emerged in Africa around 1.8–1.64 mya. Erectus species had
perfect bipedal motion and a larger brain size (averaging 800–1,000 cc) than habilis.
From Africa, this species spread to Asia and Europe and adapted in varying climatic
conditions due to improved tool technology, an articulate speech, better social inter-
action and use of fire. Its fossils have been found mainly in East and South Africa,
Java, China and France. They made hunting tools such as the hand axe from the core
and several other tools to exploit resources in different climatic conditions of Asia
and Europe. Better speech and resultant better social cooperation made them expert
hunters, giving rise to several Lower Palaeolithic culture such as Acheulian,
Levalloisian and Clactonian. H. erectus became extinct around 400,000 years ago.
9. H. sapiens started emerging in Africa about 300,000 years ago but our knowledge
of this species is entirely based on fossil records (most of which have been found
from Europe and Southwest Asia) of Neanderthals or Homo sapiens neanderthal-
ensis. Neanderthals emerged around 135,000 years ago which witnessed the begin-
ning of the last phase of the Ice Age that was marked by frequent climatic changes.
With a larger brain size (averaging 1,500 cc) and an articulate speech, Neanderthals
made advanced tools from flakes of the specially prepared cores besides making
tools of bone, wood and antler. They gave rise to Mousterian culture that belonged
to the Middle Palaeolithic period. Better speech and better social cooperation
enabled Neanderthals to exploit variety of food resources. They are known to have
 Evolution of Humans 43

controlled fire and are credited for having possessed social awareness and abstract
concepts such as ‘life after death’. Neanderthals became extinct around 35,000
years ago.
10. Extinction of Neanderthals and emergence of H. sapiens sapiens is a highly debat-
able issue among scholars. Several theories have been propounded to explain the
both. It is now accepted that Neanderthals coexisted with H. sapiens sapiens for
some time at least and also that the latter emerged first in Africa around 40,000
years ago.
11. H. sapiens sapiens or ‘fully modern man’ emerged in Africa from the archaic
H. sapiens, the earliest species of which has been termed Cro-Magnon man. Their
versatile tool technology involving indirect percussion and pressure flaking enabled
them to fashion out several tools which had specific purposes. They also made sev-
eral composite tools. With this, humans learnt all the tricks of hunting and colonised
practically the whole of the Old and New Worlds. Frequent climatic changes in this
last stage of Ice Age brought about local adaptations, giving rise to several Upper
Palaeolithic tool cultures such as Perigordian/Chatelperronian, Aurignacian,
Gravettian, Solultrean and Magdalenian. The period of early H. sapiens sapiens is
considered as one of ‘cultural explosion’ marked by increased economic exploita-
tion, fully developed articulate speech, wider social interactions and development of
art as means of expression and communication.
12. Palaeolithic art, which developed during 35,000–12,000 years ago, reflects the intel-
lectual evolution of the human mind. True representational art developed in the
upper Palaeolthic period. Originating from Eastern Europe, Palaeolithic art reached
its climax in Western Europe, represented by excellent cave paintings in France and
Spain. These art forms included engravings on portable objects, sculptures and
murals and bas-relief on the ceilings of the caves. Scholars have analysed various
aspects of the motives behind these art forms from economic to ideological.
13. The term Mesolithic has been used to describe the post-Pleistocene hunting-gathering
cultures of Northern Europe, covering a period 12,000 year ago until the beginning of
agriculture in this region of Europe around 5,500 years ago. Earlier, Mesolithic was
considered as a period of ‘cultural hiatus’, but now it is considered as a highly produc-
tive period with availability of terrestrial, aquatic and plant food resources particu-
larly in sub-tropical and tropical zones of Northern Europe. This enabled few societies
to adopt sedentary lifestyle in substantial ‘villages’.
14. Cultural developments in Mesolithic Europe has been divided into three phases—
Maglemose, Kongemose and Ertebolle—covering areas of Southern Sweden,
Denmark and parts of Southern Scandinavia.
15. Mesolithic people fashioned diverse tools (prominent among them being bow and
arrow) to exploit various food resources, few of which could be stored. This enabled
both small and large sedentary settlements, bringing about social complexity in few
of them, which is evident from their burial goods. Besides, evidences of attachment
to a particular territory and that of much closer relationship between humans and
animals provide a transitional character to the Mesolithic that prepared the ground
for the beginning of farming in Europe.
(Continued)
 44 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)
16. While Mesolithic Europe was still following hunting and gathering economy,
Southwest Asia or the modern Near East, covering areas of modern Israel/Palestine
and Syria, were already experimenting with wild cereals during the same time
period. Most prominent pre-Neolithic culture in this region was the Natufian culture
where people exploited not only terrestrial and aquatic food resources but also
included wild cereals, such as, emmer wheat and barley, in their diet with the help
of specialised harvesting and cereal processing tools. Evidences of sedentary settle-
ment, social complexity and wider social interaction have been found from few of
the Natufian sites. These developments prepared the ground for the growth of
Neolithic in West Asia and also explain why agriculture developed at least two cen-
turies before in West Asia than Europe.

KEYWORDS
Pleistocene primates Prosimii Anthropoids Pongidae Hominidae bipedalism
adaptability robust gracile core flake bands shamanism percussion bas-relief
mural terrestrial aquatic microliths intensification evolution mammals sedentism

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. The biological and cultural evolution of humans up to the Palaeolithic period was inter-
related processes. Discuss.
2. Assess the role of environment in the biocultural evolution of humans.
3. Trace the crucial stages in the biocultural evolution of humans.
4. Give the fossil evidence for biological and cultural evolution of humans from
Australopithecus to Homo sapiens sapiens.
5. With particular reference to the tool technology, describe the subsistence economy of
humans up until the Palaeolithic Age.
6. How does Palaeolithic art reflect intellectual evolution of the humans?
7. Analyse the motives behind the art forms of Upper Palaeolithic period.
8. Can European Mesolithic be termed as a period of ‘cultural hiatus’?
9. Describe the main features of post-Pleistocene adaptations in Europe and Southwest
Asia.
10. How far can the Mesolithic age be described as a transitional phase between Palaeolithic
and Neolithic ages?
 Evolution of Humans 45

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Zvelebil, Marek, and Peter Rowly-Convy. 1986. ‘Foragers and Farmers in Atlantic Europe’. In Hunters in
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Transition to Farming. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
CHAPTER
Beginnings of Agriculture

2 and Animal Husbandry

Chapter Contents

• Theories on Transition from Hunting-Gathering to Farming

• The Terms ‘Neolithic’ and ‘Neolithic Revolution’
• Neolithic Cultures
• Animal Husbandry
• Summary

THEORIES ON TRANSITION FROM HUNTING-GATHERING TO

FARMING

W
e saw in Chapter 1 that the early-Holocene period was marked by some important
innovations in hunting and food gathering strategy in both Europe and Southwest Asia,
which was dictated principally by changes in climate bringing about consequent
changes in flora and fauna. Southwest Asia, in particular, demonstrated first example of
humans experimenting with wild cereals such as wheat and barley. Within a couple of centuries,
human communities of this region and the entire Old and New Worlds brought about a funda-
mental shift in their adaptive strategy from hunting-gathering to farming, accompanied by
domestication of animals. This shift in the subsistence strategy brought about remarkable
change in human society and created conditions for the growth of civilisation. Since agriculture
began in regions with diverse climatic conditions, ranging from cold valleys to humid zones,
archaeologists and historians alike have shown keen interest on the subject of origin and dis-
persal of food production. Various theories have been provided ranging from climatic condi-
tions, demographic pressures to social and cultural factors to explain reasons behind this shift
in the adaptive strategy by humans. While some theories provide a monocausal explanation,
others consider beginning of agriculture as a process brought about by interplay of several
factors.
 48 Ancient and Medieval World

The ‘Climatic’ Crisis Theory

Since agriculture began in the post-Pleistocene period with marked ecological difference, the
earliest theories related to causes of the beginning of agriculture were connected with climate.
Among several others, V. Gordon Childe (1936) was the most important proponent of these
theories. His theory has been termed as ‘climatic crisis’ or ‘oases’ hypotheses. He attempted to
explain the origins of agriculture in terms of climatic changes associated with the end of
Pleistocene about 12,000 years ago. Childe and others such as Rafael Pumpelly argued that in
the post-Pleistocene period, world became warmer and drier (cited in Brian Fagan 2010). Since
the regions, hitherto rich in plants and animals, could not sustain the existing hunters and gath-
erers, people and animals moved towards areas with richer water sources or ‘oases’ such as the
Near East. Here developed a symbiotic relationship between the two. The necessity to find new
food resources led people to first experiment with plants and animals, eventually leading to
domestication of both.
Although the above hypotheses remained popular for a long time, doubts about the verac-
ity of the ‘oases’ theory started emerging in the 1950s when technologically advanced
researches demonstrated that there was no evidence of global desiccation (dryness) or for-
mation of oases in most of Southwest and Central Asia where farming first developed. It was
also pointed out that wild ancestors of wheat and barley did not grow in the areas where
post-Pleistocene oases were thought to have been concentrated. Robert Braidwood and
Bruce Howe (1960) based on their fieldwork in the Kurdish foothills of Zagros Mountains in
Iran, did not find any evidence of desiccation in the Near East after the Ice Age ended. S. J.
De Laet (1994) too has argued that desertification of vast areas of Africa and Asia did not
begin until many centuries later. Robert J. Wenke (1985) while rejecting the climatic change
theory has raised few questions on the lines that climatic alterations were seen in the
Pleistocene age too but that did not lead to appearance of agriculture and also that domesti-
cation of animals and agriculture appeared in diverse range of environments, from cold val-
leys to humid conditions. If climatic change was such a powerful force for agricultural
origins, then how could it have affected such a diverse range of habitats to produce the same
result? He argues that domestication of plants also involved so many different environments
and species that it seems unlikely that climatic change can be the main and most direct cause
of this development as a worldwide phenomenon. However, recently, Joy McCorriston and
Frank Hole (1991) in their study of ecology and origin of agriculture in the Near East have
reassessed the evidence and supported the general idea that the post-Pleistocene changes in
the patterns of rainfall and other ecology-related stress did have a role in the beginning of
farming in this region.
The modern theories that developed after 1968 regarding the beginning of agriculture were
more elaborate as large number of archaeological evidences from different parts of the world
were available, which enabled a better understanding of post-Pleistocene environmental
changes. These theories did not ignore environmental factors but the focus shifted to demo-
graphic, social and cultural factors wherein beginning of agriculture was seen as a complex
process that brought about change in the human subsistence pattern. Barbara Stark (1986) has
categorised these modern theories related to transition towards agriculture into three models,
that is, ‘Push’, ‘Pull’ and ‘Social’ models.
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 49

The ‘Push’ Theories

The ‘Push’ theories are mainly concerned with the demographic ‘stress’ which forced humans
to abandon hunting and gathering and adopt agriculture as their adaptive strategy. The demo-
graphic theories emphasise on relationship or rather imbalance between population growth
and the available resources. Lewis Binford (1968), one of the early proponents of the ‘Push’
theories, in his demographic stress or edge zone hypotheses, argued that prior to the emer-
gence of first farmers, hunter-gatherer bands were in equilibrium with their natural environ-
ment using wild plants and animals for their subsistence. This equilibrium could be disturbed
either due to drastic environmental changes or due to demographic changes. He found no evi-
dence of drastic change in the environment of the Near East and therefore considered popula-
tion as the main factor for the origin of agriculture. He argued that population growth occurred
in those areas where favourable conditions at the end of the Pleistocene encouraged hunter-
gatherers to settle down at one place for longer period. This tendency towards sedentism trig-
gered population growth. Binford further elaborated that the rapid growth in early
post-Pleistocene created two types of habitats—optimal and marginal. The optimal habitats
(such as the coastal areas) were the main centre of population growth where there were suffi-
cient resources to support a large population. However, sedentism caused population to grow
to a point that exceeded the ‘carrying capacity’ (resources to support a large population). Ones
this equilibrium was disturbed, some groups moved away to neighbouring marginal (inland
areas) habitats. In the marginal habitats, resources were limited and could not support a large
population. The hunter-gatherers here adopted a more mobile lifestyle and, in the absence of
sedentism, put a check on population growth. However, the continuous influx of human groups
from optimal areas upset the balance of the marginal areas. The pressure of population forced
human groups in these marginal ‘edge zones’ to increase their resource base by sowing wild
seeds of wheat and barley. Environmental factor, particularly post-Pleistocene rise in tempera-
ture, has also been given some consideration in this theory, mainly as factors facilitating rise in
coastal resources (fishing, sea mammals) and promoting sedentism in these optimal habitats.
Mark N. Cohen (1977) has also considered population as the major factor underlying the
origin of agriculture though with a slight divergence from the views of Binford (1968). Cohen
sees population pressure at the global level from the beginning of the post-Pleistocene period
that caused many widely separated hunter-gatherer cultures to abandon gathering, as the avail-
able food resources could not sustain a large population. This high point of population growth
was reached near the same time in all major landmasses (covering Near East, China, Southeast
Asia and Americas) except Australia. Cohen assumes that early agriculture was a logical devel-
opment of existing gathering and plant conservation technique. While he did argue that agricul-
ture involved a more arduous work than hunting-gathering, but the advantage that humans had
with agriculture was more yield per acre of land and thus increasing the calorie yield of humans.
This increase in calorie yield increased the fertility of women and allowed greater density of
population. He estimated the world population at the end of the Mesolithic to be around 15 mil-
lion and concluded that only agriculture could sustain such a large population.
Recently, scholars dealing in ecological studies while retaining their emphasis on relation-
ship between sedentism and population growth argue that environmental changes also play an
important role in forcing people to move towards agriculture by affecting the balance between
resources and population. They particularly argue that all environments involve some element
of ‘risk’ for hunter-gatherer societies in terms of food shortages caused by draughts and floods,
 50 Ancient and Medieval World

and therefore population growth cannot be seen in a linear way. Regular episodes of food short-
ages tend to regulate population size. These risks could only be countered by technological
innovations. A straightforward technological/cultural solution to food shortages and the stress
resulting from them may have been to cultivate familiar wild plants and domesticate common
prey so that people could rely on stored resources during scarce months. Thus, for them, risk
and stress conditions associated with population densities were also important factors for the
beginning of agriculture.
Critics of the demographic theories raise doubts on the evidence of tremendous population
growth in the post-Pleistocene period. S. J. De Laet (1994) has argued that there is no evidence
of population explosion among the pre-Neolithic communities. Citing evidence from ethno-
graphic studies of modern hunter-gatherer societies, De Laet opines that the latter tend to
practice birth control and large population is to be expected more among the farmers where
additions to labour force is welcomed. Robert J. Wenke (1985) has also pointed out that most
of the earliest agricultural communities in Southwest Asia have been found in Negev Desert
where it is difficult to imagine any form of population ‘pressure’. Others, like Brian Fagan
(2010), have also argued stress theories based on sedentism, population–resource imbalance
and factors of environmental risks are difficult to substantiate from the archaeological sites.
However, whatever be the role of demographic factors in transition towards farming, it can be
said that demographic theories have enlarged the ambit of factors from climatic factors alone
in the process leading to the growth of agriculture.

The ‘Pull’ Theories

The ‘Pull’ models attempt to identify the developments that attracted humans to shift to deliber-
ate cultivation rather than being forced to adopt it due to demographic ‘stress’ factors. The
proponents of this model focus on local variability in food resources and the impact of human
exploitation on them. Kent V. Flannery (1973), in his studies on the origin of agriculture in
Mesoamerica, has pointed out that the equilibrium of the hunting-gathering society was dis-
turbed due to the fact that in certain parts of the world, such as, Mesoamerica (Northern
Mexico to Panama) and West Asia, humans started paying more attention to certain types of
plants which were earlier collected in their wild forms and now had assumed special character-
istics due to mutation. Mutation accelerated the growth of such plants. This led human groups
to rely increasingly on these plants at the expense of others. The increasing reliance on these
plants forced people to cultivate them and abandon plant gathering and hunting. In Mesoamerica,
plants such as maize and beans and in West Asia wheat and barley became the favoured plants.
Flannery has further pointed out that these developments were preceded by a shift from
‘narrow’ to ‘broad’ spectrum economy. While the ‘narrow’ spectrum economy represents exploi-
tation of limited food resources, in a broad spectrum, economy wide range of animals and
plants, procured in diverse ways, are included in the diet. This ‘broad spectrum revolution’
according to Flannery, took place in the marginal areas such as Mesoamerica and West Asia
where it was necessary to tap all possible sources of nutrition. However, Flannery also points
out that humans had to be in right place at the right season and foragers had to plan around the
seasons suggesting that their system for procuring food had to be scheduled. Hunter-gatherer
of Mesoamerica, according to Flannery, practiced similar tightly scheduled seasonal pattern of
plant and animal exploitation.
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 51

Later, studies of Paul E. Minnis (2010) (North America), Tomak, Curtis H., Norma J. Tomak
and Van A. Reidhed (1980) (Southern Indiana) and David Rindos (1984) have further extended
the scope of the ‘pull’ models by linking the behavioural aspects of humans with ecological
opportunities for the introduction of agriculture. They argue that people turned to superior
local resources when the moment came. Some resources such as wild wheat, barley or maize
and animals like wild goats were perceived as attractive and people make more use of them to
the point that they eventually domesticate them. Donald Henry (1990) applied the ‘pull’ model
for the origin of agriculture in the Near East. Talking about Levant, Henry refers to two crucial
ecological periods in this region—first around 10,500 bce when the rise in temperature pro-
moted long-term settlement which required a shift from ‘simple’ to ‘complex’ foraging and thus
promoted population growth. About 2,000 years later, another climatic change led people to opt
for cultivation of cereals in the fertile Levant region. In the ‘pull’ model, demographic factors
have not been ignored but have been given a minor role in the sense that it has been seen as a
reality that prevented people from reverting back to hunting and gathering as their main adap-
tive strategy.

Social Theories
Since both ‘push’ and ‘pull’ models failed (though still considered as important) to achieve uni-
versal acceptance as crucial factors in transition to food production, social factors started
assuming importance as an alternative cause for the origin of agriculture since the 1980s and
1990s. Social models tend to emphasise on factors other than climate and population that pro-
duced the demand for resources leading first to intensification of subsistence activity and
eventually food production. Barbara Bender (1975 and 1978) is highly critical of theories cen-
tred on population growth and argues that population growth cannot itself be regarded as prime
mover in this transition. She further argues that population growth does not take place in isola-
tion but is linked to other factors as well such as the manner in which society is organised,
subsistence pattern, level of people’s interaction with the environment and so on. She argues
that prior to the beginning of farming, societies were becoming more complex with far more
elaborate hierarchical social organisations as evidenced by appearance of trade objects and
richly decorated burials. Bender (1978) hypothesises that an expansion of trade and alliances
between different neighbouring groups created new economic and social pressures to produce
more and more surplus goods, including food stuff and other objects, not only to exchange but
also to cement alliances. This led to more sedentary life ways leading to growth of agriculture.
Thus, according to her, adaptive strategies change because social relations undergo change.
A similar hypothesis has been put forward by Brian Hayden in his study, Models of
Domestication (1992). He argues that in a hunter-gatherer society living in a fluctuating envi-
ronment, food is shared and therefore there is no incentive to produce anything extra. But in a
stable environment with plenty of food resources where food sharing is not followed, competi-
tion among ambitious individuals may have led to competitive feasts to gain control over labour
and loyalty. The need to generate large amount of food (including brewing of beer like drink, an
important part of feasting) to organise such feasts stimulated cultivation. Hayden gives particu-
lar reference as such practices adopted by Natufians in the Levant region but suggests that it
may be applicable to both New and the Old Worlds. Arguing on similar lines, Curtis Runnels and
T. H. Van Andel in Trade and the Origins of Agriculture in the Eastern Mediterranean (1988)
 52 Ancient and Medieval World

have put forward the view that in the Eastern Mediterranean region, agriculture may have been
a direct outcome of the need to produce surplus commodities for trade.
Another social model that differs slightly from the aforementioned theories have been put
forward by Peter Bogucki in The Origins of Human Society (1999). Bogucki talks about pre-
agricultural transformations of forager society that manifested in increased sedentism, smaller
social units, individual domiciles and investment in burials and trade. For him, this transforma-
tion of human society began at the end of the Ice Age and continued into the Holocene. The
crux of his argument is that there was a change from a band society to a ‘proto-household’
society. In a band society, food resources were shared and there was no scope for innovation.
But its transformation into a ‘proto-household’ society created a sense of place and a sense of
property, which was crucial prerequisite for a society to take the risks associated with a com-
mitment to agriculture. Moreover, transformation into a ‘proto-household’ society took away
the assurance of food that was available in a food sharing band society. This provided consider-
able motivation to individual household groups to maximise their food resources, which
resulted in food production. Thus, for Bogucki, agriculture began due to a transformation in the
human society. But the social models outlined here have been criticised on the ground that
evidence of this model is weak because it is difficult to document social factors from archaeo-
logical evidences.

Cultural Theories
Proponents of this theory tend to reject climatic crisis and population theories. Instead, they
talk about human capabilities to experiment and innovate, and origin of agriculture was a part
of this cultural process for them. Robert J. Braidwood and L. S. Braidwood (1983) undertook a
systematic field study in Kurdish foothills of Iran (particularly in the Neolithic site of Jarmo)
with the help of experts in the field of botany, geology, zoology and archaeology. On the basis
of their research, they rejected the notion of catastrophic climatic change despite minor shifts
in the rainfall distribution in this region. They argued that economic change came from ever-
increasing cultural differentiation and specialisation of human communities. They further
elaborate that since humans were culturally receptive to innovation and experimentation with
cultivation of plants, they had begun to understand and manipulate plants and animals around
them in ‘nuclear zones’ (areas where potentially domesticable plants and animals were avail-
able in plenty). The hilly flanks of Zagros Mountains in Iraq and upland areas of Mesopotamian
lowlands have been identified as ‘nuclear zones’. As humans acquired more knowledge of the
habitat, they learnt to manipulate plants and animals, which led to the beginning of
agriculture.
Another culture-based explanation of the origin of agriculture has come from the research
undertaken by Kent Flannery (2009) in the valley of Oaxaca in Mexico at a cave site called Guila
Naquitz in the 1980s. A multidisciplinary research of this site suggests that people inhabiting
this site at different points of time followed a scheduled foraging (of beans, squash and maize)
before taking up agriculture, keeping in mind the distances to travel and plants and territory to
exploit. As they gained experience in planting mutant high yielding cereals, yield rose and
people started relying more and more on cultivation rather than foraging. This theory can be
placed in both cultural and ecological category as Kent Flannery’s (1973) research proposes
cultural response of the people of Oaxaca, according to the ecosystem in which they lived.
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 53

Multivariable Theory
Few scholars, while explaining the causes leading to the beginning of agriculture, have empha-
sised on the need to consider various variables rather than relying on monocausal explanation
of a complex process. David Harris, for example, in his study, Origin of Agriculture in Western
Central Asia: An Environmental–Archaeological Study (2010), talks about local variations in
time it took to adopt new economy. He argues that hunter-gatherers in the sub-tropical zone
(Near East and highland Mesoamerica) were beginning to manipulate wild grasses and root
plant species at the end of the Ice Age. Dependence on such foods came early in these areas
because of the shortage of forageable plant species, and such dependence was essential for
long-term survival. In contrast, population in more humid tropical regions (Africa and
Amazonian rain forests) did not have to do much except minor modifications in their hunting-
gathering activities to survive in lean years. Citing archaeological records from various regions,
including Central Asia, he points out that agriculture was established considerably earlier in
sub-tropical Near East, Central and South America, Southeast Asia and India than in humid
tropical zones because the latter was rich in game and wild vegetable foods. He further argues
that domesticated crops and animals are more susceptible to irregular rainfall, locust and other
insect attacks and diseases. Therefore, a strong and sustained incentive to obtain food must
have been a prerequisite for a lasting shift from foraging to agriculture.
David Harris (2010) opines that many variables have to be taken into account before recon-
structing conditions under which agriculture was first regarded as profitable economic activity.
These conditions are population pressure, distribution of plants, rate at which environment is
changing and even the technique of harvesting wild grasses. All these, according to Harris, play
an important part in making agriculture work. The variations among potentially domesticable
plants and animals and seasonal distribution of wild vegetables and game could also prove to
be decisive in transition towards agriculture.
From the aforementioned description of various theories, it is clear that there is no consen-
sus among scholars while explaining factors behind the origin of agriculture although they do
highlight several aspects of it. It is also true that many of these theories cannot be tested from
archaeological data available so far and there is a need of more regional data for a better under-
standing of the ecological, demographic and other factors that created the pressure and facili-
tated cultivation and domestication of animals. However, despite the difference of opinion
among scholars, there is a consensus that monocausal explanations are not adequate in them-
selves in explaining this transition. Therefore, in modern theories, origin of agriculture has been
seen as a process rather than an event and these theories do not necessarily account for the
beginning of food production in mutually exclusive terms. It has been suggested that environ-
ment and demographic factors operate in conjunction with human decisions regarding relative
costs and benefits of different food resources as well as compelling social circumstances.

THE TERMS ‘NEOLITHIC’ AND ‘NEOLITHIC REVOLUTION’

John Lubbock (1865), a British scientist, was the first scholar to coin the word ‘Neolithic’ in his
Antiquity of Man and was also the first one to divide the Stone Age into ‘Palaeolithic’ and
‘Neolithic’. The term ‘Neolithic’ has been derived from ‘neo’ (new) and ‘lithic’ (stone), hence
derivatively Neolithic means ‘New Stone Age’ marked by stone tools whose cutting edge were
 54 Ancient and Medieval World

prepared by grinding or polishing. But the traditional definition of Neolithic has gone beyond
technological specifications and has brought human cultural progress in its ambit. According
to this definition, the post-Pleistocene period marked by food production through deliberate
sowing of seeds, a sedentary life style and domestication of plants (see Box 2.1) and animals is
referred to as Neolithic. Neolithic is considered as an important stage of human social and cul-
tural development as it prepared the ground for the emergence of civilisation. It has been
argued that while in the preceding Palaeolithic and Mesolithic period humans hunted and gath-
ered their food with the help of primitive tools, in the Neolithic period, they were producing
food in a number of ways with improved and more efficient tools. In the history of human social

BOX 2.1  Domestication of Plants

Domestication of plants refers to human intervention in the natural growth of the wild plants,
mainly cereals such as wheat and barley and pulses such as lentils, peas and chickpeas. Human
intervention implies genetic modification of wild plants through selection of the mutant forms. The
mutant forms were deliberately sown for cultivation while others were excluded. From the early
post-Pleistocene or Holocene period, humans, in some parts of the world, had started supplement-
ing hunting and gathering economy with intake of wild seeds prominent among them being wheat
and barley that grew over much of Asia and Europe. Wild wheat and barley were preferred because
of their high nutritional value (more carbohydrates). These plants were self-pollinated and were
therefore more suited to domestication. It was easy to harvest these plants as these wild cereals had
brittle joints or rachis (through which the wild grain is attached to the stem). The seeds of these
plants therefore could disperse easily for subsequent reproduction. The wild grains could also be
collected easily by simply tapping the stem and collecting the falling grains in a basket like con-
tainer. But a major drawback of these wild seeds was that they could not be stored as they con-
tained moisture due to premature falling. Scholars are of the opinion that humans first cultivated
the crops which had brittle rachis that may have turned into domesticated tough rachis crops in first
four or five years of cultivation. The process of genetic mutation of these crops may have been
accelerated due to the use of sickles or the uprooting of individual plants to harvest ripe grains.
The evidence for earliest domestication of plants such as emmer and einkorn wheat and barley
mainly comes from Pre-Pottery Neolithic (PPN) sites of Southwest Asia, particularly Levant and
Northern Fertile Crescent covering parts of modern Southeast Turkey, and is dated between 10,500–
10,000 bp. Archaeological findings and their modern scientific analysis suggest that Emmer wheat
and barley were the two most commonly domesticated plants in this region. Researches have
revealed that not a single crop but a combination of cereals, pulses as well as flax, were sown by
the early farming villagers in this ‘core area’. This was paralleled by simultaneous domestication of
animals such as sheep and goats. The evidence of domestication of plants have been gathered from
an examination of plant remains retrieved from archaeological excavations and study of living
plants and through scientific establishment of genetic affinities between the plants and their wild
ancestors. The radiocarbon dating and application of its most advanced techniques have made it
possible to date accurately individual charred grains. Beginning from the ‘core area’, agriculture
spread rapidly to other parts of West Asia, Europe and North Africa. After the human intervention,
a symbiotic relationship developed between human and the plants as the tough rachis plants could
not survive in the wild environment and needed human nurturing. Similarly, once human started
intensive cultivation of these plants, their dependence on these plants increased and they could not
go back to hunting and gathering as their adaptive strategy.
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 55

evolution, food production definitely marks the beginning of a major stage because cultivation
of edible plants and the domestication of animals brought about a qualitative advancement in
the human economy. Grahame Clark (1997), emphasising the significance of this process, has
remarked that ‘where ecological circumstances made it practicable, even primitive farming was
markedly more productive, permitted greater concentration of population based on more reli-
able as well as richer source of food thus facilitating a higher degree of social integration and
more advanced technology’.
Although, traditionally, domestication of plants and animals remained the two important
markers of the Neolithic age, the definition of Neolithic has undergone a change in the last
hundred years. Scholars, since the time of V. Gordon Childe (1936), have started emphasising
on new type of tools manufactured in this period popularly known as ground tools. The ground
tools were made by rubbing stone against stone or by hand rotating softer stone on harder
block of stone. These tools brought about important changes in the material life of humans. The
new ground axe made it easier to cut trees and clear the ground better than earlier tools. Sharp
digging sticks with stone tips (primitive hoes) enabled softening of ground to take in the seed.
Ground spear, spearheads and arrowheads facilitated success in hunting. Mortars and pestles,
while helping in de-husking of grains, could itself develop ground tools. Manufacture of baked
potteries and mudbrick construction helped in storage of grains. Thus, from the time of
V. Gordon Childe, four distinct and identifiable features of Neolithic were (a) practice of agri-
culture (b) domestication of animal (c) manufacture of pottery and (d) grinding and polishing
of stone tools.
But newer evidences in the form of archaeological discoveries in the last five or six decades
have further added new dimensions to the term Neolithic, although food production and animal
husbandry has remained the classic criteria of defining this period. Thus, in the modern con-
text, broadly speaking, Neolithic refers to a stage of food production characterised by perma-
nent open sites with house architecture (indicating sedentism), domesticated animals,
cultivation of cereals and legumes (indicating food production), ground stone tools, artefacts
for cutting and grinding grain (indicating food processing), potteries (indicating storage and
cooking) presence of figurines, and other cultural amenities of a stable agricultural village.
These features are referred to as ‘Neolithic package’ and are used to denominate a site as
Neolithic. However, recent archaeological findings in Europe and the Near East and their
sophisticated scientific analysis have challenged the universal applicability of the concept of
‘Neolithic package’. Evidences from Danube, Scandinavia and Ireland have suggested that sed-
entism or permanent settlement existed in many parts of Europe in the preceding Mesolithic
period as well. It is also being argued now that the Neolithic communities did not distinguish
themselves on the basis of procurement of food. While some groups continued with hunting
and foraging for long, others were cultivating cereals and herding sheep, goats and cattle.
Irrespective of their subsistence pattern, enough evidence has been found of continuous inter-
action between farming and hunting-foraging communities, leading to sharing of knowledge.
Thus, this socio-cultural identity has now also been considered as an important marker of
Neolithic society apart from the so-called ‘Neolithic package’.
V. Gordon Childe (1936), one of the most influential archaeologists of the twentieth century,
in his Man Makes Himself used the term ‘Neolithic revolution’ to describe the far-reaching
changes in the human society after the adoption of agriculture. He remarked, ‘Food ­production—
the deliberate cultivation of plants, especially cereals and the taming, breeding and ­selection of
animals—was an economic revolution, the greatest in human history after the mastery of fire’.
 56 Ancient and Medieval World

The shift from reliance on hunting-gathering of wild resources to the use of domesticated foods
led to a wide range of fundamental changes in the human cultural progress. Most human groups
(wherever agriculture was practiced) gave up a mobile life and started occupying an area on a
permanent basis (sedentism). This was accompanied by a sudden demographic growth. As a
result, families expanded, villages grew and there was rapid expansion of agriculture in practi-
cally all parts of the world. These changes prepared the ground for the growth of division of
labour as well as social inequalities, made available large food surplus and ultimately facilitated
rise of city-based civilisations. These changes were considered by V. Gordon Childe as revolu-
tionary. He believed that collection of seeds of wild grass (ancestors of wheat and barley) and
subsequent and deliberate attempts to sow such seeds on suitable soil and cultivate the sown
land by weeding and other methods was the first step towards Neolithic ‘revolution’.
Gordon Childe’s notion of Neolithic ‘revolution’ drew criticism from several quarters. Glyn
Daniel (1968), for example, was of the opinion that there was nothing revolutionary about these
changes and it was merely an evolution. He further argued that small advances do not make a
revolution and also that food production and the resultant progress was a result of an evolution-
ary process. Grahame Clark (1977) also disagrees with the word ‘revolution’ for Neolithic and
argues that it was the Mesolithic bridge that linked the Palaeolithic and Neolithic, which was
crucial for the development of civilisation. Further, according to Clark, the change leading to
transformation in the relationship between man, animal and plants, which precipitated a much
developed social system, was accomplished not by Neolithic but by Mesolithic communities as
well. He concludes by saying that the changes were quite slow and hence cannot be termed as
revolution; rather, they were revolutionary in nature considering the changes that occurred
over a period of time.
In the light of these criticisms, Gordon Childe (1936) subsequently clarified that by the term
‘revolution’ he did not mean a sudden transformation, but it denoted a culmination of progres-
sive change in the socio-economic organisation of communities. Thus, according to his modi-
fied version, the change from food gathering to food production were evolutionary rather than
revolutionary and the process was neither rapid nor uniform over different parts of the globe.
In order to check the veracity of the notion of Neolithic ‘revolution’, we need to comprehend
the basic definition of a term such as revolution. Theoretically speaking, a revolution denotes
small quantitative changes eventually leading to big qualitative changes within a short span of
time. If we apply this definition of revolution to Gordon Childe’s notion of Neolithic ‘revolution’
we find that in contrast to the slow rate of progress in the preceding millions of years, the
achievement of humans between 9000–6000 bce were indeed spectacular and epoch making.
Moreover, once agriculture spread all over the globe as alternative adaptive strategy, humans
never returned to hunting and gathering as their chief source of livelihood. This relative short-
ness of the Neolithic phase, along with immense changes that this phase brought about in the
social life of humans, makes it deserve the epithet ‘revolution’.

NEOLITHIC CULTURES
Southwest Asia
Until about 1950, it was widely believed that Neolithic cultures were of recent origin. The basis
of this premise was the finding of civilisational features in Egypt and Mesopotamia, which were
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 57

dated around 3000 bce. It was estimated that about 1,500 years must have elapsed between the
growth of Neolithic and the aforementioned two civilisations. Thus, the period of earliest
Neolithic cultures were dated about 4500 bce. But a more scientific analysis (including inputs
from Botany, Zoology, Geology and molecular biology, to name a few) of the archaeological
discoveries in the last six decades has completely revised the chronology of the beginning of
Neolithic. The recalibrated radiocarbon dating has pushed back the time period of the origin
of Neolithic in Southwest Asia to 10,500 bce. In recent periods, there has been a great amount of
research on Southwest Asian Neolithic sites, and therefore most of the theories related to origin
of agriculture in some manner or the other are related to this region. Southwest Asia broadly
comprises the region from eastern coast of Mediterranean to the boundaries of Iran, which
includes geographical areas such as Levant (modern Lebanon or Palestine), Anatolia (modern
Turkey) and Mesopotamia (modern Iraq). Within this region, the core area of the beginning of
domestication of plants and animals was the ‘fertile crescent’ which refers to the upland arc
that stretches from Southern Levant, north and east around the Mesopotamian lowland and
southeast along the foothills of Zagros Mountains in Western Iran.
The Southwest Asian climate during 18,000–13,000 bce was quite cool and dry with interiors
covered by dry steppe and the forest area being confined to Levant and Turkey coastal areas.
But as the temperature warmed up after 13,000 bce and particularly in the early-Holocene
period, climate became warmer and wetter and as a result forests expanded and many areas of
Southwest Asia became richer in plant and animal species and were therefore highly favourable
for human habitation. Southwest Asia was now covered with diverse vegetation, particularly
wild cereal grasses that produced seeds in the spring season and survived the summer aridity
of this region. Humans and animals alike used these wild cereals in different forms. This stage
of pre-agricultural human adaptability can be identified with the Kebarans and later Natufians
in the Levant region, who intensively foraged cereal grasses and nuts and hunted gazelles to
supplement their economy. But another round of cool and dry climate, beginning from
10,500 bce, made the conditions inhospitable and few scholars suggest that this may have trig-
gered deliberate cultivation of cereal grasses. Thus, it can safely be concluded that plant domes-
tication in Southwest Asia began between 10,500–10,000 bce and full-scale agricultural activity
took hold in this area by 8500 bce. The prominent early agricultural sites in Southwest Asia (see
Map 2.1), which have yielded definitive proof of agriculture and cultural progress, associated
with the Neolithic were Jericho and Abu Hureyra (Levant); Zawi Chemi Shanidar, Ganj Dareh,
Ali Kosh and Jarmo (foothills of Zagros Mountains and Mesopotamia); and Cayonu, Haçilar and
Çatal höyük (Anatolia or Turkey).

Levant
Levant is said to be the cradle of Neolithic culture in Southwest Asia. Origin of agriculture in
this Region was an extension of intensive foraging of wild cereals by the people of Natufian
culture. As discussed earlier, a brief spell of cold period around 10,500 bce forced people to
move towards deliberate cultivation. Another round of climatic change led temperature in the
Levant region warming up considerably (even though cooler than today). This along with
greater precipitation in this region increased the average rainfall due to which Palestine and
Northern Lebanon witnessed dense forest growth and rich steppe environment. For the pur-
pose of research, Levant assumes greater significance because it provides evidence of
 58 Ancient and Medieval World

MAP 2.1  Early Neolithic Sites of Southwest Asia

Source: Adapted from a map by P. B. Hausarbeiten. Available at [Link]

continuous settlement since Kebaran times up until the time of fully developed Neolithic soci-
ety in this region, that is, 13,000–8500 bce. By 8500 bce, people of this region adopted sedentism
and few groups lived in village-like encampments and supported themselves with farming and
stock keeping.
In Levant, the most significant Neolithic culture, in terms of archaeological findings and the
attention that it has received from archaeologists and scientists alike, was Jericho (modern Tell
Sultan located in the Jordan Valley, Palestine). Archaeological excavations at Jericho in 1935
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 59

(John Garstang) and then extensive one under the guidance of Kathleen M. Kenyon (between
1952–56) have produced results of supreme importance for researchers as it has revealed con-
tinuous human settlement from the period of Natufian culture up until the Bronze Age, covering
several phases of Neolithic. Jericho was endowed with a natural spring (oases) which attracted
the earliest settlers. The earliest settlement here (dated from about 10,000 bce) have been found
to be semi-permanent. Here, the Natufian hunter-gatherers supplemented their food supply
with a little cultivation associated with the domestication of wheat and barley. Since wheat and
barley were not native to the arid wasteland, it has been presumed that initially they must have
been brought from the Jordan valley and grown here as wild species. Evidence of domestica-
tion of animals is absent, but wild gazelles, goats, cattle and bores were intensively hunted.
Robert J. Wenke (1985) has estimated that 2,000 or more people lived in this settlement anytime
between 8350–7350 bce. This would presuppose a large settlement and Jericho (excavated in
the form of a mound or ‘Tell’ situated above the oases) is estimated to have covered an area of
about 10 acres.
People at Jericho lived in semi-circular and circular huts of mudbricks set close together.
Most of these were single-roomed houses with few having more rooms. These houses had mud
floors with plain timber or wattle walls. In the later stages, rectangular houses were built with
plastered floor and walls. Most of these houses, both in early and later phases, have been found
with large storage pits for storing seeds/grains and nuts along with ovens. The ovens were sur-
rounded by an expanse of charcoal, indicating cooking of food. For a long time, Neolithic has
been associated with pottery making. But no evidence of pottery making has been found at
Jericho, and therefore the bowls and dishes found here have been placed in PPN phase. The
two layers of Jericho have been designated as PPN A and PPN B. The potteries (bowls and
dishes) found at Jericho was cut out of stone and polished. The burials found after excavations
suggest that the dead were buried deep beneath the floor of the house. One interesting modifi-
cation of this tradition was the custom of keeping skull away from the skeleton. Several plas-
tered (with mud, lime or gypsum) skulls found in groups indicate the desire to keep the dead
close to the living in a physical sense and also possibly suggests early ancestor cult.
One of the remarkable features of the Jericho settlement was the construction of a massive
wall (1.5 metres thick and about 4 metres high when excavated) that surrounded the settle-
ment. Wall was made of large blocks of stone with a circumference of about 700 metres and
complete with towers. There has been a little debate among scholars regarding the objective
behind the construction of such a massive wall. Kathleen Kenyon (1954) and A. M. T. Moore
(1978) have suggested that these walls acted as defence enclosure against the attack of other
human groups. James Mellaart (1975) supports the above hypotheses by arguing that Jericho
attracted neighbour’s envy as it was a great trading centre for salt, sulphur and bitumen and
hence the need for protective walls. However, his contention is not supported by finds from the
site, even though little amount of asphalt (mixture of charcoal and sand), sulphur, salt and
obsidian (volcanic glass) have been found from this settlement. Few scholars, such as Offer Bar
Yosef (1986), on the basis of geomorphological researches done on this site and the alluvial
deposits found from the site, have opined that walls must have been a flood control measure.
Whatever may have been the objective behind these walls but it can be said that the organisa-
tion of communal labour to construct these walls required both political and economic
resources on a very high scale which was unimaginable even few thousand years ago.
Another prominent site in the Levant region, much bigger in dimension than Jericho was Abu
Hureyra, situated near the Euphrates River in Northern Syria. Extensive research has been done
 60 Ancient and Medieval World

on the findings from this site that was excavated during 1972–73 under the guidance of A. M. T.
Moore. This site is significant because like Jericho it also provides evidence of ling occupation
of this site, covering 4,500 years (9500–5000 bce) with a brief hiatus of about 300 years caused
primarily by adverse climatic conditions. Two phases of settlement have been found in Abu
Hureyra, representing early and fully developed Neolithic features. Spread across 28 acres, the
early farming settlement (9500–8000 bce) was in the form of large village located in well-wooded
steppe area where animals and wild seeds were in plenty. Therefore, there was a tendency
towards setting up more permanent settlement where they harvested wild cereals such as ein-
korn wheat and rye and foraged for fruits of huckleberry and pistachio trees. For meat, they
relied on gazelles which were intensively hunted. The absence of such fruit-bearing trees from
the findings, dated around 8400 bce, from this site suggests climate change from moist to arid.
A. M. T. Moore (1978) has argued that this put pressure on people to alter their plant-­collecting
habits and may also have contributed towards their switch from foraging to farming.
The second phase of settlement at Abu Hureyra has been dated from about 7700 bce, which
lasted until 5000 BCE. The settlement of the second phase was slightly larger (about 30 acres)
than the earlier one and displayed several aspects of a fully developed Neolithic culture. The
houses were rectilinear single-story buildings of mudbrick with plastered floors and walls.
Several-roomed rectangular houses have been found towards the end of this phase which, it is
presumed, may have been occupied by a single family. People of Abu Hureyra, in the early part
of the second phase, cultivated domesticated cereals (emmer wheat and barley) and pulses
(lentils and peas). Considering the continuous inhabitation of this settlement, scholars point
out that they were following sophisticated agricultural methods to maintain the fertility of the
soil such as cereals being rotated with pulses. The system of allowing land to lie fallow, to
regain the fertility of the soil, also enabled larger sites to be occupied for longer period of time.
In the early part, however, the inhabitants continued to hunt large number of gazelles that
migrated through the site. Later, however, sheep and goats replaced gazelles as the principal
source of meat. The morphology of the animal bones found here suggests that sheep and goats
were domesticated too. Thus, it can be said that while the people of first phase of settlement at
Abu Hureyra were primarily hunter-gatherers, in the second phase, people graduated from
farmer-hunters to farmer-herders.
The second phase of the Abu Hureyra settlement also provides evidences of burial practices
as number of graves have been found in the houses and yards. Most of these are single burials
into pits dug in the floors of the houses. Some of these contain grave goods such as string of
beads made of polished green stone and some having traces of red ochre on the bones. Several
headless burials have also been found with one group burial of 15 skulls and 3 skeletons.
Findings of the second phase of settlement at this site have also yielded evidence of earliest
Syrian pottery in the form of dark-coloured burnished ware. An advanced tool technology is
reflected in a variety of flint and obsidian tools (e.g., sickles) for hunting and farming and heavy
stone apparatus for grinding cereals. Few scholars like Brian Fagan (2010) have suggested that
farmers of Abu Hureyra had contacts with communities staying hundreds of miles away such
as those living in Zagros and Anatolia.

Zagros Mountains and Mesopotamia

Zagros Mountains and Mesopotamia have been considered as an important area for construct-
ing the early history of agriculture because archaeological evidences have suggested
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 61

continuous human settlements for almost 2,000 years. As in Levant, the sequence of Neolithic
cultures in the foothills of Zagros Mountains and Mesopotamia have been divided into early
(10,000–6000 bce) and later (6000–5000 bce) Neolithic phases representing different stages of
the growth of a farming society. The excavations in this region (particularly in the hilly flanks
of Mesopotamia) have been mainly credited to Robert J. Braidwood and Linda S. Braidwood in
the late 1940s and early 1950s. Braidwoods termed this region as the ‘nuclear zone’ as it was a
natural habitat for wild cereals and pulses as well as wild species of sheep and goats.
Braidwoods’ findings and later researches have suggested that during the Ice Age as well as in
early-Holocene period, human groups in this region lived in the lowland (plains) as the climate
was warm and the highland (hills) were cool and dry. Therefore, early Neolithic in this region
occurred in a climate when the temperature and rainfall were high and conditions of primitive
farming, employing only hand tools for farming, were ideal. But ecological studies suggest that
as the temperature warmed up considerably in the plains, people moved to mountain valleys of
Zagros where the open steppe environment offered seasonal resources on the hill slopes and
were also ideal for herding of such animals as sheep and goats. Andrew Moore (1978) has even
suggested that domestication of sheep and goats may have developed here earlier than other
parts of the Near East. Few scholars have argued that people of this region had sporadic con-
tacts with the Levant region but they also emphasise that cultural developments associated
with the Neolithic in this region were parallel to and independent of the developments in
Jericho and Abu Hureyra. Few scholars have also gone on to suggest that Jericho may have
been the earliest Neolithic site of Southwest Asia but the foothills of the Zagros Mountains
provided the earliest archaeological evidence of beginning of agriculture in this region.
An important early-Neolithic site located in the Kurdistan Mountains in Northern Iraq was
Zawi Chemi Shanidar that was located very close to the Shanidar cave where Neanderthal
fossils were discovered. Application of radiocarbon dating puts the timeline of this settlement
between 10,500–9000 bce. It was an open small encampment with circular houses. Although
evidence of plant food has not been found from this site but farming equipment such as slotted
bone-reaping knife with stone blades along with grinding and pounding equipment indicate
towards possible cultivation. This has been substantiated by pollen analysis of the floral find-
ings from this site, which further suggests an increase in cereal grasses during the period of its
occupation. Moreover, the tooth analysis of the human skeletons has indicated that they had
worn-out teeth caused primarily by chewing wild cereals. Again, although there is no clear
domestication of animals but the study of animal bones found from here suggests that the
inhabitants were killing large number of immature or young sheep. This, it has been argued,
may have been possible if they either had fenced the grazing ground or tamed the sheep so that
the age at which sheep were to be killed could be controlled. This may not directly hint at the
domestication of animals but definitely hints towards herding of sheep, a preliminary step
towards the domestication of sheep. They also intensively hunted wild mountain goats without
any evidence of herding or domestication.
The burials excavated from this site also provide evidence of the material life of the inhabit-
ants of Zawi Chemi Shanidar. A study of several graves found from this site by Ralph S.
Solecki, Rose L. Solecki and Anagnostis P. Agelarakis (2004) reveals that both individual and
group burials were practiced. The graves of young children and infants outnumbered those of
adults. Almost 50 per cent of the burials had grave goods that were mostly in the form of per-
sonal adornments of children whereas adult graves were accompanied by bone and ground
tools. A number of limestone clusters have been found within the cemetery area and outside
 62 Ancient and Medieval World

of it in a hearth-like structure. Solecki et al. (2004) suggest that this may have been used for
making meals as funerary feasts as animal bones and snail shells have been found very close
to these hearths. Hearths outside the cemetery area may have been used also for cooking plant
food after being processed with the help of stone querns and mullers as well as for roasting
land snails that were an important source of protein.
Another important Neolithic site in the Zagros Mountain area was Ganj Dareh, located in the
high mountain valley of Kermanshah (present day Western Iran). This settlement has been
found to be in existence between 8500–6500 bce. While the early settlement (8500–7000 bce)
was probably a seasonal camp used by hunters and gatherers, the later occupation (7000–
6500 bce) onwards has been designated as a small early farming village of rectangular mudbrick
houses. While majority of the houses were single story, few two-storied houses have also been
found, and scholars have suggested that the lower floor may have been used to store grains as
clay bins have been found in these. Talking about the later settlement, James Mellaart (1975)
argues that wheat and barley along with peas and lentils were grown in this settlement. A defini-
tive evidence of domestication of goats in this settlement has been brought to light by the study
of Melinda Zeder and Brian Hesse (2000). A morphological study of almost 5,000 animal bones
found from this site has revealed that goats were domesticated by the people of Ganj Dareh as
majority of the bones were of young males with some changes in the structure of the bones in
comparison to their wild species. In the form of containers for storage, this site also yields some
of the earliest pottery in West Asia. These findings from the site have led scholars to suggest
that the site may represent the beginning of permanent settlement in the Zagros region.
An important Neolithic culture of Mesopotamian lowlands was Ali Kosh, an early farming
site located in Deh Luran plains of Khuzestan in Southern Zagros (Southwest Iran). Hole Frank
and Kent Flannery (1962) have done extensive research on this site after its excavation by them
in the early 1960s and have dated this settlement’s existence during 8000–6000 bce. The human
settlements at Ali Kosh have been divided into three cultural phases—Boz Mordah (8000–
7200 bce) and Ali Kosh (7200–6400 bce) and Mohammad Jafar phase (6400–6000 bce). In the
earliest phases of this small village, people lived in small rectangular houses made of mudbricks
and clay. The occupants followed a combination of simple farming with hunting and foraging.
People herded goats (no evidence of domestication yet) and cultivated in small amounts two-
row barley, emmer and einkorn wheat supplemented by fishing and hunting of oxen, boars and
catching wild fowls from the nearby marshes. In the Ali Kosh phase, as the excavations reveal,
houses became larger with several rooms and were separated from each other by lanes or
courtyards. The houses contained burials with beads and pendants as grave goods. Talking
about the Ali Kosh phase of this settlement, Grahame Clark (1977) says that cereal cultivation
greatly increased at the expense of plant gathering and emmer wheat, and two-rowed barley
accounted for two-fifths of the seeds as compared to only 10 per cent in the Boz Mordah phase.
Besides these, stone bowls as well as numerous mortars and pestles (ground stone tools for
processing of cereals) have been found from this site. Morphological evidences clearly suggest
domestication of goats and herding of sheep but hunting was not abandoned. In the third phase,
some houses have been found having stone foundation, and cemeteries were located outside
the houses. Improvement in cereal strains along with cultivation of legumes has also been
noticed, possibly due to the use of irrigation as the climate turned dry. This phase provides clear
evidence of domestication of both sheep and goats, though hunting continued a supplementary
adaptive strategy. However, the most notable development in this phase of the cultural growth
of Ali Kosh was manufacture of low-fired potteries. Thus, Ali Kosh, as a Neolithic site, is of
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 63

supreme importance as it documents more than 2,000 years of continuous farming and herding/
domestication in the lowlands.
The most significant Neolithic site in Mesopotamia (Northern Iraq) is Jarmo, located south-
east of Zawi Chemi Shanidar in the foothills of Zagros Mountains. Based on recalibrated radio-
carbon dating method, the site is said to have been inhabited during 7000–5000 bce. Robert J.
Braidwood and his team, comprising of multidisciplinary experts, did an extensive research on
this site in the 1940s and have come up with interesting observations about the process of the
growth of farming and domestication of animals in this region. It was a permanent hill village
consisting of 25 houses built of broken mud. The houses were separated by alleyways and
courtyards. The houses were rectangular with hearths, storage bins, chimneys and clay ovens
being an integral part of each of them. On the basis of the size of the houses, the total popula-
tion of Jarmo has been estimated to be around 150. Jarmo provides definitive evidence of agri-
culture and pastoralism. Abundant seeds of cereals found from this site suggest regular
cultivation of emmer wheat, spelt, barley and peas. Findings of such tools as stone microliths,
sickle blades with gloss, grinding stones and other implements related to farming confirm the
prevalence of agriculture as the dominant adaptive strategy. This does not mean that hunting
had been completely abandoned, but Grahame Clark (1977) and some others point out that
bones of wild animals form only a small fraction (5 per cent) of the bones found from this site.
Besides, the animals bones collected give a clear indication of herding and domestication of
sheep and goats. Brian M. Fagan (2010) opines that Jarmo was a fully permanent, well-estab-
lished village engaged in far more intensive agriculture than its predecessors and more than 80
per cent of villagers’ food came from domesticated herds or crops grown by them.
The site of Jarmo has also yielded both aceramic and ceramic Neolithic phases. While the
early phase of its occupation has revealed the use of stone vessels, the later phase has yielded
evidence of well-decorated pottery made with a competent technique. Stone vessels were
mainly in the form of bowls and were made of marble, limestone and some of sandstone. The
high polish and thinness of these reflect a high degree of craftsmanship. Pottery appeared late
in the settlement at Jarmo but were well fired and decorated. Commenting on the change from
stone to clay potteries, Robert McCormick Adams (1983) argues that pottery was most often
used for large pots and bowls whereas stone was favoured for small bowls, plates, saucers and
possibly cups. Based on similar type of potteries and stone vessels found in the houses, Adams
suggests that social stratification had not developed until this time. Some exotic materials such
as obsidian, seashells and turquoise stone have also been found along with numerous clay
tokens, hinting at some kind of recording system connected with trade with far off
communities.

Anatolia
Anatolia (modern Turkey) was another crucial region for the understanding of Neolithic culture
in Southwest Asia. The Anatolian plateau is bounded by Pontic Mountains in the north and
Taurus Mountain in the south. The lowlands have steppe like vegetation and forest in the high-
lands. Two major rivers Halys and Sakarya drain the plateau and ultimately empty out in the
Black Sea. In addition to these two, the Euphrates and Tigris rivers too drain their waters in the
Urfa region of Southwest Turkey. The post-Pleistocene climate in Anatolia was suitable for
human settlement, as the summer was hot and dry and the winter wet. This and the draining of
 64 Ancient and Medieval World

the mentioned rivers in the Anatolian plateau bequeathed diversity of soils to this region which
supported variety of wild cereal growth thus making it suitable for farming. Agriculture and
domestication of animals in this region is said to have developed during 8500–5000 bce. Some
interesting archaeological findings from some parts of Anatolia (Southeastern Turkey in par-
ticular) in the form of communal structures ostensibly used for ritual purposes dating back to
9500 bce have raised several issues related to link between food production and origin of com-
plex societies. Few scholars, such as Steven Mithen (2006), believe that these rituals preceded
farming and may itself have led to the beginning of agriculture, as the need to feed so many
individuals attending the rituals would have required large amount of wild grain which would
have accidently fallen on the ground and germinated, eventually leading to their domestication.
They also emphasise on the theory that requirements of regular ritual practices may itself have
led to sedentism prior to the beginning of farming. This poses a challenge to the existing theory
related to the origin of farming in Southwest Asia, which states that increasing cold and draught
conditions (termed as Younger Dryas that occurred during 11,500–10,000 bce) would have
forced people to abandon foraging of wild grains and take up cultivation of cereal species.
The earliest Neolithic site of Anatolia has been identified as Cayonu (in modern Diyarbakir
province, Southeastern Turkey) located near the foothills of the Taurus Mountains. It was exca-
vated under the supervision of Halet Cambel and Robert J. Braidwood in the 1960s and later
under Mehmet Ozdogan in the 1990s. The settlement is said to have been in existence for almost
2,500 years, that is, during 8500–6000 bce and represents both pre-pottery (aceramic) and pot-
tery (ceramic) Neolithic phase. The inhabitants lived in separate rectangular houses with vary-
ing designs ranging from round huts, grill and cell-planned buildings to large structures. People
of Cayonu settlement are considered as the first farmers of Anatolia. They cultivated cereals
and pulses, collected wild vegetable foods and relied on sheep (which were in the process of
domestication), wild boar, cattle and deer for meat. One of the interesting findings from this site
relates to their two different burial practices at different times of occupation. One of these was
to bury the dead beneath the floor of the houses and the second was the burial in a public mor-
tuary known as ‘Skull Building’. In recent days, few scholars have pointed out that the distinc-
tive burials in public building may reflect social and political differentiation in the society and
those buried in the skull building may have enjoyed some prominence. But in view of the
absence of clear archaeological data, this presumption is debatable.
Haçilar, located in Southwestern Turkey (near modern Burdur) was another significant
Neolithic site in the Anatolian plateau, where seven phases of occupation have been found
spanning over 750 years. The site was extensively excavated under the guidance of James
Mellaart in the 1960s, and, based on the radiocarbon dating method, the site has been dated
between 8000–7250 bce. People here lived in small rectangular houses with courtyards, which
served several generations before the site was destroyed because of a fire. The houses had
plastered walls and invariably included hearths and ovens. According to James Mellaart (1975),
Hacilar people cultivated barley and emmer wheat and also consumed some wild grass seeds.
In the later years of this settlement, evidence of cultivation of six-row variety of barley has been
found. Bones of several animals such as sheep, goats, cattle and deer have been found, but the
morphological studies of these do not suggest domestication of these animals although they do
indicate domestication of dogs. No definite evidence of pottery in its Neolithic phase has been
found but scholars confirm the presence of baskets and other containers for domestic use.
In contrast to the small farming settlements in Anatolia, Çatalhöyük (literally meaning ‘fork
mound’), located near the modern Konya city (Central Turkey), was a very large Neolithic
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 65

settlement. Its size and excellent state of preservation drew international attention, and it was
declared as a world heritage site in 2012. It was excavated by James Mellaart during 1961–65
and then again in 1990s by Ian Hodder. The approximate recalibrated date of the existence of
this site is 7400–6200 bce. It was a very large and complex settlement, covering an area of about
34 acres and having a number of houses. On the basis of five or seven occupants per house,
James Mellaart (1975) has estimated the population of Çatalhöyük to be around 5,000–7,000
whereas Grahame Clark (1977) and Robert J. Wenke (1985) have estimated it to be 5,000 and
between 4,000 and 6,000, respectively. The recent figure provided by Ian Hodder (2010) puts the
population between 3,500 and 8,000 during the entire course of the existence of this settlement.
Owing to its size and large population, Çatalhöyük is considered as the best example of agglom-
eration of people into egalitarian society in the Neolithic period. These population figures sug-
gest that Çatalhöyük was a dense settlement (either a very big village or a Neolithic town) of
several small houses built of sun-dried bricks and separated by small courtyards). The houses
were meant to last long but were also rebuilt and plastered several times. The houses were
clustered together without streets, and the access to the houses was through roofs and entry
was possible through ladders. It was suggested earlier that the specific build of the settlement
was a defensive measure, against either people or floods. But now it is argued that the pattern
of construction of these houses was influenced by social customs. Ian Hodder (2010) has
argued that the earliest settlers may have made their houses on the alluvial plains. Later, occu-
pants of this settlement used the walls of these houses to build new ones. The idea, according
to Hodder, was to stay close to the ancestors and the end result was agglomeration of houses
held together by social and religious ties. Most of the houses were single room houses with
sleeping platforms, bins, hearths, ovens, chimneys, pillars and burials.
The botanical samples excavated from the sites give an idea of the adaptive strategy of the
people of Neolithic Çatalhöyük. They followed simple irrigation agriculture and cultivated
cereal crops such as emmer wheat and bread wheat with small quantities of einkorn wheat and
barley with such pulses as bitter vetch and lentil alongside pea and chickpea. Both wild and
domesticated animal remains have been found at this place, majority of them being that of
domesticated sheep, goats and dogs. However, hunting was not completely abandoned as few
bones of wild animals suggest that they hunted wild cattle, boar and deer. But the human bone
analysis has suggested very little dependence of Çatalhöyük people on hunting. The excellent
level of preservation of this site has yielded numerous crafts and tools. The craft objects include
small figurines, pottery, clay beads and obsidian objects. Both bone (mostly awls) and stone
ground tools (mostly of obsidian) such as mortars and pestles (grinding tools) along with axe
and mace heads have been found from this site. In recent years, scholars have found a strong
relationship between these tools and making of potteries, figurines and beads.
A significant aspect of the findings at Çatalhöyük relates to a flourishing artistic tradition in
the form of paintings, carvings and relief structure on the plastered walls. They depict wild bull,
boars, stags and bear along with human representation (mostly women and few of the ances-
tors) as well as depiction of shamanistic practices. Besides, there are several installations of
animal parts such as skull or horns that suggest ritual importance of the wild animals in their
social life. Few of the buildings containing large number of art objects were earlier termed as
‘shrines’, but the recent scholarships on this issue refutes the notion of ‘shrine’, stating that the
concept of shrine is a modern concept although they do agree to ritualistic usages of these
buildings. Another characteristic feature of this site was the burials. The entire population was
 66 Ancient and Medieval World

buried beneath the floor of the house with few houses having more burials than the others, sug-
gesting that these were ancestral burial place and hence preferred.
Finding of large amount of obsidian in and around Çatalhöyük has led scholars to suggest
that this was the basis of the prosperity of this Neolithic settlement. Obsidian may have been
obtained from the nearby volcanic mountain of Göllü Daǧ and Nenezi Daǧ either by the resi-
dents themselves or through exchange for which there are sufficient evidence. Obsidian mir-
rors, found among the grave goods, and thousands of obsidian tool samples indicate both
symbolic and utilitarian significance of this stone. Besides, it also suggests the widespread
exchange of this commodity in the region between Levant, Turkey and Mesopotamia. Brian
Fagan (2010) is of the opinion that these exchanges were used not only to obtain obsidian and
other exotic materials but also to cement social relationships. Talking about the significance of
this exchange process, A. M. T. Moore argues that the widespread exchange of raw materials
accelerated the diffusion of all manners of innovation far and wide, among them being sheep
herding, introduction of pottery and eventually copper and bronze metallurgy.
The provided description of the Neolithic cultures of Southwest Asia gives us a fair idea of
the stages of the beginning of farming, domestication of animals and other cultural aspects
associated with the Neolithic in three distinct regions, namely, Levant, Zagros and Mesopotamia
and Anatolia. Scholars generally tend to believe that domestication of plants and animals devel-
oped simultaneously and independently in the individual Neolithic cultures of these regions,
although it did not mean their isolated growth. In fact, it has been argued that there were regu-
lar contacts between each of these areas leading to the spread of farming, herding, pottery and
religious beliefs. Bruce D. Smith (1998) has suggested a three-stage growth of animal and plant
domestication in Southwest Asia. The first stage, according to Smith, was experimental cultiva-
tion, by some communities, of cereals like wheat and barley on rain-fed fertile areas of Levant,
while others continued with hunting and foraging. In the second stage, goats and sheep under-
went domestication in the Zagros Mountains and Euphrates Valley along with cultivation of
cereals and pulses. In the third stage, practically all farming communities started following a
mixed economy with domestication of additional animals such as pigs and cattle.

Europe
Farming in Europe developed around 6500 bce, a good 2,000 years later than Southwest Asia
and continued until the beginning of metallurgy at around 4500 bce. Within Europe, the temper-
ate zone of Southeast Europe saw the emergence of first agricultural community and then farm-
ing and animal domestication spread to Central, Western and Northern Europe. However,
unlike Southwest Asia, where social and economic developments were found to be uniform and
largely simultaneous, no such uniformity has been traced in Europe where complex Neolithic
societies existed along with hunter-gatherer societies. Many aspects of the material culture of
Neolithic Europe were found to be similar with that of Southwest Asia and Anatolia. This has
led to a fierce ongoing debate among scholars regarding the origin of agriculture in Europe. The
major issue of debate is whether there was a diffusion of agriculture from Near East to Europe
or whether food production developed independently in the temperate zone of Southeast
Europe and the Aegean region. Three major suggestions have so far emerged from this debate:
(a) immigration of the technology of plant and animal domestication into Europe from
Southwest Asia through the flow of ideas and trade between Anatolian farmers and Mesolithic
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 67

European population, (ii) migration of agriculturists themselves from Anatolia to Europe who,
due to their technological superiority, displaced or absorbed the native European hunter-­
gatherer community and (c) independent development of domestication of certain plant and
animal species in Europe even though there might have been a small-scale migration from the
Near East to some parts of Europe. These suggestions have created two diametrically opposite
groups of diffusionists—one who argue in favour of dispersal of agriculture to Europe from
West Asia and others who argue that Europeans developed their own farming cultures in
Southeastern Europe in around 6000 bce. Thus, colonisation versus indigenous adoption or
migration versus acculturation became the major archaeological issue in this debate.
Conventional wisdom states that increasing population densities in Anatolia caused surplus
farmers to spill over to Europe, bringing goats, sheep and Near Eastern cereal crops with them.
The arguments put forward by diffusionists such as Grahame Clark (1977) is that transition of
economy from hunting and foraging to one resting largely on agriculture could not have been
achieved by the Europeans entirely on their own initiative since many plants such as einkorn
and emmer wheat and barley did not grow in their wild forms in Europe and must have been
introduced from Asia. Similarly, though cattle and pigs were available in their wild form in
Europe, sheep and goats maintained by them had no wild predecessors and must have been
introduced here in domesticated forms. Moreover, Clark argues, European farmers used same
kind of reaping knife and querns for harvesting and milling, just as their Asiatic counterparts.
Talking about early farming settlement in Greece, Peter Bogucki (1999) too argues that there is
little evidence of indigenous foragers playing a role in the development of agriculture in this
region of Europe. In recent years, genetic studies based on various DNA analysis (including Y
chromosomal DNA and mtDNA) have also suggested migration of farmers from Near East to
Europe in the Neolithic period, although scientific debate is still on.
Contrary to the aforementioned theories, scholars such as Colin Renfrew, Robert J. Wenke
(1985) and Robin Dennell (1983) have argued for a largely indigenous development of farming
in Europe. Colin Renfrew (British Archaeologist) moved the dates of Neolithic in temperate
Europe far back enough to argue that events in Europe were contemporary with Near East and
not a later result of Near Eastern culture. Robert J. Wenke (1985) points out that the grasslands
and forests of temperate Europe contrasts sharply with the steppe and arid plains of the Fertile
Crescent and the spread of agriculture northwards and eastwards required new strains of plants
and different social and technological innovations than Near East.
Robin Dennell (1983) has provided a rather elaborate explanation to substantiate his views
on indigenous development of agriculture in Europe. He talks about a three-phase development
of food production in Southeast Europe. In the first phase, climatic conditions of Europe in the
early-Holocene period favoured plant growth, and wild grasses of einkorn wheat and barley
became abundant. The dense strand of these could be harvested in sufficient quantities for a
long time. But since the growth of wild plants was unpredictable, people relied more on hunting
and foraging. In the second phase, climatic changes led to trees colonising the areas previously
covered by grasses. However, since the wild grasses were still worth maintaining as secondary
food source, people of this region may have burnt forests to clear space for these grasses to
grow which also attracted deer, wild sheep and other animals that could be hunted. Dennell is
of the opinion that this led to the development of simple interdependence between plant har-
vesting and animal exploitation in areas where woodlands were expanding at the cost of wild
cereal grasses. Here people lived in small transitory settlements or seasonal camps as those
found in Southern Europe. The third phase saw the development of permanent farming
 68 Ancient and Medieval World

settlements when either through local bartering or natural means mutant varieties of cereals
were introduced in Southeastern Europe. These were Southwest Asian emmer and bread wheat
that were resistant and more productive as well as predictable than wild grasses. But cultiva-
tion of such crops required specially prepared fields and careful sowing apart from weeding and
protection. In this phase, the new farming economy involved integration of cultivation and
animal husbandry. Robin Dennell thus concludes that food production in Southeastern Europe
in a large measure was a result of indigenous enterprise.
In recent days, attempts have also been made to explain the growth of agriculture in Europe
as a result of trade with farming communities of the Near East. The debate on the issue is still
alive but recent genetic studies of sheep, cows, goats as well as wheat have suggested that
European varieties are subtypes of the species from Southwest Asia. Data from the human
Y-chromosome (through paternal lines) too suggests that people presently living in South
Europe have descended in large part from the Near East. From the analysis of the models pre-
sented here, it can be safely concluded that origin of agriculture and animal husbandry in
Europe was a combination of diffusion from the Near East and indigenous efforts.

South and Southeast Europe

Earliest traces of farming and domestication of animals were found in southern part of Europe
in the Aegean area and Greece, sometime around the beginning of seventh millennium bce.
Argissa Magoula village in Thessaly in Greece provided the first signs of farming in Europe.
The settlement was located on wet plains surrounded by rivers and lakes with highly fertile soil.
Since these conditions were very similar to that of Near East and also the fact that there was
very little evidence of human presence on the islands of the Eastern Mediterranean before the
European Neolithic, it gave rise to the overwhelming view that this settlement was a direct
outcome of the process of colonisation from Near East via land and the sea. This view has been
further bolstered by the fact that little is known about Mesolithic and earliest Neolithic occupa-
tion of this area. The site has been dated around 6800 bce, and it provides evidence of cultiva-
tion of emmer wheat and barley as well as domestication of cattle, sheep and pig. But the
absence of ceramics from this site suggests that it was a pre-Neolithic settlement. Another
important Neolithic site of this region was Franchthi cave located in the mountainous region
of Peloponnese in Southern Greece. Here both Mesolithic and Neolithic remains have been
found which suggests continued settlement until the beginning of Neolithic at around 6500 bce.
Evidence has also been found of people settling outside the cave. Detailed documentation of
extensive use of wild barley and lentils since late-Pleistocene and early-Holocene period has led
scholars to believe that people here gradually adapted to agriculture and domesticated animals
around 6000 bce largely as an indigenous enterprise. The variety of plants cultivated by the
Neolithic farmers of Greece suggests a mixed subsistence strategy as it provided the farmers
insurance against failure of one crop. Another significant Neolithic site of Southern Europe in
terms of continued hunter-gatherer and Neolithic occupation was Grotta dell’ Uzzo, located on
the Northwest coast of Sicily (Italy). Evidence of sudden emergence of cultivation (between
6000 and 5800 bce) of einkorn wheat, barley and lentils along with domestication of cattle from
this site has been explained as an attempt to adapt to domesticated Southwest Asian plants and
animals while continuing with hunting and foraging as chief subsistence strategy. However, by
about 5000 bce full-fledged agriculture and sheep herding along with sedentism are said to have
begun at this site.
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 69

From the Aegean area agriculture and domestication of animals is said to have spread to
different parts of Europe through land (to Southeastern Europe) and sea (to Northwest
Europe). In Southeast Europe, particularly in the Balkan Peninsula, covering areas of present
day Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and countries of former Yugoslavia, farming is said to have
spread quickly beginning in 6600 bce with small and scattered settlement of farmers who tried
to adjust to the temperate environment where there was year- round rainfall and contrasting
summer and winter seasons. Traditionally, it was argued that Neolithic in the Balkan Peninsula
resulted from the expansion of farmers from Northern Greece as material evidence (rectangu-
lar houses, pottery and domesticated plants and animals) found here showed similarity with the
Near East. But this has been refuted by others on the ground that the faunal assemblages in
early-Neolithic sites in the Balkans, and the sparse and irregularly distributed Neolithic settle-
ments in Southeast Europe, indicate local adoption rather than wholesale insertion of farmers.
T. Douglas Price (2000) is of the opinion that initial farming population in Southeastern Europe
were relatively small and networks among foraging population may have been responsible for
the spread of agriculture in this region.
The earliest Neolithic settlements in the Balkan Peninsula were located in favourable natural
flood plains of the river valleys. Based on radiocarbon method, the Neolithic cultures of this
region have been radio dated between 6600 and 5200 bce. One of the prominent cultures among
these in Southern Balkans was the Karanovo culture, named after Bulgarian village of Karanovo
where three levels of continuous settlement have been found during 6200–5500 bce. The early
farmers of Karanovo settled in fertile and wet plains. People of this culture cultivated cereals
such as emmer and einkorn wheat, barley and various pulses such as lentils, pea, chickpea and
bitter vetch. The cultivated plants correspond to the Near Eastern plant assemblage and many
of the wild cereals discovered from these sites in the Mediterranean area are similar to those
found in the Near East. Therefore, scholars, such as E. Marinova (2007), suggest that farmers
of this region had connections with the Near East. However, Marinova is of the opinion that
crops and agriculture introduced from Mediterranean area and the Near East had to adapt to
varying climatic conditions that could be very cold with sub-zero temperature at times which
were different from the Mediterranean climate. Other cultural objects found from this region
such as clay seals and figurines as well as housing pattern indicate connections with
Mediterranean and the Near East. Another significant culture in Southeast Europe was Starcevo
culture (6200–5200 bce) located on the northern shore of Danube River in Serbia opposite
Belgrade in Western Balkans. It was spread over a large geographical area covering present day
Hungary, Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Northern Croatia. Agriculture and stockbreeding were the
basis of the economy but hunting also played an important supplementary role. Starcevo cul-
ture is especially known for painted pottery, which is archaeologically significant as they help
in fixing an exact date of these paintings and analyse the growth of its progression.
In the central part of the Balkan Peninsula, the most significant Neolithic culture was
Lepenski Vir, a multi-period settlement located on the banks of Danube in Eastern Serbia in the
Iron Gates Gorge region. Radiocarbon dates for this site has been stated to be between 6500
and 5700 bce. Findings have revealed that people here lived in trapezoidal plan huts, each with
stone hearths with anthromorphic sculptures. Evidence of pottery has been traced since 6500
bce. Although animal bones have been found in plenty in the early stage of the settlement, they
do not suggest domestication; evidence of plant domestication is also missing. In the later
stages, however, evidence of both has been found along with Neolithic ceramics. This has
brought into picture several suggestions regarding the growth of Neolithic in Lepenski Vir.
 70 Ancient and Medieval World

According to one interpretation, people here were primarily hunters, supplemented their liveli-
hood by fishing and foraging and adopted domesticated plants and livestock very late. Another
view suggests that the interaction between Iron Gate foragers and the nearby farmers in the
nearby areas led to the growth of Neolithisation of the Lepenski Vir community. Regarding this
interaction, R. Tringham (2000) is of the opinion that this interaction was the crucial aspect in
the transition towards Neolithic and says that ‘it was a two-way process of “Neolithisation”, in
which the agriculturists as well as the foragers were radically and quickly transformed’.

Central Europe
In Central Europe, the earliest Neolithic farmers is traditionally said to belong to the Bandkeramik
cultures that originated at around 5500 bce and continued up until 4500 bce. Starting from middle
Danube, this culture spread to areas covered by modern day Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Germany,
Poland and France, covering an area of 1,500 km. The Bandkeramik cultures (also known as
Danubians) are especially known for distinctive and homogeneous linear decorated pottery
(hence the term ‘Linear Band Ware’ or Linear Bandkeramik or LBK). It was a small and scattered
settlement situated on well-watered valleys and fertile (loess) soils with individual rectangular
houses made of timber and thatch and spread over 500 acres. The early farmers of this settlement
are said to have cultivated einkorn and emmer wheat, barley, peas and other minor crops such as
flax and poppy. Brian Fagan (2010) is of the opinion that the above varieties of crops were grown
here through crop rotation and fallowing method, which enabled the farmers to remain in the
same place for long periods of time. There are clear evidences of domestication of cattle and pig
along with fencing fields and that of animals from the Bandkeramik sites. Sheep and goats were
also kept by the farming community but cattle were dominant.
Based on recent evidence pointing towards contact between farmers and foragers (as
reflected in imitative potteries, fortification of farming settlement) from the Bandkeramik set-
tlements, one group of scholars opine that it was a classic case of colonisation by farming
groups from Southeast Europe. On the other hand, based on recent evidences from Switzerland,
France and Germany, few authors, highlighting the role of late-Mesolithic communities, point
out that the earliest part of Neolithic in Bandkeramik was marked by heterogeneity in the arte-
facts and patterns of exchange, suggesting indigenous change from foraging to food production
or adoption rather than homogeneous colonisation.

Northern Europe
Agriculture developed comparatively late in North and Northwest Europe. In Chapter 1, we had
argued that this part of Europe witnessed flourishing Mesolithic cultures as sufficient food
resources and intensification of hunting and gathering did not require these communities to
look for an alternative adaptive strategy. Another reason cited for a delayed growth of Neolithic
in this region was that even though this area had been at the boundary of the Bandkeramik
culture, the latter’s expansion stopped before it reached the Atlantic and the Baltic coasts and
further expansion did not occur before the passage of at least 1,500 years. Peter Bogucki (1999)
has argued that unlike the dry uplands of Central Europe, these regions had been inhabited by
large population of indigenous foragers who had no immediate need for agriculture. However,
there are indeed evidences from Northern France, Belgium, Northern Germany and Scandinavia
of contact (potteries, tools and domesticated species) between these late-Mesolithic
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 71

hunter-foragers and early-Neolithic farmers. Talking about the introduction of domestic animals
and plants in Northern Europe, P. Bogucki says that modifications to the landscape by the
Mesolithic foragers, which created lush artificial glades (open areas), may have provided the
escaped (from the nearby farming settlement) cattle, sheep and goats with excellent conditions
for survival which then became a part of the forager’s diet before being domesticated. Crops
and agricultural techniques, according to Bogucki, could have been traded from farmers in
exchange for forest products such as furs, game and honey. Besides the above-mentioned areas
of Northern Europe, Neolithic also spread to Britain and Ireland, but the evidence of cultivation
of cereals in these areas has not been found before 4000 bce. But the sudden appearance of
Neolithic material culture in this region after 4000 bce has led scholars to suggest that it was an
outcome of colonisation. But others, on the basis of the fact that there is not easily distinguish-
able Mesolithic and Neolithic artefacts, argue that Neolithic may have resulted from indigenous
adoption rather than colonisation.
From the provided analysis, it is clear that the growth of agriculture in Europe was not a
uniform process. Agriculture in Europe developed through several mechanisms involving colo-
nisation, adoption as well as through interaction between farming and foraging communities.
In those parts of Europe where the settlement were sparsely populated as found in Greece and
Central Europe, growth of agriculture has been described as a result of colonisation by the
farming population. Whereas the areas where there was a heavy concentration of hunter-­
forager communities, agriculture is said to have been adopted quite late, largely on account of
indigenous efforts. But one must concede the fact that Europe covered a very large area and no
single cause can explain the growth of farming and herding in the whole of Europe. This is
substantiated by a plethora of debates among scholars arising out of recent findings from dif-
ferent regions of Europe. Neolithic assemblage from Europe is still in the process of being
analysed, which leaves ample scope for the emergence of new perspectives on origin of agricul-
ture in different parts of Europe in future.

ANIMAL HUSBANDRY
Definition
Peter J. Ucko and G. W. Dimbelby (1969) have defined domestication of animals as a process of
genetic selection of certain species of animals, emphasising special features of continuing use
to the domesticator. Elaborating further, they point out that wild sheep has no extra wool, wild
cows do not produce surplus milk but only that much which is necessary for its offspring, and
undomesticated chicken do not lay surplus eggs. It is clear from the definition that humans
chose those mutant species for domestication that provided extra benefits to them. Brian M.
Fagan (2010) elaborates the same by suggesting that changes in wool bearing, lactation or sur-
plus egg production could be achieved by isolating wild population for selective breeding under
human care. Isolating mutant species from a larger gene pool produced domestic sheep with
thick, woolly coats and domestic goats providing regular supply of milk that became staple diet
of many human groups. Talking on similar lines, Sandor Bokonyi (1994) argues that in the pro-
cess of animal domestication, individuals of species with certain psychological characteristics
are captured and tamed, they are taken out of their natural habitat and breeding community,
and kept and bred under human control for human benefit, though they are given food and
protection at the same time. Animal husbandry or domestication of animals was a crucial
 72 Ancient and Medieval World

element of the Neolithic way of life. This, along with agriculture, brought about fundamental
change in the productive forces of the society as a whole. The process of animal domestication
ran parallel to plant domestication, and, like cultivation of cereals, it was a gradual process
involving several stages. Again, like farming, Southwest Asia was also the nuclear zone for
animal husbandry. In Europe, while domestication of certain animal species developed inde-
pendently, some domesticated species indeed had Southwest Asian background.

Identification of Wild and Domesticated

Before we enter into a discussion on the processes of animal husbandry, it is essential to anal-
yse briefly how one, from the present available evidence, can distinguish between domesticated
and wild animals. In this context, it is necessary to mention here that the archaeological evi-
dence related to early domestication of animals is scarce and is limited to bones found from the
farming settlements. Applying the method of bone crystal analysis, archaeo-zoologists have
tried to make distinction between wild and domesticated animals. Until the 1990s, a drastic
reduction in the size of the species was considered as an important marker to distinguish
between wild and domesticated animals. But in recent days, researches of Melinda A. Zeder and
others have put this notion under scrutiny. Zeder (2006) has argued that sex of the species in
question as well as environmental conditions most often determined the size of the animals and
therefore it should not be considered as the yardstick to distinguish between wild and domes-
ticated species. Elaborating further, Zeder points out that rather than domestic status, the
skeletal remains suggest marked and consistent difference between larger males and smaller
females. Moreover, environmental conditions such as increasing heat and aridity most likely
affected the size of the animals. Therefore, in recent days, size of the animal is no longer con-
sidered as an important transitional factor between wild and domesticated.
Another important marker of identification between wild and domesticated is the age at
which the animal was killed. It is generally believed that a hunting community prefers to kill
adult beasts as they provide the best meat both qualitatively and quantitatively whereas herd
owners kill younger and surplus male sheep, goats and cattle for meat and keep females until
they cross the age of lambing and lactating. This method of identification was particularly
applied for the sheep bones found at Zawi Chemi Shanidar in Zagros Mountains in the Near
East. However, from some European and West Asian sites, where large-scale domestication was
carried out, large numbers of bones of adult wild animals have been found. The reason cited for
this deviation is that young individuals were not killed but captured for taming but adult ones
were killed for their meat. Another method of identification of wild and domesticated animal is
the nature of dentition (number, kind and arrangement of teeth), wherever complete skull of
the animals has been found. This is based on the fact that the nature of dentition among animals
undergoes a change after the process of domestication.

Early Causes of Domestication

Several reasons have been cited which compelled or motivated humans to domesticate animals.
The main reason for domestication has of course been identified as an economic necessity as
the drastic decline of wild animals after the end of Pleistocene period had created a livelihood
crisis type of a situation for the humans. Therefore, the main aim of domestication was that
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 73

people wanted to be independent of their reliance on natural availability of games, which had
made hunting of pray unpredictable due to extinction of large number of animal species. In
other words, through domestication, humans were creating readymade food reserves that
could be used anytime they felt necessary. This can be substantiated by the fact that wild spe-
cies of most of the domesticated animals in the Near East, such as, sheep, goats, boar and
cattle, were intensively hunted for their meat prior to their domestication. Many scholars have
tried to relate domestication with sedentism. While few argue that human sedentism was a
necessary precondition of animal domestication, others like Sandor Bokonyi (1994) points out
that domestication did take place among nomads in extreme climatic conditions such as
domestication of reindeer by the northern nomads, but he does concede that real animal hus-
bandry did not develop. He further argues that although there is no obvious link between sed-
entism and domestication but keeping, taming and breeding of large number of animals was not
possible without some primitive kind of corrals, which would presuppose a temporary settled
life at least. Similarly, Bokonyi argues, supplying a large settled community with food is hardly
imaginable without animal domestication. A third explanation of the causes of domestication is
the potential use of animals in the ritualistic sacrifices. In the upper Palaeolithic period, proof
of dogs being placed in graves with humans by the Magdalenians in Central Europe have been
found. Evidence of sacrifice of domesticated cattle (instead of wild aurochs) has also been
found from Çatalhöyük in Anatolia dated between 7000 and 6000 bce. In Lepenski Vir in the
Danube region, evidence of domestic dogs being used as sacrificial animal has been found
dated around 5000 bce. These findings do suggest that sacrifice was indeed at the back of
human mind while domesticating animals.

Process of Domestication
There is a general agreement among the scholars that animal husbandry was a long and com-
plicated process involving several generations of domesticators as well as the domesticated.
Domestication of animals did not merely result out of human necessity but was a culmination
of experience and knowledge that several human generations gained in the process of hunting
about anatomy, biology, physiology and psychology of several wild animal species. Although it
is difficult to exactly pinpoint the period when domestication began but some plausible expla-
nation, based on the available research, can be given as to how the process of animal husbandry
began. Animal domestication was preceded by intensive hunting of some animal species prior
to their domestication. During the upper Palaeolithic period, the Magdaleneans of Southwest
France were intensively hunting reindeer, and, at the end of the Palaeolithic period, Natufians
in West Asia were concentrating on gazelles. Similarly, in the northern part of the Caspian Sea
area near Iran, human communities extensively hunted wild sheep and goats. From this, it is
very clear that humans targeted gregarious animals for hunting which proved to be beneficial
for domestication as well because gregarious (herd) animals follow the dominant leader or
move together and so they were easy to domesticate. Moreover, herd animals easily join a new
breeding community, any domestic herd. Kent Flannery (1973), in this context, argues that
penned gregarious animals can be, in a sense, regarded as a ‘reserve’ of food, protected, stored
and maintained against hard times. But we all know that not every gregarious animal can be
domesticated, therefore key to domestication was the study of their psychological features.
Less violent or docile animals were the preferred ones.
 74 Ancient and Medieval World

Thus the process of domestication seems to have begun with specialised hunting where one
or more of animal herds were targeted and followed by the humans during their wanderings.
Humans gradually started protecting the chosen herds from wild animals and other human
hunters considering such herds as their property. Later, humans started regulated hunting of the
herd by first killing superfluous males. The next stage was to restrict the wanderings of the
herds but, as yet, no attempt was made to bring them out of their natural habitat. A Little later,
it is believed, humans started to capture, tame and domesticate young individual animals. Thus,
an important initial stage before domestication was capturing and taming of the animals
through individual attention. Actual domestication of animals involves breeding in captivity of
species that are taken out of their natural breeding community and kept in new group of domes-
tic herds that may be at times bigger in size than the wild herd. Breeding under human control
brought about changes in the social and sexual character of the wild animals.

Animal Keeping and Animal Breeding

Animals were domesticated by humans for the benefit of the latter and therefore domestication
had to involve such methods that went beyond satisfying the immediate food requirement of
humans. In other words, humans had to indulge in conscious breeding to continue to reap ben-
efits of domestication. Taking this into account, Sandor Bokonyi (1994) distinguishes between
two stages of animal domestication, namely, animal keeping and animal husbandry. He consid-
ers animal keeping as an initial and primitive kind of animal husbandry in which conscious
breeding was missing and therefore feeding to the animal was both qualitatively and quantita-
tively unsatisfactory. Features of animal keeping included limited number of breeds. Domestic
animals were primitive types and their size also fell far below that of their wild form.
Nevertheless, Bokonyi points out, certain kind of primitive breeding selection did exist through
the introduction of castration of bulls, bucks and boars mainly at a young stage, eliminating
natural selection. Elaborating further, Bokonyi points out that young females were not killed
whereas two-third males were killed. Females were killed at sub-adulthood stage after being
used once for lambing, and, at this stage, one-fourth of males were killed. Thus, less than 10 per
cent of male with almost 20 per cent of the females formed the precious breeding community
in this initial stage of domestication. However, there was no conscious selection aimed at
higher productivity with respect to achieving more milk, meat, speed and more or finer wool.
Animal breeding, on the other hand, was based on conscious breeding selection and satisfac-
tory feeding, both qualitatively and quantitatively. Talking about features of animal breeding,
Sandor Bokonyi (1994) argues that in a population of domesticated herds, several breeds live
together, and, in certain species such as horse and hen, the size of the domesticated animals
increased, exceeding that of even their wild forms and productivity of domestic animals also
increased. Animal breeding brought about several genetic changes among domesticated animals.
This included an enormous increase in the variability of species in comparison to their wild form,
richness of breeds in many domestic species as well as increase in the speed of their evolution.

Animal Domestication in Southwest Asia and Europe

Although there is no clarity on the issue of the place of origin of animal husbandry, it is gener-
ally agreed that animal domestication did not begin at one single centre and also that this
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 75

process began as soon as humans reached a certain stage of cultural and economic develop-
ment. At this stage, in several areas, domestication of locally available wild animal species
began. Traditionally, it was believed that animal domestication started with Neolithic but now,
based on recent data, many argue that earliest traces of animal domestication can be traced
back to Mesolithic or even late-Palaeolithic period. For example, domestication of dogs and
pigs can be traced back to 18,000 bce. But it is true that this attempt at domestication did not
go beyond taming and keeping of these animals and true animal husbandry could not develop.
The primary reason was that the food requirements of dogs and pigs were similar to those of
humans and that these requirements could be met by human leftovers, which was a major
obstacle to large-scale domestication of animals. On the other hand, animals like sheep, goats
and cattle could easily survive on agricultural by-products and therefore experimentation in
domestication of these animals successfully began as soon as farming developed.
Southwest Asia, where farming developed first was also the location of early domestica-
tion of goats, sheep and cattle while pigs and dogs were domesticated earlier. Due to several
reasons Southwest Asia can be considered as an ideal nuclear zone for domestication of
animals. Andrew Smith (1992) believes that the first domesticated animals came from arid
conditions where it was easier to control the movement of animal herds. Brian Fagan is of the
opinion that such climatic conditions existed in much of Southwest Asia too as climate
became drier after 7000 bce. Apart from this, wild forms of all five primary domesticated ani-
mals (dogs, sheep, goats, pigs and cattle) were available in plenty here due to favourable
climatic conditions. Sheep and goats were considered as best subjects for experimentation in
domestication because (a) they could survive on fodder such as straw and hey which were
rich in cellulose and were mainly by-products of agriculture; (b) they were small sized ani-
mals and did not pose any danger to humans; (c) they tended to stick to their flock; and
(d) they had undemanding food habits. Besides, wild species of cultivated cereals such as
emmer and einkorn wheat and barley were available in plenty in Southwest Asia and cultiva-
tion started at about the same time as domestication of animals, and, by ninth millennium bce,
all five early domesticated animals appeared in this region (for the order of animal domestica-
tion in Southwest Asia, see Table 2.1).

Table 2.1  Order of Early Animal Domestication in Southwest Asia

Species Scientific Name Date of Domestication Location
Dog Canis lupus familiaris 14,000 bp Palegawra Cave (Northeast Iraq)
Sheep Ovis orientalis aries Zawi Chemi Shanidar,
11,000 bp (Northeast Iraq); Possibly
domesticated
Ali Kosh, (Western Iran);
9500–8750 bp
Definitely domesticated
Goat Capra aegagrus hircus Asiab, Ganj Dareh and Ali Kosh
10,000 bp (Western Iran), also Jericho
(Palestine)
Pig Sus scrofa domestica 8750 bp Qala at Jarmo (Northeast Iraq)
Cattle Bos primiginius taurus 8400 bp Çatalhöyük (Anatolia)
 76 Ancient and Medieval World

The reasons cited for rapid expansion of animal domestication in Southwest Asia is that it pro-
vided the optimum environmental conditions for domestication where cattle needed areas rich
in pastures, pigs needed water in abundance and caprovines (sheep and goats) fared well in arid
conditions. But one must mention here that the story of animal domestication in this region was
not uniform and was limited to fertile valleys along the major rivers or in the piedmonts of large
mountains. In high mountainous regions, where environmental conditions were harsh, the
attempts at animal husbandry was less successful and therefore humans had to rely more on
hunting for their subsistence.
Regarding domestication of animals in Europe, there is a tremendous ongoing debate among
two groups of scholars with one, suggesting diffusion of animal husbandry from Near East to
Europe by colonising herdsmen whereas the other group argues for parallel and independent
growth of animal domestication in Europe with the Near East. But the new archaeological data
and genetic studies (of ancient and modern DNA) have ruled out indigenous domestication of
sheep and goats in Europe, and the so called wild sheep and goats found in the Mediterranean
islands have now been described as the descendants of Near Eastern caprovines group. The
available genetic data also supports the introduction of cattle into Europe from the Near East.
However, recent genetic data for pigs present a different picture and suggests indigenous
domestication of wild boar in Europe.
In Europe, the climatic conditions in the areas south of Balkans (particularly in Greece) in
the mid-ninth millennium bce was similar to the Near East and so 80 per cent of the skeletal
remains of the domestic fauna comprises of sheep and goat followed by pigs, cattle and dogs.
Greece was a hot and dry zone, therefore suited for raising sheep and goats, and provided
humans enough animal-based food thus obviating the necessity of hunting and fishing for addi-
tional proteins. In the second half of ninth millennium bce, sheep- and goat-based animal hus-
bandry then moved from Greece to Northeastern and then towards Central and Eastern Europe.
In temperate zone, such as Southern Europe, the climatic conditions did not favour ideal breed-
ing ground for sheep and goats and therefore caprovines-based animal husbandry could not
develop to the extent that it developed in other parts of Europe. This led human groups in this
region had to base their economy on animal species suited to temperate conditions.
An interesting aspect of animal domestication in Europe was the drastic difference in the
early- and late-Neolithic patterns. Up to early-Neolithic period, most of the domesticated ani-
mals were mainly used as a source of meat apart from their less frequent use (in case of dogs)
as sacrificial animal, for hunting sheep and goats and as herd or watch dogs. The primary use
of sheep, goats and cattle at this stage was also as food source and there was no attempt to use
them for milk, wool or in case of cattle, draught power. But in the later phase of Neolithic, there
appears to be a ‘domestication fever’ as domestication of caprovines, pigs and cattle spread
rapidly throughout Europe so that by the end of the Neolithic period, hunting lost its impor-
tance. Further, as the human population rose, there was an extension in the area under cultiva-
tion which destroyed the habitat of the wild animal species, thus promoting animal
husbandry.

Impact of Animal Husbandry

Domestication of animals was undertaken not as a pastime, but it developed out of human
economic necessities. Impact of animal husbandry on humans was manifold but it was not
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 77

one way. Animals also benefitted from this process as many of the species could not have sur-
vived the frequently changing climatic conditions had it not been for the genetic change
induced in them by humans in the process of domestication. Thus, in a way, humans and animal
species shared a symbiotic relationship. While in the initial phase human benefitted from
animal products such as meat, milk and wool, later humans started using ox and horse for
ploughing purposes as well as for transportation, thus bringing about qualitative change in their
social and economic lives. There were some negative aspects too of animal domestication as
human contact with animals brought new kinds of diseases as animal pathogens entered human
species. The impact of animal husbandry on animals was more pronounced as the animals went
through considerable genetic changes. Charles Darwin, who was among the first to study the
changes, pointed out that with domestication, the variability of animals in comparison to their
wild form enormously increased along with qualitative improvement in breed in some species.
The captive breeding of animals speeded up the process of evolution, also bringing about
mutant species. There were some common and parallel changes witnessed in several species
brought under domestication, which were related to overall size of the animals. There was a
general reduction in the size of most species in comparison to their wild forms with some
exceptions such as horse whose size increased during the process of domestication. Other
changes included reduction in the body proportion due to reduction in the size of the skull,
changes in the structure of the bones, changes in teeth pattern (which became smaller and
crowded), refining of the hair and wool, most important change being appearance of long wool
which was caused by sudden mutation that delayed the early change of wool fibres.

Summary
1. The origin and dispersal of food production has been a hotly debated subject among
scholars. Various factors such as climatic, demographic, social and cultural have
been used in an attempt to provide causation to the beginning of farming.
2. Earliest theories were related with climatic crisis (desiccation) in the early-Holocene
period affecting flora and fauna that led to the extinction of large number of animal
species and forcing the remaining animal species and humans to move towards
water-rich areas. Here, a symbiotic relationship between human and animals pro-
vided the impetus for the growth of farming and animal husbandry. But a more sci-
entific analysis of the post-Pleistocene climatic conditions rejected this theory
though not entirely.
3. Post-1950 or modern theories consider growth of agriculture as a process rather
than a phenomenon. In these, multiple causes have been highlighted to explain the
beginning of agriculture. The modern theories can be studied under ‘push’, ‘pull’,
social and cultural models.
4. The ‘push’ theories mainly deal with imbalance between natural resources and
demographic expansion caused by sedentism in areas with sufficient natural
resources. Demographic expansion and the resulting population–resource imbal-
ance forced humans to move towards marginal areas (with limited food resources)
(Continued)
78 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

and to broaden their diet. This led to experimentation with wild seeds and ultimately
food production. Risks (draughts, floods, etc.) associated with environmental
changes have also been considered as a factor in these theories. It has been argued
that a simple cultural and technological solution to deal with such environmental
risks was to produce cereals that could be stored during such periods.
5. The ‘pull’ models try to identify special characteristics of certain plants (mutant
varieties) that attracted humans towards them. The increasing reliance on these
mutant plants at the expense of other food resources forced humans to cultivate
them and abandon plant gathering and hunting. Proponents of this theory also talk
about a change in human diet from narrow- to broad-spectrum food resources prior
to the beginning of farming.
6. Social theories emphasise on increasing social complexities in the post-­Pleistocene
period as reflected in exchange of trade goods. This created an economic and social
pressure for the humans to produce more and more surplus goods, including food
not only for subsistence but also to successfully engaged in exchange. Few social
theorists also talk about transformation in human society from band society to
proto-household society that provided the necessary impetus to produce food.
7. Cultural models point out the human capacity for innovation and experimentation
as a factor behind the growth of agriculture. It argues that in the ‘nuclear zones’
where potentially domesticable plants and animals were available in plenty, humans
experimented and intervened in the natural process of growth of plants and animals.
ultimately leading to domestication of both.
8. Some scholars have tried to explain the origin of agriculture, using multivariate fac-
tors such as availability of food resources in a particular climatic zone, population
pressures, seasonal distribution of plants and the rate at which environmental
change took place.
9. The traditional meaning of the term ‘Neolithic’ was limited to food production and
animal husbandry. But subsequently in the last 50 years, the scope of the term was
extended to include other cultural landmarks such as grinding and polishing of
stones, manufacture of potteries, emergence of figurines, house architecture and
manufacture of artefacts for cutting and grinding of grains. In recent days, continu-
ous interaction between farming and hunting-gathering communities has also been
added as an important marker of a Neolithic society.
10. The tremendous changes brought about in the human society and economy paving
way for the growth of civilisation has led some scholars like V. Gordon Childe (1936)
to describe this period as ‘Neolithic revolution’. Many scholars have questioned this
notion on some ground or the other. But the remarkable changes that the Neolithic
developments brought about in the quality of human life within a short span of time
compared to earlier developments which took millions of years, certainly qualifies
this period to earn the epithet of ‘Neolithic revolution’.
11. The origin of Neolithic has been traced to Southwest Asia in general (about 10,500
years ago) and the ‘Fertile Crescent’ in particular, covering an arc stretching from
Southern Levant, Mesopotamian lowlands to the foothills of Zagros Mountains in
Western Iran.
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 79

12. In Southwest Asia, the Neolithic cultures were concentrated in three major regions:
(a) Levant (Jericho and Abu Hureyra) (b) foothills of Zagros Mountains and
Mesopotamia (Zawi Chemi Shanidar, Ganj Dareh, Ali Kosh and Jarmo) and (c) Ana­
tolia (Cayonu, Haçilar and Çatalhöyük)
13. Agriculture in Europe began 2000 years after Southwest Asia. There is a fierce ongo-
ing debate over the issue of origin of agriculture in Europe represented by two
groups of scholars. While one suggests diffusion of agriculture from Southwest Asia
to Europe by the colonising farmers of the Near East the other group, it emphasises
on independent growth of domestication of plants in Europe through the process of
adoption and other means such as interaction between farming and hunting-gather-
ing communities.
14. In Europe, the region that witnessed earliest growth of agriculture (about 6500 bce)
was South and Southeast Europe with Argissa Magoula, Franchthi Cave, Karanovo,
Starcevo and Lepenski Vir as prominent Neolithic cultures. In Central Europe,
Neolithic began at around 5500 bce and is best represented by the Bandkeramik
culture in the Danube region. Agriculture developed quite late (about 4000 bce) in
Northern Europe, as sufficient hunting-gathering resources in this region did not
require humans to produce food for a long time. In Northern Europe, Neolithic fea-
tures have been found in France, Belgium, Northern Germany, Scandinavia, England
and Ireland.
15. Animal husbandry refers to human-induced genetic changes in few animal species
through captive breeding and other methods for the benefit of humans. But in the
process, animals too benefitted as the genetic change in them ensured better sur-
vival in the frequently changing climatic conditions of the Holocene period. Animal
domestication was a result of prolonged process of human observation of animal
behaviour, their anatomy and biology. Archaeo-zoologists have used several yard-
sticks to distinguish between wild and domesticated animals. On the basis of bone
crystal analysis as well as genetic study of the skeletal remains, scholars have stud-
ied bone size, dentition and the age at which the animals were killed as the criteria
to distinguish between wild and domesticated.
16. Development of animal husbandry went parallel to farming in Southwest Asia as this
region provided ideal setting for such domesticated animals—sheep, goats and
cattle—that fared well in a hot and dry conditions with sufficient water resources.
These animals could also survive on cellulose contained in the by-products of agri-
culture (straw and hey). Most Neolithic sites of Southwest Asia have provided evi-
dence of domestication of five animal species—sheep, goats, cattle, pigs and dogs.
17. Regarding animal domestication in Europe, there is no unanimity among scholars.
While one group of scholars suggests introduction of domesticable animals to
Europe by the Near Eastern herders, the other group emphasises on parallel and
independent growth of animal husbandry in Europe with the Near East. But recent
genetic and other scientific studies have convincingly demonstrated that except pos-
sibly pigs and dogs, all three early domesticated animals (sheep, goats and cattle)
were introduced in Europe from the Near East.

(Continued)
 80 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

18. Within Europe, the areas south of Balkans (Greece) provided the ideal conditions
for the domestication of sheep, goats and cattle. From here, this process moved to
Central and Eastern Europe while in temperate zone of Europe, adverse climatic
conditions did not promote caprovines-based animal husbandry and people relied
on such animals suited to these climatic conditions.
19. The impact of animal husbandry on humans was manifold. Humans benefitted from
the animal by-products such as milk and skin besides meat. Later, humans started
using animals for ploughing as well as transportation, which brought about qualita-
tive change in the human society and economy. Animals too benefitted from this
process as the genetic change induced in them by humans through captive breeding
improved their breeds apart from bringing about an increase in the variety of spe-
cies. This helped animals survive in the changing climatic conditions besides getting
food and protection from the humans.

KEYWORDS
Holocene domestication oases symbiotic ecology equilibrium sedentism
habitat mutation foraging demographic Neolithic rachis revolution ceramic
aceramic recalibration Dryas Shamanistic diffusion bartering husbandry optimum
caprovines

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. Critically analyse various theories related to the beginning of agriculture.
2. What role did climatic factors play in the beginning of agriculture in Southwest Asia and
Europe?
3. Discuss the relative importance of climatic and demographic factors in the origin of
agriculture.
4. What according to you brought about a transformation in the human adaptive strategy
from hunting-gathering to food production?
5. What do you understand by the term ‘Neolithic’? Discuss the chief features of Neolithic
cultures of Southwest Asia.
6. What is ‘Neolithic Revolution’? Do you think that the changes brought about during the
Neolithic period deserve the epithet of revolution?
7. Was the origin of agriculture in Europe a result of dispersal from the Near East or that of
indigenous efforts? Substantiate your views by analysing few Neolithic cultures of
Europe.
8. Discuss the chief features of Neolithic cultures of Europe.
9. Define animal husbandry and discuss its growth in Southwest Asia and Europe.
10. What led to the domestication of animals? What was its impact on humans and animal
species?
 Beginnings of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 81

REFERENCES
Adams, Robert McCormick. 1983. ‘The Jarmo Stone and Pottery Vessel Industry’. In Prehistoric Archaeology
along the Zagros Flanks, Vol. 105, edited by Braidwood Linda S., Robert J. Braidwood, Bruce Howe,
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CHAPTER
Bronze Age

3 Civilisations I:
Mesopotamia and Egypt

Chapter Contents

• Defining ‘Civilisation’
• The ‘Urban Revolution’
• Mesopotamia (Until the Akkadian Dynasty)
• Egypt (Until the Old Kingdom)
• Summary

DEFINING ‘CIVILISATION’

T
he emergence of civilisations in the post-Neolithic period is widely considered as a sig-
nificant development in the human adaptive process. However, while it has been easy to
describe the characteristics of civilisation, defining the term has remained problematic.
The word ‘civilisation’ has been derived from the Latin civilis (civil), which is often related to
civis (citizen) and civitas (city). Later, French term civilisè (civilised) was used in the context
of civilisation. The modern connotation of the term sometimes relates it with ‘civility’ (civilised
behaviour) or with ‘human progress’ which pitches a progressive society against less developed
ones. European scholars of the late-19th and early-20th centuries ce considered a linear pro-
gression of human societies consisting of three stages—savagery (Palaeolithic age), barbarism
(Neolithic age) and civilisation (Bronze Age). Both connotations have failed to define civilisa-
tion, as both are value loaded and subjective. The notion of ‘civilised’ behaviour cannot have a
uniform application as what may be considered as ‘civilised’ for a particular society may not be
considered so in the context of other cultures. Besides, such notions tend to overplay the dif-
ferences between two societies and ignore the similarities. Similarly, the notion of ‘progress’ in
connection with civilisation creates a value judgmental differentiation between less advanced
and more advanced societies, and implicit behind this is the perception that ‘low’ cultures are
likely to adopt the innovations of ‘high’ cultures. Since civilisation is a cultural term, historians
have tended to look for the cultural attributes of societies to establish whether such societies
 84 Ancient and Medieval World

can be placed in the category of civilisation or not. Archaeologists, in recent days, tend to relate
civilisation with organisational attributes such as urbanisation and state formation. This may
not provide a comprehensive definition of the word ‘civilisation’ but along with other charac-
teristics, this provides us with an analytical tool to assess the cultural progress of the human
societies in comparison to the earlier ones.
Since archaeological research into early civilisations has been centred on excavations of
cities, it is natural that the earliest attempt to explain the origin of civilisation focused on cities
and state-organised societies. Thus, on this basis scholars, while dealing with pre-industrial
societies (particularly ancient societies), have reached a general consensus on some shared
civilisational characteristics which are (a) city-based societies with a complex social organisa-
tion which are largely inegalitarian, (b) civilisations that are usually based on a large territory
such as those of Egypt (encompassing the entire Nile valley) and Mesopotamia (covering the
entire region between rivers Tigris and Euphrates) in comparison to kinship-based chieftain-
cies, (c) societies with symbiotic economies (agricultural and non-agricultural activities sup-
porting each other) based on centralised accumulation of capital (denoting existence of a state)
through tribute and taxation to support the non-producers such as metalworkers and priests,
(d) long-distance trade (highlighting an exchange relationship with not only neighbouring soci-
eties but also those situated in far-off areas) and craft specialisation (indicating division of
labour) is also often associated with civilisation, (e) written script for the purpose of record
keeping and progress towards science and mathematics, (f) existence of monumental public
buildings and (g) some form of state-controlled unified religion.

THE ‘URBAN REVOLUTION’

V. Gordon Childe (1950) was the first archaeologist-cum-historian to provide a comprehensive
theory related to the beginning of civilisation and despite several contestations, it remains, until
date, the basic reference point of any study related to ancient and medieval cities. Gordon
Childe’s notion of civilisation is connected with urbanisation with interrelated characteristics.
Childe talks about an ‘Urban Revolution’ that followed ‘Neolithic revolution’ and points out
several characteristics of this urban phenomenon. He theorises that the post-Neolithic period
saw the growth of cities that were more extensive and densely populated than any previous
settlements. In these settlements, development of metallurgy created a new class of fulltime
specialists. Since the new specialists were not involved in food production, they were fed by
the food surplus generated by the peasants. This surplus was made possible by a new agricul-
tural technology (mainly use of bronze tools) and use of irrigation methods that increased
productivity. Requirement of continuous surplus production (to feed the non-producers) and its
distribution led to the growth of a centralised authority to control food supplies, its production
and distribution. Tribute and taxation enforced by the centralised authority led to accumulation
of capital. Concentration of surplus in few hands created a class stratified society. Writing was
developed which was essential for keeping records and for developing exact and predictive
sciences and mathematics. Such societies also developed long-distance trade which was direct
outcome of the development of transportation through land and water. The urban life was
dominated by a unifying religious force attempted by the priest-kings, which can be testified by
monumental architecture. The ten traits of civilisation—(a) densely populated cities, (b) exis-
tence of specialist class, (c) food surplus, (d) centralised authority, (e) accumulation of capital,
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 85

(f) class-stratified society, (g) development of writing, science and mathematics, (h) existence
of long-distance trade, (i) unified religion and (j) monumental architecture—have been used by
archaeologist as a check list in their study of early states as well as a starting point to evaluate
the usefulness of each trait.
However, Gordon Childe’s hypotheses on ‘Urban Revolution’ has been criticised for its flaws
as an all-embracing definition of civilisation. It has been pointed out that Childe’s criteria of
civilisation are far from universal as some popular and lasting civilisations such as those of
Minoans and Mycenaeans never had cities while the Mayan civilisation had semi-urban popula-
tion surrounded by scattered rural population. Similarly, writing was missing from the Inca
civilisation of Peru. But if we broaden Childe’s concept of writing to formal record keeping then
this was an important and universal characteristics of early states. Similarly, it has been argued
by the critics that development of practical sciences, calendars and mathematics are traits that
developed long before the states, but there is no denying the fact that major advances in science
and mathematics occurred with early states. It has also been argued that craft specialisation and
religious structure are typical of most civilisations but cannot form the basis of overall definition
of civilisation. Robert M. Adams (1966) and some others have pointed out that the term ‘urban
revolution’ gives undue emphasis on the city while defining civilisation at the expense of social
change, that is, the development of social classes and political institutions. But it is clear that
Gordon Childe (1950) used the term ‘urban revolution’ to refer to a series of interrelated social,
political, economic and cultural changes rather than limiting the term to the development of
cities. Critics of Childe generally agree that complex societies emerged during this period of
major economic and social change but different scholars have emphasised on individual factors
such as ecology, population growth, technology, irrigation, trade, religious beliefs and even war-
fare that contributed to the rise of civilisations. However, when we realise that no one develop-
ment could lead to the emergence of cities or civilisations then we can appreciate the significance
of Childe’s notion of ‘Urban Revolution’ in defining a complex term such as civilisation.
In recent days, social changes associated with the Urban Revolution have retained its impor-
tance in the archaeological studies but the emphasis has now shifted from analysis of Urban
Revolution to the study of state with models such as ‘origin of states’, ‘primary state formation’
and ‘archaic states’. Use of sophisticated archaeological survey methods in recent decades,
such as, the use of satellite imagery, new methods in geomorphology (study of physical feature
of the earth and their relation to its geological structures) and other methods such as excava-
tion sampling, botanical identification and isotope dating, have further improved our under-
standing of the early states and cities. Although methods and concepts have advanced
considerably, most contemporary accounts of the evolution of the earliest states and cities
contain within them the basic civilisational traits outlined by Gordon Childe (1950). Moreover,
the archaeological study of ancient complex societies is still dominated by the themes of urban-
ism, surplus production, craft specialisation, social inequality and the nature of state, each of
which was explained in a systematic manner applying archaeological data first by V. Gordon
Childe way back in 1950.

MESOPOTAMIA (UNTIL THE AKKADIAN DYNASTY)

The word Mesopotamia has been derived from a combination of Greek words ‘mesos’ (middle)
and ‘potamos’ (rivers), hence derivatively a ‘land between two rivers’. The two rivers are
 86 Ancient and Medieval World

Euphrates (Purattu) and Tigris (Idiqlat), roughly covering modern Iraq and parts of Syria.
Mesopotamia (modern Iraq) is considered as the gift of these two rivers. Archaeological find-
ings have established that transition to Bronze from Neolithic age first took place in
Mesopotamia, which also produced the earliest civilisation, the Sumerian civilisation. The geog-
raphy of Mesopotamia, along with other factors, had an important role to play in the growth of
the earliest known civilisation of the world. The two rivers flow from north to south and drain
out in the Persian Gulf. Owing to different ecological conditions, Mesopotamia has been divided
into two distinct geographical regions—north and south. North Mesopotamia consists of the
areas between Zagros Mountains and middle Tigris, which is known as Assyria. South
Mesopotamia, covering area between middle Tigris and Persian Gulf, consists of two regions—
Akkad (near modern Baghdad) and Sumer that is the southernmost part of Mesopotamia. In the
beginning of second millennium bce, both regions together were called Babylon.
Northern Mesopotamia had plenty of rainfall to support cultivation of wheat, barley and
other crops in both summer and winter. Southern Mesopotamia, on the other hand, was an arid
zone with less rainfall but constituted the alluvial plains (delta) of the two rivers and was there-
fore highly fertile. The delta regions of the flood plain of Tigris and Euphrates is a hot low lying
area consisting of sandy, swampy and dry mud flat. But, despite a low rainfall and arid climate,
this region was cradle of world’s earliest civilisation. Tigris and Euphrates, which originated
from the Armenian mountains, flowed through several marshes on their way to the Persian Gulf
and, during the floods, carried with them silt from their upper reaches. The silt began to dry up
during the summer heat and the water gave place to alluvial plain that was more fertile than any
other area of the contemporary world. Among the two rivers, Tigris is rough and fast flowing as
after rising from the Anatolian plateau, it passes through a rugged terrain and causes violent
floods along with its three tributaries (upper Zab, lower Zab and the Diyala). On the other hand,
Euphrates is slower and more navigable as after rising from Anatolian plateau in Turkey, it
flows southwest into Syria and then turns southeast into Iraq before emptying into the Gulf. The
banks of Euphrates and its tributaries (Khabur and Balikh) are lower and hence more suitable
for irrigation with less violent floods. However, both the rivers provided excellent communica-
tion for people of this region. Euphrates was an important route of communication with Syria,
Central Turkey and the Mediterranean while Tigris and its tributaries facilitated links with
Eastern Turkey and the Iranian Plateau. Apart from transportation and irrigation, the rivers also
provided important food resources in the form of fishes and water birds. Availability of river
water also enabled sustenance of domestic cattle. The rivers also facilitated easy control of its
territory by the state which could send its army quickly through the river route.
It is clear from the description provided here that geography played a very important role in
the growth of Mesopotamian civilisation. But scholars, such as Lucien Febvre (1973), opine that
‘geography only provides with possibilities but a particular kind of genius is required to exploit
that possibility’. There is no doubt that the overall geographical condition of Mesopotamia
enabled sustenance of large human population but the civilisational features that developed in
Mesopotamia, such as, specialisation among craft persons (consequent upon growth of metal-
lurgy), rise of a complex political situation with state formation, emergence of class divisions,
organisation of trade, invention of writing, and construction of public buildings, required active
human intervention. One such area of human intervention was the growth of metallurgy. By the
end of Neolithic period, humans had come to know about the various uses of fire but metallurgy
that developed during this period provided the foundation of a new economic organisation.
Humans had started using copper by the late-Neolithic period but could not make full use of it
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 87

because taking an edge out of it was difficult. Metallurgy helped in procuring bronze by mixing
copper and tin which were imported by exchanging available surplus. However, like all earlier
human cultural developments, growth of civilisation in Mesopotamia was also a gradual pro-
cess, traces of which can be seen in the transitional cultures of both North and South
Mesopotamia, beginning from 6000 bce.

Transitional Cultures: North Mesopotamia

By about 6000 bce, food production had fully developed in Northern Mesopotamia, leading to
the growth of three successive late-Neolithic cultures in this region—Hassuna (6000–550 bce),
Samarra (5500–5000 bce) and Halaf (5500–4500 bce). A brief discussion on cultural develop-
ments of these cultures (see Map 3.1) would give us insights into various processes under play
before the growth of full-fledged Sumerian civilisation in South Mesopotamia.
Hassuna or Tell Hassuna (located in modern Nineveh province, Iraq) was a late-Neolithic
settlement mound and was situated on the west bank of Tigris river in the upper Tigris valley.
The site was discovered in 1942 by Fuad Safar, and it has been dated 6000–5350 bce. At Hassuna,
six different layers of houses have been found consisting of several rooms. Storage rooms and

MAP 3.1  Transitional Cultures of North Mesopotamia

Source: Adapted from a blank Middle East Topographical Map by Semhur. Available at [Link]
wiki/File:Near_East_topographic_map-[Link]
 88 Ancient and Medieval World

chimney were an integral part of these houses suggesting full-fledged successful adaptation by
the farmers along with raising domestic cattle. They settled in the valley and followed improved
irrigation methods. However, Hassuna is famous for its handmade vessels and potteries dated
from about 5600 bce. These potteries were painted and decorated with geometrical patterns.
Hassuna potteries have been found over a wider area of North Mesopotamia from upper Tigris
valley until the plains of modern Mosul situated 25–30 km away. This is suggestive of their
exchange relations with far-flung areas.
Samarra, dated 5500–5000 bce was situated in the middle Tigris region on the fringes of
Mesopotamian delta. By this time, people of Northern Mesopotamia had begun to settle down
in the middle Tigris region on the borders of South Mesopotamia. Rainfall was relatively
scarce in this area and the farmers had to rely on some amount of artificial irrigation, the
evidence (canals) of which has been found from Tell es-Sawwan and Choga Mami along with
the evidence of cultivation of wheat, barley and linseed (the production of the last crop
requiring plenty of water). The location of Samarran sites, on low ridges parallel to nearby
hills, made irrigation easy. The later settlements were located away from the naturally
flooded areas, suggesting improvement in the irrigation technique. Thus, Samarrans are con-
sidered as advanced farmers living in substantial villages measuring about 14.8 acres and
having a population of about 1,000 people. Archaeological findings from the Samarran sites
also include a ditch and a wall hinting at security concerns of the inhabitants. Samarra is also
known for finely made pottery, decorated with geometric designs and animal representation,
which are said to be widespread, suggesting social and economic bonds with people of the
surrounding region.
Halaf, dated 5500–4500 bce, was named after the site called Tell Halaf (modern Khabur
valley, North Syria). It developed in the earlier Hassuna territory and had Samarrans as their
southern neighbours. This culture represents the most advanced stage of Neolithic in Northern
Mesopotamia. Halafians followed dry farming and herding (mostly sheep and goats, supple-
mented by cattle and pigs). Although flint and obsidian materials were used for making tools,
traces of beads of copper has also been found from the Halafian sites, suggesting the possible
use of metal. However, the Halafian culture is more famous for manufacturing technically and
artistically high quality painted potteries. The potteries were painted and glossy which suggests
that they were fired at a very high temperature, giving them a characteristic shine. There is a
remarkable similarity in the use of pottery from one Halaf territory to another, which is sugges-
tive of continuous and effective trade and exchange over a wide area covering Turkey, Syria and
Northern Iraq. Wide distribution of potteries and houses of varying sizes found from the Halaf
sites has created debate among scholars regarding the nature of Halaf social organisation. Until
recently, a uniform pattern of Halaf pottery over a wide area was seen as representing
­chiefdom-based social structure and the exchange of glossy potteries was seen as prestige
objects and as a marker of intercommunity integration. Similar kind of extensive trade network
in obsidian and other raw materials and differentiation in the size of settlements had been cited
as examples of a hierarchical social structure. But, recently, it has been argued that the wide
circulation of Halaf potteries may indicate increased regional integration; however, the evi-
dence for social differentiation is only suggestive and not definitive. Besides the potteries, the
Halaf community also made female figurines of partially baked clay and stone. A number of
such figurines found from a particular room in a Halaf settlement may suggest these figurines
as cult objects.
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 89

Transitional Cultures: South Mesopotamia

The earliest known human settlement in Southern Mesopotamia began at around 5800 bce in a
very harsh climatic condition marked by aridity, scarcity of rainfall and swampy flood plains but
a very fertile soil full of alluvium. After 5300 bce, attempts were made to exploit the favourable
factors out of these harsh environmental conditions. Although South Mesopotamia was marked
by low rainfall but the land was very fertile and could be exploited with little irrigation. It has
been argued that the earliest settlers of South Mesopotamia may have been Samarrans who had
settled at the borders of South Mesopotamia and may have moved towards the delta region. It
would not have been difficult to settle in arid parts of the lower or South Mesopotamia as they
had practiced some form of irrigation while living in the less-watered regions of Central
Mesopotamia. In South Mesopotamia, the evidences suggest that the earliest settlers may have
settled on the flood plains near the banks of Tigris and Euphrates where they could have had
easy access to water and must not have needed digging of ditches or laying of canals to carry
water to the fields. The extreme southern portion of South Mesopotamia is a region of extensive
marshes and reed swamps. It has a very hot temperature with very low rainfall and very hard
and dry plains. Consequently, agriculture could not have been successful without artificial irri-
gation bringing water to large stretches of cultivated land through a network of canals. Since
the ground was extremely fertile, irrigation with necessary drainage could bring about adequate
food to sustain a large population. Later it was in this area that significant innovations were
made in the field of technology (irrigation, wheels, metallurgy to name a few), paving way for
the growth of Sumerian civilisation. However, the growth of Sumerian civilisation was preceded
by three transitional cultures (See Map 3.2) that prepared the ground for civilisational develop-
ment in Southern Mesopotamia. These cultures were Ubaid (5500–4000 bce), Uruk (4000–3200
bce) and Jemdet Nasr (3200–3000 bce).
Ubaid (5500–4000 bce) was a cluster of small rural communities situated along the river silt
of the Euphrates valley. It is believed that the first major attempt to adapt to the environments
of Southern Mesopotamia was made here around 5800 bce. Initially, small channels of Euphrates
were used to cultivate cereals such as barley, vegetables and date palms supplemented by fish
and waterfowls. Besides, they herded sheep, goats and cattle. Various settlements in this region
have been collectively termed as ‘Ubaid settlements’ after a small site Al-Ubaid near Ur (close
to modern Tell el-Muqayyar). The other prominent sites of the Ubaid culture are Tell Abada,
Kheit Qasim, Tell el ‘Queili and Eridu. Modern researches have opined that the Ubaid cultural
zone extended to a large area covering about 2,000 km and including areas from the shores of
Mediterranean to the straits of Ormuz, including Anatolia. Archaeological evidences from the
Ubaid sites have suggested that people of this culture lived in multi-roomed rectangular houses
with some having a tripartite (room followed by a hall and then again room) floor plan. At some
of the Ubaid sites, variations in sizes of the houses (estimated to be ranging from 70 square
metres to 240 square metres) and in use of construction material (gypsum plastered walls in
some) as well as artefacts made of exotic raw materials along with unique burials have led few
to hypothesise that these indicate social and economic differentiation. Although evidence of
social inequality is not overwhelming from other sites to confirm social complexity or differen-
tiation; yet, few scholars have argued that communal effort was necessary to acquire raw mate-
rials for construction of houses as well to dig small canals and clearing silt from the fields. In
order to achieve these, some variant of political and social leadership was required. Thus, on
this basis, scholars such as Adams R. McC. (1966) propose a close relationship between a
 90 Ancient and Medieval World

MAP 3.2  Transitional Culture of South Mesopotamia

Source: Adapted from a blank map by Daniel Dalet. Available at [Link]

[Link]

stratified society and creating food surplus. But, while aspects of Ubaid society displaying eco-
nomic differentiation is accepted by some, the notion of a ‘chiefdom’-like socio-political
arrangement at Ubaid has found few takers due to virtual absence of exotic trade materials,
signs of warfare or pronounced social differentiation.
The Ubaid culture is also known for its ceramic handmade black-painted buff potteries
found from several Ubaid settlements. Robert J. Wenke (2009) has commented that ‘people of
Ubaid made beautiful handmade pottery in such large quantity and with such great similarity
that some occupational specialisation may be reflected’. In comparison to Halaf and Samarran
potteries, Ubaid ceramics are said to have spread in much larger area, from Iran, Syria to Saudi
Arabia along the Arabian coast of the Persian Gulf, indicating wider exchange relationship. The
Ubaid cultural sites also provide evidence of ceremonial centres, starting with small village
centres to a big temple complex as found at Eridu. The complex at Eridu was made of mudbrick
with substantial brick houses built around it in a rectangular plan. Archaeological excavations
have revealed the existence of several houses as belonging to the elites, craft workers and
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 91

peasants. Temple at Eridu and other places have been seen as evidences of a broadly shared
religious ideology of a closely bonded community. It is generally believed that temple played a
key role in the early phase of the Sumerian civilisation. Their major function was to organise
labour for creating irrigation facilities and to provide drainage to excess water and silt from the
fields. Authority of the temple was further enhanced as the priest and the temple personnel
developed expertise in the field of irrigation. Later, with the growth of Sumerian civilisation, the
temples were transformed into units of political control. On the basis of several large and small
houses excavated, the population of Eridu around mid-fifth millennium bce has been estimated
to be roughly around 5,000, indicating that it may have developed as a city by this time.
Guillermo Algaze (2009) is of the opinion that Ubaid may have been the precursor of later
Mesopotamian civilisation, both in the north and south.
Uruk (4000–3200 bce) was a large Sumerian settlement situated near Euphrates and corre-
sponds to modern Warka. Just like Ubaid, it represents an ancient city and a material culture,
but Uruk is considered as a phase of qualitative advancement over the former. Uruk represents
the final stage of transition towards Sumerian civilisation as several important characteristics
of civilisation such as cities, social hierarchy, writing, craft specialisation, monumental archi-
tecture and so on can be discerned from the findings from Uruk sites. Regarding the growth of
large settlements, such as Uruk, on the alluvial plains of Southern Mesopotamia, researches of
Robert Adams and H. Nissen (1972) have suggested that by the middle of fourth millennium bce,
large population from the countryside had coalesced into such settlements. The reason cited
for this phenomenon is the apparent depopulation of the countryside due to a series of environ-
mental changes causing dislocation in the Ubaid society. Uruk period is also regarded as an era
of primary state formation in Southwest Asia besides displaying earliest use of wheel-turned
pottery, wheels and plough. The first evidence of wheel-turned clay potteries (mainly plates,
bowls and Jars) comes from the sites of Uruk culture. This was different from the earlier care-
fully fashioned and decorative potteries, indicating that the Uruk potteries were more utilitar-
ian than artistic. These were made for a larger population in large production centres. Initially
slow-moving but later fast-moving wheels made possible mass production of potteries. In the
later phase of Uruk, beautiful wheel-turned vases were manufactured. Wheels could be made
effectively only with metal tools such as axes and saws to cut them into round shape. Thus,
scholars find a close interconnection between progress of metallurgy and wheel making. Next
step in the technological development was manufacturing of wheels for carts that were used
for the purpose of transportation. Uruk people also manufactured handmade bevel-rimmed
bowls (known as BRB) in large numbers. Hans Nissen (1988) considers mass production of
such bowls a product of tightly organised production system.
Uruk is also important for the study of early-Mesopotamian city as it was the largest among
the early-Mesopotamian cities. Although in the early phase of this culture, Uruk was a small-
scale city; it was growing rapidly and later engulfed the nearby villages into its urban landscape.
While in 3200 bce Uruk occupied an area of about 100 acres, by 2800 bce, the city is estimated
to have spread in an area of more than 600 acres. The centre of activity in Uruk was the zig-
gurat or a high platform with a temple believed to be dedicated to Anu, the sky god. It was also
known as the ‘white temple’ because of the white-coloured gypsum plasters coating on the
walls. Archaeological excavations have revealed that the temple contained a large hall with two
rows of rooms on each side and an altar at one end. The ziggurat had a modest height to begin
with but by 3000 bce, it had rose to the height of 13 metres. All economic activities at Uruk were
centred around the temple, which also brought into its ambit the nearby villages. Later, after the
 92 Ancient and Medieval World

growth of Sumerian civilisation, the city of Uruk and the surrounding villages constituted a city-
state of Uruk. George Roux (1992) is of the opinion that Uruk definitely represents the first
stage in the development of Sumerian civilisation. Towards the end of the Uruk period, several
settlements in Sumer grew into cities.
Another significant development in the Uruk transitional phase was the beginning of writing.
It has been argued that by 3500 bce, economic interaction at Uruk had become quite complex
and necessitated the development of some methods to record the growing commercial transac-
tions. Since temples directed most of the economic dealings, it was natural that the initiative
towards written script came from the temples. A large assemblage of clay tablets have been
found from a building known as Eanna precinct, situated very close to the Ziggurat at Uruk. The
clay tablets contained pictographs in the form of shorthand notations of familiar objects such
as ears of barley, fish, sheep, goats, pots, and so on. These notations depicted units of measure-
ment, the product measured, names of temple officials and other relevant information mainly
economic in nature. The writing was mainly related to temple accounts and ration lists.
According to Andrew Robinson (1995), there were different counting systems for different
materials, for example, a dot could mean 10 when associated with sheep, 6 when associated
with barley and 18 when associated with fields. However, scholars emphasise the economic
usage of the proto-writings more than recording of beliefs or events. Few centuries later, these
pictographs were further simplified in the form of cuneiform writing.
Jemdet Nasr (3200–3000 bce), literally ‘small mound of Nasr’, was situated in Akkad in
Southern Mesopotamia. It was a small but significant site representing several developments in
the field of technology, writing and urban growth, which has led some to describe this transi-
tional site as the direct precursor to Sumerian civilisation. Jemdet Nasr is known for its painted
polychrome and monochrome potteries displaying geometrical patterns and depiction of few
animals. People here were familiar with kiln firing of pottery that consisted of large jars, bowls
and cups. But a very few copper object have been found from this site, mainly an adze and a
fishhook. A number of cylinder seals and stamp seals made of clay have also been found from
archaeological excavations. Most of these seals are crude depiction of humans and animals.
The clay tablets found from Jemdet Nasr have been termed as proto-cuneiform writing which
in the later phase acquired wedge-shaped appearance. Roger Matthews (2002) has argued that
the Jemdet Nasr tablets were primarily administrative accounts dealing with various objects,
foodstuff and animals distributed by a centralised authority. An improved irrigation system,
increasing trade and more specialisation of crafts are other features associated with this site.
This was also the period when large number of village settlements acquired characteristics of
urban settlements, many of them turning into big cities.

Civilisational Features in Sumer

From the description provided here, it is clear that although Neolithic cultures developed first
in Akkad (North Mesopotamia), geographical conditions in Sumer (South Mesopotamia) were
more suitable to develop an advanced civilisation. The Sumerian civilisation was a result of
centuries of human progress made in the field of technology, economy and social interactions
that was not only confined to Southwest Asia but also spread to Indus Valley in India–Pakistan,
the Eastern Mediterranean and the Nile Valley in Egypt. The interdependence of these regions
with respect to raw materials as well as luxury goods for the urban elite created what has been
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 93

termed as a ‘nascent world system’, integrating these regions into a symbiotic relationship.
Keeping in mind several definitions of civilisation, including that of V. Gordon Childe (1950), the
civilisational features of Mesopotamia can be studied under the following heads: Urbanisation
and surplus production, metallurgy and existence of an specialist class, a class stratified soci-
ety, state formation, organised religion, monumental architecture, writing and predictive sci-
ences and long-distance trade.

Urbanisation and Surplus Production

With respect to the ancient world, urbanisation has been defined by some as denoting an
agglomerate, in a particular settlement, of fairly large population (with at least 5,000 inhabit-
ants) pursuing diverse economic activities and having a high degree of interdependence. Such
centres are also said to have specialisation of crafts and division of labour. Ancient cities are
also marked by a complex society and have some political mechanism to regulate social and
economic activities. As an evidence of community bonding, cities of the antiquity also contain
monumental buildings that have specific functions. But in the recent years, urbanism as a phe-
nomenon has been qualified with more preconditions. Peter Bogucki (2000) is of the opinion
that for a society to be considered as truly ‘urban’, the agglomerates of population must play a
clear role in interaction with a much larger territory and must be sustainable over a period of
more than few generations. Viewed against these preconditions, Mesopotamia, towards the
beginning of third millennium bce, emerged as world’s earliest urban civilisation.
By about 3000 bce, several settlements in the Sumerian region had assumed the size of a city.
Few of the prominent Sumerian cities were Uruk, Ur, Nippur, Kish and Lagash. According to an
estimate provided by George Modelski (2003), population of these cities ranged between 20,000
and 80,000. Among these, Uruk was the largest, having a population of 80,000 inhabiting and
area of almost 400 hectares by this time. The rapid growth of the city has been attributed to
migration from the nearby rural settlements. Maintenance of such a large population presup-
poses the availability of enough surplus that was made possible mainly by the highly fertile soil
of Southern Mesopotamia. It has been estimated that the average yield of barley in Southern
Mesopotamian soil was 86 times the sowing. Besides the fertility of the soil, an intensive agri-
culture method adopted by the farmers, which included the use of metal plough and draught
oxen, also contributed to increase in the agricultural yield that supported a large population.
One of the unique features of Mesopotamian urbanisation was that the cities were closely
integrated with the nearby village settlements rather than acting as political and religious centre
of rural hinterlands. All the aforementioned cities were city-states, incorporating the nearby
villages. Yet the level of urban inhabitation was quite high in Mesopotamia. C. C. Lamberg-
Karlovsky and R. Wright (1996) argue that majority of the Mesopotamians were urban, living in
towns and cities at least 40 hectares in size and only 25 per cent lived in places less than 10 hect-
ares. On the reasons behind migration of rural population to the cities, Adams Robert M. (1960)
is of the view that cities served as market centres and this was a primary motivating force in
the immigration of rural population to the cities. Cities, according to Adams, were also centres
of production and redistribution and were therefore a significant attraction to the inhabitants
of the rural areas. Besides, during the inter-city-state warfare, which was very common during
the Early Dynastic period in Mesopotamia, the cities became a place of relative security. Thus,
the city (Uru in Sumerian language) acted as an ideological, administrative, commercial and
social centre of the world surrounding it.
 94 Ancient and Medieval World

Metallurgy and Craft Specialisation

Growth of metallurgy was a distinguishing feature of the Bronze Age Mesopotamia, bringing
about significant socio-economic changes. V. Gordon Childe (1950) has found a close link
between urbanisation, growth of metallurgy and rise of Bronze Age civilisations. Few evidences
of the use of copper have been found from Uruk which does indicate existence of a specialist
class of metalworker along with potters. But copper, being a soft material, had limited utility as
a tool because it did not have an edge. Bronze, on the other hand, had several advantages over
copper as a metal. This metal could be given any shape; it could be hammered into a sheet for
any use besides being very useful as plough hoe and weapons such as daggers and axes. Bronze
metallurgy essentially involved alloying of tin and copper and required both raw materials as
well as fulltime specialists to manufacture bronze objects. But the advantages of bronze far
outweighed the cost involved in procuring copper and tin through a long-distance exchange.
Gordon Childe has argued that existence of a large number of metalworkers presupposes suf-
ficient surplus production to feed these non-producing classes. Surplus was also essential to be
used in exchange to acquire copper and tin which was not locally available. Southern
Mesopotamia lacked deposits of copper, stone and wood which had to be brought from outside.
Since Mesopotamia was producing enough surplus, it could sustain the non-producers and use
the surplus to get the raw materials from far off areas. Prior existence of long-distance com-
munication and interaction (including the maritime travel) had spread to several parts of the
Old World (mainly Europe and Asia) by the beginning of third millennium bce. This enabled
Mesopotamians to get copper and tin from Iran, Anatolia and Syria. Large-scale use of bronze
is also associated with the growth of social complexity as the sustained interregional exchange
of raw materials required to fashion bronze objects and the knowledge required in mixing
copper, and tin became a source of accumulation of wealth.
Craft specialisation had developed in Southern Mesopotamia since the late-Uruk period. This
was considered by Gordon Childe (1950) as the marker of social complexity. He further argues
that one of the important hallmarks of urban civilisation was the ability of some to divert large
number of subsistence producers to manufacturing of bronze tools and other craft productions
as fulltime specialists. A series of texts termed as ‘standard professional list’, first found from
the Eanna precincts (Uruk) dating from late fourth millennium bce and those from the cities of
Ur, Kish, Lagash and Nippur of later times, shows the existence of such specialist class as
smiths, jewellers, stonecutters and potters along with kings, priests, ambassadors, courtiers
and supervisors. In the recent years, the concept of craft specialisation has been widened to
bring out a distinction between ‘independent’ and ‘attached’ craftsmen. Here, independent
craftsman refers to those who manufactured goods for the market for the use of common
masses whereas the attached craftsmen produced for a particular client or for the organisation
such as the temple or the palace. On this basis, scholars such as G. J. Stein (1996) suggest that
from the late-Uruk period onwards, Mesopotamia had a ‘dual’ craft economy represented by
individual craftsmen operating in the community at large and attached craft specialists who
were clients of the centralised institutions. But Stein points out that both categories were not
mutually exclusive, indicating the absence of state monopoly in the sphere of industrial produc-
tion. He also argues that the manufacturers of high-prestige goods (goods of gold, copper, car-
nelian, polished stone vessels, elaborate textiles, etc.) were under the monopolistic control of
the Mesopotamian states. Thus, the growth of metallurgy and existence of specialist classes of
craftsmen also provide us important insights into the nature of state organisation in
Mesopotamia (discussed in detail below).
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 95

State
The origin of state in Mesopotamia can be traced to the political and economic requirements of
the Mesopotamian society. Right since the late-Neolithic times, temples had played an impor-
tant role in promoting agriculture through organising labour for putting irrigation system in
order, particularly in a low-rainfall region such as South Mesopotamia, as well as defensive
walls for protection. With the growth of specialist class in Mesopotamia, sufficient and regular
production of surplus (not only favourable soil conditions) had become imperative and to
achieve this, some type of coercive mechanism had to be developed. Thus, temples in
Mesopotamia assumed the role of such an authority before the development of state institu-
tions. But since the temples had no state organs such as an army to support them, they could
only coerce the peasants to produce more surplus by propagating an ideology and a value
system emboldened by suitable legends and mythologies or by instilling the fear of god. Fear of
displeasure of god was easy to instil in the minds of the farmers as despite favourable geo-
graphical conditions, great uncertainty was still attached with the agricultural produce. On the
other hand, desirability of surplus production to appease the deities was propagated so that
they shower farmers with abundant crop. Temples also collected a part of the surplus produce
in the form of offerings to the deity, and, gradually, it became a centre of production, storage
and redistribution of surplus produce, including crafts production. Most of the temples of big
cities such as Ur, Uruk, Eridu and Nippur contained large granaries and warehouses along with
quarters of the craftsmen. This further enhanced the authority of the priest and the temple
officials. In this manner, temples, prior to the dynastic period in Mesopotamia, assumed the
status of a state. Based on her study of the temple at Lagash, Anna Schneider (1920) has termed
the early-Mesopotamian state as the ‘temple-state’ (cited in Manning and Morris 2005).
Schneider has put forward the argument that the temple was the centre of economic power in
the ancient Near East. While recent researches have identified other spheres of economic
activities too, it is generally agreed that temples remained the most important economic institu-
tion with vast redistributive power. Based on archaeological findings and the Sumerian written
texts, the political history of Mesopotamia has been divided into Early Dynastic period (3000–
2350 bce), Akkadian Dynasty (2350–2150 bce) and the Third Dynasty (2150–2000 bce). But the
present discussion would be confined to the study until the Akkadian Dynasty.
The Sumerian king list, an ancient manuscript recorded in Sumerian language, suggests that
beginning with 3000 bce, the Sumerian city-states were ruled by chiefs and kings, who also
performed the role of priests. Titles such as En (spouse of the city Goddess), Sangu (temple
administrator) and Ishakku (tenant farmer of the deity) for the early kings of Mesopotamia are
a testimony to the above. But from the Early Dynastic period (3000–2350 bce), there was a mas-
sive competition among several city-states (such as Erech, Ur, Uruk, Kish and Lagash) over the
control of fertile resources of Southern Mesopotamia. It is important to note here that in com-
parison to the late-Neolithic period attachment to a particular territory was more intense
during the early state formation in Mesopotamia. This was a part of the process of transition of
clans into tribes and then into states. The competition to control natural resources manifested
into inter-city-state warfare and each city-state raised its army not only to protect its irrigation
and water rights, trade routes and city walls but also to acquire more from the other states.
Kings provided leadership in these wars and success in wars further enhanced their prestige
and brought concentration of power in their hands. This brought about a change in the nature
of kings as priests were replaced by selected/nominated kings with their own organised army,
bureaucracy and well-defined laws. By the time of the Akkadian Dynasty, temple was replaced
 96 Ancient and Medieval World

by palace as the centre of political authority. Thus, title such as lugal (big man) was used for
rulers ruling over large territories with tremendous concentration of power in their hands while
Ensi (city ruler) was used for rulers ruling over small area. Peter Bogucki (2000) has termed
early-Mesopotamian state as a ‘tributary state’ while comparing it with modern ‘capitalist
states’. He opines that while firms and other such enterprises provide the means of generating
wealth in capitalist states, personnel of the state are directly involved in the extraction and
accumulation of surplus goods and services in tributary states. Comparing with pre-state soci-
eties, Bogucki argues that in a pre-state society, households are persuaded, coerced or manipu-
lated into producing extra to support specialists and elites; however, in tributary states, state
personnel directly intervene in the household economy and extract surplus through such
means as taxation or forced labour (corvée) backed by the army. The details of the political
history of Mesopotamia and its rulers are unclear due to several problems related to reading of
the Sumerian text, but we do get reference of a legendary king, Gilgamesh, of Uruk from a
mythological text known as Epic of Gilgamesh. Similarly, Semitic script (popular in Akkad)
provides information about a king by the name of Sargon who is supposed to have conquered
a large area covering Persian Gulf to Syria and was instrumental in political unification of
Sumer and Akkad.

Social Stratification
One of the features of civilisation is the growth of a complex society with marked social dif-
ferentiation. Morton H. Fried (1960) defined stratified society as the one in which members of
the same sex and equivalent age status do not have the equal access to the basic resources that
sustain life. Making a distinction between stratified and unstratified societies, Fried argued that
stratified societies developed with institutions of private property and elite control over the
means of production (water, land, etc.). Whereas unstratified societies were characterised by
communal forms of property and unlimited access to the means of production. It has been
argued by Fried that wherever unequal access to basic means of production exists, state
becomes necessary which provides legitimacy to such differentiation. States had to develop
institutionalised forms of coercion that protected property and appropriation of surplus prod-
ucts from the direct producers. In his study of societies of early Mesopotamia and Mesoamerica,
Robert M. Adams emphasised less on private property and more on control over central institu-
tions. Adams argues that in Mesopotamia, class differentiation was an important cause of the
development of theocracy into state with temples and palaces. The earliest states were theocra-
cies based on the donation of labour service to the service of gods. In Mesopotamia, Adams
argues, the main god and goddess of each city-state theoretically owned all the land within the
jurisdiction of the city-state. Later, separate administrative and military institutions emerged,
represented by the palace as distinct from the temple.
In Mesopotamia, evidence of rudimentary social differentiation can be traced back to the
Uruk transitional phase. By the time of the beginning of the Sumerian civilisation, social strati-
fication had become pronounced. With the emergence of a centralised authority (state), eco-
nomic, religious and military powers came to be rested with the priest king. Leadership in
warfare and ability to manage food and essential objects (through the use of persuasion or
force) for all the inhabitants created the trust of the common masses towards the elite king and
his officials. This enabled the elite to systematically extract surplus from the producers and
redistribute it among the needy. Thus, the wealth generated in the hands of the elite, along with
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 97

religious and secular authority, created conditions for the growth of social differentiation. The
available surplus was distributed in an inequitable manner with larger share going to the king,
priests and warriors whereas actual producers (peasants and artisans) were denied legitimate
share of the surplus. Society thus came to be divided among the elites and the commoners. The
earlier egalitarian groups (clans and tribes) came to be stratified on class lines. This has led
some scholars to opine that transition from Neolithic to Bronze Age also reflected a transition
from clan and tribe organisation to a society with class differentiation.
Robert Adams (1960), in his analysis of early-Mesopotamian society, uses the growing dif-
ferentiation in artefacts as an index of growing class differentiation. His study of the
Mesopotamian burial sites suggests that burials of the Ubaid period do not provide much evi-
dence of differential burials except few pottery vessels found in some. But the burial goods
from the Early Dynastic period show a great disparity in the wealth they contain. The royal
tombs were richly furnished with copper and gold objects (earrings, headdress with gold
leaves, hairpins and beads) and objects of lapis lazuli. A larger number of burials contained few
copper vessels and occasionally precious metals. But majority had only pottery vessels or noth-
ing at all. It is obvious that metals, being costly, could be used as burial objects only by the
wealthy. By the time of the third dynasty, burial-based social stratification had become even
more clear with distinction between royal tombs (containing gold and other items of high
value) and the burial chambers of the royal officials (containing goods of lesser value such as
copper). Adams also refers to texts from the Early Dynastic period indicating social and eco-
nomic stratification particularly with respect to allotment of land by the temple with larger
portion of land going to temple or palace officials.

Religion
Our information about Mesopotamian religion is based on literary texts written on clay tablets
in Cuneiform script as well as artefacts recovered through archaeological findings that give us
insights into religious beliefs and cultic practices of the people inhabiting this region between
3000 and 2000 bce. Since writing was invented first in Mesopotamia, scholars such as Jean
Bottero (2001), claim that Mesopotamian religion was the world’s oldest religion. Mesopotamian
religious beliefs were not in a form of a unified religion, and there was a clear distinction
between religion at the popular level and that at the state level. At the popular level,
Mesopotamians, in general, practiced a pantheistic religion and worshipped a multitude of
anthropomorphic deities representing cosmic and terrestrial forces of the world that they were
living in. At the state level however, the deities were worshipped as anthropocentric and from
nature gods they were transformed into city gods. At the popular level, several deities were
worshipped in smaller shrines but the state promoted the worship of the chief city deity in a big
temple dedicated to the deity, which was termed as ziggurat. However, the political unification
of Sumer and cultural exchange between several regions led to the development of some sort
of a common religious tradition in Southern Mesopotamia. Various deities worshipped at the
popular level were assimilated through appropriate myths, legends and rituals created by the
Sumerian priests. As a result of this process of assimilation, many deities were worshipped as
members of a single family, a practice that was common in the contemporary polytheistic reli-
gions. As the Mesopotamian society had become stratified, gods were also ranked in an order.
The prominent deities whose worship was promoted by the state were An/Anu (sovereign god),
Enlil (controller of the universe and king of kings) and Enki/Ea (lord of the earth or god of
 98 Ancient and Medieval World

sweet water). Among the goddesses, the most popular was Inanna (goddess of fertility) which
was later identified with Ishtar (goddess of love and war).
Political developments such as inter-city-state warfare was also reflected in the way gods
were perceived and worshipped. Lamberg-Karlovsky and Wright (1996) argue that some deities
who were earlier connected with primary economies such as agriculture and herding came to
be identified with a particular city in the middle of the third millennium bce, reflecting a sharp
rivalry between the city-states. Most of these city deities had major temples dedicated to them.
Since temples were considered as ‘homes’ where the deities resided, a number of temple staff
were appointed to look after the organisation of the temple. A big temple (ziggurat) was dedi-
cated to god Anu at Uruk. Political developments affected the religious beliefs in other matters
too. After the political unification of Akkad and Sumer, Nippur became the religious centre of
unified Sumer and a temple was dedicated to the most worshipped deity Enlil in this city. As
the Mesopotamian society became patriarchal, male deities assumed greater importance and a
number of female deities lost their importance. Some female deities remained important but
were worshipped as spouse of the chief deity and were given inferior position. But Goddess
Inanna, as the chief fertility deity, retained her importance and a large temple was dedicated
to her at Uruk. Religious texts also inform us that a major harvest festival was celebrated, sym-
bolising marriage of Inanna with Dumuzi, the god of vegetation and cattle. Thus, we see that
Sumerian religion during 3000–2000 bce was closely connected with political, social and eco-
nomic changes in Mesopotamia.

Monumental Architecture
Monumental architecture is considered as one of the intrinsic features of ancient civilisations.
Public buildings such as temples, palaces and other large buildings had prominent position in the
Sumerian civilisation. For quite some time, many of the public buildings found from the archaeo-
logical excavations in Sumer were termed as shrines but recently, this identification has been
challenged. It has now been argued that many of the large buildings were meeting places and
centres of local administration rather than shrines. However, shrines were an integral part of the
Sumerian community since the Ubaid times (temple at Eridu) and had become elaborate com-
plexes by the Uruk phase. Prior to the beginning of the Early Dynastic period, temples were the
hub of all political, cultural and economic activities and were therefore built with a grand plan
on a high platform (ziggurat). It is argued that by the end of the Uruk phase, the temple at Uruk
(devoted to goddess Inanna), which was built on a tripartite plan, had spread over an area of 245
by 100 feet and rose to the height of 35 feet. It was not merely a ritual complex but also contained
warehouses, workshops and living quarters for the artisans. The warehouses were used to store
grains meant to be distributed among the non-food producers such as metallurgists, potters and
textile workers working for the temple. Temple also used to distribute land, seeds and draught
animals to the peasants for cultivation. Surplus grain was also used to procure metal such as
copper from outside. Another huge temple structure has been excavated at Tell Uqair which is
famous as the ‘painted temple’ because of the elaborate fresco on the temple walls.
However, in the Early Dynastic period (3000–2350 bce), with the increased centralisation of
state power, palace assumed much of the political authority of the temple. Temple construction
in this period also lacked the standardised building plan of the fourth millennium bce. Explaining
reasons behind the decline in the autonomy of the temples, Karlovsky and Wright (1996) have
pointed out that many of the temples came under the control of the relatives of ruling kings
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 99

during Early Dynastic and Akkadian period and later temples were placed under the jurisdic-
tion of provincial governors who siphoned off surplus production into the state treasury. Most
of the shrines dated to this period have been found to be located in the middle of domestic
quarters. Harriet Crawford (2004) has argued that this building pattern may reflect local taste
or constraints imposed by the need to fit the shrine between existing buildings and roads rather
than by strictly canonical practice. Crawford further argues that the Early Dynastic period was
a time of political fragmentation that may have encouraged diversity, with small city-states
asserting their independence and vying with each other for cultural and political superiority.
But despite political authority passing into the hands of the palace, the theoretical connection
between kingship and gods assured that religious architecture retained its place of prominence
in the urban life of Sumer. Many architectural features (particularly the formal symmetry) of the
Uruk period show continuity in the third millennium bce, even if the earlier plan is missing.
These included single-room shrines with a bent-axis approach (popular since Ubaid times) and
bipartite and tripartite plan (popular since Uruk phase). A new type of temple plan termed as
‘house-plan temple’, which consisted of a courtyard surrounded by several large rooms on each
side, introduced in the Early Dynastic period, became quite popular from the time of Akkadian
Dynasty (2350–2150 bce). Adoption of this temple plan has been related to the concept of
temple emerging as a residence of the god to whom it was dedicated. Another innovation in
temple architecture, which has also been attributed to the Early Dynastic period, is the oval
plan such as the one found in Sin temple at Khafajah. Believed to be dedicated to female deities,
these temples were built on top of a prepared foundation.
Although temples and ziggurats were the dominant features of the urban fabric of
Mesopotamia, there were several other buildings of importance, few of which have been
referred to as palace (termed as e-gal or ‘the great household’ in Sumerian language). Reference
to palace-like structures appears in the Sumerian texts from the Jemdet Nasr period and their
existence becomes definite by the end of the Early Dynastic period. Palace as a distinct urban
monumental architecture emerged from the beginning of the third millennium bce. Finding a
correlation between rise in the power of the kings and palace construction, Karlovsky and
Wright (1996) point out that the appearance of both, palace architecture and city walls, during
the later phase of the Early Dynastic period lend credence to the idea that kingship as a power-
ful institution, separate from temples and community organisations, emerged during the
second quarter of the third millennium bce. The best representative of palace architecture of
this period was the palace at Kish, which was consisted of two large buildings separated by a
narrow alley. Each building had its own exterior wall and both were surrounded by an outer
wall, gateway and tower. Similar type of palace architecture has also been found at Lagash,
Uruk and Eridu. It has been estimated that at Lagash 25–35 per cent of the total area of the
city-state was owned by the palace. By the Akkadian phase, majority of the land and artisanal
production was owned by the palace in most of the city-states of Sumer. Later, by the beginning
of second millennium bce, palaces became even more elaborate with several hundred rooms,
halls, courtyards and corridors.

Writing
Mesopotamia was the earliest civilisation in the world to develop writing with far reaching
consequences for the humans. We have already noted earlier that writing originated in the Uruk
culture in the form of pictographic signs representing objects. We have also pointed out that the
100 Ancient and Medieval World

initiative to develop writing came from the temples that organised the economic activities
including distribution of surplus. Since it was not possible to memorise large economic transac-
tion so a written system of recording of these was developed. Later during the Jemdet Nasr
phase, the writing was simplified through a combination of phonetic representation and signs
as the pictograms could not represent large number of objects (barley, cows, bulls, etc.). This
led to the development of Cuneiform (wedge-shaped) script in Mesopotamia (Figure 3.1) from

FIGURE 3.1  Evolution of Writing in Mesopotamia (3200–1000 bce)

3200 BCE 3000 BCE 2400 BCE 1000 BCE

sag
‘head’

Source: [Link]
Note: The first column in the image represents reading and meaning of the word, the second represents the earliest
Pictographs, the third represents Pictographs in rotated position, the fourth and fifth column represent the Cuneiform
variant of the pictographs.
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 101

the beginning of the third millennium bce. Thus, one sign could refer to large number of objects.
In this context, Jean Bottẻro (2001) is of the opinion that pictograms could denote only concrete
things by themselves but through adopting a method of signs, one sign could refer to several
objects closely connected in nature (e.g., ear of grain could represent the grain as well as its
cultivation) and juxtaposed signs of plough (e.g., wood and man could represent both agricul-
tural tool and the farmer). In this manner, according to Bottẻro, use of roughly thousand signs
was enough for the entire purpose of accounting. Later, each sign was turned into phonetics
where each sign referred to a word that could be reduced to a syllable that made the signs pro-
nounceable. When Sumer and Akkad were unified, supposedly by Sargon in around 2350 bce,
the Semitic script of Akkad was mixed with the Cuneiform script of Sumer to develop an alpha-
bet. Now the writing was no longer related to concrete thing or things but was connected to
words and to the spoken language, furthering the prospect of writing to go beyond accounting
or bookkeeping and enter into a realm of literary genre of prose and poetry. Sumerian poetry
was mainly related to love stories, great epics and hymns to the gods. Sacred and literary texts
emerged along with inscriptions that were circulated both within and outside Mesopotamia.
Writing on the stone sculptures glorified the military exploits of the rulers. Growth of writing
also led to the emergence of a new specialist class of scribes.

Long-distance Trade in Mesopotamia

The Tigris and Euphrates promoted intraregional trade in Mesopotamia by allowing smooth
passage to movement of goods from north to south and vice versa. Sumerian texts inform that
centralised agencies organised the exchange of grain, fishes and animals and that administra-
tive officials were employed to look after the canals for transportation of goods. Besides intra-
regional movement of goods, the temple and the palace in Sumer also organised long-distance
trade. Lack of essential raw materials such as copper, precious stones, stones, building materi-
als and even wood made it imperative for the Sumerians to engage in establishing exchange
relationships with areas situated far away. Procurement of raw materials through exchange was
considered as a cheaper option than acquiring these through military operations. Necessity of
long-distance exchange was increased because of the fact that except pottery, most of the
Sumerian craft products (including exotic ones) were dependent on raw materials from out-
side. Although Mesopotamia’s engagement in long-distance trade can be traced back to the
Uruk phase, the scale and the range of interregional contact greatly increased during the third
millennium bce. Although there is indeed reference to import of finished goods (such as carved
chlorite vessels from the Iranian site of Tepe Yahya) into Mesopotamia, the largest proportion
of imports consisted of raw materials that were used for making ornaments, weapons and pres-
tige goods. Copper came from Magan (Oman), Iran and Anatolia; tin from Eastern Iran, Syria
and Anatolia; silver and lead from Taurus Mountains; Timber from mountains of North and East
Mesopotamia; lapis lazuli from Badakhshan area of Northeastern Iran and other precious
stones from Telmun (modern Bahrain). Most of the goods did not originate from these places
but were brought from as far as Meluka (Indus Valley) which used to send ivory and woods to
these areas. Mesopotamians exchanged these with pigs, perfumes, textiles and agricultural
goods. Trade to the east was carried by ship through the Persian Gulf or by pack animals (in
caravans) through the mountains while westward trade was carried along the Euphrates (which
was easily navigable over long distances) or on pack animals. Goods (i.e., exotic oils and
woods) from the west were sent eastwards through Telmun. Goods from east were send
102 Ancient and Medieval World

towards west through the two river systems. Archaeological excavations at the ancient
Mesopotamian city of Ur have provided records giving details of trade and trading activities of
the traders during third and second millennium bce.
The temple played a major role in trading activities despite its autonomy being taken away by
the palace. Large amount of textiles were produced in temples, which, besides fulfilling the
requirement of the temple, was also exported to distant lands in exchange for metals, precious
goods and other natural resources. Besides the temple, the state was also involved in long-­
distance trade that was guided by the need to fulfil its own requirement, particularly of metals,
such as, copper and tin, to be alloyed to manufacture bronze. Due to the extensive nature of trade
mediated through the state (sometimes even those associated with the temple), scholars have
speculated whether the traders acted as agents of the state or not. It has been argued that for the
merchants, state was an important customer and the state on its part provided protection to the
traders at all times. But it has also been suggested that the merchants worked for profit and they
were likely to work for either the temple or the state only, if it was advantageous to them.

Science and Mathematics

The construction of several monumental buildings such as temples (on ziggurats), palaces and
other public structures in Sumer could not have been possible without the knowledge of some
system of measurement and mathematics. Besides, large-scale economic transactions, mea-
surement of fields and agricultural production also required adoption of some method of math-
ematical notations. Similarly, maritime trade over long distances could not have been possible
without a certain amount of astronomical knowledge. In Sumer, rapid growth of science and
mathematics can be seen from the beginning of the third millennium bce, the evidence of which
is provided in the written texts. In fact, archaeologist Denise Schmandt-Besserat (1996) has
argued that writing and mathematical notations emerged simultaneously in Sumer and has also
pointed out that clay accounting tokens, which were in use in Sumer prior to 3000 bce, were the
forerunners of writing and mathematical notations. Based on these texts, it has been suggested
that Sumerians had elementary knowledge of mathematics that served the purpose of measure-
ment of fields, debit and credit calculation and counting of bodies. Thus, economics proved to
be the motivating force behind the growth of both writing and mathematics. It is believed that
the Mesopotamian numeral system was sexagesimal (counting system with a base of 60 rather
than 10). There were reciprocal clay tablets to facilitate division along with those for the pur-
pose of multiplication. These tablets were combined with that of weights and measures, sug-
gesting their economic usage. Use of geometrical equations suggests their awareness about the
Pythagoras theorem. Development in the field of astronomy, however, was more elementary
during 3000–2000 bce and was limited to accurate division of day and night into 12 hours. It was
only later in the Babylonian period that we hear about the growth of lunar and solar calendars
along with astrological predictions.

EGYPT (UNTIL THE OLD KINGDOM)

The Egyptian civilisation developed parallel to Mesopotamia with similar civilisational features
but in entirely different ecological settings. Just like Mesopotamia, which developed along the
Euphrates and Tigris Valley, Egypt developed around the Nile Valley. But, unlike Mesopotamians,
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 103

the people of Egypt had to contend with a more inhospitable geographical condition. Major
portion of Egypt is a dry and arid region with very little rainfall. Egypt was surrounded by a vast
stretch of desert in the east and west. In the east were the Arabian and Sinai Deserts that
stretched from Nile to the Red Sea. On the western side was the Libyan Desert that merged with
the Sahara Desert. One positive aspect of this inhospitable climate was the natural protection
that it provided to the region besides bestowing it with rich reserve of metals (gold, copper and
malachite), precious stones (turquoise, cornelian and jasper) and minerals. These deserts also
provided the passage for the interaction of the Egyptians with Levant and Mesopotamia in the
east and to Sahara and its tribes in the west.
However, it was the River Nile that provided the foundation around which the Egyptian
civilisation grew. Originating from East Africa, the river flows through a valley from north to
south passing through various cliffs and desert and drains out in the Mediterranean Sea. The
annual inundation of the river left a rich layer of fertile silt and clay in the valley, which was
termed by the Egyptians as Kemet (‘black land’ or black fertile soil) to distinguish it from
Deshret (‘red land’ or desert). Nile divides Egypt into two parts—the Upper Egypt (southern
part) which stretches from modern Wadi Halfa to Cairo and the Lower Egypt (northern part)
where the Nile branches out into a large and fertile delta before draining out into the
Mediterranean. The land south of Egypt was termed as Nubia. Although the Egyptian civilisa-
tion developed in Upper Egypt, in the later Egyptian history, the delta region of the Lower Egypt
was identified as the agricultural heartland of Egypt. Apart from bestowing the valley with
fertile soil, Nile also provided a rapid and reliable channel for the movement of goods and
people as the use of wheels came much later. Robert J. Wenke (2009) is of the opinion that Nile’s
efficiency as a transportation and communication artery was a key factor in the highly central-
ised governments that developed in later Egyptian antiquity. Besides, the Egyptian calendar,
which developed in the Bronze Age, was also based on the annual flooding of the river.

Transitional Cultures
The Neolithic in Egypt did not originate in the Nile Valley but in the region later identified as
the Western Desert. Fekri A. Hassan (1981) has pointed out that during the early-Holocene
period, the Western Desert was not as dry and the Nile Valley suffered widespread flooding.
Humans inhabiting the valley area shifted towards the Western Desert, which was more hospi-
table and supported a food gathering and hunting economy. By about 6000 bce, Egyptian farm-
ers were cultivating wheat and barley and domesticating sheep, goats and cattle. Scholars,
including V. Gordon Childe (1950), are of the opinion that farming and animal husbandry was
introduced in Egypt from Syria, Palestine and other areas of Southwest Asia. Subsequently, as
the study of Karl Butzer (1976) suggests, the Western Desert became more arid which induced
people to move towards the richer Nile Valley and relying primarily on animal and plant domes-
tication. People from several desert regions immigrated into the valley, which explains the
cultural diversity within the Nile Valley. The earliest excavated Neolithic cultures were Fayum
and Merimde in Lower Egypt, dating between 6000–4000 bce. People at Fayum (ancient Shedet),
located near an oasis, followed a simple subsistence by cultivating wheat and barley supple-
mented by fishing and hunting. They also domesticated sheep, goats and pigs. Merimde (dated
4750–4250 bce) was situated in the western delta of the river Nile near modern Cairo. It was a
fully developed Neolithic village with house architecture, use of ceramics to store grain, cultiva-
tion of cereals and domestication of species supplemented by hunting, gathering and fishing.
104 Ancient and Medieval World

By about 4000 bce, Neolithic had spread to the greater part of Egypt including Upper Egypt.
Archaeologists have identified two distinct transitional cultures (see Map 3.3) in pre-dynastic
Egypt—Maadi (formerly ‘Buto-Maadi culture’) in Lower Egypt and Naqada in Upper Egypt rep-
resented by three successive phases, that is, Badarian (4100–3600 bce), Amratian or Naqada I
(3800–3500 bce), Gerzean or Naqada II (3600–3200 bce) and Naqada III (3200–3000 bce).
Maadi (Lower Egypt) culture, dated 3900–3500 bce, was located south of modern Cairo and
was spread over much of the northern Nile Delta region. The settlement covered a large area
(estimated to be around 1.3 km) and was made of several small towns and villages. Villagers
subsisted on cereal cultivation along with domestication of sheep, goats, cattle and pigs with
little evidence of hunting. Farmers lived in Oval and circular houses that have yielded hearths,
grains, jars, stone vases and beads and lumps of imported asphalt. It has been suggested that
Maadi was an important link in the trade network between Eastern Mediterranean and
Mesopotamia with Egypt. Imported Palestinian pottery and storage jars provide evidence of
such a long-distance exchange. Copper has also been found at Maadi, mostly in the form of
tools and ingots which, along with findings of other exotic items such as jewellery, carved stone
palettes and vessels, suggests not only an increase in craft production but also specialisation.
In Upper Egypt, the most significant pre-dynastic culture was Naqada, based on the site of
the same name. This culture was spread over the entire fourth millennium bce, covering
Badarian, Amratian (Naqada I) and Gerzean (Naqada II) phases. Evidence of Naqada culture in
the Badarian (4100–3600 bce) has been found from the site Badari which contained several
Neolithic villages situated along Nile. It has been speculated that people of Badari were the
descendants of those who had moved into the valley from the Western Desert and hence they
become earliest agriculturists in Upper Egypt. They cultivated wheat and barley and domesti-
cated sheep, goats and cattle. There is no evidence of artificial irrigation, which suggests that
agriculture was based on natural irrigation. Agriculture was supplemented by fishing and hunt-
ing. The grave goods in Badarian cemeteries have been found to be simple, provide very little
evidence of social differentiation. Findings such as basalt vases, shells and copper do indicate
trade with the delta regions of the north and with the Red Sea region.
The Amratian (3800–3500 bce) phase of the Naqada culture developed around the site
El-Amrah in Upper Egypt, located approximately 75 miles south of Badari. Also referred to as
Naqada I culture, Amratian farmers were more adept at utilising the floodwaters of Nile as they
were situated near the western bank of the river. Amratian people made elegant Basalt potteries
that were traded widely throughout the Nile Valley, suggesting that these were fashioned by
specialist craftsmen. Evidence of use of copper has also been found from the site in the form
of flat axes and daggers made by the metalworkers. Copper was imported from Sinai or Nubia.
Other trading items were Obsidian and some amount of gold from Nubia and lead and silver
from Southwest Asia. Starting with a moderate number, the population of Amratian settlement
increased gradually. The social structure became more elaborate and the graves show early
signs of social differentiation.
The Gerzean culture (3600–3200 bce), also known as Naqada II, has been named after the
site El-Gerzeh. It is considered as a continuation of Amratian culture with some significant
developments. People had developed the use of artificial irrigation as several canals were dug
to carry the river water to the fields. Gerzean society was firmly based on farming and hunting,
which constituted only a small portion of their subsistence economy. Villagers here lived in
substantial houses. The Nile Valley being highly fertile (it is estimated that the yield was three
times the sowing) created sufficient surplus to sustain a large population. According to a
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 105

MAP 3.3  Map of Pre-dynastic and Dynastic Egypt

Source: Adapted from a blank map. Available at [Link]

106 Ancient and Medieval World

figure provided by Karl Butzer (1976), the population of the Nile Valley increased from 350,000
to 870,000 between 4000 and 3000 bce. A significant innovation in this period was the introduc-
tion of metallurgy. People here developed kilns which could be worked at as high a tempera-
ture as 1200 degree centigrade. They fashioned such copper objects as flat axes, ribbed
daggers and flat knives on a regular basis. This culture was also known for Mesopotamian-
style decorated pottery, suggesting permeation of cultural elements of Asiatic origin. There is
also evidence of Gerzean trade with Red Sea region via Sinai. The graves of Naqada II sites also
show greater range of wealth in terms of burial offerings and the size and quality of houses. It
is generally believed that the foundation of Egyptian civilisation was laid towards the end of
the Gerzean phase.
Naqada III (3200–3000 bce) represents the last phase of the Naqada culture of Upper Egypt.
By this time, the culture had spread to the northern delta as evidenced by the findings of
Naqada culture potteries. Several changes that this period witnessed with respect to state for-
mation, urbanisation and social complexity has led to this period been termed as protodynastic
which heralded the Egyptian civilisation. This also represented a single unified culture of
Southern Egypt and saw the development of substantial urban centres such as Hierakonpolis
(Nekhen), Abydos (Abdju), Ombos (Naqada), Coptos (Qift) and El Kab (Nekheb). Naqada III
sites have provided names (incised or painted on pottery) of earliest kings of Egypt, which has
been termed as ‘Dynasty 0’. This was also the period when the initial process of political unifica-
tion began with the existence of three dominant city-states—Thinnis, Nekhen and Naqada.
Naqada III culture also provides earliest evidence of writing in Egypt in the form of hieroglyphs
(sacred writings). The cemeteries found at Naqada III sites at Naqada and Ballas, including
those identified as royal cemeteries, clearly indicate the growth of social hierarchy. Evidence
of a shrine has also been found at Naqada. People here cultivated wheat and barley and herded
sheep, cattle, goats and pigs.

Civilisational Features in Egypt

As discussed in the previous section, by the middle of the Naqada III culture, a state with a
powerful monarchy assisted by a bureaucracy, warriors and priests had developed in Egypt, an
attempt was made towards political unification of Southern Egypt, writing was invented and
social differentiation had become marked. These provided the solid foundation for the growth
of civilisation in the succeeding centuries. For long, historians have debated whether the
growth of civilisation in Egypt was a result of diffusion of civilisational features from Southwest
Asia or was it a result of indigenous development. Diffusionists argue that transition to civilisa-
tion in Egypt was quite rapid which could not have been possible without inputs from outside.
On the other hand, Egyptologists argue that the transition was a gradual process and the growth
of civilisation in Egypt can be traced to the Naqada culture spanning over several centuries.
W. B. Emery (1961) was one of the earliest to suggest that the emergence of Egyptian civilisation
was a result of penetration of some outsiders from Mesopotamia via the Red Sea region, who
brought in Sumerian cultural traditions with them. This follows an Egyptian myth (to be dis-
cussed in some detail later) where the indigenous people (worshippers of Set) were defeated by
foreigners who were worshippers of Horus. Leonard Woolly (1965), arguing on the similar lines,
puts forward the view that the similarity in the writing system between Egypt and Mesopotamia
suggests that the former must have borrowed the method of writing from the latter.
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 107

On the other hand, scholars such as Bruce G. Trigger (2003), Karl Butzer (1976) and Toby
Wilson (1999) have emphasised on indigenous growth of civilisation in Egypt. Trigger has
argued that ancient civilisations developed independently and although some features were
common (such as writing), their socio-political environment, economies and architectural
styles were unique to these areas and were a product of their political, cultural and ideological
needs. Although Trigger does not rule out the possibility of external influence in Egypt (with
respect to pottery), but he points out that there was no large-scale migrations into Egypt. Karl
Butzer is of the opinion that Nile Valley, being surrounded by deserts from three sides, namely,
Eastern, Western and Nubia deserts, prevented any regular interaction with West Asia. This
‘closed nature’ of the Nile Valley, according to Butzer, bestowed the region with greater cohe-
sion facilitating unification of upper and lower Egypt. Toby Wilson refers to the pre-dynastic
social, economic and political change in Egypt that took place in a gradual manner that facili-
tated growth of civilisation in Egypt. The recent excavations at the pre-dynastic and dynastic
sites, particularly the city and cemeteries of Hierakonpolis and that of Abydos have also dem-
onstrated conclusively that beginning of dynastic Egypt was an indigenous Egyptian phenom-
enon whose origins can be traced to the transitional cultures of Upper Egypt.

Urban Centres
As mentioned earlier, the pre-dynastic phase of Egypt (3,200–3,000) saw the growth of substan-
tial urban centres such as Nekhen (Hierakonpolis in Greek), Abdju (Abydos), Naqada (Ombos)
and so on. Among these, the most prominent was Hierakonpolis (also known as the ‘City of
Falcon’ or the ‘City of Hawk’) in Upper Egypt. Starting as a small village in 3800 bce and inhab-
ited by few hundred people, it became the largest and the most complex pre-dynastic urban
settlement by 3100 bce, inhabited by an estimated 10,500 people. It is one of the earliest and the
most important archaeological sites in Egypt, which has yielded several information and evi-
dences to construct a history of the foundation of Egyptian civilisation. People here lived in
cluster of rectangular mudbrick and plaster houses spread in several neighbourhoods. The
varying sizes of the houses clearly reflect class differentiation. Artisans and traders lived in
larger houses. It has been suggested that traders were considered as important citizens as they
had become wealthy due to the profit that they earned from the trade of locally made fine qual-
ity ‘Plum Red’ pottery which were a part of tomb objects used in the entire valley. Michael A.
Hoffman (1979), talking about reasons behind the growth of a wealthy trading class in Egypt,
has pointed out that around 3500 bce, the ecology of the Nile Valley was disturbed due to over-
grazing by sheep and goats and also intensive firing of pottery which caused large-scale defor-
estation. According to Hoffman, few local people, who had amassed wealth through trade in
pottery, used their wealth to reorganise irrigation agriculture around the Nile Valley. The large
surplus generated through this venture was used by them to bring about expansion of their
trade and wealth, thus acquired was invested in construction of public buildings such as tem-
ples. They were buried in elaborate graves as found in the cemeteries at Abu Sufian.
Hierakonpolis is also known for the famous Narmer Palette (to be discussed later) which pro-
vides crucial information about Egyptian polity in the Early Dynastic period. Hierakonpolis is
also considered as the capital of the powerful pre-dynastic state of Nekhen. Nekhen also pro-
vides evidence of the earliest temple in Egypt dated about 3450 bce.
Naqada or Ombos was another significant urban centre of not only pre-dynastic but also
early-dynastic Egypt. Also known as Nubt, Naqada was located in Upper Egypt on the west
108 Ancient and Medieval World

bank of the River Nile. The extensive survey of the Naqada region by Fekri Hassan (1999) has
led to discovery of several cemeteries (about 2000), including a royal tomb. The graves con-
tained goods such as ceramics, stone tools and personal ornaments made of bone and other
materials along with figurines and beads. The graves also reveal growth of a class stratified
society. The research done by Fekri Hassan (1981) also suggested that the farmers of Naqada
had extended the area under cultivation by digging canals and the yield could sustain a large
population. By about 3600 bce, it had developed as a town with rectangular mudbrick dwellings.
Few of these palatial houses were owned by the elite. On this basis, few scholars have sug-
gested that Naqada may have been the capital of a major chiefdom. Inhabitants of Naqada were
Set Worshippers and a temple was dedicated to the deity which was later extended by several
rulers of the dynastic period.
Abydos or Abdju was another significant town of ancient Egypt. Stretched over several miles
on the western bank of the River Nile, it contained the burial place of Egypt’s early-dynastic
rulers and was also the cult centre of Osiris (god of the dead). For a long time, Abydos was
regarded as the most sacred place of ancient Egypt and several rulers of the dynastic period
built their own temples at Abydos to associate themselves with Osiris as well as with their
ancestors buried at the site. Throughout the history of ancient Egypt, Abydos remained an
important town with several houses and workshops. Between the various temples are located
several cemeteries of Pius Egyptians who wanted to be buried as close as possible to the temple
of Osiris. Coptos or Qift was another significant town of ancient Upper Egypt. Situated on the
eastern bank of the Nile, near modern Luxor, Coptos was an important commercial and admin-
istrative centre. It is believed that it was the starting point of trading expeditions to the Red Sea
region. This route continued to be used for trading purposes in the later period in Egypt under
the Romans as well as the Byzantine Empire. In the dynastic period, it was also the chief city
of the Upper Egyptian nome (province) of Harawi. Coptos was also the cult centre of Min (the
deity of fertility) which gained prominence during the middle kingdom. In Northern Egypt
(Lower Egypt), Sais and Buto, located in the Northwest delta region, were the two significant
port towns. Egypt’s maritime trade was carried through these ports, over which large quantities
of timber, oil, wine, minerals and pottery and other commodities passed.

Writing
The growth of writing in Egypt is of supreme importance for archaeologists and historians
alike as it provides crucial insights into several aspects of Egyptian civilisation, particularly
state formation, power and authority of the Egyptian rulers, and administrative system
besides religion and rituals. The earliest writing system in Egypt, which developed in the
pre-dynastic period around 3200 bce, has been termed as ‘Hieroglyphic’ or ‘sacred carving’
by the Greeks who ruled over Egypt in 332 bce. Hieroglyphs were a combination of picto-
graphic and phonetic signs (Figure 3.2) carved in stone on temple walls and tombs. Its simi-
larity with the Mesopotamian script (signs in both the scripts denoted either an object or a
sound), which developed earlier than the hieroglyphs, has led few to suggest that the
Egyptian text was inspired by those of the Near East. But others, including Egyptologists,
believe that the basic idea of pictographic writing may have come from Mesopotamia but
the actual signs may have evolved directly out of cuneiform method. Moreover, archaeo-
logical discoveries made at Abydos in the 1990s have suggested that hieroglyphs may have
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 109

been in use in the pre-dynastic Egypt since 3500 FIGURE 3.2  Egyptian Hieroglyphs
bce (period that precedes evolution of the
with Corresponding
Sumerian script) and also that the use of pho- Phonetics and Meaning
netic signs in Egypt may have appeared earlier
than previously thought. Ian Shaw (2004) has
argued out that these hieroglyphs were not
merely pictorial signs (‘ideograms’) but many of
them were representations of sounds in the
spoken language (‘phonograms’) which devel-
oped at least 200 years before the first dynasty
came into existence. Shaw further argues that
since the writings often refer to Lower Egyptian
place, names in the royal tomb of Upper Egypt
suggests that northern and southern parts of
Egypt were already closely connected economi-
cally and perhaps politically too.
Egyptian hieroglyphs appear either in the form
of writings on papyrus (a paper like writing mate-
rial made out of papyrus plant) written by the Source: [Link]
bureaucrats for administrative convenience or 236x/1f/26/f9/1f26f9eb485cbb46dad9386f856
they were carved on stones on temple walls or [Link]
tombs ostensibly as an expression of royal and
religious ideology or as an instrument of manage-
ment and control. The bureaucrats, however, used a modified form of hieroglyph called hieratic
script with a cursive writing (Figure 3.3) in which the signs were simpler and more suited for
writing lengthy documents on papyrus. It has been presumed that other type of texts may have
existed too but have vanished since they were written on perishable materials. One of the earli-
est surviving and very significant examples of hieroglyph script is the Narmer Palette, a stone
slab carved on both sides with scenes commemorating king Narmer of Hierakonpolis who ruled
just before the beginning of the first dynasty. The Palette contains both pictorial narrative and
hieroglyphs depicting symbols of kingship. The two sides of the Narmer Palette depict the king
wearing white and red crown, representing Upper and Lower Egypt and indicating possible
political unification of Egypt. It has been argued by Brian Fagan (2010) that the acquisition of
writing with all its organisational capabilities probably was one of the main catalysts of the
unification of the whole of Egypt into a single political entity.

Pharaoh and the State

The political developments in Egypt, including its political unification and origin of state, are
generally traced to the pre-dynastic period which is supposed to have begun in 3200 bce.
Manetho (Greek priest), who wrote his account History of Egypt, has mentioned 31 dynasties
that ruled over Egypt from its unification to the invasion of Alexander in 332 bce. The Dynastic
period of Egypt has been broadly divided into four periods—Archaic period or Early Dynastic
period (3100–2700 bce), covering the time period of the first two dynasties; Old Kingdom
(2700–2180 bce), covering the third to the sixth dynasty; Middle Kingdom (2133–1786 bce),
 FIGURE 3.3  Hieratic and Their Corresponding Hieroglyphic Writing and Phonetics

Source: [Link]
Note: The top row depicts Hieratic script, the following represents their corresponding Hieroglyphic meaning and the third row represents their corresponding
phonetic sound.
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 111

covering the eleventh and twelfth dynasties; and New Kingdom (1567–1080 bce), covering the
eighteenth to the twentieth dynasty. In between these, there were First and Second Intermediate
periods (referred to as periods of political change and uncertainty) which fill in for the remain-
ing dynasties.
The Archaic period (3100–2700 bce) was marked by unification of Upper and Lower Egypt,
supposedly by a ruler Narmer (legendary Menes) by subjugating powerful local chieftains. The
Narmer Palette provides visual evidence of the political developments and the nature of king-
ship in the Archaic Egypt. Narmer is supposed to have wielded power over 22 nomes or admin-
istrative units of Upper and 20 nomes of the Lower Egypt. These nomes may have been
pre-dynastic petty states ruled by small chieftains or kings before the political unification of
Egypt was attempted by King Narmer. However, it is also pointed out that unification of Upper
Egypt took place before the merger of Upper and Lower Egypt into a single realm. Nekhen is
considered as the capital of the unified Upper Egypt. Egyptologists are of the opinion that the
political unification of Egypt was a gradual process that involved peaceful as well as violent
amalgamation. Kathryn A. Bard (2000) is of the opinion that peaceful or voluntary unification
resulted from common needs and economic advantage, and it was only later that violent means
involving use of military force was applied to bring under control rulers of larger political units
for the purpose of unification. In the Egyptian art forms (including the Narmer Palette), a very
common site is the prominent depiction of kings smiting a foreigner with a mace which is
highly symbolic of the power of the ruler and his attempt to restore order by ritually subduing
the forces representing chaos. Another significant metaphor for unification was the depiction
of the victorious ruler as worshipper of Horus (the falcon god) and the defeated as the Seth
worshipper, thus establishing a link between Upper and Lower Egypt. As a symbol of unifica-
tion and also to control the recently integrated regions, ruler of the first dynasty chose
Memphis as their capital which was located at the border of Upper and Lower Egypt at the
apex of the Nile Delta. The rulers of the first two dynasties of Egypt belonged to Thinnis
(Egyptian Tjenu) in Upper Egypt and therefore their 400 years reign in Egypt is also often
termed as Thinnite period. There are hardly any surviving records of the rulers of the first
dynasty, although some information related to their economic measures and their expeditions
outside the Nile Valley towards Asia and Nubia is indeed available from the Palermo stone
(a portion of the Royal Annal). The tombs of few of the rulers of the Thinnite dynasty, identified
as that of Djer, Den and Semerkhet, have also been found at Abydos. Our information on the
rulers of the second dynasty is more inadequate except that of Nineter whose reign finds men-
tion in the Palermo stone and of Khasekhem (Khasekhemui) who had the largest tomb in the
necropolis (Umm el-Qa’ab) at Abydos. By the beginning of the Archaic period, the authority of
a powerful Egyptian king or Pharaoh was fully recognised.
The state in Egypt revolved around a powerful terrestrial ruler, Pharaoh (from Egyptian per-
aá meaning the palace), who, according to some, symbolised the triumph of order over univer-
sal chaos. Grahame Clark (1977) says that the River Nile provided the physical means for
uniting the country, but it was the supremacy of the Pharaoh that guaranteed that unity.
Pharaoh was considered the divine leader and symbolised the whole country, and his unchal-
lenged sovereignty provided confidence and stability. In the early civilisations, power and legiti-
macy of a ruler depended to a large extent on the skilful management of all kinds of resources,
and it was demonstrated by ruler’s control over the agricultural surpluses and labour. Since
irrigation was a major deciding factor for a good agricultural produce, prime responsibility of
the Pharaoh was to ensure adequate irrigation facilities for the success of the harvest. In order
112 Ancient and Medieval World

to ensure an effective administration, the Pharaoh governed by enforcing universal laws with
the help of a large centralised bureaucracy. The Pharaoh was given a divine status and universal
power through several symbols such as the falcon god, Horus, spreading its wings on the royal
vault to suggest heirship of Horus to the Pharaoh and a double crown (pschent) indicating sov-
ereign rulership of Pharaoh over both Upper and Lower Egypt.
The Pharaonic state functioned through several economic and religious institutions looked
after by a large bureaucracy. Governors of the provinces (nomes) as well as officials of the
central government established their governance in the name of the Pharaoh through an author-
ity delegated by him. Several higher officials were organised into institutions and were assisted
by a countless number of scribes. Royal Counsellors such as Vizier and members of the royal
chancelleries of Upper and Lower Egypt enjoyed large power delegated to them by the Pharaoh.
They looked after crucial aspects of governance such as irrigation system, census, tax collec-
tion and redistribution of surplus to both state and temple officials. Since agricultural surplus
depended to a large extent on irrigation, special officials called adj-mer (‘canal digger’) were
appointed to look after irrigation works and a special branch of administration called per-mu
was created to record the water level of the river Nile. The tax officials were to ensure that a
sizeable proportion of the surplus went to the Pharaoh. The political unification of the Nile
Valley facilitated this process and the river acted as the highway for transportation of surplus
for centralised storage and their distribution. Scribes were an important group of officials as
the state set out to control the surplus and the labour. Writing was considered as an important
accomplishment and therefore a scribe had the easy access to the position of the elite.
The period of the Old Kingdom (2700–2180 bce) is considered as the mature phase of
Egyptian civilisation during which, as claimed by Robert J. Wenke, many of the greatest pyra-
mids and palaces were built, an integrated royal bureaucracy was formed and arts and crafts
were brilliantly executed. The rulers of the Old Kingdom (covering third to sixth dynasty) took
over from those of the Thinnite dynasty and ruled Egypt from their capital at Memphis (near
Cairo). Since Memphis was situated at the junction of the delta, it represented the governance
of the Pharaoh over a unified territory by a divine ruler. Djoser, founder of the third dynasty,
ruled over a large territory and so did his successors Cheops (Khufu), Chephren (Khafre) and
Unas. The available evidence belonging to this period, particularly the Pyramid texts (inscribed
in the Pyramid chambers), provides us a clearer picture of the Pharaonic state. These suggest
that under these rulers, the authority of the Pharaoh was further consolidated with his status
being firmly established as that of a god. An attempt was made to popularise the cult of Pharaoh
and he was provided a permanent position in the Egyptian religious pantheon. By the beginning
of the fifth dynasty, the Pharaoh was considered as the ‘perfect god’ and was associated with
the sun god ‘Re’ and was declared as the ‘son of Re’. With the help of legends manufactured by
the priests, the sun god was made the heavenly monarch and Pharaoh as his representative on
earth. The Pharaoh was also immortalised by propagating that the Pharaoh never dies but after
death becomes Osiris (god of the dead) and takes his place among the stars. The great Pyramids,
the burial places of the Egyptian rulers, were used at a metaphor to suggest that Pharaoh
reached heaven by following the path of sunrays falling on the Pyramid. On the basis of his
extensive research on the Pyramids, I. E. S. Edwards (1987) argues that the growing influence
of the sun cult led to the development of a new concept of afterlife wherein the deceased ruler,
following the rays, joined the sun god across the sky. The 52° angle of the Pyramid, according
to Edwards, parallels that of the slant of rays on the Pyramid on a winter afternoon and the
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 113

Pharaohs ascended to heaven by walking up the ray of light. Thus, according to Edwards,
Pyramids were the first step to Pharaoh’s union with god.

Monumental Architecture
The beginning of monumental architecture in Egypt can be traced back to the pre-dynastic
phase when mudbrick palaces with defensive towers were constructed. But construction of
real monumental buildings, mostly in the form of royal tombs, in Egypt, began under the rulers
of the Archaic period. Christiane Ziegler (1996) has commented that ‘at the beginning of the
third millennium bce, as often in Egypt, we know more about the realm of the dead than that of
the living’. At Abydos, archaeologists found a series of tombs bearing the names of the rulers
of the first dynasty. Significant among them was the tomb at Saqqara (near Memphis), with a
dimension of 50 and 20 metres of length and width. However, it was during the reign of the third
dynasty that substantial royal tombs made of stone began to appear in the form of pyramids
with accompanying building to assist the king in the afterlife. Djoser was the first ruler who is
credited with the construction of the earliest Pyramid at Saqqara, which was built in the form
of a step-pyramid (called mastaba meaning ‘bench’ in Arabic) for his own burial. The step pyra-
mid comprised of six platforms (mastaba) one on top of the other. The tomb was surrounded
by a thick stone wall forming a huge courtyard (roughly a 15 hectare enclosure). The tomb
contains the remains of Djoser while other members of the royal family were buried in shafts
and tunnel of the pyramid. Built from limestone rubble, the tomb of Djoser distinguishes itself
from earlier tombs by its sheer size with height rising to 60 metres and the base having dimen-
sions of 109 by 102 metres. The tomb also contained, perhaps the first royal statue, a painted
limestone statue of Djoser built at the foot of the pyramid. Ziegler claims that the statue was
symbolic of the Pharaoh communicating with the world of the living through a statue.
Construction of monumental buildings assumed new dimensions under the rulers of the Old
Kingdom. The step-pyramids were transformed (through several stages) into more imposing
true pyramids such as the ones built by Cheops and Chephren and Mycerinus (Menkaure) at
Giza. Among these, the highest one was built by Cheops, which, according to the estimates of
I. E. S. Edwards, was 146.5 metre in height with a base of 235 square metre and had the inclina-
tion of 51°56′. The pyramid of Chepheren measured 143.5 metre in height with a base of 215.25
square metre and an inclination of 52°21′. The interior design of the pyramid was simplistic with
a corridor or a shaft leading to the funeral chamber where the mummified body of the Pharaoh
lay in a sarcophagus. After the completion of the funeral ceremonies, the corridors were filled
with blocks of granite stone to prevent access to the tomb. From the time of the reign of
Menkaure, with the height of the pyramid being 62 metres and base with an inclination of 52°,
the size of the pyramids started reducing. It has been suggested that the overall decline in pyra-
mid building are reflective economic constraints facing the Egyptian state, particularly after the
fourth dynasty that did not permit the state to build such lavish monuments.
These gigantic monuments in the form of pyramids were not only famous for their impres-
sive size but also for, as Robert J. Wenke (2009) has suggested, their complex engineering, the
deft execution of stone sculpture and the precise planning such projects would have required.
It has been suggested by the Egyptologists that the pyramids were all located towards the
western banks of River Nile, the direction of the setting sun, a metaphor for death. Moreover,
all pyramids were situated near the lime reserve close to the river to facilitate transfer of Tura
114 Ancient and Medieval World

limestone, granite and alabaster boulders. The Nile floods also helped in transporting these
to the construction sites. A large labour force was required to construct such massive build-
ings. It has been suggested that majority of the labour consisted of the peasants who did not
undertake any agricultural activity during the floods. According to an estimate, construction
of the largest among these pyramids used up 2.3 million stone blocks each weighing 2.5
tonnes and required the labour of 80,000 people who were employed for 80 days in a year for
20 years.
The administrative supervision, planning and direction as well as feeding of such a large
labour force suggests a very high degree of political and bureaucratic centralisation enforced
by the Pharaoh. Cemeteries of the high-level functionaries of the state were situated around the
Pharaoh, suggesting the absolute control of the monarch even in the eternity. I. E. S. Edwards
has suggested that these monuments were also an attempt to overawe the people and to
impress upon them that he was no ordinary man but divine person deserving to be buried in
such a manner. Kurt Mendelssohn (1974) is of the opinion that the construction of pyramids
was a practical administrative device aimed at organising and institutionalising the state by
trading redistributed food for labour. As construction carried on from one generation to the
other, the villager became dependent on the central administration for food for the entire
period of the construction of the pyramid. This food was obtained from the surplus contributed
by the peasants themselves in the form of taxes (mezed). The state, argues Mendelssohn, thus
fostered as well as exploited the interdependence of the Egyptian village. Besides the construc-
tion of the monuments, an elaborate ritual was also connected with the funeral of the Pharaoh
in order for him to be reborn. This involved the preservation of the body through mummifica-
tion, keeping objects connected with the dead Pharaoh in the burial chamber and creation of
a myth to link him with Osiris (god of the ‘blessed dead’). Thus, the ruling Pharaoh was identi-
fied with Horus and the dead Pharaoh with Osiris.

Social Stratification
The Egyptian society was a highly stratified one with institutionalised inequality established by
the state. At the top level of the society, after the ruler, were the bureaucrats who themselves
were organised into a bureaucratic hierarchy functioning at various levels of the state as gov-
ernors, tax collectors, adjudicators of legal disputes, state officials, village headmen, and so on.
Such hierarchies were considered to be fundamental for a well-ordered state with the belief
that such hierarchies were ordained by gods to further that goal. It was, therefore, natural that
there was an inequitable distribution of surplus produced by the peasants as well as that of
power and prestige. Moreover, as argued by Robert J. Wenke (2009), this disproportionate
access to wealth, power and prestige was inherited or dictated by the elite. There was no con-
cept of ‘class’, but, according to Wenke, the Egyptian society was sharply defined in terms of
several inequalities, ranging from simple distinctions based on age and gender to one’s proxim-
ity to the ruling elite. Thus, the ruler and the nobles were at the apex of the society below which
there were several groups, ranging from leisured elite to enslaved war captives. Wenke has
estimated that 90 per cent or more of Egyptians existed at the bottom of the scale, consisting
of farmers, fishermen, potters, bakers, masons, porters and minor officials. They, very much
like the lowest classes in most ancient societies, accepted these inequalities as their fate and
the will of gods. However, social mobility was possible in the Egyptian society, particularly for
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 115

those who took to writing and became scribes. Barry Kemp (2005) and few others have argued
that there were several schools to train writers for careers in army, treasury, irrigation and other
professions. The trained scribes, considering the importance of writing in the Pharaonic Egypt,
were treated as an integral part of the government.
As a natural corollary to such a stratified society, surplus was distributed in an inequitable
manner with the biggest chunk of it going to the Pharaoh, members of the royal family, the
priestly class, the bureaucracy and the army. The state organised the production and distribu-
tion of surplus as well as the exchange activities for procurement of metal, wood and exotic
items. Artisans and craftsmen were attached with the warehouses of the palace, temple and the
houses of the elite. Evidence of social stratification has been found in the graves excavated at
Hierakonpolis, Naqada and Abydos, which have been considered to be those of the Egyptian
elite. The Pharaohs were buried in large underground chambers (mastaba) and each royal tomb
was surrounded by that of the queens, followed by those of princes and courtiers who built
their own mastaba alongside the pyramid avenues. Christiane Ziegler (1996) has pointed out
that similar tombs were built in the provinces by the high officials and also that such tombs
have been found in distant areas such as the southern oases. Such large-scale construction of
cemeteries and pyramids also suggest, as argued by some, strong element of coercion in mobil-
ising a labour force for such large-scale construction.

Religion and Society

Religion in Egypt developed along the same pattern as the other contemporary civilisations. In
early civilisations, study of religion, society and polity cannot be separated as each had bearing
on the other. Religion in the Bronze Age was dominated by mythopoeic thoughts and therefore
people experienced a sense of intimacy with the forces of nature. Plants, animals, rivers, the
sky, sun and the planets were personified as anthromorphic divinities. Thus, religion in early
civilisations was characterised by features such as worship of natural or cosmic forces, rituals,
myths, elaborate death rites and ancestor worship. At the level of the state, institutionalised
religion played a significant role in the perpetuation of state and society. Social order was har-
monised, sanctified and expressed by religious ceremonies. As Bronze Age societies became
stratified, the social inequities could be regularised and explained only in religious terms.
Religion also became the chief means in the hands of the ruler or the state to secure and per-
petuate power and authority. Through adoption and assimilation of new religious beliefs, spe-
cific cultural values and ideologies could be cultivated which lent justification and support to
state measures such as tax appropriation, irrigation and construction works, large-scale war
making enterprises to name a few. Religion also became a tool in the hands of the kings to
arrogate all powers unto himself. A belief was propagated that wellbeing of the community was
dependent on sacrifices and divination that came to be the monopoly of the king. Further, to
promote authoritarian character of kingship, power of the king was sought to be strengthened
either by deifying him or identifying him with the supreme deity. This was achieved with the
help of the priestly class who by inventing myths and legends succeeded in securing for the king
the position of overlord or potentate vis-a-vis the lesser deities in the existing religious pan-
theon. The notion of ‘life after death’ was directly associated with human endeavour to conquer
death, a phenomenon that had baffled humans since their evolution. Ideas of existence of spirit
that survives death were propagated and to preserve the spirit, elaborate funerary rituals were
116 Ancient and Medieval World

performed which included preservation of the mortal remains of the dead through embalming
and construction of massive tombs, the latter of course being reserved for the rulers or the
wealthy members of the society.
It is in the aforementioned context that one has to study religion and society in Egypt. As
was the case with all ancient civilisations, there was no uniform religion in Egypt at the
popular level and it reflected more heterogeneity than homogeneity. Several cults were fol-
lowed in different nomes even though political unification of Egypt had taken place much
earlier. Thus, Bat (the cow goddess) was the patroness of the seventh nome of Upper Egypt,
Wepwawet (wolf god) was associated with Asyut nome and Sobek (crocodile god) was wor-
shipped in Thebes. Similarly, Arsaphes (ram-headed god) was popular in Heracleopolis and
Sokar (falcon-headed god) had followers in the Memphis region. But most of these minor
cults were ultimately absorbed in those that had larger following or were more favoured by
the rulers of the time. In this context, Erik Hornung (1996) has argued that there was prob-
ably a form of monotheism underlying a superficially polytheistic Egyptian religion. This is
based on his assumption that an emphasis on the role of the creator god seems to have tran-
scended and subsumed numerous Egyptian gods. Another important feature of Egyptian
religion was that with the growth of a patriarchal society in Egypt, just like Mesopotamia,
female deities lost their significance. Their cult either disappeared or were made subordi-
nate to the chief male deity or were made their consort. In this manner, Sekhmat (lion-
headed goddess) was worshipped as the spouse of Ptah (the chief male deity of Memphis)
and Isis (goddess of love and wisdom) was made a consort of Osiris (god of the dead). But
with the growth of family as a social unit, these gods were worshipped as part of a single
family. Thus, Ptah–Sekhmet–Nefertun and Osiris–Isis–Horus were worshipped together as
father–mother–son of a family. According to an Egyptian myth, Set killed his brother Osiris
and Horus then avenged the death of his father by killing Set. W. B. Emery (1961) has inter-
preted this myth in terms of a conflict between the indigenous and master race. He argues
that the worship of Horus was popularised by the master race as the Pharaohs had falcon
(representing Horus) on their crown. It has been argued by Emery that Osiris and Isis were
worshipped by the indigenous people, and, after the coming of the master race, a mythology
was created to incorporate the three deities together. A large number of people of upper
Egypt continued to worship Set for a long time and the conflict between Horus and Set and
victory of the former became a metaphor for victory of the master race over the indigenous
people.
Despite the existence of several deities at the popular level, the available archaeological
evidences (in the form of sacred structures and texts on the temple walls) have led Egyptologists
to suggest that all religious cults seems to have been designed to focus attention on the king.
This has been derived from the texts which invariably refers to any individuals offerings to the
deity as hetep-di-nesw (‘an offering that the king gives’), suggesting that each individual’s act of
worship and offering to the deity were related to his/her links with the king. Since the Archaic
period, as the Narmer Palette suggests, kings were identified with Horus, as the latter’s image
was most prominently depicted on the front of the palette. This, according to Ian Shaw (2004),
is also a clear indication of the fact that the king was already playing a central role in the cele-
bration of religious cults and worship by the beginning of the first dynasty. He goes on to elabo-
rate that one of the objectives of the Narmer Palette could be to serve a kind of elaborate
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 117

reference to the king’s role in the act of providing the gods with offerings which might consist
of anything from fruit to slaughtered enemy or prisoners of war. In other words, he is trying to
suggest that the king’s role was to fight battles on behalf of the gods and then bring back the
prisoners and the booty to dedicate to the gods in their temples.
A significant feature of the Egyptian religion at the level of the state was the promotion of
the worship of sun god (Re) which began from third dynasty onwards and assumed the status
of a state religion by the fourth dynasty. The pyramid texts, particularly from 2300 bce onwards,
provide us with details on the origin and development of the solar cult up until the Middle
Kingdom. It has been argued that although the actual manner in which Re was worshipped went
through several changes, the solar cult retained its preeminent position in the Egyptian pan-
theon for almost 2,500 years. Beginning with the third dynasty, with the help of a mythological
genealogy, Re, Osiris, Horus and the Pharaoh were made a part of the Egyptian pantheon. By
the fifth dynasty, as mentioned earlier, the Pharaoh was declared as the son of Re. With political
changes, Re was associated with different dominant deities at different points of time. As new
dynasties rose to power, they endeavoured to popularise their cult by associating the cult deity
with the sun god. Thus Atum (also known as Tem), who was the chief deity of Heliopolis (Lower
Egypt) during the Old Kingdom, was worshipped as Atum-Re by associating him with the sun
god (particularly the setting sun). After the end of the Old Kingdom, as the power of the central
government became weak, provincial governors (called as nomarchs) became powerful and
Atum was replaced by Arsaphes, the chief deity of Heracleopolis. After the reunification of
Egypt during the Middle Kingdom, however, Amon, the patron deity of Thebes (centre of the
political power of the Middle Kingdom), assumed importance and his cult was popularised by
worshipping him as Amon-Re. By twelfth dynasty, Amon worship became the chief cult of
Egypt. The worship of Osiris also underwent modifications in due course of time. While in the
Old Kingdom only the Pharaoh was associated with Osiris, later this privilege was extended to
members of the royal family as well as nomarchs and members of the aristocracy. It has been
argued by some that since, by the fourth dynasty, the Pharaoh was already endowed with divin-
ity, it was not felt necessary to associate him with Osiris for divinity and immortality
anymore.
Thus, from the presented analysis, it is clear that the Egyptian religion profoundly affected
the society and politics of Egypt and, in turn, was transformed by the existing social and politi-
cal developments. With the growth of family, the totem (anthromorphic deity, symbol of a tribe
or a clan) worship, generally associated with fertility, was replaced by the worship of Osiris–
Isis–Horus as constituents of a single family. Alexandre Moret (2001), in this context, has
pointed out that the origin of family can be seen from this period onwards. As families became
more important than the clan, an attempt was made to lay claim to the produce of the soil. With
this developed the concept of inheritance and a patriarchal society was born. Growth of a patri-
archal society reduced the importance of female deities. The insignificant ones disappeared and
popular ones were made the consorts of the chief male deities. Killing of Set by Horus has also
been interpreted as duties of the son towards the family. In the political sphere, religious myths
and legends (such as the one connected with the immortality of Osiris) were used to justify and
uphold the authority of the pharaoh. As pharaohs came to be associated with the solar cult,
worship of Osiris became more important at the popular level, whereas worship of Re was
118 Ancient and Medieval World

promoted by the state. The Egyptian religious beliefs also promoted the development of
Egyptian mathematics, geometry, science and astronomy.

Trade
Egypt was surrounded by deserts from three sides, which, apart from providing protection from
external invasions, ensured a ‘closed’ nature of the Egyptian society facilitating cultural integra-
tion. It did not however mean isolation of Egypt from the outside world, and, as mentioned
earlier, these deserts also provided passage for interaction of Egyptians with people in the east
and west. Apart from the local trade conducted along the Nile, Egypt was also engaged in long-
distance trade with their Asian and African neighbours. Archaeological evidence trace the
origin of long-distance trade of Egypt since pre-dynastic times. The volume of trade seems to
have increased in the late pre-dynastic times. Sais and Buto in the northwest delta were possi-
bly two important ports on the maritime trade routes where large quantities of timber, oil, wine,
minerals, pottery and other commodities were either traded or passed. The chief exports from
Egypt were stone and pottery vases, gold vessels, papyrus, linen, grains and dried fish. These
trade items were sent through land and sea route (Mediterranean and Red Sea) to Lebanon,
Arabian region, sub-Saharan Africa as well as the Aegean region. The chief imports of Egypt
were cedar wood from Lebanon; ebony and ivory from Africa; lapis lazuli from Badakhshan
(Afghanistan); obsidian from Ethiopia; horses, small cattle, copper and other valuable minerals
from Syria and Palestine; incense and myrrh from Punt (Somalia in East Africa); oil from the
Aegean region and gold from Nubia.
The mentioned trade interaction is confirmed by several archaeological findings. Evidence
of ship building in Egypt has been found as early as 3000 bce. The earliest ship, measuring
75 feet and dated 3000 bce, has been said to belong to the Pharaoh Aha (Menes), second pha-
raoh of the first dynasty. Egyptians were also known to have assembled planks of wood to make
it into a ship hull. We are also informed that Narmer established an Egyptian colony at Canaan
(Phoenicia) and had Egyptian pottery manufactured here with his name stamped on the vessels
and then had them exported back to Egypt. The Palermo stone (a stone slab known as the Royal
Annals, containing a list of Egyptian kings from the first to the fifth dynasty) mentions king
Sneferu of the fourth dynasty sending ships to obtain cedar from Lebanon. This is substantiated
by a painting in the pyramid of pharaoh Sahure of the fifth dynasty where Egyptians are shown
returning with huge cedar trees. The Palermo stones also provide evidence of Egyptian trade
links with Sinai. Thus, it would seem that trading operations were mainly a state enterprise and
motive behind this, apart from purely economic and centralising ones, could be to develop
friendly relationship with the neighbouring and far off states.

Mathematics and Science

Egyptians are said to have achieved a great deal in the field of science and mathematics, which
was mainly an outcome of their practical requirements rather than that of an elaborate theory.
Growth of writing went a long way in promoting the development of mathematics and geom-
etry. The need of stocktaking of raw materials, annual measurement of the Nile floods on
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 119

which depended the entire agricultural production, construction of monuments such as pyra-
mids and other state buildings and land survey for the purpose of irrigation and taxation led to
the development of elementary mathematics and geometry in the ancient Egypt. In mathemat-
ics, the beginning of the use of figures and whole numbers started towards the end of pre-
dynastic period and by the time of the establishment of the Old Kingdom, the art of
measurement was fully developed. From the Old Kingdom onwards, according to Christiane
Ziegler (1996), the official unit of measurement was the royal cubit (52.3 cm long) which was
further subdivided into 28 parts of 1.86 cm each and grouped together in a palm of 4 digits, each
measuring 7.47 cm. This method was generally used to measure the floodwaters of Nile, height
of a divine statue and that of the pyramids and also to estimate the perimeter of a garden.
Figures from 1 to 9 were represented through vertical lines whereas number 10 and multiples
of 10 (100, 1,000 to 1 million) were represented by special signs as the concept of zero was
unknown to the Egyptians. The arithmetic calculations were based on simple addition and
subtraction. Multiplication was like an extended form of addition where numbers or fractions
were added in a repetitive manner. Despite these limitations, the Egyptians were able to gauge
correct measurement which is reflected in the construction of massive pyramids where even
a minor error in calculation could have made its construction extremely difficult. Egyptians
were also quite accurate in establishing the relationship between the diameter of a circle and
its area, and their estimation of the value of pi (m) was near to its present true value, that is,
22/7 or 3.14.
Although Egyptians did not achieve much in the field of astronomy but the orientation of the
pyramids and other monuments suggest that they had observed certain constellations in a pre-
cise manner. As Christiane Ziegler (1996) points out, the sides of the pyramids of Giza are per-
fectly aligned with the four points of the compass with maximum precision being seen in the
pyramid of Cheops. The calendar used by the Egyptians in the pre-dynastic phase was based on
the cycles of the moon but, subsequently, it was based on the annual flood cycle of the Nile.
Each year was divided into 365 days of 12 months distributed into three seasons of 4 months
with each month having 30 days with 5 additional days (epagomenal days) being added at the
end of the year. Based on the annual flooding of the Nile, the three seasons were akhet (flood;
July–October), peret (plantation or germination; November–February) and chemu (harvest;
March–June). One of the important features of the use of calendar in Egypt was that with the
accession of each Pharaoh, the chronology was set afresh. Therefore, the earlier error of leav-
ing one day from each month was reduced in the long run. Presently, we add one day in the
month of February every 4 years (termed as leap year) to remove the discrepancy caused by
difference in the number of days in each month.
The Egyptian practice of mummification of the corpse, which became common from the
period of the Old Kingdom, suggests a good knowledge of human anatomy. Several processes
preceded the final embalming of the dead that involved the use of saline water and other chemi-
cals. Embalming was done with several oils and aromatic herbs, which is an indicative of
Egyptian understanding of the principles of chemistry associated with the human body. But
medical science did not progress much mainly because of the fact that the knowledge of mum-
mification technique remained confined to the priestly class who had no interest in the further-
ance of medical science and kept using magic and incantations to cure humans.
120 Ancient and Medieval World

Summary
1. Growth of civilisation was an important turning point in the human cultural progres-
sion. Civilisation can be defined in several ways but archaeologists have used cul-
tural and organisational attributes to give the status of civilisation to a particular
society. These include a city-based society, a complex and an inegalitarian social
organisation, the society inhabiting a large territory, symbiotic economies based on
centralised accumulation of capital through tribute and taxation that supports a
large non-producing class, craft specialisation, long-distance trade, a written script,
monumental buildings and some form of state-regulated religion.
2. The concept of ‘Urban Revolution’ was propounded by V. Gordon Childe (1950).
Childe theorised that Neolithic ‘revolution’ was followed by an urban ‘revolution’.
While he laid emphasis on city-based civilisations, he did associate this with other
civilisational attributes such as densely populated cities, existence of a specialist
class of metallurgists, production of food surplus, a centralised governing authority
for production and redistribution of surplus, a class stratified society, unified reli-
gion, monumental architecture and development of writing along with mathematics
and predictive sciences. Although Gordon Childe’s views have been critiqued on the
ground that these attributes of civilisation cannot be applied universally with respect
to ancient civilisations. The fact remains that Childe’s hypothesis, until date, is the
most comprehensive definition of civilisation.
3. Mesopotamia (the land between two rivers—Tigris and Euphrates) is considered as
the place where transition from Neolithic to Bronze Age took place the first. The two
rivers played an important role in the growth of Sumerian civilisation by providing
fertility to the soil by depositing alluvium during their annual inundations, transpor-
tation, trade links with far off regions, sustenance of domestic cattle and easy move-
ment of the state army.
4. The growth of Sumerian civilisation was a gradual process that can be seen in the
transitional cultures of North Mesopotamia (Hassuna, Samarra and Halaf) and South
Mesopotamia (Ubaid, Uruk and Jemdet Nasr). Civilisational features developed first
in South Mesopotamia which was a low rainfall area, but the land was extremely
fertile.
5. Growth of Sumerian civilisation has been dated since 3000 bce. An important feature
of the Mesopotamian urbanisation was the growth of several cities (city-states).
These cities, apart from providing security to people during the inter-city-state wars,
also acted as market centres that attracted large immigration from the nearby rural
areas, thus, swelling their population. Prominent among the Sumerian cities were Ur,
Uruk, Lagash, Kish and Nippur.
6. Growth of bronze metallurgy was a significant achievement of the Sumerian people.
Although Sumer lacked in copper and tin (essential for manufacture of bronze), it
was able to get copper and tin from Iran, Anatolia and Syria by exchanging it with
the surplus produce. With the growth of metallurgy, a class of specialist craftsmen
developed in Mesopotamia who were both independent and attached to the state for
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 121

the production of high prestige goods for the elite, over which the state had a
monopoly.
7. State in Mesopotamia arose out of the need to create a coercive mechanism to orga-
nise production as well as its distribution. In the initial stages, temples performed
the role of such a coercive mechanism. The temple, in order to ensure regular pro-
duction of surplus, used myths and legends of religion to create a value system
where desirability of surplus production was propagated to appease the deities to
shower their blessings for abundance of crops. The temples collected surplus pro-
duce as offerings to the deities. Many of the temples had large granaries for storage
of surplus and workshops for craft production. The political history of Mesopotamia
has been divided into Early Dynastic period (3000–2350 bce), Akkadian Dynasty
(2350–2150 bce) and the Third Dynasty (2150–2000 bce). The king list recorded in the
Sumerian language suggests that the earliest rulers of Sumer were chiefs who were
also priests. But as the warfare between the city-states grew, the need to provide
leadership in these wars led to the growth of kings. With this other institutions of the
state such as an organised army, bureaucracy, priesthood and well-defined laws also
developed. By the time of the Akkadian Dynasty, temple was replaced by palace as
the centre of political authority.
8. Social differentiation was a marked feature of the Sumerian civilisation. Growth of
a centralised authority created a division between the elite (kings, bureaucrats, war-
riors and priests) and the commoners (primary producers). Social differentiation
was implicit in the unequal distribution of the surplus and was explicit in the burial
practices, particularly from the Early Dynastic period. While the burial of the king
and the elite contained copper and gold objects, those of the commoners contained
pottery vessels or nothing at all.
9. Religion in Mesopotamia was marked by a distinction in religious beliefs at the
popular level and at the level of the state. At the popular level, people worshipped
multiplicity of deities representing natural and cosmic forces in several smaller
shrines. The state, on the other hand, promoted worship of the chief deity of the city
in a big temple dedicated to the deity. Various deities worshipped at the popular level
were assimilated with the chief city deity through various myths and legends. Many
of the deities were worshipped as part of a single family. With the growth of a patri-
archal society, female deities, barring a few, lost their importance or were associated
with the chief male deity.
10. As an example of monumental architecture, Sumerian civilisation was marked by
construction of several public buildings—temples, palace and other administrative
buildings. The main temple dedicated to the chief deity was called ziggurat (built on
a high platform). Most prominent among these was the temple at Uruk, dedicated to
goddess Inanna. With the transfer of political authority from temple to the palace,
size of the temples were reduced and assumed different shapes. Palace-like struc-
tures began to appear by the end of Jemdet Nasr period and assumed larger dimen-
sions by the end of the Early Dynastic period. Prominent palace structures have
been discovered at Lagash, Uruk and Eridu which were also representative of grow-
ing political authority of the kings.
(Continued)
122 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

11. Mesopotamia was the earliest Bronze Age civilisation to have developed a written
script. Need to record increasing economic transactions led to the development of
writing which was also initiated by the temple. The earliest forms of writing were in
the form of pictograms that were later converted into phonetic representation and
signs, ultimately leading to the growth of Cuneiform script in Mesopotamia. Later,
after the unification of Sumer and Akkad, the Sumerian cuneiform and the Akkadian
Semitic script were combined to develop an alphabet. These scripts ultimately went
beyond economic transactions to glorify military exploits of the rulers and helped in
the growth of a new specialist class of scribes.
12. Since Mesopotamia lacked raw materials such as copper, tin, stones and building
materials, these had to be procured from outside. This necessitated the long-dis-
tance trade besides the interregional trade facilitated by Tigris and Euphrates.
Sumerians traded with far off regions such as Iran, Syria, Anatolia and India. Here
again, temple played an important role in organising this trade which was later taken
over by the state.
13. Science and mathematics developed in Sumer as the construction of monumental
buildings and record keeping of economic transactions could have not been possible
without some knowledge of science and mathematics. The numeral system of
Mesopotamia was sexagesimal and clay tablets were used for the purpose of multi-
plication and division. However, development in the field of astronomy was more
elementary as being limited to the division of day and night into twelve hours.
14. Like Mesopotamia, Egyptian civilisation also covered a large territory but devel-
oped in a more hostile ecological condition. The Nile River proved to be the lifeline
in an otherwise arid and low rainfall region of Egypt that was surrounded by desert
from three sides. However, the inhospitable ecological and geographical conditions
bestowed Egypt with rich reserve of metals, precious stones and minerals besides
providing it protection from external invasions. But it was river Nile that provided
the foundation on which the Egyptian civilisation grew. The annual inundation of the
river left behind a rich fertile soil in the valley area apart from providing a rapid and
reliable channel for movement of goods, people and ideas between Lower (north-
ern) and Upper Egypt (southern), the two distinct geographical regions of Egypt.
Civilisation developed in Upper Egypt first.
15. The growth of Egyptian civilisation was preceded by the development of transitional
cultures in Lower Egypt (Maadi) and Upper Egypt (Naqada). Civilisational features
developed first in Naqada, spread over several phases identified as Badarian,
Amratian (Naqada I), Gerzean (Naqada II) and Naqada III.
16. Since the transition to civilisation in Egypt was quite rapid, diffusionists argued that
this growth was not possible without inputs from outside. Egyptologists, on the
other hand, argue that the growth of civilisation in Egypt was a gradual process and
could be traced to Naqada culture over several centuries. Recent excavations at
important Egyptian sites have also supported the view that emphasises indigenous
development of the process of civilisation in Egypt.
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 123

17. Egyptian civilisation was marked by growth of several urban centres, few of them
being very big cities such as Hierakonpolis, Naqada, Abydos and Coptos in Upper
Egypt and Sais and Buto in Lower Egypt. Findings from these towns have displayed
several features of the Egyptian civilisation. The size of the houses and the burial
practices indicate a clear social hierarchy between commoners and the elite. These
cities have also yielded temple-like structures to give us an idea about the religious
beliefs of the people.
18. The political developments in Egypt has been divided into Early Dynastic or Archaic
Phase (3100–2700 bce), Old Kingdom (2700–2180 bce), Middle Kingdom (2133–1786
bce) and New Kingdom (1567–1080 bce) with Intermediate periods in between.
During the Archaic period, political unification of Lower and Upper Egypt was under-
taken by a legendary ruler, Narmer. Political unification of Egypt was a gradual pro-
cess which involved peaceful as well as violent amalgamation.
19. The state in Egypt revolved around the ruler (Pharaoh) who was symbolic of tri-
umph of peace over chaos. He was considered as a divine ruler who symbolised
Egypt and his unchallenged sovereignty ensured confidence and stability. Pharaoh
had the responsibility of the management of all kinds of resources. He therefore
governed the state by enforcing universal laws with the help of a large bureaucracy.
The living Pharaoh was given a divine status by linking him with the falcon god
Horus while the dead Pharaoh was immortalised by linking him with Osiris, god of
the blessed dead. Governors of the provinces (nomes) and officials of the central
government enjoyed tremendous power bestowed upon them by the Pharaoh, and
they governed the state in the name of the Pharaoh. Political unification of the Nile
Valley further strengthened the position of the Pharaoh. The period of the Old
Kingdom is considered as the mature phase of the Egyptian civilisation when a
number of pyramids and palaces were constructed and the Pharaoh was given the
status of god and was associated with the chief city deity Re, the sun god. In order
to provide immortality to the Pharaoh, elaborate burial rituals, including mummifi-
cation and burial in a massive pyramid, was undertaken.
20. Writing was an important civilisational feature of Egypt. For archaeologists and his-
torians alike, these writings provide several insights into Egypt’s history such as
state formation, power and authority of the rulers, administrative system and reli-
gious practices. The earliest Egyptian script was called hieroglyphic, which was a
combination of pictograms and phonetic sounds carved on stone over temple walls
and tombs. The Narmer palette is a very famous example of writing in hieroglyphic
script. These primarily reflected royal and religious ideology. But the bureaucrats,
for the sake of administrative convenience, developed another script known as hier-
atic which were written on papyrus with a cursive writing. These were simpler and
more suited for lengthy writings.
21. The monumental architecture in Egypt is best represented by the pyramids of Giza.
The step pyramid (mastaba) of the Archaic period were transformed into true pyra-
mids by the rulers of the Old Kingdom. The pyramids, apart from reflecting the
economic and political control of the rulers, demonstrated the complex engineering
and deft execution used in construction of such monuments.
(Continued)
124 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

22. Religion and religious ideology in Egypt was particularly tied to the social and politi-
cal developments. While common people worshipped several anthromorphic deities
connected with nature and cosmic forces, the state popularised and institutionalised
religion for the perpetuation of its authority and social customs. Despite the political
unification of Egypt, different nomes of Egypt worshipped different deities. But,
under the state promoted religion, all cults were subsumed under the dominant cult,
and the nature of religious belief became more monotheistic than polytheistic. An
important feature of the Egyptian religion was decline in the worship of female dei-
ties as the society assumed patriarchal character. While majority of the female dei-
ties were forgotten, few important ones were worshipped as spouses of the chief
male deities. With the growth of family system, several deities were worshipped as
part of a single family. Prominent among these were Osiris–Isis–Horus and Ptah–
Sekhmet–Nefertun. At the state level, Pharaoh played the central role in religious
celebrations. From the time of Old Kingdom, the cult of Sun god Re became the state
religion. As new dynasties rose to power, Re was associated with chief deities of the
ruling dynasties.
23. Despite being surrounded by deserts from three sides, Egypt was able to maintain
long-distance trade relations with its Asian and European neighbours. Egypt
exported large quantities of stone and pottery vases, gold vessels and papyrus to
Lebanon, Arabian region, sub-Saharan Africa and Aegean via Mediterranean and the
Red Sea. Trading operations were mainly a state enterprise which was also aimed at
developing friendly relations with neighbouring and far off states, besides economic
and centralising needs of the state.
24. The development of writing promoted growth of science and mathematics in Egypt.
Need to take a stock of raw materials, annual measurement of Nile floodwater on
which depended the entire agricultural production, construction of massive monu-
ments such as pyramids and other public buildings and land survey for the purpose
of irrigation and taxation led to the development of elementary mathematics and
geometry. Egyptians also developed a calendar that was based on annual flooding of
the Nile River, and the entire year of 365 days was divided into three seasons of four
months.

KEYWORDS
Civilisation urbanisation valley state tribute taxation specialisation script
revolution city-state metallurgy surplus stratification monuments Sumer Akkad
Assyria alluvial delta arid burial chiefdom ziggurat cuneiform temple Naqada
hieroglyphic hieratic Pharaoh Memphis mastaba pyramid nomes cosmic
anthromorphic patriarchal mummification diffusionists Egyptologists
 Bronze Age Civilisations I 125

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. What do you understand by the term ‘Urban Revolution’? Do you think that the term
adequately explains the growth of ancient world civilisations?
2. Define ‘civilisation’ in the context of ancient societies. How does Mesopotamia fit into
this definition?
3. Describe the various stages in the progress towards civilisation in Mesopotamia.
4. Describe the chief feature of state, society, economy and religion in Bronze Age
Mesopotamia.
5. Evaluate the role of geography in the growth of Sumerian civilisation.
6. Analyse the recent debate on the origin of civilisation in Egypt.
7. Describe the features of transitional cultures that prepared the way for the growth of
civilisation in Egypt.
8. Analyse the role Pharaoh in the Egyptian polity and society.
9. Describe the chief features of state, society, economy and religion in Bronze Age Egypt.
10. Religion in Egypt was closely connected with political and social developments.
Comment.

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and J. P. Mohen. London: Routledge/UNESCO Publishing.
CHAPTER
Bronze Age

4 Civilisations II:
Shang and Minoan

Chapter Contents

• Bronze Age in China (The Shang Civilisation)

• Bronze Age in Eastern Mediterranean (The Minoan Civilisation)
• Summary

BRONZE AGE IN CHINA (THE SHANG CIVILISATION)

B
ronze Age in China is said to have begun around 1600 bce and the Shang civilisation is
considered as the earliest of these for which we have the written records. Information
contained in them has also been substantiated by archaeological findings from the
regions covering this civilisation. Similar to the other contemporary valley civilisations, the
ancient Chinese civilisation was based on Huang Ho (also known as ‘Yellow River’ as it carries
rich yellow silt right from Mongolia to the Pacific Ocean where it drains) valley. The river
changed its course several times during 6000–2000 bce, and this coupled with changing climate
impacted Neolithic settlement patterns and cultural developments in this region. After the
extreme cold and dry conditions of the last glacial period, the climate warmed up considerably
during 7500–3000 bce. It was during this period that several Neolithic cultures and civilisational
features developed in China. Evidences of fully developed Neolithic culture, such as, Peiligang,
Cishan and Dadiwan, have been found in the valley in North China between 8000–6000 bce. The
climate underwent another change after this period and became cold and dry following the pat-
tern of global climatic changes that continues up until the modern times. David N. Keightley
(1999) is of the opinion that rainfall in the Neolithic and early-Bronze Age China existed for
longer periods than today and a temperate climate was more hospitable providing for a longer
growing season. He further concludes that the benevolence of the climate and fertility of the
environment also helps to explain the increasing prosperity of the Neolithic and Bronze cul-
tures that were emerging in China during this time. The middle reaches of the Huang Ho and
other parts of the Central Plains are considered as constituting political, economic and cultural
128 Ancient and Medieval World

centre of ancient China. Thus, on this basis, An Zhimin (1996) states that Huang Ho had indis-
soluble connection with the birth of ancient Chinese civilisation.

Late-Neolithic and Early-Bronze Age Cultures of China

Beginning with 6000 bce, Neolithic in China had developed to the extent that by 4000 bce, the
population densities rose and large part of the valley was appropriated by the farmers for the
purpose of agriculture. The prominent late-Neolithic cultures in China, which rose one after
the other, were the Yangshao, Miaodigou II and Longshan cultures (see Map 4.1). The Yangshao
culture (5000–3000 bce) developed in the Henan and Shanxi provinces and it was a settlement

MAP 4.1  Neolithic and Early Bronze Age Cultures in China

Source: Adapted from a blank map by Lamassu Design. Available at: [Link]
media/File:Shang_dynasty.svg. Access date: 19/5/2017.
 Bronze Age Civilisations II 129

of farmers who largely indulged in millet farming. This culture is known for its painted pottery
vessels of reddish colour. An important feature of this culture, as pointed out by K. C. Chang
(1999), is the evidence of shamanistic beliefs and practices indicated by a tomb of a person
flanked by a dragon to his left and a tiger to his right, both formed with clam shells found at
Puyam.
The Miaodigou culture (3000–2700 bce) developed in the Henan and Shanxi provinces on the
ruins of the Yangshao culture and is considered as a transition between Yangshao and Longshan
cultures. People of Miaodigou culture were advanced farmers, used improved farm tools for
digging and harvesting. They also herded pigs and dogs in larger numbers than before. The earli-
est evidence of domestication of goats in China comes from this culture. Besides, they pro-
duced handmade grey ware vessels in large quantities apart from red and black ware. The great
variety in the pottery turned out by the potters of this culture, which also include prototypes of
the following Longshan culture such as tripod with solid feet (ding), tripod with thin feet (  jia),
cauldron (  fu), bowls, basin, pots, cups, and so on, have led scholars like Zhimin (1996) to sug-
gest that the potteries show their transitional character, building on the ceramics of the
Yangshao culture and heralding those of the Longshan culture. The graves, about 145 in number,
in a common cemetery found at Miaodigou, contain very few grave goods except two graves
that have been found with a pottery cup of red clay ware. This, according to An Zhimin, repre-
sents a change in funeral custom and possibly reflects an alteration in the social structure.
The Longshan culture (2600–2100 bce), named after the findings in 1928 at Longshan town
in the Zhangqiu County, developed in a large area covering the Shandong province. The site of
this culture has been found in both North and South China covering middle and lower reaches
of the Huang Ho River; therefore, they demonstrate several regional diversity with respect to
cultural developments. Several important innovations have been noticed related to this culture,
which include manufacturing of wheel-turned pottery, use of copper and bronze for ornaments,
construction of town walls and earthen fortifications, possible origin of writing, presence of
social hierarchies and increased intensity of interaction. Various sites of the Longshan culture
provide us vital clues regarding the origin of civilisation and state in Bronze Age China. Li Liu
(2005) has in fact remarked, ‘As the platform for fundamental social change, it anticipated the
emergence of early Chinese states and civilisations, the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties’. The
period of Longshan culture has also been included in the Chinese chronology of state forma-
tion. According to Yuan Xingpei et al. (1997), the developmental process of Chines civilisation
can be categorised in three stages—(a) guguo shidai (the archaic state period) including the
Longshan period, which is equivalent to chiefdoms and can be regarded as the dawn of Chinese
civilisation; (b) wanguo shidai (the dynastic state period) representing the three dynasties
(Xia, Shang and Zhou), which was the formative period of the civilisation; and (c) diguo shidai
(the Empire period) starting from Qin dynasty to the end of Qing dynasty.
Excavations at the Longshan town done in 1931 has revealed a town enclosure built with
rammed-earth (hang tu) technique. Under this technique, layers of loose earth were poured
between parallel lines of timber shuttering. The layers were made compact by pounding them
with long wooden poles, and the process was continued until the desired height (about 10
metres) and width (about 1 to 1.5 inches) of the wall was achieved. Similar castle-type structure
made of rammed-earth have also been found from Wangchenggang and Pingliangdui sites in the
Henan province, which indicates origin of fortifications and also suggest the sense of insecurity
among the inhabitants due to frequent conflicts between the warring elites. Violence in the soci-
ety is also reflected by finding of skeletons in a dry well in one of the sites of Longshan culture.
130 Ancient and Medieval World

Burial customs of the people of this culture give clear indications of a stratified society.
Cemeteries found from various sites of the Longshan culture in Shanxi, Shandong, Jiangsu and
Zhejiang provinces substantiate this view. A gigantic cemetery found at the largest of the
Longshan site Taosi, in the Shanxi province, contains thousands of graves that have been have
categorised the into three categories—(a) large-sized graves (invariably of males) with coffins
containing large number of grave goods such as fired and painted potteries, painted wooden
musical instruments, stone and jade ornaments, crocodile skin, copper (bells) and ritual
objects; (b) medium-sized graves (again mostly of males) with coffins but lesser number of
grave goods in the form of fired potteries and painted wooden objects, females being buried
along both sides of the large graves; and (b) small-sized narrow graves without coffins and no
grave goods. Each cluster of graves display such a hierarchy that has led few scholars to sug-
gest existence of a segmentary lineage type of kinship organisation in which each lineage was
stratified according to its distance from the stem. The positioning of women graves also sug-
gests the existence of patriarchy apart from indicating disparity between rich and poor and
division of ranks. In Liangzhu culture (also considered as a part of the Longshan culture by
some), located in the lake areas of Southern Jiangsu and Northern Zhejiang provinces, elabo-
rate elite burials that have been found. K. C. Chang (1999) points out that in one of the tombs
at Fanshan site, a single skeleton was found with as many as 547 artefacts that among other
things included pottery vessels, shark tooth, ivory objects and several pieces of jade ornaments.
Clearly, as the grave goods suggest, this must have been the tomb of a political and religious
leader (Shaman) or a lineage chief. It has been suggested, based on the burials and sizes of the
houses discovered, that Liangzhu society was a highly stratified one with a clear distinction
between rulers and the ruled.
The Longshan culture was also known for its pottery industry. The artisans mostly produced
grey ware along with black and few red ware potteries. In fact, the exquisite black pottery has
led few to term Longshan culture as ‘Black Pottery Culture’. While most of them were hand-
made, few were made on fast rotating wheel which was a noticeable innovation of this period.
The Liangzhu artisans were expert potters who churned out polished black potteries on potter’s
wheel. The pottery kilns found in several houses suggest that pottery had become an indepen-
dent industry. The shapes of the potteries follow those of the Miaodigou culture and became
prototypes of those that flourished later during the Shang-Zhou period. Pottery was an impor-
tant article of exchange over long distances between several farming communities, which also
included raw materials and other luxury goods. This type of exchange relations between sev-
eral chiefdoms eventually brought them together into a larger political formation. Copper met-
allurgy was another important innovation of this period. Evidence of copper ornaments has
been found among the grave goods at Taosi.
An important finding at one of the Longshan sites named Chengziyai in the Shandong prov-
ince in 1930–31 was almost a dozen cracked ox shoulder blades which were identified as oracle
bones used for divination purposes. The bones were cracked by putting hot metal on them and
the cracks were interpreted as messages from the ancestors. Although the Longshan sites have
not yielded any bone with inscription but few have suggested that Chinese writing may have
originated from the need to interpret the cracks on the bones, as the new writing symbols
resembled the persistent crack patterns. The incised potsherds (pieces of broken pottery)
found from the sites of Longshan and Liangzhu cultures have also been considered as possible
representation of earliest writing in China.
 Bronze Age Civilisations II 131

The Erlitou culture (1900–1600 bce), named after the findings in the city of Erlitou (south of
Huang Ho) in the Henan province in 1957, was spread in a large area covering Henan and Shanxi
provinces. Erlitou is considered as the largest city of China at that time, covering an area of
370,000 square metre. Archaeologists have divided the layers into several phases representing
different stages of cultural development. In the later phases of the settlement, a complete
palace complex has been identified with rammed-earth foundation, wooden enclosures, corri-
dors, wings and courtyards surrounded by walls from all four sides. This had prompted few
scholars to describe Erlitou as a highly centralised kingdom at a time when environmental
instability (extremely cold and dry conditions) in around 2000 bce had contributed to political
instability and competition among various kingdoms to augment resources. The large palace
complex was contrasted by small-sized dwellings of simple structure, indicating the degree of
class differentiation. The remains of the graves excavated also reflect such a social chasm. The
medium-sized graves, possibly belonging to the nobles, contained such grave goods as bronze
wine vessels and bronze dagger-axe and battle-axe and handmade ornaments. Whereas the
smaller graves do not contain such exquisite goods except pottery wine vessels.
An important innovation associated with the Erlitou was bronze metallurgy which had
reached a high stage of development. Erlitou artisans were highly skilled metallurgists who
manufactured variety of bronze tools such as adze, chisel, knife, awl, fishhooks and such weap-
ons as battle-axe (qi), dagger-axe (ge) and arrowheads. The bronze artisans also used multiple
mould castings to fabricate ritual vessels such as three-legged, flat-bottomed and narrow-
wasted wine vessels with spouts. Royal control over bronze industry is evident from the fact
that bronze foundries have been found to be close to the royal palace, which also underlines
their importance as symbol of political, economic and ritual power. This became even more
evident during the Shang period that required control of both skilled persons and sources of the
ore. The ceramics of this culture continue the trend of the Longshan period in shape, technique
and decoration but many of these were now made of bronze. Some vessels were made of kaolin
clay with fish designs and dragon-like animal motifs. Few were engraved with signs bearing
similarity to scripts on the oracle bones of the later Shang times, suggesting a primitive writing
system, which has not yet been confirmed.
It is generally believed that the Erlitou rulers had to expand their territory continuously so
as to establish control over the supplies of timber, toolmaking stone, copper, tin and salt avail-
able in the peripheral areas. It has also been argued that as the kingdom developed an elaborate
hierarchical structure where personal status, the acquisition of wealth, control of production
and trading of prestigious items were symbols of political power, such an expansion was
imperative. The expansion also facilitated growth of a common ideology dominated by ancestor
cults based on ritual feasts where bronze vessels were used for ritualistic purposes. It is thus
argued that these rituals may have helped forged the common cultural tradition that was the
hallmark of later Chinese civilisation. Considering the advanced state apparatus that repre-
sented the Erlitou culture, its similarity with the later Shang culture, and, based on popular
legends, few Chinese scholars have tried to link the city of Erlitou with Xia, the first dynasty of
China, a fact that has not been proven conclusively. As per the legend, a Xia ruler named Yu the
Great used his military powers to gain power and was successfully able to establish flood con-
trol measures to protect the valley from river inundations. Recent archaeological excavations
have located his capital near Dengfeng in Henan province which was a large settlement.
An overview of the late-Neolithic and early-Bronze Age cultures of China suggests that the
period 3000–1600 bce was a period of transition of China from primitive community to
132 Ancient and Medieval World

formation of state centring around the Huang Ho valley. The archaeological findings of the late-
Neolithic and early-Bronze Age cultures reveal a continuity with respect to cultural develop-
ments, displaying at the same time the process of integration as well as unevenness. The
continuity and unevenness is reflected mostly in the pottery types and their technique of manu-
facture. The above analysis also reveals the significance of Huang Ho valley (particularly its
middle reaches covering the Central Plains) in the history of China as the Yangshao, Miaodigou,
Longshan and Erlitou cultures, that developed in these regions covering most of North and East
China, laid the foundation of the later Shang and Zhou civilisation. The continuous interaction
between these cultures and the peripheral regions brought new cultural elements into the
Central Plains during the initial years of the Chinese civilisation. Thus, the Huang Ho Valley
played an important facilitating role in the integration of the peripheral regions and remained
the foci of the conglomerate society during the process of unification of China.

The Shang Civilisation

The period of the Shang Dynasty (c. Mid-1700s to Mid-1000s bce) corresponds to the middle of
China’s Bronze Age. But since we do not have written records pertaining to the period before
Shang, the latter has been given prominence among the early civilisations of China as it pro-
vides the earliest evidence of written records which has been substantiated by archaeological
findings. As mentioned earlier, legends talk about the existence of Xia Dynasty prior to the
Shang but there are no contemporary written records to prove this point even though texts
written later than the Shang Dynasty also mention existence of the Xia Dynasty. The Chinese
scholars believe that Xia Dynasty was followed by the Shang, whereas Western scholars regard
Xia as an early civilisation that existed between Neolithic and Shang culture. While the Huang
Ho River valley is considered as the cradle of Chinese civilisation and among them, Shang
civilisation was the only one to provide written records, it must also be mentioned here that
this was not the only region or Shang was not the only civilisation to develop in China during
3000–1000 bce. Recent archaeological records related to areas away from the Huang Ho valley
suggest that there existed different cultures with their distinct civilisational features.
Our major source of information about the Shang Dynasty are the oracle bones (manually
cracked shoulder bones of an ox or a buffalo used by professional diviners to make predictions
about the future), Shang bronze inscriptions and written records belonging to a period much
later than the time period of the Shang Dynasty. The information contained in these provide us
useful insights into the Shang rulers and their practices, chronology of the Shang Dynasty, the
social structure, military history as well as rituals and religious beliefs. Besides, the
Archaeological excavations of the Yin ruins near Anyang (1928), at Ao in the modern city of
Zhengzhou (1950s) and the recent explorations of the early Shang capital of Xibo in Luoyang
(1983) also throw light on the cultural aspects of Shang civilisation. As per the information
contained in the legends, one Cheng Tang founded the Shang Dynasty after defeating ruler of
the legendary Xia Dynasty and established earliest capital at Xibo in Yanshi County of Henan
province. But Xibo was not the only capital of the Shang Dynasty and as the oracle bones and
other written records suggest, the Shang rulers ruled from at least seven capitals during their
600-year rule. These and other findings from the archaeological excavations indicate that the
focal point of the Shang Dynasty was a triangular area in the northern part of the modern Henan
province, covering three major cities of Anyang, Luoyang and Zhengzhou (see Map 4.2).
 Bronze Age Civilisations II 133

MAP 4.2  China Under Shang Dynasty (c. Mid-1700s–Mid-1000s)

Source: Adaptation of a blank map by Lamassu Design. Available at [Link]

media/File:Shang_dynasty.svg
Note: The marked area in the map depicts the extent of Shang Civilisation including the Bronze Age sites.

Capital Cities
The sites of all the seven capitals of the Shang Dynasty have not been mapped but those at Xibo
at Yanshi, Ao at Zhengzhou and at Anyang have been extensively excavated and provide us suf-
ficient information to formulate somewhat clearer picture of the Shang civilisation, particularly
related to power of the state. Recent excavations at Xibo (the earliest Shang city) in the Henan
province have suggested that it was a walled city having a length of 1700 metres and breadth of
1200 metres with seven city gates. The city walls contained the palace complex measuring 200
by 200 metres and included big halls and courtyards surrounded by walls made of tampered
134 Ancient and Medieval World

earth. The palace at Xibo also had elaborate drainage system. It is believed that around mid-
sixteenth century bce, Ao, a town near the modern city of Zhengzhou and situated close to the
Huang Ho River, became the capital of the Shang kings. Limited excavations done so far at this
site have revealed traces of a big city spread around 3.5 square kilometres and surrounded by
33 feet high wall (Called hangtu). This walled city contained the houses of the rulers, the elite
and also had a temple complex. Outside the walls have been found houses of the artisans, par-
ticularly those of the bronze metallurgists. The artisans lived in substantial houses and two
bronze factories have been found attached to these houses. The houses of the potters with kilns
have been found slightly away from the walled city in the form of a satellite village where they
manufactured numerous baked vessels.
The available historical records suggest that around 1400 bce, the capital of the dynasty
shifted to a place called Yin (near modern Xiaotun village on the Huan River) close to the
Anyang city in the Henan province. Excavations here begin in the 1920s under Li Chi, and since
then the site has attracted attention of several archaeologists. Spread in an area covering 24
square kilometres, it is the largest among the capital cities of the Shang Dynasty and covers
both sides of the Huan River. Known in the historical sources as Yin or Yinxu (‘ruins of Yin’),
the site is said to have been the capital of the Shang rulers for approximately 270 years until the
decline of the dynasty. The Anyang site covers several buildings that include a palace complex
at Xiaotun, a royal burial area called Xibeigang and several workshops. Excavations at the
palace complex have revealed 53 large (120 feet long and 65 feet wide) rectangular hangtu
platforms on which were built large halls. Zhang Changshou (1996) points out that these halls
have been arranged regularly and symmetrically showing that, by this time, the principle of
axiality and symmetry had become a part of the architectural design in ancient China. The
palace complex also contained timber houses with mud and stick walls, which were believed
to have been royal residences that housed the extended noble families. Within the same com-
plex, excavations have revealed construction of a massive temple that had five ceremonial
gates. In the vicinity of the temple has been found burial remains of animals and humans which
appear to be sacrificial victims. On the periphery of the palace complex were the residences of
the common people, bronze artisans and workshops dealing in bronze casting, pottery manu-
facture, bone and lapidary working. The excavations (in 1930s) at the royal burial area (at
Xibeigang) have revealed at least 11 large-size graves (dated between 1400 and 1200 bce)
besides about 1,000 small ones and sacrificial pits. In one of the graves, coffin of the ruler was
accompanied by magnificent bronze vessels along with stone, bone and shell ornaments. The
smaller burials surrounding the royal ones contain pottery, weapon and bronze vessels but
without any adornment as grave goods.

State and Society

The Anyang findings thus reveal several aspects of the Shang state and society. Besides enlight-
ening us about the Shang understanding of the arrangement of palace complex and the cemeter-
ies in the capital cities of ancient China, they also reflect the nature of state, the Shang state
being perpetually at war with the nearby or far off kingdoms to gather resources. Large armies
(sometimes consisting of 13,000 men) were raised through enforcing conscription. Some schol-
ars opine that the Shang rulers stayed in power by the virtue of a strong army and that Shang
society was organised on military lines where the royal army was supplemented with thousands
of conscripts. The victorious armies not only brought resources but also prisoners of war,
 Bronze Age Civilisations II 135

which at times reached the figures of 30,000. The prisoners of war either worked as slaves or
became sacrificial objects. The success of the Shang state in organising such a large army at a
short notice has been attributed to a sophisticated permanent military establishment and a kin
organisation through which people were obligated into serving the king as and when the need
arose. The military nature of the Shang state is also confirmed by findings of various weapons
and wooden chariots used by the soldiers from the Anyang ruins. The chariot was found buried
alongside the grave of the charioteer. The Shang state has been described by Zhang Changshou
(1996) as a monarchy where the king held sovereign powers and governed the aristocracy that
consisted of the chiefs of various tribes. Commenting on the issue of succession, Changshou is
of the view that in the initial stages of the dynastic rule, succession was based on the principle
of passing on kingship from elder to the younger brother. However, as it created succession
dispute among brothers thereby weakening the rule, it was turned to a hereditary monarchy
towards the end of the dynastic rule. Shifting of several capitals by the different Shang rulers
has also been explained in terms of domestic power struggle.
The Chinese society during the Shang period was divided along hierarchies with different
levels of social ranks at the top of which were the royal family followed by nobles and soldiers.
Although family remained the basic unit of society, people inhabited different territories as clans.
This is substantiated by written records informing us that the entire clan of the Shangs were
converted into slaves after the Zhou Dynasty destroyed the Shang rule in China. Brian Fagan
(2010) opines that the ruler was considered as the head of all family lines which percolated
downwards to the nobility and then to the commoners. It has been suggested that these actual
and manufactured ties were the core of early-Chinese civilisation, which also put an obligation
on the peasants to provide food and labour for their rulers. Slaves were an important component
of the society. They were mostly prisoners of war, and the victorious Shang army brought in as
many war captives as possible. They were turned into slaves and were made to do productive
and domestic works. They were also given away as awards and were often sacrificed and buried
with their dead owners. The yin ruins have yielded numerous sacrificial pits alongside the royal
graves, containing headless skeletons of humans who were possibly sacrificed after the death of
their Shang master. In fact, Zhang Changshou (1996) has termed the Shang state as a ‘slave
owning state’. Among the free common masses, the bronze craftsmen seem to enjoy a better
position as they produced bronze vessels highly valued by the Shang rulers. Apart from this, the
Shang society was a male-dominated society, although there are indeed references of women of
the royal families being given commandership of the army during military expeditions.

Economy and Crafts

The Shang economy was based on settled agriculture like all other contemporary ancient civili-
sations. Millet, wheat and rice were the staple crops. Several stone implements such as spades,
sickles and knives were used for farming. It has been pointed out that people were very fond of
drinking wine that was brewed from the available grains, suggesting surplus production of
grains. Shang people also domesticated several animals such as dogs, pigs, cattle, goats, sheep
and horses, and usage of large number of these animals for the purpose of sacrifice suggests
animal domestication at a flourishing stage. Use of horse-driven carts and chariots is an exam-
ple of improved communication and military technology.
The Shang potters manufactured grey ware potteries mostly on the wheels and some on the
moulds. The evenness of the colour on these suggests potter’s control over temperature in the
136 Ancient and Medieval World

baking kiln. An important innovation towards the end of the Shang period in this field was the
manufacture of white ware and glazed potteries for which kaolin clay was used. These glazed
potteries were for exclusive use for the elite class. These potteries have been considered as the
forerunner of Chinese porcelain. Another important craft of the Shang civilisation was lapidary.
The Anyang ruins have yielded large number of jades (ornaments made from jadeite or nephrite
mineral) that was supposed to have been brought from Xinjiang, as they were not available
locally. These included ritual objects, pendants and animal and human figurines and display
high technical and artistic mastery of the craftsmen. Bone and ivory carvings were another
category of crafts being practiced during the Shang period. A fine example of exquisite crafts-
manship in ivory carving is an ivory-cup inlaid with turquoise found in one of the royal tombs
from the Anyang ruins. A few pieces of silk fabrics with designs and embroidery recovered from
the graves of the yin ruins suggest high level of the development of silk textile industry in China.
The evidence of nephrite that came from Xinjiang and turtle shells coming from the side of the
sea suggests existence of long-distance trade and exchange.
However, the most significant innovation of the Shang people has been noticed in the field
of bronze metallurgy and casting. It is believed that the Shang period (particularly the latter
half) saw the greatest development of China’s bronze culture. The evidence of exquisite bronze
work has come from the artefacts found in the royal tombs, and the extent of this industry can
be gauged from the fact that a large bronze foundry has been found with large number of
moulds from Anyang ruins. Most of the bronze objects of this period consist of weapons or food
and drinking vessels, some of which were used for rituals. The bronze vessels are mainly in the
form of tripod (ding), bowls (gui) and wine vessels such as beaker (gu), three-legged drinking
cup (jue), jar (zun) and oval pot with a swing handle (yu). It has been argued that the bronze
industry was a guarded monopoly of the Shang rulers and only those with some authority in the
kingdom had access to use bronze objects. It has also been argued that the Shang people devel-
oped bronze metallurgy before 2000 bce, independent of the Western influence, based on their
vast experience of pottery making which were kiln-fired at very high temperature. While manu-
facturing smaller weapons such as arrowheads, spearheads and axe blades followed a simple
procedure of mixing copper and tin in a mould, a more complex technology was required to
manufacture large ceremonial vessels in specially prepared moulds through the technique of
piece-mould casting. This complex technique involved creating a mould out of clay, carving a
design into it and then pouring molten bronze into the mould, cracking the mould away and
then adding a handle to it. The shape, design and decoration of the vessels changed according
to the changes brought about in the rituals. Discovery of thousands of small pieces and big wine
vessels made of bronze (some weighing 2,000 pounds) is a testimony to the Shang bronzes-
miths’ mastery over the technology.

Writing and Religion

The oracle bone inscriptions provide the irrefutable evidence of the development of writing in
Shang China. These inscriptions have been compared to the modern Chinese writing by the
experts, and it has been concluded that the Shang writers had already developed the principle
of writing practiced in the modern form of writing in China. It is also argued that Chinese writing
has undergone minor changes since the beginning of writing during the Shang period. Initially,
the Shang documents were recorded on strips of bamboo and silk but these have not survived.
The oracle bone and bronze inscriptions constitute the only written history of the Shang era.
 Bronze Age Civilisations II 137

Even among the two, the oracle bone inscriptions are given precedence over the bronze inscrip-
tions as the later were very short and did not reveal much information. Besides oracle bones and
bronze inscription, writing has also been noticed on pottery, bronze and lapidary objects. The
oracle bones, mostly of ox shoulder blade and tortoise shells, were used for recording and divi-
nation. Thousands of oracle bone pieces have been found from the Anyang ruins. The characters
on these bones have been divided into several categories such as pictographic. Pictophonetic,
self-explanatory and mutually explanatory, was dominated by the pictographic characters (see
Figure 4.1). Scholars point out that the present Chinese ideographs (a graphic symbol represent-
ing an idea or a concept) also originated from the pictograms that developed in China as early
as 2500 bce. The growth of pictophonetic characters under the Shang Dynasty marked a new
phase in the beginning of writing in ancient China. Zhang Changshou (1996) is of the opinion
that the very fact that the Shang writing system was mature enough to record spoken languages
and human activities indicates that the Shang Dynasty indeed came into historical times. The
invention of writing also had a profound impact on the governance of the Shang rulers, as, with
the help of writing, they were able to organise a hierarchical administrative structure, mining of
ore to manufacturing bronze objects, undertake large military campaigns, construct city walls
and palaces and build elaborate tombs for themselves.
Like the contemporary ancient civilisations, the Chinese religious beliefs were also centred
around the worship of gods and spirits related to nature. Natural objects such as land, water,
mountains, hills, wind, rain, the sun and the moon were believed to be regulated by their respec-
tive spirits. However, the Shang people considered and worshipped ‘Shang Di’ as the supreme
deity, who lorded over lesser gods of the sun, moon, wind, rain and all other natural forces. An
important aspect of the Chinese religion during this period was the ancestor worship. It was
believed that although ancestors were dead and lived in heaven, they were still actively involved
in the affairs of the descendants. At the popular level, all divinations were directed towards the
ancestors who, as they believed, acted as a link between human beings and the supreme deity
Shang Di. Likewise, the royal divination rituals were also addressed to the royal ancestors who
acted as the intermediaries between the living human beings, the ultimate ancestor and the
supreme deity. Kings communicated with their ancestors with the help of the oracle bones and
also made sacrifices (both humans and animals) to them and other deities. The priest had an
important role to play in the divination ceremonies, as it was he who communicated the
response of the ancestors to the questions posed by the ruler by interpreting the cracks on the
bones created by bringing the bone into contact with a heated metal. This enhanced the author-
ity and prestige of the priests guiding the divination ceremonies. Since there was an emphasis
on afterlife and ancestor worship, therefore burial rituals were carefully undertaken. This is
reflected in the elaborate tombs of the Shang rulers and the artefacts contained in the graves.
The remains of other people alongside the graves were of either those who were sacrificed
during the burial ritual or who served the rulers, the idea being that those serving in the lifetime
should also serve the ruler in death.

BRONZE AGE IN EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN (THE MINOAN

CIVILISATION)
The Minoan Civilisation developed in Crete in the Aegean Sea region. The Aegean Sea is located
in the eastern part of the Mediterranean between the coast of Greece and modern Turkey. Crete
138 Ancient and Medieval World

FIGURE 4.1  Chinese Oracle Bone Characters

Source: [Link]
Note: The first row depicts Shang Oracle Bone characters, the second their modern Chinese counterparts, the third
Chinese Phonetics and fourth their English Meanings.
 Bronze Age Civilisations II 139

is the largest among the hundreds of islands comprising the Aegean Basin. Around the third mil-
lennium bce, Greece and Aegean showed a remarkable cultural homogeneity along with distinc-
tive regional characteristics as displayed in Cyclades and Crete. Neolithic in the Greek Mainland
and in parts of the Aegean had developed around 7000 bce. Between 7000–4000 bce, several
farming societies came up in mainland Greece and the Aegean islands including Crete. The
Neolithic societies of Southern and Western Greece survived on a mixed economy, based on
cultivation of cereals along with olives and vines in a suitable environment. These societies also
produced stone figures, finely printed pottery and vessels made of marble. The late-­Neolithic
cultures in the Geek peninsula developed mostly in the coastal areas and therefore maritime
trade was an integral part of their economy even before the beginning of the Bronze Age in this
region. Two distinct late-Neolithic and early-Bronze cultures developed around 3000 bce in
Southern Greece at Cyclades and Crete. Scholars have divided both these cultures into three
phases, namely, Early Cycladic I, Early Cycladic II and Early Cycladic III; Early Minoan I (EM I),
Early Minoan II (EM II) and Early Minoan III (EM III), based on several stages of their cultural
development. The Minoan culture was followed by that of the Mycenaean civilisation of
Mainland Greece. Thus, civilisation at Cyclades, Crete and the Greek Mainland are together
referred to as Ancient Aegean civilisation or Bronze Age civilisations of Greece (see Map 4.3).
Metallurgy had developed in the Aegean and the Greece Mainland by 3000 bce, and, by
2500 bce, people of this region were manufacturing bronze artefacts along with gold and silver
ornaments. Earlier it was believed by diffusionists that metallurgy was introduced in Aegean
from the East (Sumer and Egypt) but based on the recent archaeological excavations and reca-
librated carbon dating analysis, scholars such as Colin Renfrew (2011) points out possibly a
northern influence (Balkan region) and processes at work within the Aegean Basin as the cause
of the growth of metallurgy in this region. He further argues that the dissemination of the
bronze technology was made possible by rapid expansion of trade in Aegean, which was
extended to Anatolia that had a rich reserve of copper products. The availability of several ports
and easy communication between them led to a flourishing trade between them in metal tools
and ores, olives and wine, marble vessels, figurines and finely crafted potteries. It is hardly
surprising, states Christos Doumas (1996), that the earliest proto-urban centre on European
territory appeared in one of the Aegean islands at the site of Poliochni on Lennos and the earli-
est evidence of mining and metallurgical activities comes from Cycladic islands, particularly
from Kampos (3000–2800 bce), Keros-Syros (2800–2300 bce) and Kastri (2400–2200 bce). The
trade not only brought products but also ideas into Greece and Aegean, leading to considerable
cultural diversity and an increased social and political complexity. This cultural diversity is best
exemplified by Crete where numerous documentations have suggested the growth of a brilliant
civilisation based on towns and palaces throughout the extent of the island.
The island of Crete, located at the centre of Eastern Mediterranean and at the crossroads of
Asia, Africa and Europe gave rise to the famous palace-based civilisation at Knossos in Northern
Crete. Archaeologist Arthur Evans (1935), under whose supervision the sites of palace at
Knossos were excavated in 1900 ce, termed it as ‘Minoan’ civilisation (after the legendary king
Minos) to distinguish it from the ‘Mycenaean’ civilisation of the Greek Mainland and that of the
Cyclades Island. Crete has a mountainous terrain and the land is less fertile. Prior to the begin-
ning of civilisation, the earliest Neolithic settlement at Knossos has been found to be contem-
porary with Çatalhöyük in Anatolia where the Knossos farmers lived in sun-dried mudbrick
rectangular houses and lived on intensive cultivation of olives and vine besides some cereals.
Evidence of trade in stone bowls has been found from this place as early as 3700 bce. The onset
140 Ancient and Medieval World

MAP 4.3  The Aegean Civilisations of Second Millennium bce

Source: Adapted from an outline map of Greece. Available at: [Link]

html

of civilisation in Crete has been dated from 3000 bce. Based on the changing pottery styles,
Evans divided this civilisation into Early (3000–2100 bce), Middle (2100–1500 bce) and Late
(1500–1100 bce) Minoan. Each period was further subdivided into three (I, II and III) phases for
further distinction. Arthur Evans’s book became the basis for further studies on Minoan civilisa-
tion. But since the division mentioned here failed to provide comprehensive details about this
culture and Minoan was considered a centralised palace-based civilisation, few scholars such as
 Bronze Age Civilisations II 141

Nikolas Platon, based on construction and destruction of palaces, have divided this civilisation
into Pre-palatial (2600–1900 bce), Proto-palatial (1900–1750 bce), Neo-palatial (1750–1450 bce)
and Post-palatial (1450–1100 bce) phases. This division is generally accepted by the scholars
because of ability of this methodology to bring out several aspects of the Minoan civilisation in
greater detail.

Pre-palatial Phase
The Pre-palatial phase of the Minoan civilisation effectively covers a large time span, that is,
from 7000 to 2000 bce (from Neolithic around 6000 bce until the early-Bronze Age). But the only
Neolithic site in Crete about which definite information is available is Knossos near the Kairatos
valley. The Neolithic settlement here was small, covering an area of just about half an acre. But
as the evidences suggest, things changed rapidly during the EM I phase (4500–3500 bce) that
was marked by trading contacts with Cyclades, Egypt and Anatolia, which resulted in immigra-
tion of people. Thus by about 3500 bce, the size of the Neolithic settlement of Knossos had
increased to 12.5 acres with an estimated population of 1,500, suggesting large immigration
from outside. Contacts with outside world also led to the introduction of new ceramic tradi-
tions such as ‘Pyrgos’ ware and ‘Aghios Onouphrios’ ware. These were mainly slip-coated vases
with linear decorations or incised patterns in red, white or dark paint. Although metallurgy was
known in Knossos by this time, but true bronze metallurgy did not develop before 2500 bce or
in the EM II phase. By EM II phase, bronze tools and weapons such as saws, knives, daggers,
arrowheads, spears, and son on were manufactured in large numbers. The burials found from
the sites of varying sizes suggest existence of different kinds of societies. While burials exca-
vated from small settlements such as Debla, Myrtos and Vasiliki suggest an egalitarian society,
those excavated at bigger settlements such as Knossos, Phaistos and Malia with a population
range of 450–1,500 clearly hint at a hierarchical society through their buildings and elite burials.
By the time of EM III phase (2000 bce), elite burials were common at such sites as Malia,
Mochlus and Archanes. This period was also marked by increased interaction with Eastern
Mediterranean region. Few scholars have pointed out that this connection suggests the impor-
tance of social stratification and external contacts as factors associated with the emergence of
palaces in the middle Minoan phase beginning 2000 bce.

Proto-palatial Phase
The Proto-palatial phase (2000–1750 bce) is considered as the high watermark of early-Bronze
Age Minoan civilisation. In the post 2000 bce period, when several parts of Greece were experi-
encing large-scale immigrations and upheavals, Crete not only escaped these but also continued
to make several strides in its cultural achievements. Many of the advanced societies of conti-
nental Greece such as the Mycenaean that developed in the mid-second millennium bce even
borrowed from the Minoan civilisation. The earliest palace buildings were constructed at four
major centres of the Minoan civilisation, namely, Knossos, Phaistos, Malia and Kato Zakro. The
floor area (ranging from 3.2 acres at Knossos to 1.85 acres at Malia) and the arrangement of
rooms around a carefully proportioned central court suggest the monumentality of these struc-
tures. Scholars point out that these early palaces were administrative and ritual centres of those
independent polities that were economically interdependent. Most of these palaces had storage
142 Ancient and Medieval World

rooms (magazines) for grains in the west along with large grain storage jars termed as pithoi in
which the surplus agricultural produce was stored. With the help of this surplus, the palace sup-
ported craftsmen who were specialised in gold and stone work and in producing beautiful
polychrome potteries known as ‘Kamares’ pottery which was a hallmark of the Proto-palatial
phase of the Minoan civilisation. The Kamares potteries are also indicative of exchange links
with other political entities of Eastern Mediterranean and Egypt. These potteries were meant
for the elite and its production was centred on the palace. It has been suggested by some that
the palace also had control over acquisition of raw materials such as copper (from Attica), tin
and ivory (from Syria). Evidences suggest that Minoan maritime contacts with the Greek
Mainland and the Aegean Sea (particularly with Cyclades) were also quite regular. Presence of
an administrative system in the Proto-palatial phase is clear from the findings of seals (of both
stone and clay). These seals depict hieroglyphic script (still to be deciphered) with pictograms,
phonetics and numeric symbols. Another writing system termed as Linear A script developed
towards the end of this phase, which has also remained undeciphered so far. The scripts were
used to record storage in the palace and to control storage rooms and containers. The palace
was also the centre of all ritual activities. Historians cite iconographical and artefactual evi-
dences to suggest that most of the cult centres such as caves, springs and peak-top sanctuaries,
which were characteristic of the Minoan civilisation, were mostly distributed in the rural areas.
There was a close connection between the palace and these cult centres as suggested by the
alignment of the palace at Knossos with Mount Iouchtas and that of Phaistos with the Kamares
cave. This has been explained as an attempt to unify the rural settlement with the existing politi-
cal authority with palace acting as a prominent visual marker. The Proto-palatial phase is sup-
posed to have ended with a massive earthquake that destroyed many of the Cretan settlement.

Neo-palatial Phase
From the point of view of political control, economic prosperity and cultural attainments, the
Neo-palatial phase (1750–1450 bce) is considered as the zenith of Minoan civilisation. The tran-
sition from Proto-palatial to the Neo-palatial phase was represented by a massive reconstruc-
tion plan at all the major centres of the Minoan civilisation—Knossos, Phaistos, Mallia and Kato
Zakro. The palace and the settlement at Knossos became much larger, covering an area of 185
acres with an estimated population of 12,000 people. The leading palace structure at Knossos,
said to be the home of the legendary king Minos, was made primarily of mudbricks and timber
beams with a combination of lime stone and wooden columns. The palace was decorated with
elaborate pictorial frescoes, mostly connected with nature and similar to those depicted on
stone vases, seals and gold rings. Some of the frescoes were found in the form of relief while
others were executed on the damp plaster. The themes included religious rituals, landscapes
and sea creatures dominated by dolphins. Most of the palaces at these centres had elaborate
cult rooms, pillared halls in combination with corridors and stairways that provided a mysteri-
ous and labyrinthine character to these palaces. Each of these palaces had some features par-
ticular to its location—Knossos had the famous ‘Throne Room’, Phaistos had four ‘lustral
basins’ or sunken rooms, Mallia had rooms mostly devoted to storage and industry whereas
Zakro had a number of water features given its importance in the maritime trade.
During the Neo-palatial phase, the Cretan economy was prosperous and was self-sufficient
in food grains and much of the raw materials. M. Finley (1957) was of the opinion that the
 Bronze Age Civilisations II 143

Minoan palaces functioned as centres for the redistribution of commodities and services in the
absence of a monetary system. Later, Colin Renfrew (2011) suggested that the introduction of
the crops such as cereals, vine and olive (termed as ‘Mediterranean Triad’) led to an increase in
area under cultivation and led to the growth of a complex society. The diversity that production
of these crops brought to the subsistence system and the exchange of goods and commodities
over long distances created mandatory conditions for an economy based on regularised redis-
tribution by the palace. Given the diversity in climate and produce, P. Halstead (1981) described
this as ‘social storage’ system. But K. Branigan (1988) put forward the view that while the early
state of Crete provided redistribution of at least part of the agricultural production to the com-
munity at large and thus also as security against poor harvest (through large grain storage in
the palace), this provision later gave way to increased palatial control of the agricultural pro-
duce and the manufacture and import of luxury items for the elite. J. Moody (1988), based on
the reduced food storage capacities at Knossos and Phaistos during the Neo-palatial phase, has
put forward the theory that there was a definite change of emphasis from the accumulation of
agricultural wealth in the old palaces to the accumulation of prestige goods in the new palaces.
Other scholars too generally agree with the view that the redistributive system gradually
changed from supporting and providing certain amount of security for the community as a
whole to supporting the elite. During the Neo-palatial phase, the agricultural surplus towards
the palace was routed through the villas (described as administrative sub-centres of the palace)
in order to establish firmer control over the rural resources. Villas were large and isolated struc-
tures built in the countryside with a view overlooking a plain or a valley over which the occu-
pants of the villas exercised some kind of economic control. These villas had storage magazines
and few of them such as at Vathypetro also had a wine press. Some of the bigger villas at Ayia
Triada and Tylissos emulated palace architecture and decorative features suggesting a high
position of the occupants in the political and social hierarchy. It was through these villas that
the Minoan state exercised economic and administrative control over the entire Crete region.
Other towns such as Gournia and Palaikastro also had palace-like structures that housed the
chieftains or the local elite.
During this phase, the Minoans developed extensive overseas trade contacts with Egypt,
Cyprus and the Near East. Minoan style fresco paintings have been discovered at Egypt, Syria
and Israel that has led scholars to assume that Minoan artisans were exchanged for gifts. Cretan
colonies were also established in the island of Kythera to facilitate trade with Laconia and also
at the site of Milletus in Anatolia. The Minoans exported painted pottery, cloth and foodstuff
throughout Eastern Mediterranean. The Minoans are considered to be expert mariners who
send their ships to transport goods such as gold, silver, obsidian and ivory from Central Europe,
the Aegean and Southwest Asia. However, the exchange was not confined to goods but also
technological knowledge and ideas. Christo Doumas (1996), for instance, states that the tech-
nique of wall painting, which flourished in the palatial Crete and was subsequently diffused
throughout the Aegean, must have been introduced to Crete from Syria or Egypt. Control over
overseas trade also by the Knossos rulers is evidenced by the creation of a separate palace at
Kato Zakro, the site of the fourth palace, to facilitate trade with the Near East.
Religion played a prominent role in the Minoan society which is evidenced from numerous
religious materials, cult images (figurines) and ritual equipment such as Double axes and rhyta
vases used for liquid offerings, ritual scenes depicting sacrifices, altars, worshipping stones and
epiphanies. Like the contemporary agricultural societies, Minoan religious rituals emphasised
on fertility of nature, seasonal cycles and rites of initiation. The rituals scenes were given a rural
144 Ancient and Medieval World

setting and the communal shrines were situated in natural places such as caves and springs.
The largest numbers of shrines were situated on the mountaintops which, according to some,
were appropriate symbols of the religious unity of the mountainous island. There is no agree-
ment among scholars whether the nature of Minoan religion was polytheist or monotheist, but
it is generally agreed that female deities and priestesses were given the most prominent posi-
tion in the Minoan religious pantheon. The Minoan religion, in its social context, differed from
that of Egypt and other contemporary Southwest Asian cultures in the sense that the religious
beliefs and rituals were centred on palace, caves and shrines. Parts of the palace were marked
as sacred precincts and during the Neo-palatial phase, public access to the palace shrines was
restricted. Along with this, sanctuaries located on the mountain peaks were brought under
central control. The religious ideology and the palace control over religion enabled the urban
elite to sustain themselves through a symbolic control over the rural and natural world. The
palatial control over the rural sanctuaries is evidenced by the dedication of luxury items such
as bronze figurines, votive double axes and stone tables bearing Linear A inscriptions. There
was also an attempt to deify the rulers as sacrifices were offered in these shrines to individuals.
However, according to Nanno Marinatos (1993), although the Minoan rulers were not projected
as divine kings as was the case with Egyptian Pharaohs, but by making palace as the backbone
of religious life, an attempt was made to gain secular prestige through religious office. Evidence
of human sacrifices and ritual cannibalism has also been found from the shrines located in
Knossos and on the mountain shrines.
The burial customs during the Neo-palatial phase had become more elaborate, indicating
existence of a well-established social hierarchy. Since the Proto-palatial phase, burials in pithoi
(clay sarcophagus) had become common and those in chamber tombs had started. By the Neo-
palatial phase, it was a common practice of burying the dead in the pithoi, which were then
placed in rock-cut chamber rooms. We also see the attempts towards the construction of monu-
mental tombs such as the one at Knossos called ‘temple tomb’. It is a combination of a rock-cut
chamber with a two-storey structure covering the façade. It is argued that this monument was
meant for the cult of the dead and the deity related with dead. The burial practices underwent
further changes under the Mycenaeans when the chambers of the dead were placed inside
brightly coloured wooden coffins and the grave goods, apart from vases and jewellery, included
weaponry, indicating the martial orientation of the Mycenaeans. Apart from the elite and the
slaves, we do not have much information about the intermediate classes. However, evidences
suggest that the Cretan women frequently took part in the social and religious events and gener-
ally held important position in the society. As far as writing is concerned, the ideographic-
hieroglyphic script of the Proto-palatial phase was changed to a script (Linear A) that mainly
used syllabic signs and in which ideograms became secondary.

Post-palatial Phase
The Post-palatial phase (1450–1100 bce) is marked by the decline of the Minoan civilisation
caused by destruction through fire which, according to most scholars, resulted from a violent
warfare. The Minoans never recovered from this destruction even though Knossos, among all
the palaces, continued to survive with a reduced scale. Based on the elite tombs excavated from
the rural areas, it has been suggested that Knossos was now ruled by a feudal aristocracy.
Introduction of new grave types termed as ‘Warrior Graves’, having weapons such as helmets,
 Bronze Age Civilisations II 145

daggers, swords, javelins and spears, suggests that the new masters of Knossos had a martial
orientation. In addition to this, the non-Minoan vase forms, and, more significantly, the develop-
ment of Linear B script (deciphered as Mycenaean Greek) suggests a foreign Mycenaean com-
ponent of the new rulers of Knossos in its final phase. Another round of destruction was faced
by Knossos in 1375 bce in the late-Minoan phase and subsequently Knossos is supposed to have
been occupied by squatters. However, the post-palatial Minoan civilisation continued to enjoy
several centuries of prosperity until the end of the Bronze Age at around 1000 bce. Towards the
end of the Bronze Age, the Minoans were displaced during the process of transition from the
Bronze to Iron Age and they settled in the mountains, the best-known site of which is Karphi in
the Lasithi Mountains (Central Crete). Karphi was also abandoned around 1050 bce and the
inhabitants of this place left behind cult images of mother goddesses with upraised arms sym-
bolic of the end of the Minoan civilisation.

Summary
1. Bronze Age in China is said to have begun around 2000 bce but definite information
about the civilisational features in China only comes from around 1600 bce from the
Shang civilisation that developed in the Huang Ho River (also known as ‘Yellow
River’) valley. The river changed its course several times during 6000–2000 bce and
impacted settlement patterns and cultural developments in the regions of its flow. A
hospitable temperate climate after 2000 bce and fertility of the soil bestowed by the
Huang Ho River promoted growth of prosperous Bronze Age cultures in China.
2. Several late-Neolithic and early-Bronze Age cultures, covering modern Chinese prov-
inces of Henan, Shanxi, Shandong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang, situated in the middle
reaches near the Central Plains of Huang Ho Valley, preceded the Shang civilisation.
Prominent among these were Yangshao (5000–3000 bce), Miaodigou (3000–2700 bce),
Longshan (2600–2100 bce) and Erlitou (1900–1600 bce).
3. People of Miaodigou culture (Henan and Shanxi province) were advanced farmers
and made variety of potteries that were mostly handmade grey, red and black ware.
The Longshan culture (Shandong province) was spread mainly in North and South
China. It was known for wheel-turned potteries, use of copper and bronze orna-
ments, a town wall and earthen fortifications. Evidence of origin of writing and
hierarchies (mainly through the burials) have been found from archaeological exca-
vations of the sites. Origin of state formation (Archaic state) has also been associ-
ated with this culture. Longshan culture was also famous for its black pottery thus
earning the epithet of ‘Black Pottery Culture’. Specialisation in pottery making has
been witnessed from this period onwards.
4. Erlitou culture the largest among the pre-Shang cultures of China. It was spread over
a large area and several layers of habitation have been found through the archaeo-
logical excavations from this area covering this culture. A complete palace complex
has been discovered from the city of Erlitou. Small size dwellings surrounding the
palace complex reflects degree of class stratification that is substantiated by differ-
ing sizes of graves and grave goods. Potteries were now made of bronze besides a
(Continued)
146 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

special type of clay called Kaolin clay. Its similarity with the later Shang culture has
led few scholars to link the city of Erlitou with the legendary Xia, the first dynasty
of China.
5. The period 3000–1600 bce was thus a period of transition of china from a primitive
community to formation of state centring around the Huang Ho Valley.
6. The Shang civilisation (mid-1700s–mid-1000s bce) corresponds to middle of China’s
Bronze Age. Although legends say that the Shang Dynasty was preceded by the Xia
dynasty but in the absence of proper written records related to the later, the former
has been given prominence as the earliest Bronze Age civilisation of China. The
Oracle bones, bronze inscriptions and written records of the period later than that
of the Shang Dynasty give us information about chronology of the Shang Dynasty,
Shang rulers and their practices, Shang social structure, military history and their
religion and rituals. This has been supplemented by archaeological excavations of
the Yin ruins near Anyang in the Henan province. These evidences suggest that the
focal point of the Shang civilisation was Anyang, Luoyang and Zhengzhou in the
Henan province.
7. The Shang rulers is said to have ruled from seven cities out of which three—Xibo, Ao
and Anyang—have been extensively excavated. All these were big cities with palace
structures surrounded by a wall. While the houses of rulers and elites were situated
within the wall, those of metallurgists and potters were situated outside of it. Among
these cities, Anyang was the largest site containing palace complex with large halls,
ceremonial temple with gates surrounded by burial remains of sacrificial humans and
animals, hoses of craftsmen and a royal burial area.
8. Excavations reveal that the Shang state was a powerful one with a large army per-
petually at war with nearby and far off kingdoms for augmentation of resources. The
society was also organised on military lines. Various weapons and chariots found
near the graves also suggest military nature of the state. Shang state was a monarchy
where the king held sovereign powers and governed the aristocracy consisting of
chiefs of various tribes. A recurring feature of the Shang state was the dynastic dis-
pute over succession, which scholars consider as the main reason behind shifting of
capitals and also the state turning into hereditary monarchy towards the end of the
dynastic rule.
9. Shang society was divided into hierarchies with different levels of social ranks. At
the top of the hierarchy were the ruler, members of the royal family, followed by
nobles and soldiers and then the commoners led by bronze metallurgists and potters
who manufactured high value products for the elite. Slaves were an important com-
ponent of the society who mainly consisted of the war prisoners. Shang society was
a male dominated society though there are indeed references of women of the royal
families commanding the army.
10. The Shang economy was characterised by a combination of cereals and craft prod-
ucts. Large-scale use of wines made out of cereals suggests surplus production of
grains. Shang potters were known for manufacturing baked potteries made on the
wheels. An important innovation in this field was manufacturing of glazed white
 Bronze Age Civilisations II 147

pottery (forerunner of Chinese porcelain) which were meant for exclusive use of the
elite. Lapidary, jade working, stone and ivory carving were the other crafts practised
by the Shang craftsmen. However, the most significant craftwork of the Shang period
was the bronze metallurgy. Bronze products mainly consisted of weapons, food and
drinking vessels. In fact, the bronze industry was monopolised by the state. Silk fab-
rics found from the Yin ruins at Anyang suggest high level of technological develop-
ment in silk and textile industry. Evidences of nephrite and turtle shells are reflective
of long-distance exchange.
11. The evidence of writing in the Shang civilisation is provided by the Oracle bone
inscriptions. These were mostly written on an ox soldier blade or on tortoise shells.
These writings are considered as the forerunner of the modern Chinese writing
system on the ground that the modern Chinese writing has not gone under much
change since the Shang times. Writing under the Shangs was a combination of picto-
grams and phonetics. With the help of writing, the Shang rulers were able to organise
a hierarchical administrative structure and Mining of ore for manufacturing of
bronze objects; undertake large military campaigns; construct city walls and build
elaborate tomb for themselves.
12. Like other contemporary agricultural societies, the Chinese religious beliefs under
the Shang dynasty centred around worship of several gods and spirits connected
with nature. However, the prominent deity that was revered by all was ‘Shang Di’,
who lorded over other lesser gods related to natural and cosmic forces. An impor-
tant feature of the religious belief of this period was the ancestor worship, as the
ancestors were considered being involved in the affairs of the descendants. At the
state level too, kings communicated with their ancestors through the Oracle bones
with the help of a priest. An emphasis on life after death led to elaborate burial ritu-
als and construction of monumental tombs for the Shang rulers.
13. In the Eastern Mediterranean, the most significant Bronze Age civilisation that
developed in Crete was the Minoan civilisation. Civilisations at Cyclades, Crete
(Minoan) and the Greek Mainland (Mycenaean) that developed around third millen-
nium bce are together considered as ancient Aegean civilisation or Bronze Age civili-
sations of Greece.
14. Metallurgy had developed in the Aegean and the Greece Mainland by 3000 bce.
Diffusionists were of the opinion that metallurgy was introduced here from the east-
ern side (Sumer and Egypt). But others have argued that growth of metallurgy was
a result of indigenous processes at work within the Aegean region. Dissemination of
Bronze technology was facilitated by rapid expansion of trade in the Aegean, which
was extended to Anatolia and had a rich resource of copper. The trade contacts
brought about tremendous cultural diversity and increased political and social com-
plexity in Greece and Aegean. This cultural diversity is best represented by Crete
where developed a brilliant palace based civilisation.
15. Our information on Minoan civilisation is based on excavations at the palace site at
Knossos excavated in 1900 ce under the supervision of Arthur Evans (1935). The
term ‘Minoan’ for the Cretan civilisation was kept after the legendary king Minos.
Evans, based on the changing pottery styles, divided the civilisation into Early,
(Continued)
148 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

Middle and Late Minoan. Subsequently, as the Minoan civilisation came to be recog-
nised as a centralised palace-based civilisation, Nikolas Platon, based on construc-
tion and destruction of the palaces, divided this civilisation into Pre-palatial
(2600–1900 bce), Proto-palatial (1900–1750 bce), Neo-palatial (1750–1450 bce) and
Post-palatial (1450–1100 bce) phases.
16. In the Pre-palatial phase, the Neolithic settlement of Knossos assumed a large size
with an estimated population of 1,500. Contact with outside world in this phase is
evidenced by new pottery traditions. Bronze metallurgy had developed but practised
on a minor scale. Burials represent both types of societies—­ egalitarian and
hierarchical.
17. The Proto-palatial phase saw building of earliest palaces at Knossos, Phaistos and
Mallia that formed the core of the Minoan civilisation. While these palaces differed
in dimensions, they all acted as administrative and ritual centres of the independent
polities with interdependent economies. These palaces had storage rooms for stor-
ing the surplus produce, which supported the craftsmen engaged in manufacturing
beautiful polychrome potteries termed as ‘Kamares’ potteries. The latter were
exchanged with political entities of Eastern Mediterranean and Egypt. Manufacture
of pottery was monopolised by the state and its production was centred on the
palace. Trade contacts with the Greece Mainland and the Aegean region was quite
regular. Finding of seals from the palace complexes suggest both existence of an
administrative system and a system of writing. The script, although undeciphered so
far, has been termed as hieroglyphic with pictograms, phonetics and numeric sym-
bols. The proto-Palatial phase ended with a massive earthquake that destroyed many
Cretan settlements.
18. The Neo-palatial phase is considered as the zenith of Minoan civilisation. This period
saw a massive palace reconstruction programme at four major centres of this civilisa-
tion, namely, Knossos, Phaistos, Mallia and Zakro. Largest among these was the
palace at Knossos that covered an area of 185 acres with an estimated population of
12,000. An important feature of this palace was the elaborate pictorial frescoes with
themes related to religious rituals, landscapes and natural scenes dominated by sea
creatures. The Minoan economy has been termed by scholars as one of regularised
redistribution by the state. However, few believe that the regularised redistribution of
the early phases was replaced by a stricter palatial control of the agricultural surplus
as well that of manufacture and import of luxury items for the elite in the Neo-palatial
phase. Agricultural surplus was routed through the villas or administrative sub-cen-
tres of the palace and was occupied by persons with high position in political and
social hierarchy.
19. During the Neo-palatial phase, Minoans developed extensive maritime contact with
Egypt, Cyprus and the Near East. Minoans were expert mariners who sent their ships
to transport goods between Central Europe, Aegean and Southwest Asia. To facili-
tate trade with the Near East, the Minoan rulers built a separate palace at Kato
Zakro.
20. Religion played a prominent role in the Minoan society, which is evident from find-
ings of several religious materials and cult objects. Minoan religious ritual was
 Bronze Age Civilisations II 149

usually related to fertility of nature, seasonal cycles and rites of initiation. Most of
the shrines were located in natural settings such as caves, springs and mountain-
tops. Although it is not clear whether the Minoan religion was monotheistic or poly-
theistic in nature, the female deities and priestesses were given prominent position
in the religious pantheon. An attempt was made by the state to control the religious
beliefs of people by royal dedication made to deities in the shrines. Access to shrines
within the palace complex was also restricted for common people on certain occa-
sions. Although Minoan rulers were not given a divine status but by making palace
as the backbone of religious life, an attempt was made by the Minoan rulers to gain
secular prestige through religious office.
21. Evidence of social hierarchy in this phase of the Minoan civilisation is evident by the
burial customs. Rulers and elites were buried in clay sarcophaguses, which were
then placed in rock-cut chamber tombs. Monumental tombs were also constructed
at certain palace complexes like Knossos, which were termed as ‘Temple Tombs’.
Apart from the elite and the slaves, there is not much information about the interme-
diate classes in the Minoan society. But evidences suggest that women played an
important role in social and religious events, and they were given an important posi-
tion in the society.
22. The Post-palatial phase was marked by decline of the Minoan civilisation caused by
destruction through fire, resulting from violent warfare. Knossos was now ruled by
a feudal aristocracy with a martial orientation as reflected by the ‘warrior grave’ in
which the grave goods included dagger, swords, javelins and helmets. Another round
of destruction was faced by Knossos in 1375 bce but the Post-palatial Minoan civili-
sation continued to enjoy prosperity until the end of the Bronze Age in Crete.

KEYWORDS
Huang Ho Yangshao Miaodigou Longshan Erlitou Xia Shang Zhou hang tu
shaman oracle bones Anyang conscription pictograph ideograph divination Aegean
Crete Cyclade Knossos Minos Mallia Phaistos Pre-palatial Proto-palatial Neo-palatial
Post-palatial pithoi Kamares maritime redistributive villas fresco martial

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. Define Bronze Age. Describe the Bronze Age features of China under the Shang Dynasty.
2. Define ‘civilisation’ in the context of ancient societies. How does China fit into this
definition?
3. Assess the role of Huang Ho River in the growth of Chinese civilisation.
4. Discuss the nature of polity, society, economy and religion of China under the Shang
Dynasty.
5. Discuss the chief features of Bronze Age Crete.
150 Ancient and Medieval World

6. The Minoan civilisation was a palace-based civilisation. Comment.

7. How did the Minoan state control economy and religion of Crete?

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China: From the Origins of Civilisation to 221 bc, edited by Michael Loewe and Edward L. Shaughnessy,
37–73. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Changshou, Zhang. 1996. ‘China (1600–700 bc)’. In History of Humanity, Vol II, edited by A. H. Dani and J. P.
Mohen. London: Routledge/UNESCO Publishing.
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Dani and J. P. Mohen. London: Routledge/UNESCO Publishing.
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Marinatos, Nanno. 1993. Minoan Religion: Ritual, Image and Symbol. Columbia: University of South Carolina
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Renfrew, Colin. 2011. The Emergence of Civilisation: The Cyclades and the Aegean in the Third Millennium
bc. Oxford: Oxbow Books.
Voutsaki, Sofia, and John T. Killen, eds. 2001. Economy and Politics in the Mycenaean Palace States. Cambridge:
Cambridge Philological Society.
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London: Routledge/UNESCO Publishing.
CHAPTER
Nomadic Groups in

5 Central and West Asia:

Advent of Iron and Its
Implications

Chapter Contents

• Conceptualising ‘Pastoral Nomadism’

• Nomadic Groups
• Advent of Iron
• Implications of the Advent of Iron Technology
• Summary

T
he period from mid-second millennium bce and the first quarter of first millennium bce,
that is, 1500–700 bce was significant in many ways for the progress of humans in general
and history of the Mediterranean and the Near East in particular. This period saw the
collapse of major Bronze Age civilisations such as that of Mycenaeans (who had replaced
Minoans of Crete) in Mainland Greece, the Hittites in Anatolia (who had destroyed the
Babylonian Empire in Mesopotamia) and the New Kingdom of Egypt. Collapse of these civilisa-
tions was accompanied by the disruption of trade, decline of cities as well as bronze metallurgy
and the script. Our information, particularly for the period 1200–800 bce, is also very sketchy.
In the ancient Greek historiography, this entire period was denoted as the ‘Dark Age’. However,
with the writing of the two great Geek epics The Iliad and The Odyssey, this period of ‘Dark
Age’ was divided into two sub-periods, 1200–1050 bce and 1050–750 bce, with former being
described as ‘Dark Age’ and the latter as the age of ‘recovery’. While explaining the decline of
these civilisations, few scholars have emphasised the role of nomadic tribes speaking Indo-
European and Semitic languages, while others have highlighted social and environmental crisis
for the simultaneous collapse of these civilisations. However, it is generally agreed that decline
of these civilisations created a political vacuum in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Near East
which was taken advantage of by the new ethnic groups (referred to as ‘Sea People’ and
‘nomads’ or ‘pastoral nomads’) to create separate small states/principalities in the in both these
regions. The new environmental conditions required usage of new agricultural technology to
cope with the environmental constraints (decline in rainfall in particular) and a different set of
152 Ancient and Medieval World

social organisation to take advantage of the political opportunities. This led to the advent of
iron metallurgy and new cultural patterns with long-term political, social, economic and mili-
tary implications for humans.

CONCEPTUALISING ‘PASTORAL NOMADISM’

At the very basic level, pastoral nomads can be described as those who maintain the herds of
animals (sheep, goats, cattle, horses or camels) and follow annual migrations to find new pas-
tures. Pastoral nomadism is seen to be found in those areas where climatic conditions ensure
seasonal pastures but are not conducive to settled agriculture. The archaeological excavations
and investigations conducted in the last few decades have brought about a new understanding
of the term ‘nomad’ or ‘pastoral nomads’ (sheep, cattle or goat herding nomads). Earlier,
nomads were described as people who were fiercely independent, considered as outside the
civilised world and were arbitrarily categorised either into stateless nomads in opposition to the
existing states or into a barbaric group of people who emerged from the steppes or deserts and
swept across the settled agricultural societies. There was an element of ethnic bias too implicit
in these perceptions. However, in recent days, there has been less emphasis on the study of
nomads as such and more on pastoral nomadism as an economic activity. Here also, it is no
longer considered as a phase of transition between hunting-gathering and settled agricultural
economy. According to Andrew Sherratt (1996), pastoralism is now considered as a specialised
offshoot of the balanced plant and animal husbandry practiced by the first farmers. This type of
pastoralism, according to Sherratt, resulted primarily from an adjustment to the demands of
livelihood in harsh and often unpredictable regions of the steppes and semi-deserts or in moun-
tains and upland valleys. Anatoly M. Khazanov (1994) has broadened the definition of pastoral
nomadism as an economic adaptation that depends upon a variety of resources that are acquired
from a variety of economic pursuits in addition to pastoralism such as small-scale cultivation,
tradecrafts, raiding, smuggling or other activities. Thus, according to Khazanov, pastoral econo-
mies embrace a variety of forms. These range from mixed economy to herdsmen husbandry
(often called transhumance) and semi-sedentary pastoralism (agro-pastoralism) and ultimately
to semi-nomadic pastoralism and pure pastoral nomadism as the most specialised form which
is characterised by the absence of agriculture even as a supplementary and secondary activity.
At the fundamental level, the main characteristics of pastoral nomadism, as outlined by
Khazanov, have the following features:

1. Pastoralism is the predominant form of economic activity where cultivation is either

absent altogether or plays a very insignificant role mainly as small scale, occasional and
opportunistic.
2. Pastoralism has an extensive character connected with the maintenance of grazing or
browsing herds all year round on natural pastures without stables or arranging fodder for
the livestock.
3. Pastoral economy requires mobility within the boundaries of specific grazing territories
or between such territories.
4. Majority of the population of the pastoral nomadic group participate in periodic
migrations.
5. The traditional pastoralist economy was aimed at the requirements of subsistence.
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 153

6. Social organisation of nomad is based on kinship, and, in the case of nomads of the
Eurasian steppe, Near East and the Middle East, it is also based on various segmentary
systems and genealogies whether real or spurious.
7. Pastoral nomadism implies cultural characteristics connected with its mobile way of life,
socio-political peculiarities and some other factors.

Few scholars, while defining pastoral nomadism, have put special emphasis on the mobility of
the nomads and have categorised them into wandering hunter-gatherers, mounted hunters and
‘sea nomads’. But these categorisations tend to underplay the economic aspect of nomadism.
Khazanov (2009) opines that the size and importance of cultivation in pastoral societies, along
with ecological factors, determine the extent of their mobility and may also serve as a criterion
for different varieties of pastoralism. Khazanov, in particular, argues that pastoral nomadism
entails mobility only as a by-product of a specialised pastoral economy. Elaborating further,
Jeffery Szuchman (2009) is of the opinion that pastoral nomads operate along a continuum of
economic and social activities, at times pursuing pastoral activities to a greater extent than
other forms of subsistence, and at other times engaging in agriculture more than in pastoral
production. The emphasis, argues Szuchman, on either of the economic pursuits can often cor-
relate with an individual’s or group’s level of mobility.
Another important issue connected with pastoral nomadism is the level of integration of
such societies with sedentary population. This arose from few observations of scholars such as
Michael B. Rowton (1974) who described polities of these nomads as a combination of city-
state, tribe and nomadism. Furthermore, Anne Porter (2004) gave the notion of ‘urban nomad’,
suggesting that nomads can sustain in and create urban environments. A. R. Khazanov (1984)
argues that pastoral nomadism as an economic system was characterised by constant instabil-
ity as it was based on three variables—the availability of natural resources (vegetation and
water), the number of livestock and the size of the population—all of which were constantly
changing. Under these conditions, argues Khazanov, pastoral nomadic economies were never
self-sufficient and they always needed sedentary farming and urban societies for their effective
functioning and their very existence. Talking about the pastoral nomads of West Asia, Andrew
Sherratt (1996) seems to be in agreement with Khazanov’s argument, when he says that the
pastoral lifestyle in West Asia was dependent for its existence on the acquisition of supplies
(grains or technological equipment) from the neighbouring sedentary agriculturists. In fact,
Sherratt goes on to argue that demographically the nomadic and sedentary groups together
form a part of the single system within which constant flows of surplus population takes place.
This happens because members of the pastoral communities, who cannot accumulate the
flocks and herds needed for successful stock raising, became accommodated to agricultural
groups. Sherratt concludes that such pastoral groups are best regarded as forming a zone of
specialist production on the edge of urban and farming populations in more fertile conditions
for cultivation.
Such an integration of nomadic societies with the sedentary ones was bound to have corre-
sponding cultural implications for both, although more on the former than the latter. As men-
tioned earlier, the pastoral societies had their own set of culturally created values to suit their
mobile lifestyle in order to survive in a given ecological condition, and the social structure of
the nomads was based on kinship and, in certain cases, on genealogies that could be either real
or make believe. But according to Khazanov, because of the fact that the nomadic economy had
to be supplemented with grains and crafts from external sources, the nomadic culture too
154 Ancient and Medieval World

needed sedentary culture as a model for comparison, borrowing, imitation or rejection.

Khazanov (2009) argues that for efficient and long-term functioning, pastoral nomads needed
not only sedentary societies but also, like sedentarists, complex and stratified ones capable of
producing regular surplus and possessing mechanisms for its extraction, distribution and redis-
tribution. However, the interaction between the nomads and the sedentary population was not
only confined to peaceful exchange but also assumed violent forms including raids, looting,
regular and, at times, forceful extraction of surplus, direct conquest and subjugations of the
sedentary population.
The provided description of nomadic pastoralism with several variants, many of them com-
bining herding and cultivation, is generally accepted as belonging to the chalcolithic and Bronze
Age periods. But a specialised form of nomadic pastoralism, without cultivation as a supple-
mentary economic activity and based on structured migratory movement of domestic herd
animals and efficient exploitation of seasonal pasture, developed in the European steppes in
the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages. But, in this period too, scholars such as Michael D.
Franchetti (2008) talk about a high variability and complexity in the pastoral systems being
determined by opportunities and risks presented by social, political and economic interaction
among the nomadic pastoralist and their sedentary neighbours. Philip L. Kohl (2007), talking
about the same region, also differentiates between those who practiced pastoralism supple-
menting it with agriculture and those who were pure pastoral nomads. Late Bronze and Early
Iron Ages were also the periods when followers of pure pastoral nomadism started making
increasing use of horses and camels for their movement. Horses and camels were bred for trac-
tion, carrying load, meat and milk since late-Neolithic and early-Bronze Age periods. But ones
the utility of these animals for transportation was known, horses were bred for strength, and
specialised form of pastoral nomadism based on mounted animals such as horses and camels
developed in the European steppe and the Near East in the late second and beginning of the
first millennium bce. Talking about the same period, Khazanov (2009) points out that in the Near
East, horses were mainly used for military purposes, for chariot driving and, later, for riding and
sports and hunting. He adds that possession of horses had high prestige value, as they were
important in military campaigns that the pastoral nomadic groups had to undertake on a regular
basis to augment their resources.
The advent of iron technology around the same time led to the technological innovations in
the form of new horse harness and manufacture of iron weapons, which brought a new dimen-
sion to the pastoral nomadic way of life. In certain regions, changing ecological conditions,
leading to aridity and decline in irrigation, made it mandatory for the nomads to move more
frequently. The swiftness of the horses combined with growth of Iron technology increased the
mobility while, at the same time, it made interaction with other nomads more frequent. The
interregional contacts brought about wealth as well as cultural elements. Growth of iron metal-
lurgy and increase in military activities led to the emergence of wealthy tribal leaders in the
Eurasian steppe land, who gradually assumed the status of petty rulers. These developments
also had corresponding social and cultural implications that are reflected in new type of burials
for the elite, the armed rider with their weapons buried alongside their graves and emergence
of ‘animal style’ of art. According to Andrew Sherratt (1996), the social structures of these
nomadic groups were complex since individual dynasties could come to dominate huge areas
by their economic success and military might. Such groups lived in tents or yurts (also in per-
manent villages) made of hide and wood which could be easily disassembled and transported
and could cover large distances on horseback. The raids and migrations of the nomads brought
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 155

about a change in the pattern of population movement from eastern to western part of the Old
World, and, according to Sherratt, the Cimmerians and Scythians were first among the Indo-
European groups to affect the fortunes and character of both Eastern and Western Old World.
Thus, from this analysis, it emerges that the concept of pastoral nomadism is a complex one
with several definitions and variants. Archaeologists however agree that the pastoral nomads
developed in the harsh ecological conditions of steppe, semi-desert and mountainous regions
as an adjustment to the needs of subsistence. Although pastoralism is a specialised economic
activity marked by animal herding and the absence of agriculture but the pastoral nomads of
the Bronze and the Early Iron Ages demonstrated both nomadic and semi-nomadic character-
istics, including cultivation at a small scale. Due to the uncertainty of availability of natural
resources, the livestock and the population, these nomadic groups could not remain isolated
and had to interact with sedentary agricultural societies for their subsistence. The integration
with the settled societies brought about corresponding political, social, economic and cultural
impact on the nomads. But as the nomads had limited goods to offer to the sedentary societies
in exchange, they had to adopt violent means (raids and plunder) to accumulate resources for
survival. The advent of iron technology brought about a transformation in the Bronze Age
nomads as the new technology and weapons turned them into mounted pastoral nomads with
distinct political and social structures. But their peaceful as well as violent interaction with the
sedentary agricultural and urban societies continued with the corresponding impact on both. A
discussion of the nomads of Central and West Asia in the next sections would further highlight
the historical progression of pastoral nomads in these regions.

NOMADIC GROUPS
Central Asia
Geographically, Central Asia includes regions east of Caspian Sea and the west of Pamir-Altai,
Tien-Shan and Altai mountains that are located on southeastern, southern and eastern borders.
The northern side of Central Asia is a desert region (known as Karakum and Kyzylkum) which
merges into semi-desert area and finally into steppe zones in the highland of Iran and
Afghanistan. In the modern political terminology (after the disintegration of Soviet Union in
1991), the region described has been placed under the republics of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan,
Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, including parts of Northern Afghanistan and
Northeastern Iran. The topography and environment of the region is marked by deserts, rugged
mountain ranges with valleys, piedmonts, alluvial plains and deltas. The mountain ranges have
two major drainage systems in the form of Amu Darya (Oxus) and Syr Darya (Jaxartes) which
have determined the human settlement in Central Asia. Amu Darya flows from the Pamir-Altai
Mountains and drains into Aral Sea. Several tributary rivers such as Zeravshan and other
smaller rivers empty into Amu Darya. Syr Darya, on the other hand, flows from Tien Shan
Mountains and flowing northwest also drains into the Aral Sea. Towards south, the low moun-
tain regions of Afghanistan created several rivers that formed alluvial delta before emptying
into Amu Darya. In the west, the two small but significant rivers are Murghab and Tejen that
flows towards the desert region forming a delta. These small rivers served the various parts of
the desert zone and played a crucial role in the development of agriculture and semi-nomadic
animal herding (see Map 5.1). L. T. Yablonsky (1995) is of the opinion that Amu Darya and Syr
156 Ancient and Medieval World

MAP 5.1  Central Asia During the Bronze Age

Source: Adapted from a blank map of Middle East. Available at [Link]

htm

Darya Rivers definitely shaped the landscape of Western Central Asia and defined the habitable
zones of prehistoric settlements.
The natural resources of the steppe, semi-desert regions, the mountains and the Alluvial
plains of Central Asia largely determined the type of cultures and accounted for several histori-
cal developments. In this regard, an important feature of the fauna of the open mountain ranges
was the availability of large number of fast moving animals such as wild horses and wild donkey
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 157

that could travel fast and long distances in search of water. Other animals, typical of this region,
were wild sheep and Siberian ibex, wild bull and wild buffalo, wild goat, boar besides Bactrian
camel that is said to have been domesticated in the semi-desert region. Thus, Central Asian
region could provide for both type of occupation—agriculture and stockbreeding—with desert
and the steppe zones providing ample of opportunities for pastoral cultures.
One of the major problems while dealing with the study of ancient nomadic groups in the
region of Central Asia is the absence of textual material although, in recent days, archaeologists
have paid greater attention to excavations in this area. A major problem in this regard was the
interpretation of archaeological data in the absence of texts. The reliability of ethnographic
analogy between modern nomads and the ancient ones to study ancient nomadism was also
found to be debatable. However, archaeological data related to the nomadic camps, despite
their limitations, provide us important insights into social, political, economic and cultural life
of the nomads. Recent ethnographic studies related to nomadic practices, particularly in
response to changing ecological conditions and their application to study ancient nomads, have
been found to be more reliable, considering the fact that in certain areas there has not been any
fundamental changes in climate, terrain, species of livestock and vegetation.

Bronze Age in Central Asia

Neolithic in Central Asia began around late-seventh millennium bce in the southwestern region
that was densely populated and was the centre of early intellectual and cultural progress. The
earliest among these was represented by Djeitun culture that laid the foundation of later
Chalcolithic and Bronze Age cultures. During the Eneolithic (a cultural period between
Neolithic and Bronze Age marked by manufacture of copper tools) phase covering a time
period 3500–3000 bce, the agricultural communities in the southwestern region of Central Asia
(areas bounded by the present republics) had made significant advances in both subsistence
technology and culture. These communities inhabited the oases zone of the foothills of Kopet
Dag Mountains and in the delta regions of Tejen River. Archaeological findings of material
goods in the Kopet Dag region have brought to light two settlements, namely, Kara-depe and
Namazga-depe (spread over 8 hectares) both of which were marked by painted ceramics with
geometrical designs and representation of animals. Another significant settlement in the east
was that of Altyn-depe (in modern Turkmenistan) which was much larger in size (spread over
approximately 25 hectares) and marked by polychrome painted ceramics. Apart from these
settled groups, several Neolithic tribes and hunters-gatherers and fishing groups inhabited sev-
eral parts of Central Asia. Although, unlike the settled Neolithic communities, the economy of
these groups could barely eke out their subsistence, they prepared the foundation for the
growth of Bronze Age in the steppe regions of Central Asia. This development has been gener-
ally traced to their continuous contact with the neighbouring settled Neolithic societies.
Prior to the beginning of Bronze Age in Central Asia, the agricultural communities displayed
an increased level of technological knowhow related to agricultural production. The canal-
based irrigation system in the Tejen delta supported crops such as barley and wheat. These
communities also herded sheep and goats apart from tending cattle and pigs. Pottery manufac-
turing had become a specialised activity as the potters learnt to fire potteries in the kiln. But
since their workshops have not be found concentrated in one settlement, it has been presumed
that the potters were connected not through the market but through kinship ties. Apart from
technological developments, interregional contacts in Central Asia that is evident from pottery
158 Ancient and Medieval World

findings at Kara-depe resemble those of Northeast Iran. Besides these, the findings of pottery
types of Mesopotamia and foreign products, such as, carnelian and lapis lazuli, suggest links
between Central and West Asia. The trade contacts and surplus generation created social dif-
ferentiation and inequalities. This is evident from the size of the houses, some of which were
big enough to be described as the dwelling places of extended family which was the basic unit
of society. The communal graves found at Kara-depe and Altyn-depe provides testimony to this.
The grave goods found in individual graves at Altyn-depe, such as, copper artefacts, potteries
and stone vessels, also point towards social differentiation. These graves have been linked with
elites of the agricultural society such as chiefs, priests or priestesses. These developments were
accompanied by the development of a calendar based on astronomical calculations, as the irri-
gation based on crop cycle could not have been possible without it. Ceramic production
reached a high level of technical perfection with the representation of themes connected to
totemic and mythological concepts. A large number of terracotta figurines found from Kara-
depe and other sites throw light on the religious beliefs and practices of the late-Neolithic
agricultural communities of Central Asia.
The Bronze Age in Central Asia covers a period between 3000–1500 bce which has been
divided into Early (3000–2500 bce), Middle (2500–2000 bce) and Late Bronze Age (2000–1500 bce).
In the Early phase, the initial patterns of Bronze Age were witnessed in the Kopet Dag oases
zone, dated first half of the third millennium which in archaeological terms is called Namazga IV
period. While few of the earlier settlements in the Tejen delta disappeared, Altyn-depe and
Gurgan plains in Iran and Margiana showed tremendous material progress. The social, cultural
and material progress was most evident in Altyn-depe that covered a large area (approximately
26 hectares) with distinct urban features. Excavations have revealed a walled enclosure with
lanes and corridors along with large buildings that have been termed as ceremonial centres and
also small dwellings housing nuclear families. Grave goods found from various burials, both
communal and individual at Altyn-depe, do not show much variation in terms of richness of
goods, suggesting an undifferentiated social structure in this region in the early part of the
Bronze Age. While the basic means of subsistence remained crops supplemented with animal
husbandry, the increased craft specialisation and use of transport such as camel carts were the
main markers of change in the material life of the people of this part of Central Asia. Introduction
of potter’s wheel and better control of temperature in the kiln not only brought about an increase
in production but also ensured uniformity in the ceramic forms. This was accompanied by
advancements in the field of metallurgy. The objects found from the site of Altyn-depe indicate
uses of copper alloys such as copper–lead–tin, copper–silver and copper–lead to manufacture
pins with decorative heads, seals, ornaments and dress items. The metallurgical kilns found
alongside the workshops and dwelling places bear testimony to the intensity of metallurgical
practices. The terracotta figurines found from the Kopet Dag piedmont are indicative of a cul-
tural system based on worship of productive forces related to both agricultural fertility and
human reproduction.
The Middle Bronze Age (2500–2000 bce) in Central Asia, according to Vadim M. Masson
(1996), was marked by three distinctive features: (a) growth of the local urban civilisation in
the foothill zone (b) expansion of settled life in the Murghab delta and (c) consolidation of links
with neighbouring regions such as Afghanistan, Iran, Baluchistan, the Indus Valley and
Mesopotamia. Both Altyn-depe and Namazga-depe is believed to have developed into big city-
states controlling the Kopet Dag oases region. But the absence of palace-like structures or royal
tombs in either of the cities have led scholars to deduce that state formation in these regions
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 159

must not have progressed much. But based on an urban layout built upon division of the settle-
ment into separate quarters of workers and the elite, the size of the houses and spaciousness
of the streets and a separate ritual centres, scholars do point towards a differentiated society.
The various sizes of the houses have been considered as representing three different social
groups: the lower (living in multiroomed houses as an extended family), middle (living as sepa-
rate families in 5–6 room houses) and upper (living in large and spacious houses) performing
multiple economic functions. The graves at Altyn-depe and at Namazga-depe too, both collec-
tive and individual, start displaying social inequalities with collective graves of the lower strata
containing only few clay vessels whereas those of the elite contained assemblage of metal seals,
bracelets, rings, stone bead necklaces and terracotta figurines. The individual grave of the elite
class included white marble ceramics, copper objects, silver mirror and ivory rods, clearly link-
ing the individual to a ruling or priestly class enjoying a special social status. The stamp seals
from Harappa establish the link of this part of Central Asia with India. But exchange of items
such as lapis lazuli and other objects also hint at their trade relations with Iranian Plateau and
Mesopotamia. The stepped tower (identified as a ritual centre) found at Altyn-depe is said to
have been inspired by the Mesopotamian ziggurat. Cultural development in this phase has also
been noticed in the field of astronomical knowledge, worship of natural forces, animal domes-
tication, breeding techniques and cultivation of new types of crops. The last years of the Middle
Bronze Age period was marked by decline in bigger settlements such as Altyn-depe and
Namazga-depe of the Kopet Dag oases and rise of smaller settlements in Kelleli and Togolok
oases of the Murghab delta.
The Late Bronze Age (2000–1500 bce) in Central Asia was marked by some fundamental
changes in the history of this region with far reaching political, social, economic and cultural
implications. Similar changes were occurring in the neighbouring regions that also had its
impact on Central Asia. An important and distinctive change was the growth of small settle-
ments that replaced the earlier urban centres at the same location as in the Namazga-depe and
Ulug-depe or developed independently in new locations such as Tekken-depe and Elken-depe.
The houses in these settlements were made of solid bricks but there was an overall decline in
the quality of ceramics, production of terracotta figurines and manufacture of metal seals. But
the new settlements that developed in the Murghab Valley (in ancient Margiana) and towards
the east in the middle reaches of Amu Darya (in ancient Bactria) displayed a different dimen-
sions of human cultural growth. Around the same time, roughly around 1500 bce, the Bronze
Age steppe nomads spread to different parts of Central Asia. This was followed by several
phases of their conflict as well as peaceful interaction with the settled agricultural societies that
ultimately brought about a cultural synthesis.
The Late Bronze Age settlements in Margiana and Bactria have been termed as Bactria–
Margiana Archaeological Complex (BMAC). While settlements (in the form of towns and vil-
lages) were formed in the Murghab delta in Margiana, these settlements were clustered around
small tributaries of Amu Darya in Bactria. Their subsistence was based on a variety of cereals,
chickpeas and grapes that were supplemented by herding of animals such as sheep and goats
but pigs, camels and cattle were also kept. An addition to their herd was the domesticated horse
that emerged from the steppes of Kazakhstan. The larger settlements among these (usually 5
hectares or more) consisted of a square fortress with tower. Within these fortress towns, sepa-
rate craft quarters have been found where ceramic and metal works were carried out. Few of
these towns such as Togolok and Djarkutan also had cult centres. These towns were sur-
rounded by village settlements. Masson (1996) puts forward the view that surrounding villages
160 Ancient and Medieval World

attached to the towns laid the foundation for the emergence of city-state, although no evidence
of such a political organisation has been found until the Late Bronze Age.
The grave goods found in the BMAC societies indicate high level of prosperity as most of
these graves contained assemblage of ceramic vessels along with bronze and copper artefacts.
A large number of grave goods associated with women graves with administrative seals suggest
that women (at least from the elite group) enjoyed equal social status as that of men. Discovery
of battle-axe from a number of graves at Djarkutan suggests importance of weapons in the
society. While large number of cenotaphs indicates towards increase in warfare activities, com-
paratively greater number of grave goods in these internments hints at importance of the war-
rior class in the social hierarchy. The variety of seals found from the Margiana Bronze Age sites
with different motifs have been considered as a strong pointer towards a complex cultural
synthesis incorporating Central Asian, Harappan and Mesopotamian traditions. On the other
hand, potteries, seals, stone vessels and metal products of the BMAC cultures have been found
at several places in Southern Iran and Western Pakistan. The dispersal of the BMAC products
in such far off regions is a matter of debate among the scholars and so is the linguistic identity
of the BMAC communities. F. T. Hiebert and C. C. Lamberg-Karlovsky (1992) have put forward
the view that the spread of BMAC towards the edges of the Indus Valley reflects the introduc-
tion of an Indo-Iranian language group to this region.
The last phase of the Bronze Age (1750–1500 bce) in Central Asia was marked by significant
changes. While settlements at Murghab delta shifted southwards to new locations due to dry-
ness of the river, those of Bactria shifted eastwards due to the same reason. At the same time,
the settlements at Kopet Dag piedmonts were reoccupied mostly by smaller groups, although
few of them such as Ekin-depe were bigger, covering an area of about 20 hectares. Contemporary
to these developments were important changes that were taking place in the steppe regions of
Northern Central Asia. Here, the primitive hunting groups were replaced by nomadic groups
that subsisted on agriculture or a mixed agricultural-pastoralist economy. One of the most
prominent among the steppe cultures of the Late Bronze Age Central Asia was the Andronovo
culture that was spread over in a large area covering Kazakhstan and Southern Siberia. Besides
agriculture, cattle herding was important aspect the economic activity of this culture, although
sheep, goats, horses and camels were also herded. Andronovo people were also famous for
bronze metallurgy as they were able to mine copper from the Altai Mountains in large quanti-
ties. The Andronovo settlements (mostly evident in the Central Asian part) were marked by
fortifications surrounding which were small villages. An important feature of this culture was
the use of horse chariots which have been found in few of the burial mounds (kurgans) in
Sintashta (in Southern Urals), dating seventeenth—sixteenth century bce. Horses were also
given a ritual burial after sacrifices.
This was also a period when a large number of other nomadic groups or steppe-dwellers
penetrated Central Asia, and, in the process, they either displaced the local population or were
assimilated into the settled societies. Prominent among these were those of Tazabagyab culture
that developed near the lower reaches of Amu Darya and Dashty-Kozy that occupied the lower
reaches of Zeravshan. Both these cultures are considered as an extension of Andronovo cul-
ture, particularly with reference to their pottery, metal works and burials. In the areas of inter-
action with the settled societies, the material culture display features of both steppe and
farming cultures. An important example is the BMAC where settlements of this period are forti-
fied like before but contains crude ceramics and cremation as a burial ritual which was popular
among the people of Andronovo culture. On the basis of these findings, scholars such as
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 161

Masson (1996) point out that the steppe dwellers that penetrated several parts of Central Asia
were mainly concerned with cattle raising and were led by a military aristocracy that used
chariots and bronze weapons. He further argues that some of these immigrants were culturally
assimilated into the settled societies, particularly in the oases zones. At the same time, Masson
argues that the Central Asian settled traditions and influenced the neighbouring steppe people
like those of Andronovo culture that differed from its contemporary steppe cultures of
Kazakhstan and Southern Siberia. He further concludes by suggesting that two parallel pro-
cesses were at work particularly in the oases zone of BMAC—the linguistic assimilation of the
local population and cultural transformation of the immigrants. However, according to Masson,
there is no doubt that an Indo-Iranian identity was being formed in Central Asia during this
turbulent period of migrations, military conflict and mutual assimilation.
The amalgamation of traditions of Central Asian oases with that of the steppe communities
stimulated a new phase of cultural development that was largely an outcome of sharing up of
experiences leading to enrichment of culture for both. This was most evident in the field of
metallurgy that witnessed greater expansion and specialisation. The central part of Kazakhstan
had reach reserves of the metal ore, mainly copper and tin, that accounted for increased
amount of bronze production by the metalworkers of the Andronovo culture. Increased bronze
production stimulated the manufacture of weapons and tools with far reaching political and
economic consequences for the region. This cultural synthesis is also noticeable in the field of
architecture where the regular square architecture of the settlement, which was popular in the
steppe zones, gave way to rectangular settlement plan in the Andronovo area. Similarly, oval
huts that were popular in the steppe areas became quite common among the Andronovo com-
munity, particularly in the Southern Urals. In the religious sphere too, the female terracotta figu-
rines, popular in the oases, disappeared and were replaced by fire altars in the ritual centres.
Likewise, the iconographical details of the seals such as snake-like winged dragons, birds or
bird like figures too reflect a change in the popular rites and cults.

Early Iron Age in Central Asia

The Iron Age (1500–600 bce) in Central Asia brought about further changes from the ones wit-
nessed in the Late Bronze Age. In regions such as South Turkmenia (ancient Dakhistan), there
was a spurt in the growth of urban centres around the lower reaches of the Atrek River some
of which covered around 100 hectares. Prominent among the early Iron Age cultures in this
region was the Yaz-depe culture that was spread over a large area covering Atrek oases zone,
piedmont of Kopet Dag and Margiana. The settlements were in the form of citadels built on
several metres high stone platforms. By the beginning of first millennium bce, a variety of crops
such as wheat, barley, rye, chickpeas and fruits such as grapes were grown in the Kopet Dag
piedmont, which was supported by a sophisticated irrigation network based on an elaborate
system of underground tunnels called qanats. The manufacturing of pottery involved less use
of the wheel and were mostly handmade with simple painted geometrical patterns.
There has been a little debate among scholars on the reasons behind this transformation.
Few argue that these changes were brought about by tribal migrations. Based on the archaeo-
logical data, V. A. Bashilov and L. T. Yablonsky (1995) point out that in the second half of the
second millennium bce, the steppe population had begun to shift first within their traditional
ecological zone and then moved far beyond their original boundaries. In this manner, according
to Bashilov and Yablonsky, some elements of the material culture characteristic of the steppe
162 Ancient and Medieval World

appeared in diverse regions extending from the Caucasus Mountains to the southern regions of
Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. Some archaeologists have also hinted at long-­
distance migration of people from the steppe to Northern India and the Iranian plateau in the
late second millennium bce, which is again debatable. However, others, such as, Vadim M.
Masson (1996), are of the opinion that the change resulted from transformation of indigenous
cultures by the formation of an early class society when the process of cultural integration
contributed to the constant spread of cultural patterns over a wide area. Thus, according to
Masson, the Yaz-type Iron Age cultures of Central Asia may be regarded as representing peoples
of the eastern Iranian group. A. M. Khazanov (2009) too argues that the migrations of pastoral
nomads were unlikely reasons of change as prior to the first millennium bce, large-scale military
invasions and conquest by pastoral nomads were not possible for they were few in numbers and
had no military advantages over the sedentary population. He goes on to suggest that the migra-
tion of pastoralists during this period was not a centralised movement (infiltration rather than
rapid conquest) and more so because the pastoralists were the immediate neighbours of farm-
ing communities. Khazanov is of the opinion that instead of the whole tribe, smaller groups
were involved in such migrations that often resulted in their partial or complete
sedentarisation.
The early first millennium bce is considered as the formative stage of the development of
nomadic pastoralism in the steppe areas. Their semi-nomadic lifestyle aided by the use of
horses was conducive for the movement of the people and also in forming military units to
protect their herds. In riverine areas, not marked by frequent ecological changes, the traditional
complex forms of economy marked by agriculture and transhumance survived. These condi-
tions, however, underwent significant changes during eighth–seventh centuries bce, which saw
the development of specialised cattle-breeders. During this period, various groups of the cattle-
breeders became active, got acquainted with the steppe ecology, spread to different parts of
Central Asia and started using iron implements for tools and weapons. This period is generally
referred to as ‘Early Iron Age’. The use of horses enabled these nomads to traverse long dis-
tances and the use of iron for tools and weapons facilitated increased material production. Few
Scholars, such as, A. Askarov (1992), believe that the change to new technology was the key to
the development of progressive economic and cultural forms and rejection of earlier forms. He
is also of the opinion that it is in this transformation that the Early Iron Age is rooted and with
that is closely related the rise of chiefdoms in the territory of present Soviet Central Asia.
Analysing the changes in Central Asia in the beginning of the first millennium bce, A. H. Dani
(1992) is of the view that with the growth of specialised nomadic pastoralism, the steppe zone
which was hitherto situated outside the settled civilisations became an area of intensive devel-
opment. The steppe tribal groups that moved with their herds of cattle brought about funda-
mental political changes. The wide-scale introduction of metallurgy gave rise to the specialised
branches of manufacturing, dominated by weapons. Further, the accumulation of wealth and
military conflicts led to the institutionalisation of political power as the tribal leaders grew as
absolute rulers. A new mode of life and ideological concepts denoting the dynamism of nomadic
lifestyle came into being. A noticeable increase in material production consequent upon adop-
tion of iron technology and a new spiritual culture brought about the growth of a class society
among the nomads. The adoption of wheeled chariot and horse saddle while on the one hand
improved the mobility of the steppe tribes, it also led to an increase in the rate of transmission
of information on the other. This, according to Dani, expanded the world as new standards and
models were rapidly transmitted over long distances. Wealth in the form of easily alienable
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 163

goods such as cattle was being accumulated, which provoked military conflicts and stimulated
the manufacture of weapons. Powerful and successful military chiefs perpetuated their author-
ity by elaborate burial rites. A new burial tradition emerged in which the warriors were buried
with their arms and harness equipment.
The mobility of the nomads’ fostered interaction among tribes situated far away from each
other. These ties brought about cultural integration of the pastoral groups. Askarov (1992) and
some other scholars believe that such ties in some cases led to the formation of enormous
‘historico-cultural’ communities, one of these being Scytho-Siberian group. A typical identifica-
tion of this group was the presence in the graves of what is popularly known as the ‘Scythian
Triad’, consisting of weapons, horse equipment (e.g., bridles, saddles and saddlecloth) and art
in animal style. However, these scholars also argue that cultural integration was just one aspect
of the Scytho-Siberian community. There were several other complex phenomenon binding
these tribes such as similarity of their habitat (the vast open spaces of the steppe and semi-
desert ranges), similarity of their economic activities (nomadic cattle-raising), their nomadic
way of life, a similar social structure marked by internal differentiation that was based on prop-
erty and social standing, a similar ideology determined by identical social and economic condi-
tions (as reflected in common religious cults and artistic presentation) and finally a certain
ethnic unity consequent upon the fact that the tribes who migrated into and mastered the
steppe environs were of the Indo-Iranian linguistic stock which is usually considered to include
both the Scythians of the Black Sea and Sakas of Central Asia.

West Asia
Geographically, West Asia, also termed as ‘Southwest Asia’ and ‘Near East’, is surrounded by
five seas—the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Persian Gulf and Caspian Sea. The
Caucasus Mountains separate it from Europe and the Isthmus of Suez delimits it from Africa.
Towards the eastern side, it adjoins Central and South Asia. As a geographical unit in the
ancient period, Western Asia included Anatolia, Levant, Mesopotamia, and Iran, highlands of
Armenian Mountains, area surrounded by the Sinai Peninsula and South Caucasus (see
Map 5.2). In modern world, Western Asia roughly corresponds to Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan,
Turkey, Kuwait and Afghanistan. Climatically, West Asia is largely an arid or semi-arid region
but is also endowed with a vast expanse of forest area along with fertile valleys. The region is
marked by low rainfall and the two rivers, Tigris and Euphrates provide water for irrigation.
West Asia is also bound by several mountain ranges such as Pontus (in Anatolian Plateau),
Taurus Mountains and Mount Ararat (in Turkey) and the Zagros Mountains (in Iran on the bor-
ders of Iraq). Thus, the climatic regions of Western Asia have been divided into three types—
tropical desert, interior plateau and Mediterranean. In the ancient period, the river valleys have
supported agriculture while the mountains provided the necessary minerals, metals and stones.
West Asia, home to large and powerful state-based civilisations such as Mesopotamia and
Egypt, underwent significant changes after 2000 bce. This was primarily due to the incursion of
several nomadic groups in West Asia from the steppe regions of the Black Sea and Central Asia
and the Aegean Sea region. Most important of these nomadic people have been termed as Indo-
Europeans on the basis of the common language that they spoke. The Indo-European language
includes Germanic, Persian, Latin, Greek and Sanskrit. The major tribes that are said to belong
to this linguistic group are Indo-Aryans, Hittites, Greeks and Mitanni. While few of these such
164 Ancient and Medieval World

MAP 5.2  West Asia and Eastern Mediterranean During the Middle Bronze Age

Source: This is an adaptation of map by Alexikoua. Available at [Link]

BC_Eastern.png

as Hittites and Mitannis moved towards West Asia, others settled in the Aegean region in
Eastern Mediterranean. The other linguistic groups of nomadic tribes to settle in West Asia
were termed as Semitic that include such tribes as Amorites, Assyrians, Canaanites and
Phoenicians. Few of these tribes created powerful empires in West Asia, continued with the
economic system of the earlier states and created a network of economic and cultural exchange
relations with the nearby and distant regions in the form of an international system of exchange.
However, towards the last quarter of the second millennium bce, another wave of tribal inva-
sions originating from Aegean Sea region brought down the Late Bronze Age empires. Backed
by the iron technology, these tribes created a new state system, a new warfare technique, a new
economy and a new ideological thinking.

Bronze Age in West Asia

As we saw in Chapter 4, Bronze Age civilisations in West Asia developed first in Mesopotamia
in the region of Akkad and Sumer. Another important region of West Asia to see tremendous
growth during the Bronze Age (albeit a little later than Mesopotamia) was Anatolia. It is perti-
nent to remind here that Central Anatolian site of Cayönü and Çatalhöyük were large Neolithic
settlements during 7500–5500 bce. The traces of early and best-known Bronze Age civilisation
in Anatolia have been found at the city of Troy (termed as Troy I) in Hissarlik (Western
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 165

Anatolia), which has been dated 3000–2500 bce. Excavations by German and American experts
have revealed a fortified city surrounded by wall containing residential areas. People lived
mainly on agriculture and hunting alongside fishing in the coastal areas. Existence of few
simple bronze tools indicates existence of a wealthy class. But scholars point out that the Early
Bronze Age in Anatolia was marked by small city-states with commercial links with people of
Mesopotamia and the Aegean Sea region.
The Middle Bronze Age (2500–1800 bce) in Anatolia was a period of increased prosperity and
high level of cultural accomplishments built primarily upon the existence of a well-developed
metal industry. The sites representing the Middle Bronze Age in Anatolia have been designated
as Troy II (2500–2200 bce) and Troy III to Troy V (2200–1800 bce). The Troy II phase was a fur-
ther development from the Troy I settlements. The rulers of Troy II, emboldened by a rich
reserve of gold, silver, copper and tin, extended their territory by monopolising their position
on the international trade routes. The potters of Troy II worked on potter’s kiln and the wheel.
The city was one of the earliest examples of planned construction. Few point out that the
Acropolis at Athens (built much later) was a remarkable example of similar town planning. It
is believed that the city suffered destruction at the hands of invading Indo-European tribes. But
the invaders did not seem to occupy the city as no trace of change of culture has been noticed
during Troy III–Troy V phase. But the later phases also provide evidences (houses of inferior
material and absence of the city wall) of the progressive decline of the kingdom of Troy.
An important culture of the Middle Bronze Age in Central Anatolia was the Hatti culture
(2500–2000 bce). The Hattis belong to the indigenous group of Asia, although their language
(Hattic) was structurally different from any Asiatic language. Our information on the Hatti cul-
ture is largely based on Hittite (who succeeded the Hattians in Anatolia) sources. Alaca Höyük
is considered as one of the most prominent centres of this culture from where several of the
Hattian art objects, potteries, metal products and tombs have been found. Central Anatolia had
a rich reserve of copper, as gold and silver. The great civilisations of Mesopotamia and Egypt
were dependent on it for their supply of copper metal. As the demands of these civilisations for
copper increased so did the prosperity of Anatolia in general and Central Anatolia in particular.
The metal works of the Hattians have been found to be similar to many neighbouring civilisa-
tions of the Anatolian region. Idols found from one of the 13 royal tombs are examples of
advanced Hattian sculpture and are associated with rituals performed by the priests. The seals
found at sites such as Ahlatlibel and Etiyokusu provides evidence of Hattian links with
Mesopotamia and also represent first step towards adoption of writing in Anatolia. The clay
tablet inscriptions found from Kültepe, Alisar and Boghazköy refer to Assyrian trading stations
(karum) that existed during nineteenth and eighteenth centuries bce in Central and Southeastern
Anatolia. The Assyrian merchants organised trade networks in caravans between Mesopotamia
and Anatolia and carried textiles, clothes and tin to exchange them with gold, silver and copper.
However, the Assyrians did not exercise any political and administrative influence but worked
under an understanding with the local princes. The Assyrians later gained importance as
scribes, advisers and officers in the Anatolian kingdoms and played an important role in intro-
ducing Mesopotamian elements into Anatolian culture.
In the last phase of the Bronze Age (1800–1200 bce) in Anatolia, a group of Indo-European
nomadic tribe, the Hittites (also called Nesians as they spoke Nesian language), who had pen-
etrated this region in around 2000 bce, replaced the Hattian Kingdom. But the coexistence of
the Hattians and the Nesians for almost two centuries led to a synthesis resulting in the growth
of a new civilisation popularly known as Hittite civilisation. Extensive archaeological findings,
166 Ancient and Medieval World

particularly from mid-nineteenth century from Boghazköy (Hattusas) in the form of written
texts on clay tablets, have provided us enough information to reconstruct history of the Hittites
with some accuracy. Besides Hattusas, other Hittite sites that have been excavated include
Kültepe (Nesa), Karahöyük, Acemhöyük and Alisar. Although other Hittite cities have also
found mention in the text but Hattusas and Kültepe enjoy pre-eminence as principal Hittite
centres. Following the Hattian tradition, the Hittite rulers created an oligarchic rule and the
kings shared power with other chieftains. Around 1700 bce, several small Hittite city-states were
integrated and the Hittite kingdom became territorially large with Hattusas as the capital of the
Hittite Old Kingdom. Sufficient resources enabled the Hittite rulers, such as, Hattusilis I, to
raise large armies and extend their territory in the Anatolian plateau. Later, under Mursilis I, the
Hittites raided Mesopotamia and were responsible for bringing down the Babylonian empire in
1600 bce. However, it was under Suppiluliumas I (1380–1345 bce) that the Hittite kingdom
turned into a mighty empire and a great political power. Under his rule, Northern Syria was
added to the Hittite territory and Hurrians (natives of Anatolia) were subjugated. Later, the
Hittite ruler Hattusilis III was supposed to have made an alliance with the ruler of Egypt to
protect the kingdom from the threat of invasion from Mesopotamia.
Under the Hittites, the size of the cities grew and some of them such as Kültepe, Karahöyük,
Acemhöyük and Alisar are said to have assumed ‘monumental’ proportions with fortified walls.
Evidence of palaces has been found at Kültepe. Evidence of monumental architecture has also
been found at Hattusas. The cyclopean walls built by the Hittites were a new innovation in
Anatolia. The typology of pottery included handmade potteries with geometric designs, wheel-
turned vases with animal and human representation and monochrome vases. These have been
termed as belonging to Hittite style as they remained in use in Anatolia until the end of the
second millennium bce. The artefacts such as bronze, silver and ivory works, besides terracotta
figurines, excavated from these sites are said to be examples of extraordinary beauty and origi-
nality. Ekrem Akurgal (1996) points out that although the Babylonian influence on these art
forms is discernible but the Anatolian artists succeeded in creating a distinct Hittite style with
designs borrowed from Mesopotamia.
The Hittites followed cuneiform writing in their text that was used during the early part of
the Mesopotamian civilisation. The impact of Akkadian script can be explained by the fact that
the Hittite raids into Syria and Mesopotamia and their trade links with the later facilitated
by the Assyrian traders brought inside Hittite society the Mesopotamian influence. So although
the Hittites spoke in Nesian language but their script was mainly Akkadian. Hieroglyphic script
was used on the monuments and royal seals for easy understanding of the masses. The litera-
ture of the Hittites, in the form of political testaments, personals histories and autobiographies
of the rulers as well as the political correspondence between Hittite kings and the rulers of the
neighbouring kingdoms, is considered original and more informative than those of the neigh-
bouring rulers.
The Hittite king had supreme military, diplomatic, judicial and religious authority but was not
considered as an absolute monarch of the Mesopotamian and Egyptian tradition. Although the
practice of hereditary succession was followed, but the ruler was considered as merely primus
inter pares (‘first among equals’). Unlike the earlier eastern empires, no divinity was attached
to the personality of the ruler. The Hittite nobles were powerful too as their opinion was given
due consideration in matters of succession. They were granted land and in exchange had the
obligation to supply the royal army with the war chariots which was the basis of Hittite military
strength. A distinctive feature of the Hittite political system was the importance and
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 167

independence enjoyed by the queen who despite a male ruler at the throne kept the title of
sovereignty, that is, tawannana. This title was carried by her even after the death of her hus-
band ruler so the wife of the new ruler could assume this title only after the death of the earlier
queen. The queen was also an equal participant in the kingly rituals. Women in general were
given a better social status despite the society being patriarchal which was in contrast with the
contemporary eastern societies.
Another significant difference between Hittite and the other contemporary societies is
related to matters of law. The clay tablets found from the ruins of Hattusas have revealed the
set of laws enforced in the Hittite society. These mainly dealt with subjects such as punish-
ments, prices, marriage, inheritance and economic matters. The difference lies in the fact that
the provision for punishment in these laws emphasise more on compensation as they valued
human life more than degrading capital punishments such as mutilation, flaying prisoners, and
so on. An important aspect of the Hittite law was that retribution to a crime was not a matter
between individuals but a matter between the offender and the state. The Hittites followed an
anthropomorphic religion influenced by the Hattian tradition. The chief deities of the Hittite
pantheon were the storm god Taru and his spouse Arinna (the sun goddess) who along with
their son Sarruma were worshipped as a trinity. At Hattusas, seven large temples dedicated to
Taru and Arinna have been found. Arinna in her incarnation as Ishtar also represented as god-
dess of war and fertility. The myths and legend of the Hittites were largely borrowed from
Babylonian and Hurrian traditions.
As the Hittites created a large empire, there has been a lot of discussion on the military
strength of the Hittites. Their military successes are mainly attributed to their use of horse and
war chariots. Use of horse for warfare was a relatively new concept in Anatolia. The available
Hittite texts also mention the breeding and training technique for horses. The Hittites, unlike
the heavy Mesopotamian horse-chariots that had solid wooden wheels, used light spoked
wheels that facilitated mobility on the battlefield. The texts also reveal that the Hittite chariots
carried three riders instead of two riders of the Egyptian spoked chariots. Traditionally, it was
believed that the military superiority of the Hittites, besides the use of horses and the chariots,
was also due to their knowledge of iron technology in making weapons, particularly swords.
But recent studies (to be discussed in detail later in the chapter) have dispelled this notion even
though there is an agreement among scholars that the Hittites may definitely have used iron to
make some of their weapons. The Hittite Empire was ended in 1200 bce by the invasions of what
has been described by Ramses III (the ruler of Egypt) as ‘Sea Peoples’ who devastated the
entire Near East in the Late Bronze Age.
Another important nomadic group to settle in East and Southeast Anatolia was that of the
Mitanni which established itself first near the Upper Euphrates and then included Northern
Syria to constitute the kingdom of Mitanni during 1650–1450 bce that proved to be the most
powerful of the Hurrian kingdoms. The Mitanni rulers bore names of Indo-Aryan lineage, and
the nobility consisted of a minority group of charioteers and horsemen. Mitannis are credited
for having introduced number of innovations in the field of warfare in the region of the Near
East. These include a lighter horse-drawn chariot with spoked wheel that improved the effi-
ciency of the archers riding the chariot. They are also considered as an expert in training the
horses and applying cavalry tactics. These innovations enabled them to increase the area of
their influence but when they were faced with similar technology-driven Hittites, they could not
sustain the pressure. Internal dynastic disputes and continued aggression on the part of Hittites
led to the collapse of the Mitanni kingdom.
168 Ancient and Medieval World

In Mesopotamia, during the Late Bronze Age, Kassites, an ethnic group of Indo-European
stock, settled in the central part of Zagros Mountains and later seized control of the Old
Babylonian Empire. The Babylonian Empire was considerably weakened by the Hittite attack,
which enabled the Kassites to establish their political control in Babylonia (Southern
Mesopotamia) by 1595 bce. In the opinion of George Roux (1996), the three centuries of Kassite
rule, despite a brief spell of foreign control, represents the most durable period of political unity
in the history of Southern Mesopotamia. In order to protect Kassite kingdom from the invasions
of Mitanni and Egyptian rulers, its rulers adopted diplomatic means of which exchange of royal
gift was an important part. The Egyptian texts contained in the archives inform us that the
exchange of royal gifts had become a characteristic trend, marking diplomatic and commercial
exchange among the powerful states in the Late Bronze Age West Asia. With Egyptian rulers,
the Kassite rulers exchanged horses, chariots, oil and lapis lazuli with gold, silver, wood and
ivory products. Few point out that, in this manner, the Kassites accumulated so much Egyptian
gold that the regional economy adopted the metal as the standard of value. Although the
Kassites had a kinship organisation, they did not take much time to adapt to the language, reli-
gion and traditions of the local Mesopotamians. In this manner, the Kassite were able to ensure
stability in the region for some time. The evidence from archaeological findings and available
texts suggest that the Kassite kingdom was ruled by kings through a bureaucratic structure
supported by a chariot-warrior aristocracy. An important change during the Late Bronze Age
Mesopotamia under the Kassites, as pointed out by Robert M. Adams (1981), was the shift from
large urban settlements to small towns and village life. Evidences have also been found of royal
land grants to the Kassite aristocracy. According to George Roux (1996), under the Kassites, the
Babylonian trade relations extended from Arabian Gulf to the Eastern Mediterranean.
In Northern Mesopotamia, Assyrians, a Semitic speaking tribe, were dominant in the Late
Bronze Age. As mentioned earlier, the Assyrians had played an important role in the trade rela-
tions of Anatolia with Mesopotamia. But the continuous threat of their neighbours the Hittites,
Mitannis and the Egyptians forced them to build up their military might. The decline of Hittites
and the Mitannis enabled the Assyrians to extend their control in the eastern part of
Mesopotamia. The literary form of Assyria, called Annals, informs us that Ashur-Uballit I (1362–
1326 bce), the greatest Assyrian ruler, and his successors extended their control over the entire
Northern Mesopotamia and also attacked the Kassites with the help of Egyptian rulers after
having established matrimonial alliances with them. By the end of the fourteenth century, the
Assyrian sphere of influence had extended from Babylonia up to the middle Euphrates.
Information contained in texts found from the city of Ashur suggests that large estates (granted
by the king) were owned by the Assyrian aristocracy. The military nature of the Assyrian state
can be gauged from the fact that landholdings were granted in lieu of military service. Few
scholars have pointed out that the palaces of the provincial governors acted as agricultural as
well as administrative centres. The Assyrian rulers were known for constructing temples, pal-
aces and walls. Evidence of a royal palace has been found from the town of Kar-Tukulti-Ninurta
(built by the Assyrian ruler Tukulti-Ninurta). The struggle for control over the trade routes
intersecting the Assyrian territory and the extensive upheaval caused by the tribal movements
in the twelfth century bce brought about the collapse of the Assyrian Empire in Northern
Mesopotamia.
Syria and Palestine in the Bronze Age did not witness political unity primarily due to its
geographical condition and absence of any natural boundaries. The five main geographical
regions spread from east to west in Syria–Palestine that have been identified are the
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 169

Mediterranean coastal region in the west with ancient coastal cities like Ugarit and Byblos;
mountains parallel to the coast with fertile valleys (like Amanus); the interior plains with such
big ancient territorial states such as Aleppo; the Syrian desert steppe extending up until
Euphrates River which served the transit trade route linking Mesopotamia, Anatolia and Syria
and in the process making Syria the focus of communications for Western Asia; and a hilly tract
(Jordan Valley) in the southwest which constituted what is known as the modern Palestine.
Syria was home to a number of Semitic speaking people in the Early Bronze Age. Recent
researches done by the French archaeologists have revealed the existence of a great city-state
called Mari on the Middle Euphrates that flourished between 2600 and 2350 bce. Another promi-
nent city-state, contemporary with Mari and located in the interiors, discovered by the Italian
archaeologists was Ebla, situated near Aleppo. The clay tablets written in cuneiform
Mesopotamian and local Syrian Semitic script suggest links of the city of Elba with Northern
Syria, Mesopotamia, regions of Middle Euphrates, Anatolia and the cities of Syrian coast.
The Middle Bronze Age (2000–1600 bce) in Syria saw weakening of urban civilisation due to
settling down of nomadic Amorites in this region, who were the natives of Syrio-Arabian desert.
However, this period also saw the growth of Ebla into a big city, with palaces, tombs and tem-
ples. Ebla, Aleppo and Ugarit became part of the kingdom of Iamkhad with Aleppo as its capital.
In the coastal region of Syria, the coastal towns such as Ugarit and Byblos reached a flourishing
phase of intensive trade with Egypt during this period with Egyptian Pharaohs sending officials
in these coastal towns to organise trade. Toward Euphrates, the Syrian city of Mari reached
another brief period of prosperity until it was destroyed by Hammurabi, the great Babylonian
ruler in mid-eighteenth century bce. The Late Bronze Age (1600–1200 bce) in Syria was marked
by a military competition among the Hittites, Hurrians, Mitannis and the Egyptians to establish
control over several regions of Syria. Mitannis established their control over most of Northern
Syria with its attendant cultural impact in the region while the Egyptians penetrated Central
and Northern Syria. The Hittite also had political designs in this region but the rising threat of
Assyrians from the side of Northern Mesopotamia led an alliance between Hittites (under
Hattusilis III) and Egypt (under Ramesses II).
Palestine, on the other hand, was less urbanised in the third millennium bce and settlements
were confined to the areas bounded by the Jordan Valley which was more favourable to agricul-
ture. The country is said to have been made up of small city-states with limited areas. Prominent
among these were Beth Shan, Megiddo and Jericho. Israeli archaeologists have unearthed a city
at Arad, on the margins of Negev desert and the hills of Judaea with rampart walls, residential
quarters, a distinct administrative building, temples and public buildings. Recent excavations
have revealed another prominent site of Early Bronze Age at Tell Yarmouth in the hills situated
west of Jerusalem. This was a fortified town within an acropolis. Towards the end of third mil-
lennium bce, Palestine witnessed a process of de-urbanisation and a movement towards pasto-
ral and rural settlement. This has been explained by modern archaeologists as an outcome of
internal ecological changes. Palestine was, as suggested by Egyptian sources, rebuilt during the
Middle Bronze Age. The process involved led to a decrease in nomadic lifestyle and return to
permanent settlements. The Canaanite civilisation in Palestine (1700–1550 bce) is considered as
the golden age of Palestine Bronze Age. An important Palestinian town of this period was
Hatzor, lying on the crossroads between Syria and the Jordan Valley. Egyptian literary sources
inform us that Canaanites maintained regular relationships with Hyksos of Egypt and
Hammurabi’s Babylon. By the Late Bronze Age, Palestine was brought under the sphere of influ-
ence of the New Kingdom of Egypt.
170 Ancient and Medieval World

Thus, from the description provided here, it is clear that the typology of political system in
West Asia during the Bronze Age was represented by both great and lesser empires. Among the
great imperial powers in this region, during the Late Bronze Age, were the Hittites, Assyrians,
Mitannis and the Kassites as well as that of the great Pharaohs of Egypt. Lesser empires were
mostly concentrated among the coasts and river valleys of Syria and extending up to the
Aegean Sea. Prominent among these were the coastal city-states of Ugarit and Byblos.
Economically, all these empires sustained themselves through an international system of trade
and diplomacy that developed during the Late Bronze Age, despite this period being marked
by military warfare. This mainly resulted from the realisation that their sustenance was depen-
dent on economic activities and trade and commerce could flourish only on the base of stabil-
ity. To ensure this stability, the rulers addressed each other with such words as ‘father’ and
‘brother’ and exchanged lavish gifts besides entering into marriage alliances. This, in turn,
promoted Seaborne trade over long distances with merchant vessels carrying variety of goods,
particularly in the region of Eastern Mediterranean. Along with trade in metals and other pre-
cious goods, crafts work, political and religious ideas and architectural forms were also trans-
mitted. Large merchant towns such as Ugarit became hub of this type of exchange. But the
new wave of tribal invasions from 1200 bce onwards brought about large-scale upheaval in
West Asia as well as in Eastern Mediterranean that brought an end to the international system
of trade and diplomacy and rise of a new political, social and economic structure in the region
under study.

Early Iron Age in West Asia

The Early Iron Age (1200–1000 bce) in West Asia was marked by the destruction of the great
empires as that of Hittites and Assyrians by invaders who have been referred to in the Egyptian
texts as the ‘Sea People’ and also other tribes of Indo-European stock who allied with the
former. The ‘Sea People’ rose from the Aegean region and were also responsible for the destruc-
tion of the Mycenaean civilisation of Greece. Few of these have been referred to in the texts as
Pelesets, Shekles and Denen. These invasions also brought about a change in the geopolitical
map of West Asia as the decline of great empires disturbed the delicate balance of power in the
region. However, in recent days, scholars have questioned the invasions of the ‘Sea People’ as
the sole cause of the decline of the great empires of this region. Nowadays a combination of
external invasions and internal social upheavals has been emphasised upon as reasons for the
destruction of great powers of West Asia. These social upheavals have been identified mainly
in the form of peasant revolts against the urban elites by those nomads who lived on the mar-
gins of a farming society and were now in the process of sedentarisation. It has also been
argued that the new political structure did not represent a complete break from the past as
many of these new settlers such as the Pelesets and Israelites continued the Bronze Age cul-
tural tradition of the Canaanites.
Anatolia, after the decline of great powers, saw the growth of small principalities. Prominent
among Indo-European tribes who penetrated Anatolia were the Thracians who, according to
Egyptian texts, settled in the city of Troy and took over the control of Hattusas and the Assyrian
city of Carchemish (situated on border between modern Turkey and Syria) in the Upper
Euphrates. Besides the Thracians, the ‘People of the Sea’, also settled in Anatolia during the
process of massive tribal migrations. Talking about the consequences of these migrations,
Ekrem Akurgal (1996) says that ‘the invaders destroyed the civilisation of Anatolia with such
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 171

cruelty and violence that a period of darkness ensued. The process of destruction lasted for two
centuries in Western Anatolia and for at least four centuries in the rest of the peninsula’. These
upheavals brought down the urban centres and destroyed the traditions of the Hittites in
Central Anatolia. Subsequently, the Urartians (descendants of the Hurrians) settled in Eastern
Anatolia with strong similarities with the Assyrian Empire and gave rise to a distinctive art
form. In Central Anatolia, the beginning of eight century bce witnessed the development of a
great civilisation of the Phrygians (an offshoot of Thracians) with their capital at Gordion (near
modern Yassihüyük in Turkey). Their script and other aspects of their material culture resem-
bled those of the Greeks, and their metal objects and textiles were quite popular later in the
Greek world.
Mesopotamia also did not remain unaffected by the tribal migrations and invasions sweeping
West Asia during the Early Iron Age. According to the information contained in Babylonian and
Assyrian annals, the Aramaeans moved towards Babylonia and occupied areas around the
Tigris River and Nippur. They were highly mobile, had a kin-based social organisation with a
distinct ethnic identity. The other areas of Mesopotamia, particularly the areas surrounding the
Euphrates River (particularly Ur and Uruk), were occupied by another tribal group called the
Chaldaeans. The Chaldaeans followed a semi-sedentary lifestyle, largely adopted the Babylonian
customs and later represented Babylonian resistance to Assyrian imperialism. The Assyrians,
who were controlling a greater part of Babylonia, witnessed quick phases of consolidation and
decline during 1200–900 bce. The Assyrians kings tried to impose absolute rule but the dynastic
feud, people’s opposition and external threats forced them to honour public opinion. The king
appointed the high dignitaries who held important positions at the centre with palace remaining
the administrative focal point of the empire. The governors (shaknu) and the village chiefs (rab
alani) headed provinces and constituent districts respectively. Governors were largely autono-
mous but their actions were subject to review by the financial inspectors (qipu) and royal
envoys (qurbutu). An elaborate system of messengers facilitated the link between capital and
the provinces. The army, which was the most important wing of the administration, consisted
of professional soldiers who were expert in cavalry and chariotry.
Agriculture was the basis of the Assyrian economy, which was supplemented with animal
herding. The Assyrian Kings encouraged foreign trade that was confined to luxury goods like
ivory, linen, precious stones, and so on. The Assyrian rulers are also supposed to be great build-
ers, who embellished their capitals with palaces and temples. The materials used in the palaces
(e.g., wooden doors, bronze and copper nails) and embossed floor bricks and the carved stone
decorations are considered marvels of the age. Assyrians were also known for their metalwork
that consisted mainly of embossed and moulded bronze apart from magnificent gold and silver
jewellery work. The available cuneiform texts inform us about the scientific knowledge of the
Assyrians that is reflected in the list of stars, mountains, rivers, cities, plants, animals and
stones to name a few. But the Assyrian Empire was weakened by the continuous incursions of
the Aramaeans from the west and Mushki tribe from the north. These external threats com-
bined with an extended period of famine brought about the Assyrian decline by mid-eleventh
century bce, which was followed by revival in the eighth century bce and then another period of
collapse and decline of Assyrians in late seventh century.
The Syria–Palestine region, during the Early Iron Age, went through major political and
social changes in the wake of new phase of tribal migrations. Experts on Syria–Palestine his-
tory, such as, Horst Klengel (1992), are of the opinion that the early Iron Age in this region was
marked by extreme political fragmentation despite intermittent pressure applied by the
172 Ancient and Medieval World

Assyrians in Western Syria. Klengel argues that this is reflected in settling down of new social
groups in this region and formation of new ethnic identities among already settled population.
Prominent among these were Pelesets (known as Philistines in the Biblical tradition) who set-
tled towards the southern coast of Syria and Israelites who occupied Southern Levant. Scholars
also point out that the rivalry between Pelesets and the Israelites tended to accelerate the pro-
cess towards the formation of new ethnic identities and growth of complex political organisa-
tions. Other groups to settle in this region were Aramaeans, who were earlier restricted to the
Syrian Desert area but now took control of the greater part of Syria and the Luwians (an off-
shoot of Hittites), originating from Southeastern Anatolia, now settled themselves in increasing
numbers in the northernmost part of Syria. It is believed that the interaction of Aramaeans and
Luwians with the local inhabitants led to the growth of the Popular ‘Syrio-Hittite’ culture. Trade
in this region was not affected by the invasions much and some coastal cities such as Byblos
continued to flourish while Ugarit declined. Later, under the process of colonisation by the
Phoenicians, who represented a loose conglomeration of small city-states ruled by local princes
and a mercantile aristocracy ruling over Carthage, Anatolia, Greece, Cyprus and parts of Egypt,
Tyre, Sidon and Bassit (Syria) emerged as new coastal cities. Trade with Phoenicians led to the
introduction of alphabets in Syria that later saw the development of Aramaean version of the
Phoenician linear script. Similarly, despite social and political tensions between several tribal
groups and regional disunity, some sort of unity can be discerned in matters of religion and
culture. While few of the religious beliefs of the Bronze Age survived, new gods found place in
the religious pantheon of several tribal groups. Thus, Syria remained the focal point of cultural
contact between several foreign and local tribes. Based on archaeological findings, experts
point out that the cultures developed by the Aramaeans, Luwians and Israelites at times are
hardly distinguishable.

ADVENT OF IRON
Apart from the devastating political and ethnic upheavals, the period 1500–800 bce, particularly
its latter half, also saw a significant development in the form of the beginning of Iron metallurgy.
While its impact was largely felt in the military sphere with its attendant political implications,
it also had a tremendous all-round effect on the social and economic structures of humans.
Thus, in a way, the Late Bronze Age in certain parts of the world also proved to be the period
of transition from bronze to iron technology. But this transition was neither swift nor uniform
throughout the world. Although iron was easily available in nature in its various ores, the com-
plex technology involved in extraction of iron in its pure form (steel) to give it advantage over
other metals, made sure that the process of iron making remained slow and confined to areas
with sufficient ores and requisite technology. But once the technology was in place, its dispersal
took place quickly, facilitated by the movement of tribes from one region to the other.

Debate
Due to the lack of sufficient textual or archaeological sources, the place of origin of iron tech-
nology has remained shrouded in mystery and experts have found it difficult to pin point the
exact place of the ‘discovery’ of the new iron technology. For a long time scholars tended to
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 173

believe the legend that the country of the Hittites (Anatolia) was the place of such an ‘innova-
tion’. The military success of the Hittites was attributed to the excessive use of iron weapons. It
was also believed that iron technology was kept as a closely guarded secret by the Hittite rulers
with the rulers monopolising the metal manufacture and trade. The geographical conditions in
the Eastern part of the Black Sea, bestowing this region with sand rich in iron ores (in particular
hematite), also lent credence to such believes. It was further proposed that the decline of the
Hittites at the hands of the tribes and the subsequent tribal movements in West Asia and Eastern
Mediterranean led to transmission of iron technology to several parts of the world.
However, the recent archaeological findings and researches have questioned the earlier
notions of iron technology being a monopoly of the Hittites. Findings of iron artefacts, number-
ing about 500, that dates between third millennium bce and first half of second millennium from
different parts of west Asia, clearly suggests that even before the coming of Hittites people, this
region was not unaware about this metal. Specific mention can be made about few of these that
also hint at the level of iron technology in the second half of second millennium bce. These are
the iron-bladed dagger found from Ur at the tomb of the Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamen (dated
1350 bce), the battle axe with iron blade found from a sanctuary at Ras Shamra (Ugarit) which
was a gift from the Mitanni king Tusratta to the Pharaoh (dated mid-fourteenth century bce), the
iron mace found as a part of the treasures of Troy, another iron-bladed dagger found at Tell
Ahmar and one at Alaca (all dated around mid-fourteenth century bce). A scientific analysis of
these iron artefacts have revealed that all these were forged from meteoric iron with high
degree of impurity in the form of nickel. It is clear from the examples that until this time, the
technique of extracting pure iron from its ore had not been developed. The ancient documents
also reveal that the value of iron in the nineteenth century bce was worth 40 times the value of
silver. Taking out impure iron was thus a difficult and costly proposition and therefore its usage
was limited to the elite or the rulers.
Talking about the use of iron by the Hittites, Jean-Pierre Mohen (1996) suggests that in the
Hittites society, iron was originally used solely for ceremonial purposes and rituals just like
other precious stones such as lapis lazuli, cornelian and rock crystal. While he does agree that
the Hittites were constrained to send gifts (including iron artefacts) to the Assyrian kings but
refuses to agree to the conventional notion about the monopoly of the Hittites over iron tech-
nology. He is of the opinion that the use of iron objects in several parts of West Asia dating from
mid-fifteenth century bce while clearly demolishes the earlier Hittite monopoly notion, it also
at the same time confirms the use of iron to manufacture votive weapons that were merely
intended as royal presents or for sanctuaries. Pierre Villard (1996) is of the opinion that the
growth of iron technology took place in three phases. In the first phase, the existence of objects
made of iron dating from mid-fifteenth century shows that the technique of iron working was
not unknown, although advantage was not really taken of the new metal’s particular character-
istics. It was still considered as rare on account of its extremely high price and was therefore
used for prestige items. In the second phase, the metal’s special qualities began to be recognised
and exploited for practical uses such as tools and weapons, although bronze still remained the
most commonly used metal. In the last phase, most tools and weapons were made of iron,
although it did not replace bronze completely.
Another debate connected with the beginning of iron technology relates to the fact whether
the high degree of technical knowhow achieved by the bronze metallurgists mainly with respect
to their knowledge of pyro technology (the technology of regulating heat and fire) was itself
good enough to initiate iron metallurgy. But few scholars point out that this automatic transfer
174 Ancient and Medieval World

of technology was not good enough to produce cast iron, as one of the major limitations of the
existing pyro technology was that the temperature of the oven or kiln could not be reached
beyond 1,200°C whereas the melting point of iron is 1,540°C. Besides this, while the copper and
bronze objects could be manufactured in a single operation through casting and did not require
much finishing, extraction of pure iron from its ore was a tedious task involving several com-
plex processes (to be explained later). Considering the cost of the extraction of iron and limita-
tions of the pyro technology, it is obvious that the growth of iron technology had to wait until
a particular level of technology was reached by the metallurgist who must have discovered it
more by accident than by design.

Causes
Although it is true that iron as a metal had several advantages over other metals but this could
not have been the sole reason for shift from bronze to iron metallurgy. We have seen that
although humans were aware of the workings with the metal, their lack of knowledge about the
advantages of this metal in the initial years had sustained the popularity of bronze. The notion
of iron being the force behind Hittite military superiority as well as invading tribes of the
twelfth century bce, such as, those of the Philistines (part of the ‘Sea People’ group), has already
been discarded. An attempt has been made to look for reasons of the beginning of iron technol-
ogy in the pattern of trade, the trade routes and the migration of craftsmen during the period of
initial upheavals beginning towards the end of second millennium bce. It has been suggested
that these upheavals disrupted the traditional trade route, severely affecting the supply of
copper and tin (to make bronze) thus forcing people to look for an alternative metal. It has also
been suggested that the capture of large number of ironworkers by the Assyrian rulers of the
ninth century bce may also have contributed to the growth of iron technology in Assyria.
Moreover, as argued by Pierre Villard (1996), the Assyrian army’s considerable need for weap-
ons and tools, in the wake of short supply of tin, may itself would have led to the discovery of
the potential of iron as a new metal. Thus, Villard feels that the reason behind the transition
from bronze to iron cannot have a monocausal explanation. He however suggests that the rea-
sons for this transition were as much economic as technological although iron was not very
much cheaper than bronze before sixth century bce.
Thus, despite the acceptance of iron as a new metal for making tools and weapons, the popu-
larity of bronze survived and the two metals coexisted. Later, a degree of specialisation was
reached whereby certain metals were used for certain purposes, for example, bronze was usu-
ally used where ant-type ornamentation was required while iron was found to be more useful as
a weapon, particularly the battle swords. Even in the military field, bronze maintained its utility
as most of the helmets were made of bronze, iron helmets being heavier and cumbersome.

Processes of Iron Manufacturing

Iron manufacturing involved several complex processes, each of which the metallurgists must
have discovered by chance. The earliest iron objects, dating between the beginning of the third
and mid-second century bce, were mostly impure iron extracted from its ore. So the earliest
process of iron manufacturing involved processing of the ore. Since hematite and magnetite
contains maximum quantity of iron, these must have been the earliest ores to be worked upon.
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 175

The bronze metallurgists had already obtained the furnace temperature of 1,200°C. The process
of heating iron ore in the furnace on a bed of charcoal led to a chemical reaction between the
ore and the charcoal that made it possible to extract impure iron in the form of a doughy mass
assuming the shape of a porous block after being cooled. But scholars argue that the adoption
of such a technique was not easy as it was conditioned by both the availability of ore and suf-
ficient amount of fuel. It has been estimated that eight tons of charcoal were needed to process
one ton of the ore. The place of origin of this technique cannot be pinpointed with any accuracy
but scholars, such as, Villard (1996), put forward the view that in West Asia the most likely
places for experimentation with this technique were Northwest Iran, the Armenian Mountains
and the ranges of Taurus Mountains as these had a rich reserve of both ores and the fuel. But
the metal acquired from this method was less resistant than bronze and could not have been
put to a more effective use than as prestige objects.
Next important stage, considered as the actual stage of iron manufacturing, was the prepara-
tion of ingots. To make iron ingots, the mixture of iron and charcoal had to be heated up again
and then hammered while still hot to obtain ingots that could then be used to manufacture iron
objects according to a desired shape. Villard (1996) suggests that actual manufacturing of fin-
ished objects could only be carried out in those places where iron ingots had been exported.
However, the most crucial stage of iron manufacturing was the discovery of the process of
carburisation. This technique involves repeated heating and cooling of iron on a bed of charcoal
at 900°C, which turns the character of the heated iron into white-hot and makes it absorb cer-
tain amount of carbon that transforms iron into steel. In this manner, the metal becomes more
resistant in comparison to other metals and it can also be given a cutting edge to increase its
usefulness. The final stage in this process was annealing or tempering (rapid cooling in water
or oil), a process found absent in bronze metallurgy, which made it possible to combine hard-
ness with strength giving iron a real superiority over other metals.
However, one should not assume that the processes were achieved over a short period of
time. Rather the process was a gradual one, as the metallurgist had to achieve success in each
of these processes while working under severe limitations. While bronze metallurgy did not
involve so many processes and one could manufacture bronze by simply following the casting
method, extraction of pure iron involved complex processes and also required more finishing.
One of the first major obstacles facing the iron metallurgist was controlling the temperature of
the furnace, which was essential during the process of carburisation, and also the length of time
the metal was to be left in the furnace. In the absence of any measuring equipment, both of
these must have happened accidently. Moreover, iron had to be hammered while it was still hot
in the charcoal furnace. Thus, Pierre Villard (1996) is of the opinion that carburisation must
frequently have taken place accidently and only long experience would enable blacksmiths to
identify the technique. From the this analysis, it can be very well imagined why, despite being
easily available in nature in comparison to copper and tin, the iron technology took time to
develop. However, once the technology was in place, use of iron developed at a much faster
pace than earlier metals such as bronze.

Origin and Spread of Iron Technology

As mentioned earlier, the available evidences are not rich enough to enable us to suggest with
any certainty, a particular place for the beginning of iron technology. However, looking at the
processes of extraction of iron and the requirements of ore as well as the fuel, scholars tend to
176 Ancient and Medieval World

suggest that the technique of carburisation first appeared in the fourteenth or thirteenth cen-
tury bce in the areas controlled by the Hittites or Mitannis, but it has also been pointed out that
the Assyrian rulers of the thirteenth century tended to bury iron tablets as votive offerings while
foundation was being laid for their capital at Ashur. This would indicate that until about thir-
teenth century bce, iron was still considered as a precious metal. Jean-Pierre Mohen (1996),
however, is of the opinion that from about twelfth century bce, iron making became firmly
established in the countries bordering Eastern Mediterranean, and this has given rise to specu-
lation as to a possible link between the expansion of this new technology, with its quickly
realised potential for weapon making, and the irruption of the ‘Sea People’. Mohen provides
evidence of carbonised iron from a pickaxe, discovered from Mount Adir in the north of Israel
belonging to twelfth century bce. After twelfth century, scholars generally agree that the pro-
cess of carburisation developed rapidly but the chronology differed from region to region.
Talking about the period of transition from bronze to iron, Pierre Villard (1996) assumes that
the transition first occurred at the end of the second millennium bce in the Mediterranean
region, covering Cilicia, Northwest Syria and then Palestine. In Assyria, according to Villard, the
process was delayed until the end of the ninth century bce, while in Egypt and Mesopotamia the
iron technology did not reach before seventh century bce. The iron technology, that originated
from Anatolia and then dispersed from Eastern Mediterranean by the process of migrations of
settled population and movement of the nomads, reached Eastern Europe around 700 bce. But
even until this time, the iron lacked qualities that could be achieved only two centuries later in
Greece. In Southeastern Europe, the earliest Iron tools and weapons (flat axes and swords)
appeared between 950–700 bce, whereas in other parts of Europe it was only in the middle of
first millennium bce that we get the evidence of use of iron artefacts in large numbers.

IMPLICATIONS OF THE ADVENT OF IRON TECHNOLOGY

From the analysis in the previous section, it is apparent that the advent of iron technology was
delayed mainly due to the complex processes involved in the extraction of pure iron. But it is
true that unlike bronze manufacturing, which often required importing raw materials such as
copper and tin in the deficit areas, iron in the form of its ore was available in sufficient quanti-
ties in practically every part of the ancient world. What was required was the availability of
technology. Once the technology was in place, the Pace at which people adopted iron was much
faster than centuries taken by the humans to adopt bronze. It is obvious that the advantages of
iron swayed over other metals. Although the impact of iron in the early stages was mainly felt
in weaponry and warfare, but it had impact practically in every sphere and sector of human
society. For the sake of convenience, the impact of the advent of iron technology on humans
can be studied under two broad categories—non-military and military.

Non-military Field
In the non-military sector, the advent of iron technology brought significant improvement in
the manufacturing of agricultural and craft equipment such as picks, axes, chisels, saws, files
and so on. The fact that the metal was stronger and could be given any shape further
increased the number of tools. This had a tremendous impact on the agricultural and craft
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 177

production. However, it was agriculture that felt the impact more than the industrial sector
and since agriculture was the basis of economy, use of iron implements brought about a quan-
tum jump in the agricultural production. The use of iron ploughshare and hoes allowed
deeper furrows thus bringing about an increase in the agricultural yield. Since iron was
harder than bronze, it could be used to cut canals even through the mountains. Talking about
the impact of iron on agriculture, V. Gordon Childe (1942), opined that iron gave masses,
particularly the rural masses, a real independent share in the benefits of civilisation. He goes
on to explain that cheap iron tools reduced the dependence of small producers on state,
which hitherto had the monopoly of organising irrigation facilities. Possessed with the new
iron implements to break the ground, clear the forests and dig the canals, the small farmers
could earn independence by reclaiming for themselves a piece of wasteland and could take
up cultivation on their own or with the help of the family members. In fact, Childe has termed
iron as a ‘democratic’ metal in the sense that unlike copper, iron ores are well distributed
throughout the world. Therefore, the raw material could be procured locally and there was
no need to be dependent on an elaborate network of trade. Easy availability of the iron ore
made the metal cheaper than bronze and once the technology was in place, it could be used
by all, thus a democratic metal.
Besides agriculture, the new tools brought about an improvement in the working methods of
the craftsmen. Childe (1942) is of the opinion that with the improvement in tools, efficiency of
the industry was improved. With the use of iron, wheels became lighter and faster which
reduced the cost of transportation, leading to wider distribution of craft goods. Arthur Cotterell
(1985) has put forward the view that in contrast to the Bronze Age, metallurgy became both
more widespread and more localised (due to specialisation in the field of manufacture), metal
tools were cheaper and easier to maintain and a larger proportion of the people used them.
Cotterell further argues that with the advent of iron, division of labour and labour skills steadily
expanded in the field of industry, agriculture and trade so that a varied economy could be sus-
tained over a considerable territory. Talking about the economic development prior to the
establishment of the Roman Empire, John Collis (1997) is of the opinion that the population
increase and intensified trading activities of the centuries immediately preceding the formation
of the Roman Empire can partly be attributed to the success of iron technology in changing
European agriculture and craftsmanship.
Mario Liverani, (1996) talks about emergence of new socio-economic models in regions such
as Aegean, Anatolia, Syria, Palestine and Cyprus (regions west of Euphrates) with the advent
of iron. Liverani talks about a complete collapse of palace-based states in this region along with
the breakdown in international network based on exchange of gifts, inter-dynastic marriages
and diplomacy in the wake of the internal and external crisis beginning twelfth century bce. The
collapse of palace-based states in the Iron Age brought about the decline in the monopoly of
specialised craftsmen and scribes based on palace, leading to the spread of iron metallurgy and
writing in wider areas. He further argues that when compared to the Late Bronze Age, the Iron
Age saw a much wider settlement, as in addition to coasts and valleys, the arid plateaus and the
hills as well as desert oases were also settled which further widened the interregional network
of exchange. Another important change noticed by Liverani is the disappearance of a clear
distinction between town (which was the seat of political power in the Bronze Age) and the
village (the centre of food production). In the Iron Age, towns became smaller and villages
became fortified. These villages became political focal points of the pastoral tribes dominating
the region. With the growth of a new iron technology, the process of sedentarisation of nomads
178 Ancient and Medieval World

was accelerated. In his recent study of Israel, Liverani (2007) talks about growth of a new state
model. While the state in the Bronze Age was a purely territorial and administrative unit (con-
trolled by a royal city), in the Iron Age, in the states that developed in the Transjordan region
during early centuries of the first millennium, the political membership was the result of ethnic,
kinship and religious factors.
At the socio-economic level, argues Mario Liverani (1996), the collapse of the palace and new
role of the tribes led to an increase in the power of the village community and reduction in the
authority of those who earlier were acting as ‘king’s servants’. Merchants and craftsmen, earlier
associated with the palace, got a new freedom from the palace elite and pursued their crafts
independently as true counterparts to the royal palace. Although the palace received a new
impetus from tenth century bce, the city assemblies and the council of elders retained both
political and judicial control. At the same time in regions such as Egypt and Babylon that
remained unaffected by the crisis of this period, argues Liverani, the previously ‘free’ peasants
underwent a period of generalised serfdom, while the merchants, craftsmen and the scribes
organised themselves under guilds and entered into a new relationship with the palace through
which they earned exemptions from taxation and corvée or forced labour. In this manner,
Liverani concludes, they earned their autonomy and could serve a varied clientele.
An important political phenomenon of the early Iron Age in West Asia was the rise of the
Assyrian Empire. The Assyrian capital cities were much larger as they were able to draw
resources, both human and material, from a larger hinterland with the help of excessive use
of force by an army equipped with iron weapons. The capital cities of the Assyrians had much
larger concentration of population and members of the ruling class, such as, high grandees of
the court, and provincial governors and military commanders enjoyed a number of fiscal
privileges including land grants. The Assyrians also modified the Bronze Age centre and local
area relationship by taking away the autonomy of the latter through outright political con-
quest and converting these areas into Assyrian provinces. The culture, including technologies
of these areas along with local craftsmen, merchants and scribes, was also transported to the
Assyrian capitals to serve the exotic needs of the Assyrian rulers and the ruling class. The
constant war campaigns undertaken by the Assyrian rulers brought about a massive depopu-
lation which was compensated by deporting the people of the conquered areas to the Assyrian
cities. This brought about a change in the social structure of Assyria as deportees replaced
the free peasants and the village communities became organisation of serfs owned by the king
or the land-holding state officials.

Military Field
The advent of iron brought about the most revolutionary changes in the military sector and the
demands of this sector further brought about improvement in the iron technology. In the Iron
Age, the two major technological innovations in the field of warfare were the use of horses and
light chariots moved by iron axle and light spoked wheels. Although the use of horse has been
traced to the beginning of the second millennium bce in West Asia, its large-scale usage began
only during the Early Iron Age with the introduction of a new type of chariot. Earlier the chari-
ots were mounted on four solid wooden wheels that were fixed directly to the body. This
increased the weight of the chariot and its mobility was severely compromised in the
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 179

battlefield. The new type of chariots, introduced in the Iron Age, had a lighter body that was
made of several pieces of wood, joined together by leather straps and the wheels were spoked
with iron axle that increased its mobility by several times. The horses were harnessed with
throat collars and could charge with great speed to rout the enemy infantry. But the only limita-
tion was the fact that the horses were not native to West Asia and therefore had to be first
acclimatised and trained for such horse-based warfare. Pierre Villard (1996) has referred to a
Hittite version of a treatise (discovered at Boghazköy) written by a person of the Mitanni origin
which deals with the issue of training of horses and also supports the prevalent view that the
new instruments of warfare developed in the Hittite–Mitanni sphere of influence. Since horse-
chariot warfare was a specialised activity, it gave rise to a new social class of specialised war-
riors who assumed the status of a military aristocracy.
The dispersal and adoption of the new technology was very fast in the first centuries of the
first millennium bce. The Assyrians took the advantage of the new technology very quickly and
their army became the dominant force in West Asia. However, the Assyrian chariots were
heavier and pulled by four instead of two horses. Under the Assyrians, the cavalry became a
light fast moving force deployed along with the foot soldiers. It has been suggested that from
ninth century bce onwards, the Assyrian army had several cavalry units comprising of about
hundred in each. Pierre Villard (1996) opines that, in this respect, the Assyrians may have been
following the nomadic warfare tactics while fighting with them at the same time. The bas-
reliefs, belonging to this period, show two horsemen operating together, where one fought the
enemy and the other held the reins of the two horses in a teamwork. Gradually in the seventh
century bce, specific horses were used for chariots and for riding. Since horses were costly,
their use was limited to warfare, and, in West Asia, horses were therefore associated with
power and royalty. In this context, Villard also refers to a legend associated with Idrimi, a Syrian
ruler who was the vassal of a Mitanni king and subsequently came back from exile to regain his
kingdom with the help only of his horse, chariot and squire. Professionalisation of warfare and
the need to increase the number of soldiers led to the Assyrian rulers enforcing conscription
for certain period of time besides raising a huge standing army.
The huge Assyrian army also played its role in the economy. This was not limited to gathering
resources through pillage but its needs of supplies and equipment created an internal system of
supplies based on provinces. The supplies were raised from the private producers to maintain
the civil and military administration. The governors of the provinces raised these supplies from
their ilku (land granted by a superior authority along with administrative responsibilities).
Usually such grants were associated with military service performed for the state but at times
supply of horses for the royal army was also seen as an obligation against the grants. Gradually
the obligations of those performing service for the state, civil or military were also extended to
others who fulfilled their part of the obligation by directly providing for agricultural produce
and supplies of metal to the soldiers stationed in their province. Referring to the practice fol-
lowed at Ashur, the Assyrian capital, Villard (1996) puts forward the fact that during the winter
months, the soldiers took their horses to the villages that were responsible for their upkeep. A
team of craftsmen was also associated with the royal contingent to provide the army with sup-
plies and specialised services. Thus, according to Villard, these examples indicate how the
productive forces of the countryside were incorporated in a system that was designed to main-
tain an increasingly onerous and specialised war machine.
180 Ancient and Medieval World

Summary
1. The two most important developments of the Iron Age (1500–700 bce) were the col-
lapse of many Mediterranean and Near Eastern civilisations (due to invasions of the
pastoral nomadic tribes and internal social upheavals) and the advent of iron tech-
nology, the latter having lasting effect on human political, social, economic and mili-
tary life.
2. Pastoral nomads are those who maintain herds of animals and follow annual migra-
tion to find new pastures. The areas inhabited by them (steppe, semi-deserts, moun-
tain and upland valleys) ensure them seasonal pastures but are not conducive to
settled agriculture.
3. The concept of pastoral nomadism has undergone a change in the recent years.
While earlier they were described as barbaric groups in opposition to the state and
the settled societies, now pastoral nomadism is seen as a specialised economic
activity based on variety of resources besides pastoralism such as small-scale culti-
vation, trade, raids, smuggling and so on. Thus, pastoral economy is said to take vari-
ous forms such as mixed economy, herdsmen husbandry (transhumance),
semi-sedentary pastoralism, semi-nomadic pastoralism and pure pastoral
nomadism.
4. Few scholars have put special emphasis on the mobility of nomads while defining
pastoral nomadism but others are of the view that mobility of the pastoral nomads
is determined by importance of cultivation in the pastoral societies along with eco-
logical factors.
5. Another important theme connected with pastoral nomadism is the level of integra-
tion of such societies with the settled population. Scholars argue that pastoral
nomadic economies were never self-sufficient and were therefore more likely to
depend on farming and urban societies for their effective functioning and existence.
Integration of pastoral nomadism with sedentary societies had its cultural conse-
quences as the pastoral nomads adopted many of the cultural and social practices of
the settled societies, including a stratified society and a mechanism for production of
surplus and its distribution.
6. In the Iron Age, a specialised form of pastoral nomadism developed, particularly in
the steppe areas of Europe and Central Asia, which was not based on cultivation but
a structured migratory movement with domestic herds and efficient exploitation of
seasonal pastures. During the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages, the followers of pure
pastoralism in European steppe and the Near East started making increasing use of
horses and camels for their movement. Horses were mainly used for meat and chariot
driving. The iron technology brought about increasing use of horse and iron weapons.
Growth of metallurgy and increase in military activities led to the emergence of
wealthy tribal leaders who assumed the status of petty rulers. Society became more
complex and the warrior elite emerged as a new social group that enjoyed special
status in the society as evidenced by their special burials.
7. Central Asia covers the modern republics of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,
Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. The topography of Central Asia contains steppe,
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 181

semi-desert regions, mountains and alluvial plains, which provided opportunities for
agriculture, stock breeding as well as pastoral cultures. In the absence of textual
materials, archaeological findings and ethnic analogy between modern and ancient
nomads have formed the basis of the study of Central Asian Bronze and Iron Age
cultures.
8. The Bronze Age in Central Asia (3000–1500 bce) developed in the Kopet Dag oases
zone Known as Namazga IV period. Altyn-depe (in modern Turkmenistan) was the
most prominent site of this period, demonstrating distinct urban features. By the
time of the Middle Bronze Age, Altyn-depe and Namazga-depe developed as big city-
states. This period was also marked by a greater regional interaction with
Afghanistan, Iran, Baluchistan, the Indus Valley and Mesopotamia. Archaeological
findings suggest an early stage of state formation but the settlement patterns, the
varying sizes of the houses and different grave goods hint towards a differentiated
society. Towards the close of this period, bigger settlements such as Altyn-depe and
Namazga-depe declined, and they were replaced by smaller settlements in the
Murghab delta.
9. The Late Bronze Age in Central Asia was marked by significant political, social, eco-
nomic and cultural changes. This resulted partly from the movement of steppe
nomads into several parts of Central Asia where they had both peaceful and violent
interaction with the settled agricultural societies. The most prominent settlement of
this period is known as Bactria–Margiana Archaeological Complex (BMAC) that
developed in the areas surrounding Murghab delta and small tributaries of Amu
Darya. The graves discovered at the BMAC settlement suggest high degree of pros-
perity. Richer grave goods associated with women graves indicate the important
position enjoyed by the elite women in the society. The variety of seals found at the
settlement and the spread of BMAC products to far off regions suggest strong links
with Harappan and Mesopotamian as well as cultures of Iran and Western Pakistan.
10. During the last phase of the Late Bronze Age (1750–1500 bce), an important change
in Central Asia was that the primitive hunting groups were replaced by nomadic
groups who followed a mixed agricultural–pastoralist economy. A prominent repre-
sentative of this type of settlement was the Andronovo culture, which was known
for its bronze metallurgy and use of horse chariots that have been found from the
burial mounds. Another significant development of this period was the cultural
amalgamation of nomads and settled population leading to cultural transformation
among the nomads. This cultural synthesis was most evident in the field of metal-
lurgy, manufacture of weapons, architectural designs and religious ideology.
11. The Iron Age (1500–600 bce) in Central Asia brought about further changes. Scholars
debate whether these changes were an outcome of tribal migrations or due to trans-
formation of the indigenous culture leading to cultural integration of a wider area.
Majority however feels that migration of pastoral nomads were unlikely reasons of
change, as they did not have military advantage over the settled farming
population.
12. The Early Iron Age is considered as the formative stage of nomadic pastoralism in
the steppe regions of Central Asia. Increasing use of horse and iron weapons enabled
(Continued)
182 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

them to traverse long distances and facilitated increased material production. This
also enabled the growth of chiefdoms in steppe regions of Central Asia. Gradual
accumulation of wealth and military power backed by iron technology led to tribal
chiefs becoming absolute rulers. Noticeable increase in material production also
brought about the growth of a class society among the nomads. The adoption of
wheeled chariot and horse saddle, while improving the mobility of the nomads, also
facilitated quick transmission of ideas. Mobility of the nomads also brought about
cultural integration of pastoral groups, leading to formation of ‘historico-cultural’
communities such as the Scytho-Siberian group. Such groups shared similar habitat,
economic activities (nomadic cattle raising), a similar social structure marked by
differentiation based on property and social standing and similar ideology.
13. West Asia is surrounded by five seas and during the period under review, it covered
Anatolia, Levant, Mesopotamia, Iran and highlands of Armenian Mountains. West Asia
is generally an arid or semi-arid region but is also endowed with vast expanse of forest
area along with fertile valleys. It was home to large state-based civilisations such as
Mesopotamia and Egypt. At around 2000 bce, large number of tribes of Indo-European
and Semitic linguistic groups made their incursions into West Asia. Prominent among
these were Hittites and Mitannis (Indo-European group), Amorites, Assyrians,
Canaanites and Phoenicians (Semitic group).
14. Besides Mesopotamia and Egypt, the most prominent region of West Asia was
Anatolia where two prominent civilisations of Hattis (Middle Bronze Age) and that
of the Hittites (Late Bronze Age) flourished. Alaca Höyük was the most important
centre of the Hattis. Prosperity of the Hattians was mainly due to the copper reserve
of Central Anatolia on whose supply depended the two great ancient civilisations of
Mesopotamia and Egypt. The link between Anatolia and Mesopotamia was strength-
ened by the role played by the Assyrian merchants in fostering trade between these
two regions. The Assyrians established their trading stations (karum) in Anatolia
and later gained importance as scribes, advisors and officers in the Anatolian
kingdom.
15. In the latter part of the Bronze Age (1800–1200 bce), the Hittites replaced the
Hattians and created a large empire in Anatolia. Prominent centres of the Hittite
civilisation were Boghazköy (Hattusas) and Kültepe. Endowed with natural
resources, the Hittite rulers raised large armies and extended their control in the
entire Anatolian Plateau. The Hittites also attacked Mesopotamia and brought down
the Babylonian Empire. The Hittite monarchs had supreme military, diplomatic and
judicial authority but did not act as absolute rulers. The Hittite queens enjoyed spe-
cial status in the political system, retaining the title of sovereignty (tawannana)
until their death. The Hittite monarchs built several palaces and public buildings.
The judicial system of the Hittites emphasised more on compensation and human
life rather than inflicting capital punishment on the guilty. The Hittite military suc-
cess is generally attributed to the use of war chariots and their knowledge of and
monopoly over iron technology. But the recent studies tend to dismiss such notions
of monopolistic control of the Hittites on iron technology.
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 183

16. In Mesopotamia, the Old Babylonian Empire was replaced by the Kassites. The
Kassite kings ruled with the help of bureaucrats. Prosperity of the Kassites was
dependent on the sale of horses, chariots and other products with Egypt. In Northern
Mesopotamia, Assyrians held their sway with the help of their military might. Ashur
was the Assyrian capital from where several texts have been found which give us
important information about the nature of the Assyrian state. Assyrian state was a
military state where land grants were made in lieu of military services. Struggle for
control over trade routes intersecting Assyria and upheavals caused by twelfth cen-
tury tribal movements brought about the collapse of the Assyrian Empire.
17. Syria and Palestine during the Bronze Age was marked by the lack of political unity
due to varying geographical conditions and lack of natural boundaries. Ebla, Aleppo
and Ugarit were the prominent city-states of Syria during the Middle Bronze Age
(2000–1600 bce). During the Late Bronze Age (1600–1200 bce), there was an intense
military competition between the Hittites, Hurrians, Mitannis and the Egyptians to
establish control over several regions of Syria. Palestine was less urbanised and the
settlements were mainly situated in the Jordan Valley that was more favourable to
agriculture. The period of Canaanite civilisation (1700–1550 bce) is considered as the
golden age of the Palestinian Bronze Age. In the Late Bronze Age, Palestine was
brought under the control of the New Kingdom of Egypt.
18. The political system of the Bronze Age West Asia was marked by both great and
lesser empires. Their economic system was dependent on international system of
trade and diplomacy despite the increasing reference to warfare activities. Political
stability was considered as important for economic transactions and therefore the
international system worked well to maintain a balance of power in the region.
19. The Early Iron Age (1200–1000 bce) in West Asia witnessed the destruction of the
great empires of Hittites and the Assyrians by invaders referred to as the ‘Sea
People’. But recently, based on the archaeological findings, scholars have put for-
ward the view that the decline of the great empires was an outcome of a combina-
tion of external invasions and internal social upheaval. It has also been argued that
the new settlements that developed during the Early Iron Age in West Asia such as
that of the Pelesets, Israelites (Syria and Palestine), Thracians, Urartians, Phrygians
(Anatolia), Aramaeans and Assyrians (Babylonia) have tremendous similarity and
are hardly distinguishable.
20. The period (1500–800 bce) did not only witness political and ethnic upheavals. It was
also the period that witnessed the advent and growth of iron technology. But the
transition from bronze to iron was neither swift nor uniform throughout the world.
Despite easy availability of iron ores, manufacturing pure form of iron (steel)
involved a complex process.
21. The place of origin of iron technology is shrouded in mystery. Earlier legends sug-
gested that the kingdom of Hittites (Anatolia) was the place from where the iron
technology disseminated to various parts of the world by tribes who destroyed the
Hittite Empire. But in recent days, scholars, based on archaeological findings of iron
objects from West Asia that were contemporary with the Hittites, have rejected the
notion of monopoly of iron technology by the Hittites.
(Continued)
184 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)
22. Several explanations have been forwarded regarding the causes of the shift from
bronze to iron technology. This varies from advantage of iron over other metals to
tribal invasions that disrupted the copper trade and hence the need of an alternative
metal to military needs of great empires likes that of the Assyrians.
23. The initial process to manufacturing impure form of iron involved the processing of
the iron ores such as magnetite and hematite, which required plentiful supply of ores
as well as fuel. It has been argued that West Asia was the most likely region for the
initiation of this process as the mountains (Armenian and Taurus) had rich reserve
of both. However, the most crucial stage of the process of manufacturing iron was
carburisation that was achieved by repeatedly heating of iron objects at 900°C on a
bed of charcoal which turned iron into steel. The final stage in the process was tem-
pering which added strength to the metal. These processes developed over a long
period and must have developed accidently as the ironworkers were not aware of
many of these processes. Only a long experience of the blacksmiths led to perfection
of the iron technology.
24. Regarding the origin and spread of the iron technology, our knowledge is limited due
to paucity of information. But, recently, it has been suggested that the technique of
carburisation must have been developed in the areas controlled by the Hittites and
the Mitannis in the fourteenth and thirteenth centuries bce. By twelfth century bce,
iron technique was fully established in the Eastern Mediterranean and by the begin-
ning of the first millennium bce, iron technology covered the entire Mediterranean.
In Assyria, the iron technology reached around ninth century whereas it was only in
the seventh century bce that it spread to Mesopotamia and Egypt.
25. The impact of iron technology can be seen in both non-military and military sector.
In the non-military field, it affected agriculture more than any other sector of the
economy. Improvement in tools brought about an increase in production. Now lands
could be made arable through individual or group efforts and dependence on state
to provide irrigation facilities was reduced to a great extent. Iron has been termed
as a ‘democratic’ metal because unlike copper and tin, iron ores were well distrib-
uted throughout the world and therefore did not require elaborate trade network.
26. Besides agriculture, iron tools also brought about an improvement in craft produc-
tion. Metallurgy became more widespread as large number of people used cheap
iron tools. With the help of this metal, settlements could be established even in arid
plateaus, hills and desert oases besides coasts and valleys.
27. At the political level, Iron Age in general witnessed the decline of big palace states
and rise of smaller tribal states based on ethnicity and kinship relations. With the
growth of iron technology, the process of sedentarisation of the nomads was accel-
erated. Towns became smaller and villages were fortified. The collapse of the palace
states led to an increase in the power of the village community and reduction in the
power of the kings officials. The city assemblies and the council of elders came to
acquire political and judicial power. An important political developed connected
with the growth of iron technology was the rise of the Assyrian Empire which have
been attributed to its massive military campaigns.
 Nomadic Groups in Central and West Asia 185

28. However, the most significant changes attributed to the advent of iron technology
were witnessed in the military field and the demands of this sector brought about
further improvement in iron technology. Two major innovations in the military field
were the use of horses and war chariots driven by iron axle and light-spoked wheels.
Since the chariot-based warfare was a specialised activity, it gave rise to a new mili-
tary aristocracy. Assyrians were the first to take the military advantage of this tech-
nology. They created several cavalry units and enforced conscription to raise a large
army.

KEYWORDS
Pastoral nomads transhumance migrations integration mobility steppe alluvial
Eneolithic piedmont delta oases BMAC Andronovo Indo-European Semitic
semi-sedentary semi-nomadic chiefdom Hittites Mitannis Kassites Assyrians
Canaanites votive processing carburisation tempering

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. Define ‘pastoral nomadism’. In what sense has the concept of pastoral nomadism under-
gone a change in recent years?
2. How did the geographical condition of Central Asia shape the settlement pattern during
the Bronze Age?
3. Discuss the chief features of Bronze Age cultures of Central Asia.
4. Did the Iron Age mark a fundamental change in the political, social, cultural and ideologi-
cal life of the people of Central Asia?
5. What role did geographical conditions play in the establishment of Bronze Age settle-
ments in West Asia?
6. Analyse the chief features of the Bronze Age Hittite Civilisation of Anatolia.
7. Account for the dominance of Assyrians in West Asia during the Late Bronze Age.
8. Bring out the major issues in the debate related to the advent of iron technology.
9. Despite being easily available in nature, the iron technology took a long time to develop.
Discuss.
10. Discuss the impact of the advent of iron technology on military and non-military
sectors.

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CHAPTER
Ancient Greece

6
Chapter Contents

• Geography and the People of Greece

• Political Formations in Ancient Greece: ‘Dark Age’ and the Emergence of Polis
• The Persian and Peloponnesian Wars
• Slavery in Ancient Greece: Economy and Society
• Ancient Greek Culture and Religion
• Summary

GEOGRAPHY AND THE PEOPLE OF GREECE

G
reece and Rome were the two great civilisations that dominated Europe for almost 1,000
years (sixth millennium bce to sixth millennium ce). These two civilisations also laid the
foundation on which the future western civilisations developed. Greece (located in the
southeastern part of Europe) was the homeland of the two great ancient civilisations—Minoan
(Crete) and Mycenaean (Mainland Greece). Geographically, ancient Greece was divided into
three regions—the coasts, lowlands and the mountains. It is surrounded by water on three
sides, turning Greece into a peninsula. In the east, Greece is surrounded by the Aegean Sea, in
the west by the Ionian Sea and in south by the Mediterranean Sea. Several small peninsulas
protrude out of Greece, turning it into an irregular peninsula and a land of ports and harbours
at the same time. Since a major part of Greece is a rocky land and farming was possible only in
the mountain valleys, a very small proportion (less than 20 per cent) of the economic activity
was covered by agriculture. So the Greeks had to rely on imports for their essential food grains,
although fruits and vegetables were in abundance. Since there were no fordable rivers in
Greece, transportation on the sea was crucial.
Mountains, which cover four-fifths of the area of Mainland Greece, were rugged and divided
Greece into several regions. The rugged terrain of the mountains made the land travel between
regions difficult and was also responsible for the growth of independent city-states in Greece.
188 Ancient and Medieval World

The several islands that surround mainland Greece accounted for the cultural diversity of this
ancient civilisation. These islands could be approached only through waterways. A primarily
water-based transportation made Greeks great mariners and enabled them to travel far for
trade, travel and conquest. The peninsula of Greece had Mediterranean climate with summer
temperature being 24 degree centigrade and winter temperature hovering around 5 degree cen-
tigrade, except in the mountains where snow was common during winter months. The
Mediterranean waters and the etesian breeze (from northwesterly direction) kept both summer
and winter temperatures at moderate levels. Greece was an average rainfall region, the rainfall
lying in the range of 20–50″.
The geographical condition of Greece shaped its political developments. As mentioned
earlier, the mountains of Greece divided it into several divisions, leading to the growth of
independent city-states. As the high mountains made it difficult for people to travel or com-
municate, people organised themselves into independent polis or city-state. The city-states of
Greece were distributed over the nine major geographical regions of Greece—Aegean Islands,
Crete, Peloponnese, Central Greece, Ionian Islands, Epirus, Thessaly, Macedonia and Thrace
(see Map 6.1). The two prominent city-states of Greece were Athens and Sparta. Athens was
located in the southeastern region of Greece called Attica whereas Sparta was the most impor-
tant state in the peninsula of Peloponnese which was separated from the mainland Greece by
the Isthmus of Corinth. The city-state of Corinth was situated at the junction of Peloponnese
and continental Greece. Another important geographical region located in Central Greece was
Boeotia with Thebes as the most dominant state of the region. Another significant geographi-
cal region of Greece, which was situated along the Aegean Sea coast, was Thessaly or
Thessalia. The plains of Thessaly were endowed with fertile alluvial soil that was favourable
for cultivation of wheat and cattle herding.
The two prominent regions of Greece, namely, Macedonia and Thrace, are located in north-
ern and northeastern part of the country. Macedonia, home of Alexander the Great, covered a
very large mountainous area including extensive plains. After the World War I, it became a part
of three countries Greece, Bulgaria and Yugoslavia. Thrace was located in the northeastern
region of Greece. The Geeks used the term ‘Thrace’ to describe the area north of Thessaly that
was inhabited by the Thracian tribe. Thrace was famous for its wine production since ancient
times besides having rich gold and silver reserves. The Aegean Sea region of Greece contains a
group of islands known as Cyclades, and the inhabitants are known as Eastern Greeks. Crete,
home of the great Bronze Age Minoan civilisation, was situated between Peloponnese and
Cyclades.
The Aegean region, during the ‘Dark Age’, was isolated from the rest of the Mediterranean,
which created a condition for the growth of a distinct Aegean culture with a distinct language
called Greek. The Greek-speaking people centred themselves on Aegean and Ionian Sea (home
of the Greek language since the Bronze Age), but they established their colonies on the shores
of Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea. All those who did not speak the same language as the
Greeks in this region were called barbaroi (barbarians). Although several dialects of Greek
developed, the difference was not big enough to make it incomprehensible for the Greek people
using different dialects. During the so-called ‘Dark Age’ (1200–800 bce), the Greek-speaking
people colonised the Aegean region and the areas around the west coast of Anatolia. This led
to a cultural unification of Mainland Greece with Aegean, Crete and Western Anatolia. The term
‘Greek’ has been derived from Graikoi or Graeci as the Romans called the people living in these
territories. But the Greeks used several names to identify themselves such as Achaeans,
 Ancient Greece 189

MAP 6.1  Regions and City-states of Ancient Greece

Source: Adapted from a blank map by Bigobelaro. Available at: [Link]

[Link] Access date: 19/5/2017

Argives, Panhellenes and Hellenes, of which Hellenes was the most popular. Hellenes was the
collective name with which people of the Greek civilisation identified themselves with their
territory being referred to as Hellas. This name has carried until the present day, as the official
name of the territory of the Greeks is still Hellas. But it must be kept in mind that Greece was
not a unified political entity until Alexander the Great unified the whole territory around mid-
fourth century bce. It was the shared culture, language and religious practices that led to the
identification of Greeks inhabiting several areas as Hellenes.

POLITICAL FORMATIONS IN ANCIENT GREECE: ‘DARK AGE’ AND

THE EMERGENCE OF POLIS
As mentioned earlier, the period 1200–800 bce for long was considered as the period of ‘Dark
Age’ in the history of the Mediterranean world, mainly due to decline of great empires like that
190 Ancient and Medieval World

of the Mycenaeans and the Hittites, decline in script, disruption of trade and complete absence
of any information, archaeological or literary. Apart from this, there was an overall decline
during this period in the population of Mainland Greece as people fled to southern portion of
Greece or towards coastal area of Anatolia. The depopulation affected the material culture
of Greece. The settlements became smaller and were located mainly in the inland areas away
from the coasts for reasons of safety. Material culture (potteries and burials) showed signs of
stagnation. Interaction between communities is also said to have declined, creating conditions
of self-sufficiency and independent political formations based on equality. These conditions had
important role to play in the formation of independent city-states in Greece. But with the find-
ing of written sources such as the two great Greek epics, Iliad and Odyssey (supposedly writ-
ten by Homer), the so-called ‘Dark Age’ is supposed to have ended. Scholars point that the
setting of the epic poems was the late Bronze Age and were rooted in the oral traditions handed
down from generation to generation until they were put to writing in around 800 bce. These
poems are considered as rich source of information regarding the Greek society, economy and
culture during the period of the ‘Dark Age’, particularly its latter half (1000–800 bce).
The early part of the ‘Dark Age’ (1200–1000 bce) witnessed an overall decline in the material
culture of the Greeks. Absence of surplus concentration in few hands meant that the society
was more equitable than a stratified one and this has been substantiated by the findings of
ordinary cist graves in comparison to the Mycenaean chamber tombs. The society was based
on tribal principles with an informal political leadership of people referred to as ‘King’ or ‘Big
Man’ (chiefs) who exchanged gifts and led the tribe into war to augment their resources. Most
of such ‘kings’, mentioned in the two epics, were rulers of small territories. The latter part of
the ‘Dark Age’ was a period of revival that witnessed the end of Greek isolation, when material
culture became rich and the Greek traders regained their prosperity through trade in pottery
that could be exchanged with luxuries coming from abroad. Increased prosperity brought about
social stratification and created a class of aristocrats who also performed the role of the war-
rior elite. But the kings or chiefs still ruled with authority over a limited area. Odysseus, hero
of the epic Odyssey, was a ruler of a small principality of Ithaca and a petty chieftain. Kings did
not have enough resources to raise a huge army or bureaucracy and therefore had to depend
on the support of the landed warrior elite. Gradually after 1000 bce, as kingship weakened,
political control came in the hands of the landed aristocracy which organised themselves into
an oligarchy.
Another important development of the latter ‘Dark Age’ was the breakdown of tribal and clan
ties and reduction of their role in the socio-economic structure of Greece. The basic Greek
socio-economic unit that is said to have developed during the latter ‘Dark Age’ was oikos or the
household. An oikos was made of the family that owned and cultivated a piece of land and also
included people involved in production and household work such as servants, hired labourers
and occasionally slaves. The members of the oikos not only cooperated in farming the land but
also to defend it from outsiders. Thus, each individual’s primary loyalty was towards the family.
The male members of the family had the responsibility to defend the land and the cattle. The
head of the family took decisions on behalf of the entire household, which explains the patriar-
chal nature of the oikos. Scholars also point out that the oikos, besides being a social unit, was
a self-sufficient economic unit too, which involved production and consumption within the
household. Towards the end of the ‘Dark Age’, there developed a clear distinction between big
(owned by the aristocracy) and small (of the ordinary peasant) oikos. The bigger household
consisted of a large family as well as those who worked on the fields, including hired labourers
 Ancient Greece 191

and slaves, whereas the smaller ones included only the peasants and their families. The other
social units of Greece in the ‘Dark Age’ were genos (clans), phyle (tribe), demos (consisting of
the interrelated members of a village) and phratriai (literally brotherhoods, a subdivision of
demos, consisting of the warriors who fought for the demos). Members of the bigger oikos had
better resources and could afford more weapons to fight for the demos and therefore had a
larger share in the spoils of the war, whereas members of ordinary oikos could not contribute
much as warriors. The landless people (without any oikos) were termed as thetes of which there
were not many in the ‘Dark Age’ Greece.
The history of Ancient Greece has been divided into Archaic (800–500 bce) and Classical
Greece (500–398 bce). The Archaic Age is considered as an age of experiments in the field of
religion, society and politics after the end of the ‘Dark Age’, revival of writing and growth of
literacy. An important institution that developed in the Archaic Period was polis (plural poleis)
or city-state. The background to the development of polis was the economic, cultural and reli-
gious developments that took place in Greece during the latter part of the ‘Dark Age’. These
developments were mainly an outcome of Greek contact with the Phoenicians who introduced
sea faring to them thus helping increasing commercial activities of the Greeks. Economic
developments brought about tremendous increase in the population of Greece. According to
an estimate, the population of Greece quadrupled during the ninth and early-eighth century bce.
Another significant development was the growth of villages into towns as trading activities
gained momentum. The demographic expansion and other economic and religious factors
necessitated some mechanism to induce cooperation among the inhabitants of the towns. This
cooperation was sought to be enforced through the creation of polis which, as an institution,
was a unique type of social and political organisation that went beyond ethnicity or territorial-
ity and was based more on cohesion of the community. Greeks considered polis (from which
the word political is derived) less as a political organisation and more as social collectivity,
which Aristotle described as ‘common wish to live together’. In the ancient Greek sources too,
the polis has been seen as a large extended family that was further divided into genos, phyle
and demos.
Another significant aspect connected with the polis was the notion of a city-state that com-
bined the town as well as the territory surrounding it. The polis was usually centred in an urban
complex, whether fortified or unfortified, but was dependent on its rural hinterland, spread
within a limited area, for its resources and defence. The size of the Greek poleis differed in size
from big to small but structurally they were usually located in an urban centre. The place of a
gathering or a market termed as asty was where important meetings of the inhabitants of the
polis were held. The agricultural hinterland of the polis was known by the term khora. But at
times, the surrounding village was so large that it serviced several towns (and their asty) and
villages. For example, the entire Attica region was the hinterland of the polis of Athens and all
farmers of this region were considered as Athenian citizen. In its relationship with the outside
world, however, the entire polis was considered as a sovereign and independent city-state. The
most significant feature of the polis was a greater participation of the inhabitants in decision-
making process of the city-state.
There is no unanimity among the scholars about the exact period of the origin of polis but is
generally agreed that the growth of polis formation can be seen in eighth century bce. Raul
Lonis (1996) has highlighted three components of the Greek polis in the Archaic Period which
testifies to its originality. These are (a) inside the polis, the consensus of the people; (b) implan-
tation of the polis in a territory and (c) outside, acknowledgement of its identity. Lonis is of the
192 Ancient and Medieval World

opinion that polis type of community was the dominant form of socio-political organisation in
Greece from the end of the Archaic Period and throughout the whole of Classical Period.
However, some regions of Greece were not organised as polis rather they were organised in
ethnos (based on ethnicity) where inhabitants belonging to the same ethnic group were divided
into several villages and where no prominent urban centre can be identified. In a way, it was a
loose structure consisting of several ethnos organised into a large political unit. Examples of
states based on ethnic groups were Aetolia, Thessaly, Locris and Acarnania. While few of these
were ultimately organised in cities, others stuck to ethnos as the dominant political unit.
As mentioned earlier, a dominant feature of the Greek poleis during the Archaic Age was the
political equality extended to the inhabitants with respect to political decision-making accom-
panied with strict social justice. But this political and social equality could not be pursued for
long due to the economic transformation of Greece. This included a shift from nomadic pasto-
ralism to settled agriculture, growth of technology especially in the field of metallurgy, manu-
facturing of ceramics and revival of trade that included long-distance trade with east and the
west. These developments brought about economic and social inequalities. This was more
pronounced in the rural areas as the landed aristocracy prospered at the cost of small and land-
less peasants, the latter known as hektemoroi. In addition to this, important innovations in the
field of warfare, including the hoplite tactic (closely packed heavily armed infantry), created a
new class of specialised warriors. Under this tactic, the infantry stood very close to each other
in a shoulder-to-shoulder formation (termed as phalanx) in several rows wearing many protec-
tive gears (breastplate, helmet, wrist and leg guards). The soldiers carried shields (hoplon) in
their left hand to protect the soldier standing to their left and had weapons such as spears and
short swords in their right hand to attack the enemy. The hoplite army primarily consisted of
the middle class who could afford to keep specialised weapons and a range of armours. As their
social status was raised so did their demand to gain equal rights with the aristocracy. An
increasing social tension between these classes spilled over to political field too where monop-
oly of the aristocracy in the decision-making process was challenged. Thus, the city-states of
the Archaic Age Greece had to work hard continuously on maintaining political unrest specific
to each one of them.
As a part of the solution, the Greek city-states embarked on the path of colonisation which
continued for more than two centuries (from mid-eighth to the end of the sixth centuries bce).
The colonisation was aimed primarily at gathering more resources, especially land. Scholars
point out that apart from the geographical factors, human factors too had created the scarcity
of land in Greece as best lands were concentrated in the hands of the aristocrats who were in
minority. Majority had marginal lands where production was low, which was also diminishing
due to fragmentation of land that had resulted from the practice of division of property for the
purpose of inheritance. Colonisation also took place due to the Greek endeavour to get other
scarce resources such as metals (particularly silver), wood and wheat. Many city-states saw this
as means to release the demographic pressure while others, such as, Corinth, saw this as an
opportunity to promote trade. This long process of colonisation led to establishment of Greek
colonies in several areas covering Black Sea to the Western Mediterranean, including Anatolia,
Egypt, Sicily, Southern Italy, Southern Gaul and eastern coast of Spain. In these areas, an
attempt was made to give settlers land on equitable basis, and land was also set aside for
expected new settlers. The institutions of these colonies were modelled upon those of the
Greek mainland but as a polis, they retained their sovereignty. The relationship of settlers with
the native population of these areas has been much debated among the scholars. This has been
 Ancient Greece 193

found to be of varying nature, ranging from power struggle to cooperation between the two and
even granting of Greek citizenship to the natives. However, there is a near unanimity that the
process of colonisation and the Greek contact with Egypt and Phoenicia had profound effect
on its culture as well as religion.
The classical phase of the Greek civilisation saw an attempt to bring about further improve-
ment in the structure and functioning of the polis to ensure cohesion within the community.
According to Raoul Lonis (1996), this was sought to be achieved through a better constitution
(politeia), the preparation of future citizens for their civil and military duties and by broaden-
ing the base of the structure by taking it beyond the confines of the city. Towards the formation
of a new constitution, the Greek cities experimented with three types of political structures,
namely, oligarchy, democracy and tyranny, with each city-state adopting one or the other
forms. However, as the evidences show, some city-states such as Athens went through all three
phases of constitution during the archaic and classical phases whereas Sparta remained under
oligarchy throughout the greater part of its history and Miletus preferred tyranny. Another
interesting case is that of the city-state of Syracuse that underwent oligarchy, tyranny, democ-
racy and tyranny again within a span of one century. Although there were supposedly about
one thousand poleis in Greece during the period of our study, but detailed information is only
available for Athens and Sparta. So a specific study of these two city-states would give us a
fair idea about the nature and functioning of the Greek polis during archaic and classical phase
of Greek history.

Athens
Athens, named after the patron goddess Athena, was situated in the region of Attica in southeast
Greece. The settlement here, in the form of an acropolis, dates back to the Neolithic Age. During
the ‘Dark Age’, Athens was the most prominent city-state of the Attic region (the most prosper-
ous of the Greek regions) but was still not powerful as Corinth and Sparta were for their com-
mercial and military might respectively. It was an agrarian economy with an entrenched landed
aristocracy. It was only later in the sixth century bce that its orientation towards the Aegean Sea
along with excellent harbours on the coasts of Attica turned Athens into a mercantile polis.
During the Archaic Age, the landed aristocracy of Athens controlled not only larger portion of
land but also established political monopoly by being a part of the oligarchic rule established
after the decline of monarchy in mid-eighth century bce. The archons (officials) were appointed
to govern the polis, consisting chiefly of the aristocrats. Once in control of the government, the
aristocrats set out to monopolise all fertile land, pushing the ordinary peasants towards mar-
ginal areas. This economic inequality created severe economic crisis for the peasants who were
now forced to work on the landed estates of the aristocrats. Many impoverished peasants had
to borrow money from the landed aristocrats. Many members of the land-owning class had
invested their income from land in the trade and several of them had become moneylenders.
The ordinary peasants, in order to get over their economic crisis, borrowed money from these
lenders. But the failure to repay the loan often led to them falling into debt slavery, if the debtor
was declared as collateral. The Greek literature, particularly Hesiod’s poems of the eighth and
seventh centuries bce such as Theogony and Work and Days, also testifies to the hard life and
worsening condition of the peasantry. The deteriorating condition of the bulk of the peasantry
created conditions of social tensions and unrest throughout the seventh century bce which
194 Ancient and Medieval World

often took violent forms. Attempt made in 621 bce by few aristocrats such as Drakon to intro-
duce harsher punishment for homicide (hence popularly known as ‘draconian Laws’) did not
bring about the desired results. Fearing a civil war, the aristocracy was forced to bring about
reforms.
The process of reforms at Athens began in 594 bce with the appointment of Solon as archon
for one year with supreme powers. His position was that of an arbitrator and was entrusted
with the responsibility to bring about an end to this period of social struggle (referred to in
contemporary writings as stasis) and reorganise the Athenian government. The major demands
of the peasantry were redistribution of land and abolition of debt bondage. Added to this was
the demand to end the monopoly of the aristocracy over the political process of the Athenian
polis and of greater participation in the political decision-making process. Several economic,
political and legal reforms were brought by Solon during his tenure, and his reforms are said to
have laid the foundation for the growth of democracy in Athens. One of the most significant
reforms of Solon that had far-reaching consequences for the growth of slavery in Greece (to be
discussed later) was the abolition of debt bondage (known in Greek as seisachtheia or
­‘shaking-off the burdens’). He cancelled all the debts and arranged for the return of the debt
slaves sold abroad. His other economic reforms included encouragement to the production of
cash crops such as olive and grapes and promotion of such urban industries as pottery, oil pro-
duction and shipbuilding along with increase in silver mining.
Solon’s political reforms were equally significant as the reforms granted people greater par-
ticipation in the political process. Prior to Solon, the Athenian polis was mainly governed by
the council of elders (Areopagus), consisting chiefly of the aristocrats. The other body was
people’s assembly (ekklesia) where people could participate and vote. The ekklesia elected
nine magistrates (archons) who ruled over the polis. But since the place (agora) at which the
meetings were held was located in the city, it was difficult for the farmers who were staying far
away from the city to attend the meeting. The council of elders worked as advisory body under
the monarchical system. But after the decline of monarchy in Athens, political power fell in the
hands of an oligarchical council that worked through smaller committees (probouloi). The
irregular functioning of the people’s assembly enabled the council to monopolise all decisions
of the polis which also included convening the meeting and setting the agenda for discussion
in the ekklesia. The committees first deliberated upon the matter before it was submitted to
assembly for final approval. Antony Andrews (1971) has described probouleutic system of gov-
ernment as an attempt to curb the actual functioning of the assembly. Under Solon, an attempt
was made to broaden people’s participation in political matters by the creation of a new council
(boule) consisting of 400 members. The new boule was vested with supreme powers and the
functions of the older council were curtailed. Unlike Areopagus, where membership was
restricted to the aristocracy and was hereditary, in the new council, membership was based on
property qualifications. This opened the opportunity for the people of the non-aristocratic clans
to be a part of the political process. Citizens were divided into four classes based on the value
of their property—Pentakosiomedimni, those having income worth 500 or more medimnoi
(a unit of measurement of grain with equivalent value in oil or wine, 1 medimnoi = 52.5 litres);
Hippeis (‘horsemen’), having income worth between 300–500 medimnoi; Zeugitai (‘yoked
men’), those having income between 200–300 medimnoi; and thetes (‘labourers’), the poorest
class having income less than 200 medimnoi. Membership of the boule was open only to first
three classes whereas the fourth class of thetes, consisting chiefly of the poor peasants, artisans
and the landless citizen, could only participate in the assembly without any voting rights. Public
 Ancient Greece 195

offices such as that of archons were also open to only first two classes. But as the citizens were
divided into tribes, the aristocracy was able to manipulate selection in the boule as well as
important government posts by exploiting kinship ties and clan loyalties. The position of war-
rior in the military was also based on the affordability of horse and armours. Thus while
Zeugitai (small and middle peasants) could be part of the warrior groups, the thetes could only
serve as light infantry or rowers in the navy.
Apart from the reforms discussed, Solon also brought about legal reforms aimed at establish-
ing equality before law. Several courts were set up where the jurors belonged to different
classes, thus ending the privilege of the aristocracy in the field of adjudication. The new judicial
system provided for appeal against an offence by any person on behalf of the aggrieved. Appeal
could also be made against any judicial decision not going in favour of a person. In matters of
criminal offence, everyone was treated equal before law and some of the privileges of the aris-
tocracy were curtailed. The reforms of Solon reduced the social tension for the time being.
Solon’s reforms were aimed at providing relief to the common masses, but, at the same time, he
did not wish to end the financial dominance of the aristocracy. Thus, he is said to have followed
a ‘middle course’ between the demands of the rich to preserve their financial advantage and the
demand of the poor for a redistribution of land for themselves from the holdings of the large
landowners. But his failure to bring about land redistribution, one of the principal demands of
the peasantry, left the issue of social struggle unresolved. His reforms brought about an end to
debt slavery, but the aristocracy continued to amass wealth in the form of landed property and,
as a result, very soon another round of social conflict started involving the peasantry and the
landed aristocracy.
Taking advantage of the civil war in Athens, a group of aristocrats led by Peisistratus staged
a coup in 546 bce and grabbed political power. Thus, a new phase developed in the history of
governance of Athens, known as tyranny with the ruler known as tyrant (tyrannos in Greek).
As a tyrant, Peisistratus, apart from enforcing Solon’s constitutional reforms, undertook several
public works thus winning the support of the common masses. The most radical of his reforms
were taking over of the wasteland illegally occupied by the aristocracy as well as lands of those
oligarchs who had been exiled due to their differences with the tyrant. These lands were dis-
tributed among the small peasants and the landless. While on the one hand his land policies
stabilised the condition of the peasantry, his strengthening of the democratic institutions
destroyed the monopoly of the aristocracy over political power on the other. But his attempt to
establish a hereditary monarchy against the mood of the times, by giving the reins of power to
his sons, was not acceptable to the masses. His successor Hippias was overthrown in 510 bce.
Regarding the rise and fall of tyranny in Athens and other Greek poleis, Geoffrey De Ste.
Croix (1981) points out that tyranny was a necessary phase in the history of many Greek states.
Greece had never witnessed any democratic institution to maintain in power a non-hereditary
ruling class and had to build it from the bottom. In the absence of any such institution, the only
alternative to an aristocratic rule was dictatorship of a single individual and his family. But then,
as the tyrants brought new men into the position of responsibility and political knowhow per-
colated down to the lower strata (than the aristocracy), a time came when the propertied class
found that they could dispense with the tyrants and governed by themselves. Another scholar
Gustav Glotz (1965) has described the acceptance of tyranny by the people of Athens only as
an expedient. Glotz remarked, ‘People used tyranny as a battering-ram to demolish the citadel
of the oligarchy and when their end had been achieved they hastily abandoned the weapon
which wounded their hands’. The year 510 bce incidentally is also considered as the year of the
196 Ancient and Medieval World

establishment of Athenian democracy. Few scholars are therefore of the view that tyranny
acted as a catalyst in the transition from oligarchy to democracy.
After Solon and Peisistratus had provided the framework for the growth of democracy in
Athens, it was Cleisthenes who through his democratic reforms led Athens towards the reali-
sation of democratic governance. That is why the Athenians consider Cleisthenes as the prin-
cipal founder of democracy. Cleisthenes had served under Peisistratus and had supported the
cause of the common masses (demos) after tyranny fell. This provided him with a larger popu-
lar support. After the decline of tyranny, Athens, for a brief period, witnessed a vacuum of
political power during which Isagoras, an aristocrat of Spartan origin, became archon and
tried to block the reforms of Cleisthenes and re-establish aristocratic dominance. However,
the people of Athens, who had experienced some elements of democracy, were not willing to
see another round of aristocratic dominance. Thus, Isagoras and his Spartan supporters were
driven out of Athens. While this set the stage for the growth of democracy in Athens, it also
led the foundation of a long drawn out conflict between Athens and Sparta. In order to prevent
the return of tyranny, Cleisthenes also introduced the unusual practice of ostracism, which
allowed citizens of Athens to banish a person for 10 years if s/he went against the wishes of
the common masses (demos).
In order to limit the political power of the aristocracy, Cleisthenes organised citizens on dif-
ferent principles. Hitherto, citizens of Athens were organised into four tribes (phyle) with each
tribe tracing its descent to a common ancestor. After the reforms of Solon, each tribe sent 100
members to the boule. The aristocrats, using their traditional clan and kinship ties, were still
able to manipulate selection of important government positions for themselves. Cleisthenes, in
507 bce, reorganised the Athenian citizens into 10 voting tribes (phylai) where the membership
of the phylai was not based on kinship but the place of residence. By enforcing such an
arrangement of citizens, Cleisthenes was able to break the regional identities within Attica. This
helped in breaking the aristocratic influence on the tribes. The breakdown of the kinship ties
had already been initiated under Peisistratus when citizenship rights were extended to the arti-
sans and traders including foreign traders as well. Thus, reform of Cleisthenes was much in
accord with the need of the hour. The membership of the boule was also increased from 400 to
500 and each of the 10 voting tribes sent 50 representatives to the boule.
Another important constitutional reform brought about by Cleisthenes was the creation of
territory (demes or demoi) as the smallest geographical and political units into which the
Athenian polis was divided. The demes consisted mainly of the pre-existing villages and neigh-
bourhoods of the city of Athens which were made constituent units of the Athenian polis. Now
each citizen was the member of the deme first and then the polis. This was aimed at extending
democratic principles of governance to the local level, thus promoting self-government. Based
on the location of these demes, they were grouped together into 10 voting phylai. There were
reportedly 200 demes in all, and each deme had their own elected government and assembly
headed by a demarchos. The male citizens of the demes participated directly in the running of
the government by extending their help in keeping the list of the registered voters that con-
sisted of all males of the age 18 years and above. All male adults could attend and vote in the
local assembly. The demes were further classified into three categories—coastal, rural and
urban. But in order to balance the economic and natural resources, each deme was divided into
trittyes, effectively meaning that each deme had one-third part of each of the three (coastal,
rural and urban) components. As mentioned earlier, each of the 10 tribes sent 50
 Ancient Greece 197

representatives to the boule. But these representatives were chosen from their respective
demes in proportion to its population.
Under Cleisthenes, the membership of the boule was extended to include the last social
category (thetes) too. Now any citizen above the age of 30 could become a member of the boule
with a fixed tenure of one year. The boule transacted several administrative, judicial and
executive businesses. Collection of taxes, foreign relations, maintenance of ships and ports
and regulation of trade were few of the additional functions of the boule. Since membership of
the boule involved several tasks to be conducted in a day, only people with wealth and leisure
time could devote their energy and time to such responsibilities. Over a period, as a result,
membership of the boule came to be dominated by the affluent sections of the society. When
Pericles (450–427 bce) became the most dominant figure in the Athenian polis, he further
reduced the access to political power for the lower classes by enforcing tougher conditions for
getting the status of a citizen. Earlier, having an Athenian father was sufficient to get the citi-
zenship but Pericles insisted on both parents being Athenian to get the status of a citizen.
Since only citizens could be the members of the boule, this effectively reduced the number of
lower classes in this council.
But despite the attempts by Solon, Peisistratus and Cleisthenes to provide right to people to
participate in the political process of Athens, there were certain obvious limitations to the
actual functioning of democratic principles. First and foremost, the ‘people’ here did not mean
all inhabitants residing in Athens but only those with citizenship rights. Citizenship rights were
restricted to only original male adults of the polis. Women, foreigners or considered outsiders
(metics or metoikoi) and slaves (doulos) were excluded from the group of citizens. The role of
Athenian women at home and in the city activities was limited indeed. At home, the women
remained under the guardianship of male head of the household known as kyrios before mar-
riage and under their husbands after marriage and back to the guardianship of their father after
becoming a widow or after any marital breakdown. They could hold properties that were inher-
ited, gifted or that came as dowry but could not sell or transfer it and could only pass on to their
sons. However, women enjoyed certain religious rights such as that of priesthood and freedom
to take part in civic festivals such as Panathenaea in Athens and during sacrifices. The foreign-
ers or metoikoi fared slightly better than women as they played an important role in the eco-
nomic activities of the city. Many foreigners came to the Greek city for trade or pleasure or to
settle down after being banished from their own country. Raoul Lonis (1996) is of the opinion
that the foreigners enjoyed the hospitality that the Greeks traditionally extended to all foreign-
ers. He talks about a unique institutional practice, proxeny, under which foreigners could also
be taken care of by a citizen of host city appointed by their city of origin. They were given a
legally designated area to reside and could mix up freely with the citizens. At times, they were
also rewarded for the services performed for the city. But they could not take part in the politi-
cal decision-making process which was an exclusive preserve of the citizens.
However, even the citizenship right was conditional with military service. Since most of the
poleis did not have large and professional armies due to the lack of enough resources, all adult
males were expected to provide military service. In fact, at Athens, eligibility for membership
of ekklesia required at least two years of military service. The very fact that many members
could not attend the meeting held at agora in the city is representative of the fact that the
decision-making was not a result of actual democratic process. According to a figure provided
by Antony Andrews (1971), out of a population of 45,000 citizens in the fifth century bce, only
198 Ancient and Medieval World

5,000–6,000 actually attended the meeting of the assembly. The lack of independent functioning
of people’s assembly is also evident from the fact that it was the boule that convened the meet-
ing, set the agenda for discussion and conducted the meeting of ekklesia. But the most striking
aspect of the Greek poleis in general, that hindered the growth of actual democratic process,
was the extent of social division between free and unfree and between rich and poor. But,
despite such limitations of the Athenian democracy, it must be realised that given the social
inequalities, the times of frequent wars and bitter rivalry, what the political theorists tried was
to bring about balance and harmony by proposing model constitutions and redressing the
excesses of the previous regime.

Sparta
Sparta was an antithesis of Athens in the sense that this polis never really made any attempt
towards democracy and as mentioned earlier, continued to be ruled by an oligarchy for much
of its history. Even the growth of slavery in Sparta (to be discussed later) took a different ori-
entation in comparison to Athens. Sparta was located in Peloponnesus (a large peninsula) in
Southern Greece. Sparta was strategically located between the rugged mountains in Laconia in
the southeastern portion of Peloponnese, making it an easily defensible polis. Sparta could not
also be threatened by sea as the nearest harbour was situated at a distance of about 25 miles
surrounded by a rough Mediterranean sea. But while the location of Sparta gave it a relative
security, distance from the sea prevented Spartans from becoming seafarers and therefore their
activities remained confined to overland transactions and they also gradually became the most
powerful Greek polis on land. As per the Greek legend, Spartans came from Central Greece
(called Dorians) and settled in Peloponnese after defeating the original inhabitants of Laconia.
But no clear evidence of this invasion has been found yet. However, it is generally agreed that
the Archaic Age polis of Sparta was founded after the unification of four villages, in which two
dominated the others. To maintain this unity termed as synoecism (union of households), the
Spartans practiced dual monarchy which remained a unique feature of Sparta throughout its
history. Although the dual monarchy did create its own problems of leadership (as both mon-
archs were religious leaders and military commanders), but this problem was solved eventually
with Spartans deciding to follow the commands of one king during the war. However, as dis-
cussed before, by the time of the Archaic Age, monarchy had weakened in Greece and the kings
at Sparta too simply acted as leaders of the oligarchic institution rather than proclaiming their
authority as absolute monarchs.
The ruling oligarchy of Sparta consisted of 30 members (all above 60 years of age), including
the two kings who were the ex-officio members of the council. This group of 30 was called
gerousia (council of elders) and their job was to prepare proposals to be passed in the assem-
bly. Other than the king, rest of the members of gerousia belonged to the aristocratic families.
Initially, membership of the council was for life but later it was made annual. The assembly
(apella) at Sparta consisted of all free adult male citizens. But the assembly did not have much
power and simply voted (without discussion) for approval or disapproval on the proposals set
by the gerousia. Chances of disapproval for a proposal were rare as it could again be placed in
the assembly after creating favourable condition for its approval. Yet, the assembly is consid-
ered as an active organ of the Spartan political structure. In order to counterbalance the powers
of the king and the gerousia, a board of five officials called ephors (literally ‘overseers’) were
 Ancient Greece 199

created. The ephors were chosen for one year from amongst the free male citizens of the polis.
These officials exercised tremendous judicial powers and were also responsible for convening
the meeting of the gerousia and the apella. Since the primary duty of the ephors was to main-
tain the supremacy of law, the political power and privileges enjoyed by the members of the
council and the king were reduced to some extent. This was also due to the fact that the Spartan
political system was heavily based on obedience to the law (nomos). Thus, we see that the
constitution of Sparta was a curious mix of monarchy, democracy and oligarchy, but its essen-
tial character remained oligarchic. This has been explained by few scholars in terms of the
Spartan emphasis on protection of the ‘traditional constitution’ of Greece that primarily
referred to traditional aristocratic regimes.
Spartan economy was primarily based on agriculture as it was largely a landlocked territory.
But, as most of the arable land of Laconia was acquired by the aristocracy, there was a shortage
of land for rest of the Spartan citizens. This was made up for by attacking and conquering the
entire Messenia, an agriculturally rich country located west of Peloponnese (during 730–630 bce).
It is said that Messenia accounted for 40 per cent of the Peloponnese territory. The land of the
entire Messenian population was taken over by the Spartans and the former were turned into
slaves (Helots). The Messenians worked on their own land as Helots whereas their land was
parcelled out to the Spartans. A direct consequence of transforming the entire population of
Messenia into Helots was the increase in the number of slaves over the citizens of Sparta.
According to a rough estimate, the population of slaves was much more than 8,000–10,000
Spartan citizens. Not surprisingly, therefore, the Messenian Helots, with the support of their
neighbouring cities, not only revolted against their Spartan masters in 650 bce but also threatened
Sparta with annihilation. While the Spartans were able to crush the rebellion, this incident is said
to have brought about a major transformation of the Spartan society. From then onwards, the
entire Spartan state and society was geared towards military preparedness to protect the city,
which turned Sparta into the most-militarised polis of Greece.
The polis of Sparta faced a peculiar situation as they were exploiting and ruling over people
who far outnumbered them. Thus, in order to maintain their superiority over the Messenian
Helots, every Spartan man had to perform the role of a soldier and be constantly on guard. The
Spartan society was therefore organised to create a soldier-citizen and efforts towards this
endeavour started from early childhood of every male child. It is said that children were
inspected after birth to see whether they were worth raising (for military purposes) and if found
to be unfit, they were left in the mountains. In order to prepare citizens for their responsibilities
at an early age, a specific type of education system was enforced which was characterised by
an emphasis on collective activities such as gymnastics, hunting, exercising, hard military train-
ing with weapons, community meals and so on. This was supported by a very strict discipline
so that future soldier-citizens are accustomed to hard military life and loyalty towards the state
and community. The boys who could not withstand this hard training were not called ‘equals’
(homoioi) which was an official name given to all adult male citizens that made them eligible
for citizenship and therefore the right to participate in the political process. All such men were
known as Spartiates or equals. According to Raoul Lonis (1996), the men educated in this way,
became citizens who were remarkably effective in defending the city and maintaining the estab-
lished social order. Such a high premium was put on the martial values in Sparta that the citi-
zens were forbidden from engaging themselves in commercial activities lest the wealth
generated distract them from their primary duty of militarily defending the polis. Economic
activities were mainly undertaken by the free citizens of the Peloponnesian territories earlier
200 Ancient and Medieval World

conquered by the Spartans. These free people were known as perioikoi (literally ‘those living
round about’) who were required to perform military service as and when required and pay
taxes without being granted citizenship rights. The Spartans who lost their citizenship right due
to falling from grace were given the status of perioikoi.
The women in Sparta were better placed than their counterparts in Athens and other Greek
polies. The girls of Sparta trained with the boys and women were kept away from domestic
labour to keep themselves physically fit to bear healthy children, and so we are told. The avail-
able evidence in the form of painting on vases and scenes from literature display women per-
forming tasks outside their homes and also taking part in public ceremonies by joining the male
choruses. The Spartan women could also own land privately, and, during the Classical Period,
ownership of women over land increased due to a sudden decline in the number of male citi-
zens because of human losses in war. Moreover, the Spartan law forbidding division of the
property of a family further enhanced the social status of such women. In religious matters too,
women had an important role to play. As in Athens, they freely took part in civic ceremonies
such as festivals and sacrifices. An important aspect of position of women, as pointed out by
Lonis (1996), was their role in the transmission of citizenship even though they themselves were
denied this right. In many cities, including Sparta, the status of women was taken into consid-
eration while establishing children’s status as citizens. Only children whose fathers were citi-
zens and whose mothers were daughters of citizens were eligible for getting the status of
citizens. However, women did not enjoy any right in political decision-making and were com-
pletely excluded from the assembly, the council, the judiciary and the magistracy. Women also
did not have much role to play in the defence of the city and were mostly kept away from war
activities unless in dire emergencies during which the entire group of residents jointly came
forward to protect the city.
But a major flaw in the Spartan political system, as pointed by few scholars, was very strict
citizenship laws which in the long run had a diminishing effect on the demography of citizens.
As pointed out earlier, the effective population of citizens in Sparta during the Archaic Age was
8,000 that came down to about 1,000 by the middle of fourth century bce. The matters were not
helped by laws under which one could lose one’s citizenship rights for displaying cowardice or
if implicated in a criminal behaviour. The polis of Sparta, unlike Athens, also did not accom-
modate new groups in its political structure. Added to this was the fact that the birth rate in
Sparta did not keep pace with the number required for citizens. The declining number of citi-
zens made it increasingly difficult to militarily protect the polis not only from external but also
internal threats in the form of revolt by the Helots.
Thus, from the presented analysis of the evolution of political systems of the polis of Sparta
and Athens, about which we have the most comprehensive information, it would appear that
the Greek polies practiced various types of constitution that included monarchy, tyranny,
democracy and oligarchy. Different city-states of Greece witnessed these institutions in varying
ways. Monarchy in Greece had lost its relevance long back during the late Dark Age period, but
it was continued in Sparta within a complex oligarchic system where real political power lay in
the hands of few people. In few states, the political power was monopolised by a ruler (tyrant)
through unconstitutional means. In such a system (Tyranny), political power is passed from
father to the son. Tyranny was practiced in several states of the Greek world from west to the
east. Few states such as, Athens, went through brief phases of oligarchy and tyranny before
establishing the oldest democracy in the history of the world where all male citizens were given
the right to participate in political governance of the polis. Few scholars argue that the
 Ancient Greece 201

Athenians established the most renowned democracy in Greece where level of individual free-
dom was unprecedented in the ancient world. But despite the differences in political forms, the
Greek polies shared certain political and social institution such as citizenship, political exclu-
sion of women, continued dominance of the aristocracy in polity and society and slavery.
Another common and an outstanding feature of the Greek polies during this period was peo-
ple’s participation in the political decision-making . Since it was a novel concept in those days,
the political rights were restricted to citizens only. For the same reason, democracy could not
have been workable in a very large territory. Therefore, even the contemporary thinkers such
as Plato (5,000 citizens) and Aristotle (between 10 and 10,000 citizens) set a limit to the territory
and the ideal number of citizens to make the democracy work.

THE PERSIAN AND PELOPONNESIAN WARS

The Greek political history during the late Archaic and Classical Ages was greatly impacted by
the Persian and Peloponnesian wars. Our information on the Persian wars largely depends upon
the mid-fifth century accounts of Herodotus who was a resident of Athens. In the sixth century
bce, first Cyrus and then Darius I had created a huge Persian Empire, covering the most of West
Asia and including Iran and Mesopotamia. Darius I had moved towards the Eastern Mediterranean
and had captured the entire portion lying on the eastern side of the Aegean Sea by defeating the
ruler of Lydia and annexing Anatolia. The Persian movement towards the Mainland Greece was
inevitable. In the Mainland Greece, first in the line of target was Miletus where its Tyrant ruler
Aristagoras was a Persian puppet. But the threat of annihilation brought in the feeling of Greek
patriotism and Milesians and their Ionian neighbours revolted against Darius. But the superior
military might of Persia brought about crushing end to the revolt in 494 bce. Persians then
moved towards Attica directly threatening the existence of Athens, which at that time was
undergoing reforms under Cleisthenes. The military resources of Athens or for that matter any
other Greek polies could not match with those of the Persians who are said to have been capa-
ble of mustering an army of one million. However, with their better-trained hoplite army, the
Athenians were able to repulse the attack of the poorly equipped Persian infantry at a place
called Marathon in 490 bce.
After Darius, it was the new Persian ruler Xerxes who made an elaborate plan (from sea as
well as land) to annex the entire Greek country with the support of a large fleet of 600 war
ships and army of 150,000–300,000 men. But the Persian fleet was defeated by the Athenian
navy under the commandership of Themistocles at a place called Salamis in 480 bce. This battle
is considered as the turning point in the Greek struggle with the Persians as the latter, after
their reverses at Salamis, lost any hope of controlling the Aegean Sea. A decisive blow to the
Persian hopes of conquering the Greek Mainland was delivered by the combined Greek army
(led by Sparta) when in the Battle of Plataea (479 bce), the Persians were defeated and driven
out of the mainland Greece. But even though these two battles had halted the Persian advance,
the threat of future Persian invasion was not completely obliterated. Keeping this in mind and
also the fact that none of the Greek states was individually capable of thwarting any future
Persian attack, the Greek states, under the leadership of Athens, formulated a confederation
known as the Delian League in 478 bce. While the Peloponnese was secured due to a strong
alliance between Sparta and its neighbours (under the Peloponnesian League), the major con-
cern of Athens at this time was securing its own polis and those of the entire Aegean region.
202 Ancient and Medieval World

The initiative towards such a confederation therefore came from Athens. The League, with its
treasury in the island of Delos, called for contribution from the member states to prepare a
strong naval force to defend the Aegean region.
But, as the Persian threat over Greece subsided, unity of the Delian League started weaken-
ing. Since Athens dominated the League, it was able to transform the League for its own ben-
efit after the Persian military campaigns came to an end. They used the resources generated
in the Delian League to promote their own democracy, patronage to theatre and drama, large-
scale building projects and employment measures for the poor citizen. All these measures
made the Athenian rulers (like Pericles) popular and kept its democracy vibrant. The League
was gradually turned into an Athenian Empire and the members were forced to accept the
Athenian political supremacy. The League treasury was also shifted to Athens from Delos and
its proceeds were now reserved to fulfil the economic needs of Athens. Trade in the Aegean
region was now regulated and gradually monopolised by Athens. However, the voices of dis-
sent from the League members led to attempts on their part to break away from the League.
Athens had to use force to stop this exodus by crushing the revolts. With the signing of peace
treaty with Persia by Pericles, the League lost its relevance. But Athens continued to make
efforts to sustain this empire by militarily preventing exodus of allies and through establishing
Athenian colonies.
The Athenian attempt to expand and bring Peloponnese under their control brought them
into conflict first with Corinth and then with Sparta. Corinthian economy was threatened by
Athenian dominance in the Aegean, and it was Corinth that had been most vocal about the ille-
gitimate dominance displayed by Athens. Corinth, which had a superior land force and was also
the dominant political power in the Peloponnesian League, was also a close ally of Sparta. The
conflict between Sparta and Athens first over the dominance of Peloponnese and then the entire
Greece, took the shape of a full-fledged war (popularly known as Peloponnesian War) fought in
two phases covering almost three decades—first during 431–421 bce and second during 421–404
bce. In terms of military power, both Athens and Sparta had their strengths and weaknesses.
Sparta could not be defeated on land but it did not have the strength to take on Athenians in a
sea battle because of the latter’s naval prowess. As the war dragged on unexpectedly, both sides
inflicted damages on each other. While the Spartans plundered the farms of the Attica region,
the Athenians destroyed the Spartan territory apart from inciting slave revolts. Athens, under
the leadership of Pericles, had significant early victories. But his death due to a typhoid epi-
demic and his power hungry successors led Athens into a crisis situation. Peace initiative from
Sparta in 425 bce was spurned and Athens was forced to continue the war. After a temporary
truce under the Athenian leader Nicias, hostilities with Sparta was renewed until Athens suf-
fered a humiliating defeat at Syracusan in Sicily in 415 bce. But despite this defeat, the Athenians
still had a formidable naval force. Therefore, Spartans had to take the help of the Persian naval
expertise, and, with their help, they were able to destroy the Athenian fleet in 404 bce under the
leadership of its commander Lysander. The defeat of Athens made Sparta the most powerful
state (politically and militarily) in Greece.
The victory of Sparta brought about an end to the Peloponnesian war but did not bring any
major gains to Sparta. The responsibility of controlling a vast territory weakened their man-
power. With the dwindling number of citizens, the Spartans also could neither keep an effective
control over the imperial territory nor over the Helots. Added to this was the pressure of secur-
ing the empire from a resurgent Persians. The overall impact of the Peloponnesian war over
Greece was mainly negative despite the victory of Sparta. The competitive ethos of the Greek
 Ancient Greece 203

city-states exposed the weaknesses of democracy, monarchy and the oligarchy in Greece. The
Spartan dominance over Greece was short lived as Sparta received a tough challenge to its
supremacy by Thebes, the leading polis of the Boeotian region with support from Athens, Argos
and Corinth.
At the same time, in northern Greece, a formidable power in the form of Macedonia was
emerging without getting noticed by the other Greek states that were too busy involved in a
bitter battle over supremacy in this part of Greece. Macedonia before Philip II was a small king-
dom beset with its internal problems and despite the attempts of few of the kings to introduce
Hellenic culture in Macedonia, they were considered as barbarians by the Greeks. Under Philip
II (359–336 bce), Macedonia emerged powerful owing to the efforts of the ruler to reorganise
the army with the help of vast amount of mineral (mainly gold) resources. It is said that just one
of his gold mines produced as much in one year as the Delian League collected annually at its
peak. With sufficient resources, Philip II was able to turn the ill-trained and equipped peasant
army into a trained Macedonian phalanx besides creating a separate cavalry squad called
‘Companions’. Through marriage alliances with the neighbouring kingdoms, he was also able to
create goodwill with them. The Greek states felt threatened by Macedonian expansion in the
north, although few argue that Philip’s aim was to secure Greece from Persian invasions. The
refusal to cooperate with Philip by states such as Athens and its allies, including Thebes, led to
a full-fledged war between Macedonia and the Greek Allies at Chaeronea (338 bce) in which the
latter were defeated. Although Philip II did not conquer the other Greek states and allowed their
independent working, the classical era of the Greek Polies was on its course of decline. Philip
II was followed by Alexander (336–323 bce), whom the Greeks called as Alexander Poliorcetes
(the sacker of cities) and later the Romans, overawed by his exploits, called him Alexander the
Great. Under Alexander, the entire Greece was placed under Macedonian domination and sub-
sequently, after the death of Alexander, the Greek states were brought under Roman control.

SLAVERY IN ANCIENT GREECE: ECONOMY AND SOCIETY

Slaves and slavery have existed in ancient world since early days of human cultural progress.
As an institution, slavery has been defined as physical ownership of the producer, that is, the
right to use another man at pleasure like a piece of property. While slavery as an institution
existed in different forms in different ancient societies of the Near East, in ancient Greece and
Rome, slaves were used as primary producers in crucial economic activities such as agriculture,
manufacturing and mining. Besides, in the domestic sphere, the slaves also performed impor-
tant domestic and administrative services for their masters in these societies. Considering the
importance of slaves as primary producers in both Greece and Rome, Karl Marx and later
Marxist scholars have viewed the economy of Greece and Rome as slave mode of production.
As per Marxist definition, mode of production is a combination of means of production (land,
seeds, tools, technology, etc.) and relations of production. The relations of production include
the manner in which the means of production are controlled. It also includes relationship
between those who are a part of the production process, that is, owner and the primary pro-
ducer. It is this relation that determines how surplus is extracted by the owner from the
­producer. Marxists emphasise that it is the surplus extraction relationship that gives its name
to the mode of production. Thus, slave mode of production is a system where surplus extrac-
tion takes the form of slavery and primary producers are slaves and slave owners, that is,
204 Ancient and Medieval World

masters extract surplus from the slaves. Marx also opined that in a social formation, several
modes of production exist under the dominance of one mode of production that gives its name
to that particular social formation. This idea of designating both Greece and Rome social forma-
tion as slave mode of production has been debated at length by both Marxists and non-Marxists
scholars. A brief discussion on the origin of slavery and a comparison below of the nature of
slavery in ancient Near East on the one hand and in Greece and Rome on the other would make
things clearer.
The origin of slavery has been traced back to a period even before the settled state societies
came into being. The idea of slavery emerged from the categorisation of people ideologically
into ‘free’ and ‘unfree’. In this sense, slavery has been traced from the beginning of chieftaincies
and the various wars that they were engaged in. Thus, prisoners of war, whose life was spared,
became the first group of people who were put to various forms of subjugation that can be
broadly placed under slavery. Later on with the growth of powerful states and sufficient power
and surplus in the hands of kings, temple and the aristocrats, the requisite labour force required
for public works, agriculture or mining was obtained by force of arms or through law and
custom. This type of compulsory labour has been attributed different names such as debt-
bondage, helotage, temple slavery and serfdom. Speaking from a different perspective Gerda
Lerner (1987) sees the origin of slavery from the beginning of a patriarchal society. According
to Lerner, with the growth of patriarchy began the subjugation of women and when this model
was extended to subjugation of fellow human beings to reduce people to bondage, the institu-
tion of slavery was born. Justifying her argument, she elaborates that since males had fighting
skills, it was difficult to keep them captive on permanent basis and they also could not be
forced to develop artificial bond with the enslaving group. Women slaves on the other hand
could be forced to bear children, restricting their mobility and hence prevent them from run-
ning away.
Evidence of slavery in the Near East mainly comes from the Mesopotamian texts. In
Mesopotamia, the slaves were known by different names such as wardum, arad or subur. The
types of slavery prevalent in Sumerian, Babylonian, Assyrian, Egyptian and Mycenaean civilisa-
tions included various types of servitude such as state corvée, bondage and penal labour. There
are also evidences of slaves being bought and sold in the market. From an economic point of
view, however, Marxists argue that in none of these societies, slaves were the dominant form of
labour for surplus extraction and remained on the margins of the agricultural labour force. In
classical Greece on the other hand, they argue, slavery was seen as superior means of extract-
ing surplus in contrast to other means even though the production was undertaken by free
peasants, agricultural labourers and urban artisans. In other words, from a Marxist viewpoint,
slave mode of production was the dominant mode of production in classical Greece. Thus,
Perry Anderson (1974) writes,

It was the Greek city-states and later Romans who made slavery absolute in form and dominant in extent
transforming it from a secondary facility into a systematic mode of production. They institutionalised the
system of large-scale use of labour both in the countryside and in the cities.

He concludes by saying that ‘slave mode of production was the decisive invention of the Greco-
Roman world’. Apart from extensive use of slave labour in the production system, the chattel
slavery (where slaves are considered as a commodity) practiced in Greece and Rome has been
considered as the extreme form of servitude in antiquity in which a slave was considered as a
 Ancient Greece 205

property akin to an object, which could be bought, sold and bequeathed. The condition of slaves
has been described as reaching the state of ‘social death’ as they were denied all rights of
humans. It is this form of slavery that has led scholars to describe Greece and Rome as genuine
slave societies in comparison to societies with slaves as witnessed in the Near East.
The two principal features of a slave society are (a) the sheer number of slaves in relation to
the population of the society and (b) the significance of the economic roles that the slaves play
in that society. In addition, in genuine slave societies, scholars have specifically identified three
components of slavery—(a) slave’s status as a property, (b) totality of power over them and
(c) kinlessness of slaves. These conditions ensured ruthless exploitation of the slaves. In
Marxian terms, under slave mode of production, instead of the labour, it is the slaves them-
selves who became a commodity. Slaves could be bought and sold in the market, shifted from
one place to another and trained to undertake different tasks. This was also aimed at keeping
the wages of the hired labour and independent craftsmen low.
However, M. I. Finley (1980) has put forward two essential preconditions for slavery to
become widespread in an agrarian society. First, internal supply of labour in a given society
should be severely deficient in relation to its demand. This would force the landed aristocracy
to look for more and cheaper alternatives from outside. Second, on the one hand, there should
be considerable concentration of landed property in the hands of a small group of landed mag-
nates and on the other hand, there should be large number of independent peasant proprietors.
Large concentration of land in few hands would push up the demand for labour, but, if there is
substantial number of small peasant proprietors, the big landowners cannot expect the latter to
work on their fields. In such conditions, availability of hired labour (in the form of landless
peasants) proves insufficient to meet the demand for labour and the big landowners are there-
fore forced to get the labour from outside. While analysing the nature of slavery in Greece, we
need to examine whether it fulfilled such preconditions or not. Again, when we talk of slavery
in Greece, we need to make a clear distinction between two types of slavery that was practiced
in Athens and Sparta. In both of these Greek city-states, as our discussion would suggest, slav-
ery developed in specific historical circumstances and took different forms.

Athenian Slavery
As mentioned earlier, the landed aristocracy of Athens (and also that of other city-states of
Greece) took control over the larger share of the landholding during the Archaic Age. This cre-
ated a kind of social crisis (stasis) in the form of conflict between the marginalised peasants
and the aristocracy. To break the stalemate, Solon was appointed as the archon. His land
reforms (seisachtheia) and subsequently those of Peisistratus have been considered by few
scholars such as M. I. Finley (1980) to have formed the background of the origin of slavery. In
this regard, the first major reform was the abolition of debt bondage in 594 bce under which an
Athenian free man could not be enslaved for failure to repay the debt. This was followed by the
reforms of Peisistratus, which led to redistribution of public land illegally acquired by the aris-
tocracy among the peasants. These two measures, according to Finley, created a shortage of
labour in Athens and set the background of the origin of slavery as the landed aristocrats, now
unable to coerce the Athenian free citizens into slaves, had to look for labour from outside in
the form of slaves. Shortage of labour does not necessarily leads to the growth of slavery, but,
in the opinion of Finley, this was the remedy that the ancient Greeks adopted in their specific
206 Ancient and Medieval World

historical circumstances. However, Finley’s analysis of the reforms of Solon and Peisistratus
has been challenged later in a new analysis of seisachtheia by E. Harris (1997). Based on the
writings of Aristotle and Solon’s poetry, Harris puts forward the view that Solon did not abolish
debt-bondage but enslavement arising out of it and also that his major concern was enslave-
ment resulting from violence and raids for booty and not due to debt-bondage. While analysing
a ‘slave society’, different classifications (both economic and social) have been used by schol-
ars. An analysis of these would get us a fairer picture of the nature of slavery in Athens.
An important determinant of a slave society is the number of slaves in relation to the total
population. Regarding the number of slaves in Athens in the Classical Age, accounts of second
and tenth century ce provide figures ranging between 150,000 and 400,000. However, modern
scholars do not seem to agree on these figures, terming them less reliable. But even the lower
modern estimates, suggested by O. Patterson (1982), put the figure at 15 per cent of the total
population whereas the higher figure provided by P. A. Cartledge (1993) touches 100,000 mark
which is 40 per cent of the Athenian population. It is clear from these figures that slaves con-
stituted a significant part of the Athenian demography. The case of Athens was different too in
comparison to other polies of Greece. Territorially and demographically, Athens was the largest
city-state of Greece. Besides, after the formation of the Delian League, Athens ruled over a large
maritime empire, consisting of several small Greek states, and continued to enjoy the promi-
nence for almost a century. It follows naturally from this that the Athenian economy was
diverse and advanced where a much-advanced form of slave economy could have been
practiced.
As for the supply of slaves, a pre-existing slave trade around the Black Sea, Adriatic Sea, in
the Eastern Mediterranean and North Africa along with individual centres of trade such as
Athens, Chios and Corinth made possible regular availability of slaves. Traders specifically deal-
ing in slave were known as andropodistai. Warfare, piracy and raids on the tribal communities
were the main source of this slave trade. In the words of David Braund (2011), ‘War made slaves
and slaves in turn featured prominently among the spoils to be gained through war’. Those
enslaved in large numbers were bought up by small-scale traders and distributed to several
areas. Since slaves were considered as a commodity, they could easily be shipped along with
other goods such as wine, fish, hides or salt. In Athens, agora was the main centre where slaves
were traded along with other goods whereas in other parts of Attica, slave markets were held
near the mining areas. The inflow of slaves particularly increased after the Persian wars, but
this was also sustained by cooperation with the non-Greek states on the periphery of Greece
that was based on exchange of slaves with commodities. Braund is of the opinion that slave
supply was a significant factor in driving the extended process of Greek colonial settlement.
There were different terminologies for slaves based on the manner in which they were bought
in the market such as arguronetoi (bought with silver), chrusonetoi (bought with gold), onetoi
(simply bought) whereas those enslaved after war were termed as doryalotoi.
Economically, agriculture was an important field where large numbers of slaves were
employed. But unlike Rome where the aristocracy owned large landed estates (latifundias),
the landed estates of Athens were modest in size where production of wheat, olive and vine was
undertaken. However, few landowners in the Attica region did own large estates where produc-
tion was largely undertaken by the slaves. At the same time, there existed large number of small
and medium peasant proprietors who may not have held large number of slaves. But T. E. Rihll
(2011) has argued that the labour market in Athens remained thin (availability of less labour in
relation to the amount of work to be done) because of the Athenian ideals of self-sufficiency
 Ancient Greece 207

and personal freedom which were reflected in the reluctance to work for others. This allowed
continuous import of slaves in Athens from outside. But continuous import of slaves did not
saturate the slave market and, according to Rihll, these imports were in part offset by the prac-
tice of manumission (freedom from slavery) which resulted in constant outflow of slaves but
not a thinning of the labour market. Few scholars argue that existence of large number of slaves
had demoralising effect on the wages of free labour. However, others argue that the landlords
indeed needed the help of the free labour during the time of harvests when additional hands
were required and farmers were not free to render their services as they had to attend to their
own fields.
Another area of economic activity in Athens where large numbers of slaves were employed
was the substantial manufacturing and service centre. Athens was known for its handicraft
production, particularly manufacturing of pottery. Chios was a major centre of metallurgy.
Besides, several areas in the Attica were famous for woodwork, woollen and linen cloth pro-
duction. Skilled slaves with professional knowledge were mostly employed in these sectors of
economy. They could earn independently like a free artisan but had to give a part of their earn-
ing to the master as rent. Inscriptions belonging to this period inform us that the slaves received
the same wages for completion of the same work as received by the independent artisans (citi-
zens and metics). Independent slaves are said to be working mostly in the manufacturing and
service sector rather than agriculture and received money as a part of their wages than anything
in kind. Skilled slaves were also employed in large numbers in the construction of public build-
ings. These included both free and privately owned slaves. The amount of construction activity
that was undertaken in Athens in the Classical Age would suggest employment of large number
of slaves in the stone-building industry. In this way, the slaves also helped in the growth of
urban life. Large numbers of skilled slaves were also employed in big armaments and metal-
working industries, few of which are said to being run as ‘capitalist enterprise’. An increasing
commodity production at Athens also led to corresponding development in the trade and com-
merce, particularly its sea-borne trade. The goods produced in both small (by independent
artisans) and large (by slaves) centres were exported to foreign markets with the help of Greek
merchants who acted as intermediaries. As trade prospered in the fifth century bce, large
amount of capital was invested in better and bigger ships. By fourth century bce, rudimentary
trade contracts (symbola) were being used to deal with commercial disputes legally.
Mining was another sector where large numbers of both private and state-owned slaves were
employed. Laurium, located at the southernmost tip of Attica, was the richest source of silver
in the entire Greece. Historians offer a figure of 60,000 to 110,000 as the number of Athenian
slaves out of which 20,000 to 30,000 (smallest estimate being that of 11,000) is said to be
employed in the mines at Laurium. Few scholars point out that the silver mines of Laurium
provide examples of two extremes of slaveholding practices in Athens. While one group of
slaves worked in horrible conditions, the other group of mining slaves was also the most expen-
sive. Slaves doing hard labour such as breaking the rocks were kept in shackles and were
almost driven to death. But the slaves involved in smelting of rocks to get silver were skilled
and were therefore better paid as they could also sabotage the process. Apart from the techni-
cal skills, the mine owners also needed a good manager to keep control of such large number
of slaves. Slaves also acted as managers of the slave labour involved in the mining process.
Sources inform us that one Athenian citizen by the name of Nicias bought a slave named Socias
to act as manager in these mines for 6,000 drachmas (ancient Greek silver currency) against the
average price of 200 drachmas per slave. Silver produced in large quantities in the silver mines
208 Ancient and Medieval World

of Laurium with the help of both unskilled and skilled slave labour proved to be an important
factor in determining economic superiority of Athens in the Aegean region.
Apart from the economic activities, slaves were also employed in routine administrative
work at Athens. These included jobs of policemen, guards in prison, clerks of financial officers,
executioners, labourers for public construction of temples, for sewage removal and assaying
silver for new coins. These slaves were mostly owned by the state. The rationale behind assign-
ing administrative jobs to the public slaves was the perception that public slave was less cor-
ruptible than the private slave or even free citizen or a metic. A possible reason why the slaves
were given the role of executioners has been explained from a religious perspective. It has been
argued that executioner’s job involved killing of a person and if the executioners were outsiders
(slaves), the wrath of the gods would not fall on the citizens. The practice of involving slaves in
administrative tasks began in the sixth century bce from the time of Pericles when large num-
bers of Scythian slaves were employed as policemen and prison guards. Scythians were also
given the responsibility of ejecting disruptive citizens from the assembly or arrest them when
ordered by the competent authority. By the end of the fifth century, the Scythian guards consti-
tuted the largest number of public slaves in Athens.
The woman slaves in Athens were largely employed in the domestic sectors as physically
they were not suited to hard manual labour. But on this basis, they cannot be classified under
unproductive labour as there was no conceptualisation of productive and unproductive labour
in the Greek thought. Aristotle had himself suggested that women were regarded superior in
some productive tasks and men in others. Apart from cooking, another activity in which women
slaves were mostly engaged in were spinning and weaving, activities that were seen with pride
by the mistresses of wealthy aristocratic families. Few scholars have suggested that since vast
amount of textiles needed in Greece was produced indoors, it may be appropriate to view a
typical Greek house, beyond everything else, a workshop. Few also point out that since free and
slave women worked together in most of such households, the woman slave labour must have
doubled the household production of textiles.
Socially too, slaves were an integral part of the Athenian life. In Athens, chattel slavery was
practiced where slaves were bought and sold in the market individually. Until the end of the
Archaic Age, large number of slaves belonged to Greece itself, but, in the Classical Age, most
of the slaves were outsiders. In order to ensure kinlessness of the slaves, particular care was
taken while selecting them, ensuring that they belonged to different races and nationalities. In
the Greek sources, several terms have been used to signify slaves such as doulos (male slave),
andrapodon (‘man footed thing’ as opposed to tetrapoda or ‘four footed animals’), oiketes
(emphasising slave’s association with an oikos or a household) and dmōs (captive slave). Since
slaves were considered as a commodity, the Athenian slave owners were free by law and by
custom to treat the slaves the way they wanted to. This was true for most of the Greek states
where chattel slavery was in vogue.
However, in Athens, there were few cultural prohibitions on unpleasant treatment to the
slaves. One of these was against killing a slave as killing any person in the Greek culture was
related with religious pollution, inviting wrath of the gods. Another Greek Law specific to
Athens was the law of hubris, devised by Solon in 594 bce, which discouraged offensive or
abusive behaviour towards the slaves as well as citizens. These rules preventing assault on
slaves were also necessitated by the fact that unlike Rome, there was hardly any visible distinc-
tion between slaves and citizens in Greece and there was also an apprehension that a citizen
may be attacked mistaking him as a slave. The fourth century Greek texts also inform us that
 Ancient Greece 209

hitting slaves or shouting at them in public was considered as an uncouth behaviour, unbecom-
ing of an Athenian citizen. Based on these, it has been suggested by few that Athens became
refuge of large number of slaves running away from harsh treatment in different Greek states.
However, at the same time, the contemporary Greek theatre works also refer to brutal attack
on slaves, including flogging, shackling and branding, although the last one being considered as
extreme and reserved only for slaves trying to run away. Thus, the contemporary sources pro-
vide a contradictory picture of the treatment meted out to the slaves in Athens.
Regarding the reaction of slaves to the treatment meted out to them, our information is very
sketchy and somewhat unreliable as these mostly relate to texts written by the slave masters.
It is assumed that the slave masters would have either exaggerated the slave reaction or under-
played its scale for their self-reassurance. The contemporary Greek scholars, barring a few such
as Athenaeus and Polyaenus (both belonging to second century ce), largely ignore aspects
related to slave resistance. Modern scholars too have generally avoided talking about slave
revolutions. Paul Cartledge (2001), talking about slave resistance in Athens, has pointed out that
Athens had lower proportions of slaves and they were dispersed in relatively small groups with
a more personal relationship with their masters. Moreover, according to Cartledge, ethnic diver-
sity and differing opportunities for social mobility (through trade and manumission) further
undermined slave solidarity and removed potential leadership. However, we do get reference of
about 20,000 slaves running away from Athens at the time of Spartan invasion in 413 bce. There
are also a few instances of slaves attacking their masters to escape the tyranny. Violence against
slaves has also been at times attributed to slave resistance. Based on the evidences or the lack
of it, few scholars such as Niall McKeown (2011) have suggested that slaves might not have
been feared but they were definitely a ‘troublesome property’, albeit one that the Athenians
were happy to live with.
Slavery as an institution in Greece was fully supported by the existing social ideology. Greek
philosophers such as Aristotle and others justified slavery by suggesting that tasks involving
physical labour should be entrusted only to those who had no intellectual capabilities. The
prevalence of such an ideology meant that slavery as a system was never questioned in the
Greek society and the Greeks never felt apologetic about it. It is sometimes argued therefore
that availability of large number of slaves in manufacturing and service sectors promoted a
prejudice leading to such jobs being considered as slavish or degrading. Few of these were
indeed boring and degrading along with health risk associated with the work. But at the same
time, proud depiction of artisans (painters, cobblers and metalworkers in particular) at work in
the paintings belonging to fifth century bce would suggest that craftsmanship was not viewed
with such disdain. Besides, not all craftsmen in Athens were slaves nor their descendants.
Among the enslaved prisoners of war, skilled ones had greater chance of manumission and
subsequently a decent life. Manumission was quite common in Athens, and, until the second
half of the fourth century bce, it involved a simple procedure. On the part of the master, a simple
public announcement was to be made whereas the slaves had to give a major portion of their
earning to the masters, based on the Greek law that all possessions of the slave belonged to the
master. By the end of the fourth century, however, the process became more complex, involving
legal procedures as well as payment for manumission to the masters.
Slavery also had social, psychological and political impact on Athenian people. Socially,
there was a close relation between status and possession of land, and the right to own land was
limited to the citizens. It was this ownership of land that gave the people of Athens strength to
fight against the political and economic monopoly of the aristocracy. Besides, availability of
210 Ancient and Medieval World

large number of slaves in the agricultural sector freed the landowning class from their rural
background and made it possible for them to become urban citizens while drawing income
from their rural possessions. Psychologically, slavery gave Athenians a sense of superiority.
Their ability to establish control over the slaves gave them the confidence that they could
achieve anything including Athenian dominance over other Greek states with physical and intel-
lectual strength. This was reflected in their large-scale construction activities, their ability to
take on stronger enemies in the warfare and the development of music and art depicting a hue
of human emotions. Politically too, slavery had a significant role to play in the working of the
Athenian democracy. N. R. E. Fisher (1993) points out that, in the Athenian democracy, citizen
equality was preserved by the actions of the slaves, from cleaning floors to arresting traitors.
Works such as domestic chores and working the mill were considered as unpleasant and so it
was believed that anyone could keep a slave for such works. The slaves worked in several
areas—fields, business and homes—so that the Athenian citizen could get time for politics.
Even a poor man could get paid for taking part in political processes and to attend court cases
as his status was higher than that of a slave. Slaves, on the other hand did not generally get the
citizenship status and only the status of metics even after manumission, although we do have
few examples of slaves being given citizenship rights after getting the status of a metic. Thus,
the citizens of Athens enjoyed a special freedom vis-à-vis the slaves. Perry Anderson (1974)
writes, ‘The classical polis was based on new conceptual discovery of liberty, entrained by the
systematic institution of slavery; the free citizens now stood out in full relief against the back-
ground of slave labour’.

Helotry in Sparta
The type of slavery that developed in Sparta was fundamentally different from that of Athens.
The Spartan slavery is termed Helotry as opposed to douloi, which was the most common term
used for slaves in Greece. The fundamental difference between the two was while doulos could
be individually bought, sold and transferred, Helots were state-owned slaves. In Helotry, the
state provided the citizens (perioeci) with slaves as per citizen’s requirements. Another major
difference was that the Helots were primarily Greeks whereas as in other parts of Greece (par-
ticularly during the classical phase), slaves were mostly outsiders. As mentioned earlier, after
the conquest of Laconia and Messenia by Sparta, the entire population of these Greek states
was converted into slaves or Helots. This meant that Sparta had a much larger population of
slaves as compared to Athens and a very high density of slaves that was only seen in Chios.
Plato, writing in mid-fourth century bce, also observed, ‘No one could doubt that their land in
Laconia and Messenia is superior to our (Athenian) land, both in extent and quality, not to men-
tion the number of their slaves and especially the Helots’. Regarding the timing of subjugation
of Laconians and Messenians into helotry, however, contemporary narratives and their modern
interpretation tend to suggest that Laconian citizens became Helots originally due to some pro-
cess of internal degradation (revolt or refusal to participate in Spartan military expedition
against Messenia) in their status. Messenians on the other hand are supposed to have been
converted en masse to helotry, subsequent to the conquest of Messenia by Sparta after a series
of wars during the latter part of the Archaic Age Greece.
It is also reported that the population of slaves in Sparta far outnumbered that of the citizens.
The Helots were public slaves unlike the chattel slaves of Chios or Athens. While the chattel
 Ancient Greece 211

slaves were heterogeneous and essentially foreign elements, the Laconian and Messenian
Helots on the other hand belonged to the same ethnic group and spoke the same native lan-
guage. Although there are evidences of Spartans owning chattel slaves, but they are considered
numerically too small to have any historical significance. The land of the Laconians and
Messenians were confiscated and taken over by the Spartan state. The confiscated land was
divided into holdings termed as kleroi or klaros (singular) and distributed among the Spartan
citizens. Since the state in Sparta remained under the dominance of the oligarchy, the kleroi was
mostly concentrated in their hands. The state allotted Helots to the each landowners as per
their requirement of labour. This effectively means that Helots were not the private property of
the Spartan citizens and were therefore could not be sold to others or manumitted like the chat-
tel slaves of Athens. But based on the writings of contemporaries such as Aristotle and Strabo,
modern scholars suggest that slaves could be commonly used or even sold individually but not
beyond the borders of Sparta. Another feature of helotry, distinguishing itself from chattel slav-
ery, was that the Spartan Helots were allowed to maintain their family ties which is reflected in
the contemporary reference (in the writings of Tyrtaeus and Herodotus) to Helot ‘wives’. Latest
archaeological researches also suggest that the Helots lived collectively in villages rather than
in isolated farms. In view of the fact that the Helots were allowed to maintain their kin relations,
Spartans had to make special military arrangements to control such a large population of slaves
with their families within the state. At the same time, it also must be mentioned here that the
Spartan need for slave labour were met within Sparta itself as the children born to the Helots
also acquired the same status.
The Helots of Sparta worked on the fields besides working as domestic labour and tending
the flock of sheep. In this way, the citizens of Laconia and Messenia worked on their own land
as Helots or primary producers of food for the Spartan citizens. P. Cartledge (2011) is of the
opinion that Helots provided the generous food surplus that enabled the Spartans to devote
themselves to their unique military style of communal life. The Helots had to pay a compulsory
rent of 50 per cent of the produce to the master on each plot that they farmed, amounting to 70
measures of barley to the male master and 12 measures to the mistress each tear. In addition,
they also had to give equal amount of fruit and other produce to the master. Besides agriculture,
Helots were also engaged in other duties such as that of armed guards, temporary soldiers
acting as light auxiliary troop and following their masters in their hunting expeditions and mili-
tary campaigns. Contemporary speeches also give a hint that in the post-Peloponnesian Spartan
Empire, the Helots could also act as city or area governors.
In terms of its linkages with the economy, helotry is considered as a primitive form of slavery
as Sparta did not have a slave market where slaves could be bought and sold individually and
also the element of kinlessness was missing since Helots lived with their blood relatives and
also as an ethnic community. Few scholars have also linked helotry to the backwardness of the
Spartan economy, suggesting that it was suited to an agrarian economy such as Sparta because
large-scale slave trade could be economically viable only in the presence of flourishing trade
and requisite commodity production. But whatever may have been the status of economic
development in Sparta, the Helots had a major role to play in the Spartan economy which
enabled Sparta to develop as a military state. Helotry was also practiced in other Greek states
such as Thessaly and Crete where slaves were known as penestae and mnoiti respectively.
Socially, the treatment accorded to the Helots was worse than that of douloi for the simple
reason that the Spartans were in minority in front of a huge population of Helots and they
needed to take harsh measure to keep them under control. As mentioned earlier, this also
212 Ancient and Medieval World

explains the military preparedness of the state of Sparta. The utmost contempt with which
the Helots were treated at Sparta also arose from the fear of revolt of which there were many
during the entire history of Sparta. Unlike Athens, where certain cultural prohibitions were
placed on the treatment towards the chattel slaves by their respective individual masters,
Helots were designated as public enemies in Sparta, and, therefore, they could be killed
legally and legitimately without incurring the wrath of gods. Besides, the Helots were per-
petually employed with hard tasks to crush their rebellious spirit by the ways of perpetual
toil and hardship. Moreover, at times, the Spartan citizens were educated by forcing the
Helots to do things disapproved by the Spartans such as public drunkenness, singing of
vulgar songs in public, and so on. Few scholars tend to emphasise more on this type of cul-
tural and psychological contempt than physical brutality while analysing treatment towards
the Helots. However, emancipation or manumission of Helots was also common. Contemporary
writers such as Thucydides and Xenophon do refer to emancipation granted to those Helots
who volunteered for military service when the hoplite army was to be relieved. Besides,
Helots could also purchase freedom or gain manumission by undergoing the Spartan method
of education. Helots emancipated in such a manner were known as neodamodes (those who
re-joined the demos).
The reaction of Helots to the treatment that they received was bound to be more active than
passive, considering the fact that they belonged to the same ethnic group. P. Cartledge (2011)
is of the opinion that the Spartan institutionalised fear of the Helots was prompted by the
Helot’s actual ability as well as willingness to go into open and outright revolt. The reasons for
revolt of the Helots, according to Cartledge was the desire for personal freedom (for the
Laconians) and, in case of Messenians especially, political independence. Scholars have listed
several factors that were conducive for the slave revolt as well as factors that tended to shackle
the rebellious spirit of the Helots. The feeling of solidarity among the ethnic group who all
shared the loss of personal and political freedom was a major motivating force. Geographical
factors such as Sparta’s distance from the Messenian heartland and geographical separation by
a chain of mountains made it difficult for the Spartan army to control Messenian Helots.
Demographically too, Messenians Helots were at an advantage over their Spartan masters.
Moreover, expansion of the Spartan Empire, particularly after the defeat of Athens in the
Peloponnesian wars, made it difficult for the state of Sparta to keep an effective control over
the slaves. The massive earthquake that occurred in Sparta in 464 bce, killed large number of
Spartans and also prompted the Messenians to launch a massive revolt (considered as the larg-
est revolt undertaken by the Helots) for independence in the year 462 bce. On the other hand,
there were few factors too that continued to force the Helots into submission. Many of the
Helot men and women (particularly of Laconian origin) worked as domestic helps within the
homes of their masters and mistresses or Helot men accompanied their masters as batmen on
the campaigns. Over a period, they developed personal intimacy and relationships. Besides, it
was the Laconian Helots who benefitted largely from the public policy of manumission.
Moreover, at times, the brutal and planned massacre of the Helots as reported by Thucydides
also dissuaded the Helots from undertaking any rebellious course. It was only much later in the
first quarter of the fourth century bce when the Spartan state itself was facing internal crisis that
the Messenians could win their independence whereas the servile condition of the Laconians
continued for the next two centuries.
 Ancient Greece 213

ANCIENT GREEK CULTURE AND RELIGION

Ancient Greece consisted of several states (poleis), each having its independent political and
economic life. Greece was not politically unified but the inhabitants shared many cultural
aspects including language, art, architecture, religion and thoughts. In other words, the ancient
Greek culture, like other cultures of the ancient world, was comprised of a disparate culture of
several subgroups with their own customs, beliefs and rituals that at times came into conflict
but on most other times collaborated. The cultural growth during both Archaic and the Classical
Age (termed as the golden age of Greek culture) was initiated by the aristocracy that possessed
wealth, power and glory. However, Josiah Ober (2016) has termed the Classical Age of Greek
cultural growth as one of Greek efflorescence. Here, the term efflorescence denotes increased
economic growth accompanied by a sharp jump in cultural development. Ober points out that
efflorescence is characterised by more people (suggesting demographic growth) living at
higher levels of welfare (in terms of per capita growth) and by cultural production at higher
level. This would suggest that cultural growth of Greece though patronised by aristocracy at
large was not entirely an aristocratic enterprise. Slavery as an institution also played an impor-
tant role in the Greek cultural accomplishments by providing Greek citizens the leisure time to
devote themselves in political and cultural pursuits. The Greek cultural traditions, beginning
from the Archaic Era, continued through the Classical Period and reached its zenith around at
300 bce. But the expansion of Greek artistic traditions continued during the Hellenistic era
(300–30 bce) and spread to West Asia (east), Italy, France and Spain (west), Black Sea region
(north) and North Africa (south). But our discussion would limit itself to the cultural accom-
plishment of the Greeks during Archaic and the Classical Ages spanning over five centuries.

Art and Architecture

Just as politically the Greek poleis remained independent, they also developed their own inde-
pendent artistic styles. This was particularly true in the style of pottery making. In the initial
phase of the Archaic Period, the potters of Corinth dominated the Greek trade in pottery, turn-
ing out huge quantities of vases by following a technique widely known as ‘black figure’. In this
technique, the artists used to first make a silhouette on clay and then fired it to get the black
colour. Anatomical details were then incised using sharp points that were at times filled with
red or white colours. But by the middle of the sixth century bce, Athenian black pottery (also
known as Attic pottery) and large vessels replaced the Corinthian small vases from the export
market. A new style of pottery making invented by the Athenians potters around 530 bce is
known as ‘red-figure’ pottery. In this technique, the potter after drawing the outlines painted the
base with a clay slip and then it was fired black with the outlines retaining the orange colour of
the clay. Subsequently, details were filled up with a fine brush. In comparison to the black-figure
technique, this method provided a more subtle and refined details of the subject. The thematic
treatment of the paintings were closely associated with the daily life such as athletics, horse-
manship, drinking parties and eroticism (both heterosexual and homosexual) besides scenes
from mythology and heroic legends based on Homeric epics. Talking of the Classical Age, many
consider this as representing the height of Athenian vase painting that remained in fashion until
the fourth century bce. Few of the paintings also contained the names of few painters such as
214 Ancient and Medieval World

Amassis, Ergotimos and Kleophrades. However, Chris Scarre and Brian M. Fagan (2016) are of
the opinion that the craft itself was a lowly one and the vessels themselves were not especially
valuable despite the skill that went into their manufacturing. They also point out that some
features of black and red-figure pottery were expressly designed to imitate the much more valu-
able gold and silver vessels used by the wealthiest citizens.
Sculpture was another significant aspect of the Greek art. The sculpture art during the
Archaic Age (mainly in the form of life-size stone and bronze statues) was influenced by the
technique of Egyptian freestanding figure. Most of the Archaic Age statues are highly stylised
and are mainly in the form of naked ‘young male’ (kouros) and clothed ‘young maiden’ (kore).
However, by Classical Age, the sculptors had abandoned the stylized forms and there was now
more of an emphasis on natural representation of the human body. Another important change
in the Classical Period was an increase in the element of austerity in comparison to the stylistic
orientation of the Archaic Age. Several scholars have attributed this change to the Greek victory
over Persia and the ability of the former to thwart the Carthaginians ambition of eastward
expansion of the Greeks in the first quarter of the fifth century bce. According to them, the
Greek victories infused a sense of superiority and freed the Greek sculpture art of Persian and
Near Eastern influence, which was a marked feature of the previous Archaic Age. Most signifi-
cant change was noticed in Athens that is said to have become a centre of artistic inquiries
along with some crucial developments in the field of philosophy, science and technology. The
Classical Age sculptors here tried to render action to the melancholy figures through battle
scenes as also on the red-figure potteries. Most significant example of this action was the
‘discus thrower’ (Discobolus) of the Athenian sculptor Myron. The Athenian sculptors were
also known for naturalistic nude figures of marble. Many of the sculptures also adorned the
temple walls such as the one at the temple of Parthenon located on the Athenian acropolis.
The Greek architecture in the archaic phase was mostly concerned with religious buildings
consisting of large temples and small edifices called ‘treasuries’ which were supposed to house
dedications to the deities. A major change during this period towards the construction of tem-
ples was the replacement of mudbrick and wood with lime stone and marble. The Egyptian
engineering technique (used in the construction of big temples and pyramids) of handling the
big stone blocks was borrowed by the Greek artisans. With the edition of more stone buildings
such as state buildings, fountain houses and other public buildings mostly in and around the
central meeting place (agora), most of the Greek poleis started displaying true urban character
by the beginning of sixth century bce. The Classical Age is considered the ‘Golden Age’ of Greek
art and architecture. During this period, an attempt was made to harmonise various architec-
tural elements. The finest example of this genre of architectural theme was the temple at
Parthenon at Athens, built during 447–438 bce. The temple was constructed under the order of
Pericles and was dedicated to the patron goddess Athena. The walls of the temple are profusely
ornamented with sculptures and the symbolic allusions therein are meant to glorify and pro-
mote Athenian democracy. The grandeur of the temple signified power of goddess and was also
symbolic of the power of Pericles, the ruler. Smaller temples include the Athena Nike, the
Erechtheion (considered as the holiest shrine of Athens) and the temple of Hephaistos on the
age of the agora. Besides religious shrines, many other outstanding buildings at Athens were
built, including the Theatre of Dionysus on the southern slope of the Acropolis, the famous long
walls connecting the city with its harbour at Piraeus around 5 miles to the west. The civic build-
ings constructed around the agora included the city council chamber (bouleuterion), executive
chambers and the law courts. A distinguishing feature of these buildings was their
 Ancient Greece 215

embellishment with images. This was common to most of the ancient Greek cities. These were
mainly in the form of bronze and marbles statues. Reliefs and wall paintings on temples and
public buildings were another unique feature of these buildings. Many showed gods, goddesses
and scenes from Greek mythological tales or legends such as the Trojan War. Others repre-
sented civic heroes and leading statesmen and generals. Even victors in Olympic Games and
chariot races were also commemorated in this manner. Chris Scarre and Brian M. Fagan (2016)
are of the opinion that such images were the visual representation of the democratic constitu-
tion, promoting civic values and imbuing Athenians with a sense of pride in their city.

Literature and Drama

The ancient Greek literature is said to have begun with the Homeric epics—the Iliad and the
Odyssey, both dated eighth century bce. But few also trace its origin to the creative process that
began with the Mycenaean civilisation. While the Iliad describes the actions of the Trojan War
centring on its hero Achilles, the Odyssey describes the voyages and return from war of its hero
Odysseus, the destroyer of the city of Troy. But the birth of the polis, which involved struggle
between the aristocracy and the masses throughout Greece, formed the backdrop of the growth
of a new type of literary composition popularly known as lyric poetry. The Archaic and Classical
Age Greek literature was dominated by the lyric poetry and drama that included both tragedy
and comedy. The archaic period of the Greek history, particularly seventh and sixth century bce,
is generally known as the ‘Lyric Age’ although very few of them have survived until date. The
origin of the lyric poetry is generally traced back to the oral songs related to occasions such as
harvests, weddings, funerals and religious functions. After being written down, the songs were
sung with instruments such as lyre (therefore the term ‘lyric’) or aulos (a flute-like instrument).
There were two main genre of lyric poetry—solo and choral. The solo poetry (shorter in length)
was presented in front of large public audience or in the private parties of the wealthy and con-
tained themes which were personal in nature, including such subjects as friendship and betrayal,
morality, politics and war. Among the solo poems, the political elegies of Solon and Tyrtaeus are
quite popular. The chorus (much longer in length), were sung during civic functions and were
integrative in nature, infusing a sense of patriotism through songs related to the myths of the
polis. These were powerful mediums through which the kings and the tyrants could perpetuate
their authority. Simonides, Bacchylides and Pindar were among the famous writers of choral lyri-
cism, enjoying the patronage of the Sicilian tyrants. Although most of the lyric poets belonged to
the elite class, their poetry was often critical of the aristocratic ideology.
The Greek drama is said to have originated in Athens during the Classical Age but soon
spread to other city-states. Beginning of Greek drama has been seen in the poetic odes that
were sung in chorus during the spring festival dedicated to the god Dionysius. Peisistratus is
supposed be the originator of such solemn plays at the great Dionysia, which was later turned
into a regular festival by Cleisthenes where tragic dramas were enacted for public entertain-
ment. Since these theatre activities were patronised by the state, it was greatly influenced by
politics and religion right since its inception. Greatest among the Greek tragedian was
Aeschylus (525–456 bce), who is said to have transformed Dionysian odes into a genuine drama
with characters. Sophocles and Euripides were the other prominent fifth century Greek trage-
dians whose works have survived. The Homeric ideals of justice, law, piety and obligation were
the dominating theme of the Greek tragedies. While most tales were borrowed from the past
216 Ancient and Medieval World

legends, few contemporary aspects such as the Athenian victory over the Persians at Salamis
and Athenian march during the Peloponnesian war also found a place in these tragedies. The
Greek comedy on the other hand was primarily a political commentary with a heavy dose of
satire on the contemporary politics, politicians, thinkers as well as on tragedies. Our informa-
tion on this is largely based on the only surviving 11 comedies of Aristophanes (448–382 bce),
considered as the greatest of the Athenian comedy playwrights. Aristophanes was particularly
critical of politicians such as Cleon (who succeeded Pericles as the head of Athenian state),
tragedians such as Euripides and thinkers such as Socrates. In fact, Aristophanes was a social
critic who was particularly harsh on politicians and their warmongering which according to him
were leading Athens to doom. Since the comedies had become a part of the Athenian demo-
cratic life, it was not possible to prohibit staging of comedies despite their tirade against power-
ful politicians. Reference to the critic of Socrates by Aristophanes in the speeches of
thinker–politicians such as Plato would suggest that the comedies were successful in influenc-
ing public opinion. The Greek drama (both tragedies and comedies) were staged invariably in
the open-air theatres.

The Greek Thought

The origin of the Greek philosophy can be traced in the Early Greek thought beginning around
sixth century bce. The earliest of these was called the Ionian school of thought (also known as
Milesian school) propounded by a group of thinkers residing in Miletus in Asia Minor. The
Milesians introduced a new way of the study of the cosmos, which was earlier the preserve of
poets inspired by divinity. The three prominent thinkers associated with this school were
Thales, Anaximander and Anaximenes. These scholars tended to differ from the mythical
thought by proposing that the universe had emerged out of chaos. This has been compared with
the ‘Greek miracle’ related to Greek victory over Persians, representing victory of reason over
irrationality. The sixth century was also the time of crisis in several Greek city-states, including
Miletus that manifested itself in a social crisis between the aristocracy and the masses. This
ultimately resulted in a new political order in Miletus, which was based on the rule of law appli-
cable to all the residents of the polis. They also differed from the poets in their contention that
natural order was not determined by divine intervention. Each of the three, proposed new theo-
ries related to the elements constituting the nature. While Thales considered ‘moistness’ or
water as the chief element constituting nature and Anaximander proposed the theory of oppo-
site elements (such as wet and dry, hot and cold), Anaximenes emphasised on air as the chief
element as the driving force of the universe. These ideas, in the fifth century bce, gave rise to
debates and controversies leading to the growth of rational thought rather than speculations
about the natural phenomenon.
Another major school of thought was the one propagated by Pythagoras of the Island of
Samos in Eastern Greece. There are no definite dates about his birth and death, which has been
approximately put to 569 bce and 500 and 475 bce, respectively. In 530 bce, Pythagoras migrated
to a city called Croton in Southern Italy and is said to have founded a new religious sect which
functioned like a secret society. The sect founded by Pythagoras was highly influenced by the
Orphic sect (related to the worship of god Orpheus). He borrowed the concept of immortality
of soul from the Orphics and developed the theory of transmigration of soul. Pythagoras and
his followers (called Pythagoreans) in their search for bringing about harmony of souls
 Ancient Greece 217

emphasised on following a middle path (‘the mean’). The middle path was connected with num-
bers and symmetry. This led them to concentrate on the study of mathematics and musical
theory. Pythagoras is particularly famous for his theory known as Pythagoras theorem that was
based on ancient Babylonian assumptions. According to this theory, in a right angle triangle, the
square of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides (mathemati-
cally expressed as a2 + b2 = c2). Another group of thinkers in Greece were known as Sophists
(‘those who are wise’) whose emphasis on power of the individuals gained popularity in the
aftermath of Greek victory over the Persians. In Athens particularly, the rise of democracy and
rise in the power of the individual citizens promoted philosophical quest into developing a
worldly wisdom where individuals can perform at their best. Most prominent protagonist of the
Sophist school was Protagoras (445–420 bce). But his emphasis on the abilities of men (his
famous dictum being ‘man is the measure of all things’) and dismissing existence of the divine,
created fears about the rise of tyrants and anarchy due to atheistic ideas of the Sophists. This
led to the growth of a new philosophical movement initiated by Socrates, which was based on
the theory that truth about god is real and there are indeed absolute standards of right and
wrong. His ideas were carried forward further by Plato and Aristotle.
By fifth century bce, Athens had become the main centre of the intellectual life of Greece.
Thinkers such as Anaxagoras (510–428 bce), a resident of Anatolia, is believed to be the first to
introduce philosophy in Athens. He rejected the notion of generation of matter, suggesting that
matters are not born or destroyed instead there are commixtures and decompositions of the
existing things. Democritus (470–400 bce), another pre-Socratic thinker, was originally a citizen
of Abdera in Thrace. He carried forward the rationalist thought related to nature. He gave the
famous theory of atoms constituting the nature, though more in a philosophical sense than
scientific. His atomic hypotheses, also known as atomism, held that every matter is composed
of atoms that were the basic element of nature. The universe consists of the matter that is in
constant state of motion or change. But atom in this hypothesis should not be confused with
atoms of modern science with which Newton is associated.

Philosophy
The Greek philosophy (‘the love of wisdom’) originated in the sixth century bce and reached its
golden era in the classical phase. The early Greek philosophers were primarily concerned with
the study of the structure of physical universe (cosmos or kosmos). During the Classical Age,
Athens became the centre of the intellectual activity. Since Athens was also the first city-state to
experiment with democracy, it was here that the later philosophers abandoned the study of the
cosmos and focused their study on the city and its inhabitants. Socrates (469–399 bce) was the
first to bring about the fundamental transformation in the Greek thinking from an emphasis on
the study of nature or to the study of human existence. Therefore, the Greek philosophers prior
to Socrates have been termed as pre-Socratics. Socrates put all existing assumptions to thorough
examination and critic. His emphasis on ethics created enemies in the democratic political set up
of Athens, leading to his execution after the Athenian defeat in the Peloponnesian war in 399 bce.
However, it was during the time of his pupil Plato (427–347 bce) that philosophy was recognised
as an independent discipline. Plato founded the famous Athenian institution for the study of
philosophy, known as the Academy, where he also taught. Plato presented his ideas in the form
of dialogues (treatises expressed in dramatic forms) in which Socrates invariably remained the
218 Ancient and Medieval World

chief speaker. Prominent among Platonic treatises are the Phaedo, the Symposium and the
Republic which together comprise the complete work on philosophy. Among these, the Republic
contains the most graphic description of Plato’s theory of ideas and political philosophy. The
crux of Plato’s philosophy (termed as ‘idealist’) is the relationship between mind and matter.
Plato argued that things do not exist outside our minds rather they are the products of our
thought process. He was also of the opinion that experiences are unreal and only ideas are real,
and this reality can only be grasped through contemplation. The time in which Plato lived was
the period of the decline of the urban culture of Athens, the conflict between the city-states and
the rich and the poor. To bring about an end to this chaos, Plato proposed (in the Republic) that
decision-making power should be in the hands of the philosophers while the ‘guardians’ (an intel-
lectually superior group) should govern the masses, that is, the artisans, traders and the farmers.
In this sense, Plato’s idea of state was elitist in nature with the sole concern for social harmony
rather than the democratic ideals of liberty and equality. He also proposed equal distribution of
land and a very strict control on the lives of the citizen. To achieve social equilibrium and civic
justice, Plato called for physical, musical and philosophical education for both men and women.
The Greek philosophy reached its new height through the intellectual brilliance of Aristotle
(384–322 bce). Aristotle was a disciple of Plato but he left the Academy after latter’s death.
Being the son of a physician, he had learnt to be a keen observer of natural phenomenon.
Therefore, while he agreed with Plato’s contention that certain things can only be grasped by
the human mind, his philosophy differed from his teacher’s in his perception that human mind
could understand the universe only through experience. Aristotle, unlike Plato, believed in
objective reality of material objects and was of the opinion that an objective and scientific
investigation of material things and their functioning would provide a better comprehension of
the natural world and the place of humans in it. Aristotle had a wide knowledge of biology, plant
life, logic, metaphysics, ethics, poetics and political science (of which he is considered to be the
founder). For him, every matter has a purpose in this universe and therefore everything moves
towards its natural end. In other words, Aristotle believed that the universe was in a constant
state of motion. That is the reason why Aristotle’s school of thought is also called ‘peripatetic’.
As for his political ideas, Aristotle again differed from those of Plato. While Plato considered
politics as means to an end, Aristotle considered it as an end in itself where collective exercise
is done to achieve good life. He stated, ‘Man is a political animal’ (or creature of the polis) but
prescribed political rights only for citizens and excluded slaves and women from the activities
of the polis. Although he did talk about polis but Aristotle never considered democracy as the
best form of polity. Instead, he proposed a polity that was a balanced combination of monarchi-
cal, aristocratic and democratic elements. Aristotle’s encyclopaedic knowledge and approach
is considered as reasons behind the enormous influence that he exerted during his lifetime and
also later in the intellectual life of the Hellenistic period. Although both Plato and Aristotle are
known for their originality, the fact that Athens was going through a period of crisis accounted
for their conservative views towards polity and society. Both did not have a new prescription
to stem the rot and only talked about reorganisation of the existing polity.

History Writing
A new trend in historical writing, which developed in the classical Greece, can be discerned in
the works of Herodotus and Thucydides. They brought about an element of inquiry into history
 Ancient Greece 219

that hitherto was a mundane description of part fiction and part facts, heroes, myths, legends,
fables and anecdotes. History, in the writings of Herodotus and Thucydides, was given its true
meaning because in Greek ‘history’ means ‘learning by inquiry’. Incidentally, Herodotus is also
called ‘father of history’ for introducing what we call historiography. Until Herodotus wrote his
History, kings forced their own stories through inscriptions that were authoritative descrip-
tions of their wars and conquests. But when Herodotus and Thucydides wrote, Greece was
experimenting with democracy. In this context, Luciano Canfora (1996) argues that historiog-
raphy and freedom were intimately tied to each other from the very beginning. Herodotus was
more concerned with cause and origin while dealing with historical events. Although Herodotus
was not a witness to the Persian war, he wrote about it after thorough investigation and getting
information on the war from his parents. He is said to be a widely travelled man and wrote his
account after gathering historical information, and it is only after verification and evaluation of
the information gathered that he recorded the evidence. But Herodotus was not neutral and
wrote about Athens with a perceived notion of Athenian superiority and in the form of an
Athenian propaganda for the acceptance of Athens as the leading city-state of Greece by other
polies.
Thucydides (460–399 bce) is considered as the first Athenian prose writer. Thucydides, in his
The History of the Peloponnesian War, gives a vivid description of the war, as he was a witness
to them. These wars also changed his perception of history, leading to a general theorisation by
him that only history one can possibly write is one’s own contemporary history. He is said to
have written the accounts of the war as an impartial observer. The pre-eminence of contempo-
rary history was established after Thucydides death in the writings of Xenophon of Athens and
Theopompus of Chios. The other areas of historiography where one can discern influence of
Thucydides is the subject matter of history. Herodotus had a broad idea of history and also
included cultural aspects while choosing the subject of history. Thucydides on the other hand
set the subject of history as war and the political struggle related to the war. However, his meth-
odology of history writing did not deviate much from that of Herodotus, which was based on
the quest to determine the truth through investigation and incisive analysis. Thucydides also
wrote extensively on contemporary political situation in Greece. The legacy of Thucydides was
inherited by Xenophon who represents the historiographical transition from classical Greece to
the Hellenistic Age.

Science and Technology

Science like philosophy did not become an independent discipline in Greece before fourth cen-
tury bce. The earliest Greek physicists were philosophers in equal measure. Few of them, such
as, Thales of Miletus, were politicians too. In the field of science and technology, Greece is
considered as an heir to the great scientific and technological achievements of the Egyptians
and Babylonians. But where the Greeks differed from the scientists of these two great ancient
civilisations was their rational thought that dispensed with supernatural forces and also opened
their analysis to debate and discussion. This has been attributed to the growth of democracy
and a new type of city-based polity where decision-making was arrived at after a discussion
involving the community of citizens. But at the same time, the Greek science has also been
found to be too theoretical, which was a direct outcome of abstract thoughts where knowledge
became means in itself, without giving much consideration to its practical application. It has
220 Ancient and Medieval World

been pointed out as a matter of fact that from the time of Thales to the classical times, the
Greek thought is not easy to distinguish from science as it is directed towards comprehension
of the principles of nature. While this led to refinements in the realm of ideas, the efforts
towards applied science and experimentation became a victim.
The earliest Greek scientists are called Ionians, all of whom were the natives of Miletus, an
Anatolian city. It was here that a serious inquiry was done leading to origination of theories
regarding the substance the nature is made up of. As mentioned earlier, Thales, Anaximander
and Anaximenes propounded their own theories regarding the elements constituting the nature.
These theories were not tested through experiments. On the other hand, in the Greek colony of
Southern Italy, similar abstract thoughts, propounded by Pythagoras and his followers, laid the
basis of the origin of mathematical science. The emphasis on numbers as the principal determi-
nant of nature by the Pythagoreans led to development of theories linking numbers with geo-
metric figures. By the end of the sixth century, however, the Greek scientists developed a
preoccupation with solutions to problems related to changes in nature. While scientists such as
Parmenides (a native of Elea in Southern Italy) rejected the idea of change completely, consid-
ering things as eternal, Empedocles (490–430 bce), a citizen of Acragas in Sicily, proposed that
the change in nature was caused by mixture and separation of substances. Most popular among
these theories, however, was the atomic hypothesis propounded by Democritus about which
mention has been made earlier.
Fifth century bce in Greece in general and Athens in particular witnessed a new intellectual
movement when there was an emphasis on dealing with moral issues and political philosophy
rather than purely scientific pursuits. But physicians such as Hippocrates (469–399 bce) of Kos
and his followers were widely welcomed by the Athenian intellectuals. Hippocrates used pure
scientific ideas to treat diseases, taking it away from the clutches of magical cures. He used the
scientific methodology of studying the symptoms and then based on this, arriving at the diag-
nosis before treatment. Hippocrates believed that all diseases are caused by nature and the
causes can be studied through a scientific investigation. For his contribution to medicine and
for being the founder of the Hippocratic School of Medicine, he is called the ‘father of modern
medicine’. The modern day physicians are also made to take the ‘Hippocratic Oath’ at the time
of their induction. Plato also contributed to the scientific knowledge by postulating that all
natural substances are composed of four simple bodies’ earth, water, air and fire. The contem-
porary physicians tended to disagree to this but did try to relate human blood with qualities
such as hot and cold and dry and moist. But few scholars, such as, Claude Mossè (1996), point
out that health was identified with ‘isonomic’ and disease with ‘monarchic’ disequilibrium, thus
hinting at politics as the model for Greek science. A separate text for diseases related to women
has also been described as reflecting Greek view of the division of sexes. In the field of astron-
omy, the prominent name was that of Eudoxus of Cnidus (Asia Minor) who postulated about
the motion of celestial bodies through his theory of concentric spheres revolving around the
earth in varying speeds, each moving about a diameter as its axis. Here too, the Greek astrono-
mers attempted the application of mathematical models for studying the natural phenomenon.
However, Aristotle remained the most famous scholar of Greece even on the matters of sci-
ence in the Classical Age. While following his predecessor’s theory that the matter is made up
of four basic elements, air, water, earth and fire, and also that there are four basic qualities of
matter, hot, cold, wet and dry, Aristotle added ether as the fifth constituent of matter, keeping
in mind the existence of the celestial bodies. Aristotle was more concerned with fact and obser-
vation rather than mathematical probabilities while dealing with the study of the motion of the
 Ancient Greece 221

celestial bodies. In this way, he became the first scientist to deal with dynamics. In the field of
biology, his writings give detailed description of several animal species. He is also credited with
initiating dissection of animals with his students. With his emphasis on observation, Aristotle
tried to refute the general impression that Greek science was divorced from observation and
practical life. But scholars generally hold the opinion that it was only in the Hellenistic age that
real progress was made towards practical application of science and technology.

Greek Religion
Our information on Greek religion is largely based on the Greek mythology, the writings and the
monuments that give us information about Greek history, its religious practices and rituals con-
nected with worship of the deities. However, these sources say a little about the significance of
these rituals and many easily comprehensible sacred concepts have been made complex by the
abstract notions of the intellectual world. An important aspect related to Greek religion was the
fact that despite Greece not being politically unified, its people nonetheless shared common
cultural practices of which religion was a major part. It has been suggested that the Greeks
inherited the universal religious beliefs of Eastern Mediterranean. One gets earliest reference
to the Greek religion through the Homeric epics Iliad and Odyssey. These epics provide us a
detailed picture of the Greek mythology during the so-called ‘Dark Ages’ and along with
Hesiod’s, Theogony provided a systematic blue print of Greek religion. But the Greek religion
outlined in these epics was elitist in nature and depicted the religious practices of the warrior
aristocracy, as Homer was mainly concerned with legends of the warriors. But the impact of
these epics was so dominant among the citizens of Greece that the religion propagated in them
retained its relevance and popularity throughout Archaic and Classical Periods.
The Greek religion, like many contemporary religions, was not revealed and was connected
with the daily life of the people. Since the Homeric period, several deities were worshipped by
the Greeks, displaying its pantheistic nature. The earliest Greek gods were known as Olympian
gods and worshipped in what is known as Olympian pantheon which emerged out of the belief
that the these gods lived on Mount Olympus (Thessaly). An important feature of the ancient
Greek religion was the fact that the role and functions of the deities worshipped kept on chang-
ing depending on place and time. For example, Zeus (lord of the Olympus and ruler of the divine
world), who was the most prominent among the 12 deities worshipped by the Greeks was given
various attributes by the Athenians. This indicates several roles that Zeus was assigned to play
such as that of a saviour (Soter), protector of the household (Herkeios), guardian of property
(Ktesios), and so on. In a similar fashion Athena, the chief goddess, was worshipped in several
roles as goddess of the virgin (Parthenos), protectorate of the city of Athens (Polias), a high-
ranking warrior (Promachos) and so on. Likewise, Apollo, the son of Zeus, was worshipped
associating him with archery, song and music. The other among the 12 Olympian deities such
as Poseidon (god of the sea), Hera (originally a mother goddess), Demeter (originally a mother
goddess and later goddess of the grain especially wheat), Ares (god of war), Hephaestus (god
of blacksmiths, artisans and craftsmen), Hermes (messengers of gods, god of trade, travellers
as well as thieves), Artemis (goddess of the hunt and the wildlife), Hestia (the virgin goddess of
the hearth, the right ordering of domesticity, architecture and family) and Aphrodite (the god-
dess of love, beauty, sexuality and procreation) were also assigned multiplicity of roles in the
pantheon. The Greek deities were worshipped with human characteristics and emotions but
222 Ancient and Medieval World

what distinguished them from the humans was their immortality. Few of them were the patron
deities of some cities (like Athena of Athens) but their appeal and popularity was not confined
to that city alone.
An interesting aspect of the Greek religious pantheon was the cult of Dionysus, the deity who
was very popular among the masses and therefore was not included by Homer in the Olympian
pantheon. Dionysus was popular as a fertility god as well as the god of the vine and the drunk-
enness (or orgies) that follows after drinking wine. This cult was of a primitive origin, which
first developed in Thrace and then rapidly spread to several parts of Greece at the popular level.
Gradually, towards the end of the Archaic and beginning of the Classical Period, Dionysus cult
was incorporated in the Greek religion and Dionysus found a place among the Olympian deities.
But after incorporation into Olympian pantheon, Dionysus as the city deity presided over sober
festivals, joyous processions and cultural events when the Greek tragedy and comic theatre
was organised. Thus, the cult of Dionysus represented the twin personality of human beings—
one which can be termed as ‘beastly’ and the other sober and more ‘human’. Through the vari-
ous cults of the pantheon and the worship of several divinities, the Greeks were able to enforce
a complex set of social and political values outlined by the contemporary intellectual thoughts.
Rituals were another noticeable aspect of the Greek religion that was given utmost impor-
tance by the Greeks in both private and public life, which often overlapped. In the domestic life,
there were well-defined rituals connected with birth, transition from adolescence to adulthood,
marriage and death. For example, at Athens, the transition from adolescence to adulthood was
marked by young men offering their hair to Artemis and young women devoted their life for a
year in the service of Artemis in the sanctuary. Similarly, the dead were venerated during a civic
celebration known as Anthesteria (feast of flowers) held during the end of February when it
was believed that the dead joined in the celebrations with the living. On the last day of the three-
day festival, the whole city observed mourning. In the public domain, Greek religion was
closely linked with the civic life. At Athens, sources inform us that sacrifices used to be per-
formed before the meeting of the public assembly and the chosen magistrates had to take an
oath before assuming office. Interestingly, the priestly class did not have any major role to play
either in looking after the sanctuaries or in the performance of sacrifices. These religious func-
tions were conducted by the magistrates and sometimes by the priests. By the time of the
Classical Period, ordinary citizens also had the right to perform these rituals. This was also a
representative of the democratic polity that was in vogue at that time in Athens. The city
authorities strictly supervised the organisation of civic festivities. The biggest beneficiary of
these festivities was the Greek drama as plays were enacted during the course of these celebra-
tions that had large audience. In this context, the most popular among these festivities was the
Great Dionysia festival dedicated to Dionysus, which was famous for dramatic contests.
Likewise, Homeric epics were recited during the festival of Panathenaea dedicated to the god-
dess Athena and Olympic games were organised during the festival of Zeus at a place called
Olympia in Peloponnese. The year of beginning of these games, which were held every four
years, has been found to be 776 bce. The athletic competitions were organised during these
games attracted people from all over Greece. A victory in this game not only brought individual
glory to the winner but also to the city to which the participant belonged. To honour Apollo and
Poseidon, similar games were organised at Delphi and Corinth respectively. Musical competi-
tions and oratory contests were also a part of these festivities.
The Greeks also constructed sanctuaries for their deities but it was more to house the gods
and goddesses than for prayer. The priest had the freedom to enter the main sanctuary and
 Ancient Greece 223

devotees were not allowed to proceed beyond a sacred point known as temenos where sacrifi-
cial altar was also kept. This place was in the form of a rectangular building and was located in
front of the temple. For larger public participation, rituals were performed outside the temple
in an open area. The construction of big temples at places such as Delphi, Delos, Olympia and
Athens further added to the Greek architectural technique. At Athens, during the reign of
Pericles in the Classical Period, a massive temple (Parthenon) dedicated to Olympian deities
was constructed. The striking feature of this temple is the high roof supported by several pillars
placed close to each other. In few of these temples, supplementary buildings were constructed
where offerings were collected for the deity housed in the main sanctuary. Claude Mossè (1996)
is of the opinion that these large sanctuaries were symbolic of the religious unity of Greece with
all her political divisions as large number of people from different parts of Greece flocked to
these temples during festivities.
Another noticeable aspect of the Greek religion was the importance attached to seeking
prophecy about one’s future and advices from the deity. It was believed that the deities revealed
the future through signs that could only be interpreted by specialists. These specialists were
attached to certain sanctuaries termed as oracles. Prominent among such oracles was the
temple at Delphi where people from all over Greece came to consult the oracle that provided
uniqueness to the shrine. People consulted the oracles on both private and public matters, but
the latter had the predominance. This is evident from the fact that the administrative council of
the shrine, in which all leading polies of Greece were represented, was more of a political group
that remained dominant during the entire Classical Period of Greek history. Another feature of
Greek religion relates to what has been perceived as mysticism. The cult of Dionysus, that fol-
lowed frenzied dancing orgies but was later subsumed under the sober civic function, retained
its mysterious element in the form of the initiation rites at Eleusis. The ceremony known as the
Eleusinian Mysteries included a number of purification rituals, fasts, retreats and so on to
achieve revelation about eternal life. Another groups representing philosophico-mystical aspect
of the Greek religion were the Orphics and Pythagoreans. While the Orphics rejected the rituals
of the city and advocated a life of abstinence, a meatless diet and rejection of blood sacrifices,
the Pythagoreans joined the city rituals but refused to eat meat.
Greek religion was also influenced by oriental religious beliefs mainly because of the fact
that Greeks had maintained links with Anatolia since ancient times. This resulted in synthesis
of some religious practices between the two. Although the Greek gods remained dominant in
Eastern Mediterranean until about the end of the sixth century bce, the Anatolian mother god-
dess had great similarities with Demeter and Sabazios (the Thracian god of sky) with Dionysus.
By the end of the fifth century bce, however, Olympian gods started losing their importance in
the aftermath of the Peloponnesian wars and the destruction caused by it, leading to temporary
abandonment of religious practices. Toward the close of the century, the Sophists also started
advocating abandonment of traditional religious practices. Thus, this decline in civic religions
led possibly to the introduction of cults of Oriental origin in Greece. Worship of the Thracian
mother goddess, Bendis, in Athens was a part of this trend about which reference has been
found in the writings of Plato in the Republic. Influx of foreign deities in Greece during this
period has also been attributed to presence of many foreign traders in big ports such as Piraeus.
But Claude Mossè (1996) points out that there were other factors too that led to the popularity
of these foreign cults in Greece. According to Mossè, unlike civic religions, worship of these
deities was open to everyone, including citizens and foreigners but also to women and slaves.
Women in particular played an important role in popularising foreign religions. Another reason
224 Ancient and Medieval World

of popularity of these religions in Greece was the fact that while the Greek religious thought
offered salvation to the elite alone, these religions offered the promise of salvation to all its
followers, thus providing comfort from their wretched earthly life.

Summary
1. Greece, home to two great Bronze Age civilisations, Minoan and Mycenaean, was in
the shape of an irregular peninsula surrounded by sea on three sides. Its orientation
towards the sea and the fact that farming area in Greece was restricted to the moun-
tain valleys along with lack of fordable rivers made sea as the major transportation
medium. This enabled the Greeks to become expert mariners and seafarers. The
mountains divided Greece into several regions. The rugged terrain made transporta-
tion between regions difficult. This led to the growth of independent city-states.
2. The city-states of Greece were spread over nine major geographical regions. Athens
and Sparta were the prominent city-states of Greece about which we have definite
information. The other big city-states were Corinth, Thebes and Macedonia.
3. During the so-called Dark Age (1200–800 bce), the Greek-speaking people colonised
the Aegean region and areas around the west coast of Anatolia. This brought about
a cultural unification of Mainland Greece with Aegean, Crete and Western Anatolia.
People inhabiting these territories were termed as ‘Greeks’ or Graeci by the Romans.
But the Greeks called themselves by various names of which ‘Hellenes’ was the most
popular.
4. The ‘Dark Age’ was characterised by the decline of the great empires as that of the
Mycenaeans and the Hittites, decline in script, disruption of trade and also lack of
archaeological and literary sources. The ‘Dark Age’ is said to have come to an end
with the finding of epics such as Iliad and Odyssey, supposedly written by Homer.
These epics are rich sources of information on Greek polity, society, economy and
culture during 1200–800 bce.
5. The ‘kings’ of the ‘Dark Age’ mentioned in these epics were rulers with limited
resources. Since they did not have resources to build a huge army or bureaucracy,
they were dependent on the landed warrior aristocracy for fighting war to augment
their resources. As kingship weakened after 1000 bce, political control came to rest
in the hands of the landed aristocracy who organised themselves into an oligarchy.
6. The ‘Dark Age’ also brought about a breakdown of tribal and clan ties and led to the
development of individual households termed as oikos. The oikos, in most of the
regions of Greece, was the basic social as well as a self-sufficient economic unit. By
the end of the ‘Dark Age’, a clear distinction had developed between oikos of the
aristocracy and that of ordinary peasants. The other social units of this period were
genos, phyle and demos, representing clan, tribe and interrelated members of the
village respectively. The landless people without any oikos were termed as thetes.
7. After the end of the ‘Dark Age’, the history of ancient Greece has been divided into
Archaic (800–500 bce) and Classical (500–398 bce) phases. An important
 Ancient Greece 225

development of the Archaic Age was the development of city-states or polis. The
demographic and economic expansion of Greece during this period, supported by an
increase in trading activities and growth of towns, necessitated the creation of a
mechanism to bring about cohesion and cooperation among the inhabitants of the
town. Development of polis represented such a mechanism.
8. The polis was both a territorial and political unit and consisted of both urban and
rural centres. All the Greek poleis were invariably located in an urban centre but
were heavily dependent on their rural hinterland. The most significant aspect of the
polis was greater participation of its inhabitants in its decision-making process,
accompanied with strict social justice. However, few of the Greek regions were not
organised on the lines of polis but on ethnos or ethnicity where inhabitants were
divided into villages and where no prominent urban centre has been located.
9. Economic development of the polis brought about economic and social inequalities
with the landed aristocracy prospering at the cost of small and landless peasantry.
An improvement in the warfare technology and tactics led to the growth of a new
class of Hoplite warriors who mostly belonged to the middle class. The lower and
the middle class of the peasantry opposed the economic and political monopoly of
the aristocracy. This led to social tensions throughout Greece, forcing the aristoc-
racy to bring out reforms in some of the Greek poleis. During the Classical Age, the
Greek states experimented with three types of political structure—oligarchy,
democracy and tyranny in order to bring about harmony in the respective poleis.
Few states such as Athens witnessed all three types of constitution during the
course, both Archaic and Classical phases.
10. Athens was the most prominent polis of the Attica region located in southeast
Greece. During the Archaic Age, the polis was governed by an oligarchic council
dominated by the landed aristocracy. The aristocracy monopolised all fertile land,
pushing ordinary peasants towards the marginal lands. The deteriorating condition
of the peasantry, including debt-slavery, created a condition of social tension in the
seventh century bce, often taking violent forms. This forced the aristocracy to bring
out reforms to reduce the social conflict.
11. The economic, political and legal reforms introduced in Athens by Solon, Peisistratus
and Cleisthenes improved the condition of the peasantry and also brought an end to
the political and economic monopoly of the aristocracy. Their political reforms,
including creation of a new people’s assembly and introduction of new eligibility for
citizenship and membership of the assembly, strengthened democratic institutions
and led to the growth of Athenian democracy in 510 bce. Their legal reforms on the
other hand established equality before law, ending some of the legal privileges of the
aristocracy.
12. However, despite these reforms, there were some obvious limitations to the demo-
cratic functioning of the polis. Women, foreigners and slaves were excluded from
the body of citizens. Moreover, since the meeting of the assembly was held at a
designated place (agora) in the city, many citizens residing in far-flung areas could
not participate in the democratic decision-making process. The mandatory military
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226 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

service also restricted the large-scale participation of common people in the political
process.
13. Sparta (located in Peloponnese) on the other hand, never made any real attempt
towards democracy, and the aristocratic oligarchy dominated the polity for much of
its history. The people’s assembly (apella) did not have much political power in
comparison to the council of elders (gerousia). In the beginning, Sparta followed an
unusual dual monarchy whose powers were much reduced by Archaic Age and their
function was now restricted to being leaders of the oligarchic council. The Spartan
constitution was thus a curious combination of monarchy, democracy and
oligarchy.
14. The conversion of the entire population of Laconia and Messenia into slaves after
their defeat at the hands of Sparta led to an increase in the number of slaves vis-à-vis
the Spartan citizens. This turned Sparta into a militarised state with the entire citizen
body of Sparta geared towards the protection of the city from the slaves. Boys from
a very young age were given military training and were subjected to strict discipline.
Military training was the only way to gain citizenship rights.
15. The Persian and Peloponnesian wars greatly affected the course of Greek political
history. Darius and his successor Xerxes made an elaborate plan of Persian conquest
of Greece. Athens (the most powerful power on the sea) and Sparta (the most pow-
erful power on land) were together able to defeat the Persian fleet in 480 bce in the
Battle of Salamis. Subsequently, Delian League, under the leadership of Athens, was
formed to defend Greece from future Persian attacks. But Athens befitted greatly
both politically and economically as leader of the League leading to the rise of
Athenian Empire. But the Athenian attempt to encroach into Peloponnese brought
them into conflict with Sparta. The Peloponnesian wars that followed led to the
defeat of Athens but weakened both without any substantial gain for Sparta. The
Athenian defeat made Sparta the most powerful polis of Greece. But the territorial
expansion of Sparta and decline in the number of its citizens made it difficult for
Sparta to secure the empire. Later, Sparta was defeated by the Macedonian ruler
Alexander, who brought entire Greece under the Macedonian dominance during
336–323 bce.
16. Slavery had existed in the ancient world since early times, but, in those civilisations,
the economic role of the slaves was limited. But in Greece, in several areas of its
economy, the slaves acted as primary producers. Based on this, the Marxist scholars
have termed the Greek economy as slave mode of production where slaves pro-
duced majority of the surplus that was appropriated by their masters. They argue
that Greece and Rome were the only genuine slave societies. However, others have
questioned the role of slaves in the economy in every field of the Greek economy.
17. At Athens, the reforms of Solon and Peisistratus such as abolition of debt slavery
and redistribution of land created shortage of labour for the landed aristocracy, forc-
ing them to look for labour from outside in the form of slaves. The demographic
figures suggest that slaves accounted for a substantial section of population at
 Ancient Greece 227

Athens. Apart from a flourishing trade in slaves, wars, piracy and raids on the tribal,
communities were the major sources of slave supply.
18. Slaves were employed in various sectors of the Athenian economy—agriculture,
handicrafts and mining—with mining sector employing maximum number of slaves.
Athens followed chattel slavery where slaves were bought and sold individually in
the market. While in the Archaic Age maximum numbers of slaves at Athens were of
Greek origin, most of the slaves were outsiders in the Classical Age. Their status as
a commodity and their kinlessness gave their masters complete control over the
slaves. Women slaves were mainly employed for domestic work but they also con-
tributed towards spinning and weaving industry.
19. Several terms were used for slaves in Athens, the most popular being doulos.
Although, the masters were free to treat the slaves the way they wanted to but there
were some cultural restrictions on unpleasant treatment towards the slaves. Writings
of Aristotle and other thinkers of the contemporary times suggest that the existing
social ideology also supported slavery as an institution. Existence of slavery had
social, psychological and political impact on the Athenian citizens. Politically, slav-
ery facilitated the growth of Athenian democracy besides giving Athenians a sense
of superiority and confidence to achieve anything. The evidence of slave reaction to
the treatment meted out to them is few and far. This has been explained by factors
such as lack of solidarity due to their kinlessness and personal bonding with the
master as well as manumission from slavery.
20. The form of slavery practiced in Sparta was known as helotry. After victory over
Laconia and Messenia, the entire population was turned into slaves (Helots). Helots
were state-owned slaves unlike the chattel slaves of Athens that could be bought and
sold in the market. The confiscated land of the Laconians and Messenians were
handed over to the Spartans as kleroi. The State allotted slaves to each owner of
kleroi as per their needs. Slaves were not privately owned and therefore could not
be manumitted. But evidences do suggest that slaves could be sold individually but
within the boundary of Sparta.
21. Helots were largely used in agriculture as commodity production was relatively less
developed in Sparta. It was the surplus produced by the Helots that sustained the
Spartan military state. Socially, the treatment meted out to the Helots were worse
than the douloi for the simple reason that slaves in Sparta far outnumbered the citi-
zens and therefore harsh measures were needed to control them. The reaction of the
slaves to this kind of treatment was naturally more active as they all belonged to the
same ethnic group. However, there were factors too that forced the Helots into sub-
mission like personal bonding with the masters and manumission.
22. The Greek culture was an outcome of a synthesis of various cultural beliefs even
though Greece was not politically unified until Alexander brought this unification.
The Classical Age in Greece is considered as the Golden Age with respect to cultural
developments, particularly in the field of art and architecture, literature and drama,
and thoughts and religion. Cultural growth in Greece was also facilitated by the
(Continued)
228 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

presence of slavery as it provided the Greek citizen with the leisure time to devote
themselves in cultural pursuits.
23. In the field of art, the ‘black-figure’ pottery of Corinth was dominant until it was
replaced by the Athenian black pottery. A new method of making pottery was
invented by the Athenian potters in 530 bce in the form of ‘red-figure’ pottery. The
paintings on these represented themes from mythology as well as daily life. The art
of sculpture in the archaic phase was influenced by the Egyptian style but by the
Classical Age, the artists of Greece abandoned the Egyptian stylised forms and used
natural forms instead. Classical Age was also the Golden Age for Greek architecture
which was reflected in temple building (most notable being Parthenon at Athens)
activities along with urban structures such as civic buildings and theatres. The
temples particularly were embellished with paintings and sculptures with mythologi-
cal and contemporary heroes with a view to develop democratic spirit and pride in
the city.
24. The Greek literature originated from the Homeric epics Iliad and Odyssey. But the
growth of polis led to the development of a new literary genre in Greece, repre-
sented by the lyric poetry and drama. The lyric poetry (both solo and choral) were
also used by the monarchs and tyrants to perpetuate their authority.
25. The Greek drama (both comedy and tragedy) originated from Athens during the
Classical Age. Greek festivals such as the one dedicated to god Dionysus were used
to stage dramas. Since these were patronised by the state, they were greatly
impacted by religion and politics of the times. Greatest among the Greek tragedians
was Aeschylus. The Greek comedy was basically a satire on the contemporary poli-
tics and the politicians. Aristophanes is considered as the most prolific comedy
writers.
26. The Greek intellectual thought originated with the Ionian school of thinkers who
proposed a new way of the study of the cosmos and propounded the theory that
natural order was not determined by divine interventions. They also put forward the
view that the elements of nature were composed of water, wet and dry elements and
air. Another prominent school of thought was that of the Pythagoreans who empha-
sised on mathematical mean and symmetry to study the universe. The scholars of
the Sophists school, led by Protagoras, were also critical of the theory of divine
existence influencing the universe and emphasised instead on capabilities of man.
27. The Greek philosophy emerged out of the Greek thought and reached its climax
during the Classical Age. Socrates was the first thinker to turn the emphasis on
nature to the study of human existence. During Plato’s time, philosophy was recog-
nised as an independent discipline. Plato propagated his ideas in the form of a dia-
logue through his institution, Academy. Plato’s philosophy was mainly concerned
with relationship between mind and matter. He also offered solutions to end the
social conflict in Athens. However, it was under Aristotle that Greek philosophy
reached its climax. Aristotle proposed an objective and scientific investigation of
material things for better understanding of the natural world.
 Ancient Greece 229

28. In the field of history writing, a new methodology dominated by inquiry into history
was introduced by Herodotus and Thucydides. Their historiography represents a
new phase of historiography that was liberated from any monarchical influence.
They were instead based on actual course and origin of historical events such as
Persian and Peloponnesian wars. While Herodotus emphasised on both political and
cultural aspects as his historical subject, Thucydides’ notion of history was restricted
to war and political struggle.
29. The Greek science and technology was influenced by those of the Egyptians and
Babylonians but the major difference was the Greek emphasis on rational thought
and rejection of the notion of supernatural influence. But the Greek science has
been found to be more theoretical than practical. Ionians are considered as the earli-
est Greek scientists, who talked about elements constituting the nature. Pythagoras
and his followers laid the basis of the origin of mathematical science. Hippocrates
used scientific methodology of studying symptoms of diseases and then reaching a
diagnosis before treatment. In the field of astronomy, Eudoxus gave his theory
related to motions of the celestial bodies. However, Aristotle remained the most
popular scholar in the matters of science too. He added ether as the fifth element
apart from the four (air, water, earth and fire) as chief elements of matter. He also
taught his students the dissection of animals to dispel the notion that Greek science
was bereft of application.
30. The Greek religion was pantheistic in nature and involved worship of several deities,
popularly known as the Olympian deities, prominent among them being Zeus,
Athena and Apollo. The deities were worshipped in their several functional roles.
Rituals were an important aspect of Greek religion. They were followed in both pri-
vate and public religious functions. In domestic spheres, there were specified rituals
for every stage of human life. Civic rituals were organised by the city authorities
under strict supervision. The Greek drama benefitted from these festivities as drama
was invariably staged during such occasions. Athletic games (most prominent being
Olympic Games) and musical competitions were also organised during these reli-
gious festivals. There was no specialist class of priests for performing the rituals that
could also be done by the magistrates acting as priests. Later, ordinary citizens were
also given the right to perform civic rituals which was symbolic of the democratic
spirit.
31. Greeks constructed a large number of sanctuaries dedicated to their deities. But
these temples were meant to house the gods rather than worship. Entry of the
people was restricted to a particular point where public rituals were observed.
Parthenon (dedicated to the Olympian deities) at Athens was the most magnificent
temple of the Classical Age, built during the reign of Pericles.
32. The Greeks also attached great importance to seeking prophecy about both domes-
tic and public life from the oracles. The oracle at Delphi shrine was famous for its
prophecy that was handled by the specialists. The specialists were believed to pos-
sess the expertise to interpret the divine prophecies. Mysticism was another aspect
of Greek religion, which was represented by the cult of Dionysus. The
(Continued)
230 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

philosophico-mystical aspect of the Greek religion was expressed through the

Orphics and the Pythagoreans.
33. Greek religion was also influenced by other religious practices of regions such as
Near East, particularly Anatolia. As the Olympian gods started losing their impor-
tance after the Peloponnesian wars, foreign deities gained popularity in the Greek
pantheon. Influx of foreign cults into Greece has also been explained by the exis-
tence of foreign traders at big ports. Moreover, since these foreign cults promised
salvation to all its followers and not merely the elite, it gained wider popularity
among masses including women and slaves.

KEYWORDS
Attica Peloponnese Aegean Peninsula Iliad Odyssey oikos genos demos phyle
polis archaic classical ethnos thetes hektemoroi oligarchy monarchy democracy
tyranny archons agora ekklesia boule medimnoi Zeugitai metoikoi gerousia
doulos chattel helotry kleroi kinlessness cosmos prophecy mysticism Ionians
Pythagoreans sophists

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. What role did geography play in the growth of city-states in Greece?
2. Account for the emergence of polis in Greece.
3. Discuss the growth of political institutions in ancient Greece with special reference to
Athens and Sparta.
4. How far can the political institutions of Greece be termed as democratic?
5. How did Persian and Peloponnesian wars affect political developments in Greece?
6. Define slavery as an institution. Distinguish between Athenian and Spartanslavery.
7. Discuss the chief features of slavery in Ancient Greece.
8. What role did the slaves play in the economic development of Greece?
9. Discuss the chief features of Greek culture. How did the institution of slavery facilitate
cultural developments in Greece?
10. Bring out the essential features of ancient Greek religion. How did politics of the day
affect religious beliefs in Greece?

REFERENCES
Anderson, Perry. 1974. Passages from Antiquity to Feudalism. London: NBL/Verso Books.
Andrews, Anthony. 1971. Greek Society. UK: Penguin.
Braund, David. 2011. ‘The Slave Supply in Classical Greece’. In The Cambridge World History of Slavery, Vol I,
edited by Keith Bradley and Paul Cartledge, 112–33. New York: Cambridge University Press.
 Ancient Greece 231

Canfora, Luciano. 1996. ‘Language and Literature’. In History of Humanity, Vol III, edited by E. Condurachi, J.
Hermann and E. Zürcher, 160–62. London: Routledge/UNESCO Publishing.
Cartledge, Paul A. 1993. ‘Like a Worm i’the Bud? A Heterology of Classical Greek Slavery’. Greece and Rome
(Second Series) 40 (2): 163–80.
———. 2001. Spartan Reflections. London: Duckworth Publishers.
———. 2011. ‘The Helots: A Contemporary Review’. In The Cambridge World History of Slavery, Vol I, edited
by Keith Bradley and Paul Cartledge, 74–90. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Finley, Moses I. 1980. Ancient Slavery and Modern Ideology. London: Chatto and Windus.
Fisher, Nicolas R. E. 1993. Slavery in Classical Greece. London: Bristol Classical Press.
Glotz, Gustav. 1965. The Greek City and Its Institutions. New York: Barnes and Noble.
Harris, E. 1997. ‘A New Solution to Seisachtheia’. In The Development of the Polis in Archaic Greece, edited by
L. G. Mitchell and P. J. Rhodes, 103–12. London: Routledge.
Lerner, Gerda. 1987. The Creation of Patriarchy. Oxford University Press.
Lonis, Raul. 1996. ‘The Early Times of the Polis’. In History of Humanity, Vol III, edited by E. Condurachi, J.
Hermann and E. Zürcher, 147–49. London: Routledge/UNESCO Publishing.
McKeown, Niall. 2011. ‘Resistance Among Chattel Slaves in the Classical Greek World’. In The Cambridge World
History of Slavery, Vol I, edited by Keith Bradley and Paul Cartledge, 153–75. New York: Cambridge
University Press.
Mossè, Claude. 1996. ‘Religion, Philosophy, Science and Technology’. In History of Humanity, Vol III, E. edited
by Condurachi, J. Hermann and E. Zürcher, 153–59. London: Routledge/UNESCO Publishing.
Ober, Josiah. 2016. The Rise and Fall of Classical Greece. New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
Patterson, Orlando. 1982. Slavery and Social Death: A Comparative Study. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Rihll, T. E. 2011. ‘Classical Athens’. In The Cambridge World History of Slavery, Vol I, edited by Keith Bradley
and Paul Cartledge, 48–73. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Scarre, C., and Brian M. Fagan. 2016. Ancient Civilizations. New York: Routledge.
Ste. Croix, Geoffrey E. M. D. 1981. The Class Struggle in the Ancient Greek World. Ithaca: Cornell University
Press.
Wood, E. M. 1997. Peasant–Citizen and Slave: The Foundations of Athenian Democracy. London: Verso.
CHAPTER
Ancient Rome I: Rome

7 Under Republic,
Principate and Empire

Chapter Contents

• Geographical Setting and Early Rome

• Roman Republic
• Roman Principate and Empire
• Slave Society in Ancient Rome
• Agrarian Economy
• Urbanisation
• Trade
• Summary

GEOGRAPHICAL SETTING AND EARLY ROME

T
he Roman civilisation that emerged along the banks of Tiber River in Central Italy suc-
ceeded Greeks as the most dominant among the major ancient civilisations of Europe.
The core area of this civilisation may have been the Italian Peninsula but its impact was
felt in the entire Mediterranean world. The geographical location of Italy in general and Rome
in particular contributed in great measure towards the creation of a Mediterranean-wide
empire, controlled by Rome. Italy is surrounded by Tyrrhenian Sea in the west, Ionian Sea in
the southeast and the Adriatic Sea in the east. The peninsula is located in the west of Greece in
the Mediterranean Sea, separated by the narrow Adriatic Sea. There are two mountain chains
in and around Italy: the Apennines, running through the peninsula like its spine, and the Alps in
the north that separates it from the rest of Europe. Italy comprises a vast and varied region
some of which was most fertile in the ancient world and could sustain a large population. With
seas on three sides and one of the highest mountains on the fourth side, Italy was relatively
well-protected from external invasions at least in early antiquity. Nonetheless, several passes in
the Alps facilitated both immigrations and invasions into Italy. Italy’s projection deep inside the
Mediterranean region enabled it to dominate the sea linkages between Eastern and the Western
 Ancient Rome I 233

Mediterranean. Rome was situated on the west coast of Italy and its location on the Tiber River
gave it several advantages, a discussion of which will be taken up little later in this section.
A number of Indo-European speaking tribes, presumably after crossing the Alps, had settled
in Italy during the so-called Late Bronze Age (1300–1100 bce). These tribes intermingled with
the existing tribes, through peaceful or violent means, leading to modifications in their language
as well as in their culture. Romans were the descendants of one such Indo-European tribe to
have settled in Italy towards the close of the second millennium bce. During the Iron Age
(1000–750 bce), several Indo-European and non-Indo-European tribes had entrenched them-
selves in several parts of Italy. While Southern Italy was colonised by the Greeks, central, north-
ern, eastern and western half of Italy was inhabited by several Indo- and non-Indo-European
tribes. Prominent among the Indo-European tribes in Central Italy were the ones spoking Osco-
Umbrian or Sabellic language such as the Umbrians, Sabines, Samnites, Volsci, Vestini, and
Campani, to name a few, who inhabited Apennine Mountain regions located at the centre of the
Italian Peninsula. Another important Indo-European tribe to have settled in the western part of
Italy was the Latins (Romans) who inhabited the fertile and well-watered Latium region. Celtic
tribes like that of the Gauls settled in the northernmost part of Italy while Massapiis were domi-
nant in the Eastern Italy along the lower Adriatic around the Gulf of Tarentum. The most promi-
nent non-Indo-European tribe of the Italian Peninsula was that of the Etruscans who dominated
northwestern and central parts of Italy with the area of their influence extending up until the
Latium and the fertile and well-watered regions of Campania (see Map 7.1).
The Etruscans were among the early (Late Bronze Age) inhabitants of the Italian Peninsula
and had profound influence on the Romans. As the Etruscans were settled on the most fertile
tracts of Northwest and Central Italy, the Etruscan territory of Etruria (situated between Arno
and the Tiber rivers, modern Tuscany) witnessed a period of rapid economic growth between
what is known as the final Bronze Age (eleventh century bce) and the beginning of Iron Age.
The Etruscan economic power rested on flourishing agriculture (based on iron technology)
with emphasis on cereals and later wine and olive oil. In the subsequent period, rapid urbanisa-
tion, intensive exploitation of copper, silver and iron ores as well as remarkable commercial
growth consequent upon their contact with the Greeks made Etruscans as the most dominant
economic power of the Peninsula. Between 800 and 700 bce, the Etruscans occupied most of
Central Italy and brought the Latium region (including Rome) under their direct influence. The
Etruscan cities of Veii, Tarquinii, Caere, Vulci and Vetulonia, modelled on the lines of the Greek
city-states, entered a new era of economic prosperity and acquired dominant position over the
other cities of Italy. It is worth mentioning here that the growth of Etruscan city-state was
anchored on an agricultural expansion, based on iron technology. Besides a loose confedera-
tion of independent city-states, the Etruscans also borrowed from the Greeks their alphabet
and shared with them a religion based on the worship of Gods in human form. The Greek influ-
ence was carried further to the Romans too, as will be evident in the subsequent chapters of the
present book. Although the Etruscans succeeded in providing an urban model to different parts
of Italy through its self-governed cities, there were large-scale socio-economic differentiations
in these cities, as they were inhabited by both wealthy Etruscans and diverse Indo-European
tribes who were yet to achieve the economic status of the Etruscan aristocracy. This had a
profound impact on the history of the Roman civilisation, particularly from the point of view of
creation of republican constitution and oligarchic political rule in Rome.
Along with the expansion of Etruscan influence in the central part of the Italian Peninsula,
an important parallel development in the sixth century bce was the rapid rise of Rome as the
234 Ancient and Medieval World

MAP 7.1  Important Linguistic Groups of Italy and Etruscan Cities (750–500 bce)

Source: Adapted from a blank map by Norman Einstein. Available at [Link]

civilization_map.png#/media/File:Etruscan_civilization_blank_map.png
 Ancient Rome I 235

dominant city of the Latium region. Its location on the naturally favoured west coast of Italy on
the banks of Tiber River brought it several advantages. A slight bend on the river near Rome
due to the presence of a river island made it an ideal landing spot. Since ancient times, Tiber,
because of its easy navigability and its valleys, was used as important route for bringing salt
from the western coast to Central Italy. Later, Rome emerged as the largest river port for the
Greek, Phoenician and Etruscan merchants for their trade with Central Italy. The river also
facilitated the Romans with easy accessibility to the coastal route between Etruria and the
plains of Latium and Campania. Strategically speaking, the sand bars at the mouth of the Tiber
prevented entry to large warships, thus shielding Rome from any marine attack. The river itself
could block any attack on Rome by land from the northern side. Rome’s defensibility was fur-
ther increased by the surrounding seven hills, some of them originating from the river’s eastern
bank. These hills were Aventine, Palatine, Capitoline, Caelian, Esquiline, Viminal and Quirinal.
These not only defended Rome but also made possible the observation of enemy movements.
Thus, Rome’s connectivity with the Italian Peninsula from all directions enriched its economy
through trade and later enabled easy movement of its army to take control of the entire
Peninsula and beyond. Considering its ideal location (for both defence and offence), Rome was
therefore a natural choice of the capital of the unified Italy in the subsequent period.
Apart from its locational advantage, the rise of the Latin city of Rome can also be attributed
to Greek and Etruscan influence. Based on archaeological evidences, it has been suggested that
the origin of Rome should be seen as a part of a larger process that led to the growth of city-
states all over the Mediterranean world between 1000 and 600 bce. The process of the formation
of city-states speeded up during the Greek Archaic Age (750–500 bce) when the Greeks started
engaging themselves in the expanding world of commerce and craft manufacturing with the
Phoenicians and regions of Near East. This facilitated the growth of formally organised urban
centres having socially and economically differentiated inhabitants, a centralised governing
authority, markets, a unified religious and cultural practices and a uniform law enforcement
through courts among other things. The Greeks and Phoenicians reinforced the process of the
formation of city-states in Italy through commercial contacts and colonisation. The Etruscans,
influenced by the Greeks and the Phoenicians, and emboldened by the economic assets (fertil-
ity of the soil and rich mineral resources) of the territories under its sphere of influence created
a city-based civilisation and further promoted the growth of city-states in the areas covering
several parts of the Italian Peninsula, including the Latium region.
The traditional date of the foundation of the city of Rome, based on the Latin, Etruscan and
Greek legends, is 753 bce on the hills near the Tiber Island. As per the tradition, population of
Rome comprised of the inhabitants of the seven hills, and the city was fortified by a wall in
753 bce. Early Roman and Greek historians such as Varro, Cicero, Livy and Siculus, all of whom
wrote towards the close of the first century bce, seem to endorse the fact. But the recent
archaeological evidences in the form of grave goods, houses (identified as private and public
buildings), the drainage systems and streets gives 625 bce as the date of not only the foundation
of the city of Rome but also that of the Roman city-state. Few others, based on the similar
archaeological evidences, seem to suggest that the fortification of the city of Rome may not
have begun before 550 bce. This may have been necessitated due to a rapid growth in population
in these hilly regions consequent upon the fusion of several ethnic groups including the Latins,
Sabines and Etruscans.
Due to the paucity of information, our knowledge about the early history of Rome is inade-
quate. But whatever information, in the form of traditional accounts or archaeological
236 Ancient and Medieval World

evidences (findings of a bucchero cup and a black stone inscription near the grave of a king
inscribed with the word rex meaning king, both found near the royal palace), that we have
suggests that initially the Roman government was a monarchy wherein the king combined the
functions of political and civil government but was above all, the commander-in-chief. As per
the tradition, Rome, since its foundation until 510 bce, was ruled by seven kings of Latin, Sabine
and Etruscan origins. In the first half of the sixth century bce, a succession of monarchs of the
Etruscan origin ruled over Rome, few of whom bore the title of ‘Tarquin’. Under the reign of
tyrant, Tarquinius Superbus (also known as Tarquin the Proud), Rome’s political power grew as
many cities were subjugated and their religious centres were concentrated in Rome as a visible
sign of its supremacy. This was accompanied by the rapid economic growth of Rome due to
Etruscan dominance over agriculturally fertile regions of Campania, concentration of trade and
expansion of urban handicrafts. This laid the basis for major public works undertaken by the
Etruscan kings at Rome. But with the overthrow of Tarquin the Proud in 510 bce, monarchy
came to an abrupt end in Rome. Previous reverses of Etruscan navy in the Mediterranean, mili-
tary recovery of Latium and Campania (blocking Etruscan expansion towards Campania) and
events within the Roman society, including opposition to the institution of kingship by both the
common masses and the wealthy aristocracy (Patricians), have been cited as reasons for the
end of Etruscan dominance and monarchy in Rome. Legends also give importance to some
unfortunate incidents such as the rape and subsequent suicide of Lucretia (a virtuous Roman
matron) by a lustful Tarquin Prince Sextus (son of the Etruscan king Tarquin the Proud) as
reasons for decline in the prestige of Etruscan monarchy in Rome and its subsequent over-
throw. Rape of a virtuous woman was made symbolic of rape of ‘virtuous’ Rome by the foreign-
ers. Livy, in his The Early History of Rome quotes Brutus (an associate of Lucretia’s family) as
saying,

I swear that with sword and fire, and whatever else can lend strength to my arm, I will pursue Lucius
Tarquinius the Proud, his wicked wife, and all his children, and never again will I let them or any other
man be king in Rome.

This may be a fictional story but it also reflects the contemporary native Roman hatred towards
monarchical rule. Nevertheless, the Etruscan dominance over the Latium region deeply influ-
enced Roman society and culture. Roman art, mythology, architecture (particularly the con-
struction of arch and vaults), even the cruel sport of gladiatorial combats and the practice of
centring urban life around massive stone temples are said to have been derived from Etruscan
influence and therefore Greek too, as Etruscans themselves had adapted several forms of
Greek culture.

ROMAN REPUBLIC
The decline of monarchy in Rome was followed by the growth of a Republican form of govern-
ment that lasted for almost five centuries, that is, from 510 bce to 27 bce. A fundamental differ-
ence between a monarchy and a republic is that in a monarchy, supreme political power rest
with the king (though he may not be able to exercise it freely), and, in a republic, the supreme
political power rests with a body of citizens and is exercised by appointed officers who are in
some way responsible to the citizens. The structure of the Roman Republic did not remain fixed
 Ancient Rome I 237

and went through significant changes during the five centuries of its existence. A major con-
tributory factor to these changes was the territorial expansion of Rome during 510–27 bce,
which also in a large measure had impacts on its society, economy and culture much after the
decline of the Republic. Hence, it would be prudent to first take up a brief analysis of Roman
expansion during the Republican period.

The Roman Expansion

Expansion of Rome took place in phases covering three major regions—Italian Peninsula,
Western Mediterranean and Eastern Mediterranean (Table 7.1). Information related to the study
of Roman expansion is scattered in the history of Rome written by historians such as Livy,
Dionysius, Cassius, Polybius, Cicero, and Diodorus, and in the select biographies written by
Plutarch. These accounts are often exaggerated but modern-day historians have supplemented
them with archaeological findings and inscriptions to formulate a somewhat coherent account
of the Roman expansion. Here, the term expansion should be understood in a restricted sense
of dominance rather than outright territorial conquest of these regions by Rome. A series of
wars that the Romans fought during a span of roughly five centuries were aimed primarily at
the acquisition of land (land was scarce and was the main source of wealth and social status)
and glory, prestige and plunder were additional objectives. These wars were significant in many
ways for the body politic of the Roman Republic. The increasing role of army strengthened the
position of the warrior class in Roman polity and society, a huge demand for infantry drawn
mainly from ordinary citizens (plebeians) gave latter the opportunity to demand more rights
and privileges from the reluctant elite class (patricians) and brought about internal unity in the
wake of external threats. Roman expansion in far-flung areas in the Mediterranean and their
integration into Roman culture brought about a cultural synthesis that greatly affected Roman
religion and culture.

Italian Peninsula
The Roman quest for dominance began with their attempt to control the Italian Peninsula,
roughly during 490–265 bce. Within the peninsula, Romans first concentrated on Central Italy in
the Latium region. Romans forged an alliance with the towns of this region (the Latin League)
through a treaty famously known as Foedus Cassianum (after Roman signatory Cassius) in
493 bce. The Roman policy of extending Latin right to the citizens of the Latium region, giving
them a stake in Rome’s continued political and military success, further strengthened this alli-
ance. But Rome proved to be the dominant ally and its power increased at the expense of its
Latin allies. The alliance provided Rome the necessary resources (both economic and military)
to resist the invasions of other ethnic groups such as Aequi, Volsci, Sabines and the Etruscans
in the region. Apart from this, the Romans also entered into one-to-one defensive pacts with
individual Greek and Italian city-states that were threatened by Etruscans, Samnites and other
nearby tribes. These states were considered as partners (socii) of Rome and the pact with each
of these states was specific depending upon the circumstances. The partners had to provide
military support and surrender their foreign policies to Rome. The partners on their part joined
the pact in the hope of acquiring Latin status and ultimately the full Roman citizenship.
238 Ancient and Medieval World

Table 7.1  Chronology of Roman Expansion (500–27 bce)

Year Italian Peninsula Western Mediterranean Eastern Mediterranean

493 bce Formation of Latin League
485–390 bce Defeat of Aequi and Volsci
396 bce Capture of Etruscan city of Veii
350–290 bce Subjugation of Samnites,
Etruscans, Umbrians and
Gauls, conquest of Central Italy
338–330 bce Suppression of the revolt of
Latin Allies, Dissolution of the
Latin League, consolidation in
Central Italy
290–272 bce Conquest of Southern Italy
(Pyrrhic Wars and capture of
Tarentum)
264–241 bce First Punic War with
Carthage; acquisition of
Sicily, followed by seizure
of Corsica and Sardinia
218–201 bce Second Punic War with
Carthage; conquest of Spain
149–146 bce Third Punic War with
Carthage; destruction of
Carthage and acquisition of
North Africa
215–205 bce First Macedonian War
with Philip V; Creation of
anti-Macedonian coalition
in Greece by Rome
200–196 bce Second Macedonian War
with Philip V; Greek states
under Macedonia declared
as independent Republic
192–188 bce War with Antiochus III;
Capture of Syria and Asia
Minor
171–148 bce Third and fourth
Macedonian wars;
conquest of Macedonia
147 bce Acquisition of Hellenistic
states of Greece
30 bce War with Cleopatra and
conquest of Egypt
Source: Author.
 Ancient Rome I 239

The most significant early victory of Rome in the Italian Peninsula (which altered the future
Roman foreign policy) was the capture of the Etruscan city of Veii in 396 bce. The city of Veii,
closely located north of Rome, was rich and well fortified, and was the chief rival of Rome for
the control of lower Tiber Valley. Its conquest paved the way for Roman control over other
rich Etruscan cities of Central Italy, including their vast agricultural land. But the Romans suf-
fered a brief setback at the hands of the Celtic tribe of Gaul from the north who invaded and
sacked the city in 390 bce. This defeat at the hands of the Celts incited Rome’s Latin allies to
shake off Roman hegemony, forcing Rome to undertake a series of uninterrupted military
campaigns against them, the Etruscan cities of north Italy and the neighbouring Aequi and
Volsci. The process of consolidation of Roman hegemony in Central Italy was completed by
330 bce.
The Roman campaign to dominate Southern Italy began with their attempt to control
Campania during the process of which they had to encounter the Samnites who had founded a
tribal confederacy and were eyeing to control the rich plains of Campania and Lucania. This
conflict (known in Roman history as Samnite wars) witnessed shifting battle fortunes as the
Samnites had four times as much territory and twice the population as that of Rome. But the
sustained Roman military pressure enabled it to sign a victorious peace treaty with the Samnites
in 304 bce. Subsequently, nullifying support of the Gauls and Umbrians (Samnite allies) after a
long and intense war, Rome was able to capture Campania in 295 bce. But the Greek states of
Southern Italy offered stiff resistance to the Roman hegemonic endeavour. Among these, the
city of Tarentum took the lead to confront Rome. The Roman victory against the Samnites in
Central Italy had removed a powerful buffer between Rome and the most powerful Greek city-
state of Tarentum who were emboldened by the support from Pyrrhus, the Greek ruler of
Epirus, known for possessing a powerful army with elephant support. Although the army of
Pyrrhus defeated Romans in the battle of Heraclea (282 bce), even this tactical victory was
earned at a huge cost for Pyrrhus and therefore such victories in future course of history has
been termed as ‘Pyrrhic victory’. After a series of defeats and victories starting from 282 bce,
the Romans finally succeeded in defeating and expelling Pyrrhus to Greece in 275 bce, and
Tarentum was brought under Roman control in 272 bce. In this manner, the whole of Southern
Italy (one of the most fertile regions of the ancient world) and with this the entire Italian
Peninsula was brought under the hegemony of Rome, and the stage was set for its expansion
towards the Mediterranean.
But before we proceed to discuss the process of Roman expansion in the Mediterranean
region, it would be worthwhile to analyse in brief the mechanism that the Romans adapted to
sustain their hegemony in the Italian Peninsula. Here they desisted from wholesale absorption
of the conquered territories. Instead, they pursued a policy of hegemony whereby it acquired a
portion of the territories belonging to the defeated communities as a part of a ‘price’ for military
victory. The instrument used was conclusion of a treaty (  foedus) based on equality between
Rome and the individual city-states. But hidden behind this was the agenda to subjugate them
and create a network of relation with Rome at its centre. Granting of Roman citizenship rights
to the allies made them subject to Roman taxation and mandatory military service. The allied
states retained their autonomy in their internal affairs, but they were deprived of any indepen-
dent foreign policy. This arrangement eventually became the basis on which the Romans united
the whole of Italy. Rome was thus not only able to lay its hands on the most fertile tracts of the
Peninsula but also create a huge military power for expansion outside of it.
240 Ancient and Medieval World

Western Mediterranean
The Roman overseas venture began first with Western Mediterranean and lasted for more than
a century before Rome could establish its domination over the region. The Roman advance
towards Sicily (a big island situated near the southwestern tip of Italy) brought them into con-
flict with Carthage. Carthage was a Phoenician maritime empire, spread along northern coast
of Africa to the strait of Gibraltar and included parts of Spain, Sicily, Sardinia and Corsica.
Location of Carthage at a mid-point between Eastern and Western Mediterranean gave it a com-
mercial prowess, while the exploitation of the fertile tracts of Tunisia enriched its agricultural
resources. Added to this were Carthage’s naval might and a very strong army. The matching
Carthagian resources with Rome ensured that the conflict between the two was going to be a
protracted one. The prolonged military struggle between Rome and Carthage is collectively
known as the ‘Punic Wars’ as Romans called the Carthagians ‘poeni’ (i.e., Phoenicians). Three
Punic Wars were fought during 264–146 bce.
The First Punic War (264–241 bce) was fought due to Rome’s fear of Carthagian control over
the Sicilian port Messana, situated directly across the Italian Mainland. After 23 years of inter-
necine warfare, a peace treaty was signed in 241 bce. According to the terms of the treaty,
Carthage had to cede Sicily to Rome and pay a huge war indemnity. It also brought about an
end to the naval dominance of Carthage in the Western Mediterranean and further motivated
Roman adventure in this region. Sicily became the first overseas province (directly adminis-
tered territory) of the Roman Republic. Areas under Roman hegemonic control but not gov-
erned directly by Rome were known as protectorates. Subsequently, through a renegotiation of
the peace treaty, Corsica and Sardinia were also seized by Rome, thus keeping the enmity of the
Carthagians alive.
The Second Punic War (218–201 bce) has been considered as the fiercest of the three wars
fought between Rome and Carthage. The Carthagian attempt to expand its rule in Spain was
seen as a threat to the Romans because there was a real danger of Carthage joining hands with
the Gauls, thus becoming a common enemy of Rome. After the declaration of war, Rome had
to suffer early reverses due to the brilliance of the Carthagian general, Hannibal. Hannibal
raised a well-trained army of 40,000 troops and instead of attacking Rome by sea from south
(Roman naval power was much superior), he adopted the strategy of entering Rome via Gaul
and then over the Alps Mountains, thus catching the Roman army off guard. After entering
Northern Italy, Hannibal made alliances with the subjugated and disgruntled states under the
Roman hegemony and with their help defeated the Roman army at Trebia in 218 bce. Romans
suffered defeat also in Southern Italy at Cannae in 216 bce. However, Hannibal failed to capture
the city of Rome. Later the Romans regrouped and with the help of its manpower reserve, a
disciplined army and support of its closest allies they were not only able to meet Hannibal’s
challenges but also launch a counter attack against Carthage in Italy, Sicily and Spain. The
Spanish war was led by the Roman consul Publius Scipio, who entered Spain and pushed back
the Carthagians and, after reaching north Africa, defeated Hannibal’s army at Zama (near
Carthage) in 202 bce. Scipio earned the title of ‘Africanus’ (conqueror of Africa) for his military
achievements. The Second Punic War ended with the Peace treaty of 201 bce, under the terms
of which Carthage had to surrender all its possession outside of Africa, including Spain,
severely downsize its naval fleet and pay indemnities three times that of the First Punic War.
Spain became another overseas Roman province and the domination of Carthage now remained
confined to the city of Carthage and its surrounding territories in Africa.
 Ancient Rome I 241

While the end of the Second Punic war established Roman domination in the Western
Mediterranean, the Third Punic War (149–146 bce) was aimed at complete annihilation of
Carthage as a political entity in this region. After the defeat in the Second Punic War, Carthage,
with the help of Philip V (ruler of Macedonia) and Antiochus III (Syrian ruler), had somewhat
recovered its earlier prosperity due to an efficient financial administration of the state by
Hannibal and the revival of trade and industry which had ones again made Carthage the busiest
port of Western Mediterranean. However, the Roman suspicion of Hannibal and increasing
demand in the Roman Republic to destroy Carthage completely resulted in the Third Punic War.
In 146 bce, the state of Carthage, including the city, was completely destroyed and the territory
of Carthage in Tunis became a Roman province in Africa. Thus, the war with Carthage created
new Roman provinces in Sicily, North Africa and Spain, and with it great new wealth for Rome,
based on Sicilian and African grains and the Spanish silver.

Eastern Mediterranean
Roman attention towards Eastern Mediterranean was drawn immediately after the Second
Punic war. Prior to the Roman incursion, Eastern Mediterranean was dominated through a bal-
ance of power among the Hellenistic states of Macedonia (under Antigonids), Egypt (under
Ptolemids) and West Asia (under Seleucids). None of these powers could expand their territory
without raising opposition from the other two. In fact, whenever this balance was threatened,
few of these states (Egypt) asked for Roman help to restore the balance. Moreover, these states
themselves were losing their hold in the areas of their influence. While Macedonia was facing a
series of internal problems, the Seleucid influence in West Asia had shrunk to Syria. Egypt
under the Ptolemids was the most stable both in terms of resources and in territorial posses-
sions. This provided Rome with the opportunity to extend its imperialistic designs in this
region. The support extended to Hannibal by the Macedonian ruler Philip V and the Seleucid
king Antiochus III, both of whom resented Rome’s interference in the Adriatic Sea, prepared the
background for Roman conquest of Eastern Mediterranean. Rome’s decision to send its troops
across the Adriatic Sea to protect the eastern coastline of Italy brought them into conflict with
Macedonia as the Adriatic regions fell under the Macedonian sphere of influence. Four
Macedonian wars were fought between 205 and 148 bce. Macedonian ruler Philip V was
defeated in the battle of Cynoscephalae (in Thessaly) in 196 bce and his successor Perseus in
the Battle of Pydna in 167 bce. All the Greek states hitherto under Macedonia were declared as
independent republic by Rome. But later, all of them were annexed by 147 bce, as these Greek
states led by Corinth had demonstrated anti-Roman upheavals. Macedonia became a Roman
province, while other Greek states were turned into Roman protectorates. Granting political
asylum to Hannibal became the immediate pretext for Roman military attack on Antiochus, the
Seleucid ruler of Syria. Added to this was the fact that Syria still exerted its influence over parts
of Anatolia and eastern Greek states. With the defeat of the Syrian ruler at Thermopylae in
189 bce, Rome consolidated its position in Greece and also joined West Asian politics as a major
force.
Egypt, the third significant power in the Eastern Mediterranean, was turned into a Roman
protectorate by mid-second century bce. But its ruler, the famous queen Cleopatra got embroiled
in the Roman civil war between Octavian (Julius Caesar) and Antonius by marrying the latter.
Antonius, with the help of Cleopatra, was trying to strengthen himself in the east in opposition
242 Ancient and Medieval World

to Octavian and also had support in the Roman Senate. But Octavian was determined to weaken
the support base of Antonius in the East, much of which was dependent on the financial help
from Cleopatra. Octavian declared war on Cleopatra in order to avoid the appearance of his
offensive being directed at a fellow Roman citizen and annexed after defeating Cleopatra in the
battle of Actium in 31 bce. Egypt was incorporated into the Roman Empire and its rich treasures
fell into the hands of Octavian, making him the supreme master of the Mediterranean world.
Thus, by the end of the Roman Republic, that is, 27 bce, Rome had consolidated itself in the
Mediterranean, which had a decisive future impact on the foreign policies of the subsequent
Roman rulers under the Principate and the Monarchy (see Map 7.2). One of the much-debated
aspects of the Roman expansion under the Republic is whether the Romans continually
extended their territory as a matter of deliberate policy or whether their conquests were dic-
tated by a strategic need to protect their own territory as the changing political balance in the
Mediterranean seemed to threaten it. The description provided here suggests that both could
be true at different points of time during the period of the Roman Republic (510–27 bce).

MAP 7.2  Expansion of the Roman Republic (510–27 bce)

Source: Adaptation from a blank map by Daniel Dalet. Available at [Link]

lang=en
 Ancient Rome I 243

Political Structure and Society During the Roman Republic

The body politic of the Roman Republic was closely linked with the Roman social structure.
Unlike modern studies, the writers of ancient Rome made no conceptual distinction between
‘society’ and ‘politics’. In a restricted sense, it can be said that the hierarchical Roman family,
led by the paterfamilias (patriarchal head of the family) also shaped the early Roman state by
fostering obedience to authority. Consequently, the kings under the monarchy and the magis-
trates under the Republic exercised the same authority as the paterfamilias with respect to
their subordinates. After the decline of Monarchy and setting up of a Republic, an oligarchical
form of government, under which major policy decisions were taken by a nominated few, was
set up by the aristocracy. The Roman Republic did not represent fundamental changes in the
Roman constitution in practice since the monarchical rule in Rome. The Roman literary tradi-
tion suggests that the basic outline of the Roman constitution was retained under the Republic.
The aristocracy (explained in the successive section) continued to dominate the Roman repub-
lican institutions.

Social Orders and the Senate

Historian Livy had argued that right since the very beginning, the Roman society was rigidly
divided into two classes or ‘order’—Patrician (rich aristocracy) and Plebeian (poor common
masses). But most of the modern historians argue that the issue of division of classes in Rome
is more complex than this oversimplification. Roman society was vertically organised into
family, clans (gens), tribe and community, and in the performance of religious and civic duties,
they cut across all generational and economic divisions. However, modern historians do agree
that Romans did use the term ordo (order) to indicate social and political rank of its citizens
and terms such as ‘patrician’ and ‘plebeian’ were representatives of such a rank. The nature of
both these classes underwent a change through the course of the Roman Republic. Theoretically,
the status of patrician in Rome was accorded on the basis of birth and could not be acquired
through wealth. But, in practicality, a noble birth alone was not enough to obtain an important
public office. Power and reputation in the state were obtained not through birth but through
success in elections; noble lineage might be an advantage for a prospective candidate, but it
was unlikely to be sufficient without money, powerful friends and a reputation for military,
administrative or legal competence.
The patrician order itself was based on patriarchal kinship groups called gentes (singular
gens) or clans. These clans originated from the warrior bands led by elite leaders (curia or
‘group of men’) that were active during seventh century, few of which were incorporated in the
Roman army by the Roman kings in the process of territorial expansion. In early Rome, citizens
were divided into armed groups of three tribes, each tribe representing a district and were fur-
ther subdivided into 10 smaller districts (curiae). Thus, there were effectively 30 curiae into
which the Roman citizens were divided. Later, these 30 curiae were divided into 4 urban and 26
rural districts. Sources suggest that each of these rural districts was identified by the name of
its biggest gentes. But the Roman insistence on hierarchical distinctions led few of these gentes
to be designated as patricians just before the end of monarchy and beginning of the republic in
Rome. The word ‘patrician’ itself was derived from the word pater (father) or patres (fathers),
collectively called patricii or ‘patricians’. Few historians have speculated that perhaps the
original patres were fathers of the families whose clans headed the early tribes and rural
244 Ancient and Medieval World

districts, constituting the territory of early Roman state. The patrician social organisation was
bound by close kinship ties that were strictly regulated. Consequently, in due course of time,
there was a decline in the number of gentes as the patricians were divided into greater and
lesser gentes. According to an estimate, while in the fifth century bce there had been 50 gentes;
by 367 bce, the number of gentes came down to 22, consisting of 81 families; and by the end of
the Republic, the number had diminished to 14, consisting of 30 families. Patricians were dis-
tinguished from other members of the gentes by possessing more prestige and privileges in the
oligarchical form of government that represented the Roman Republic. In early Republic, all
those who governed as senators, magistrates or priests were from the greater gentes or simply
patricians. Patricians thus formed the dominant social group that exercised its influence in
political, social, economic and religious matters.
Likewise, those who did not belong to the governing class came to be known as the non-
patrician gentes even though many of them were wealthy and influential in the society. However,
there was no ethnic distinction between the patrician and non-patrician gentes as both were a
mixture of Latin, Sabine and Etruscan communities. In due course of time, the latter were
grouped as plebeians or plebs, and they represented an undifferentiated group of citizens. Few
of these were influential enough to be elected to high offices. It was only later when the monop-
olistic position of the patricians rendered many small landowners and modestly well-off citi-
zens in a disadvantageous economic position that the plebs were identified with the poor lower
order of the Roman society.
Our information on the working of the early Republic is very limited in comparison to the
last hundred years of the Republic. For the early republic, our information is entirely based on
the writings of historians, such as Livy and Dionysius, who wrote centuries later and are also
said to have limited grip on the historical situation that they wrote about. For the late republi-
can system, however, our source of information is more reliable in the form of text of laws
recorded on bronze inscriptions, historical writings like those of Polybius’ (Greek historian)
and more importantly Cicero’s (Roman philosopher) speeches and correspondence about the
actual practice of the Assemblies. But since the Romans placed a very high value on tradition
and mos maiorum (custom of ancestors) while taking constitutional decisions implying conti-
nuity, modern historians, based on this premise, have tried to formulate a coherent picture of
the political bodies of the early republic, relying on the sources available for the period of late
republic.
Oligarchy under the Republic functioned through a council called Senate (from sense mean-
ing elders, thus derivatively council of elders), the origin of which can be traced since the
monarchical times. Under the monarchy, it comprised of the heads of the various clans that
formed the community and represented the sovereign power of the state, which was delegated
to the king for actual exercise of the authority. This is evident from the fact that each time the
royal throne became vacant, the powers of the king reverted back to the Senate until the con-
firmation of the next successor. In ordinary times, its prime function was to examine proposals
of the king ratified by the assembly (explained later), and although it functioned merely as an
advisory body, it could veto the proposal if the rights established by ancient custom were vio-
lated. Under the Republic, as mentioned previously, the Senate acted as an oligarchic council
and an instrument through which the aristocracy exercised its powers. The original members
of the Senate under the Republic were most likely those who acquired the state authority after
the end of monarchy. New members (only patrician males) of the Senate were appointed
through co-option by the existing members. Membership (which was lifelong) of the Senate
 Ancient Rome I 245

during the early part of the Republic has been estimated to be 300 which reached to 900 before
stabilising at 600 at the end of the Republic. The Senate had limited constitutional powers as it
could not pass laws or elect state officials but had wide ranging informal power which it exer-
cised by issuing decrees to the magistrates (discussed later) of the assemblies. A decree (sena-
tus consultum) of the Senate conveyed the Senate’s opinion to the magistrates on several state
matters such as military policy, conduct of wars, foreign policy, financial and legislative mat-
ters. The magistrates were not legally bound to accept such an advice from the Senate and
could enforce, modify or reject them (as it did happen a few times during the late republic).
Although, theoretically, power of action lay with the magistrate but in practice, Senate’s advice
was respected by them. Thus, effectively Senate was the key institution in the matters of policy
decisions of the Republic and usually controlled foreign affairs (including appointment of mili-
tary commanders and later after Roman expansion, appointment of provincial governors),
expenditure from the treasury and supervision of public contracts. Besides, members of the
Senate also had monopoly over priestly positions as well as membership of jury constituted for
important criminal trials. During the early part of the Republic, meeting of the Senate could be
summoned only by the consul or by his appointed praetor, but later in the third century bce, the
tribunes of the plebs (elected officials of the plebeian assembly discussed below) also obtained
the right to convene the Senate.

Officials of the Republic

After the end of monarchy and establishment of a republic, the aristocracy, that assumed power
under an oligarchical rule, made an attempt not only to end the power struggle that was wit-
nessed during the last decade of the monarchy but also tried to restore their power and prestige
which they had lost during the reign of Etruscan kings. Towards this endeavour, they created a
system that would maintain a balance of power and would make it difficult for any one of them
assuming too much power at the cost of others. This principle of division of power was fol-
lowed in the appointment of both senior and junior level magistrates. Another important aspect
related to the appointment of state officials was that while in the initial stages of the Republic
most of these offices were monopolised by the patrician class, the social struggle between the
patricians and the plebeians ensured the latter’s inclusion in the magistracy during later years
of the Republic.
According to a set of inscriptions known as fasti (containing the list of annual consuls), the
authority of the Roman Republic was vested in the two consuls right from the beginning. In
other words, consuls (army commanders of formal field army known as legions or legio of
which there were two in the beginning) were the highest officials or chief magistrates of the
Roman Republic as they wielded broadest civil and military powers. The supreme power
wielded by the consuls had two aspects: the power to command men (imperium) either at
home or in the military field and the power to consult the gods (auspicium) on behalf of the
state. Both these powers were derived from the single unlimited power of the kings during
the monarchy. The institution of dual consulship was a peculiar feature since the early days
of the Republic and the fact that each had the full power to veto the other was aimed at ensuring
that neither of them becomes too powerful. The consuls, besides commander of their respec-
tive legions were also judges, summoned the meeting of comitia centuriata and placed
­legislative proposals before it. Besides, meetings of the Senate could only be held at the sum-
mons of the consuls. The consuls also held elections to fill other post of senior officers of the
246 Ancient and Medieval World

state. The consuls were elected and appointed for one year by the citizen assembly called
comitia centuriata (discussed in detail later). The method of election of the consuls in the
beginning of the Republic made sure that the consuls belonged to the patrician gentes and
therefore acted as agents of the aristocratic interests. But as our discussion presented later on
the conflict between the patrician and plebeian classes would reveal that as a result of this
conflict, the plebeians won the eligibility to become consul and the first plebeian consul was
elected in the year 367 bce. Once the plebeians became eligible for this post, the minimum age
to become consul was fixed at 42 for the plebeians and 40 for the patricians.
Consuls were assisted by a large number of magistrates, each having their own personal
responsibilities. Censors (two in number) were a separate class of magistrates, as they were
required to conduct a census to define the status of each citizen for military service, voting, and
taxation as well as to hold offices and fill vacant places in the Senate by choosing new mem-
bers. The census was based on property qualification of all adult male citizens to hold all elec-
tive positions of the state. Censors were appointed by the consul after election in the comitia
centuriata after every five years and they held the office for 18 months. Another important
responsibility that the censors were delegated with was to look after public morality, basis of
which was the Roman moral code. Even senators were subject to it and could be removed in
case of their failure to meet the requirements of this code. During early Republic, only patri-
cians (usually former consuls) were appointed as censors. But like the consulship, the position
of censor was also opened for the plebeian class, which was again a direct outcome of the
social struggle between the two classes. Sources suggest that the position of censorship was
created in 443 bce but appointment to this position of magistracy became erratic from 86 bce
onwards due to which census of citizens became irregular, and the office was finally abandoned
after the decline of the Republic.
Dictator was the other important official in the Roman Republic who was appointed by the
consul at Senate’s request for six months, particularly at the time of some serious differences
between the two consuls or during some serious military or domestic crisis. During his tenure
of office, he was given the sole power of command (imperium). The two consuls were made
subordinate to him. Dictator had the authority to appoint his own subordinates. Domestic
crisis, mainly in the form of class struggle between patricians and the plebeians, was a recurring
feature of the Roman Republic. Similarly, during the course of Roman expansion, it had to face
several military crises too. These made the office of the dictator extremely important. However,
the available sources suggest that appointment of a dictator was rare after third century bce,
although both Sulla (81–79 bce) and Julius Caesar (48–44 bce) did assume the powers of a dicta-
tor after defeating their political opponents.
Besides the mentioned senior magistrates, there were a number of junior magistrates in the
Republic who were appointed to assist the consul, look after the public works, state treasury
and public accounts. Praetor was one such official who acted as a junior colleague of the
consul. In early stages, the post of praetorship (beginning in 366 bce) was restricted to the
members of patrician gentes. Praetor was appointed by the consul for one year after voting in
the comitia centuriata. Apart from performing the duties of judicial administration in Rome,
he was also given command of the army outside Rome. Besides, in the absence of the consul,
if deputised by the latter, he could summon meetings of the Senate as well as comitia centu-
riata and perform all the civil functions of a consul. But like consulship and censorship, this
magistracy was also opened to the plebeian class in 180 bce, and its number too increased from
one in 366 bce to eight by the time of Sulla. Aediles (four in number) were another set of junior
 Ancient Rome I 247

officers who were appointed for a year to look after public works, markets, roads, archives
and food supply. They also had to make arrangements for public festivals and annual games.
The four Aediles also included two plebeian Aediles elected in comitia tributa (explained
later). Quaestors were another group of officers who were appointed to assist senior magis-
trates in the discharge of their duties. Their tenure of office was one year and their number
increased from 4 in the beginning of the Republic to 40 under Julius Caesar. In the initial
stages, while two of the four quaestors accompanied the consuls to the battlefield to act as
in-charge of the supplies and payment of the troops, the other two remained in the city to take
care of the public treasury located in the temple of Saturn. Later, a new set of officers called
Apparitores were appointed for a year, supposedly from the original quaestors, as scribes,
secretaries, accountants to assist the priests and the magistrates. Subsequently, a number of
minor officials were collectively called as Apparitores. They were not elected but recruited
from the ordinary citizens, and, unlike magistrates who enjoyed honorary position, they
received salary from the state.
The magistrates were the main element in the republican form of governance. As a group,
they held between themselves the authority to take political decisions without whose support
administrative, legislative or policy matters could not proceed. At the same time, the magistra-
cies were closely linked with the Senate, which was the key institution in matters of policy
decisions. This becomes apparent from the fact that all members of the Senate were former
magistrates and Senate’s proceeding were structured by the ranking of the senators according
to the levels they had reached in their careers, for example, the ex-consuls were given the first
chance to speak in the debate and, therefore, were generally able to dominate the proceedings.
The junior magistrates had no influence in the Senate. The Senate in this manner provided a
lifetime role for those senior magistrates who had held one-year office.

The Assemblies
Apart from the Senate and the magistracy, the third crucial element in the Roman republican
system was the voting assemblies. Decision-making and actions of the Roman state depended
upon the cooperation between these three elements. Theoretically speaking, at least, the popu-
lar assemblies of the Roman Republic were the sovereign bodies as these bodies could only
elect the magistrates, approve laws and give mandate for action. However, the nature of the
voting assemblies underwent significant changes during the course of the history of Roman
Republic. The earliest popular assembly in Rome prior to the beginning of the Republic under
the Etruscan monarchy was comitia curiata (derived from comitium or ‘meeting place’ and
curiae or ‘smaller districts’). The comitia curiata or the Curiate Assembly included all adult
arm-bearing male citizens (including both patricians and plebeians) and was organised on the
basis of social groups to which the armed men belonged for the purpose of military service.
These men were divided into three tribes, which represented 3 districts of the city each of
which was further divided into 10 smaller districts (curiae). Thus, in effect, comitia curiata
included 30 such curiaes that were subsequently divided into 4 urban tribes and 26 rural dis-
tricts. Each curia elected its own head called curio that was appointed for life and invariably
belonged to the patrician gentes. While voting in the assembly, the principle of ‘one man one
vote’ was not followed and the entire curia voted collectively. The patricians with a very strong
kinship ties dominated the respective curiae and assumed the role of spokesperson of their
curia. It is clear that opinion of the plebeian citizen did not count in the comitia curiata.
248 Ancient and Medieval World

Functions of the members of the Curiate Assembly were limited to listening and approving or
disapproving proposals put forward by the king. But it was desirable for the king to consult
comitia curiata in order to win the support and cooperation of the armed citizen to bring about
major changes in law and policy. Their opinion was considered valuable, particularly during
war and peace, and was therefore solicited by the monarch.
Although our information related to the political structure of the early Republic is sketchy,
the available sources suggest that comitia centuriata replaced comitia curiata as the popular
assembly in Rome. Few other sources suggest that comitia centuriata was created in the
monarchical period itself but was reformed during the course of the Republic. This was a direct
outcome of the pressure applied by the plebeians (constituting bulk of the Roman army) after
the realisation that the Curiate Assembly did not take care of their interest and therefore a
regrouping of the citizens was imperative. While comitia curiata was an assembly of kinship-
based social units of armed men called curiae, comitia centuriata, on the other hand, was an
assembly of arms-bearing men organised into centuries. The origin of the Centuriate Assembly,
apart from the plebeian social struggle, can also be traced to the changes in military tactics of
Central Italy in the latter part of the sixth century bce when the field army was reorganised into
units of 100 infantry called centuries or centuriae that made curiate organisation of army as
redundant. Although curiata continued to exist after the establishment of the centuriata but it
was shorn of all legislative powers and was henceforth required to deal only with social and
religious matters. The comitia centuriata consisted of all male Roman citizens with complete
exclusion of women. In fact, women were completely excluded from voting, holding public
office or rendering military service. The centuriata had a military origin, as a century was
smallest unit of the Roman army consisting of male adults. The assembly comprised of 193
centuries and unlike Athens where each adult male had a single vote equal to others, in Rome
each century had one vote in the assembly. The arrangement of the centuries ensured that patri-
cians had majority of votes in comitia centuriata. The centuries were further divided into five
classes based on property qualification and maximum number of them was placed in first three
categories, consisting mainly of patricians and wealthy plebeians who could be easily manipu-
lated by the aristocracy. The peasant-farmers owning land (who constituted the bulk of the
Roman infantry) were placed in lower or larger property classes while the property-less citizens
or proletarii (a numerically large group) were assigned only one centuria. Thus, the patricians
enjoyed the maximum number of votes in the assembly despite being a numerically small
group. They maintained a tight control over the functioning of the assembly too. The meetings
were convened by the magistrates who also prepared the agenda for the assembly and the
common citizens were mere onlookers and voted without any discussion. As mentioned earlier,
this assembly elected consuls and censors, as well as other senior magistrates and approved all
major decisions of the state including declaration of war and conclusion of peace. This method
of the appointment of the senior functionaries of the state was bound to further the interest of
the aristocracy. Thus, though seemingly democratic, the practical working of the Centuriate
Assembly made it difficult for the plebeians to share real political power.
According to the Roman tradition, the growing discontentment of the plebeians and the con-
stant need for manpower in the army and also to maintain unity during external wars led to the
creation of the assembly of the plebeians called concilium plebis sometime during the first half
of fifth century bce. It discussed the plebeian issues, and voting was done through a vote system
based on residence of the citizens organised into tribes with designated territory. The assembly
of the plebs elected (annually) two officials called tribunes or tribune plebis who were
 Ancient Rome I 249

recognised by the Senate. In this manner, plebeians (mostly wealthy) got access to political
power. The tribunes were expected to protect ordinary armed citizens from excessive military
service and against a magistrate’s arbitrary use of power. Subsequently, the Senate was forced
to accept these two elected plebeian officers as their spokespersons in the Senate with a right
to debate and vote.
Another popular assembly called comitia tributa was created which was an assembly of all
citizens including patricians and plebeians in which the citizens were grouped according to
tribes or tribus. This was based on the principle that each Roman citizen was, by birth or by
legal act, a member of one of the 35 tribes, the number having increased (from 30) due to exten-
sion of Roman citizenship during the latter part of the Republic. The precise date of the forma-
tion of this assembly is not clear from the sources. While few suggest 452 bce as the date of its
constitution, others point out that the developments after 287 bce, when the decisions of con-
cilium plebis were made mandatory for the Senate (discussed later), necessitated the forma-
tion of a new assembly consisting of all citizens of Rome. Being the assembly of all male citizens
where birth and wealth did not determine the grouping of citizens turned comitia tributa into
a more egalitarian assembly where measures passed by the patricians were not binding on all.
In the last years of the Republic, the manner of voting in comitia tributa was always in opposi-
tion to those of comitia centuriata. Although in the later part of the Republic, all important
issues needing opinion of the citizens were submitted to this assembly for approval but the
patricians were able to dominate comitia tributa by manipulating its procedures.

The ‘Conflict of Orders’

From the description provided in the previous section, it is apparent that the Senate, which was
empowered not only to direct and conduct the affairs of the government, foreign affairs and
finance but also supervised activities of each magistrate, was controlled by the Roman aristoc-
racy. The plebeian class resented this monopolisation of political authority by the aristocracy.
This resulted in a prolonged social conflict, known in Roman sources as ‘conflict of orders’,
between patricians and the plebeians which recurred, after brief intervals, throughout the first
half of Roman Republic. There were several causes of this social conflict that included debt
bondage or enslavement of the poorer section of the plebeians in the event of failure on their
part to repay the loan, the abuse of law by the aristocrats and ambition of the elite plebeians to
get access to offices monopolised by the patricians. While analysing this ‘conflict of orders’ in
Rome, one must not lose sight of the fact that the plebeians were not an undifferentiated mass
of citizens even though all who did not constitute the governing class were grouped into the
plebeian category. We have mentioned earlier that there were wealthy plebeians who were
included in the non-patrician gentes and were also influential enough to get high offices. On the
other extreme, in this plebeian category were the small farmers and property-less citizens (pro-
letarii) who were exposed to various forms of exploitation at the hands of the aristocracy. But
in this ‘conflict of orders’, the interests of the plebeian class as a whole were combined together
to oppose all kinds of monopolies exercised by the patricians.
Thus, the chief demands of the plebeians were (a) a share in the political decision-making,
(b) an end to economic exploitation of the peasantry at the hands of the aristocracy and
(c) codification of the laws which were hitherto unwritten and interpreted by the patricians to
suit themselves. The conflict assumed serious proportions during 495–93 bce when the tensions
generated due to the ill-treatment of debtors led the plebeians to leave collectively the city in
250 Ancient and Medieval World

what has been termed in Roman tradition as ‘secession’ (secessio plebis of which there were at
least five recorded secessio during the course of the Republic) and refused service in the army
until their demands were met. The Roman oligarchy lacked the resources of a full-fledged mon-
archy and were therefore not in a position to ignore these demands for long. Moreover, the
Roman army, responsible for both protection and expansion of the Roman frontiers, consisted
chiefly of small landholding plebeians. They had to render mandatory military service and equip
themselves militarily on their own besides managing tax payments and their own subsistence
through farming. For the simple reason that the plebeians were the backbone of the Roman
army, it was not possible for the aristocracy to ignore their demands. The first phase of the
conflict of orders ended only in the early third century bce, when most of the demands of the
plebeians were met.
Constitution and recognition of plebeian assemblies (concilium plebis and comitia tributa)
and plebeian officers (tribune plebis) can be considered as one of the early victories of the
plebeians in this social conflict. Another major victory for the plebeians was the codification of
law in the form of promulgation of the famous ‘Law of Twelve Tablets’ in 450 bce. Up until now,
customary laws were applicable in Rome which were heavily loaded in favour of the patricians
and they dominated it too as they were mostly chosen to be the pontiffs (public priests) who
interpreted the law. With the codification of law, the patricians were deprived of their privileges
and were brought under the ambit of the Roman law just like any other citizen. The ‘Law of
Twelve Tablets’ was so called because it was written on 12 tables of wood (later set up on 12
tables of bronze) and was placed near the Forum or the central area of the city. The Laws of the
Twelve Tablets brought the customary laws into a written form and the fundamental feature of
these laws was to establish the principle of equality before law. Later these laws were revered
by the Romans as kind of charter of people’s liberties.
Yet another favourable development for the plebeians was that it received a share in the
distribution of vast amount of agricultural land that the Romans had acquired after capture of
the Etruscan city of Veii in 392 bce. This enabled the plebeians to equip themselves for military
service and helped reduce the intensity of class struggle for the time being. In 367 bce, the
Licinian laws were passed which made provision of consulship for the plebeians, limited the
individual appropriation of public land by the aristocracy and reduced the debt of the poorer
classes. Although it was difficult for the plebeians to get consulship as their election was done
in comitia centuriata, yet it opened avenues for them to become lifetime members of the
Senate. A major landmark development was in the form of a crucial reform in 326 bce through
which nexum (contract), which had become an instrument in the hands of the landowners to
enslave free Roman citizen for non-payment of debt, was abolished. The final plebeian victory
came in 287 bce (after another plebeian secessio from the city due to the crisis brought about
by war and debt) with the passage of a law known as Lex Hortensia (after Hortensius, the dicta-
tor appointed to resolve the conflict of orders) which stipulated that the measures enacted by
the concilium plebis would be binding on the Roman government with or without approval of
the Senate. The plebeian assembly was now treated at par with the other Roman assemblies and
plebeian tribunes became powerful magistrates.

Nature of the Republican Constitution

These developments until the middle of the Roman Republic however brought an end to only
the first phase of the class struggle in Rome. The second phase of this conflict of orders that
 Ancient Rome I 251

started with the Roman Mediterranean venture, which had important consequences for the
growth of slave society in Rome, would be discussed later in this section. But here it would be
worthwhile to examine the nature of political order in the Roman Republic, which has been a
topic of much debate among scholars of Roman history. The major issue of debate is how demo-
cratic was the Republic? Traditional Greek scholars such as Polybius had argued that the repub-
lican constitution was a mix of three types of constitution: (a) monarchy, represented by the
magistrates or consuls, (b) oligarchy, represented by the Senate and (c) democracy, repre-
sented by tribunes of the concilium plebis and other popular assemblies. Each branch balanced
the other so that one could not become powerful at the expense of the other two. According to
Polybius, it was the interdependence and the checks and balances between these three ele-
ments that was the basis of stability of the Roman constitution.
However, modern scholars, such as, P. A. Brunt (1971), argue that the true governing organ
of the Republic was the Senate that acted through annual magistrates elected by the people but
drawn from its own ranks. The Senate itself was dominated by a few noble families whose
power reposed on their wealth and on the prestige derived from their past services to the state.
Brunt talks about the theoretical power to the people and restrictions in practical application
of these powers. In particular, he highlights the distance people had to travel to cast votes in
the absence of the notion of representation or local ballot stations and manipulations of these
conditions by the ruling class. Thus, he concludes that given the sheer size of the citizen body
(comprising of 200,000––300,000 adult male voters) and the absence of representative princi-
ples, the democratic features that the Roman political institutions seem to manifest were bound
to be illusory in practice and Rome could consequently not enjoy a genuinely popular
government.
In support of this argument, few recent scholars have opined that the Roman Republic was
controlled by a powerful oligarchy made-up of those wealthy landowners from patrician and
plebeian gentry who had held the office of consul. In a society that was extremely hierarchical
and conscious of rank and prestige, modern egalitarian ideals did not exist. Debate was con-
fined to the higher ranks of the senators. Debates were framed by the consular nobility who
themselves were dependent on the Senate for funds or prestigious military command or for
getting provincial governorship after Roman overseas expansion. Further, the tribunes of the
plebeian assembly were also co-opted by the oligarchy as the wealthy tribunes dominated the
popular assembly. The unit-vote rule also stifled the vote of ordinary citizen in concilium plebis
and comitia tributa, and since voting was done only in Rome, its distance from the rural areas
proved a major stumbling block in the exercise of vote, reducing the number of voters.
As a critique to these views, Fergus Millar (2002) argues that, using ‘democracy’ in a strictly
neutral sense, it is undeniable that the constitution of the Roman Republic was that of a direct
democracy. Substantiating his arguments, Millar cites two conditions. First, in Rome all offices
were conferred by elections in the assemblies of the people. The election itself was competi-
tive and even comitia centuriata represented a power of choice by the people which could
and often did extend beyond the highest classes. Second and more importantly, it was the
people and not the Senate who could legislate by voting in person in the concilium plebis and
later in comitia tributa. Millar’s argument has been supported by others who emphasise on
the importance given to voting/public opinion by the prospective candidates before elections
in the form of persuasion, promises, canvassing and even bribery. In matters of legislation too,
the evidences suggest that laws were sometimes passed which were disapproved by the sena-
torial majority.
252 Ancient and Medieval World

Keeping a neutral approach, few scholars have argued that republic is not necessarily demo-
cratic as it can devise systems for reserving power to an oligarchy or a privileged group.
According to this argument, the Roman constitution ensured oligarchic rule by the balance it
struck between competing governmental institutions—the assembly, the Senate and the office
holders such as consuls, tribunes, judges and the magistrates. In such a system, no single indi-
vidual or family cliques could become supreme nor could direct expressions of the popular will
hinder Roman policy. Thus, in the final analyses of the nature of polity under Roman Republic,
it can be said that while in theory, people were sovereign, as far as electing their representatives
and voting the laws of the community is concerned, in practice, however, government was in
the hands of an almost hereditary aristocracy.

Last Hundred Years of the Republic

The last hundred years of the Republic are generally known for extreme turbulence marked by
anti-Rome upheavals in the allied regions of Italy, social conflicts within Rome, rise of military
commanders as dictators and struggle between them for supremacy, assassinations, war, con-
quests and slave revolts. While even in this period of uncertainties, Roman territorial expansion
continued albeit slowed, many of the republican institutions were weakened, paving the way
for reestablishment of monarchy that lasted for another five centuries.
Between 91 and 89 bce, Rome had to face a series of upheavals from its Italian allies known
as the Social War (derived from Socii Italici or Italian allies). These were mainly those Italian
territories that were subjugated by Rome but not directly governed and were given autonomy
in their internal administration. But as per the terms of the treaty, each one of them had to
provide military assistance to Rome. Roman interference in their internal administration and
the growing military and financial burden imposed on them provided background to these
uprisings. Having been given Roman citizenship, the allies demanded right to participate in the
political decision-making process as was accorded to the original Roman citizens. As the sup-
port of the people of the Latium region was essential to protect Rome from Etruscan, Oscan,
Umbrian and Volscian raids, they were initially granted full citizenship rights (including civil
and voting rights). Limited citizenship rights (excluding right to vote) were extended to allies
in other parts of the Italian Peninsula. But the growing intensity of the Social War (with allies
joining hands against Rome) forced the Roman state to reach a compromise, thereby all Roman
allies south of Po Valley were granted full citizenship rights. But in practice, these allies could
not exercise their constitutional right to vote because of their distance from the city of Rome.
Within Rome itself, the last hundred years of the Republic witnessed increasing power
struggle, creating conditions for civil war. The grand military success of Rome in the Italian
Peninsula, as well as in Western and Eastern Mediterranean, had tremendously enhanced the
prestige of military commanders who were drawn largely from the oligarchy. As they com-
manded the loyalty of a semi-professional army under their command, they were in a position
to compete for controlling the decision-making process of the Roman state. Between 100 and
27 bce, among the prominent military commanders were Marius, Sulla, Crassus, Pompey, Julius
Caesar, Lepidus, Mark Antony and Octavian (later known as Augustus Caesar). These military
commanders became dictators at different point of time and violated several provisions of the
Roman constitution thus weakening the Republic, leading to its ultimate decline.
 Ancient Rome I 253

The first two participants in the series of political rivalry in late Republic were Marius and
Sulla. But the death of Marius in 82 bce led to the establishment of the first military dictatorship
in Rome under Sulla (81–79 bce). Sulla’s military victory in 81 bce over Mithridates VI, ruler of
Pontus in Anatolia, which established Roman control over West Asia, greatly enhanced his
prestige. Sulla then ruthlessly exterminated his opponents, extended the powers of the Senate
and curtailed that of the tribunes. After Sulla’s retirement Crassus, Pompey and Julius Caesar
joined the struggle to assume supreme power. The critical military situation that Rome had to
face during 80–70 bce in the form of rebellion in Spain (led by Sertorius), resurgence of
Mithridates VI in West Asia and a major slave revolt (73–71 bce) in Italy (led by Spartacus),
required support of the plebeian–senatorial oligarchy. After solving the military crisis, these
military commanders (known as warlords) created a coalition known as First Triumvirate
(60–53 bce). The term ‘triumvirate’ was used for an official institution in which political author-
ity was equally divided among three persons. This was also indicative of the fact that the con-
stitutional machinery of the Republic had considerably weakened. But the death of Crassus in
53 bce led to an open rivalry between Pompey and Julius Caesar. Both were looking for popular
support. While Pompey gained fame as the conqueror of Syria and Palestine in West Asia, Julius
Caesar had been able to add to Roman territory the modern Belgium, Germany (west of river
Rhine) and Gaul. Declaration of Pompey as the sole consul by the Senate and branding of Julius
Caesar as the enemy of state led to a military faceoff between the two in 48 bce. In this conflict,
Pompey was defeated and later killed by the supporters of Caesar.
Julius Caesar’s dictatorship lasted for a very short period (47–44 bce) though he was
appointed dictator in 47 bce for 10 years. He obtained from the Senate full authority to make
war and peace and to control the revenues of the state. He was the first Roman leader to rec-
ognise the significance of Northwest Europe for Rome. By incorporating Gaul into the Roman
world, he brought great agricultural wealth to Rome and contributed immensely in spread of
urban life and culture in Western Europe. But his treatment with contempt of the Republic and
attempts to assume supreme power led to a fear of the revival of monarchy in the minds of
some sections of the oligarchy. This led to a conspiracy and subsequent assassination of Julius
Caesar in 44 bce. The conspirators were led by Brutus and Cassius who hoped to return Rome
to republican government.
After the murder of Julius Caesar, his supporters constituted the Second Triumvirate in
43 bce under Mark Antony, Lepidus and Octavian. This alliance crushed the political faction led
by Brutus and Cassius in 42 bce. Lepidus was then forced to retire and the subsequent period
witnessed a power struggle between Mark Antony and Octavian. This struggle effectively
became a contest between East and West. Mark Antony went to East and joined hands with the
Ptolemid queen of Egypt, Cleopatra, hoping to use the resources of the Egyptian kingdom in his
power struggle with Octavian. On the other hand, Octavian established himself in Italy and
West, which not only provided him the manpower but also an image of protector of Rome. In
the naval battle at Actium (located on western coast of Mainland Greece) in 31 bce, the com-
bined forces of Mark Antony and Cleopatra were defeated by Octavian. Egypt’s independent
existence ended and Rome’s superiority over Mediterranean was re-established. But more
importantly, Octavian became the supreme ruler of the Roman Empire. He adopted the title of
‘Augustus’ (exalted) and declared himself princeps (first and foremost citizen) in 27 bce. This
year is recognised as the formal year of the end of the Roman Republic.
254 Ancient and Medieval World

ROMAN PRINCIPATE AND EMPIRE

The takeover of Roman political authority by Octavian (Augustus Caesar) ushered in a new era,
considered by some as the most glorious and prosperous in Roman history. After returning from
his Egyptian campaign, for four years (31–27 bce) Octavian ruled as consul, and, in 27 bce, he
received the title of Imperator (emperor) and Augustus (venerable or exalted). This has led few
historians to consider this date as the beginning of Roman Empire. But it has been pointed by
others that the term imperator at that time denoted ‘victorious general’ and Octavian himself
preferred a modest title of princeps (first citizen). For this reason, the period of his rule and
that of his successors is properly called the Principate or the Early Empire (27 bce–235 ce) to
distinguish it from periods of Middle Roman Empire also known as the period of Third Century
Crisis (235–284 ce) and that of later Empire or Dominate (284–610 ce).

Augustus Caesar and His Successors

Augustus Caesar (27 bce–14 ce), founder of the Principate rule in Rome, established a perma-
nent dictatorship, and even though he left most republican institutions in place, in practice, he
controlled the army and determined government policy, leading to growth of a full-fledged
monarchy in the subsequent period. But the final transition to monarchy was a gradual one as
the ruler of Rome was neither a hereditary chief nor had the divine right to rule and had to be
appointed with the consent of the citizens. Ruler still was a part of the Republic and the Senate
and the army provided legitimacy to his rule. Since the constitutional machinery had collapsed
during the last few decades of the Republic, it was necessary to create a mechanism to provide
adequate share of power to various organs of the state. During the reign of Augustus, the
Emperor, the senatorial oligarchy and the army were the three main organs of the state. The
contribution of Augustus Caesar lies in the fact that he was able to balance all the three power
centres, bringing to an end the period of instability. He limited the authority of the Senate but
allowed it to legislate and remain an important part of the government and issued command
exclusively in ‘people’s name’. Augustus declared himself to be the commander-in-chief of the
army and made other military leaders completely subservient to the ruler so that violent con-
flicts witnessed during the two triumvirate period were not repeated. Thus, like Julius Caesar,
Augustus exercised absolute power. This was achieved by limiting the grant of imperium to
himself. Grant of imperium meant authority invested in an official for performing executive,
judicial and military functions on behalf of the state. The task and duration of imperium were
clearly indicated. This was applicable to both the provincial governors (proconsuls) as well as
the military commanders. Augustus not only limited the imperium to himself but also acquired
it for unlimited period. Inside the Senate, he divested the consuls of the imperium and acquired
the powers of the tribune with the consent of the plebeian assembly.
Augustus reorganised the provincial administration by giving them more substantial rights
of self-government than before. In order to have a better personal control over the provinces,
he retained control of some provinces with exclusive command for 10 years; these were Gaul,
Spain and Syria. Remaining provinces were to be governed by the Senate but here too he
reserved the right to give consent in provincial appointments. In the provinces, he abolished
the old system of tax collection. Earlier the tax collectors were paid through a portion of the
 Ancient Rome I 255

tax collected that had inevitably led to graft and extortion. Instead, Augustus appointed his
own representatives as tax collectors, paid them regular salaries and kept them under strict
supervision. Augustus also created new colonies in these provinces by shifting free and excess
population out of Italy. This, apart from removing a major source of social and political unrest
in the Italian cities, also promoted integration of Roman society and culture with its far-flung
areas. Thus, he is also credited with promoting Latinisation of the western provinces of Spain
and Gaul.
The civil wars of the late republic had depleted the Senate controlled state-treasury. The old
system of tax collection was on the verge of a breakdown. In the absence of a regular budget
and regular estimate of tax receipts and expenditure, the economic condition of the Republic
was worsened. As a part of his fiscal reforms, Augustus acquired virtual control of the finances
to arrest the economic slide. For each province, he had set up a separate account called fiscus
(meaning ‘fig basket’) in which tax receipts and revenues of a particular province were depos-
ited for payment to the army. Augustus assumed the role of the sole paymaster of the army. He
also kept a separate treasury for meeting military emergencies. Augustus had inherited a huge
corpus of funds in the form of Julius Caesar’s private property, the confiscated properties of
Mark Antony and Cleopatra’s treasury besides his own private property in the provinces. This
enabled him to establish financial control over the entire administration of the empire.
In order to contain expenditure and curtail the powers of the military commanders, Augustus
also brought about some military reforms. To prevent undermining of his authority by the pow-
erful military commanders, Augustus kept the provinces with the most legions (army units)
under his direct control. He placed them under the command of his loyal equestrian legates
(lieutenants appointed by Senate). Moreover, all soldiers were made to take an oath of personal
allegiance to Augustus Caesar. To prevent the risk of civil disorder and to reduce the economic
burden on the treasury, he brought down the number of army men and gave them grants of land
in return. He also introduced the system of retirement of war veterans and gave them monetary
compensation. Augustus created a professionally trained permanent army, commanded by
those who were loyal to him as well as to Rome.
Augustus Caesar also took some important measures to protect and establish order in the
city of Rome. To prevent any eventuality of the capture of the city by the oligarchy with the help
of armed forces, he ensured that the army remained stationed in the provinces and on the fron-
tiers of the Roman Empire. Special armed contingent known as Praetorian Guard was created
out of the Imperial Bodyguards to protect the city. They were divided into nine cohorts (infantry
units) of which three were stationed in the city of Rome, while the rest were spread out in the
nearby urban centres. For keeping order and peace in the city, special magistrates called
­praefectus urbi were appointed, who also held temporary charge of the government in the
absence of king. In order to keep the disturbance in the city at bay from the poor and unem-
ployed citizens, the practice (in effect since the late Republic) of distribution of free ration (in
the form of grains) was extended to large number of people. According to P. A. Brunt’s (1971)
estimate, as many as 320,000 city poor were given free ration in 50 bce. This necessitated effi-
cient supply and storage of grains. The province of Africa became the major source of grain
supply, and Augustus also streamlined the system of census (based on wealth and property) to
determine the needy ones.
The period of Roman Principate saw the maximum territorial expansion of the Roman
Empire. During the reign of Augustus, however, there was no major expansion of the Roman
Empire as he adopted a policy of consolidation rather than conquest. Although his army did
256 Ancient and Medieval World

conquer the modern-day territories of Switzerland, Austria and Bulgaria in Central Europe but
the Roman military reverses in Germany near the river Rhine frontier convinced Augustus to
limit Roman borders in the north at rivers Rhine and Danube. Likewise abandoning the policy
of military conflict with the Parthians of Iran, he was able to stabilise his eastern borders. In
order to ensure stability in the already conquered areas such as Spain and Gaul, Augustus reor-
ganised the administration in these provinces and turned them into garrison towns, administra-
tive centres and colonies of Roman settlers.
Augustus Caesar’s successful measures in establishing peace and order not only within Italy
but also in the outside provinces brought relief to people (both patricians and plebeians) inhab-
iting these areas who had been troubled by decades of warfare, bloodshed and internal upheav-
als. This also brought rich dividends to the authoritarian rule of Augustus. Since he had amply
demonstrated his abilities to restore peace and order, the Senate was not in a position to oppose
assumption of more power by him. The contemporary writers and orators praise for Augustus
Caesar and turning the entire sentiment from pessimism to optimism helped him in no less a
manner to become an absolute ruler, paving way for a full-fledged monarchy in Rome in the
subsequent years.
Later traditions, primarily aimed at highlighting Augustus Caesar’s achievements, have
termed Augustan era as the most glorious and peaceful in the Roman history, describing his
reign as that of Pax Romana (the Roman peace). It was argued that this was the basis of peo-
ple’s advancement and hence derivatively the basis of Roman prosperity. The notion of Pax
Romana was extended to those overseas areas too that became a part of the Roman Empire.
Indeed, with the Roman conquest of Egypt and Syria, the entire Mediterranean was unified
under Rome. This boosted long-distance trade besides facilitating exchange of ideas between
different parts of the Mediterranean. Thus, ideologically speaking, Pax Romana denoted a uni-
versal empire ruled by Rome. But in effect, it meant (for people outside Rome) the acceptance
of the Roman domination and hegemony. Few critics have argued that even the excitement over
the peace conditions could not conceal the reality of his reign that army was a crucial support
to the emperor and peace within the empire was conditional upon successful protection of the
Roman frontiers on a continuous basis. Some scholars argue that for Roman hegemonic rule
outside Pax Romana had an ethical basis, for its main purpose was to provide people inhabiting
these regions a just system according to which Romans not only had the duty to protect their
subjects but also to punish rebellious ones.
After the death of Augustus Caesar in 14 ce, Roman Empire continued to grow and prosper
under his successors (Table 7.2). Crowning of Tiberius (who reigned during 14–37 ce) was a
victory for hereditary monarchical principle as he was the stepson of Augustus. Although no
major military achievement has been attributed to Tiberius, the autocratic rule of the Roman
Emperor became even more prominent under his rule. Senate was the only republican institu-
tion that survived and that too was made subordinate to the ruler. Under Claudius (41–54 ce),
Roman acquisition was extended to Britain (42–44 ce). But both Tiberius and Claudius had
strained relationship with the Senate because despite being skilled administrators, they lacked
Augustan statesmanship which was essential to perpetuate an autocratic rule in Rome where
the ruler still ruled in the name of the people. However, these two rulers also won some popu-
larity by reorganising provincial administration and undertaking construction of roads, bridges,
canals as well as aqueducts and harbours. These not only helped the movement of the soldiers
but also promoted trade, which brought about provincial prosperity. Claudius built a large arti-
ficial harbour, Portus, north of Ostia on the River Tiber to enable arrival of large grain ships and
 Ancient Rome I 257

Table 7.2  Successors of Augustus Caesar (14–235 ce)

Ruler Reign Dynasty Major Development/Achievement

Tiberius 14–37 ce Julio-Claudian Uniform silver coinage, building of roads, bridges and
canals
Caligula 37–41 ce Julio-Claudian Famous as a tyrant, built a temple for himself at Rome
Claudius 41–54 ce Julio-Claudian Building of aqueducts, highways and canals,
construction of an artificial harbour at Ostia near
River Tiber, conquest of Britain
Nero 54–68 ce Julio-Claudian Rebuilding of Rome after a major fire, construction of
an extravagant Golden House, persecution of the
Christians and the Jewish revolt at Jerusalem
Galba 68–69 ce Flavian
Otho 69 ce Flavian
Vitellius 69 ce Flavian
Vespasian 69–79 ce Flavian Capture of Jerusalem, decentralisation and integration
of provinces, financial reforms
Domitian 81–96 ce Flavian Defender of Roman tradition, claim to divinity,
construction of public buildings and roads
Nerva 96–98 ce Antonine Restoration of the prestige of Senate
Trajan 98–117 ce Antonine Relief programme for children (alimenta), growth of
large landed estates (latifundia) in Italy, construction
of roads, bridges, aqueducts and harbours, territorial
expansion of Rome reached its zenith
Hadrian 117–38 ce Antonine Creation of Hadrian’s Wall at Britain for defence, new
military tactics, reorganisation of Imperial
administration and legal reforms
Antoninus Pius 138–61 ce Antonine Public works and social welfare, legal reforms, frontier
defence in Britain and Germany
Marcus Aurelius 161–80 ce Antonine Division of Imperial authority, disastrous plague of 165
ce, militarisation of authority

Commodus 180–92 ce Antonine Conflict with the Senate, public donations, association
with divinities
Septimius 193–211 ce Severan Military reforms, downgrading of Senate, army became
Severus the principal source of legitimacy, issue of debased
coinage
Caracalla 211–17 ce Severan Economic crisis, issue of debased coins, citizenship to
all free inhabitants of the Empire, creation of a
defensive wall along German frontier
Macrinus 217–18 ce Severan
Elagabalus 218–22 ce Severan
Severus 222–35 ce Severan Prestige of the Senate restored, soldier’s mutiny, attack
Alexander of the German tribes on the Roman frontiers
Source: Author.
258 Ancient and Medieval World

increase the efficiency of grain transfer to Rome. Earlier the cargo of the large ships, in the
absence of a deep harbour, had to be unloaded at Puteoli in Campania and had to be transferred
overland to Rome. Nero (54–68 ce) and Domitian (81–96 ce) were both opposed by the senato-
rial oligarchy but were popular among the masses in Rome as well in the provinces as these two
rulers had brought about significant reforms in provincial administration.
During 96–180 ce, the period of five rulers (also known as ‘five good emperors’) in Rome is
considered as the ‘golden age’ of the Roman Principate. These rulers were Nerva (96–98 ce),
Trajan (98–117 ce), Hadrian (117–138 ce), Antoninus Pius (138–161 ce) and Marcus Aurelius
(161–180 ce). The epithet of ‘good rulers’ earned by these Principate rulers was mainly an out-
come of they being not only capable administrators, thus earning mass support, but also that
they respected the Senate and preserved republican institutions while running an essentially
autocratic government. All these rulers nominated their successors on merit with the support
of the Senate as none had a son, thus avoiding the problems arising out of dynastic politics.
These rulers continued the policy of earlier successors of Augustus of promoting public works
such as building of roads, highways, bridges, aqueducts, canals and harbours. The Alcantara
bridge (Spain) built by Trajan on the river Tagus is considered as a masterpiece in civil
engineering.
The Roman Empire under the Principate reached its greatest territorial extent under Trajan
(98–117 ce) who brought areas across the river Danube (running between Eastern and Central
Europe) in Eastern Europe under Roman control (see Map 7.3). The specific area was Dacia
(roughly modern Romania) which was rich in gold deposits. By defeating the powerful
Parthians, he extended the Roman borders in the east towards Armenia and Mesopotamia.
However, Hadrian (117–138 ce), realising the practical difficulties of military control over a
large area, fixed the Roman border at Euphrates River. Hadrian was more keen on defending
the Roman acquisitions and providing efficient administration rather than extending it further.
Thus, he created a defensive wall in the northern part of British Island known as ‘Hadrian’s
Wall’. Marcus Aurelius (161–180 ce), the last of the ‘five good rulers’ of the Principate, adopted
even more defensive approach. In order to defend Roman territories in Eastern Europe from
the invasions of the Germanic tribes, he followed a conciliatory policy towards them.
Thus, we see that the Principate rulers from Augustus Caesar to Marcus Aurelius success-
fully governed a vast Roman Empire. Apart from the fact that Rome reached its territorial cli-
maxes under the Principate rulers, the rulers, by providing efficient administration and
promoting cultural assimilation, ensured that Rome had fewer external enemies. The entire
Mediterranean was under the control of one single power which remained the political focal
point and cultural base throughout the history of the Roman Empire.
In the history of Roman Principate, the 55 years after the death of Marcus Aurelius is consid-
ered as the period of anarchy as the subsequent rulers, in their endeavour to establish military
dictatorship, undermined even the theoretical rights of the Senate. The reign of Commodus
(180–192 ce) was marked by confusion as he vacillated between accommodating the senators
and forcing them into submission. Thereafter Septimius Severus (193–211 ce), a provincial gen-
eral of African origin, founded what is known as the Severan dynasty. He had a scant regard for
the Senate as he was enthroned with the support of the army. He in fact attempted to establish
a military monarchy. This proved disastrous for his successors—Caracalla (211–17 ce),
Macrinus (217–18 ce), Elagabalus (218–22 ce) and Severus Alexander (222–35 ce)—as the grow-
ing prominence given to the army made it increasingly uncontrollable. Now any aspiring army
general could lay his claim to the throne with the aid of military power. The period was also
 Ancient Rome I 259

MAP 7.3  Roman Empire at Its Greatest Extent Under Trajan (98–117 ce)

Source: Adaptation from a blank map by Daniel Dalet. Available at [Link]

lang=en

marked by a severe economic crisis. Caracalla’s policy to extend citizenship rights to all free
inhabitants of the empire has been seen as being aimed at bringing more and more people under
tax liability to solve the economic crisis. The death of Severus Alexander in 235 ce is considered
as marking the end of the Principate rule in Rome.

The Third Century Crisis (235–284 ce)

The first 50 years after the murder of the last Principate ruler, Severus Alexander, witnessed
further deepening of the crisis facing the Roman Empire before a new order was established by
Diocletian in 284 ce. The period 235–84 ce was marked by heightened political chaos and eco-
nomic crisis, bringing the empire to the brink of ruin. The army had dominated the Roman
political affairs in the last 50 years but now their (including Praetorian guards as well as the
army posted in Eastern Europe and West Asia) ambition to grab the Imperial throne disturbed
260 Ancient and Medieval World

the delicate balance of power between the emperor, the Senate and the army. This created a
situation of civil war, adversely affecting agriculture and trade. Roman emperors, in order to
pay gratitude to the army, tried enriching them by debasing the coins while at the same time
imposing heavy taxation on the civilians. The resulting inflation badly affected landlords, small
farmers and artisans alike. Added to this was the natural calamities (pestilence) and diseases
(plague) that wiped out a large population, including those in the Roman army. The reduced
fighting force of the empire resulted in major military reverses, chief among them being defeat
at the hands of German tribes in the west and Persians in the east. Many of the western prov-
inces declared their independence, exposing Roman weakness to protect them. The worst suf-
ferer in the ensuing civil war was the status of Roman Monarchy as more than 20 emperors met
a violent death between 235 and 284 ce.

Division of Roman Empire Under Diocletian and Constantine

The process of the decline of the Roman Empire, conditions for which had been created by the
third century crisis, was halted by Diocletian (284–305 ce) who reorganised the empire by set-
ting a new order through some fundamental political, administrative and economic reforms.
But most importantly, he restored the sagging prestige of the monarchy and laid the edifice on
which the later Roman emperors based their authority. Unlike the great Augustus Caesar, who
exercised his absolute authority within the framework of a republican system, Diocletian
openly presented himself as an autocrat. Thus, instead of princeps (the first citizen), he was
accorded the title of dominus (lord). This has prompted historians to term this phase of the
Roman Empire as ‘Dominate’ to distinguish it from the Principate. Moreover, the earlier Roman
emperors were never keen on wearing the royal crown but Diocletian wore a diadem (band)
and wore purple silk gown interwoven with gold. He also introduced Persian style court eti-
quettes in his court that were aimed primarily at enhancing the dignity and prestige of the
monarch. Diocletian projected himself as a divine monarch and created such an arrangement
that made audience with him extremely difficult. The lucky ones to get an opportunity to meet
him had to prostrate before him and only few were privileged enough to kiss his robe. It is
hardly surprising then that Diocletian’s concept of monarchy has been found by scholars as
similar to those of Hellenistic kingdoms, Egypt and Sassanids of Iran.
Diocletian also brought about changes in the rules of Imperial succession which had been a
major source of political anarchy towards the latter half of the Principate rule. Having realised
the practical difficulties of controlling a huge empire by a single ruler, Diocletian divided the
empire into two parts, each with two sub-sections. While he retained the Eastern half for him-
self, the Western half was put under the control of Maximian. These two were called augusti
who then chose two ‘Caesars’ to govern subsections of their respective territories. When the
two augusti were to retire, the two ‘Caesars’ were supposed to replace them and appoint new
Caesars for assistance. This system, known as ‘tetrarchy’(rule of four), was designed not only
to end problems arising out of succession dispute but also to provide more effective gover-
nance over the empire by promoting decentralisation. Thus, Diocletian kept Thrace, Egypt,
Anatolia and West Asia under his direct control, Maximian held the charge of Italy and North
Africa, Gabrius looked after the Danubian Peninsula and Constantius administered Gaul, Spain
and Britain. This arrangement, though not devoid of tensions, proved to be successful in its
objectives and lasted for at least two decades after the retirement of Diocletian.
 Ancient Rome I 261

Diocletian’s administrative and economic reforms were equally significant. He kept direct
control over the army but separated military from civilian commands. This reduced the role of
army as kingmakers. Diocletian did not have to deal with the Senate as he ruled from the
Eastern part of the empire (with his capital at Nicomedia in modern Turkey) where oligarchy
was not as strong as it was in the West. By carving out smaller provinces, administrative units
were made more manageable. While on the one hand smaller provinces made collection of
taxes easier, it reduced the powers of the governor on the other. The later were now required
to look after revenue administration and many of their military duties and rights were curtailed.
The Imperial bureaucracy was also extended by Diocletian by opening its doors to the local
gentry, petty traders and urban professionals.
In the economic field, Diocletian, in order to control the high rate of inflation (which had
undermined the Roman economy in the last 50 years), stabilised the currency and attempted
(though not very successfully) to control prices and fix wages. He also reformed the tax system
by adjusting tax assessment by ordering a census to estimate the quantum of agrarian tax pay-
able to the state. The individual plots, rather than the owners, were made units for tax assess-
ment that tied the tenants and peasants to the soil and greatly benefitting the landowners. This
had far-reaching consequences for the future agrarian society of Europe.
The retirement of Diocletian in 305 ce was followed by another war of succession between
two Caesars until Constantine (son of Constantius) became first, the ruler of Western Roman
Empire in 312 ce and the sole emperor of the reunited empire in 324 ce until his death in 337 ce.
Constantine continued with few of the policies of Diocletian and also extended few of them.
Diocletian had declared armed services as hereditary and Constantine extended this by making
farming and crafts as hereditary occupation. Constantine permanently shifted the seat of the
emperor to a new city founded by him called Constantinople (modern Istanbul) on the ruins of
the ancient city of Byzantium. With this, Rome’s significance as the centre of political power
declined. The new capital was also symbolic of the shift of Roman civilisation towards the east.
As Constantinople was situated at the mouth of the Black Sea (on the border between Europe
and Asia), it emerged as the centre of communication, trade and defence. Since it was well
protected on three sides by water and on land by walls, it remained the capital of the Byzantine
Empire until its conquest by the Turks in 1453 ce.
Under Constantine, as Rome lost its political significance so did the Senate. Now it was no
more mandatory to consult the Senate on state matters. He is also supposed to have disbanded
the Praetorian guards, perhaps the last remaining symbol of the Principate. Although
Constantine established a parallel Senate in his new capital, it was rendered totally subservient
to the emperor. An important shift from Diocletian’s policy of succession however was the deci-
sion of Constantine to re-establish hereditary monarchy that had been rejected by Romans eight
centuries ago. To compound the problem, he divided the empire among his three sons, resulting
in a fresh series of civil war until the end of fourth century ce.
Apart from the fact that the rule of Diocletian and Constantine marked a sharp departure
from that of the Principate (both in respect of monarchical power and governance of the
empire), the more fundamental transformation was the fact that the axis of Roman civilisation
had shifted from the Italian Peninsula to the Eastern Mediterranean. The inability of
Constantine’s successors to manage together the two halves of the empire led to the formal
division of the empire into Western and Eastern Roman Empires during sometime after 395 ce.
The Eastern Roman Empire (mostly Greek speaking) gradually became more populous and
prosperous and assumed centre stage in the imperial policy. On the other hand, the Western half
262 Ancient and Medieval World

of the empire (mostly Latin speaking), due to the imperial neglect, was becoming poorer and
peripheral to the political, economic and cultural life of the empire. This formal division of the
Roman Empire was followed by secessionist movements in Britain, Gaul, Spain and Roman
territories in Germany due to the lack of a centralised governing authority. Egypt and North
Africa felt the similar neglect and weight of heavy taxation. Thus, after 395 ce, the existence of
the Roman Empire was confined to the East with its capital at Constantinople, and therefore
the notion of Roman Empire, for the purpose of historical analysis, should ideally be limited to
this year only.

SLAVE SOCIETY IN ANCIENT ROME

Besides its rulers and its army, art, architecture and religion, the Roman civilisation (like its
Greek predecessor) is also equally known for an institution like slavery. But unlike other
ancient civilisations such as Mesopotamia and Egypt that have been termed as ‘society with
slaves’, Greece and to a greater extent Rome have been considered as ‘slave societies’ albeit in
a limited sense. The term ‘slave society’ has been used to describe a community where slaves
constitute the chief labour force and, in some cases, majority of the population (as in Sparta).
Based on this criterion, the proportion of slaves in a given society to qualify as a ‘slave society’
has been arbitrarily fixed between 20 and 35 per cent of the total population. It naturally follows
from this that societies with less than the minimal population of slaves would not be placed in
the category of ‘slave society’. Moreover, unlike other ancient societies, slavery in Greece and
Rome was developed as a systematic mode of production and an institution that had a profound
impact on society in general of both these civilisations. Even more than Greece, Rome, on
account of its needs of a huge labour force subsequent to its expansion witnessed excessive use
of slave labour in some areas. This has led Perry Anderson (1974) to remark that ‘full potential
of slave mode of production was first time unfolded by Rome which organised and took it to
logical conclusion that Greece had never experienced’. With a population of approximately
35 per cent (estimated figure of Roman Italy during the reign of Augustus), the slaves performed
a central role in the agricultural production of Rome even if we concede that it was not the only
labour or perhaps was not even in majority in some areas. They played a vital role in the accu-
mulation of surplus that sustained the lifestyle of the elite Romans.
It would be worthwhile to mention here that even though both Greece and Rome have been
considered as slave societies, the potential and scope of the growth of slavery in Rome much
exceeded that of Greece. A brief comparison would bring this out more clearly. While large
numbers of slaves were employed on agricultural land in Greece, the farm sizes remained
modest, averaging between 30 to 60 acres. Moreover, the coastal character of the Greek civilisa-
tion limited the scope of the growth of large landed states. In contrast, Rome was primarily an
agrarian society and the Roman aristocracy had accumulated vast tract of fertile land, virtually
wiping out the small peasantry. Roman expansion in the Italian Peninsula, Western Mediterranean
and Eastern Mediterranean brought under their control huge tract of land, many of which were
turned into big latifundia. One of the estimates suggests that while the average size of land-
holding in Greece ranged between 75 and 100 acres, that of Roman latifundia were ordinarily
3,000 acre or more. We also get to hear that one aristocrat by the name of Lucius Domitius
owned over 200,000 acres in first century bce. In these large-landed estates, true potential of a
large slave labour force could be fully utilised. Moreover, unlike Greece, where political
 Ancient Rome I 263

thinkers, such as, Aristotle, had to justify the existence of an inhuman institution such as slav-
ery, it was institutionalised in Rome. Status of slaves was clearly defined by the Roman law.
They were called servus and were recognised as a form of ‘absolute property’ like commodities
that could be bought and sold in the market. Recognition given to the concept of absolute own-
ership of property gave owners complete control over their slaves. Slaves were denied any legal
right and therefore had no position in the society. Scholars argue that utter degradation of
slaves through laws and legal institutions was necessary to control such an extraordinarily
large population of slaves. Since most of the slaves were war captives, they had no kinship or
family ties (an important component of slavery). Their only relationship was with their master
and that too of complete subjugation.
Perry Anderson (1974) has remarked that Growth of slavery as a mode of production in both
Greece and Rome was an outcome of similar and specific socio-economic circumstances. But
even then, the Roman difference lies in the fact that social and economic conditions prevailing
here provided more compelling reasons for slavery to prosper as a full-fledged institution. In
Rome, as mentioned earlier, right since the time of the Republic, an oligarchy dominated by the
aristocracy held control over the political authority. Also, as mentioned before, Roman society
was clearly divided into two social orders or classes, that is, patricians and plebeians. Political
control of the Senate by the aristocracy was deeply resented, especially by the peasantry that
constituted bulk of the plebeian order. This resentment had led to a social struggle (‘conflict of
orders’) between the two and had become a recurring feature of the Republic since its incep-
tion. The monopoly of political power had enabled the aristocracy to acquire more land at the
cost of the peasantry. In this context, main grievance of the peasantry was the appropriation of
ager publicus (public or common land) by the aristocracy that was used by farmers for pastur-
age and cultivation. Thus, the major demand of the plebeian class besides a share in the
­decision-making process of the Republic was redistribution of ager publicus.
The Roman oligarchy could not ignore these demands of the plebeians as it lacked resources
to maintain a huge army to control them, but more so because the Roman army was heavily
dependent upon the peasantry that constituted the main fighting force. As the oligarchy, due to
lack of resources, could not raise a professional army financed by the state, it resorted to con-
scription whereby all adult males had to render military service. Thus, the bulk of the Roman
army comprised of unpaid soldiers (mostly peasants) who also had to provide for military
equipment on their own. Military needs of the Republic were not confined to expansion alone
but also maintenance and protection of the Roman territory. In other words, the patrician state
was heavily dependent on the plebeian army. On the other hand, the plebeian army was feeling
the weight of military burden. In case of Rome, this burden was much heavier than the Greek
hoplites because of the massive scale of the Roman expansion and the consequent need to
protect the conquered areas.
In the early phase of Roman expansion, the peasantry had benefitted from the Roman cap-
ture of the Etruscan city of Veii (392 bce), as the acquired land was turned into ager publicus
and redistributed among both aristocracy and the peasantry. This enabled the plebeian army to
equip themselves for military service. As discussed before, they also won some political conces-
sions when their assembly concilium plebis was recognised by the Senate and now they had an
outside chance of getting the post of consul. But as we saw, even a place in comitia centuriata
did not assure effective decision-making power in the hands of the plebeians. Moreover, Roman
territorial expansion during 510–27 bce had benefitted aristocracy (in terms of control over
land) more than the peasantry. The only powerful tool in the hands of the plebeian class was
264 Ancient and Medieval World

the refusal to serve in the army. The continued social conflict led to another landmark develop-
ment in Roman society in the shape of a crucial reform leading to abolition of nexum. Nexum
was a contract between debtor and the creditor wherein it was stipulated that if the debtor had
pledged himself against the loan, then failure to pay the debt would lead to debtor’s enslave-
ment (debt bondage). The peasantry incurred debt regularly either to equip themselves for the
army or to meet other economic needs such as payment of taxes. Peasant’s problem was com-
pounded by the fact that continuous military campaigns of the Republic made it difficult for
them to look after farming activities. Abolition of nexum meant that no free Roman citizen
could be put under debt bondage. This, as we shall see, had important consequence for the
growth of slavery in Rome.
However, the abolition of nexum could not prevent the creditor (mainly the landed aristoc-
racy) from taking over the land of the defaulting debtors. This exasperated the condition of the
plebeians leading to renewed social struggle after the conquest of Western Mediterranean
(146 bce). But one must not lose sight of the fact that the Roman plebeian class was itself
divided into (a) plebeian elite, (b) small peasantry (assidui) and (c) the landless (proletarii).
Perry Anderson (1974) opines that struggle of the poorer classes had generally been led by the
wealthy (elite) plebeians who championed the popular cause to serve their own interests and
therefore, despite getting access to the senatorial order, the tribunes (representatives of con-
cilium plebis) proved to be docile elements of the Senate. Thus, aristocratic supremacy within
the Republic was not seriously shaken. The small peasantry or the assidui (literally ‘those
settled on land’) had the necessary property qualification to bear their own arms and were
therefore considered as the backbone of Roman army. The only function of property-less citi-
zens or proletarii were to raise children (proles).
The violent struggle between peasantry and the aristocracy after the conquest of Western
Mediterranean led to another round of land redistribution in 133 bce, whereby a part of the ager
publicus illegally taken over by the aristocracy was distributed among the assidui. But here
again a major proportion of the best quality land was leased out by the state to the aristocracy.
The land redistribution completely stopped by 119 bce. Increasing monopolisation of land by
the aristocracy resulted in a steady decline in the number of assidui class and tremendous
increase in the size of the property-less class or the proletarii. This trend was particularly
noticeable in the last hundred years of the Republic. As majority of the assidui were demoted
to the proletarian status, recruitment of soldiers who could pay for their own equipment
became increasingly difficult for the state. Moreover, the expansionist policy of the state had
itself resulted in a large number of military casualties among the assidui class. Roman army
was consequently filled with landless citizens (mainly from the assidui class) who now started
getting salary in lieu of military service.
While the soldiers started getting salary and the countryside was converted into domains of
the landed aristocracy, the city became populated with proletarianised mass of people, deprived
of land or any other property. In order to prevent law and order from breaking down due to the
presence of such a large property-less population in the city, the government decided to distrib-
ute free ration. According to P. A. Brunt’s (1971) estimate by 50 bce there were about 320,000
citizens who were receiving free grains. Thus, we see that majority participants in the Roman
citizen assembly (comitia centuriata) were unemployed, poverty-stricken members, who at
times turned unruly and disrupted the assembly proceedings. Perry Anderson (1974) has argued
that they were also often manipulated by the aristocracy to scuttle projects for agrarian reforms
backed by small farmers. In fact, the public grain distribution, argues Anderson, was a cheap
 Ancient Rome I 265

substitute for land distribution that never really occurred because the senatorial oligarchy pre-
ferred a passive and consumer proletariat to recalcitrant and producer peasantry. Once assured
of free ration, the proletariat class lost all will to go back to the villages to work on the landed
estates of the aristocracy, creating a severe shortage of labour in these estates.
Shortage of labour was accentuated by the fact that Roman success in the Gallic, Punic and
the Macedonian wars had brought under the control of the Roman landed aristocracy, vast
agricultural land. The aristocracy needed labour to work on these big landed estates (called
latifundia). The internal supply of labour in Rome had shrunk first due to abolition of nexum
that prevented enslavement of free Roman citizens and then the free public distribution of grain
due to which the landless lost the will to work on the farmlands. Thus, conditions were suitable
for the growth of slave mode of production in Rome during the Republican period. The landed
aristocracy responded to the labour crisis by employing large number of slaves brought from
outside to work on their estates, leading to introduction of large-scale slave latifundium in
several parts of the Roman Empire, particularly in Italy, Spain, Gaul and North Africa.
The major source of the supply of slave labour was numerous military campaigns that
poured into Rome a large number of war captives to be employed in the landed estates. Keith
Bradley (2011) has commented that Roman slavery from its very beginning was a product of
Roman imperialism. An already existing slave trade ensured regular supply of slaves. The war
captives were brought in the Mediterranean ports such as Delos and then sent to different parts
of the empire through a well-established slave trade network. It can be argued that the Roman
military expansion, besides aiming at acquisition of more land, also looked at these campaigns
as essential to get slaves to solve the problem of deficit in internal supply of labour. Piracy and
plundering raids were additional sources of slave procurement. According to P. A. Brunt’s
(1971) estimate, in 225 bce, population of Italy was 5 million out of which 4,400,000 were free
citizens and 600,000 slaves. But by 43 bce, out of a population of 7.5 million, there were 3 million
slaves and 4.5 million free citizens. This figure underlines the role of slaves in the Roman soci-
ety. A further brief analysis would suggest that the high potentiality of slave labour with respect
to Roman economy was not merely confined to agriculture but extended to urbanisation, trade
as well as administration.
As for the condition of slaves in Rome, it depended to a large extent on the kind of work (in
the rural and urban sphere) that they were assigned to do but also in the manner their status
was defined in the Roman law. As discussed before, the slaves were to perform variety of jobs
for their masters in the rural and urban areas, ranging from agricultural labour, urban labour,
domestic work, craft production, mining to personal work of the master, business, education,
administration and estate manager of the master. In principle, however, there was no task that
a slave might not be called upon to perform by his master. But in due course, a convention
developed under which slaves were assigned jobs according to their specialisation and jobs ill-
suited to them were avoided. As the comment of Aristotle that ‘there is no leisure for slaves’
and that of Chrysiyppus who called slave as ‘hired man for life’ suggest slaves had no free will
and whatever work they did was for the master. For the master, however, there was no fixed
work for the slaves as outlined in the convention. For them, slaves, apart from being labours,
were also companion, caretakers, partners and advisers apart from being status symbols for the
elite class. The quality of life of the slaves therefore varied greatly. Although food ration allotted
to the slaves was meant for their basic survival but evidences indicate that the landlords (even
the absentee ones) had the common sense that slaves were to be adequately fed if they were to
labour efficiently, particularly in the agricultural sector. But the cereals meant for the slaves did
266 Ancient and Medieval World

not have sufficient mineral content. Domestic slaves were more fortunate as they could eat the
leftovers of their masters.
Domestic slaves were housed in the cells (originally meant for storing grains) constructed
within the household of the master. The size and condition of the cells varied according to the
resources of the master but the accounts of Horace and Seneca suggest that most of the cells
were tiny and cramped. Even the archaeological evidences pertaining to the Roman domestic
houses indicate that service rooms housing the slaves were marginalised (in terms of construc-
tion and decoration) in relation to the main residential areas. In the rural areas too, the farm
slaves were housed in the cells within the villa or latifundia of the landowner or in a cell near
the farm. Clothing of the slaves depended upon the nature of job that they did. The contempo-
rary sources suggest that it ranged from meagre rags and hides of the wolves and the wild bores
to special liveries and uniforms with a clothing allowance. Although material life of the slaves
was pedestrian but scholars, such as Keith Bradley (2011), have argued that the condition of the
slaves was not worse than the free poor, rather they were at advantage as their needs were
provided for by their respective masters.
Slavery as an institution was so engrained in the social fabric of Rome that any serious ques-
tioning of this institution was unthinkable. But the overall pitiable condition of the slaves and
specific treatment meted out to them did provoke reactions from the slaves in the form of
revolts. The most famous among these was the slave revolt of 73 bce led by the gladiator
Spartacus who had started a training school at Capua in Central Italy that attracted large
number of slaves. With a large support, Spartacus turned a small rebellion into a full-fledged
war against Rome. Slaves declared their freedom and held against the provincial forces for
almost two years until it was crushed by Crassus with the help of a large military force. Two
similar slave wars had occurred towards late second century bce in Sicily, which also involved
a large number of slaves, and both required substantial number of military force to bring them
under control. Despite some of these revolts being well-organised, they were ultimately crushed
by the Roman authorities as the rebel’s main objective was to extricate them from slavery and
no attempt was made to alter the existing social and economic structure or call for an end to
slavery.

AGRARIAN ECONOMY
Although Roman civilisation was city-oriented, it was essentially based on agricultural surplus
generated in the countryside, particularly in the large slave latifundia. The Roman conquest of
Italy and Western Mediterranean during 338–133 bce and the subsequent confiscation of land
and enslavement of original owners brought under the control of Roman aristocracy very large
landed estates that could not have been cultivated without employing large labour force, given
the shortage of labour. Roman owners of these big latifundia made sure not to concentrate all
their holdings in one place. To escape the uncertainties of weather conditions, they widely dis-
tributed their holdings to different parts of the Roman Empire. Thus, while few estates of Italy,
worked by the slave labour, concentrated on cereals interspersed with vine and olive produc-
tion and rearing of sheep, goat and cattle, pasturage was more important than agricultural crops
in other parts of Italy. In Southern Italy, many estates were converted into horse ranches. But
as the population of Italy grew, large amount of grain was brought from Sicily and then North
Africa and Egypt. In the subsequent period, Africa and Egypt became the major supplier of
 Ancient Rome I 267

wheat to the Roman Empire. But there was no widespread introduction of slavery in these and
other areas of Eastern Mediterranean. However, the big landed estates of Spain and Gaul, which
were major centres of vine and olive production, remained with Italy among the Roman prov-
inces deeply marked by slavery right until the end of the Roman Empire.
In, practically every part of the Roman Empire, most fertile lands were cornered by the aris-
tocracy while small farmers were pushed to the marginal areas. A burning example of this was
the fertile plains of Campania in West Italy where practically all cultivable land were turned into
slave latifundia for the production of cereals and other crops. In North Italy, Cisalpine region
was used by owners of big estates to produce millet. Likewise, large-scale production of olive
and vine could only have been carried out by rich owners of big latifundia as these plants took
much longer to mature. However, based on recent researches, few scholars have questioned the
traditional views regarding reasons that led to the impoverishment of small farmers in south
and north, particularly in Cisalpine Gaul. It has been argued that in these regions, a large
number of Romans (including both big landowners and small peasantry) benefitted from the
distribution of ager publicus during 201–180 bce. But after 180 bce, land redistribution ceased
because many people preferred to settle in flourishing cities such as Puteoli, Pompeii, Ostia and
Rome. In the Roman Empire as a whole too, the traditional notion of decline in the number of
assidui class has been questioned. It has been argued that until the beginning of the Spanish
war (133 bce), Rome had little difficulty in getting recruits from the assidui class as the amount
of land required for an assidui member to serve in the army was progressively lowered due to
the falling value of land subsequent to large-scale Roman acquisition of land in Italy. Moreover,
it has been argued, except during emergency, the Roman state mostly recruited young unmar-
ried men for military service who represented surplus rural labour and their prolonged absence
did not really affect their farming families. Nonetheless, both traditional and modern scholar-
ship concede that to a large extent Roman agriculture was serviced by slave labour and also
that surplus generated in the slave latifundia sustained Roman cities. The tax demands of the
central government were largely met by the rural surplus and it was this surplus that fulfilled
the needs of the Roman government such as supplying and financing the military, bureaucracy
and the court. Other obligations of the government such as granting free rations to the plebe-
ians and expenditure on construction of public buildings and providing other amenities for the
capital city were also paid for by taxes raised from the rural sector.

URBANISATION
Establishment of big latifundia and settlement of the aristocracy in general in the countryside
led to the growth of rural markets (  foras) which were essentially a place of meeting and
exchange of goods and ideas. This facilitated the growth of urbanisation in general and in Italy
in particular. In addition to the encouragement that they gave to agriculture, the Roman rulers
were also great builders. The Roman policy of controlling the far-flung territories by assimilat-
ing their residents into common cultural and political life of Rome led to extension of urbanisa-
tion in the provinces of Spain, Gaul and Britain. Here, cities were constructed along with
amenities of urban life such as baths, temples, amphitheatres, aqueducts and paved roads.
Urban expansion took place even in those regions where none existed before, for example, the
Hispanic provinces, parts of Britain and Gaul. Scholars P. Garnsey and R. Saller (1987) argue
that in the West, urbanisation was a crucial factor in the process of Romanisation which was a
268 Ancient and Medieval World

result of both government actions and local initiative. The existence of large slave labour force,
both skilled and un-skilled, helped in the construction of large number of public buildings,
temples, palaces and water channels not only in Rome and other parts of Italy but also in distant
provinces. The rapid growth of Rome and other urban centres in Italy also created opportuni-
ties in small-scale crafts and service business such as wine bars, barbershops, bakeries, potter-
ies, metalworking, shoemaking and so on. The construction of roads, bridges, aqueducts and
other public buildings provided opportunities for builders and suppliers.

TRADE
Not only agriculture but Roman trade and industry were also affected to a great extent by the
presence of a large slave labour force. According to an estimate given by Perry Anderson
(1974), 90 per cent of the artisans in Rome itself were of slave origin. Such a large population
of slaves engaged in handicraft production presupposes a well-developed network of exchange
and market for the consumption of the surplus produce. In fact, the slave-based rural economy
itself was dependent on an efficient network of exchange and creation of cities that could serve
as consumption points for tremendous amount of surplus produced in the slave latifundium.
Rome’s conquests and political unification of Mediterranean gave slave latifundia of Italy
access to overseas markets. The growth of commodity exchange in Rome can be gauged from
the fact that a proper commercial law had come into effect in the latter half of the Republic.
The articles of trade included both agricultural (cereals, olive and wine) and non-agricultural/
manufacturing products such as pottery, textiles and metal and glass works. Backed by the
commercial law, merchants carried these specialised goods throughout the empire. While the
eastern trade (between Levant and Italy) was largely in the hands of Syrian and Alexandrian
traders who supplied goods to Rome and Italy, the western trade (between Africa and Italy via
Spain) was dominated by the Italian traders with respect to the export of grains from Africa and
Sicily and exchange of Italian wine, pottery and metalware in return for silver and slaves from
regions across the Alps Mountain. The network of roads and waterways that developed under
Augustus Caesar encouraged centres of production to increase their output for a wider market.
Despite the existence of networks of exchange (both internal and external), the Roman com-
merce has been described as marginal to the overall Roman economy. It has been argued by
economic historians that low level of demand, riskiness of the trade and poor transport facili-
ties in general acted as disincentive to potential investors. Such a view is not shared by all. Few
scholars such as Keith Hopkins (1980) have argued in favour of expansion of trade, at least,
during the Principate, backed by the following assumptions:

1. the imposition of money taxes in the provinces by the Roman government greatly
increased the volume of trade in the Roman Empire;
2. the level of consumption at least in the west was higher during this period which sus-
tained the demand;
3. greater incidence of shipwrecks shows more seaborne trade than before and
4. there was a growth of supply of money to finance greater interregional trade.

But more recently, scholars P. Garnsey and R. Saller (1987) have reiterated that despite peace
and stable government under the Principate, economic prosperity and growth can only be
 Ancient Rome I 269

described as having developed on a modest scale. Citing reasons such as predominance of

agricultural labour, the backward state of technology, the importance of land as a source of
wealth and power and dominance of the value system of the landed aristocracy, they argue that
in such a scenario, it is difficult to presume greater monetisation and more than modest growth
of trade and commerce.
Besides agriculture, mining and handicraft production, large number of slaves were also
employed at the lower level of administration as clerks in the government offices or as supervi-
sors in big latifundia. Based on diverse fields in which they were employed, slaves can be
classified into skilled (employed as supervisors or business agents), semi-skilled (engaged in
handicraft production) and un-skilled (mainly employed in agriculture, mining or domestic
work). Female slaves were few in number as they were considered unfit for hard manual labour
and were therefore confined to domestic work.
Precise role of slavery in the ancient economy is a matter of debate among historians repre-
senting Marxist and non-Marxist viewpoints. Non-Marxists argue that role of slave labour in
production process in the ancient economy has been exaggerated. According to this view,
slaves were too few in comparison to peasants and free labour and slave labour was only one
category of labour and certainly not the dominant one (at least in Greece). Even few Marxist
historians, such as, Ellen M. Wood (1988), have argued that Roman Empire was the only social
formation which may be characterised as slave social formation. Even though a large number
of slaves were employed in several sectors in Greece, slaves were marginal to the production
process that was dominated by the free peasants and free labour. Moreover, she argues, the
Greek landed estates never reached the size that they did in Rome. Thus, according to Wood,
Rome must be treated as an exception because the scale of its expansion enabled it to use slave
labour so extensively. But critics have argued that it is difficult to explain the large population
of slaves in comparison to free citizens in Greece as they could not have been employed in the
domestic sector alone because it would have proved uneconomical.
Marxist historians, on the other hand, attach great importance to slave mode of production
in the context of both Greece and Rome. Their main argument is that slavery was the major
surplus extraction relationship among several methods of surplus extraction. They argue that
it was through slavery that the aristocracy acquired its wealth in Italy and western provinces.
However, M. I. Finley (1980), a non-Marxist, has put the issue in proper perspective. He opines
that freemen, in both Greece and Rome, dominated small-scale farming, much of subsistence
farming as well as petty commodity production and small-scale exchange in the cities. On the
other hand, slave labour dominated and virtually monopolised large-scale production in both
countryside and the urban sector. Thus, according to Finley, the notion of slave society in
Greece should be limited to central areas whereas in Rome, it should be confined to Italy, Sicily
and to some extent provinces of Gaul and Spain. Speaking particularly about Roman slavery,
Keith Bradley says that the description of Rome as a slave society should be restricted in
chronological terms too. Chronologically, according to Bradley, Rome cannot be called a slave
society before the middle of third century bce when acquisition of an overseas empire not only
brought huge amount of land under the control of Roman aristocracy requiring large labour to
cultivate it but also tremendous slave supply (in the form of prisoners of war) facilitated by an
existing lucrative slave trade. Similarly, Rome was not a slave society in the later imperial
period (roughly from the time of Diocletian onwards) because slavery no longer dominated
large-scale production in the rural areas, and large-scale production in the cities had been
reduced to state factories.
270 Ancient and Medieval World

Another important issue connected with slavery as a mode of production is whether or not
the extensive use of slave labour created technological and structural obstacles to the growth
of ancient economy. Few scholars have argued that in contrast to the dynamism of medieval
feudal economy, which was to succeed it, the ancient economy was relatively static. State of
technology has been the basis of such a comparison. The overall technological stagnation of the
ancient economy has been explained by a general negative attitude towards manual labour and
the availability of cheap labour (due to the presence of a large labour force), thus obviating the
necessity of technical innovations. Perry Anderson (1974) argues that every mode of produc-
tion in its ascendant phase displays signs of technological advancement and therefore slave
mode of production was not completely devoid of technological progress. Its extensive use in
western provinces of the Roman Empire in the early phase led to some significant innovations
such as introduction of rotary mill (for grinding grains) and screw press (for crushing vines)
along with advancement in botanical knowledge and field drainage technique. But the dynamics
of slave mode of production, argues Anderson, was very restricted since it rested essentially on
the annexation of slave labour rather than exploitation of land or accumulation of capital. Thus,
unlike feudal or capitalistic mode of production, slave mode of production possessed very little
objective impetus for technological advance. Since slaves were a cheap labour and easily avail-
able, there was no motivation to bring about technological innovations and take the economy
forward.

Summary
1. The core area of the Roman civilisation was Central Italy but the Roman Empire
expanded in the entire Mediterranean. Surrounded by sea on three sides and high
mountains on the fourth, Italy was well protected from external invasions in early
stages. Founded in the sixth century bce, Rome became the dominant city of this
civilisation. Its location on the banks of River Tiber gave it several locational advan-
tages in the early stages of its foundation, including protection from external inva-
sions, trade and commerce and movement of army. In the initial phase of its
existence, Roman city-state was ruled by Monarchy but it was replaced by Republic
in 510 bce.
2. Under the Republic, Roman territorial expansion took place in the Italian Peninsula,
Western Mediterranean and Eastern Mediterranean. While in the Italian Peninsula
Romans extended their sphere of influence by making allies and overpowering
Samnites and the Greek states, in Western Mediterranean they had to fight pro-
longed wars with the state of Carthage (Punic Wars) and the Macedonian wars in the
Eastern Mediterranean to take control of the entire Mediterranean.
3. The Republic was controlled by an oligarchy dominated by the Roman aristocracy.
The Roman society was divided into two broad ‘orders’ or classes, namely, Patricians
and Plebeians. Patricians were the rich aristocratic class who held this status based
on birth, while plebeians consisted of all those who did not belong to the governing
class and all other common masses. Patricians were the dominant social groups
exercising control over political, social, economic and religious matters.
 Ancient Rome I 271

4. The oligarchy under the Republic functioned through a council (Senate) through
which the aristocracy exercised its power. The Senate did not have any legislative
power but issued decrees to the magistrates of the assemblies that expressed
Senate’s views on important issues such as military, war, foreign policy and financial
and legislative affairs. The actual civil and military powers lay in the hands of annual
magistrates (consuls). Other magistrates such as censors, praetor, aediles, quaestors
and apparitores assisted the consuls.
5. Assemblies were the third important element of the Roman republican system
besides the Senate and the magistrates. The earliest assembly of Roman citizen was
known as comitia curiata, which was functional under the monarchy but was
replaced by comitia centuriata under the Republic, whose membership included all
adult male citizens of Rome. Members were divided into centuries (lowest army unit
in Rome) and voted not individually but as a group. The comitia centuriata
appointed the magistrates and passed all legislations through a voting system based
on property qualification. The Centuriate Assembly was dominated by the aristoc-
racy, and the plebeians had no say in the decision-making. Opposing this monopoli-
sation of political power by the aristocracy, plebeians created their own assembly
called concilium plebis that discussed plebeian issues and appointed their own
magistrates called tribunes who later became their representative in the Senate.
Comitia tributa was another assembly that included all citizens of the state, includ-
ing both patricians and plebeians.
6. The monopolisation of political power and the deteriorating condition of the plebe-
ians led to a severe social struggle between patricians and plebeians, traditionally
known as ‘conflict of orders’. This struggle brought about some benefits to the plebe-
ian class as the patricians could not ignore the demands of the former because ple-
beians constituted bulk of the army and the state needed them for both offence and
defence. The outcome of this social struggle included codification of laws (in the
form of Law of Twelve Tablets), passing of Licinian laws that made plebeians eligible
for consulship, abolition of nexum that ended debt bondage and passing of Lex
Hortensia that made laws enacted by concilium plebis binding on the Senate.
7. Nature of the Roman Republic has been a subject of much debate among the schol-
ars. One group of scholars argue that though theoretically democratic, there were
practical difficulties in the effective working of democratic institutions and there-
fore nature of the republican constitution (dominated by the aristocracy) was more
authoritarian than democratic. Others, citing democratic procedures such as elec-
tions and legislation, argue that the Roman constitution was a direct democracy. Still
others argue that the Roman constitution was framed in a manner where no indi-
vidual or family group became supreme and at the same time, public will were not
allowed to hinder public policy.
8. Last years of the Republic were full of turmoil as powerful military commanders
competed against each other to control political power, and Senate and other popu-
lar assemblies were rendered defunct.
(Continued)
272 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

9. The Principate (27 bce–235 ce) rulers, Augustus Caesar in particular, re-­established
order in the Roman Empire through his political, administrative, economic and mili-
tary reforms. The principle of Pax Romana brought about relative peace and eco-
nomic prosperity to the empire. Successor of Augustus Caesar continued with his
policy and the Empire reached its territorial climax under Trajan. Under the rule of
the so-called ‘five good rulers’, the Empire continued to prosper on account of effi-
cient administration, recognition given to the Senate and other democratic institu-
tions and construction of public works.
10. The period of ‘third century crisis’ (235–284 ce) was marked by political chaos and
economic crisis bringing the empire to the brink of ruin. The dominance of army
disturbed the delicate balance of power between the emperor, Senate and the army,
creating conditions of civil war.
11. The Dominate rulers, particularly Diocletian and Constantine, tried to halt the
decline of the Empire by restructuring its polity and administration. For the sake of
administrative convenience, the empire was divided into two administrative units
(western and eastern) and a new system of governance called ‘Tetrarchy’ was intro-
duced to avoid succession dispute and to enforce decentralisation. This ultimately
proved to be the basis of formal division of the Roman Empire into two halves,
Eastern and Western under Constantine.
12. Slavery in Rome arose under specific socio-economic circumstances, and it was
developed as a systematic mode of production. The large population of slave labour
and their usage in agriculture, handicrafts, mining, construction and administration
besides domestic work turned Rome into a true ‘slave society’ instead of being a
mere ‘society with slaves’. Legalised by law, slavery was turned into an institution
where slaves were declared as commodities to be bought and sold in the market.
The working conditions of the slaves depended on their nature of work but majority
of them worked in pitiable condition. Therefore, in specific circumstances, they
were goaded into rebellion and few of them were so large in their intensity and scale
that the state had to use all its might to crush such reactions from the slaves.
Although the extent of slavery and its role in the Ancient Roman economy is a debat-
able issue among Marxist and non-Marxist scholars, it is agreed upon that slave
labour was the basis of surplus generated in the hands of the wealthy Roman aristo-
crats. But since slave labour was cheap and made labour in general cheap, it did in
some manner obstruct technological innovations, turning the Roman economy a
static economy which had its repercussions when the Roman Empire entered into a
phase of economic crisis.

KEYWORDS
Monarchy oligarchy gentes patrician comitia centuriata Tribunes concilium
plebis comitia tributa triumvirate imperium Principate Dominate tetrarchy
slave society servus latifundia assidui ager publicus nexum
 Ancient Rome I 273

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. To what extent can the Roman Republican Constitution be termed as ‘democratic’?
2. Analyse the measures adopted by Augustus Caesar to establish order in the Roman
Empire.
3. What steps were taken by Diocletian to restore the prestige of the crown and reorganise
the Roman Empire?
4. Briefly examine the socio-economic factors that led to the rise of slavery in Rome. What
was its role in Roman agriculture, urbanisation and trade?
5. Discuss the chief features of slavery in Rome. Did slavery obstruct technological progress
of the ancient Roman economy?
6. Bring out the essential differences between Roman and Greek slavery.

REFERENCES
Anderson, Perry. 1974. Passages from Antiquity to Feudalism. London: NBL/Verso Books.
Bradley, Keith. 1994. Slavery and Society at Rome. New York: Cambridge University Press.
———. 2011. ‘Slavery in the Roman Republic’. In The Cambridge World History of Slavery, Vol I, edited by Keith
Bradley and Paul Cartledge, 241–64. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Brunt, P. A. 1971. Social Conflicts in the Roman Republic. London: Chatto and Windus/University of Michigan.
Finley, Moses I. 1980. Ancient Slavery and Modern Ideology. London: Chatto and Windus/University of
Michigan.
Garnsey, P., and R. Saller. 1987. The Roman Empire: Economy, Society and Culture. London: Bristol Classic
Press.
Hermann, J., and E. Zürcher, eds. 1996. History of Humanity, Vol III. London: Routledge/UNESCO Publishing.
Keith, Hopkins. 1980. ‘Taxes and Trade in the Roman Empire (200 BC–AD 400)’. Journal of Roman Studies 70:
101–25.
Millar, Fergus. 2002. The Roman Republic in Political Thought. UPNE: Lebanon.
Potter, David S., ed. 2006. A Companion to the Roman Empire. Oxford and London: Blackwell.
Rosenstein, Nathan, and Robert Morstein-Marx, eds. 2006. A Companion to the Roman Republic. Oxford:
Blackwell.
Scarre, C., and Brian M. Fagan. 2016. Ancient Civilizations. New York: Routledge.
Wood, Ellen M. 1988. Peasant, Citizen and Slave: The Foundations of Athenian Democracy. London: Verso
Press.
CHAPTER
Ancient Rome II: Religion

8 and Culture in Ancient

Rome and the Crisis and
Decline of the Roman
Empire

Chapter Contents

Part I: Religion and Culture in Ancient Rome

• Religion in Early and Republican Rome
• Religious Life in Rome Under the Principate and Empire
• Culture in Early Rome and Under the Republic
• Roman Culture Under the Principate and the Empire
Part II: Crisis and Decline of the Roman Empire
• Political Crisis
• Economic Crisis
• Social Tension
• Tribal Invasions
• Summary

Part I: Religion and Culture in Ancient Rome

D
espite the Roman emphasis on adherence to mos maiorum (custom of the ancestors),
that is, Roman tradition, religion and culture in Rome was not an exclusive product of
this ideology. Just as the growth of Roman political institutions was affected by the ter-
ritorial expansion of Rome, so was its religion and culture influenced by the religious beliefs
and cultural traditions of regions it conquered. In other words, Roman religious and cultural
development (throughout the course of the existence of this ancient civilisation) was a result
of assimilation or fusion of various traditions the Romans that came into contact with. Scholars
 Ancient Rome II 275

of Roman history and culture point out that terms such as ‘Romanisation’, particularly with
respect to regions such as Gaul and Africa, should be used in a limited linguistic, administrative
and political sense and should not be extended to mean pervasiveness of indigenous Roman
cultural traditions in these regions. The archaeological sites of the ‘Roman World’ while on the
one hand give the feeling of a uniform civilisation with respect to architecture, amenities and
structure of its towns (baths, temples, theatres, and amphitheatres), imagery of gods and clas-
sical mythology, the layout of sanctuaries, their religious ornamentations and local adaptations
of civic or religious monuments, reveal the importance accorded to indigenous traditions.
Robert Turcan (1997) has rightly commented that ‘Greek civilization was a daughter of the East,
as Roman civilisation was the product of Greek education. Later, when conquering rest of the
East, Rome was to fall under its spell’.

RELIGION IN EARLY AND REPUBLICAN ROME

Writing a history of the religious world of early Rome has presented numerous difficulties for
historians due to the simple reason that no Roman literature of any sort has survived pertaining
to the period before third century bce. One has to reconstruct the history of early Roman reli-
gion (since foundation of the city) from discussions contained in the works of authors who
wrote much later as well as from a variety of archaeological findings such as the temple
remains, offerings made to gods, texts inscribed on bronze or stone recording such as dedica-
tions. Prominent among the early authors, whose writings give some glimpse of religious life in
early Rome, were Marcus Terentius Varro (Antiquities Human and Divine, 35 bce), Tullius
Cicero (De Re Publica, 50 bce), Cornelius Tacitus (Annals, c. 69 ce) and Decimus Junius
Juvenal (Satires, c. 85 ce). But since these authors wrote with political concerns in their mind
(most of them being consuls in the Senate), one has to exercise caution while interpreting their
views on religious beliefs and practices of early Rome. Roman literary tradition, besides these,
also include works of poets such as Vergil, Horace, Ovid and Propertius which inform us about
people, events and practices from Rome’s remote past. These writings along with oral traditions
of Roman practices and archaeological findings have enabled scholars to construct more accu-
rately the religious life in early Rome.

Early Roman Religious Beliefs and Practices

Sources mentioned in the previous section inform us that religion in early Rome was closely
bound up with social values wherein family was accorded supreme importance. In fact, the
early Roman state itself was modelled on the principle of protecting the interest of its constitu-
ent families. Likewise, Roman religion was an extension of the religious and ethical practices
laid down by the patriarchs (head of a family) who controlled the community. Even Tullius
Cicero, considered as the most sceptical among Rome’s intellectual elite, acknowledged the
necessity of religion as a form of social order despite many Roman myths and cults lacking
rationality.
Romans, like their Egyptian and Greek counterparts, did not distinguish between animate
and inanimate things and believed that every object, creature, place or nature contained an
invisible force (numen) which could have impacts on human lives beyond their control.
276 Ancient and Medieval World

Gradually, certain spirits, containing the invisible force and found to be operating at the same
time in several places for many families, assumed the status of gods. Most prominent example
of this is the worship of Jupiter, the lord of sky controlling regions of light, cloud and storm.
These natural forces have always evoked a sense of awe and fear in the minds of humans and
therefore an attempt was made to establish right relations with these spirits through prayers,
sacrifices and rituals. These actions were meant to propitiate their gods and spirits to bestow
on their houses, farms and their city, blessings of prosperity, fertility and victory or to avert their
hostility. Thus, as some scholars, (Ward, Heichelheim and Yeo 2010) have remarked, ‘Roman
religion was not a matter of belief or faith but of actions’.
Sacrifice and prayer was given a central place by the Romans in their attempt to appease the
gods and the spirits. It was believed that sacrifices improved the power of the spirits to perform
functions for the benefit of the sacrificer and could also infuse numen into an object not pos-
sessing it before. Prayer was considered as worshipper’s desire to give proper direction to the
power inherent in the spirits and gods. Therefore, particular emphasis was placed on suitable
sacrifice for the purpose related to farming, birth or construction of houses and ascribed prayer
(formula) for the appropriate deity to ensure effectiveness of divine assistance. Thus, for the
Romans, religion had more practical utility than being a mere abstract religious belief. Another
striking feature of the early Roman religious practice was the addition of deities in case the
existing deities proved to be ineffective for the time being. In this context, Robert Turcan (1997)
opines that Roman polytheism was opportunistic and was thus open to possible expansion.
This explains why during the entire course of Roman history so many cults, deities or combina-
tion of deities found a place in the Roman religious pantheon.
Religion in early Rome was not confined to any particular occasion or shrines but permeated
daily life of people and every aspect of the Roman society. Individual Roman families worshipped
Janus (spirit of the house door), Vesta (spirit of the fireplace), Penates (spirit of the kitchen) and
Lares (spirit of the crossroads). Besides worshipping household deities, Romans held community
festivals to appease several other deities. Prominent among them being festival of Ambervalia,
held towards the end of May, to secure divine favour for the growth and ripening of crops and
festivals directed towards worship of Mars, the god of agriculture. Another popular festivals were
feast of wine, held in the month of August, to honour Jupiter to coincide with grape picking
season and the festivals of October Horse, to honour Mars, also popular as god of war.

The Greek Influence

Roman religion was also influenced by Greek religious practices. An early contact with Greece
before the establishment of the Republic and the Roman knowledge of Greek beliefs led to the
introduction of anthromorphic (part human part animal) deities in Rome. The two most popular
anthromorphic Roman cults of Juno (Jupiter’s wife and queen of gods) and Minerva (goddess of
arts and crafts) came to be identified with anthromorphic Greek goddesses Hera and Athena.
Italic Jupiter corresponded to Greek Zeus. Not only the deities but the Greek influence was also
visible in the attempt to provide statues and dwelling places (shrines) for these divinities.
Before the beginning of Republic, the temple built at the Capitoline Hill in Rome for the triad of
Jupiter, Juno and Minerva was designed and decorated in Greek style. Other Roman deities such
as Neptune corresponded to Greek god Poseidon as god of the waves, Venus as Aphrodite (god-
dess of love and beauty) and Mercury as Hermes, the god of trades. Likewise, the triad of Roman
 Ancient Rome II 277

agricultural goddesses Ceres, Libera and Liber, who had a temple dedicated to them on the
Aventine Hill (built 499 bce) corresponded to Greek triad of Demeter, Persephone and Bacchus.
Despite these similarities, Roman religion differed with that of Greeks in couple of signifi-
cant ways. One being the way Romans revered their ancestors. Unlike their Greek counterparts,
Romans included in their household gods deceased members of the lineage, who were wor-
shipped to ensure continued prosperity for the family. Another major difference was the extent
to which Roman political, social and economic developments influenced its religious beliefs.
Although political developments had determined religious beliefs to a great extent in the
ancient civilisations like Egypt, in Rome it was even more pronounced. Romans conceived of
their state as a giant household and believed that their state, like their households, could flour-
ish only if the gods of Rome lent it their active and continuing support. Thus, a committee of
priests was appointed by the state to look after the worship of city’s gods, preside over public
rites and serve as guardians of sacred traditions. These priests were not fulltime professionals
but prominent aristocrats (from amongst the patricians) who rotated in and out of priestly
offices simultaneously serving as leaders of the state. Their dual role made the Roman religion
an even more integral part of the fabric of public and political life than it had been in Greece.

Religion at Popular and State Level

Early Roman religion, at the popular level, was centred on home, farm and pasture, which was
also endorsed by the state that helped bind people in a single community and also gave state
internal strength and cohesion. But with political and urban growth in Rome, changes were
brought in the manner gods were solicited for their blessings. Thus, Jupiter lost his status as a
farmer’s god and came to be worshipped as god of cities and towns. Later, he was accorded an
even higher status as the greatest of all gods, the symbol of Roman state, the giver of victories
and the spirit of law and justice. Similarly, Mars, worshipped as spirit of the forests and protec-
tor of farmer’s crops and animal herds, later became the god of war and protector of the Roman
state against its enemies. The expansion of Roman commercial ventures led to transformation
of Neptune (god of spring, ponds and small rivers) into the god of great open seas such as the
Greek god Poseidon. But despite being instrumental in bringing about transformation in wor-
ship of the deities, the emerging Roman state also endeavoured to embrace and incorporate all
older and smaller social and religious communities and attempted to provide for common reli-
gious life to the people on behalf of the community. The cult of hearth and fire associated with
the worship of Janus and Vesta became a state religion, and its popularity fostered a sense of
belonging to one great national family. Similarly, the state initiative made the outdoor cult of
Jupiter and Mars turn into a major cult to favour Rome’s external power.
Thus by early republican Rome, that is, 500 bce, the complex religious combination of rever-
ence for ancestors, spirit worship and anthromorphism and the various rituals associated with
them became the basis of future religious beliefs in Rome. The Roman values of hard work,
discipline, duty, courage and loyalty that developed simultaneously and at times influenced by
religious beliefs, made winning, military glory and obedience to authority as most desirable.
This greatly benefitted the aristocracy that controlled the state. The Roman reverence for their
ancestors and their emphasis on adherence to mos maiorum worked against innovations (res
navae, i.e., new things). Moreover, since customs were considered to have been sanctioned by
gods, it was an offence against them to change the customs. However, Roman expansion in the
278 Ancient and Medieval World

subsequent centuries created new circumstances necessitating innovation. New cults and ritu-
als were subsequently accepted by Romans by finding precedence in the past. Thus, it can be
said that, in Rome, changes in the field of religion occurred within the framework of
continuity.

Impact of Roman Territorial Expansion

The Roman territorial expansion during early (500–264 bce), middle (264–133 bce) and later
republican phase (133–30 bce), during the course of which the entire Italian peninsula, Western
and Eastern Mediterranean came under the Roman dominance, brought about some modifica-
tions in the Roman religious beliefs. The Romans absorbed deities and cults of other people by
understanding and reinterpreting foreign divinities in their own way and acknowledged these
cults in the areas of their control as expression of local identity and tradition. However, not all
foreign cults were given equal treatment. Some cults and religious practices were embraced
officially, others were merely tolerated while still others were condemned as hysteria, magic or
superstition and were therefore declared unwanted in Rome. The latter included the cults that
were thought to have the potential to dilute the Roman attachment to mos maiorum, disturb
the Roman spirits or were perceived as conspiracy against the Roman state.
The assimilation of foreign cults or deities with the Roman tradition was made possible by
consulting and reinterpreting Sibylline Books, a collection of oracles of Sibyl, the famous priest-
ess of Apollo, one of the greatest gods of the Roman religious pantheon. These books had a
decisive role in combining Roman spirits with the Greek cults to create new Greco-Roman
anthromorphic deities. They were also instrumental in the introduction of new forms of wor-
ship such as funeral and secular games, ritual dances, religious processions and banquets of the
gods. An early contact with Greeks and the subsequent Roman domination of the Eastern
Mediterranean was a major factor behind the dominance of eastern cults (among the foreign
cults) that found a place in the Roman pantheon. Prominent among the eastern cults that found
acceptance in the Roman religious beliefs until the middle republican phase were the Egyptian
cult of Isis and Osiris, the cult of the Great Mother Cybele from Turkey and the worship of
Persian god Mithras. These cults gained widespread popularity among the Roman populace
despite some attempts made by the state (through the Senate) to restrict the activities of some
of these cults. Worship of Greek god Dionysus (Roman Bacchus) had become quite popular in
Southern Italy by the third century bce. The revelry that followed the worship of this cult,
including drunken orgies, provided some relief to the lower classes, particularly women from
the harsh daily routine. But their secret meetings and uninhabited behaviour were perceived as
conspiracy against the Roman state. Hence, a decree was passed by the Senate, restricting the
Bacchus worshippers. A similar attempt was made by the Senate to restrain worship of Cybele,
the cult of the worship of the Great Mother having been introduced in Rome during the Second
Punic War. Their rituals included unruly processions, ecstatic dances and even self-mutilation
that shocked the Roman leaders.
Despite a restrictive attitude of the Roman state towards some of these cults, they retained
their popularity and became a marked feature of the Roman religious practices by the end of
the Republic. It has been argued that these mystery religions helped revitalise the traditional
structure of Greco-Roman rituals and myths and also paved way for the growth of Christianity
in Rome in the subsequent centuries. Several reasons have been cited for the popularity of these
 Ancient Rome II 279

foreign cults despite Roman insistence on maintaining custom of their ancestors. Most of these
cults propagated the ideology of resurrection and rebirth, thus providing a sense of immortality
to the followers. Besides, these cults also fostered a feeling of brotherhood and sisterhood
among the followers along with a sense of identity. Followers of the cult of Cybele were most
often artisans; Mithras was largely worshipped by soldiers while Isis worshippers usually
belonged to the lower-middle class, including traders. Roman religion encouraged virtues like
piety (pietas) and this provided the basis for the popularity of the cult of Osiris or Serapis (god
of immortality, healing and fertility).
Robert Turcan (1997) has provided several dimensions to the reasons behind penetration
and successful adoption of foreign (largely eastern) cults in Rome until the end of the Roman
Republic. These include historical, sociological and psychological contexts. He argues that
these cults (each in its own way) satisfied the aspirations and religious sensibilities of a fluid
and mixed world of the Roman Empire. Besides, the notion of Pax Romana also proved to be
favourable for the penetration of eastern cults. The movement of soldiers and civil servants
across the length and breadth of the Roman Empire, the mobility of men on official assignments
or in search of hefty profits, orators, mendicants and preachers and the dynamism and com-
mercial aggressiveness of Levantine businessmen were additional stimulants for the popularity
and integration of the foreign cults into Roman religious pantheon. At sociological and psycho-
logical level too, as pointed by Turcan, these cults won acceptance by the Romans. Over three
centuries, in differing historical circumstances but with the same moral consequence, Roman
society experienced same effects and the same intellectual revolution as Greek society did after
the conquest of Alexander. The decline of the city-states and annexation of towns by the Roman
army led to emigration of people, who in search of integration into a new durable city, individ-
ual status and new family bonds adopted such universal deities that would be omnipresent. The
emigrants from far-flung areas transported their eastern gods and made their diffusion and
celebration more flexible in order to meet the aspirations of all the uprooted people from their
homeland. Popularity of the cult of Dionysus (worshipped as Bacchus in Rome) can be seen in
this background. Moreover, the growth of urbanisation in the Roman world cut the individual
off from his roots and many suffered loneliness and anonymity. The sanctuaries associated with
god Mithras of Egypt gave them the comfort of a shared meal and supernatural powers.
The liturgies (public worship) of the eastern religions also attracted followers because of the
strong feeling and emotions involved in them as opposed to strict formalistic worship of the
Roman gods. The eastern liturgies included rhythmic wild dances accompanied by loud noises
by the priest, followed by the religious crowd. This attracted the attention of everyone. Public
and private celebrations of these cults were more colourful with visual contrasts than the
monotonous Roman ceremonies. A sense of festival and carnival in these celebrations also
played its role in popularising these cults. Moreover, while the Roman gods were attributed
with specific functions, the eastern deities on the other hand, aided by a rich and powerful
clergy, were considered as absolute masters of animal, vegetable and cosmic world. For a
highly mobile population of civil servants, auxiliary troops, slaves, technicians (architects, sur-
veyors, doctors, etc.) and travelling philosophers, such cults and gods were needed whose
powers extended beyond the narrow setting of the Roman gods. Besides, these eastern cults,
through their rituals, offered various forms of salvation and protection in this world and the
next. These are a few of the reasons why some of the eastern deities such as Isis, Mithras and
Cybele even enjoyed supremacy over few of the Roman deities.
280 Ancient and Medieval World

However, popularity of foreign cults in Rome did not mean abandonment of traditional reli-
gion by the Roman elite. In fact, considering the needs of the people and enhanced prosperity
of the Empire, the state expanded the size and scope of the traditional Roman religious festi-
vals. Circus races (believed to influence the cycle of the season and rotation of the heavenly
bodies), gladiator combats (a part of funerary rites practiced in Etruria to supply blood and
vitality to the departed soul) and dramatic performances to honour Jupiter were popularised
through the state initiatives from 264 bce onwards. But the last century of the Republic, marked
by civil wars among the military leaders, also affected people’s religious conscience. Leaders
such as Marius and Sulla publicly displayed their faith in foreign deities. This has led few schol-
ars to assume that traditional Roman religious belief was losing its appeal in the wake of a
political crisis. But critics argue that neglect of the public cult during the civil wars should not
be conceived as failure of the traditional religion but failure of the state leaders responsible for
running the state and in carrying out religious duties that maintained peace of the gods (pax
deorum) vital to its welfare. This is exemplified by a non-uniform policy followed by the state
towards foreign cults even before the beginning of the crisis of Roman Republic. In times of
military crisis such as the Hannibalic War in 204 bce, the Senate sanctioned adoption of com-
pletely foreign deity such as the Great Mother, Cybele from Turkey. At the same time, there are
also instances of prohibition or restriction on the cultic practices of deities that were consid-
ered as un-Roman or appeared to promote political loyalties in opposition to Rome. The expul-
sion of Jews immigrants and priests from Jerusalem through a senatorial decree of 139 bce and
the state attempts to discourage the worship of the Egyptian cult of Isis and Serapis due to the
deteriorating political relations with Egypt under Cleopatra during the decades of 50 and 40 bce
are few cases in point.
An important addition to the Roman religious beliefs, towards the close of the Republic, was
the deification of humans in control of power. This was a direct outcome of the acceptance of
Greek philosophy of such thinkers as Euhemerus, who argued that gods were simply extraordi-
nary human beings who were revered for their great services to human kind. This fuelled the
Roman aristocracy’s ambition for fame and glory and became the basis for the deification of
Roman emperors in the later centuries. But this ideology developed in stages starting with Julius
and Augustus Caesar. Julius Caesar’s victory over Pompey, bringing an end to the civil war, and the
subsequent restoration of peace and stability was seen as a result of divine favour on the former
which justified bestowing on him super human power. Later during the Principate, Augustus
Caesar was deified for bringing about peace and overall prosperity to the Roman Empire.

Role of the Priestly Class

The priestly class had a major role to play in the development of religious beliefs in the
Republican Rome. In the early Rome, kings had a priestly role as rex sacrorum (king of sacri-
fices) along with the women of the royal household popularly known as Vestal Virgins. Others
included the chief priest and priestess of Jupiter, known as Flamen Dialis and Flaminica
Dialis, respectively. They were subsequently added by twelve minor flamens, each serving a
particular deity. During the Republic, as religious practices became more complex with the
inclusion or assimilation of large number of deities in the Roman pantheon, priestly colleges
were constituted membership of which belonged to the patrician class. There were four main
priestly colleges. Pontiffs or pontifices performed rituals and incantations. They kept the
 Ancient Rome II 281

temple archives and prescribed various rituals, prayers and chants for use in public worship or
sacrifice. The college of Augurs or augures were responsible for taking auguries (soothsaying)
and were supposed to be an expert in taking of auspices. They could even stall Senate deci-
sions, citing bad omen. The college of fetial (fetiales) priests dealt with peace and war, primar-
ily on the basis of the breach of faith by the Roman adversaries. The college of Duovirs for
making sacrifices (duoviri sacris faciundis) had the responsibility of protecting the Sibylline
Books and consulted these texts when asked for by the Senate during disasters. They also over-
saw Greek rituals adopted to deal with such situations. While these priestly colleges had fewer
members during the early Republic, their numbers increased manifold by the time the Republic
came to an end. Members of these colleges did not necessarily belonged to a professional
priestly class but were men of learning, political experience and high social ranking. Some were
magistrates before becoming priests, some held both positions simultaneously while few were
members of the Senate. This fact also determined to some extent the state policy towards cer-
tain foreign cults, chiefly in terms of acceptance or rejection. In addition to these colleges, there
were a number of societies or associations called sodalitates or lesser priests dealing with
specific annual rituals such as those of Salii (performers of archaic war dances), the Luperci
(responsible for lupus or wolf festival) and the Arval brothers, who chanted special hymns in
praise of Dea Dia, goddess of agriculture.

RELIGIOUS LIFE IN ROME UNDER THE PRINCIPATE AND EMPIRE

The period of Principate and the Empire in the Roman history witnessed minor changes in the
religious beliefs and practices of the Romans. While few Principate and Dominate rulers tried
to reinforce traditional religious beliefs and practices at the state level, foreign cults retained
their acceptability at the popular level. One of the most important developments in this regard
was the birth and gradual popularity of Christianity in Rome. Although few enthusiastic Roman
rulers, in their attempt to gain popular support, did try to emphasise on reverence to traditional
beliefs by persecuting practitioners of this new religion, but the widespread acceptability of
Christianity among large sections of Roman citizens cutting across several classes ensured its
existence until it was recognised as a state religion under Constantine. Another important
development, which was a direct outcome of the influence of Greek philosophy, was even
greater attempt to provide divinity to human rulers starting with Augustus Caesar.

Revival of Traditional Religion

During the early Principate under Augustus Caesar, there was an attempt to revive traditional
Roman religious beliefs and practices. This was based on long held notion that peaceful work-
ing of the state depended on maintaining peace of the gods (pax deorum) which required man-
datory performance of all the ancestral rites and ceremonies ordained by god. Presenting
himself as the strong defender of Roman values, Augustus rebuilt temples in Rome and revived
ceremonies and priesthood that had fallen in disuse in the wake of disturbed conditions during
the civil war under the Republic. The Augustan measures included the reconstitution of the
ancient college of Arval brothers and revival of the priesthood of Flamen Dialis. Augustus also
built new temples dedicated to Julius and Apollo (both believed to be the protectors of the
282 Ancient and Medieval World

Julian Dynasty) as well as Mars, the avenger. The Senate, going along with the wishes of
Augustus, voted to erect an altar of Augustan peace, the sculpted panels of which depicted a
positive image of the Augustan rule, suggesting overall peace and prosperity. Another example
of religious zeal of Augustus was the division of the city of Rome into 14 regions and regions
into wards, each having a ward master who officiated at the shrines dedicated to worship of
Lares Augusti (guardian spirit of the crossroads).
Under the rule of Augustus Caesar, an attempt was also made by the priestly class to deify
his personality. The ward masters of the city shrines offered sacrifices in the name of Augustus,
very similar to the ancestral worship in Roman households. In few Greek cities of Italy, temples
were erected in the honour of Augustus even though, according to few scholars, Augustus him-
self did not encourage such divinity be ascribed to humans. However, they also argue that
religious demonstration on the part of Augustus subtly helped organise public opinion in favour
of the government. Another important religious development during the reign of Augustus was
assimilation of local cults and gods as parallel cults in the Roman pantheon. This was a part of
the Roman policy of controlling its far-flung territories by assimilating their residents into
common cultural and political life of Rome itself. Besides, it also gave an international outlook
to the Roman pantheon.
Roman religion underwent further changes under the Imperial regimes until the adoption of
Christianity as the state religion during the rule of Constantine. These changes, to a great
extent, were aftereffects of the influence of the Greek philosophy of Stoicism on the Roman
elite. In Rome, Stoicism was popularised by Panaetius and Posidonius of Greece residing in
Rome. The Stoic’s doctrine of a divinely created world, brotherhood and hierarchical social
order and their stress on duty, upholding of established authority along with the notion of
Roman Empire as the earthly reflection of divine commonwealth of the supreme deity, greatly
suited the Roman elite during the first two centuries ce. Adherence to this philosophy led to an
acceleration in the process of assimilation of local cults into the Roman pantheon. The Roman
emperors, realising their religious duty, performed the job of chief Pontiff (pontifex maximus)
with all seriousness. Emperor worship also grew with many people keeping shrines of the
emperors in their houses.

Religion at the Popular Level

At the popular level, religious changes were closely linked with political developments. In a
centralised Imperial state that increasingly controlled political affairs, individuals lost their
relevance. A vast majority of Roman citizens did not live in Rome. Even though Roman citizen-
ship was granted to Italians, inhabitants of Cisalpine and Transalpine Gauls, Greeks and
Africans, they not linked with Rome, either ethnically or physically, and therefore took no part
in the affairs of the city. In this context, R. Turcan (1997) has argued that even though Rome
had become political and legal fatherland, cosmopolitan and generous, it was no longer a ‘city’
but had become an ‘idea’. The Imperial regime, Turcan elaborates, had released the ordinary
citizens from their political obligations. They no longer voted (since Tiberius) for the election
of magistrates and no longer deliberated on the affairs of the cities. This led to formulation of
marginal groups, who in search of solidarity joined those mystery sects that offered them rein-
tegration into a new micro-society and individual existence. This trend was visible in the
Republican days also but became more pronounced during the Imperial Rome. A major change
 Ancient Rome II 283

in the Imperial Roman period was the decline in the importance of local gods and cults and
prominence given to the deities and cults that had universal power or appeal. This in part was
also necessitated by the greater mobility of population, including those with official or admin-
istrative responsibilities in the emperor’s service such as civil servants, soldiers transferred to
distant postings and so on. Such people needed transportable gods who were cosmic and
omnipotent and who could journey beyond the boundaries of traditional Roman religion.
Thus, at the popular level during the Imperial era in Rome, the deities and cults that had
gained popularity beyond geographical barriers flourished or continued to flourish. Among the
mystery cults that retained their appeal was the cult of Dionysus or Bacchus and the cult of
Demeter of Eleusis (an Athenian suburb), the latter attracting followers from all parts of the
Empire, including Emperor Hadrian. Besides the Greek cults. Other cults of the Eastern
Mediterranean such as the Egyptian cult of Isis and Serapis continued to grow with their prom-
ise of happiness and elaborate rituals promoting a sense of community. Although in 19 ce,
Emperor Tiberius banned the cult of Isis from the city of Rome, another Roman Emperor,
Caligula, constructed a public temple devoted to Isis in the Campus Martius (a public land near
River Tiber in Rome), later rebuilt by Emperor Domitian. This underlines the spread of the cult
and futility of the attempts to ban or restrict its worship. Similarly, the Persian god Mithras,
originally the sun god, gained popularity first among merchants, skilled artisans and civil ser-
vants and then among soldiers posted in military camps or outposts near river Rhine or Danube
in Germany. The main reason behind the wide popularity of the cult was its emphasis on hon-
esty, duty and heroic valour in the face of evil and danger. By the second and third centuries ce,
the Mithraic cult had spread throughout the Roman Empire.
Another cult that attracted considerable attention, particularly in the cities of the early
Empire, was Judaism, followed by the Jews of Jerusalem. Earlier in the Republican period, the
Senate, fearing political conspiracy, had expelled the Jewish immigrants from Rome through a
decree of 139 bce. But the capture of Jerusalem by Pompey and bringing of war captives to
Rome had paved way for the establishment of permanent Jewish synagogues (shrines) there
and in western provinces. Major theme of Judaism was rigorous monotheism, reinforced by its
ritual ban on images. Its idea of adherence to divine commandments (principles related to
ethics and worship), attention to Torah (first five books of the Bible), as a legal and ritual frame-
work for daily living and the tradition of Prophets (inspired persons who had experienced the
vision of the divine) attracted converts from other religions as well. But the Jewish revolt
during 66–70 ce led to their persecution that included destruction of their shrines, elimination
of high priesthood and forceful payment of temple tax to the temple of Jupiter. This further
alienated the Jews and the later revolts of the Jews under Trajan and Hadrian led to the imposi-
tion of several restrictions on them. Later on, Judaism remained confined to its original
followers.

Birth of Christianity
However, the most profound religious change in Rome during the first–fourth century ce was
the introduction and rapid growth of Christianity. Considered as the powerful offshoot of
Judaism, it permeated Roman society and polity to the extent that it became a state religion by
the fourth century ce. Christianity originated among the Jews of Judea (modern Israel) and
centred on the personality of Jesus, who was seen as the ‘Messiah’ (the anointed king and
284 Ancient and Medieval World

saviour) and the son of God. Jesus, born in the year one (according to authenticated traditions)
gave a new meaning to the Jewish notion of Messiah, that is, he was not a conqueror or a
restorer of the Jewish nation but his efforts witnessed the extension of followers of Jewish
religious ideas and his death proved to be a kind of victory though not a worldly one. After his
death in 30 ce, his followers gave him a divine status leading to contemplation by the Jewish
church to balance the worship of Christ with uncompromising monotheism of the Jewish
tradition.
The ideas promoted by Jesus were found attractive by the members of both rich and poor
classes as he emphasised on desirability of good deeds before final explanation in the kingdom
of heaven. But the poor took it as a salvation religion professing equality of human existence
which was transformed into ‘kingdom of Heaven’ that they thought would be established after
the resurrection of Jesus. Thus, the poor were hopeful of attaining heaven on earth itself and
could organise themselves into a Christian community with this aim. This posed a threat to the
rich and the rulers in both Jewish and Roman society leading to death of Jesus by crucifixion
at the orders of Roman Procurator/Prefect of Judea Pontius Pilate in 30 ce. Subsequently,
Christianity as a religion based on the messiahship of Jesus was developed by another Jew, Saul
of Tarsus (popularly known as Saint Paul). His major contribution lay in popularising
Christianity among the non-Jews of Greece, Asia Minor (Turkey) as well as Rome.
The acceptance of Christian ideology, as propagated by Saint Paul, among the non-Jews was
made easier by its ideological similarity with other existent mystery cults and its acceptance by
all classes and sexes. These included a loving and divine saviour in the form of Jesus who was
considered as an epitome of bravery, overcoming the forces of evil and death, a benevolent
motherly figure of Virgin Mary, promise of a blessed future and a sense of belonging to a special
community. The uniqueness of the Christian followers was highlighted by adherence to a strict
moral code and rejection of all other gods. Besides, the gospel of ‘love one another’, emphasised
by Jesus, led to charitable activities within the Christian community which infused a feeling of
fellow being and gave them a group identity. The spread of Christianity in its early stages was
also enforced by its appeal to all classes and sexes. The moral and financial support of numer-
ous women, considered as equal to men in the Christian ideology, unlike few other exclusively
male religions, proved crucial in the early success of the efforts made by Saint Paul and other
missionaries. Moreover, the simple ceremonies and rituals such as baptism and communion
saved the poor from financial obligation of elaborate ritualistic religions. At the same time,
Christ’s praise of the poor and encouragement of charity towards them for a better future fur-
ther widened the base of Christianity among the poor. The educated elite of Rome on the other
hand, endorsed Christianity as being based on written works such as Jewish scriptures, the four
gospels of Jesus and the letters of Saint Paul. These elite converts helped counter the miscon-
ception about and official hostility towards Christianity.
A well-structured organisation of the Christian community further helped in the spread of
Christian ideology to different parts of the Roman Empire. In the initial stages, the Christian
community established a local system of clergy and leaders represented by deacons and dea-
coness (servants), presbyters (elders) and bishops (overseers). These functionaries catered to
the needs of the congregation, formulated policies and regulated religious activities. Bishops of
the urban centres were vested with the responsibility of setting up churches in the surrounding
regions and to ensure that local practices and beliefs conform to the accepted teachings of
Christ and his disciples. The bishops of the four major cities of Rome, Jerusalem, Alexandria
 Ancient Rome II 285

and Antioch commanded great respect and authority. This went a long way in establishing an
unmatched organisational and doctrinal unity among the Christian community.
But despite the diverse appeal that Christianity as a religion enjoyed and its well-structured
organisation, these did not prove to be an effective shield against official persecution. The
preaching activities of the Christians made them a clearer target of persecution than Jews,
whose religious zeal, despite its emphasis on strict monotheism and refusal to honour state
religion, was tolerated as following ancestral customs. But the Christian rejection of all other
gods and refusal to participate in traditional religious activities of the gods of Roman pantheon,
invited both public and state hostility towards them. To the extent that every kind of misfor-
tune that befell on individuals or on the collectivity was thought to have been caused by the
‘crimes’ committed by the Christians. Moreover, refusal of the Christians to propitiate tradi-
tional Roman deities, believed to protect the state, invited the ire of the state that conceived
this as conspiracy against the state. The cause of Christianity was also not helped by a xeno-
phobic reaction towards it in the writings of famed authors of those times. Christianity was
viewed as a ‘depraved superstition’ by Pliny the Younger and ‘disastrous’ by Tacitus. Another
factor in this hostility towards Christianity, according to some scholars, lay in their reluctance
to serve in the army.
The persecution against Christians and the Jews began under Nero in 64 ce, after a major fire
broke out in Rome during the Jewish revolt. Later, Trajan ordered the execution of fairly
accused Christians. However, Hadrian, despite having a dislike for Christians, did not favour
their indiscriminate persecution. The fiercest persecution of Christians and their ideology was
witnessed during the reign of Decius who, in an attempt to regain the favour of traditional
Greco-Roman anthromorphic deities, ordered a general persecution of the Christians in 250 ce.
Then again, during the reign of Diocletian, another state directed persecution of Christians took
place in 303 ce, despite his wife having converted to Christianity. Some scholars have attributed
this to Diocletian’s attempt to restore old Roman faith and moral code to ensure conformity and
uniformity among the population in order to ensure security of the state. Through an edict in
303 ce, Diocletian ordered the destruction of Christian churches, burning of their sacred books
and restricted their right of defence in the court of law.
However, fortunes turned in favour of Christianity under the rule of Constantine, who
described his rise to power as a result of the divine intervention of Christ and support of the
Christians. He converted to Christianity but the exact year of conversion has not been fully
established, though it is argued that it was a gradual process. Constantine, being a shrewd
statesman, could not afford to displease through his leanings towards Christianity, large major-
ity of his subjects, the Senate, the Imperial bureaucracy or the army. So, he continued being the
Chief Pontiff and wore gold medallion depicting both Roman and Christian religious symbol-
ism. On this basis, few scholars have described Constantine’s reign as a link between the pagan
Roman Empire that was about to pass and the Christian Empire that was soon to emerge.
Constantine also ordered discontinuance of persecution of Christians, restoration of all confis-
cated church property and also sanctioned funds for the orthodox bishops and clergy in Africa.
Christians were also exempted from taking part in traditional Roman liturgies.
Another important measure taken by Constantine was to permit the bishop of Rome (Pope)
and the orthodox clergy to formulate correct doctrine and discipline within the church, and he
also provided for its enforcement by the state. This raised the status of Christianity as a state
religion. This was formalised by the constitution of 318 ce, when the decision of the bishop’s
court was given a legal acceptance. In the same year, through a proclamation, Sunday was
286 Ancient and Medieval World

declared as a public holiday for law courts and state-run manufacturing organisations.
Christians interpreted this day as ‘the lord’s day’ while the non-Christians (pagans) treated this
as ‘the holy day of the Sun’. Finally, in a council of the bishops of the Roman Empire held at
Nicaea in 325 ce, in which Constantine was also present, the Christian doctrines were defined
and the organisation of the Catholic Church was given a final shape. This development has been
termed as a turning point because the Christian church was used as a unifying instrument and
an institution to reorganise the empire by Constantine.

CULTURE IN EARLY ROME AND UNDER THE REPUBLIC

Roman culture (chiefly art, architecture and literature), besides being a product of indigenous
values and beliefs, was deeply shaped by Etruscan, Italian and later, Greek traditions. The
external influence on Roman culture was even more pronounced than on the religious sphere.
The enormous territorial expansion of Rome brought within it people of diverse ethnic and
intellectual background with their own distinct artistic and literary traditions. The Roman
Empire embraced these traditions through a process of cultural synthesis but used it to serve
its own cultural needs. Thus, the three major components of Roman culture, namely, art, archi-
tecture and literature, apart from having their own aesthetic qualities, also served an ideological
purpose symbolising state or individual ruler’s power and glory.

External Influence on Early Roman Culture

Since the early Roman history was marked by Etruscan dominance, culture in early Rome
shared much with that of the Etruscan civilisation. But recently, scholars have pointed out that
this similarity was not so much due to Etruscan cultural imposition on Rome but mainly due to
the fact that Etruscans themselves were part of the common central Italian culture that was
evolving from the interaction of native people with each other on the one hand, and with
Phoenicians and Greek traders and colonists on the other. In the field of architecture, the tech-
nique of arch and vault used by the Roman architects was borrowed from the Etruscan archi-
tects who were famous for the use of arches and vaults for their buildings. Arches and vaults
were formed by projecting out the course of stones on each side of the opening in a stepped
pattern until both sides joined at the top. This method was known as corbelling. By the third
century bce, round arches (made from bricks and cut stones) were used for building city gates,
sewers, bridges and tombs. The Roman practice of centring urban life around massive stone
temples of the chief deity was also derived from the Etruscan practice. The temple architecture
of the Etruscan was itself influenced by Greek architectural traditions. Likewise, the early
Roman painting was also influenced by the Etruscan themes usually taken from everyday life
(such as a sporting event or celebrations) and was painted with bright colours with an emphasis
on realism.
Early Rome did not see much of the literary activity, although writing had been adopted by
the sixth century bce. But the use of writing was confined to practical purposes such as framing
of laws, treaties, for keeping financial accounts, writing funerary inscriptions and noting impor-
tant yearly secular and religious events. Scholars of Roman history point out that education in
Rome was largely limited to instructions from fathers to sons in practical arts, military values
 Ancient Rome II 287

and sports. The aristocracy also gave preference to war and agriculture as their chief
­occupation. It was only later in the third century bce that literary activities picked up in Rome
under the Greek influence.

The Cultural Synthesis post-Roman Expansion

The Roman conquest of the entire Italian Peninsula by 264 bce, the tremendous demographic
growth of the city of Rome (from 30,000 in 350 bce to 90,000 in 275 bce, according to one estimate)
and the growing wealth of the Roman aristocracy did bring about significant changes in the field
of art and architecture. The increasing prosperity of the Roman elite, brought about by the con-
quest of Central and Southern Italy led to increase in demand for high quality arts and crafts
products, fine terracotta and bronze statues and elaborate fresco paintings. Besides, building
industry also received tremendous boost leading to construction of numerous temples in the city
of Rome (decorated with fine workmanship), paved roads and aqueducts to supply clean water
to the city. Following the pattern of Italian house architecture, the upper-class Romans also built
substantial houses with Greek art and architectural motifs. In all the mentioned artistic changes
that were brought about during the middle period of the Republican Rome, Greek influence was
predominant. This had resulted from the existence of substantial Greek settlements in both
Southern Italy and Sicily and the self-conscious attempt made by the Roman aristocracy (after
the conquest of Italy) to appropriate the aristocratic Greek cultural heritage for themselves. In
the field of literature too, knowledge and appreciation of Greek literature became a marker of
social distinction. Consequently, educated Greek war captives were appointed as tutors in the
homes of the wealthy Romans to impart training on the nuances of Greek literature.
The overseas expansion of Rome between 264 bce and 133 bce towards Eastern and Western
Mediterranean brought about more lasting cultural changes in Rome. This period in Roman his-
tory has been termed as one of ‘cultural syntheses’. The conquest of Greece and other
Hellenistic regions was accompanied by entry into Rome of numerous plundered paintings,
statues and reliefs and architectural pieces. Along with these, thousands of Greek slaves and
craftsmen as well as Greek philosophers and poets entered Rome, the latter in search of patron-
age by wealthy Romans. This phenomenon provided the basis of the so-called ‘cultural
­synthesis’ culminating into the creation of a Greco-Roman classical culture.
Art historians of recent times have at times doubted the ‘Roman-ness’ of the Roman art, argu-
ing that several key features of the Roman art such as realism in portraiture, continuous narra-
tive and historicity in relief were present in some form or the other in Greek art. Thus, they tend
to analyse Roman art in relation to the Greek prototypes that it drew upon which were remod-
elled by the Roman artists for the purpose of visual expression. In the field of architecture
however, scholar Katherine E. Welch (2006) argues that true Roman innovations can be seen
when the rulers had a particular agenda of visual expression and no Greek model was available.
This according to Welch was particularly visible during the third and second centuries bce when
Rome was emerging at a world stage and wanted to project a certain type of image in front of
its subject people. It was in the field of architecture that Romans made lasting contribution but
the Republican architecture was not marked by large-scale invention and was reflective of cre-
ative recombination of Greek forms. This kind of remodelling can be seen in the construction
of vaults and arches. While in Greece vaults and arches were used for smaller constructions
such as tunnels, gates and earthen tombs, these were also used for large sanctuaries in Rome.
288 Ancient and Medieval World

This Greco-Roman synthesis was most evident in the field of architecture, both sacred and
secular. Among the secular buildings in Rome, the public assembly (Comitium) at the Forum
(civic centre), the new circus for Greek-style chariot racing near the western bent of Tiber
River, the Basilica (rectangular building for private and public meetings), the stone bridge
across the Tiber and domestic architecture with amenities such as baths and gardens were all
deeply influenced by Greek architectural styles. Likewise, the temples constructed during this
period were typical Greek style temples of wood on stone foundations. After 150 bce, even the
first all-stone temple built of plundered Greek marble in Rome was based on Greek style round
temple. However, an important indigenous development in the field of architecture was the new
construction technique that made Romans masters in the field of architecture. From the second
century bce, they began using moulded concrete (opus caementicium) on their walls wherein
a mixture of mortar and stone rubble was packed into a wooden frame, which was removed
when the plaster was set. The use of concrete was practical too as Central Italy had plentiful
supply of volcanic tufa and limestone that were essential ingredients of concrete. To strengthen
the walls, they used to facade them with brick, ashlar or at times marble. This reduced the time
taken in building construction and also enabled the Roman architects to undertake more com-
plex and varied constructions, including hemispherical domes, vaults and arcades. Use of such
techniques obviated the need to build columns/pillars to support walls and vaulted ceilings. But
the ingrained Greek influence on the Roman mind meant that colonnades continued as the form
of ornamentation to the Roman facades.
In artistic field too, Greek influence dominated despite official attempts at times to restrict
it. The indigenous Roman tradition of bronze sculpture and terracotta relief (a way of carving
on the wall or ceiling where the design is slightly raised above the level) continued to dominate.
But by the mid-second century bce, Greek sculptures started making Greek style marble statues
and reliefs for their Roman patrons. Greek frescoes (a picture painted on the wall while the
plaster is still wet) and mosaic (picture produced by fitting together small pieces of coloured
glass or stone) designs were also used for decorating public and private buildings. This led the
Roman Censor in 156 bce to order removal of all portraits from the forum that had not been
sanctioned by the Senate. This is suggestive of an attempt made by the Roman ruling class to
use art to glorify Roman leaders and representatives of Roman power. However, by 133 bce, the
Roman aristocratic taste for Greek art (as depicted in the plundered or copied Greek forms)
had led to wider acceptance of Greek artistic traditions.
In the area of literature during this period, Greek literature provided stimulus to Roman liter-
ary activities, which was hitherto limited to practical needs of the Romans. Here, again the
Roman aristocratic desire to establish their social distinctiveness facilitated quick adoption of
Greek language and literature. Thus, the Roman comedy of Plautus (254–184 bce) and Terrentius
(195–159 bce) was derived from Greek theatre with respect to plots, situations and characters,
even though infused with native comic traditions of Italy. Works of these two scholars truly
represent the great cultural, social and economic changes affecting Rome with the acquisition
of the status of an Empire. Popularity of these works also arose from the fact that Romans
found parallels with their own lives with these such as slave characters, conflict between father
and son and husband and wives, which had become a marked feature of the new cosmopolitan
Rome.
The earliest Roman prose writers were historians who wrote in Greek, particularly after the
Second Punic War. The earliest Roman historiography was known as annals because like offi-
cial records of the Pontiffs, the historical details were organised on year-by-year basis. Earliest
 Ancient Rome II 289

Roman analysts were Fabius Pictor and Lucius, who described Roman political achievements
in Greek language for Greek public. Historians point out that since Greek was the only model
for writing prose history at that time, it was readily accepted by both the Roman elite and the
Greeks who were now showing interest in Rome and the Roman attempt to counter the favour-
able view of Carthage in Greek historiography as reasons behind the increasing use of Greek
literary language for writing history. Later, however, historians such as Cato the Elder
­(231–149 bce) used Latin in his famous book Origines (The Origin) to create a specifically
Roman historical awareness. His works also include books on law, medicine and agriculture.
In the field of poetry, however, the patriotic nature of Roman literature was more evident.
Rome’s first nationalist poet was Gnaeus Naevius (270–199 bce), who was proficient in tragedy,
comedy, epic and satire, the areas where Roman claimed to be unique. Ennius (239–169 bce)
was another famed native Roman writer of tragic, comic and epic poetry. His greatest work was
Annales, a patriotic epic poem dealing with tales from Rome’s past and the Second Punic War.
Works of these two poets attempted to glorify Roman history and unique Roman values, an
attempt that goes against the notion, held by many, that Rome’s literature was wholly derived
from Greek literature.

Cultural Developments in the Late Republican Period

The political crisis of the late Roman Republic also led to a cultural ferment due to modifica-
tions brought about in the old social fabric and influences from the Hellenistic East. Roman
expansion in the Hellenistic region brought increased wealth in the hands of the richer section
of the Roman society. Along with this, the immigration of Greek literary experts into Rome,
besides entry of finest products of Greek artists, writers and thinkers after the military inva-
sions of Sulla and Pompey, led to further experimentation in the cultural field. Greek art con-
tinued to inspire the Roman art forms. The reproduction of Greek bronze statues in marble and
Greek frescoes and mosaic paintings continued to be reproduced on the walls and floors of the
wealthy Roman houses. On the other hand, refinement in technique helped in sustaining rele-
vance of native Roman and Italian traditions of realistic portraiture and landscape painting. An
important development in the field of architecture (influenced again by the Greek tradition)
was projecting different architectural elements into a harmonious whole around a central axis.
Prominent examples of this form of architecture were the sanctuary of Fortuna Primigenia of
Praeneste (goddess of fortune and good luck), Tabularium (record office), both built by Sulla
in Rome, a permanent theatre built by Pompey in Rome and Basilica Julia and Forum Julium,
built by Julius Caesar at Rome. Roman architects also learnt to combine architectural elements
and materials to build arched openings and more complex and massive buildings than that of
the Greeks by using arches and vaults made of brick and concrete. Ornamentation was pro-
vided by covering the buildings with veneers of stone or painted stucco to imitate stone.
In the field of literature, during the late Republican period, usage of both Greek and Latin
literary languages introduced bilingualism in Roman literature. While history writing (on the
model of Cato the Elder) became more Latinised, annalistic approach of writing history contin-
ued to be followed by some. The two noted historians of this period were Sallust (86–34 bce)
and Julius Caesar (100–44 bce). Caesar’s work, written in Greek style, is seen as a blatant
attempt at self-glorification and propaganda. In drama and poetry, old themes related to glorifi-
cation of Roman past and Roman military victories lost some ground and were replaced by
290 Ancient and Medieval World

native Italic traditions of comedy which were much closer to people’s day-to-day life. This
period also marked the rise of aristocratic poets known as poetae novi (new poets) whose
works were modelled on love and emotional lyrics of the Greek poets. Prominent among these
new poets were Catullus (85–54 bce) and Cicero (106–43 bce), the latter being also a great
orator. Thus, by the end of the Republican period in Rome, despite the practice of bilingualism,
Greek literature became a standard against which Roman authors measured themselves.

ROMAN CULTURE UNDER THE PRINCIPATE AND THE EMPIRE

The period of Principate and Dominate witnessed a new phase in the development of culture in
Rome. The relative peace brought by the policies of Augustus Caesar and few of the Principate
rulers along with the active patronage provided by them to art, architecture and literature pro-
vided stimulus to new cultural trends. Besides, art and architecture during this period was
specifically used by the Roman rulers not only to raise the status of sovereignty but also to
provide a certain visual image of the empire. This led to the universalisation of cultural trends
and patterns across several provinces of the Roman Empire. The period of Dominate rulers of
the fourth century ce assumes extra significance from the point of view of growth of culture as
they overcame the Third Century Crisis and gave a new direction to the progress of culture in
the Roman Empire. The process of integration of the provinces speeded up, which took cultural
growth beyond the confines of Roman and Italian traditions. In addition to it, the growth of
Christianity and its recognition as state religion itself became the chief determining factor for
all-round cultural growth of the empire.

The ‘Golden Age’ Under the Principate

The time period of Rome’s first princeps, Augustus Caesar (27 bce–14 ce) is considered as the
Golden Age in Rome with respect to cultural achievements. This was largely backed by strong
agricultural, industrial and commercial growth of Italy, subsequent to the end of civil war, sup-
pression of piracy and banditry and end of lawlessness in Italy as well as in the provinces.
Under the Augustan peace (Pax Romana), Rome not only attracted large population due to the
available public amenities, regular food supply and employment but also acquired the status of
a great metropolis and chief inspiring agent for economic and cultural development.
Growth of art and architecture during the early Principate has been largely attributed to the
efforts of Augustus Caesar. His chief contribution lay in the creation of a new Imperial style by
synthesising Italian, Etruscan and Greek artistic traditions. Art and architecture in this period
was used as a very effective medium to provide a certain visual image of the Roman Empire. In
specific places such as public buildings and palace, the fora or forum as well as on monuments,
sculptures and statues glorifying Roman wars, the deeds of the emperor and the military com-
manders, Emperor’s military victories and so on were chosen as themes for promotion of art
and architecture. Augustus’s decision to repair 82 temples at Rome was a visual expression of
his claim to have restored the res publica (notion of state as commonwealth/community).
While the building of new magnificent temples such as that of Mars Ultor (Mars, the avenger)
and that of Apollo was to earn recognition from the people as the protector of traditional
Roman values. In order to connect himself to Mars and Apollo, Augustus built a statue of
 Ancient Rome II 291

himself near the temple of Mars and a small house for himself near the temple of Apollo. To
portray himself as the patron of arts along with Apollo, he built two libraries (one Latin and one
Greek) in the temple precinct. These were filled with classical Greek sculptures and busts of
famous poets and orators. The secular buildings in the Augustan era included a new Senate
house (Curia Julia) with an altar of victory that remained the symbol of Imperial Roman
authority for centuries and his own imposing mausoleum that continued to be used as resting
place of the dead Roman emperors until the time of Nerva (98 ce).
Art during the reign of Augustus displays more of Greek classicism that reached its apogee
under his patronage. The true representative of this Golden Age art form is the relief sculpted
on the Ara Pacis Augustae (Altar of Augustan Peace, Image III) and the statue of Augustus set
up at Livia’s villa (Livia being the wife of Augustus) in Rome. This and other Roman statues of
this period, following Greek models, were more austere but notable for their fine workmanship
and naturalism.
The Augustan era is also known as the Golden Age of Latin literature. The end of destructive
civil wars and emergence of Rome as a truly metropolitan city also attracted scholars and writ-
ers from all parts of the Roman Empire. They were provided with readymade themes such as
the heroic past and a glorious present. Roman writers reached perfection in form and expres-
sion during the Augustan era and produced a literature that was positive and uplifting. But
unlike Julius Caesar’s period when prose writers such as Cicero, Caesar, Sallust and Varro
dominated, the Augustan era was known more for poetry than prose. The patronage of Augustus
and his close friends played a key role in establishing the predominance of poetry. Prominent
poets of this period were Vergil (70–19 bce), Horace (65–8 bce), Tibullus (55–19 bce), Propertius
(54–15 bce) and Ovid (43–18 bce). Among these, Ovid, who was an expert on love elegies and
mythology, is considered as the most proliferate of Augustan age poets. Although many of these
poets tried to maintain distance from the political life, the patronage of Augustus and assurance
of public audience and preservation of their work led to these poets expressing their support
to the ideals of political reconstruction conceived by Augustus.
Despite the predominance of poetry, prose writing during the Augustan period managed to
retain its significance mainly due to the contribution of Livy (59 bce–17 ce). His famous work,
Ab Urbe Condita, is a collection of 142 books on Roman history starting from its foundation
until the days of early Principate. Through his poetic phrases, he has given a vivid description
of the deeds of Romans and tried to project their success as a result of their patriotism and
traditional virtues. Although modern scholars have pointed out several lacunas in Livy as a
historian, his compelling portrayal of Roman history made him popular among the Romans.
Moreover, his patriotic writings matched with the policies and needs of Augustus, ensuring a
large readership. Pompeius Trogus (50 bce–25 ce) was another contemporary historian of this
period who, through his Philippic Histories, provided historical details from a regional/provin-
cial perspective not centred on Rome. Among the Greek prose writers, who flourished during
this period, mention can be made of two, Dionysius, who wrote Roman Antiquities and Strabo,
whose historical works have been lost but his book Geography is considered as one of the best
available, mathematical, astronomical and geographic research of the times.
Apart from prose and poetry, literary activities during the reign of Augustus also spread to
practical life in the form of handbooks and technical manuals that gained tremendous popular-
ity. Mention may be made of Vitruvius’s De Architectura, a handbook on architecture that
became the basis of future architectural innovations. Verrius Flaccus compiled the earliest
Latin dictionary (De Verborum Significattu) and Margus Agrippa wrote a detailed explanation
292 Ancient and Medieval World

of the large map of the Roman Empire at the Forum in his Commentaries which was based on
Greek geographical researches and Roman surveying. Later, during the reign of Tiberius, an
encyclopaedia on medicine was written by Aulus Celsus in the form of a summary of Greek
medical knowledge.
The cultural trends established during the Augustan age was carried forward by his succes-
sors with minor variations until the end of the second century ce. By this time, the Roman
Empire had reached its maximum territorial extent but more importantly, the notion of a uni-
form culture under the leadership of enlightened Roman Emperors had gained wider accep-
tance among the upper class urban elite. This helped in universalisation of the cultural pattern
across several provinces of the empire. In the field of architecture, a distinctive Imperial style
(a product of Augustan era) was enlarged in Rome as well as in the provinces by the succeeding
emperors. Sufficient resources available at the disposal of the state promoted creativity among
the Roman architects in building Imperial palaces, public buildings and engineering projects.
The Imperial palace architecture assumed mammoth proportions and went through several
changes to suit the needs of individual rulers. Nero built an extravagant Golden House on the
Palatine, its area having been estimated to be twice the size of Vatican today. Emperor
Vespasian, as a symbol of changed political authority, built a small palace, destroying that of
Nero. This was turned into a huge complex by his successor Domitian. A more complex and
innovative palace containing geometric shapes was later designed by the Emperor Hadrian near
the Tiber River.
The construction of monumental public buildings in Rome until the second century ce was
undertaken mainly by the rulers of the Flavian Dynasty. Vespasian constructed three mammoth
temples at Rome—the temple of peace (Forum of Vespasian), temple of deified Claudius and
temple of the sacred city. He also started the construction of the famous Colosseum, the
Amphitheatre, completed later by Titus and Domitian. Domitian also built a new stadium with
a capacity to sit 30,000 people in the Campus Martius in Rome. Both these structures are known
for their decorative style and complex engineering and, at present, are considered as symbols
of Imperial Rome. Other impressive buildings of this period are the Imperial Forum built by
Trajan, the temple of Venus and Roma (largest temple in Rome) and the Pantheon (temple of
all gods) built by Hadrian. The buildings of Hadrian with its imaginative combination of differ-
ent shapes and forms, displays a distinctively Roman Imperial architecture. A reflection of
Imperial architecture in the provinces is best represented in the planned town of Thamugadi in
North Africa, established by Trajan.
In the art of sculpture, the tradition of naturalistic portraits and statues continued until the
second century ce. Sculpture also, at times, took massive forms as represented in the colossal
bronze statue of Marcus Aurelius mounted on a horse in Rome. The tradition of Augustan era
relief sculpture continued during this period with themes primarily symbolising virtues of the
deceased rulers. However, Trajan also used these reliefs to commemorate his Dacian wars.
Painting in this period remained confined to wall paintings, majority of which has been found
in Pompeii, Herculaneum and at Rome. Most of these were either copies of the master painters
or were made to meet the tastes and preferences of patron such as Nero. Greek and Egyptian
painting traditions provided inspiration for these Roman paintings.
The literature (both prose and poetry) of this period has been termed as ‘Silver Age’ litera-
ture to distinguish it from the brilliant ‘Golden Age’ literary products of the Augustan era. The
primary reason behind an inferior position accorded to the literature of this period being the
dominance rhetoric in these works. The decline of republican institution had reduced
 Ancient Rome II 293

the importance of oratory and it was replaced by rhetoric that was the political need of both,
the writers (to earn ruler’s favour) and the Imperial government (to win popular support). Two
prominent representatives of this genre of writing were Petronius and Apuleius, who in their
novels dealt with both exotic and sordid aspects of Roman life. Rhetoric also influenced the
writings of Seneca (tragedy) and Lucan (epic). However, a critical position towards the social
problems of the day was also put forward as satire in the writings of Juvenal, who was highly
critical of the moral degeneration of the times. Similar attitude towards Roman society was
reflected in the historiography of Tacitus, a senator, who described the events of his age more
as a moral indictment than a dispassionate analysis.
Besides prose and poetry, some important books were also written on science, technology
and medicine during this period. Among these, Pliny the Elder’s Natural History (a compilation
of 37 books covering geography, agriculture, anthropology, medicine, zoology, botany and min-
eralogy), Ptolemy’s Almagest (a book on geometrical theory of the universe) and books on
medicine written by Largus (Roman) and Pedianus (Greek) were widely popular.
Greek literature also entered into a phase of resurgence from the mid-second century ce in
the Greek speaking areas of the Roman Empire. While nostalgia about the great past of Greece
was the primary reason behind this revivalism, the patronage of Roman Emperors of the likes
of Nero, Hadrian and Marcus Aurelius, and also that of Greeks in influential positions in
Imperial administration, was no less important. Prominent Greek writers to flourish during this
period were Plutarch and Lucian (philosophy), Diodorus, Dionysius, Appian and Arrian (histo-
riography) and Strabo and Ptolemaeus (science).

Culture During the Third Century Crisis

The political history of Rome in the third century ce was marked by a severe crisis with atten-
dant effects on society, economy and culture. Traditional historians have tended to view this
period as one of cultural decline when compared with the developments in previous two cen-
turies. However, recently, scholars, on the basis of new researches and findings in the last two
decades, have provided a different perspective. It has been argued that achievements of the
previous two centuries have been overstated and also that the pace of cultural developments in
several parts of such a large empire could not have been similar. So while few areas in the third
century witnessed continued cultural progression, the process was slow in others. In this con-
text, contrast between Greek east and Latin west has been specifically pointed out. However, it
is true that the economic crisis of the third century, as reflected in decline in trade and com-
merce, disruption in agriculture, inflation and decline of cities, did have its negative impact on
cultural developments. Nevertheless, art, architecture as well as literature did witness some
changes, their growth being dependent on patronage by Emperors and wealthy landed mag-
nates. Themes, styles and symbols were altered to suit the changing times.
In the field of architecture, a number of new buildings were added to the Imperial residence
under the rulers of Severan Dynasty, prominent among them being the Arch of Septimius
Severus in the Forum. Sculpture, particularly on coins, was used as an effective medium of
royal propaganda. Under Gallienus, highly idealised portraits in Greek style were produced
which were later changed to a more schematised geometric style. Relief structure was largely
popularised by the wealthy Christians and followers of native religious beliefs (termed as pagan
by the Christians) as the forms of burial changed from cremation to bodily burial in the ground.
294 Ancient and Medieval World

Painting continued to progress as murals on walls of public buildings, tombs, Christian/Jewish

synagogues, temples, churches as well as homes. Excellent mosaic was used for ornamentation
on the floors. Literary field was marked by the dominance of prose over poetry. Poetry remained
confined to the life of rural aristocracy and the rural world. Most prominent Latin poet of the
late third century ce was Nemesianus. Greek prose flourished around the theme of love and
romances, supplemented by adventure, disaster and narrow escapes before the reunion of
lovers. Popular among the writers of prose romances was Heliodorus, Longus and Xenophon.
The social group dominant in these writings was the urban elite of the Greek east and an
attempt was made to enforce certain behaviour (male and female) of the upper class to rein-
force stable family structure.

New Trends Under the Dominate Rulers

The cultural changes and developments in Rome in the fourth century ce were remarkable from
several angles. First, the restructuring of empire under Diocletian, Constantine and Theodosius
the Great brought an end to the Crisis of the Third Century. Second, revival of the classical
Greco-Roman traditions and cultural interaction with native provincial culture gave a new
meaning to the Imperial culture hitherto dominated by Roman and Italian traditions. Third, and
most importantly, Christianity, with reduced persecution and Imperial favour, itself became a
determining factor for cultural changes of the fourth century. The role of Christianity in shaping
Roman culture is particularly significant as it offered salvation to both rich and poor and also
made elite culture accessible to those excluded from it. This was achieved through its funda-
mental texts, teaching and preaching for which both Greek and Latin languages were used.
Moreover, their claim of protecting Roman civilisation from the ‘barbarian’ cultural onslaught
appealed to the educated urban elite besides the rulers (particularly Constantine) and the
Imperial ruling class.
Roman art and architecture in the fourth century ce witnessed development of new style,
which not only served the imperial needs but also those of rising Christian population and their
organisation, that is, the Church. In the field of architecture, great building activities were
undertaken by Diocletian and Constantine. To symbolise restoration of Imperial power,
Diocletian built several mammoth monuments and palaces including baths at Rome, considered
as biggest ever constructed. Diocletian’s palace at Nicomedia is much talked about both for its
size and state resources invested in its construction. Maximian’s reign witnessed the expansion
of Milan (Northern Italy) which was also turned into his Imperial residence. Constantine is
credited with not only having restored earlier buildings but also construction of new massive
baths, arches bearing his name and completion of a huge basilica (its construction being initi-
ated by Maxentius) besides number of polygonal buildings, mainly mausoleums of earlier rulers
such as Augustus, Hadrian, Diocletian and Galerius as well as his family members. Constantine
also built monuments outside Rome in Italy, North Africa and near Roman frontier in Gaul.
However, his greatest architectural contribution was the construction of a new city
Constantinople, which later became the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. Constantine was
also famous for constructing several churches both in and outside Constantinople. Since the
church was conceived as a place of worship where large number of faithful gathered together,
its architectural requirements were different from those of classical temples. Thus, basilica in
the Forum became the prototype of Christian basilica. Saint Peter’s basilica at Rome is
 Ancient Rome II 295

considered as the greatest of the churches built by Constantine in Rome. Outside Rome, how-
ever, it was Jerusalem, being the most sacred place of Christians because of its association with
the birth, crucifixion, resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ, that witnessed the maximum
construction of churches, including four basilica churches. But the construction of temples suf-
fered during this period mainly due to the lack of state patronage. Yet they continued to be built
mainly on account of increased prosperity in the eastern part of the Roman Empire that
prompted the local elite to construct temples.
Like architecture, Roman art also underwent significant changes in the fourth century in
conformity with the prevailing ideology marked by spirituality and religiosity. Traditions of
Near East dominated arts of sculpture and painting. The reduced importance on full-bodied and
three-dimensional natural figures led to construction of flatter sculptures with spiritual quali-
ties. Thus, the realism/naturalism inherited from the Greeks was replaced with Near Eastern
conventionalism. Human figures were colossal and full faced with highlighted eyes considered
to be ‘windows of the soul’ and simple clothing as metaphor for detachment from the world.
Emperors and Christ were made to stand out by a bigger frame than the surrounding figures.
Prominent among the Imperial sculptural portraits were a group portrait of the four tetrarchs
at Constantinople and a large portrait head of Constantine placed at the basilica of Maxentius
and Constantine at Rome, both depicting special position of the rulers with their authority
being a divine mandate. But the classical tradition of realism also continued to prevail side by
side as the features of reliefs and sculptures of the times of Trajan, Hadrian and Marcus
Aurelius came to be reused under Constantine. Besides, the Christian elite also adopted classi-
cal style in visual arts to highlight their integration with the ‘pagan’ culture. Best example of
such a synthesis is the richly carved marble sarcophagus (stone coffin bearing sculpture)) of
Junius Bassus, an urban prefect at Rome.
Paintings in this period continued to depict earlier tradition of Greek style decoration of
walls with paintings and mosaics. However, wall paintings were limited to small figures drawn
with brush strokes known as ‘columbarium’ style. The Christian art also followed similar tradi-
tions, particularly after acquiring the status of state religion. Their elaborate churches, cata-
combs (underground burial places) and sarcophaguses were embellished with wall paintings
and reliefs in traditional style.
Besides art and architecture, the cultural synthesis of native Roman and Christian traditions
was noticeable in literature too. The native Roman literature of the fourth century ce concen-
trated on the traditions of Roman history and culture. Claudian, considered as one of the last
great poets of ancient Rome, admired the achievements of the Roman past and was famous for
his panegyric court poetry. Prose literature of this period was mainly related with collection of
brief summaries of Roman history, ancient knowledge in encyclopaedias and compendia. Since
majority of the Christian writers came from the same social and intellectual background as
their native Roman counterparts, therefore Christian authors such as Arnobius Felix and
Lactantius tried to integrate Christian culture with that of the pagans through their writings.

Part II: Crisis and Decline of the Roman Empire

The decline of the Roman Empire, particularly its western half, is one of the most written about
and debated subjects of the history of the ancient world. Several factors have been analysed by
scholars in an attempt to present a picture of crisis and decline of a monolithic Roman Empire.
296 Ancient and Medieval World

But there is a general agreement among the historians that the collapse of the Empire was a
prolonged process, giving credence to the popular saying, ‘As Rome was not built in a day so
was not lost in one’. Although signs of crisis in the Roman Empire were visible since the middle
of the third century ce, the process of decline of its western part was not completed before the
end of the fifth century ce. The eastern half of the Empire continued to survive for another
thousand years. But it is equally true that by the third century, Rome had lost the vital elements
of both an overarching Empire and that of a great ancient civilisation. Internal political, eco-
nomic and social crisis combined with external attacks on the frontiers, to begin with, and later
on the core areas of the Empire by the Germanic tribes brought down the Western Roman
Empire. The eastern part of the Empire however continued to endure until 1453 ce, when the
Byzantine Empire was brought down by the Turks. Survival of the Byzantine Empire until that
long can mainly be accounted for by the transformation that the Roman Empire underwent
starting from the close of the third century and early fourth century ce.

POLITICAL CRISIS
Despite the political stability brought about by Augustus Caesar and other Principate rulers, the
Roman polity suffered from an inherent basic flaw, that is, the absence of a clear law of succes-
sion. This proved to be fatal in the long run for the Empire because the sudden death of a
Roman ruler was invariably followed by uncertainty, creating conditions of a civil war among
the claimants to the throne. This lacuna in the Roman constitution has been attributed to the
fact that the autocratic rule in Rome (since the time of Augustus) was disguised behind the
republican forms. This prevented the rulers from attempting to provide for an orderly succes-
sion to a constitutionally non-existent imperial position. Thus, the period from the assassina-
tion of Severus Alexander (235 ce) to the victory of Diocletian (285 ce) was marked by civil wars
and rise and fall of 26 emperors, of whom only one escaped violent death. One of the main
reasons behind this ‘bloody’ history of Rome during 235–85 ce was the attempts by rulers such
as Septimius Severus to undermine the authority of Senate and reliance on the army as a source
of legitimacy. Earlier, army was used to force the Senate to recognise the appointment of a new
emperor. But now army was made the sole recognised source to legitimise political authority
of a ruler. Growing prominence of the army in the Roman polity made it difficult for the rulers
to control them. As the Senate lost its authority, the constitutional means to overthrow an
Emperor was replaced by forceful (mostly violent) acquisition of power, thus adding to the
series of civil wars that occurred during these 50 years of political anarchy.
Another political crisis faced by the Roman Empire, particularly from the third century ce
onwards, was a very strong feeling of regionalism/Provincialism subsequent to decline of Rome
as the centre of political power and the emergence of provinces as new power centres. This is
exemplified by the fact that practically all the emperors of the third century Roman Empire
were of provincial origin and gave utmost importance to provincial defence. This created a situ-
ation where the inhabitants of a province or group of provinces felt that the interest of the
province or the region would be served best only when an Emperor from that region ascends
to the throne. But more dangerous was their belief that Emperors belonging to different
regions were not paying adequate attention to their regions. This sentiment on the one hand
sowed the seeds of rebellion; on the other, there was also an attempt to put persons of their
 Ancient Rome II 297

choice on the throne. This not only gave rise to sectionalism affecting the unity of the Empire
but also created a keen provincial competition for the throne, plunging Roman Empire into a
series of civil wars.
Provincial competition for the throne also arose from the growing insecurity on the Roman
frontiers. The Roman frontier was not fixed but a fluid one and was managed through a system
whereby the frontier zones were protected (besides natural defences such as mountains, des-
erts, rivers or large water bodies) by deploying large concentration of troops. The frontiers
could be extended depending upon the circumstances as was done under Antonius Pius in
Britain, Marcus Aurelius in the Danube region and Septimius Severus in East and North Africa.
But as the Roman Empire extended beyond Mediterranean, the local units of the provincial
army could not sustain heavier military invasions of the migrating tribes from Northern and
Central Europe and that of the Persians under the Sassanid Dynasty. Summoning of troops to
protect one region exposed the other to external attacks. Moreover, Septimius Severus’s policy
of allowing the Roman troops to establish marital relationship with the local inhabitants for
their integration into Roman culture had created a sense of attachment with that territory
among the soldiers. They were thus reluctant to go for outside assignment to protect another
territory and therefore made a keen effort to raise local military commanders as Roman
Emperor to receive greater Imperial favours and protection for their region.
In the fourth century ce, under the Dominate rulers, starting with Diocletian, an attempt was
made to strengthen the authority of the monarch and Imperial control over the army leading to
the growth of absolute military monarchy. The system of Tetrarchy, comprising of two Augusti
in eastern and western part of the Roman Empire and two of their successors called Caesars,
was introduced to restore peace and unity in different parts of the Empire under their respec-
tive control. An increase in the number of provinces from 40 to 105 under Diocletian was aimed
at reducing the power and ambitions of the local governors. Military reforms were directed at
strengthening frontier defence. But while the system of Tetrarchy succeeded in achieving its
objectives of political unity of the Empire, at the same time, it also laid the foundation of the
division of the Roman Empire into two halves—east and west. This division became definite
under Constantine and was formalised under Theodosius in 395 ce. Moreover, Tetrarchy ended
with the abdication of power by Diocletian paving way for another series of civil wars. The
administrative and military reforms (under both Diocletian and Constantine) had partially suc-
ceeded in checking centrifugal tendencies. But it created another problem of a serious nature.
Increase in the number of provinces and creation of a huge centralised army put a severe strain
on the Imperial treasury on account of salary payment to a mammoth bureaucracy and the
army. An attempt to reduce the burden on the Imperial exchequer by increased taxation made
the regime oppressive in the eyes of the poor, leading to frequent rebellions abating the down-
fall of the Empire.

ECONOMIC CRISIS
The political crisis of the Roman Empire was exasperated by an economic crisis which itself,
in a large measure, was an outcome of the political decisions adopted by several rulers of the
Empire to deal with political expediencies. This created a vicious circle the Empire was trapped
into. Crisis in the Roman economy, marked chiefly by a crisis in the slave mode of production,
298 Ancient and Medieval World

fiscal and monetary crisis and decline of trade and urban centres, prevented Roman rulers from
adopting any long-term policy of political, social and economic revival, particularly from the
third century ce onwards.

Crisis in the Slave Mode of Production

The slave mode of production had played a major role in sustaining Roman agriculture, trade
and urbanisation until about the first century ce. In large parts of the Roman Empire, slave
labour had dominated the large-scale economic enterprises involving both agricultural and
handicraft production. Smooth operations of slave mode of production were dependent on
adequate supply of slaves which was ensured by a flourishing slave trade as well as the Roman
expansion. The latter brought large number of war captives as slaves to be traded at important
Mediterranean ports such as Delos. Perry Anderson (1974) has argued that traditionally the
supply of slaves largely depended on foreign conquests since prisoners of war probably always
provided the main source of servile labour in the antiquity. But there was a fundamental change
in the Roman policy towards expansion under the Principate rulers, starting with the Augustan
policy of Pax Romana. Augustus Caesar’s policy of consolidation rather than conquest halted
Roman expansion, and this was particularly the case after the death of Emperor Trajan in 117
ce. In this context, Perry Anderson says,

with the final closure of the imperial frontiers after Trajan, the well of war captives inevitably dried up.
The commercial slave trade could not make up for the shortage that resulted since it had always itself
been largely parasitic on military operations for its stocks.

Raids on the nearby tribal settlements, previously an effective source to supplement the supply
of slaves, could not be resorted to as Rome itself was grappling with tribal attacks on its frontier
areas, particularly in the post-Trajan era. The dealer network of supply of slaves from the fron-
tier areas, particularly during the time of peace, also could not solve the supply problem.
Shortage in the supply of slaves was further accentuated by the high mortality rate among
the slaves, as they were made to do hard work but were provided with poor nutrition. The
disastrous plague of 165 ce, which decimated one-third of the population in many parts of the
Empire, particularly affected the slave population as the poor nutrition had led to weak immu-
nity among them. The shortage of slaves is indicated by rising prices of slaves in the second
century ce. According to an estimate given by A. H. M. Jones (1956), the prices of slaves in the
second century ce were 8–10 times the levels of the second century bce. This has prompted
historians such as Perry Anderson (1974) to opine that the steep rise in the costs of slaves
increasingly exposed the contradictions and risks of slave labour for the owner. For the slave
owner, according to Anderson, each adult slave represented a perishable capital investment
that had to be written off in Toto at the death of the slave. M. I. Finley (1980), on the other hand,
does not subscribe to the view that the increasing prices of the slaves automatically led to a
decrease in their supply. Nevertheless, he does agree that in the later part of the Roman Empire,
‘the employers of labour were not successful in maintaining a sufficient complement of slave
labour’.
The problem of the shortage of slave labour to work on the big Roman latifundia of the
aristocracy was also made serious because of the low level of technology under which the slave
 Ancient Rome II 299

mode of production functioned. As pointed out in an earlier Chapter 6, the cheapness of labour
in general and slave labour in particular had prevented the introduction of labour-saving devices,
even though some technological innovations were introduced in the beginning of slave-based
production. In the absence of technological improvements, agricultural productivity had
become stagnant. Shortage of slave labour thus threatened to initiate a crisis in the ancient
Roman agriculture. The slave owners had to devise ways to come out of this crisis and evidences
suggest that they did try to augment the number of slaves by adopting methods such as slave
breeding. But a major hindrance in this process was the lopsided sex ratio between man and
woman slaves and the absence of conjugality between them as most of them belonged to the
different parts of the ancient world. Thus, the rate of reproduction among slaves remained low.
As pointed out by Geoffrey de Stei Croix (1981), the slave owners devised a new way of increas-
ing the chances of slave reproduction through encouraging loose bond between male and female
slaves by allowing them to settle on individual plots of land within the latifundia. But Stei Croix
also concedes that in the long run, slave breeding was less profitable than slave capture.
The shortage in supply of slaves had other implications too. Slave owners, in their attempt
to increase the number of slaves, gave them some freedom along with the means of subsistence.
Many owners of big latifundia settled in the cities and left their estates to be managed by slave
families settled on one plot of land within the same estate. These slave families could now have
their own holdings after giving a portion of the produce to the masters. In this manner, slaves
were given some freedom and were now no more considered as commodities. Similar type of
freedom was accorded to urban slaves too. Through the institution of peculium, slaves in the
urban areas were allowed by their owners to engage in some occupation, leaving aside a portion
of their earnings for their masters. The practice of manumission (freedom from slavery) was
made legal by the state in return for manumission tax paid by the slave owners. The manumit-
ted slaves were given civic rights like the other citizens even though they had to fulfil certain
obligations of their masters. Marxist scholars have pointed out that the freedom won by the
slaves led to a decline in the ‘rate of exploitation’ and ultimately in the slave mode of production
itself by about the third century ce. Crisis in the slave mode of production did not however
represent the end of slave labour and its replacement by other forms of surplus extraction that,
according to Marc Bloch (1975), did not take place before the rule of Charlemagne in the eighth
century ce. However, it is true that as the crisis in the slave economy became serious by the
third century ce, the landed aristocracy looked for an alternative method to exploit surplus
from their land by depressing the status of independent peasants through the institution of
colonus and patrocinium (an issue to be discussed later in the present book) which radically
changed the system of production in the rural areas, paving way for the growth of feudal mode
of production.

Fiscal Crisis
The first two centuries of the Principate rule had seen all-round growth in agriculture, industry
and commerce despite Italy losing out its importance as the centre of production to the prov-
inces. In the agricultural sector, both eastern and western part of the Empire produced suffi-
cient amount of wine, olive and cereals. Construction of roads, harbours and canals in several
parts of the Empire encouraged manufacturing by ensuring easy availability of raw materials as
well as trade, both local and long distance. But there were some inherent weaknesses in this
300 Ancient and Medieval World

pattern of economic growth that undermined Roman Empire’s economic potential and later
contributed to a long-term decline from the third century ce onwards. Lack of technological
innovations and shortage of labour had adversely affected agricultural production throughout
the western part of the Empire barring few areas such as North Africa, Sicily and Gaul. Large-
scale manufacturing was dominated by the state enterprise that catered mainly to the needs of
a huge military and bureaucratic setup. Lack of private enterprise in the manufacturing sector
affected industrial production in general and trade in particular. Moreover, long-distance com-
merce was limited to luxury products needed by the well-to-do and confined to favourable
geographical location of raw materials and highly specialised craftsmen.
The inherent weakness of the Roman economy was fully exposed in the wake of the so-
called ‘Third Century Crisis’. The political crisis (as manifest in civil wars and secessionist
movements) and the threat of much heavier tribal attacks on the Roman frontier in the third
century ce had necessitated reorganisation of provincial administration as well as army. This
created a heavy demand for both money and manpower. The military needs of the Empire,
particularly in the third century ce increased manifold in the wake of repeated attacks of the
Germanic tribes. The state initiative to raise a substantial army to defend Roman territory from
external attacks was hampered by the demographic decline of Rome, particularly in the third
century. Lack of adequate medical knowledge combined with poor nutrition of majority of the
population had resulted in low birth rate. Poor nutrition and the resultant low immunity caused
heavy mortality in the wake of two worst plagues (165 ce and 264 ce) in ancient Roman history.
It has been estimated that between 161 ce and 284 ce, diseases, warfare and declining birth rate
combined together brought down the population of the Roman Empire by one-third. This made
it difficult to find large number of additional soldiers within the empire unless they were
removed from agricultural activities. This further reduced productivity and made it difficult for
the state to generate taxes. In fact, unavailability of large forces to repel the tribal attacks had
often led to emperors buying the attackers through subsidies as was seen during the reign of
Severus Alexander while dealing with Alemanni and other German tribes. This was a drain on
the state resources.
The Roman ruler’s attempt to strengthen the defence of the Empire by substantially increas-
ing the number of well-trained, well-paid and well-equipped troops in the provinces was also
hampered by the lack of resources in view of the low productivity (in both agricultural and
industrial sectors). While earlier, the Roman expansion had brought in enough resources to
keep a large army, the halt in the Roman expansion after Trajan dried up the resources. But
despite lack of resources, due to the pressing defence needs of the Empire, the size of the
Roman army kept on increasing from 250,000 troops at the time of Augustus to 500,000 troops
during the reign of Constantine and reaching a figure of 650,000 troops by the end of the fourth
century ce. This put a severe strain on the imperial treasury. The only way to augment resources
was to increase taxes. Earlier, Roman expansion under the Republic had allowed the state to
exempt Roman citizens of Italy from agricultural tax (tributum). But under the late Principate
and Dominate rulers, taxes rose sharply. A. H. M. Jones (1986) has estimated that the rate of
taxation during the late Empire was three times higher than what it had been during the late
Republic. The state was now, according to Jones, extracting between a quarter and a third of
gross agrarian output as taxes. Since the taxes in the western part of the Empire were very
often collected by the landlords, they usually passed on the heavy burden of taxation to the
small and dependent peasants. The exploitation of the rural classes contributed to rural
 Ancient Rome II 301

tensions leading to revolts. Although most of these revolts were ultimately crushed by the state,
but it could be achieved only at the cost of substantial state resources.
The populist measures of few of the Roman Emperors such as donation of money, free dis-
tribution of grains and lavish shows of chariot races, gladiator combats and beast hunts, put
further pressure on the dwindling state resources. Although the number of people receiving
free grain had come down from 320,000 at the time of Augustus Caesar to 200,000 under the
Dominate rulers, it was still a big drain on resources considering the fact that agricultural pro-
ductivity had become stagnant and had even started to shrink from the third century ce
onwards. The extravagant public works in the form of civilian and military building projects by
rulers such as Septimius Severus in the wake of financial crisis did not help matters either.
Another factor accounting for the fiscal crisis of the Roman Empire was the cost of maintain-
ing a huge bureaucracy engaged in central and provincial administration. While Augustan
period witnessed minimal bureaucratisation of the Empire, the growing administrative needs of
the Empire led to expansion in Imperial administration from the time of Hadrian onwards. His
passion for efficiency resulted in addition of several governmental departments where he
appointed officials at a very high salary. In addition to this, the Principate rulers, in an attempt
to prevent the concentration of power in the hands of provincial governors, had partitioned the
provinces bringing about an increase in the number of officials working at different levels at
differential salaries. Under the Dominate rule, particularly during the reign of Diocletian, the
number of provinces increased from 40 to 105, and separate military commanders and civilian
governors were appointed in each of these provinces. According to an estimate, this increased
the number of high salaried provincial officials fivefold, putting additional pressure on the state
resources. Under Constantine, according to Perry Anderson (1974), the establishment of
Christianity as the official church of the Roman Empire added a huge clerical bureaucracy
(where none had previously existed) to the already ominous weight of the secular state
apparatus.

Monetary Crisis
Apart from the policy decisions of several Roman rulers, the inherent weakness in the monetary
system of the Roman economy further exasperated the financial crisis of the Roman Empire. In
this context, the real problem started early in the first and the second centuries ce when pur-
chase of foreign luxury goods lead to a heavy outflow of silver and gold coins, creating a short-
age of credit money for business. Besides, the productivity of the Spanish gold and silver mines
had been declining since the days of Nero. The Romans also did not have the requisite mining
technology to exploit the remaining ores in many of its mines. Moreover, no major military
conquest after Trajan had made the supply of gold and silver stagnant. The monetary system
was based on the circulation of coins whose value was fixed by the actual content of the pre-
cious metal. If the coins were debased to maintain or increase the amount of money in circula-
tion, it eventually would lead to inflation or increase in prices. In Rome, since the time of
Commodus, inflationary pressure kept on rising. The corrective measures adopted by the sub-
sequent Roman emperors, combined with their populist measures, added fuel to the inflation-
ary fire. Septimius Severus, in order to fight inflation, raised the base pay of the army from 300
to 400 denarii (plural of silver currency called denarius) and the resultant need for more coins
was fulfilled by reducing the silver content of the denarius to about 56 per cent. Coins were
302 Ancient and Medieval World

again devalued under Caracalla to ensure raise in the salary of troops from 400 to 600 denarii.
By the middle of the third century ce, the debasement of coinage and the continued increase in
the number of coins in circulation caused inflation to rise even higher. According to an esti-
mate, the prices between 267 ce and 274 ce had increased 700 per cent.
In the fourth century ce, Diocletian brought about some monetary reforms by introducing
new gold (solidus) and silver (argenteus) coins for large transactions and silvered copper
(antonianus) and bronze (follis) coins for small transactions. But these measures proved to be
unsuccessful in the long run as Diocletian could not ensure the production of good quality gold
and silver coins whereas coining of too many silvered copper and bronze coins added to the
inflation. Further, monetary reforms under Constantine witnessed the introduction of a stable
gold solidus (slightly lesser in weight than that of Diocletian’s gold coin) and replacement of
silver argenteus with a new silver coin miliarense. But silver remained in short supply and over
production of smaller coins continued to fuel inflationary tendencies. While the stability of gold
coin benefitted the government and the wealthy, the lower ranking officials and the common
masses were clearly disadvantaged due to the debasement of silver bullion, leading them to
resort to barter rather than cash as the latter was losing its purchasing power.

Trade and Urban Decline

During the early Principate rule, the Augustan policy of Pax Romana had boosted long-distance
trade of the Empire by achieving unification of the Mediterranean under the Roman rule. Most
of the major towns were also located on or near the coastline. Thus, they also prospered along
with the Mediterranean trade. But both seem to have suffered in the wake of the ‘Third Century
Crisis’. This is not to suggest that the decline set in only in the third century. There were some
inherent weaknesses in the growth pattern of the first and the second centuries ce that precipi-
tated decline in trade and urbanisation from the third century ce onwards.
It is true that the monetary crisis, particularly shortage of coins for circulation, adversely
affected commercial activities of the Empire. But one of the major lacunas of the Imperial com-
merce was also the fact that despite excellent highways and arterial roads constructed by sev-
eral rulers, their role in promoting trade was limited as they were used mainly for administrative
and strategic military purposes. The backwardness of the transport technology rendered it
commercially unviable. Coastal and in-land waterways were the most preferred means for the
movement of goods as they were faster as well as cheaper. For example, it is said that it was
cheaper to ship goods from Southern Gaul to Rome than to transport them overland from a
place in Italy just 50 miles away from Rome, or as A. H. M. Jones (1986) has argued that it was
cheaper to transfer grain from one end of the Mediterranean to the other by ship than to move
75 miles overland. But recently, critics based on their detailed study of Roman roads, river
transport and maritime traffic have pointed out that the first two centuries ce witnessed sub-
stantial growth in scale and volume of transportation in several areas. But they concede that
uniformity in the transportation system could not be achieved due to the sheer size of the
Roman Empire. However, reliance on water transport also meant that only those farmers or
artisans could trade their goods who had easy access to water transport. Absence of preserva-
tion techniques also restricted the tradable goods to spoilage resistant agricultural products
such as grain, olive oil and wine, which could be shipped over long distances. Manufacture and
long-distance commerce was also conditioned by the availability of raw materials and highly
 Ancient Rome II 303

specialised craftsmen. This limited the market of these goods to the affluent class only. Thus,
although the foreign commerce of the Empire was spread to different parts of the world includ-
ing China, Southern and Western India as well as Africa, it was confined to such luxury items
as perfumes, gems, spices and silk and cotton textiles. But even here, the lack of demand for
Roman products in these areas tilted the balance of trade against Rome as there was heavy
outflow of precious metals, a fact also highlighted by Pliny the Elder, precipitating a monetary
crisis for the Empire.
In the third century ce, tribal invasions, civil wars and diseases severely disrupted produc-
tion and trade (both internal and external) in large parts of the Empire. Lesser number of ship-
wrecks in the Mediterranean region during this period is cited as an evidence of decline in
long-distance commerce. Although, in the recent archaeological excavations, as many as 900
shipwrecks have been reported from Mediterranean, they have all been discovered in shallow
water and very few in deep waters and the size of the ships have also been determined as small.
This has been considered as an indicator of decline in long-distance trade though they do pro-
vide sufficient evidence of local trade. The coastal raids of such Germanic tribes as Saxons and
Juts and attacks by other tribes on the Rhine-Danube frontier adversely affected trade in north-
western provinces. The simultaneous collapse of the Parthian and Chinese Empires disrupted
overland trade to India and the Far East. Likewise, trade with North Africa and Italy was also
affected in the third century. Monetary reforms of Diocletian and Constantine improved the
condition only partially. On the other hand, Diocletian’s Edict on Maximum Prices (301 ce)
related to goods and services made it unprofitable for producers to sell their goods at official
prices. Producers started resorting to black marketing or simply stopped producing and took
recourse to barter which could not have encouraged trade based on money exchange. Later in
the fourth century, manufacturing and trade shifted from declining cities to the landed estates
of the rural aristocracy where they could earn large profits by selling in bulk to wholesale trad-
ers, the army or the Imperial government. But here again, the high cost of transportation and
limited market confined the trade to luxuries and specialised handicraft products.
The overall economic crisis affected the process of urbanisation as well. During the Augustan
era, new cities were created to unify the Empire by the diffusion of Roman culture while many
of them also served as provincial administrative units for the purpose of collection of taxes. In
Italy and other provinces, the process of urbanisation and commercialisation had benefited the
local landed elite, who, in order to enhance their economic status, started promoting urbanisa-
tion by constructing fine residential buildings and providing civic amenities such as temples,
theatres, aqueducts, baths and forums. These towns and other cities also acted as feeders (for
supply of food and raw material) to Rome. Prominent among these were port cities of Pozzuoli
and Ostia, where ships were unloaded for Rome-bound products. Cities of Milan, Padua, Capua,
Verona, Pompeii and Genoa were other major feeders to Rome. The supply needs of Rome had
also stimulated urban growth in the Mediterranean region. Corinth and the port of Alexandria
became the major grain suppliers to Rome. However, such a pattern of urbanisation had one
major weakness, that is, the future of these cities were linked with the prosperity of Italy in
general and Rome in particular, latter being the chief consumption centre in the Mediterranean.
By the end of the second century ce, as provinces started gaining more administrative impor-
tance in comparison to Rome, the process of urbanisation was reversed. Growth of manufactur-
ing and trade in the provinces during this period led to the decline of Italy as the centre of
production. Political power and authority too shifted to the frontier provinces by the end of the
second century and the city of Rome remained only of great symbolic significance. Effects of
304 Ancient and Medieval World

these developments became clearly visible in the third century as the declining political and
administrative importance of the city of Rome displaced the economic activities centred on it,
adversely affecting its feeder towns and cities. Other cities also suffered in the third century due
to natural disasters (plagues, earthquakes), economic decline, civil wars and tribal invasions.
Barring few cities, which acted as major defensive centres such as Milan, Verona, Sirmium and
Antioch, others started to shrink and decay. In the fourth century ce, under the Dominate rulers,
an attempt to revive Imperial power and authority witnessed temporary spurt in urban activities
but as pointed out by Perry Anderson (1974), the urban growth was largely concentrated in new
military and administrative centres (Milan, Trier or Sardica) under direct patronage of the
emperor. This, to Anderson, was not a spontaneous economic phenomenon and therefore could
not offset the long-term dwindling of the cities. As Constantine strove to force the landed elite,
settled in the towns, to fulfil their municipal responsibilities, they abandoned the towns to
resettle in their estates. Small artisans also left the cities in search of security and employment
towards the landed estates abetting urban decline, leading to what Perry Anderson terms as
‘ruralisation of the empire’.

SOCIAL TENSION
Apart from political instability in general and the economic decline, the social polarisation of
the rich and poor citizens of the Empire played no less significant a role in the Roman crisis and
its decline. The genesis of this social tension (which had existed since the foundation of the
Empire) during the rule of the Principate and the Dominate can be traced to the crisis in the
slave mode of production. The shortage of slave labour had forced the owners of big latifundia
to look for an alternative source of labour and surplus extraction to sustain their affluent life-
style. They achieved this by depressing the status of tenant farmers to that of dependent peas-
ants or coloni. They were primarily free tenant farmers or a sharecropper with limited means,
that is, they usually did not have their own implements and could not afford to buy seeds. After
assuming the status of a coloni, a generally free tenant farmer was now tied to the soil (landed
estate of the landlord) and was allowed to cultivate the land in lieu of rent paid to the lord
sometimes in cash but mostly in kind. During the reign of Diocletian and Constantine, under the
garb of tax reforms that required registration of such tenants in the assessment records, coloni
was permanently prohibited from leaving the lord’s estate. Subsequently, this institution of
colonus was extended to other small farmers, agricultural labourers and the manumitted slaves.
The increasing power and authority of the landlords enabled them to extend their control
over other and larger sections of the peasants through the institution of patrocinium. Under
this system, the entire peasants of a village, having their own holdings, surrendered their land
to the local landed magnate of authority in order to protect themselves from heavy state taxa-
tion and corrupt officials. While on the one hand it reduced the free peasants to the status of
coloni, it greatly enhanced the economic and political power of the landlords on the other. In
Italy, Spain and Gaul, where the institution of patrocinium was most prevalent, developed
localised centres of power controlled by the landed aristocracy. By the fourth century ce, the
entire western half of the Empire came under a new type of production based on colonate
system. This system is considered as the transitional phase between classical Greco-Roman
slavery and classical medieval European feudalism (to be examined later in the book).
 Ancient Rome II 305

The depressed status of the peasants was made worse by heavy taxation imposed by the
state, starting from the time of the Principate rule and reaching the stage of ‘over taxation’
under the Dominate. As mentioned earlier, the rate of taxation had increased three times in the
fourth century than that of the Republican period. Since in many areas of the west taxes were
collected by the landlord, they were able to evade their own liability and passed on the burden
to the coloni. The exploited peasants resorted to full-scale uprising, first of which is reported
from Gaul in 283–84 ce, known as Bagaudae (a Celtic term meaning fighters) insurrection. The
insurrection was joined by the runaway slaves, army deserters, depressed coloni and the rural
poor. They waged guerrilla warfare against army garrisons and provincial landed aristocracy
and, at times, direct intervention of the emperor was required to subdue them.
In North Africa, some sections of the rural population (itinerant day labourers, fugitive slaves
and peasants) grouped together under the name of Agonists and rose in rebellion during the
decade after 340 ce. Their struggle was mainly directed against moneylenders, owners of large
landed estates, government officials and the senior members of the catholic clergy. In the fifth
century ce, the Bagaudae insurrection resurfaced with increased intensity in the background of
unendurable fiscal and rental pressure on the poor peasants during 407–17 ce, 435–37 ce and
442–43 ce. E. A. Thompson (1982) informs us that in the zone of Armorica (later day Brittany)
peasant insurgents created virtual and independent state, expelling officers, expropriating land-
lords, punishing slave owners with slavery and creating their own judiciary and army.
The condition of urban masses was no better. The high incidence of urban taxation affected
the urban masses the most as they were already reeling under price rise. State had to appease
them with free distribution of grains. But with the growing economic difficulties of the state,
the subsidies were reduced, putting the urban masses under a deep crisis of survival. It resulted
in many taking to crime, prostitution, selling of children or flight to the countryside. Only
Christian converts got some relief through the charitable activities of the fellow community
members. Thus, the urban poor, though powerless, were always a source of law and order
problem for the state.

TRIBAL INVASIONS
The internal crisis of the Western Roman Empire was accentuated by the external pressure in
the form of tribal attacks on the Roman frontiers first and then in the core areas of the Empire.
These tribes, termed as ‘barbarians’ or ‘Germanic hordes’, were tribes of Indo-European linguis-
tic family and largely inhabited Northern and Central Europe. The Roman interface with the
German tribes began with the Roman expansion towards Gaul and the Danube region in Central
Europe. From the time of Augustus, the two rivers Rhine and Danube constituted the boundary
of the Empire in Northern and Central Europe. The Germanic tribes such as Cimbri, Teutons
and Ambroina mainly concentrated themselves in the region east of Rhine and north of Danube.
This area is referred to as the principal Germanic zone by modern day scholars and ‘Germania’
by the Romans. Few of these frontier tribes were under a constant threat of Roman attack for
plunder or slaves. This explains the retaliatory attacks in Gaul and Northern Italy by few of the
German tribes such as Cimbri and Teutons as early as 113 bce, which however was repulsed by
101 bce. By the time of Augustus Caesar, German tribes had become the tribal periphery of the
Roman world in Central and Western Europe.
306 Ancient and Medieval World

But the relationship between the Roman Empire and these tribes was not confined to hostile
reactions alone. From the early Principate onwards, commercial, technological and cultural
exchanges developed between the two. The penetration of Roman culture into these stateless
and pastoral tribes had profound impact on the latter, leading to the growth of tribal leagues
and tribal kingdoms. The tribes traded cattle, dairy products and forest produce in exchange
for the Roman goods. Besides, many of the frontier tribes acted as collaborators (in return for
payment) in Roman attempt to capture slaves to solve the problem of shortage of labour. At the
same time, whenever the tribes got an opportunity, they raided the Roman frontier areas and
captured booty, enhancing their economic resources. This enabled few of the wealthy tribes
with professional warriors to establish rudimentary tribal states, subjugate weaker tribes and
constitute tribal leagues to protect themselves from the Roman onslaught. Most prominent of
these tribal leagues across the northern frontier of the Roman Empire was that of the Frisians,
Franks, Saxons, Alemanni, Thuringians, Burgundians, Vandals, Marcomanni and the Quadi.
From the latter half of the second century ce and particularly from the beginning of the third
century ce, the tribes, now organised under a league, initiated planned attacks on the Roman
territories. During the rule of Marcus Aurelius (160–80 ce), the Marcomanni and Quadi tribes
swept into Italy and he was able to subdue them only after a series of military campaigns
(known as Marcomannic Wars), incurring lot of expenditure and loss of man force. In order to
prevent further attacks in future from the side of Danubian border, he settled thousands of
German cultivators within the Roman territory. This was also aimed at solving the problem of
labour by giving the Germanic peasants the same status of coloni as given to the Roman depen-
dent peasants. This significantly altered the ethnic composition of the Roman Empire. The issue
of Danubian frontier again came up in the first half of the third century and assumed such seri-
ous proportions that it led to assassination of the Roman Emperor Severus Alexander in 235 ce
at the hands of the Danubian troops that wanted him to follow an aggressive policy towards the
Germanic tribes.
Subsequently, Alemanni and Franks resorted to another round of attacks on Roman territo-
ries in Gaul, Spain and the Rhineland while Italy was again invaded by Marcomanni and
Alemanni tribes. Another prominent tribe to join this series of attacks on the Roman Danubian
frontier was the Goths, who inhabited Southern Scandinavia around the mid-second century ce.
By the mid-third century, however, they moved towards the Danubian region and started their
raids on the Roman territories. As the Roman Empire lacked the manpower resources to con-
trol these tribal incursions, the Roman rulers resorted to a policy of compromise vis-à-vis the
Germanic tribes, thus paving way for peaceful penetration of these tribes into the Empire. This
penetration was in the form of (a) settling of Germanic peasants on Roman territory, (b) inclu-
sions of Germans in the Roman army, particularly during the reigns of Diocletian and
Constantine and (c) turning German chieftains, loyal to the Empire, as allies (foederati), who
were to act as buffers against the attack of hostile tribes.
A more organised, planned and motivated tribal attacks on the Roman territory began from
the mid-fourth century onwards. These tribes were now no more content with raids and plun-
der of the Roman territory but were in a process of having a settled life and therefore, they were
looking for territorial acquisitions within the Empire. Besides, these tribal invasions were also
influenced by developments in Central Asia. The movement of Huns (a powerful nomadic tribe)
in Central Asia had displaced several tribes inhabiting Southern Russia such as Ostrogoths (a
breakaway division of Goths) who then moved to the west and put pressure on the Visigoths
 Ancient Rome II 307

(another division of the Goths) and the latter got pushed towards the eastern border of the
Roman Empire. In the famous Battle at Hadrianopolis in 378 ce, the Visigoths defeated the
Roman army led by Emperor Valens and the entire Balkan region came under their control.
Scholars such as Edward Gibbon (1996) consider this as a turning point in the history of the
Roman Empire as it opened the way for further tribal invasions on Rome in the fifth century ce.
Beginning with 406 ce, Vandals, Alans, Suevi and Burgundians settled in Roman Gaul as
Roman federates (allies). Later on, Franks displaced these tribes, settled in Gaul first as Roman
ally and then under Clovis, created an independent kingdom in 486 ce. Towards the North Sea
side, the Angels, Saxons and Jutes started their raids in Britain and made permanent settlement
along the English coast. In Africa, the Vandals created a separate kingdom by bringing under
their control Carthage and Sicily. By the mid-fifth century ce, only Italy, islands of Western
Mediterranean and parts of Spain and Gaul remained under the authority of the Western Roman
Emperor. By about 500 ce, even these areas had fallen under the control of Germanic chieftains
who had been transformed into Roman aristocrats. The Germanic acquisition of different parts
of the Roman Empire did not however mean complete overthrow of the Roman institutions,
which continued in a modified form until the evolution of a new type of political, social and
economic structure from the seventh century ce onwards.

Summary
1. Roman religion and culture was not an exclusive product of indigenous ideology. As
Rome expanded, it adopted the religious and cultural practices of the conquered
areas.
2. Early Roman religion, both at popular and state level, was closely bound with social
values. Roman religion was more practical than ideological. Romans worshipped all
natural forces connected with their daily life through appropriate prayers and sacri-
fices. Ancestor worship was an important feature of Roman religious beliefs.
Influenced by Greek religious beliefs and practices Romans also worshipped Greek
anthromorphic deities in a different form.
3. Roman religion was centred at home, farm and pasture. This was endorsed by the
state to enforce internal unity and cohesion. Religious beliefs were combined with
social values such as winning, military glory and obedience to state authority that
helped the Roman aristocracy that controlled the state.
4. Roman territorial expansion in the Italian Peninsula and Eastern and Western
Mediterranean led to the assimilation of foreign cults and deities in the Roman pan-
theon. This led to the introduction of new forms of worship such as funeral and
secular games, ritual dances and religious processions. Cults of Eastern Mediterranean
regions such as Egypt, Turkey and Persia became more popular in Rome as their
ideology, practices and omnipresent nature of their deities appealed to the Roman
people. There were historical, psychological and sociological reasons for the popu-
larity of these cults despite restrictive attitude adopted by the state towards few of
these foreign cults.

(Continued)
308 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)
5. The priestly class played an important role in the development of religious beliefs at
the state level. They were organised in the form of priestly college and were in-
charge of rituals and incantations during the public worship. They were men of
learning, political experience and high social ranking (patricians). Many of them
were ex-senators and therefore played an important role in determining state policy
towards foreign cults.
6. During the Principate rule, there were attempts by rulers such as Augustus to revive
traditional religious practices but the popularity of foreign cults did not decline.
Foreign cults were assimilated as parallel cults in the Roman pantheon. An attempt
was also made during his reign to provide divinity to human rulers.
7. An important religious development during the reign of Dominate rulers was the rise
and growth of Christianity that revolved around the cult of Jesus. Its emphasis on
good deeds, charity, brotherhood and sisterhood of followers, equality of men and
women, and simple and inexpensive ceremonies made it popular among people of
all classes and sexes. Saint Paul was the first to popularise Christianity among the
non-Jews of Greece, Turkey and Rome. A well-structured organisation helped in
further growth of Christian ideology. But their unorthodox practices and refusal to
honour traditional Roman religious beliefs did invite state persecution until it
became a state religion during the reign of Constantine.
8. Cultural developments in the early and Republican Rome was not only a product of
indigenous values and beliefs but was also deeply influenced by Greek and Etruscan
traditions. After the Roman expansion, its art, architecture and literature benefitted
from the cultural syntheses, leading to the growth of a distinct Greco-Roman classical
culture. Territorial expansion brought increased wealth to the Roman aristocracy
which increased the demand for high-quality arts and craft products. Construction of
substantial houses, palaces, roads, aqueducts, baths and gardens also received a
boost. Introduction of new construction technique (use of concrete) by the Romans
made them masters in the field of architecture.
9. New cultural trends were visible in Rome under the Principate and rulers. The
Augustan period is considered as the ‘Golden Age’ with respect to cultural achieve-
ments. This was backed by a strong agricultural, industrial and commercial growth
consequent upon enforcement of Augustan peace (Pax Romana). Augustus is said to
have created a new imperial style in the field of architecture by synthesising Etruscan,
Italian and Greek architectural traditions. In the field of art, Greek classicism reached
its zenith under Augustus. Latin literature also reached its apogee during his reign. His
successors earned fame by undertaking the construction of massive public buildings
such as Amphitheatre, Pantheon and so on.
10. The period of the Third Century Crisis is considered as one of cultural declines, but
scholars in recent times tend to argue that the achievements of the previous two
centuries have been overstated. They also argue that during the third century, the
Roman Empire had greatly expanded and therefore while the process of cultural
growth was slow in some areas, in other areas one could see increased pace of cul-
tural progression.
 Ancient Rome II 309

11. The reorganisation of empire after the Third Century Crisis by the Dominate rulers
led to the growth of a new imperial culture that went beyond Roman and Italian
traditions. Christianity was accepted as a state religion, and, from then onwards, it
became a determining factor for cultural change in the fourth century. Roman art
and architecture during this period not only served the imperial cultural needs but
also ideological and spiritual needs of a rising Christian population.
12. Crisis and decline of the Roman Empire refers to the decline of the western part of
the empire and not its eastern part. The eastern part of the empire continued to sur-
vive as Byzantine Empire until its defeat by the Turks in 1453 ce. Decline of the
Western Roman Empire was a prolonged process covering almost two centuries.
13. Several factors, ranging from political, economic, social to invasions of the German
tribes, have been considered as the factors primarily responsible for the decline of
the Roman Empire, though some scholars have come up with several reasons includ-
ing some bizarre ones for the same.
14. Politically, the absence of a clear law of succession created uncertainties and strug-
gle for throne after the sudden death of each ruler with disastrous consequences. As
army became the major source of legitimisation of power, Senate lost its relevance
and claimants to throne resorted to violent takeover of power. Decline of the city of
Rome as the power centre and emergence of provinces as new fulcrums of power
created a keen tussle among the respective provincial leaders. This led to the growth
of sectionalism, adversely affecting the unity of the Empire. The system of tetrarchy
developed by the Dominate rulers ultimately resulted in formal division of the
Roman Empire in 395 ce.
15. The economic crisis manifested itself in the form of crisis in the slave mode of pro-
duction, fiscal and monetary crisis and decline of trade and urban centres. Many of
these were a direct outcome of certain political measures adopted by the Roman
rulers in the third century ce. However, scholars argue that many of the economic
problems faced by the Roman rulers from third century ce onwards were also due to
some inherent weaknesses in the process of economic growth witnessed in the pre-
vious two centuries under the Principate rulers.
16. Social tensions between the rich and poor citizens of the Empire were exasperated
in the wake of crisis in slave mode of production. The crisis of slave labour forced
the Roman aristocracy to look for an alternative source of surplus appropriation.
This they achieved by depressing the status of free peasants by over taxation and
then turning them into dependent peasants (coloni). Peasants reacted to this by
revolting not only against the landlords but also often against the state. Though most
of these revolts were ultimately crushed, but the state had to use excessive man-
power and resources to bring these under control.
17. The internal crisis of the Empire was compounded by external tribal invasions, par-
ticularly by the Germanic tribes, as the state struggled to maintain enough man-
power to protect its frontiers. The initial interaction of the Empire with these tribes
was both violent and peaceful. But from mid-fourth century ce onwards, these tribes,
organised into leagues, started making a planned attack on the Empire with the
objective of territorial acquisition. Prominent among the invading tribes were
Vandals, Visigoths, Burgundians, Franks, Angels and Saxons.
310 Ancient and Medieval World

KEYWORDS
Mos maiorum numen anthromorphic liturgy clergy pax deorum pontiff augur
Flamen pantheon omnipresent fresco relief bishop pagan corbelling monotheism
mosaic basilica cults messiah synthesis bilingualism naturalism patronage arch
vault stoicism catacomb sarcophagus monolithic legitimacy provincialism tetrarchy
centrifugal Pax Romana mortality peculium coloni populist extravagant
bureaucratisation inflation fiscal monetary feeders ruralisation manumission
patrocinium Germania Bagaudae agonists foederati barbarians

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. How did political, social and ideological factors affect Roman religious beliefs until the
end of the Republican period?
2. How did foreign cults get integrated into the Roman pantheon despite Roman insistence
on maintaining traditional ideology?
3. What changes were witnessed in the Roman religious beliefs under the Principate and the
Dominate?
4. Analyse the chief features of the cultural ‘Golden Age’ during the reign of Augustus
Caesar. Did it mark a radical departure from cultural developments of the Republican
period?
5. How did the rise of Christianity affect cultural developments in the Roman Empire until
the fourth century ce?
6. Examine the factors that brought about a crisis in the Roman Empire in the third century ce.
7. Account for the fiscal and monetary crisis of the Roman Empire in the third century ce.
Was the measures adopted by the Dominate rulers able to solve the economic crisis of
the Empire?
8. Who were Germanic hordes? How did their interaction with the Roman Empire affect
Roman stability?
9. What caused the peasant revolts in different parts of the Western Roman Empire in the
fourth and fifth centuries ce? What was its role in the decline of the Empire?
10. Was decline of the Western Roman Empire an outcome of its internal crisis alone?

REFERENCES
Anderson, Perry. 1974. Passages from Antiquity to Feudalism. NBL/Verso Books.
Brunt, P. A. 1971. Social Conflicts in the Roman Republic. London: Chatto and Windus/University of Michigan.
Bloch, Marc. 1975. Slavery and Serfdom in the Middle Ages. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
Coffin, Judith G., and Robert C. Stacey. 2008. Western Civilizations: Their History and Their Culture. Reprint.
New York: WW Norton and Company.
Feneey, Denis. 1998. Literature and Religion in Rome: Cultures, Contexts and Beliefs. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
Finley, Moses I. 1980. Ancient Slavery and Modern Ideology. Chatto and Windus/University of Michigan.
 Ancient Rome II 311

Gibbon, Edward. 1996. The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Vol 1. Edited by David
Womersley. London: Penguin Classics.
Heather, Peter. 2007. The Fall of the Roman Empire: A New History of Rome and the Barbarians. USA: Oxford
University Press.
Hermann, J., and E. Zürcher, eds. 1996. History of Humanity, Vol III. Routledge/UNESCO Publishing.
Jones, A. H. M. 1956. ‘Slavery in the Ancient World’. Economic History Review 9 (2): 185–99.
–––––––. 1986. The Later Roman Empire (284–602): A Social, Economic and Administrative Survey.
Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press.
Potter, David S., ed. 2006. A Companion to the Roman Empire. Oxford and London: Blackwell.
Scarre, C., and Brian M. Fagan. 2016. Ancient Civilizations. New York: Routledge.
Ste. Croix, Geoffrey E. M. D. 1981. The Class Struggle in the Ancient Greek World. Ithaca: wCornell University
Press.
Thompson, E. A. 2002. Romans and Barbarians: The Decline of the Western Empire. Wisconsin: University of
Wisconsin Press.
Turcan, Robert. 1997. The Cults of the Roman Empire. London: Wiley-Blackwell.
Ward, Allen M., F. M. Heichelheim and C. A. Yeo. 2010. A History of the Roman People, 48, New Jersey: Pearson.
Welch, Katherine E. 2006. ‘Art and Architecture in the Roman Republic’. In A Companion to the Roman
Republic, edited by Nathan Rosenstein and Robert Morstein-Marx, 496–542. Oxford: Blackwell.
CHAPTER
Feudal Polity, Society

9 and Economy in Europe:

Eighth–Fourteenth
Centuries ce

Chapter Contents

• The Germanic Setup

• Feudal Polity, Society and Economy (Eighth–Fourteenth Centuries ce)
• Crisis of Feudalism (Fourteenth–Fifteenth Centuries ce)
• Towns and Trade
• Technological Developments
• Summary

THE GERMANIC SETUP

A
s discussed in Chapter 8, invasions of the Germanic tribes dealt a severe blow to the
Western Roman Empire, hastening its downfall. These invasions, however, represent
sudden penetration of these tribes with the purpose of acquisition of the Roman terri-
tory, a phenomenon that was visible only from the mid-third century ce. The peaceful interac-
tion between these Germanic tribes and the Roman Empire was much older, the impact of
which was felt more by the German society. The tribes had been practicing primitive agriculture
where the concept of private ownership of land was unknown. The meagre surplus that this
economy produced prevented any kind of social differentiation in the tribal society or state
formation. But as mentioned in Chapter 8, trade contacts between the Romans and the frontier
tribes as well as the tribal raids on the outlying areas of the Roman Empire for booty generated
surplus for the tribes. This induced both social differentiation and rudimentary state formation
among the tribes. The leading tribesmen sold their cattle or raided other tribes to capture slaves
for trade in order to meet their requirement of Roman luxury goods. They also tended to appro-
priate the communal tribal land for individual use and assumed the status of tribal aristocracy
in due course of time. This paved the way for elected chieftaincies and gradually a rudimentary
kingship developed among the tribes. The warrior class around the king assumed the status of
nobility and acquired more land as a result of wars that the tribal kings were engaged in to
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 313

expand their territories for more resources. The German peasants were accorded the same
status of coloni as their Roman counterparts. The German tribal aristocracy is also said to have
established Roman-type villas in the countryside, tilled by the slaves. Thus, it can be argued that
the initial contact between Roman society and the Germanic tribes had a profound impact on
the tribal society.
The acquisition of Roman territories by various Germanic tribes (details of which has been
given in Chapter 8) led subsequently to the establishment of Germanic states within the area of
the erstwhile Roman Empire. The interaction of these states with the Roman institutions can be
studied in two phases, that is, under the ‘founder’ and ‘successor’ states representing two differ-
ent stages of German–Roman interaction. The ‘founder’ or early German states were established
during 406–480 ce. Prominent among these states were that of the Vandals (at Tunis in North
Africa), the Visigoths (at Tolosa in Spain), the Burgundians (at Savoy in Middle Rhine) and the
Ostrogoths (in North Italy). As these Germanic states were in their embryonic form, they were
not capable of providing a viable alternative to the Roman rule that they had replaced in the
respective areas of their foundation. So the rulers of these states continued with Roman politi-
cal, legal and economic institution for the sake of continuity. Under the system of ­hospitalitas,
the Roman landowners had to share their landed estate with Germanic chiefs and clan leaders.
According to an estimate given by Perry Anderson (1974), in Spain, the Roman aristocracy had
to surrender two-thirds and in Italy one-third of their land to the Germans. As social differentia-
tion had already developed in the tribal society, only influential members of the tribes were able
to acquire more of these surrendered lands. On these lands, the existing Roman estate system
was followed. The tribal military leaders acted like Roman estate owners and settled the free
tribesmen as tenants or small holders and their position was akin to that of a coloni.
In the political field, the Germanic states represented dualism wherein the Germanic king
was assisted by military nobility, and, side by side, the Roman community retained its own
administrative structure with its functionaries. In legal sphere too, this type of dualism was
witnessed with Germanic laws applying to the tribal societies while Roman law and judicial
institutions served the existing Roman communities. This dualism was visible in ideological
field also as many tribesmen adopted Christianity while others continued with their tribal reli-
gious practices. In the opinion of Perry Anderson (1974), conversion to Christianity on the part
of these tribes was not due to the efforts of the missionaries of the catholic church of Rome but
was an outcome of the acceptance of a wider divine order (Christianity) to establish a territorial
state system on the part of the Germanic kings.
Thus, we see that under the founder states, the economic, political and ideological impact on
Rome was very limited as these states, instead of innovating institutions, continued with some
of the Roman customs and practices in a modified form. The real change, however, was brought
about under the successor states when many of the Roman institutions were dismantled and
foundation was laid for establishment of new political, social and economic structure, broadly
termed as feudal. The period of successor states, roughly between the latter half of the fifth
century ce and the mid-tenth century ce, is considered as a period when the fusion of Roman
and Germanic institution took place and gave birth to a rudimentary form of feudal structure
that reached its classical form between eleventh–thirteenth centuries ce. Prominent among the
successor states were the Franks (Gaul), Visigoths (Spain), Anglo-Saxons (England) and
Lombards (Italy).
The Visigoths inhabited the Balkan region and as one of the powerful Germanic tribes to
invade the Roman Empire, started its endeavour to establish a separate state in Spain in 418 ce.
314 Ancient and Medieval World

By sixth century ce, they annexed the whole of Spain and established an independent state with
their capital at Toledo (south of modern Madrid). Spain, under the Roman Empire, was not a
single province but was divided into a number of administrative units with extensive slave
­latifundia. The crisis of the Roman Empire in general and crisis in the slave mode of produc-
tion in particular had adversely affected the political and economic structure of Spain. The
Visigoths did not dismantle the Roman institutions here and used few of them in their attempt
to provide a stable administration. However, the problem of governance forced the Visigothic
rulers to find new solutions. These solutions later became an important component of the
feudal political structure. One of the administrative innovations of the Visigothic rulers was to
give Germanic chiefs, big landowners and military leaders, the responsibilities of administering
and maintaining law and order in the areas of their influence. This gradually evolved into a
hierarchical system of service and protection. Under this system, in-charge of the bigger terri-
tories delegated his responsibility of administration and maintenance of law and order to the
local elites that in turn did the same and this chain continued up until the village level. The
system was completed with each successive higher authority, providing protection to each suc-
cessive authority at the lower level in return. A mature form of this relationship between the
higher and lower authority that developed later is known as feudal ties. Marc Bloch (1961) is of
the opinion that this type of hierarchical structure first developed in Spain under the Visigoths
and then spread to other parts of Western Europe. The Visigothic rule over Spain came to an
end with the Arab conquest of Spain in 711 ce.
Lombards were the Germanic people from Scandinavia, who after being dislocated due to
tribal movements of Central Europe, crossed the Alps Mountain and invaded Northern Italy in
568 ce and established their kingdom in 570 ce with Pavia (south of modern Milan) as their capi-
tal. Lombards dismantled the Roman institutions and replaced them with a new political,
administrative and economic system. The hospitalitas system was abolished, the landed estates
of the Roman aristocracy were confiscated and either annexed to the royal treasury or distrib-
uted to the military nobility. Administrative dualism of the earlier period was ended by placing
the entire administrative apparatus under direct Germanic control. Application of a uniform
Germanic legal system (drafted in Latin for the benefit of the original Roman inhabitants) also
brought about an end to the legal dualism. A new kind of state based on decentralisation of
authority, payment of salary in land grants (due to shortage of coins as a result of disruption of
trade owing to the Arab penetration into Mediterranean) and military obligation placed on the
Germanic chiefs to supply troops during the times of war instead of maintaining a centralised
army came into existence. These developments are considered to have led to the growth of
feudalism in Italy. However, the Lombardic Kingdom was brought to an end by the Frankish
ruler Charlemagne in 773 ce when the Lombardic rulers attempted to expand their territory.

FEUDAL POLITY, SOCIETY AND ECONOMY

(EIGHTH–FOURTEENTH CENTURIES ce)
It was under the Franks of Gaul, however, that the fusion of German and Roman institutions
had the most profound impact as the kingdom witnessed the birth of the components of clas-
sical feudalism. The period, sixth–tenth centuries ce, in the history of Europe, is considered as
the period of ‘Dark Age’ by the historians. The reasons cited for the ‘Dark Age’ classification of
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 315

this period are Arab penetration of the Mediterranean from the eighth century onwards
­disrupted the maritime trade of the region, and, from about 650 ce, coins disappeared from
circulation due to the financial and monetary crisis and political confusion in Western Europe.
These developments forced Western Europe into rural isolation with agriculture as the basis of
the economy. This period was also marked by a new wave of tribal invasions as the German
successor states came under attack by the Arab, Hungarian and Viking tribes. However, the
Franks of Gaul, from the mid-eighth century onwards, provided the foundation of a new politi-
cal, social and economic structure, broadly termed as feudalism, which remained the basis of
Western Europe’s economic growth and political and social change for several centuries. The
term feudalism has different connotations for different set of scholars. In the Marxist terminol-
ogy, feudalism has been seen as an economic system or a mode of production where the sur-
plus is largely generated by a subject peasantry and appropriated by the landlords. In the
political sphere, feudalism has been seen as representing a decentralised polity where admin-
istrative and judicial powers along with those of taxation, minting of coins and defences were
vested by the rulers to the local lords. Socially, the feudal society is seen as the one marked by
a hierarchical social order dominated by the aristocracy and where individuals were bound
together by the practice of loyalty and protection supported by a subject peasantry (serfs), tied
to the soil in a manor system. In legal terms, feudalism implied a system of landholding in
which lesser lords held land from the greater lords in return for services rendered to the latter.
Whereas militarily, feudalism has been seen as a system whereby greater lords such as kings,
counts and dukes granted land to lesser men to arrange for specialised military troops led by
the Knights.
Franks, under whom feudal institutions are said to have originated, were the Germanic
people inhabiting the area east of river Rhine. Subsequent to the withdrawal of Roman troops
from the Rhine frontier from the beginning of the fifth century ce, they came to settle in Gaul
in large numbers and established their prominence by the second half of the century. Franks,
like the other contemporary Germanic tribes, had developed into a class-differentiated society.
At the one end of this society was a small landholding elite (clan chiefs and professional war-
riors) and on the other were the vast number of Germanic peasants, majority of whom had been
relegated to the position of Roman coloni or dependent peasants. This development was a
direct corollary to the dispossession of the Roman landlords and takeover of their landed
estates by the Frankish nobility.
The Frankish state was governed by a powerful monarchy under Clovis who established the
Merovingian Dynasty in 481 ce. Under the Merovingians, however, Gaul was not politically
united and political anarchy reigned supreme. This had resulted mainly from the practice of the
division of empire among the sons after the death of the ruler that more often than not brought
family feuds to the fore. This was added by the bitter rivalry among the aristocracy. As these
conflicts took violent forms and the state proved to be increasingly inefficient to maintain
public peace, there was a tendency to keep armed retainers in the form of a service. This,
according to F. L. Ganshof (1961) laid the basis of the growth of the system of vassalage under
the Franks, which was based on personal service and protection. Such armed retainers were
termed as vassus (derived from the Celtic term gwassawl meaning ‘one who serves’). During
the Merovingian period, the term denoted a slave but by seventh century, this term came to
signify free men who were dependent on the lord. In return for their service, the vassus were
granted land known as beneficium (benefice or benefit). Ganshof has defined beneficium as a
tenement held on easy terms that the tenant owed to the generosity of the grantor. But the
316 Ancient and Medieval World

lord–vassal relationship underwent further changes under the Carolingians, particularly during
the reign of Charlemagne.
The Merovingian Dynasty was taken over by the Carolingian Dynasty founded by Charles
Martel in 715 ce. But historically speaking, the most important ruler of the Carolingian Dynasty
was Charlemagne. During his rule (768–814 ce), Charlemagne created a huge empire including
Gaul (known as France since 481 ce), Central Germany, Northern Italy and Northern Spain. By
the beginning of the ninth century ce, Carolingian Empire was the largest and most powerful
political entity in Western Europe. The political, economic and military measures adopted by
Charlemagne to bolster the authority of monarch provided the foundation of the growth of
feudal institutions in this part of Europe. Perry Anderson (1974) believes that the history of
feudalism properly begins with Carolingian state, as it was in the Carolingian state that decisive
steps in the formation of feudalism were taken. Under the Carolingians, the chief elements of a
decentralised feudal polity were monarchy, nobility consisting of various categories of landed
magnates as well as the warriors or knights. The economy was dominated by agriculture where
the organisation of production was organised through the rural lordship (seigneurie) and the
manor system. It would be worthwhile to devote a section each on monarchy, nobility, rural
lordship and the knights to get a clearer picture of the feudal polity and society in Europe
during eighth–fourteenth centuries ce. Separate sections on agricultural production and trade
and towns would highlight the economic trends during the same period.

Monarchy
Although Charlemagne wanted to establish an absolute rule, the central authority of the empire
was not strong due to the entrenched position of the landed aristocracy at the provincial and
local level. Charlemagne had to adopt several measures to achieve his objectives. One of these
was to receive the title of ‘Roman Emperor’ from Pope Leo III in return for acknowledging
leadership of the pope in religious matters with attendant benefits. Subsequently in 800 ce, he
also received the title of ‘Emperor of the West’. The endorsement by the Pope of Charlemagne’s
authority signified grant of divine sanction to his rule. But few scholars, such as, Janet L. Nelson
(1995), point out that even under the Merovingians, the rulers claimed divine approval on the
basis of having attended to ecclesiastical demands although they were not clerically conse-
crated. However, in case of Charlemagne, this terminology helped the ruler in sustaining central
position of the monarch within a decentralised political structure that was evolving in Western
Europe since the time of Visigoths and Lombards. Financially too, Carolingian monarchs had
strengthened their position by converting the earlier seized Roman estates into the imperial
estate and adding their own family land which together constituted the royal land (called by the
Roman term fisc). The fisc itself was not a fixed quantity and kept increasing in the form of
gifts, inheritance or territorial acquisition. Even church lands were at the disposal of the rulers
to meet royal needs related to the grant of benefices and maintenance of a large contingency of
troops. Plunder and tributes were additional sources of royal income that were used by
Charlemagne for reward and inducements. Public rituals, which included feasts and proces-
sions involving the aristocracy, often with the help of senior churchmen, were another way of
enhancing ruler’s authority.
However, the major contribution of Charlemagne lies in that he was able to balance and unify
the various elements of the state in the eighth century ce, such as, the feudal aristocracy,
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 317

military leaders, big landowners and warriors, who now derived their authority from the
emperor. In order to integrate various elements into the state machinery, Charlemagne divided
the empire into administrative units called counties that were placed under the trusted nobles
known as counts (derived from comites, literally ‘companion’), dukes or earls. Counts were
given military and judicial powers to govern the regions that were revocable by the king. Under
the Carolingians, the counts acted as links between the ruler and his subjects, and, they were
also expected to perform such functions as keeping social order in their jurisdiction, looking
after royal estates in their localities and providing for troops during the military campaign of
the kings. In the Kingdom of Anglo-Saxons in Ireland, Ealdormen performed similar duties
while in the Lombardic Italy dukes did the same who were primarily warlords. Under the
Carolingian Empire, however, there were greater and lesser counts looking after larger and
smaller territories respectively. A powerful count was called marchios. According to an esti-
mate given by F. L. Ganshof (1961), there were about 250–50 of these officials (including both
greater and lesser counts) throughout the empire during Charlemagne’s reign. These powerful
lords were not paid salaries but received certain proportion of the local royal revenues and land
grants in the country side. Since these were men with independent power base, the state could
not do without their support. The counts had their own subordinates or vis-counts known as
vicarii, centemarii and notarii, who held land from their lords and were dependent on their
patronage.
For effective communication with the provinces, Charlemagne employed his own set of
intermediaries called missi dominici (emissaries of the master) and vassi dominici (direct
vassals of the emperor) in the counties. The missi dominici were imperial agents or officers,
generally from a clerical background such as bishops and abbots or sometimes chosen from the
greater counts of the region in which they operated, acted as a link between the central govern-
ment and the provinces besides reporting on the counts. Although they did not function like an
imperial bureaucracy but these missus dominicus played a significant role in effective integra-
tion of far-flung provinces. The vassus dominicus owed direct allegiance to Charlemagne and
held benefices from the ruler in the countryside. We had mentioned earlier that during
Merovingian rule, the royal retainers were gifted landed estates known as beneficium in return
for service. Under Charlemagne, however, the grant of land was turned into conditional tenures
or ‘fief’ in exchange of military service. The grant of fief also included with it judicial and politi-
cal powers to the grantees. In this manner, a new land-owning class developed in the rural areas
alongside the regional authorities of counts and dukes. In exchange for the grant of fief, in addi-
tion to the military services, these vassals swore homage and loyalty to the king. The vassi
dominici or the royal vassi constituted the bulk of the Carolingian army, rendered valuable
services during Charlemagne’s foreign campaigns and were also at times sent on diplomatic
missions. Since we do not have any reference to these vassals being promoted to the status of
counts, it has been suggested that some of these belonged to the category of mediocre people.
Despite the existence of these intermediaries, the counts and dukes governing these provinces
had tremendous autonomy besides economic (on account of land grants they received) and
military powers. As the central authority weakened after the death of Charlemagne, they
became even more powerful and were an important component of the decentralised feudal
polity that developed during tenth–eleventh centuries.
Related with this was the growth of a hierarchical political structure where the big lords
(counts and dukes) derived their authority directly from the king, and they in turn sanctioned
the authority of lesser lords known as barons under them. Thus, while counts and dukes
318 Ancient and Medieval World

became the vassals of the king, the barons became the sub-vassals of the former. Barons had
their own subordinates (sub-sub-vassals) and this chain continued right down to the village
level. It effectively meant that the authority of the emperor was hierarchically distributed
among large number of feudal lords. Terming this as ‘parcelisation of sovereignty’, Perry
Anderson (1974) argues that the consequence of such a system was that political sovereignty
was never focused on a single centre, rather the functions of the state were disintegrated in a
vertical allocation downwards. The relation between a superior and inferior lord rested upon a
personal bond of lifelong loyalty to the superior who in turn promised to protect his immediate
vassal. However, this vassal submission was inextricably linked to the grant of fief or benefice.
Later on (in the tenth century ce), vassalage became hereditary and consequently the fief also
assumed a hereditary character.
Since the Carolingian Empire was a landlocked area, there was not much growth of foreign
trade and the consequent low level of monetary circulation ensured an essentially agrarian
economy dependent on the manor system (to be discussed later) under rural lordship (seigneu-
rie). Thus, it can be argued that the Carolingian Empire provided the ideal setting for the
growth of feudal institutions. But soon, another round of tribal invasions by the Vikings and
Magyars during the mid-ninth century ce brought down the empire and feudalism remained at
its nascent stage until the tenth century ce. However, as the regional counts and local landlords
in the provinces had entrenched their position through the system of grant of fief and had con-
solidated their landed estates and lordship over the peasantry, they provided the solid base for
the growth of feudalism that was to spread over Western Europe in the next two centuries. The
feudal elements remained dominant all over Europe until the national monarchies were estab-
lished in England, France and Germany from the eleventh century onwards.
After the decline of the Carolingian rule due to a fresh wave of Germanic invasions in the
ninth century ce, the power of monarchy was reduced and many of the Carolingian governmen-
tal institutions collapsed. It was left to the Capetian Dynasty of French kings (987–1328 ce) to
rebuild these institutions and retain the relevance of monarchy within an atmosphere of decen-
tralised polity where the counts and dukes had established their autonomous territories. But
the early Capetian rulers were fortunate to have ruled over a very fertile agricultural tract,
although they had effective control only over a small area surrounding Paris. In addition, by
managing the succession issues, projecting themselves as protectors of the pope who had fled
from Germany and also by making University of Paris as the leading centre of learning of
Europe in the twelfth and thirteenth century, they were able to gain prestige and sustain them-
selves. Under Louis VI (1108–137 ce) and Louis VII (1137–180 ce), however, the monarchical
control over large parts of France was consolidated. Under Philip II (1180–223 ce), a victory in
the war with the English King Henry II brought more territories and resources with which Philip
was able to reorganise local administration by appointing his own vassals called baillis who
mainly belonged to the category of knights and petty nobles. He kept them shifting to ensure
the loyalty of these feudal elements. Philip also sought to increase the control of the central
authority by strict financial accounting and record keeping. But the rule of Philip IV (1285–314
ce) proved detrimental to the authority of the monarch as he tried to undermine pope’s control
over the church of France and led aggressive and costly but unsuccessful wars on English ter-
ritory in Normandy. The success that the nobility achieved in being exempted from paying any
direct tax to the crown was representative of weakening position of the monarch vis-à-vis the
nobility. Despite their effective control of the empire, the Capetian rulers were not able to
mobilise public opinion in the absence of a representative assembly.
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 319

England witnessed the growth of a powerful kingdom under King Alfred (871–99 ce). Alfred
united several small and warring kingdoms of England to constitute a unified Anglo-Saxon king-
dom. Towards the creation of a national culture, Alfred and his successors codified the English
laws and promoted Anglo-Saxon writing besides creating a powerful army and strengthening
local government. Economic resources, including the flourishing wool trade, further strength-
ened the power of the English monarchy. It has been suggested that after the Carolingians, the
Anglo-Saxon England had the most administratively sophisticated state in Western Europe. The
power of the monarchy was further strengthened after the Norman conquest of England in
1066 ce. The Norman King William claimed ownership of all the land that was to be granted by
him in lieu of service. He claimed to be the highest feudal lord of the kingdom and made sure
that all landholders owed loyalty directly to him whether they held land directly from him or
not. His rule is considered as the fusion of Carolingian tradition of public authority and new
feudal structures of power and landholding. However, a strong national monarchy in England
came to be established under Henry I (1100–135 ce). Control over the feudal lords was further
tightened by a strong local government by appointing local officers such as sheriff for the super-
vision of the counties. He also provided for travelling judges to dispense royal justice in the
countryside who also kept a check on the sheriffs. Henry II (1154–189 ce), integrated England
with the political and cultural values of France as he had already ruled over French territories
in Normandy, Anjou and Maine. Henry II emphasised on justice by providing for the system of
jury and writs while continuing with the system of travelling judges. These legal innovations
improved the contact between people and the royal courts, thus bringing citizens closer to the
king’s government. King Henry also tried to reform the operations of the church courts which
brought him into conflict with the archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Becket. But overall, his
relationship with the church remained cordial. Although he surrendered the right to try clerics
in the royal court, but he retained the right to nominate clerics to the papal court.
But the reign of King John (1199–216 ce) in England was marked by loss of French territories
to the King of France Philip II and full exercise of his feudal powers to demand from the nobility
massive fines to gather resources in order to regain the lost territories. This ultimately resulted
in the rebellion of the landlords in 1214 ce. This rebellion resulted in the king issuing a charter
of liberty famously known as Magna Carta that forced the kings to respect the feudal and tradi-
tional rights of the vassals. This charter also restricted the crown from raising taxes without the
consent of people of the kingdom and also that no free man could be punished by the crown
without following due process of law. During the rule of Henry III (1216–272 ce), the central
government remained stronger despite both nobility and king vying for the control of the gov-
ernment. The legal and administrative institutions were made more efficient and the taxation
system more reasonable by assessing nobility and the common masses on the basis of their
property. Another important development under the national monarchy in England was the
formation of a parliament as a separate governmental institution in around 1300 ce. The initia-
tive to constitute a parliament came from the rulers themselves as the king found it convenient
to consult their nobles, knights and townsmen in one single assembly. The parliament was also
the place where the rulers could get public consent for new tax proposals as prescribed in the
Magna Carta. King Edward I (1272–307 ce) is known for frequently convening parliament to gain
sanctions for his military campaigns as well as to review the local administration.
In Germany, a powerful monarchy that had Carolingian features was developed around 1050
ce by Henry III. Like the Carolingian monarchs, the German rulers maintained good relations
with the church, secured divine sanction from it and led successful conquests in the east,
320 Ancient and Medieval World

­ articularly the Slavic lands. The German emperor ruled over a large territory too, comprising
p
Switzerland and Eastern France, and also laid claim to Northern Italy. The leading officers of
the state were chosen from the archbishops and bishops. Most often, these belonged to the
royal family itself who could neutralise the strength of the dukes. But the death of Henry III in
1056 ce and enthronement of a boy emperor Henry IV witnessed the beginning of a conflict
between first the regents of the boy king and later Henry IV with the church reformers of
Saxony and later with church reformers of Rome. The attempts of Pope Gregory to free the
church from emperor’s control and prohibit Henry IV from selecting and installing his own
bishops and abbots led to attempts by Henry IV to remove Gregory from the papacy. Gregory
joined hands with the dissident nobles of Saxony, creating situation of a civil war. The conflict
between the pope and the German rulers ended in a compromise (1122 ce) under Henry VI, but,
by that time, the German nobility had become politically independent of the crown besides
being militarily stronger due to a long period of civil war that Germany had witnessed in the last
50 years.
Under Frederick I (1152–190 ce), a renewed attempt was made to regain the lost authority of
the monarch. Frederick began by declaring his empire as ‘Holy Roman Empire’ based on the
premise that the German Empire had descended from Rome and had divine blessings. Besides,
he tried to rule in cooperation with the princes and supported them in their attempt to subjugate
nobility in their respective areas. While Frederick was able to control the nobility in this manner,
his prolonged war with Italy while pursuing his claim to rule over Italy and conflict with the
papacy put tremendous pressure on his monarchic rule. The conflict ended with a compromise
with the Italian towns (who had organised themselves in what is popularly known as the
‘Lombard League’) as well as with the papacy. Under Frederick II (1216–250 ce), conflict with
the Italian towns resurfaced as he tried to reinforce imperial rights in Italy. By this time, the
German princes had also assumed autonomous powers. A long war with the Lombard League,
in which the papacy played an important role, considerably weakened the German monarchy.
Effective political power in Germany gradually passed in the hands of a large number of German
princes whose mutual rivalries engaged the German polity until late in the modern period.

Nobility
As mentioned earlier, the European aristocracy represented by counts, dukes and earls had
entrenched their position by the end of the Carolingian rule. But even under the Carolingians,
they did not act like instruments of royal will. It is also true that membership of the imperial
aristocracy was the bone of contention for them and this ensured competition among the aris-
tocracy, frequently resulting in warfare. The hereditary aristocracy of the west was identified
by birth, a pride in their ancestry, landed wealth and their leadership and participation in war-
fare and the government apart from other status symbols such as luxurious living and hunting.
Although the aristocracy was not a closed group as many of them were of obscure lineages, the
great lords of the Carolingian period comprised of a limited number of ancient noble families
who equalled in wealth and social ranking. These great aristocrats had a wider range of control
and well spread-out property and were not confined to a fixed area like the castle of the elev-
enth century. Few scholars, such as, Stuart Airlie (1995), are of the opinion that while the aris-
tocracy had to show their worthiness to the kings to get countship, they also laid a claim on
royal offices as they saw themselves as having a claim on such offices because their noble
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 321

status entitled them to rule. Thus, according to Airlie, king’s extensive power of patronage was
therefore subject to constraints in the form of claims of the aristocracy as a group and, more
particularly, the claims of certain families to specific offices. But this does not in any way sug-
gest that succession to these offices could be taken for granted. The ambition of the nobles to
hold offices and the status attached to landholdings consequent upon holding such offices gave
the ruler the political leverage. The rulers very often used the weapon of withdrawing such
honours or office to ensure the loyalty of the nobles because such a withdrawal not only meant
loss of royal favour and resources but also exposed such a noble to the hostility of other dis-
gruntled members of the nobility.
The Frankish aristocratic society was patrilineally organised with a smaller pool of heirs. But
the study of few of the aristocratic families of the Carolingian times suggests that women did
inherit property along with their brothers. Even though property inheritance was violated at
times but women did share in full measure the status of high birth. It is reported that at times
the women outranked their husbands and so the children bore names from the maternal side. It
has also been suggested that a key function of the women within the family was as constructor
of family identity. Besides, the high-ranking women of the Carolingian period were themselves
well educated and passed on their education as well as family tradition to their children.
The decline of the Carolingian Empire in the ninth century led to a fragmentation of the
empire into territorial principalities where princes, counts and dukes held administrative, mili-
tary, judicial and economic power, particularly related to minting of coins. This also brought
about a change in the composition of nobility all over Europe from eleventh century onwards
as there was devolution of political power towards the people of lower social ranks such as
lords and castellans (castle holders) of the counts. The insecurities of the eleventh century all
over Europe led to construction of castles for security and which later also started acting as
headquarter of the lordship. The noble families started organising themselves around such cen-
tres from where they also derived their names. These castles were managed by the castellans
(vassals of the counts) and also contained the garrison of the specialised warriors called
knights. Gradually, the lesser lords, castellans and knights strengthened their hold over the
castles. Jean Flori (2004) has termed this phenomenon as ‘seigneurial revolution’, a social and
ideological movement that increasingly affirmed the powers of castellans and the knights.
These powers were mainly related to the military command of the public fortress (castle) and
justice through which they could pass judgements and collect fines. These two powers, accord-
ing to Flori, gradually passed from the counts to the castellans. While, in some regions, the
counts were able to maintain their authority, in others, disputed succession often resulted in
castellans establishing autonomous lordship.
However, this type of devolution of political power was seen mostly in France and not in
other parts of Europe. In Germany, for example, authority of the duke persisted and the garrison
stationed in the fortress of the emperor were controlled by those court officers who remained
loyal to the emperor. The justice too was controlled by the courts of the counts. In Flanders too,
the count’s control over construction of castles was complete and after the initiative taken by
the count in this matter, responsibility of constructing a castle was given to those agents who
could be removed. In this context, Jean Flori (2004) argues that multiplication of castles in this
region in the eleventh century testifies to the militarisation of society ruled by the count and
does not signify diminution of his authority. In England, unlike France, construction of castle
took place rapidly and was mostly controlled by the central power. Justice too remained in the
hands of the kings who tried to reduce the importance of the private courts of earls and barons.
322 Ancient and Medieval World

In Spain, where the growth of feudal institutions was gradual, the military nature of the
­aristocracy very clearly established the distinction between nobility and the warriors (knights).
In Italy, the judicial authority of the counts exceeded their military authority. A multiplication
of castles in this region, at the end of the eleventh century, led to castles slipping out of their
control and falling in the hands of local potentates who also established their control over the
local inhabitants. By the twelfth century, several parts of Europe witnessed the growth of castel-
lanies where the local lords were ruling over single counties, levying taxes and leading their
squadron of local mounted soldiers (milites) which later developed into the knightly class.

Knights and the Culture of Chivalry

Knights in Europe during ninth–eleventh centuries belonged to a social order that incorporated
several social ranks. While few belonged to the family (sons) of the great nobles, others were
mainly drawn from the upper ranks of the peasantry. They were definitely not a part of the
nobility until the eleventh century but played a significant role in the feudal structure of Europe
as mounted soldiers. In the twelfth century, however, as the warfare in Europe increased and
became a specialised activity, the role of heavily armed mounted soldiers became crucial. This
facilitated the rise of the knights to the status of nobility. In the thirteenth century, the position
of the knight was further strengthened by increase in wealth in the European society and devel-
opment of the ideology of chivalry that was promoted by the state and the church alike. By the
beginning of the thirteenth century, all those fighting with heavy armour while mounted on
horses were connected with the common ideology of chivalry which associated knights with
the kings and princes, thus paving way for the former’s entry into the ranks of nobility.
Origin of the knights can be traced to the ordinary mounted soldiers (milites), who served
the castellans and the princes. It was through the milites that the lords (castellans) protected
their castles, established order and ruled over the inhabitants of the area under their control.
The militarisation of the European society during ninth–eleventh centuries had strengthened
the bond between the lord (dominus) and his vassal (vassus) which was based on honourable
dependence on each other. The lords had to provide for subsistence of the person working
under them according to the latter’s rank along with judicial assistance and military protection
in case of threats. The vassals on their part swore loyalty to the lord and provided for armed
service (servitium) and financial and military aid (auxilium) along with their crucial advice
when important decisions were to be taken. But by the middle of the eleventh century, military
duty became the chief service of the vassal to his lord. This could take various forms such as
keeping garrison in the castle, participation in the lord’s army for pitched battles and joining
lord’s cavalcade. This transformed the milites of the early eleventh century to that of the
knights (heavily armoured mounted soldiers) and raised the ambition of the latter to join the
aristocracy. The emphasis on military service raised the importance of the knights to the extent
that few scholars use the expression ‘knightly society’ for the European society of the eleventh
and twelfth centuries.
However, it is generally believed that the elevation of knights to the status of nobility was
gradual and also not uniform in Europe. In some of the geographical regions such as Germany,
the central power remained strong, the nobility remained imperial and social hierarchy was
strictly maintained. The castellans did not enter the nobility and the knights remained subordi-
nate warriors. In the case of Southern France, however, Marc Bloch (1961) and few other
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 323

scholars following him suggested that the knights were drawing closer to the status of nobility
by the eleventh century. But in recent days, it has been suggested that the status of a noble was
principally decided by birth and although the profession of arms was that of the nobility, it did
not mean that knighthood automatically conferred nobility at least until the eleventh century.
Jean Flori (2004), for instance, has argued that it was during the course of the twelfth century
that one can see the social and ideological elevation of the knights when within the cavalry, the
knights were distinguished from the mounted sergeants and when knighthood (towards the end
of the twelfth century) became the monopoly of the aristocracy. In this manner, nobles and
knights came closer to each other and merged at times.
The elevation of knight to the status of the nobility has generally been associated with politi-
cal and military developments in Europe through the course of the eleventh and twelfth century.
The castle building activities greatly increased in the beginning of eleventh century that neces-
sitated stationing of garrisons consisting of paid fighting men. During the course of the eleventh
century, however, the mud and wooden castles were replaced with strong castles built of stone
with an exclusive military purpose. In the twelfth century, these stone castles proliferated and
became the hub of political, economic, military and cultural activities by the end of the century.
While few of the knightly vassals stayed away from these castles, a group of specialised warriors
were permanently stationed in the castle as garrison of the castle or as the escort of the castle
holders. From a purely military point of view, the diffusion of horse stirrup and saddle in Europe
from the seventh century onwards has been considered to have enhanced the role of heavy cav-
alry and thus revolutionised the warfare technique. The use of stirrup and saddle gave the rider
a better stability while using his lance and sword with devastating effect. This view also associ-
ated the growth of cavalry with the rise of knighthood. But this view has been challenged
recently. It has been pointed out that the innovations became widespread only in the second half
of the ninth century and also did not appear to have revolutionised the war technique. It is now
argued that as a defence against the lance and sword of the mounted cavalry, various forms of
protection were developed which required stronger, better-trained and costly horses to sustain
the weight of the heavily armed rider. The high cost of the horses and arms is said to have
restricted the number of specialised warriors to those who had sufficient resources and the
required leisure to devote themselves completely to military activities. According to an estimate,
the cost of complete military equipment in 1100 ce was 10 livre and the upkeep of this equipment
necessitated revenue corresponding to an estate of at least 150 hectares. Such expenditure
ensured that only members of the aristocracy could become knights, thus restricting the mem-
bership of knightly class. Now there was a clear-cut distinction among the mounted warriors
with the elite ones having economic, social and ideological edge over the ordinary ones (milites).
The knightly class of the thirteenth century was differentiated not only by the equipment
they carried but also by their methods of training and fighting, their wealth and the prevalent
ideology termed as ‘chivalric’. The notion of chivalry (literally meaning ‘horsemanship’) was
mainly a knightly code of values emphasising bravery, loyalty, generosity, warfare skills and
courtly behaviour. By the end of twelfth century, the ideology of chevalerie had gained wide-
spread acceptance in Europe not only among the mounted heavy armoured cavalry but also
among the kings and nobles. Robert Stacey (1999) is of the opinion that acceptance of such a
common ideology of chivalry associated them in some manner with kings and princes and
­distinguished them completely from the peasants. Stacey further argues that the emphasis on
virtues of chivalry as constituent elements in true nobility facilitated incorporation of the che-
valiers into the ranks of aristocracy to which they had not been born. The social ideology of
324 Ancient and Medieval World

chivalry also appealed to the nobility as they wanted to be associated with it to distinguish
themselves from other social groups—merchants, lawyers, wealthy farmers—few of whom
were more prosperous than the nobility. Many among the nobility did not have a prestigious
ancestry and those having such an ancestry did not have enough wealth now. The ideology of
chivalry thus offered something to both the nobility and the knights.
The origin of chivalric ideology can be seen in the tournaments that gained popularity in and
around 1150 ce in France. These tournaments were used to perfect the war tactics and to infuse
cohesion and discipline among the various teams of the knights. A collective training, mixing
together and collective actions brought about solidarity among the knights under one lord,
irrespective of any social and economic distinction. The chivalric ideology forged by these
tournaments was frowned at by the church, which saw it as a game comparable to a war. But
the need of the church of these warriors to protect its property at a time when the authority of
the kings and princes had declined and which also saw increased warfare in the form of cru-
sades led the church to pass on the mission of protecting the church and the weak to the
knights. But the attempt of the church to create a knightly class in the service of the church
(Christian Knight) did not succeed due to political, social and religious reasons. Politically, the
kings and princes regained their authority by the second half of the twelfth century, which obvi-
ated the need of a knightly class in service of the church. Socially, the knights of the twelfth
century were no more contented with spiritual patronage but were looking for patronage from
the aristocratic lords and therefore wanted to be attached to the princely courts rather than the
clerical court. On religious grounds, the crusades in which the knights took active part did not
always get approval as the detractors often criticised the church for their direct involvement in
wars, which inevitably involved violence. It was this failure of the church to turn the knightly
class into Christian Knights that the church infused a chivalric value to the knightly class. The
ideological connotation of chivalry (defined by the church) meant the defence of the country,
the church as well as ecclesiastics, women and the weak. This ideology also united knight with
the kings and the princes indirectly. The chivalric literature of the twelfth century, which devel-
oped in the princely courts, on the other hand, turned chivalry into an aristocratic ideology by
preaching such military values as the cult of courage, physical strength, loyalty to the war lead-
ers, a sense of camaraderie and thirst for fame and glory.
The ideology of chivalry, whether spiritual or aristocratic, led to a new conception of war-
fare. It reduced the practice of enslavement of the prisoners of war as well as a systematic
massacre of the defeated. The earlier practice of extermination of the defeated was turned to
capture and the concept of mercy to a defeated knight asking to be spared also became a part
of the knightly behaviour. This also led to the formation of some sort of rules of war, though it
was still restricted to the knightly society. The ideology of chivalry also added mythical value
to knighthood by adorning it with all virtues bestowed by the God. This also enabled the nobil-
ity to use the knights to resist the attack of the monarchy and the nobility therefore tried to
control the entry to the knighthood by an elaborate ceremony known as dubbing.

Rural Lordship
Another essential characteristic of feudalism, which had germinated under the Roman Empire
but taken a definite shape under the Carolingians, was the rural lordship or seigneurie. Under
the Roman Empire, as a corollary to the crisis in the slave mode of production, the rural
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 325

l­andlords had subjugated the free peasants by turning them into dependent peasants or coloni.
In many parts of the Western Roman Empire, landlords were used by the state to collect tax and
recruit men for the army from amongst the coloni. Later, the Germanic invasions and the sub-
sequent formation of Germanic states within the erstwhile Roman Empire had led to the cre-
ation of large number of peasant warriors into the agricultural economy of Western and
Southern Europe. This had led to the widespread introduction of the pattern of settlement with
free peasants settled on the plots under the leadership of tribal chiefs. But despite the existence
of free agriculturists, the trend towards landowner dominance and subjection of the peasantry
under them was visible under both founder and successor states. These states too tended to use
landlords to bring free peasants to the army and levy taxes on the peasants. This laid the basis
for the control and subjection of the peasantry. Moreover, the constant wars fought by the
Carolingian state further depressed the status of bulk of the peasantry. This happened primarily
because earlier the peasants were practicing shifting cultivation due to the constant movement
of the tribes and hence could spare time to act as warriors. But once they started leading a
settled agricultural life, the longer military campaigns made it difficult for them to lead a dual
life of fighting and tilling. Further, due to development in warfare technology such as introduc-
tion of horse stirrups and metal armours, warfare became a specialised activity and a monopoly
of the horse-mounted nobility called the Knights. The net result of this development was a
general deterioration in the position of the mass of the peasantry as the sedentary and depen-
dent cultivators now toiled on their land to supply provisions for the army.
In Marxist terms, the mode of production that developed subsequent to the crisis in the
slave-based production system was built upon a new surplus extraction relationship between
landlords and the dependent and subjugated peasantry. Widely termed as feudalism, this sus-
tained the political, economic, social and military structure of Western Europe up until thir-
teenth century ce. The transition to feudal social formation was, however, a gradual process,
beginning of which can be seen in the fusion between Roman and German institutions as
brought out in the previous section. In the medieval European historiography, the period of
eleventh—thirteenth centuries ce is considered as the classical phase of feudalism, which wit-
nessed the growth, expansion and climax of feudalism. A brief description of the modern his-
toriography on the definition of feudalism would be worthwhile for the sake of clarity on an
otherwise complex term.
Karl Marx, who was among the first to highlight the characteristics of feudalism, considers
feudal mode of production as one in which the direct producer (peasant) remains the possessor
of the means of production of his own subsistence, yet the property relations appear as a direct
relation of lordship and servitude, so that the direct producer is not free. Since the dominant
class (nobility or landlord) did not perform any economic function in production, the form of
surplus appropriation was extra-economic or political in nature. In other words, the surplus
extracted by the dominant class was based on their political authority and not their economic
right. Marc Bloch (1961) views feudalism as a type of social formation marked by a subject
peasantry, widespread use of service tenement (fiefs) instead of cash as salary, the supremacy
of a class of specialised warriors (Knights) and ties of obedience and protection which binds
man to man. However, according to Bloch, the most important characteristic of feudalism was
the dependent nature of peasantry that could take various forms.
Maurice Dobb (1946), in his interpretation of feudalism, finds it identical with serfdom—an
obligation laid on the producer by force to fulfil certain economic demands of an overlord,
whether these demands take the form of services to be performed on the lord’s land or dues to
326 Ancient and Medieval World

be paid in kind or money. According to Rodney Hilton (1985), the most basic feature of the
feudal society was its agrarian character and petty production based on individual peasant or
artisan family. However, the surplus produced by the peasantry was appropriated by a class of
landlords who did not fulfil any economic function. For Perry Anderson (1974), feudalism was
a mode of production dominated by the land and a natural economy in which neither labour nor
the products of labour were commodities. In other words, producers did not receive wages and
the products were not marketed. The immediate producer (cultivator), says Anderson, was
united to the means of production (land) by a specific social relation called serfdom, whereby
the peasantry was tied to the soil by putting legal restrictions on their mobility. The peasants,
who occupied and tilled the land, were not its owners. The agrarian property was controlled by
a class of feudal lords who extracted surplus from the peasants by politico-legal relations of
compulsion. This extra-economic coercion, concludes Anderson, took the form of labour ser-
vices, rent in kind or money and other customary dues owed to the individual landlord by the
peasant. Another scholar, John Critchley (1978), puts emphasis on the military tenure (fief)
aspect of feudalism which was the basis of close personal bond between the lord and his vas-
sals. R. Coulborn (1956), on the other hand, argues that feudalism was a method of government
rather than a type of economic or social system. According to Coulborn, its essential character-
istic was the relationship between the lord and the vassal in which political authority was
treated as personal rather than institutional.
Thus, from these few definitions of feudalism, it appears that even though scholars have
provided a varied interpretation of the characteristic features of feudal social formation, there
is, however, a consensus on an economy dominated by agriculture, existence of a subject peas-
antry (serfs) tied to the soil, extraction of surplus by the landlords through extra-economic or
political means and the relationship of personal bond between the lord and his vassal. Through
a discussion in the present section on the organisation of agricultural production under rural
lordship during the eleventh–thirteenth centuries, an attempt would be made to elaborate some
of the mentioned characteristics.
The ravaging of West European mainland by such Germanic tribes as Vikings and Magyars in
the late ninth century ce created a general sense of insecurity in these areas. This necessitated
the construction of private castles and fortification, particularly in France, by the nobility
(mainly counts and dukes). A general failure of the weakened central government to provide
protection to the ordinary peasants from the rampaging Germanic tribes enabled the nobility to
not only assume unlimited political power but also bring peasants into subjection in return for
protection. The political autonomy and judicial power that these regional lords enjoyed became
the basis of extra-economic or political coercion of the peasants. As Western Europe was gradu-
ally pushed towards a predominantly agrarian economy due to the decline of Mediterranean
trade and sharply reduced monetary circulation, the rural lordship (seigneurie) and the lord’s
manor (curtis) became the basis of agricultural production in Western Europe (beginning with
Northern France) from the tenth century ce onwards. The manor system was not only a method
of organisation of agricultural production but was also a social bond and determined the way
of life of a rural community. However, the social bond was not between two, free men and the
noblemen, but between the leading class of landowners (lords or masters) and their servants,
tenants and the serfs. In other words, seigneurie was a type of social, economic and administra-
tive organisation built around an administrative centre called manor.
The lord’s manor had two essential components, that is, the lord’s personal land (demesne)
and peasant’s holding (virgate) tilled by the peasant but owned by lord of the manor.
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 327

The peasant’s holding was hereditary and few have termed this as a rural fief establishing the
­material bond between the peasant and his lord. The rural lordship was often supplemented
with jurisdictional rights and domination over the village (sometimes several villages). The lord
was in way a public authority for his dependents that included peasants (serfs) as well as free
peasants, artisans and merchants. A common subjection to the lord made these a part of the
lord’s familia to whom the lord was expected to render protection and maintenance. The
manor also included communal lands (pastures, meadows, forests, breweries and inns) and
peasant allods (to be discussed later in this section). Agricultural production on the demesne
was organised by the lord himself with the help of his stewards and cultivated by his own hired
labour, slaves and the dependent peasants (Roman colonis and depressed German peasants).
Most fertile land of the manor fell under the demesne, the productivity of which could be fur-
ther raised by introducing new technology through capital investment by the prosperous land-
lords. Further, the requirement of labour on the demesne could be fulfilled by coercing the
dependent peasants (known as lord’s villeins) to provide free labour service. Since majority of
the peasants of the manor did not own land that they cultivated, they were regarded as lord’s
tenant and paid rent on the land cultivated by them in the form of either labour service (popu-
larly known as feudal rent) or other customary dues. The dependent peasant or serfs performed
the unpaid labour service (known as corvée in France) on the demesne on specified days of the
week. Labour service performed on the lord’s demesne was accompanied by other manual jobs
such as construction work for defence of the manor or getting firewood from the forests, which
the serfs had to perform for their lords. This was unpopular among the peasants not because of
the forced labour performed per se but mainly because they mostly coincided with wine or
grain harvests which was labour intensive. Besides this, the lord also imposed several taxes that
were economic in nature such as on markets and use of bridges and roads.
Besides income from the demesne production, there were several other sources of income
for the landlords. One of these was banalites or exploitative monopolies. Since the decline of
trade and the consequent ruralisation of the European economy had turned the manor into a
self-sufficient economic unit, it contained within it services such as iron works, flourmills and
vine presses. All these services were owned by the lord of the manor as he could only invest in
technology required for such public services. Peasants were forced to use these services at
prices exorbitantly fixed by the lord. The banalites, thus, were both an additional source of
income for the lords and additional source of exploitation of the peasants. Perry Anderson
(1974) argues that the banalites were deeply hated throughout the middle ages and were always
one of the first objects of popular attacks during peasant uprisings that occurred in the four-
teenth century ce. Another source of income for the lord was a customary due collected from
the peasants called taille (introduced towards the end of eleventh century ce) which the latter
paid for being given protection by the lord. Tallage was also collected by the lords at times to
provide for the costly military equipment of the milites. In the twelfth century, however, taille
was turned into an annual tax that was more predictable and hence not opposed. Tithe was a
tax collected by the church from the Christians at the rate of one-tenth of the total income. But
wherever the clergy was weak, the landlords usurped the right to collect these taxes, thus
adding to their income.
Alongside demesne and the peasant virgates, another important component of the manor
was peasant allods, which unlike the peasant tenement (virgate) was free of lord’s obligation.
These peasant allods had developed under the Germanic control over Rome. As the tribal soci-
eties transformed into a class society, the communal land of the tribe was converted into
328 Ancient and Medieval World

permanent holdings of individual tribal families. Each peasant allod included the land as well
as the dwelling unit. The size of these allods varied from big allods of the Germanic chiefs to
medium and small allods of the ordinary German cultivators. Owners of big allods had their
own vassals who were granted fiefs on condition of service. Theoretically, the medium and
small allods were different from the peasant tenements and were therefore free from the direct
control of the lord inside the manor. But as Jacques Le Goff (1988) has argued, they were
­subjected to seigneurial domination and were vulnerable to exactions, whether directly or indi-
rectly through an intermediary in the form of political and judicial rights enjoyed by the lord of
the region. They had to pay their levies by sacrificing some of the produce of their land. Since
the lord not only controlled the local market but also the economy of the region as a whole, the
allod-holders could not escape the economic exploitation of the seigneurial class. As the politi-
cal and judicial control of the feudal lords over their respective manors increased, the small
allods were turned into tenements and free Germanic peasants were depressed to the status of
dependent peasants. However, as argued by Perry Anderson (1974), these allods along with the
communal lands remained a significant sector of peasant autonomy and resistance with impor-
tant consequences for total agrarian productivity.

Agricultural Production (Eleventh–Thirteenth Centuries ce)

The early phase of feudal mode of production was marked by agrarian expansion in the north-
ern part of Western Europe. This had an important bearing on the landlord-peasant relationship
in the thirteenth century. The agrarian expansion was achieved mainly through technological
developments. Two main reasons have been cited behind the growth of agrarian technology in
the initial phase of this new economy. First, the big landowners did not have sufficient depen-
dent peasants under their control. This meant that they could not manage sufficient labour to
work on their fields, necessitating the introduction of labour saving devices. Second, the heavy
and moist soils of Northwestern Europe and the need to drain out water regularly from the field
required a change in both agricultural methods and technology. Although these technological
improvements were brought about by the landlords as they only could afford capital invest-
ment, its adoption by peasants was necessary to make it popular. As we shall see, the enterpris-
ing peasants found ways to adopt them, leading to widespread diffusion of this new
technology.
One of the most significant technological innovations of this phase was the introduction
heavy-wheeled plough (known as charrue in Northern France) which was more efficient on a
heavy soil than the hoe or light plough used in Greece, Italy, Southern Gaul and the
Mediterranean Spain. Use of heavy-wheeled plough is said to have revolutionised European
agriculture. But a major limitation in popularising this plough was the need to use more than
two oxen to draw it due to its heavy wheel that could have rendered it to be of limited use by
the rich peasants. The smaller peasants solved this problem by pooling in their resources and
by adopting other measures such as removing the fences of their respective land to create a
long rectangular strip of land for better mobility of a heavy plough. Commenting on the signifi-
cance of the use of charrue, Lynn White, Jr (1962) in his magnum opus, Medieval Technology
and Social Change, argued that the use of heavy-wheeled plough built along the peasants a
strong system of self-government for their own affairs. This strengthened the village solidarity
which was essential to resist feudal oppression of the feudal lords.
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 329

The other notable change in the agricultural method that was necessitated by the climatic
condition of Northwest Europe was the adoption of three-field rotation system from an earlier
two-field rotation wherein one part of the field was taken up for cultivation while the other was
left fallow so that the soil regains its vitality. Under the three-field rotation system, however, an
attempt was made to achieve optimum utilisation of a group of fields by dividing them into
three parts. While one part was earmarked for autumn crop (like wheat, barley and rye), the
second was reserved for spring crops (such as oats, beans and peas) while the third was left
fallow. This system provided additional crops for the peasants to fall back upon in case of crop
failure. While beans and peas enriched the soil by providing nitrogen to it, oats were of high
nutritional value. Bur the three-field rotation system also had its limitations as it could not be
practiced on strip of land with low productivity and therefore the earlier two-field rotation
system was not completely abandoned. Use of horse as a draught animal was another major
technological change in the agricultural sector. This was made possible with the introduction
of a new type of harness that could be placed around the neck of the horse. This enabled the
horse to pull heavier objects with higher speed than that of oxen. The cost of feeding the horse
was reduced with the cultivation of oats. These led to a widespread use of horses as draught
animal in Western Europe from then onwards.
The improvements in agricultural methods and technology not only brought about higher
agricultural productivity but also an increase in the area under cultivation. With new agricul-
tural technology, forests could be cleared and brought under cultivation and productivity in
land with poor soil or in marginal areas could be increased. This brought about general increase
in the total agricultural output. An increase in food resources had a positive impact on popula-
tion growth, leading to a demographic expansion of Europe. However, population studies per-
taining to this period have revealed that there was no unilineal growth of population and
instead scholars talk about a demographic cycle in Europe from the tenth century ce to seven-
teenth century ce. In the first phase of this cycle, beginning from about the mid-tenth century,
there was a slow rise in population that turned into a rapid growth from the mid-eleventh cen-
tury reaching its peak during the first half of the fourteenth century. According to an estimate
given by J. C. Russell (1971), the total population of Western Europe more than doubled
between 950 ce and 1348 ce, that is, from 20 million to 54 million. A decline in population is seen
from the second half of the fourteenth century only to rise again from the end of the fifteenth
century reaching its peak in the seventeenth century and then again entering the phase of
decline.
The first phase of demographic expansion in Western Europe in the medieval period had
important consequences on the organisation of production. While an increase in agricultural
productivity raised the resources of the feudal lords, an increase in population placed more
labour at their disposal. Improvement in agricultural technology had not only led to an increase
in the peasant tenements but had also swelled the number of dependent peasants. As the
number of labour at the disposal of the landlord increased, the latter did not feel the need to
invest in labour saving devices or other technical innovations. On this basis, it has been argued
that after the eleventh century, the feudal economy became technologically stagnant. However,
these developments ushered in new trends in the feudal organisation of production in the
­thirteenth century.
The demographic expansion of the eleventh and twelfth centuries ce had increased the
number of dependent peasants but the extension of cultivation could not keep pace with it. By
the end of the twelfth century, limits of agrarian expansion had been reached whereas
330 Ancient and Medieval World

population kept on increasing. This led to the fragmentation of land and peasants with
­smallholdings on poor soils were forced to work as hired labour on the land of the rich peasants
and landlord. There were at the same time, some significant changes in the pattern of produc-
tion on the demesne land. Although a large number of dependent peasants were available
whose labour could be exploited by the lord, there was a limit to the number of labour force
that could be productively employed on the demesne. Further, the demand of luxury goods by
the landlords, which could only be procured through money, increased the monetary needs of
the lord. In this context, it would be worthwhile to mention that feudal economy was not com-
pletely divorced from an exchange based on money. Marc Bloch (1961) has argued that the
self-sufficient economy co-existed with a tiny monetised sector. Moreover, as we shall see later,
long-distance trade in luxury products had not completely vanished from this part of Europe.
Even the peasants sold their produce in the local markets or village fairs to buy commodities.
As the monetary requirement of the lords increased, they converted the rent in kind (labour
service or feudal rent) to money rent. On the demesne land, the landlords now employed hired
labour (mostly dependent peasants rendered landless) and paid wages to them in money. These
lords could also use their political power to coerce the serfs to pay more rent in money besides
exacting other dues in the form of fines or taille. These developments facilitated monetary
exchange within an essentially agrarian economy and brought about further changes in the
manorial production.
Besides transition from labour rent to money rent, another significant change in the organ-
isation of production in the thirteenth century ce was decrease in the size of demesne land
itself. In order to augment his monetary resources, the feudal lords split their demesne into
smallholdings and rented a part of this to peasants, keeping a small portion of the most fertile
land as demesne to be managed by their stewards. As the size of the demesne reduced, the
lord’s need for labour service also diminished. Marc Bloch (1961) also opines that the decline
of labour service (and derivatively serfdom) in France during this period was linked up with
decline in demesne lands as the lords preferred to stay in towns and did not want to manage
their estates. The growing monetisation of economy, partly due to the revival of trade in the
eleventh century and partly due to commutation of feudal rent into money rent, decline in
demesne farming and emergence of a class of wage earners in the rural society proved disas-
trous for the poor and landless peasantry.
As monetisation progressed, the peasantry itself came to be divided into categories. At one
end were better off peasants (mostly owners of large and medium allods) who had large hold-
ings, possessed their own ploughs, engaged hired labour to work on their fields and had enough
surpluses so that they could also sell a portion of their produce in the market. At the other end
were the landless and impoverished peasants who were in majority. In between these were
medium and small peasants who faced various levels of exploitation by the lords of the manor.
Condition of the majority of the peasant population declined in the thirteenth century ce. A
major contributory factor (besides lord’s exploitation) was a sharp decline in agricultural pro-
ductivity once the limits of agrarian expansion had been reached. Several reasons have been
cited by the scholars to explain this. Few have argued that haste and excessive use of land (a
corollary to fragmentation of land and the consequent need to augment agricultural production)
led to soil exhaustion, resulting in decline in the agricultural yield. Moreover, as pointed out by
Perry Anderson (1974), a diversification of European feudal economy with the revival of inter-
national trade in the eleventh century had led to decline (in some regions) in the production of
food grains such as corn and increase in production of cash crops such as vine, flax and wool.
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 331

Earlier, Anderson argues, the agricultural expansion had been achieved at the cost of ­diminution
of grazing ground. Consequently, the animal husbandry suffered and with it the supply of
manures for arable farming. Thus, he concludes, by the second half of the thirteenth century,
the impact of agrarian expansion of the previous century was tapering off.
While on the one hand demand for land exceeded supply, feudal exploitation intensified on
the other. The increase in money rent and other customary exactions affected poor peasants
the worst as they already lived at the minimum level of subsistence. The small and medium
peasants too suffered because an increase in the money rent left them with hardly any surplus
to reinvest in agricultural operations. M. M. Postan (1973) has argued that the feudal aristocracy
took away nearly half of the total produce of the dependent peasants as rent in money, which
was a very high rate of surplus extraction. This, along with food shortage and natural calamities
brought about a crisis in the feudal mode of production in the fourteenth century, an aspect that
will be taken up in a separate section in this chapter.

CRISIS OF FEUDALISM (FOURTEENTH–FIFTEENTH CENTURIES ce)

As discussed earlier, the agrarian expansion of the twelfth century ce, guided by several socio-
economic and technological changes, had reached its limits by the thirteenth century. It was
also noticed that while the changes in the thirteenth century manorial economy, that is, shift
from labour rent to money rent had increased the income of the landlords, it had also led to
growing impoverishment of the poor peasants. A conjunction of manmade and natural calami-
ties in the fourteenth century ce brought about a crisis in the feudal mode of production and by
the end of the fifteenth century, clear signs of its decline had started emerging. However, the
transition from feudalism to capitalism was a gradual process involving several political, social
and economic factors that will be discussed briefly in this section, a full-fledged discussion of
the transition debate being beyond the scope of this book. Since Western and Eastern Europe
demonstrated contrasting trends of crisis in feudalism, it would be prudent to discuss these two
regions separately.

Western Europe
One of the most important reasons bringing about crisis in the feudal economy of Western
Europe was the decline in productivity. We noticed earlier that fragmentation of land, exces-
sive use/misuse of the soil, shortage of manure and emphasis on cash crops at the cost of food
grains had brought down grain production drastically. Productivity on the demesne land was
also adversely affected first due to its shrinkage and second due to the fact that landlords
withdrew from direct involvement in the production process. An assured income through
coercion of the peasants in the form of money rent meant that they were no more interested
in investing a part of their income on technologically superior means of production. Rodney
Hilton (1985), in this context, opines that barely 5 per cent of the lord’s income accruing to
them was reinvested in production while the rest was utilised in conspicuous consumption.
Thus, this period also witnessed feudalism entering a phase of technological stagnation that
did not remain confined to agriculture but also spread to the manufacturing sector, putting
overall economy into crisis.
332 Ancient and Medieval World

These developments, accompanied by a severe famine of 1315–16 ce, created a serious

s­ carcity of food all over Europe. The worst hit were the agricultural workers and poor peasants
as there was a sharp increase in the prices of food grains due to shortage whereas their wages
kept on declining due to availability of surplus labour. In the opinion of George Duby (1968),
there was virtually no increase in the standard of living of the masses between the eleventh and
fourteenth centuries and the rural society was heading towards a serious catastrophe. This was
true for England, France as well as Germany. Chronic food shortage followed by a famine led
to large-scale starvation deaths along with a decline in birth rate due to poor nutrition.
This downtrend in the demographic profile of Europe was accentuated by a severe plague
epidemic, called ‘Black Death’ that engulfed the entire Europe within a span of three years, that
is, during 1347–50 ce. The devastating epidemic started from Eastern Europe (particularly
Constantinople and Eastern Mediterranean) in 1347, reached Italy, Spain and France in 1348
and soon engulfed the entire subcontinent by 1350 ce. This led to a severe demographic stress
in Europe due to large-scale mortality. According to an estimate provided by Perry Anderson
(1974), ‘Black Death’ accounted for a decline of one quarter of the population of Europe and,
with the outbreak of pestilence, the population of Europe fell down by 40 per cent in 1400 ce.
However, the lowest point in the demographic cycle was reached only by the middle of fifteenth
century.
Apart from the mortality caused by famines and other natural calamities such as plague and
pestilence, the dislocation of agricultural production was also compounded by almost continu-
ous warfare during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. In Western Europe, during this
period, there was a Hundred Year’s War between England and France besides battles between
feudal lords that resulted in massive destruction of men and property. Few scholars have
argued that nobility was involved in the military conflict because with the dislocation of mano-
rial production, as a result of the agrarian crisis of the late thirteenth century, they could no
longer obtain the profits that they made earlier. But a detailed analysis of the cost of war has
revealed that profits earned due to the war were not equal to the huge resources required to
wage a war. These wars not only proved to be expensive for the nobility but also socially harm-
ful. Moreover, they affected nobility more than the peasantry as the visible manorial capital in
the form of buildings, mills, bakeries and so on were more conspicuous and prime target of the
invading soldiers. The peasantry, however, could not escape adverse effects of the war as
despite the depopulation of Europe, taxation (to finance the war) remained high.
The demographic decline in Europe also brought changes in the landlord–peasant relation-
ship. During the phase of population expansion in the eleventh century ce, even the marginal
areas, which were hitherto unsuited to farming, were brought under cultivation. But now, due
to huge mortality among the peasants, more cultivable land of good quality became available
and so marginal settlements were abandoned. On the existing cultivable land, due to depopula-
tion, the number of peasant holdings shrank by half while their sizes doubled. The existence of
abandoned holdings had a depressing effect on the rent as the surviving peasants had the option
to migrate to other areas if coerced to pay more rent by the landlord. Further, the decline in
population reduced the labour force and, at the same time, made available vacant land that
could be inhabited by the surviving peasants. This resulted in increased wages (due to scarcity
of labour) all over Western Europe, particularly in England and France.
One of the most important economic consequences of the depopulation of Europe was fall
in the prices of agricultural produce, mainly food grains on account of sharp decline in demand.
Decline in prices also affected commodity prices, thus reducing the profitability of large
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 333

manorial commodity production units owned by the nobility. The seigneurial income was also
reduced due to decline in rent, as there was ample land available in the late fourteenth and
fifteenth centuries ce where the peasants could migrate to escape rental oppression of the
lords. At the same time, the urban manufactures and high-cost goods remained expensive as
there was no letup in demand of an elite clientele. Decline in their income and the increasing
cost of luxuries forced the nobility to impose various kinds of dues and obligations on the peas-
antry. There was also an attempt to reduce wages in both the town and countryside. The
Statutes of Labourers in England (1349–51 ce), France (1351 ce) and Germany (1352 ce) decreed
to put earlier manorial restrictions on the peasants who were also required to work on reduced
wages. While these measures succeeded in Eastern Europe, it met with stiff resistance in the
West that quite often assumed violent proportions.
Although peasant unrest had been endemic even before the fourteenth and fifteenth centu-
ries ce, the seigneurial attempt to reinforce servile conditions and make the producing class pay
the costs of the crisis, created a general Europe-wide atmosphere of peasant unrest. In the
opinion of Perry Anderson (1974), a major reason behind the transformation of localised con-
flict into great regional or national explosion was that the medieval societies were now more
politically and economically integrated. The penetration of commodity exchange in the coun-
tryside had weakened the customary relationship (of protection and loyalty between lords and
the peasants) and the royal taxation now often crossed the level of noble exactions in the vil-
lages. Both, according to Anderson, tended to centralise popular reactions to seigneurial extor-
tion or repression into major collective movements. Besides, in many areas of Europe, the
landlords, in order to solve the crisis of their declining income, started asserting their rights
over common lands and forests. Peasants were sought to be excluded from those areas where
they had enjoyed traditional privileges. Conflict over forestland, in the opinion of Anderson,
contributed to and figured prominently in all forms of peasant unrest.
The initial peasant reaction against feudal oppression of the fourteenth and fifteenth centu-
ries ce was not to take up arms against the lords but to indulge in passive or stubborn resistance
such as refusal to pay rent in time or often not paying them at all (rent strikes). The landlords
could not coerce them into paying rent as the peasants often threatened to leave the village en
masse and migrate to other areas. But as the landlords tried to impose new obligations, they
seem to have transgressed the ideology of paternalism and protection, goading peasants into
rebellion. The crisis of feudalism exposed the coercive nature of the feudal rent. This has
prompted historians, such as, George Duby, to opine that the late medieval rebellions were not
against lordship but against the abuse of lordship. This, according to him, was the first sign of
crisis in feudalism.
Among the major rebellions that took place in the late medieval Europe, the prominent ones
were rebellion at Flanders (1323–27 ce), the Grand Jacquerie in Northern France (1358 ce), Italy
(1380–430 ce), the English rebellion (1381 ce) and rebellion in Spain (1462 and 1484 ce). The
peasants at Flanders (Belgium), who were mainly free peasants, rose in rebellion against impo-
sition of an indemnity tax by the king of France and the oppressive dues and tithes of the local
nobility and the church. The Jacquerie in the Paris region of Northern France, considered as the
greatest peasant uprising recorded in Western Europe since the Bagaudae, was set off by
the demands for military requisitioning and plunder during Hundred Year’s War with England.
The name ‘Grand Jacquerie’ was kept after the name of a French peasant ‘Jacques Bonhomme’.
During the war with England, the peasants had to suffer large-scale pillage by the rampaging
army. Moreover, after the defeat of France in the Battle of Poitiers in 1356, the French king
334 Ancient and Medieval World

John II and a number of the members of the aristocracy were arrested. The English demanded
a heavy ransom in their exchange and the peasants were made to pay a larger share of the
ransom contribution which led to this rebellion. Peasants burnt the castles and also murdered
feudal lords. In Italy, large-scale village-level rebellions were triggered by unjust taxes and
increased demand for services. The peasant revolt that erupted in Southeast England around
London was precipitated by a new poll tax imposed by the state to fund the Hundred Year’s War
with France. The peasants destroyed the local land records and destroyed the dwellings of the
feudal lords. While in Spain, the rebellion of the serfs was a reaction against the spread of ‘evil
customs’ imposed on them by their baronial lords.
It has been pointed out that one of the weaknesses of these peasant rebellions was their
‘negative class consciousness’, that is, while they hated the nobility as a homogeneous class,
they never considered themselves as one and thus the aims and objectives of these uprisings
remained unclear. Moreover, most of these rebellions were not joined by the entire peasantry
but a combination of rich peasants who were voicing their protest against manorial restrictions
and the small marginal peasants protesting against the regulation of wages. The peasant move-
ments at Flanders and in England were also joined by artisans, small traders and wage labour-
ers. As such, all of these revolts were crushed or politically repressed by the respective
authorities. Nevertheless, role of these peasant revolts in the crisis of feudalism was a profound
one in the sense that these rebellions led to a perceptible change in the balance of class power
on land. In definitive terms, after the end of these rebellions, wages rose in England, Germany
as well as in France by the end of the fourteenth century ce. Perry Anderson (1974) has termed
these peasant rebellions as a turning point in the dissolution of serfdom in the west.
The medieval European towns have also been considered as a major determinant in the
crisis of feudalism. It has been pointed out that almost all the powerful peasant rebellions of
Middle Ages in the West occurred in zones with flourishing urban centres—in Flanders near
Bruges and Ghent, in Northern France near Paris, in Southeast England near London and in
Spain near Barcelona close to Catalonia. Almost all major towns had marketing relations with
the surrounding countryside and, in most of these cases, the towns actively supported and at
times, assisted the rural rebellions. Even during the time of peace, the towns of medieval
Europe intervened in the landlord–peasant relationship by providing shelter to the serfs who
had fled the manor to save themselves from seigneurial oppression. At the same time, the towns
with market centres put pressure on the feudal nobility to realise their income (through rent)
in monetary form. But, while the lords needed cash to buy luxuries of the towns, they could not
risk driving the peasants towards urban employment. They, therefore, were compelled to be
considerate towards their serfs, leading to loosening up of the bond of serfdom. Besides, the
towns also witnessed rebellions of the craftsmen and wage labourers. Two prominent examples
of these rebellions are the rebellion of weavers in the town of Ghent (1309 ce) and that of the
wage labourers (wool-combers) of Florence in 1378 ce.
The crisis of feudalism led to emergence of new economic pattern in Western Europe in the
fifteenth century ce. As the prices of the food grains declined due to depleting demand (conse-
quent upon decline in population), commercial production on the demesne land became less
profitable. Consequently, as the evidences show, by the middle of the fifteenth century, virtually
all the lands were rented out. Landlords also converted their land from food grain cultivation
to sheep and cattle rearing by enclosing their land as demand for dairy products and meat
began to rise. This trend was particularly witnessed in England, France and Spain. The depopu-
lation of Europe and decline in seigneurial rent enabled the peasants to accumulate capital to
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 335

invest in agriculture that had become specialised by fifteenth century ce. Keeping the rising
demand for meat and dairy products in mind, the peasants also devoted their land to animal
keeping and grew leguminous crops for fodder. Leguminous crops and animal keeping helped
to fertilise the soil by providing nitrogen and manure, respectively. There was also a region-wise
specialisation of agricultural produce, keeping the quality of soil and climatic conditions in
mind. Thus, England specialised on wool production, France in wine production, Northern
Europe in dairy products while the Baltic region emerged as the chief centre of cereal produc-
tion. The mass exodus of rural population towards urban centres in search of freedom, security
and employment opportunities led not only to the emergence of small towns but also extension
of the existing ones such as Antwerp, Florence, Venice, Barcelona, London and so on.
In the final analysis, it can be said that feudalism, that sustained the economy of Western
Europe after the crisis in slave mode of production, originated in the seventh century ce and
reached its classical phase during eleventh–thirteenth centuries ce. In the fourteenth and
­fifteenth centuries ce, however, a crisis developed in the feudal mode of production of Western
Europe, mainly due to declining productivity, demographic expansion followed by depopula-
tion, monetisation of the economy and severe class struggle in the form of peasant revolts and
more importantly, changes in the surplus extraction relationship between landlords and the
peasants which manifested in the decline of serfdom in several parts of Western Europe.
However, the eastern part of Europe did not go through similar process of feudal decline.

Eastern Europe
In Eastern Europe, agrarian settlements were relatively recent than the West and the agrarian
expansion and subsequent demographic growth of the West was not replicated. Vast amount of
land remained unclaimed until 1300 ce. Although depopulation of Europe had a less severe
impact on the East, yet it put severe strain on the supply of labour. Given the vast under-­
populated areas of Eastern Europe, the threat of peasant flight was more acute for the land-
lords. Moreover, unlike the West, the possibility of less labour-intensive industries, such as, the
wool industry, was remote in the East and arable farming and cereals remained the major
export from this region. Further, in the West, the village communities could mobilise opposition
to the lords due to the same village land falling into different manor, thus weakening the power
of the lords; however, in the East, the village structure was more homogeneous and conducive
to control. Besides, the lack of big towns in the East enabled the landlords to establish a firmer
grip on the serfs.
These differences in the agrarian structure between West and the East led to contrasting
results in these two regions in the wake of crisis of feudalism in the fourteenth and fifteenth
centuries ce. The landlords of the East, in order to arrest fall in the rent (due to labour shortage)
intensified the burden of labour services on the peasantry. They used their political and judicial
powers to impose extensive service conditions on the peasants and utilised the clause of com-
pulsory labour to form their own landed estates. As a result of relatively recent settlement in
Eastern Europe, differentiation among the peasantry had not yet developed so that the rich
peasant leadership, available to the peasant uprisings in the West, was missing in this part of
Europe. In East Germany, peasantry was given favourable terms of settlement as land was in
abundance, nobility was more dispersed and the state was weak. But when depopulation
occurred due to the plague epidemic of the mid-fourteenth century, the vacant lands were
336 Ancient and Medieval World

appropriated by the lords, and peasantry was coerced into cultivating those lands through
­tightening the bonds of serfdom. The nobles gave a subsidy to the state, and, in return, they
were granted the right to enslave peasants. In this manner, the area under demesne in Eastern
Europe was expanded and labour obligations on the peasantry increased. In Poland and
Lithuania, the two important states of Eastern Europe, the nobles controlled the parliament
(Segm) and thus assumed legal and political power to impose their will on the peasants.
From the fifteenth century ce onwards, there was also a growth in the export of grain from
Eastern Europe. This was carried to areas far and wide by the merchants of the Hanseatic
League (discussed later). The nobility increased its share of the grain trade and virtually monop-
olised it by increasing demesne production through enhancing the burden of labour service on
the peasantry. Thus, while in the West, demesne production declined and peasant production
increased in the wake of the crisis of feudalism, a contrasting scenario was witnessed in the
East, represented by increase in demesne production and decrease in peasant production.
Explaining the reasons behind the two contrasting types of agrarian system, scholars, such as,
Robert Brenner (1976) and others, have argued that while in England and France, the rulers had
succeeded in establishing their predominance over the nobility, in the Eastern Europe, politics
(except in Russia) was dominated not by the kings but by the noblemen. Eastern rulers needed
support of the nobility to remain in power and were therefore forced to grant concessions to
the feudal lords to enserf the rural population. Thus, by 1500 ce, while the feudal structure was
crumbling in Western Europe, the feudal organisation in Eastern and most part of Central
Europe was strengthened by the power and efforts of the nobility.

TOWNS AND TRADE

The early phase of feudalism, that is, sixth–tenth century ce has been termed as a ‘Dark Age’ in
the history of Europe as it was marked by invasions, decline of money exchange attendant upon
decline of trade and commerce leading to ruralisation of economy which became largely self-
sufficient. Particular reference has been made to the Arab penetration of the Mediterranean
that is said to have impaired maritime trade in the region, forcing Europe into rural isolation.
While giving evidence for the decline of trade, scholars have specifically pointed out the disap-
pearance of coins from circulation from 650 ce onwards and have argued that with the localisa-
tion of economic activity in the manor, money ceased to be an important medium of exchange.
Also, that after the destruction of the Carolingian Empire, the feudal princes struck coins that
were mainly debased and were symptomatic of declining trade and commerce. But despite
these assertions, Europe, during the so-called ‘Dark Age’ period was never completely bereft of
towns and commercial activities, including long-distance trade and commerce. In the so-called
‘Classical’ phase of feudalism, towns and trade of Europe were influenced by Middle East and
North Africa as well as from the trading networks of these regions.
Nowadays, there is a general consensus among the scholars regarding economic and social
significance of towns in feudal Europe during seventh–fourteenth centuries ce. The growth of
towns and trade during this period has been generally linked with changes in the agrarian struc-
ture as well as a series of technological innovations that doubled the surplus in agricultural and
non-agricultural (manufacturing) sectors. Few scholars, such as, Henri Pirenne (1969), view the
growth of towns as a consequence of the revival of long-distance trade after the end of the ‘Dark
Age’, that is, from eleventh century onwards. However, M. M. Postan (1975) has termed towns
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 337

as ‘non-feudal islands in the feudal sea’ where the serfs fled to escape the seigneurial ­oppression.
It is now generally accepted that monetary exchange and urban centres (towns) were integral
to the feudal economic and social structure, as, at certain points of time, these were in the inter-
est of the feudal ruling classes.

Towns
Speaking in a restricted sense, the chief characteristic of a medieval European town was that most
of its inhabitants earned their livelihood from the exchange of commodities or production of
goods destined for sale. A village in contrast to a town was an agricultural settlement and nearly
all of its population was made up of people who worked on land. The rise of towns and their role
in the economic development of Europe has been a matter of debate among the scholars. While
few scholars, such as, Henri Pirenne (1969), feel that growth of towns resulted due to the revival
of trade, others argue that trade in itself was not sufficient a cause for the reappearance of towns.
This argument is supported by the assertion that undoubtedly some towns did receive great stimu-
lus from the revival of trade and growth of such major cities as Venice (population of 100,000 in
1300 ce) and Genoa (population of 80,000) would have been impossible without it. But prosperity
of most of the other towns, including such enormous cities as Paris (population of 200,000 in 1300
ce), Florence (population of 100,000), Milan (population between 80,000—90,000 in 1200 ce) and
London (population between 60,000–80,000) depended on the general economic growth taking
place in the rural areas (hinterland of these cities) from where they drew their food supplies, raw
materials for their industries as well as bulk of their population.
The traditional notion that towns were an individual social entity and a decisive agency in
the process of social change, that is, transition from feudalism to capitalism, has also been chal-
lenged in the recent writings. It has been pointed out that as towns were dependent upon vil-
lages for its consumption of food and also on raw materials for its industries, there was a
constant commercial interaction between the two. As the rural surplus of necessity goods was
controlled by the feudal lords of the manor, the towns may be considered as a part of the feudal
world rather than a distinct entity. In fact, the modern historiography has rejected the earlier
model of a dual economy (represented by town and country) and laid more emphasis on rela-
tive unity of town and country. A related issue of debate is whether the medieval European
towns were parasitic and as such absorbed the surplus produced elsewhere (villages) without
enough flow of goods in return, or they were generative in the sense that commercial inter-
course in the towns tended to stimulate economic growth in the rural areas. It is now argued
that towns, both large and small, existed in a symbiotic relationship with the countryside
around them, providing markets for the rural surplus and the rural needs of the manufactured
goods in exchange for food grains and raw materials.
The notion that the growth of towns and market led to the erosion and collapse of feudalism
and rise of capitalism has also been challenged. R. H. Hilton (1985) has argued that the economy
and mental attitude of townsmen contributed little to this change. He further argues that profits
accruing from trade and urban industries were primarily invested in buying town property
which was not a source of capital formation. It was the profits and surplus generated in the
rural economy that led to capital accumulation and subsequently to the growth of capitalism.
However, elsewhere, it has also been argued that although rural economic growth is of prime
importance in this transition, towns did represent a spirit of economic enterprise and was a
338 Ancient and Medieval World

pocket of fiscal autonomy within the feudal world. John Merrington (1975) has also suggested
that far from being antithetical to towns and trade, feudalism was the first mode of production
to accord autonomy to urban production and mercantile capital. Location of this autonomy was
undoubtedly the town.
After a brief perusal of the historiographical debate related to the medieval European towns,
it would be worthwhile to analyse the various processes involved in the rise of towns in Europe
during the period of our study. At this point, it is necessary to point out that by the beginning
of the eleventh century, most parts of Europe contained settlements that can be termed as
urban, which consisted of large population concentrated in a limited area practicing specialised
crafts and exchange rather than agriculture for their survival. At few places, imperial policies
determined by the existing political circumstances, such as Norman, Hungarian and invasions
of other tribes as well as rivalries among the princes and the feudal lords during ninth–eleventh
centuries, also affected the growth of urban centres. In England, since the ninth century, the
royal policy of establishing fortified centres (castles or burgus) for providing refuge to the
nearby inhabitants and regulating trade and money exchange had led to the growth of new type
of urban centres. These settlements often contained a garrison of knights for special security
of the lords. Similarly, in Germany, the imperial policy of establishing new markets and mints
in the tenth century had promoted growth of towns.
Moreover, as Perry Anderson (1974) argues, majority of the new towns were in origin either
promoted or protected by feudal lords who wanted to promote trade and urbanisation to corner
local markets or scoop off profits from long-distance trade by concentrating it in their areas.
Recently, Derek Keene (2004) has also suggested that the growth of small towns in Italy as well
in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe can be accounted for in the interaction between local
resources and lordship. The delegation of local authority to the nobility and their growing
wealth promoted the construction of castles and other type of fortifications that turned into
nucleus of settlement and trade. The physical and legal protection provided by the lords along
with local produce for sale and demands for craft services stimulated the market. A market
town, suggests Keene, with or without fortifications, could immediately increase seigneurial
income and promote more intensive exploitation of the land. Besides the castles, monasteries
too stimulated urbanisation and trade as these were governed by a dependent community of
administrators and serviced by merchants and traders. The latter transported the tribute and
food rent to the monasteries from distant estates, thus promoting networks of transport and
exchange. Later, a small market town developed near the monastery gate itself. The possibili-
ties of the growth of town and trade were even greater if the monasteries owned the blocks of
land and had residences. Few monasteries such as the one at Canterbury (at the county of Kent
in England) involved itself directly in trade.
After the revival of trade, merchants needed at least three primarily favourable conditions
for smooth operations of their commercial activities—an ideal location, security and freedom.
They needed to establish their base at a place strategically located near trade routes or local
markets for easy transportation or trans-shipment of goods. Security for the merchants meant
security in the form of protection by a strong local authority or a feudal lord against the dangers
of war or lawless elements in the feudal world. Merchants also needed freedom of movement
and freedom from manorial restrictions faced by the peasantry. Wherever these basic require-
ments of the mercantile operation were met with, urban centres grew and flourished. In the
course of their trading operations, the itinerant merchants came to these castles to seek shelter
at night as also for protection during the time of war in the fortified palaces situated along
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 339

important riverine and overland trade routes. This facilitated their exchange with the local
people. As the volume of trade grew, the fortress town could not accommodate the increasing
number of merchants and the latter therefore created their own settlement outside the fortified
settlement known as suburb. Sometimes terms such as burgus, burs and civitas were also used
for such extensions of the existing town. And as the suburban population grew, it surrounded
the old burgus. The suburbs gradually themselves became fortified. In this manner, a new
burgus or town was created and the residents of these new burgs were called burgenses or
‘men of business’ as they lived primarily on trade and industry. Thus, after the revival of trade,
numerous towns grew up and prospered as intersection points, regional markets and manufac-
turing centres. Some important medieval European towns such as London, Paris and Cologne,
which had been important cities under the Roman Empire but had undergone centuries of
decline during the ‘dark ages’, were now revived.
Growing monetisation of the economy and increasing requirements of the peasants as well
as those of the lords along with the existence of merchants with their ability to procure raw
materials from far-flung areas, added a new activity in the economic life of the town, that is,
manufacturing of goods. To start with, iron-working and leather-making and from 1100 ce
onwards specialised crafts such as textiles and shoe-making and so on developed in these
towns. This phenomenon was particularly marked in Flanders and North Italy. In Flanders,
woollen cloth manufacturing particularly developed as the merchants supplied raw wool and
dyestuff to the artisans. It has been estimated that production of woollen textile more than
trebled with the introduction of horizontal pedal loom. In North Italy, Luca became an impor-
tant centre of silk production. Likewise, Milan became a major centre of woollen and cotton
textiles; London, a major woollen manufacturing centre and Venice, a leading cotton manufac-
turing centre by thirteenth century. Many towns owed their existence to their role in handling
the transit trade as centres of collection and redistribution. Among such urban centres, we can
include Russian cities, Mainz and Cologne. Cologne, for example, played a leading role in the
Rhine trade and also served overland routes to the west and northwest besides being an impor-
tant market for the Meuse Valley (modern Belgium). London, too, in the twelfth century, was a
centre of inland distribution. Moreover, by the end of thirteenth century ce, as the crisis of the
feudal economy became evident, towns emerged as centres of production. Even the ‘black
death’ of mid-fourteenth century hit poor peasants on marginal lands worse than the urban
dwellers, causing immigration of rich and poor alike to the manufacturing towns.
Growth of pilgrimage centres were another important source of the growth of urbanisation
in Europe. Jerusalem (the focus of Christian and Islamic faiths) and Rome (the seat of Latin
Christianity) were both great attractions for pilgrims that stimulated growth of town economy.
Likewise, Constantinople with a population of 400,000 inhabitants is said to be the most impres-
sive city of Europe in the eleventh and twelfth centuries for its size, walls, churches, wealth,
manufactures, markets and a congregation of traders from all over the world besides the impe-
rial court, palaces and bureaucracy.
However, the growth of urban centres as well as trade in Europe was not uniform during the
period under study, and the growth of urbanisation in various parts of Europe was affected by
distribution of population as well as material growth. While Western Europe was densely popu-
lated, Central and Eastern Europe were both sparsely populated which had a direct bearing on
the material growth and consequently on the extent of urbanisation. The major concentration
of towns in Europe has been found to be in Northern Italy, the territories around southern part
of North Sea and English Channel and stretching up until the river Rhine. In this context,
340 Ancient and Medieval World

Derek Keene (2004) is of the opinion that the most fundamental stimulus to urban and com-
mercial growth was that of rural development and population increase, which generated sur-
pluses leading to a more broad-based economic growth. He has given the examples of towns of
the Po Valley and Flanders to support his argument. Nonetheless, Keene also suggests that the
basis of most towns’ prosperity was their interaction with the immediate hinterland. He cites
the example of Barcelona whose prosperity in the eleventh century was largely based upon its
economic and political relationship with its hinterland.
As trading operations became complex and specialised by the twelfth century, the merchants
organised themselves into associations called guilds. Initially, these included all those members
of the town engaged in commerce. But by the thirteenth century ce, specialised guilds devel-
oped, for example, there were separate guilds for traders of wool and a separate one for its
transportation. The initial objectives of these guilds were to regulate the commercial activity of
the town in which they operated and to protect themselves from highway robbers or the over-
demanding feudal lords through collective efforts. But with merchants establishing permanent
settlements of their own in the growing towns, the guilds also acted as agencies to seek some
kind of recognition of their status in the feudal world. Likewise, artisans, who settled in these
towns, also had their own guilds. Craft guilds controlled prices and wages, prohibited after
hours work and formulated detailed regulations, governing methods of production and quality
of materials to be used by the craftsmen. While these guilds benefitted the craftsmen with
regard to their working conditions, it, at the same time, also tended to significantly restrict the
economic opportunities available to ordinary wage-earning craftsmen and especially to women.
Although women were not excluded from the craft guilds and few craft guilds were exclusively
female, but despite the important role played by women as urban wage earners, the male-
dominated guilds ensured that women would have no influence over the terms and conditions
under which they worked or the wages they would be paid for their labour.
Since nearly each town grew upon land that was within the feudal domain of some lord,
without the formal recognition of their rights, the town dwellers (chiefly merchants) could be
at the mercy of the local lord, both physically and financially. They did not belong to the class
of the nobility or clergy or to the peasantry and were therefore always suspected as runaway
serfs, which many of them actually were. In such a condition, there was always a possibility of
the local lord demanding their services in the manor. As pointed out earlier, freedom from any
attachment to land was the most basic requirement for smooth commercial activity of the mer-
chants. Besides, they needed a separate court of law for management of their mercantile activi-
ties than the feudal courts based on feudal laws enforced by feudal lords themselves. To gain
recognition of their rights, the townsmen often appealed to the kings or powerful lords to grant
these by offering large sums of money. During twelfth–thirteenth centuries ce, many feudal
lords, realising the potential of additional source of revenue from tolls and custom duties,
issued charters for the towns granting some rights and autonomy to the townsmen. Initiative in
this regard was taken by the rulers of England and France and by powerful lords in Germany.
Although economic and social rights granted to the townsmen varied from one region to the
other, depending upon nature of the charter secured, there were some basic rights that were
common to all urban centres. One of these was the free status given to the inhabitants of the
town receiving the charter. These also granted the townsmen right to buy, sell and lease land
within the town, exemption from labour services performed by the serfs and granted the free-
dom to buy and sell goods as per the norms set by the merchant guilds. These charters also
provided for urban law courts to deal exclusively with mercantile cases.
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 341

The overall impact of these town charters was to create within the feudal world, a new world
of the middle class (later termed as bourgeois class) engaged in commerce, which was free
from the customs and procedures of feudal/manorial courts of the region. The merchants now
could form their own local government with elected magistrates mainly recruited from among
rich merchants of the town. However, these charters did not bestow complete political freedom
to the towns. It brought the town under the direct jurisdiction of either a king or a bigger feudal
magnate rather than the local lord. Moreover, within the town, the big merchants monopolised
the privileges and the rights while the immigrants working in the industries as craftsmen or as
retailers in trade were accorded a subordinate status. This has led few scholars to put forth the
view that the urban centres, though integral to feudalism, were shackled by its feudal mentality.
It has also been argued that since feudalism was defined by relations of class power, only a
change in terms of class power and not merely growth of urban centres could power a transi-
tion to capitalism.

Trade
Before we enter into a discussion on the issue of possible factors that led to the revival of trade
from the eleventh century onwards, it would be imperative to throw a brief light on the status
of long-distance trade during the so-called ‘Dark Age’. Recent researches suggest that although
the debased coinage of the post-Carolingian era is symptomatic of declining trade and com-
merce, yet throughout this period neither local nor long-distance trade completely vanished.
The commodities sold in the local trade mainly included necessary goods such as salt, fish,
linen and other textiles that could not be produced in every locality despite the self-sufficient
character of the medieval European manor. Peasants too brought their small surplus and goods
of their lords to be sold in the periodic fairs. The wealthier nobility (feudal lords) were supplied
with luxury goods such as silks and spices from the East and furs imported from the Baltic
region. This long-distance trade sustained even during the ‘Dark Age’ because two parts of
Europe—first, the southern part of Italy around the Adriatic Sea region and second, parts of
Baltic and North Sea region—did not suffer the trade misfortunes of Western Europe.
The focus of trade of both these areas was Byzantium or Constantinople which had more or
less escaped the vandalism of tribal invaders. The Arabs, who had laid siege to Constantinople in
719 ce, were turned back and never allowed to dominate either the Aegean or Adriatic Sea
regions. In the eighth century, Constantinople is believed to have been inhabited by one million
people, many of whom possessed enough wealth to indulge in luxuries and semi-luxuries. The
resultant high demand of necessity, luxury and industrial products kept local markets busy and
attracted goods from far and wide. Moreover, Constantinople was a great entrepôt for such
Eastern products as silk, spices, perfumes and for European goods such as fur, timber and iron.
As the wealthier nobility of Western Europe demanded luxury products of the East, the Venetian
merchants, who were active in the Adriatic Sea region, took advantage of their close relationship
with Constantinople and became intermediaries in the East–West trade. They collected silk,
spices and so on from Constantinople in exchange for timber and iron both of which were scarce
in the Eastern Europe. As Venetians were not averse to trade with the Muslims, they were able
to establish commercial relations with Egypt, Syria and North Africa too. Gradually, Venice devel-
oped into a manufacturing centre and the Venetian commerce with the East led to the growth of
many subsidiary commercial centres in other parts of Italy in the ninth and tenth centuries ce.
342 Ancient and Medieval World

Scandinavian traders, active in the Baltic and North Sea region, performed a similar role as
Venetians in the Adriatic Sea region. Their penetration into Russia and from there to the Black
Sea region fostered commercial links between Constantinople and the areas around the Baltic
Sea. They collected fur, wax, honey and so on from Russia and exchanged it with Eastern luxu-
ries at Constantinople. The archaeological finding of vast collection of coinage consisting
chiefly of Eastern coins on the Swedish sites and along the routes frequented by the
Scandinavians also suggests a flourishing long-distance trade in luxury goods. Thus, we see that
even during the supposed period of trade decline, the Italians (Venetian traders) and the
Scandinavians kept up Europe’s (including Western Europe) contact with the East which
acquired much wider dimensions when trade revived after the eleventh century ce.
The eleventh century in Western and Central Europe was a period of economic revival.
Towns emerged with the revival of trade on a large scale and economic relations came to be
expressed more and more in terms of money instead of goods, services and land. However,
there is a debate among scholars regarding the factors responsible for such a revival. Henri
Pirenne (1969) has argued that the main cause of this commercial revival was the crusades
(religious wars between Christians and Muslims during 1095–270 ce, initially fought over
Jerusalem) which reopened to Western Europe, markets of the East. But M. M. Postan (1973)
and few others have argued that the most important factor for the revival of trade was the con-
tinuous growth of European population from the mid-tenth to early fourteenth centuries ce.
They argue that although crusades helped to open up new channel of trade between East and
West, the commercial revival could not have materialised without the internal growth and
increase in wealth within Europe. This, according to them, was a prerequisite to absorb the
trade or exchange with the East which included a high proportion of expensive luxury goods.
It is generally accepted now that the increased agricultural and industrial production in Europe
rather than opening up of trade routes to the East was the main cause of revival of trade in
Western Europe in the eleventh century ce.
The growth of population in Europe from the mid-tenth to early fourteenth centuries ce has
been cited as the principal determining factor in the growth of production, both agricultural and
industrial. It has been argued that the tremendous demographic expansion of Europe and the
resultant necessity of feeding, clothing and housing led to improvements and innovations in the
industrial and agricultural sectors. Among the technological innovations that triggered
increased agricultural production was the introduction of heavy-wheeled plough, adoption of
three-field rotation system, use of horses as draught animal and watermills and windmills for
grinding corn. Interestingly, many of these innovations were initiated by feudal lords them-
selves either to deal with the problem of shortage of labour or to force the peasants to use these
services to create additional source of income. In the field of industry, prominent technological
developments, besides expansion in the production of tools needed by both peasants and the
artisans, were improved refining process (metallurgy), use of watermills and windmills to pro-
duce industrial goods and spinning wheel or pedal loom that greatly enhanced the output of
textiles. Besides an increased output, one of the other consequences of such technological
advancement was to set free, for other activities, a part of the labour force hitherto tied to the
soil as serfs. Growing monetisation of the economy and commutation of labour rent into money
rent further accelerated this process. As feudal lords hiked money rent, many of the peasants
were rendered landless. It was this section of the labour force that congregated into towns and
engaged itself in crafts, trade and other allied professions to earn their livelihood. These tech-
nological and socio-economic changes led to increased production that was carried far and
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 343

wide by the merchants. An important development that facilitated growth of long-distance

trade in 1100 ce was the rights won by merchants of a city in other cities under different rulers.
These included freedom from tolls (a point made earlier) and collective possession of ware-
houses and places to stay. These developments were common in all major regions of trade such
as Baltic and North Sea as well as the Mediterranean.
As a natural corollary to the revival of commerce, significant improvements were made in
transportation of goods from one place to the other. In this field, most fundamental change was
noticed in sea faring as shipping was the cheapest mode of transportation of goods in bulk. By
the thirteenth century, the Mediterranean traders started using a primitive compass (originally
a Chinese invention) and navigation manuals describing ports and maritime routes. A more
significant invention of the thirteenth century was the storm mast rudder. This was fixed at the
rear and in alignment with the boat, which gave turning operations a great deal of precision.
Use of rudder also made possible the construction of larger vessels. The sail of the ship also
changed from square to triangular which was better able to absorb the wind velocity. One
important advantage of sea transport was that the merchants could avoid paying innumerable
tolls that they were subjected to on overland and river routes at the hands of the feudal lords.
Along with the sea transport, inland transportation was also improved. Introduction of horse
collar and iron horse-shoe during the tenth–twelfth centuries ce led to the increasing use of
horse for transportation, thus reducing the travel time. The inland roads, though far from
modern standards, were kept in working condition by the kings and the feudal lords. Henry I.,
the ruler of England, passed an order in 1135 ce, stipulating that all highways should be broad
enough for two wagons to pass each other. Similar orders were passed in many states in
Germany. Bridges were also built in large numbers. These were particularly noticeable in the
land route between Italy and Northern Europe. The regional princes, realising the importance
of trade, tried to secure the trade routes by conducting campaigns against the robber chiefs and
to remove other obstacles, abolished some of the tolls and few customary exactions by the
feudal lords.
Articles involved in the exchange after the revival of commerce included goods of both mass
consumption as well as luxuries. Among these, food grains were a major article of exchange
between regions of surpluses and those of deficits. Initially, Northern France and West Germany
were the chief suppliers of grain but later, Baltic region became the biggest supplier of grain to
Western Europe as it produced grains in abundance and so their supply was reliable and cheap
too. Bordeaux in France was the biggest supplier of wine and imported wheat from England to
meet the local needs. Fishes were sent from coasts to several inland areas. Salt, another com-
modity of mass consumption, which was used not only for flavour but also for curing fish and
preserving meat, was produced at several places, but the principal producing area was the
Atlantic coast of France and was largely sent to Eastern Europe that was a deficit area. Spices
came from Asia (India and the Spice Islands) to the port of Levant and from there distributed
to different parts of Europe. A large amount of sugar was imported from the Near East.
Textile was another major article of exchange. Textile industry was the most important
among the manufacturing industries of medieval Europe. Sheep raising for wool took place in
different parts of Europe but the principal areas were England, Spain and Central France. Very
fine quality sheep wool was produced in England which was chiefly exported to Florence. In
fact, raw wool remained the chief export of England for a long time. Later, when England’s own
cloth industry developed from the fourteenth century onwards, it absorbed most of the raw
materials and manufactured cloth took over raw wool as the major export of England. Silk cloth
344 Ancient and Medieval World

was imported to Europe largely from the East, which continued until weaving industries
­developed in Italy at Lucca, Florence and Genoa. But even then, major supplies of both raw and
manufactured silk to Europe came from Asia until the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries ce.
Likewise, raw cotton and manufactured cotton textiles were also largely imported from the
East. Mining and metallurgical industries, crucial for manufacturing of weapons and tools used
by peasants and craftsmen, were chiefly located in Germany, Austria and other parts of Central
Europe. Chief metal exports from these areas were iron, copper, zinc, silver and small quanti-
ties of gold. Lead and tin were exported largely from England.
Timber was in great demand in Europe, mainly due to the housing needs of a large popula-
tion as well as for carts and ships required for increasing commercial activities. The forests of
Eastern Europe were the chief source of timber that was shipped to the West in semi-­
manufactured form such as boards, logs, masts and so on. M. M. Postan (2002) is of the opinion
that the timber from Eastern Europe, which reached Western Europe through the Baltic Sea,
may have contributed to the progress of shipping, shipbuilding and sea transport in this part of
Europe. Precious stones such as pearls, dyestuffs, alum and indigo came from the East while
ivory was imported from Africa.
A major issue of concern for the merchants in the long-distance trade was the diversity of
weights and measures. An attempt was made to control weights and measures by local and
national regulations (issued by rulers and feudal lords) by fixing the quality and measurement
of some goods, particularly textiles. Most towns maintained scales for public use and the accu-
racy of weights and measures was periodically checked by the authorities. Likewise, after the
revival of commerce, merchants required coins that could be accepted over large areas rather
than debased coins that were in circulation in the Early Middle Ages. Thus, monetary reforms
were undertaken in the principal commercial centres of thirteenth century ce where the initia-
tive was taken by Venice. A new silver coin called groat or grossus was issued here in 1192 ce
and became the chief currency of exchange, shutting off from the market all other debased
currencies issued since the death of Charlemagne.
Similarly, an efficient credit system was also the need of the hour since travelling with large
sums in coins was both inconvenient and unsafe. A bill of exchange or a credit letter, the earli-
est form of which was termed lettre de faire (fair-letter) originated from the fair at Champagne
(Northern France) wherein the issuer promised to pay the carrier a sum of money after a stipu-
lated time with some deductions in the form of interest. While the merchants and nobles
remained the chief capital investor in the commercial enterprises (in ships, cargoes and pack
animals), Italian merchants, in order to facilitate such investments, developed new forms of
commercial partnership contracts, new methods of accounting (including double-entry book
keeping) and new credit mechanisms borrowed from Byzantine and Muslim practices of money
lending. Although the Western Christian Church condemned all sorts of money lending and
usury (which involved earning interest), the demand for capital to propel the new commercial
economy led to a change in attitude from the thirteenth century ce onwards.
As far as the major commercial regions of Europe is concerned, we can divide them into
three regions of chief commercial activities, that is, Italy (especially Northern Italy), Northwest
Europe and Northeast Europe. The region of Northern Italy was geographically well located
and so profited a lot from the international trade. Products from Northern Europe as well as
that from the Mediterranean, African and Asian regions converged here. While Venice contin-
ued to prosper because of its close contact with the Byzantine Empire since the tenth century
ce, other centres such as Genoa and Pisa developed in the latter half of the eleventh century as
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 345

a result of crusades that opened up East–West trade route. Its inland towns such as Siena,
Florence and Milan also entered into a new phase of prosperity due to their location at the junc-
tion of overland trade route. All these commercial centres, through a number of subsidiary
centres, were connected with such trading centres of France as Savoy and Bruges. Thus, the
Italian traders played a leading role in the external trade of France, England and Flanders.
Apart from these well-established long-distance trade networks, the developments in the
Islamic world diverted the trade in Indian and Southeast Asian products (mainly spices) from
the Persian Gulf to the Red Sea. This increased the importance of Egypt and the port of
Alexandria in the Mediterranean trade. The agricultural and industrial products of the Islamic
region further stimulated trade between Eastern and Western Mediterranean.
In Northwest Europe, the prominent commercial centres were located in Northwest France
and Southeast England. Notable among these centres were Flanders (including the town of
Bruges, the chief meeting point of exchange of goods between Northern and Southern Europe),
and in the North Sea area Cologne and Mainz on river Rhine. In England, London with its access
to the North Sea was the chief entrepôt. In Northeast Europe (mainly Baltic region), trade was
monopolised by a group of North German towns where in order to protect their maritime rights
and monopolies, merchants formed an association called the Hanseatic League. They shipped
Russian fur, Prussian wheat and Baltic timber to Bruges where these products were exchanged
for products of Western and Southern Europe as well those of the Islamic East. In the Baltic
region, the chief commercial towns in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries were Lubeck and
Hamburg. But the Dutch and English competition and the difference of opinion within the League
brought down the influence of the Hanseatic League and subsequently Bruges was replaced by
Antwerp as the most important western territories of the northern and northeastern trade.
With the revival of trade, periodic fairs became a major medium of international contact and
distribution of goods. These were different from the weekly retail market frequented by the
residence of the counties to meet their local needs. Fairs (see Map 9.1) were annual or semi-
annual features and served as meeting places of merchants coming from distant regions who
sold their products in wholesale to buyers who also came from distant regions. These fares
were usually held at places situated at the junction of overland or river routes. These fairs also
assumed some urban features albeit for a limited time period as new streets and market places
had to be created to accommodate the traders. Such fairs also linked markets and so reduced
the uncertainties of long-distance trade. Although there were many centres of such fairs in
Lombardy, Flanders, England and Germany, but the largest among them was held at the county
of Champagne in Northern France. The Champagne fairs were spread out in such a way that
they lasted all through the year. The location of Champagne made it easily accessible to traders
from south, west and north through several rivers. Consequently, beginning with early twelfth
century ce, Champagne became a major entrepôt where all important articles such as silk,
woollens, wine, fur, spices and so on were available for exchange. It is also said that, for some
time at least, the Champagne fair formed the pivot of the whole system of international trade.
These fares were a result of the enterprise undertaken by the regional lords such as counts for
whom the tolls collected from the goods at the fair were a considerable source of revenue. By
the end of the twelfth century, such fairs based on annual cycle were also organised in Flanders.
The international fairs however began to decline by the end of the thirteenth century. Growth
of towns such as Paris and Bruges from where the merchants could operate business from their
desk or with the help of their agents, along with the growing use of sea route from the early
fourteenth century between Northern and Southern France, made fairs lose their importance.
346 Ancient and Medieval World

MAP 9.1  Important Towns and Trade Routes in Medieval Europe

Source: Adaptation of a blank map by Lampman. Available at [Link]

Trade_Routes.jpg

TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS
The medieval European economy from seventh to fourteenth centuries ce, classified as a feudal
economy, was ably supported by technological developments that in turn enhanced production
in both agricultural and industrial sectors. The technological innovations in Europe, though
some of them having been borrowed from China and the Islamic world, have been considered
as more significant as it provided the base for scientific and technological revolution of the
post-Renaissance (after the fifteenth century ce) Europe besides facilitating European overseas
expansion. It should however be kept in mind that the pace of technological growth in Europe
was not uniform throughout the medieval period and also that some sectors of the European
economy was exposed more than the others to these changes.
Most significant technological innovations were noted in the agricultural field, which
remained the basis of European economy right until the phenomenon of industrial revolution in
the eighteenth century. The changes in agricultural methods and technical innovations starting
from mid-ninth century ce enabled agrarian appropriation of large part of the northern European
land, increased productivity and had a far-reaching impact on the demographic growth of
Europe from the mid-tenth century onwards. The northern European soil, being heavy and
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 347

moist, needed different technology and practices hitherto employed in the Mediterranean
region. The most significant technological advancement of the Early Middle Ages of Europe in
the farm sector was the use of heavy-wheeled plough. The heavy-wheeled plough fitted with
iron-tipped coulter and pulled by a team of oxen or horses could cut and turn the rich, wet soil
of Northern Europe to greater depth than the Mediterranean scratch plough. Usage of a heavy
plough had several other advantages as well. It aerated the soil and provided excellent drainage
of fields through a pattern of ploughing in long rectangular strip of land, particularly in water-
logged areas. As mentioned earlier, the peasants made provisions for long rectangular strip of
land by removing fences around their holdings. The new plough also saved labour as it did away
with the practice of cross ploughing and allowed more frequent ploughing.
Related technological changes in the form of an improved harness increased the efficiency
of plough oxen. Although oxen remained the most commonly used plough animal until the
fourteenth century, an improved harness made it possible to use horses too as draught animal.
The development of iron horse-shoe (around 900 ce) to protect the hoofs and a new tandem
harness (around 1050 ce) that could be placed around the neck enabled the horses to pull
heavier objects with greater speed than the oxen. As the use of iron became more common in
medieval Europe, there was an improvement in the hand tools such as iron-tipped hoes, forks
and shovels. These proved more effective than the wooden implements hitherto used by the
farmers. The increasing number of iron sickles and scythes made it easier to harvest hay and
grain, especially by women, whose role was crucial, particularly during the harvest time.
Wheelbarrow, to carry objects from one place to another with relative ease, and harrow, a tool
drawn over the field after ploughing to level the earth and mix in the seed, were other techno-
logical innovations in the agrarian sector. The swiftness of horses made it particularly time
saving in harrowing to cover the seed. The first evidence of horse harrowing comes from
Southern Germany around 1050 ce.
The need for optimum utilisation of the northern European soil, led to a shift in the agricul-
tural methods and crop pattern. One of these changes was the transition from two-field rotation
system to three-field rotation, few of the advantages of which has already been described in the
earlier section. To add to the advantage, the three-field rotation system proved to be an insur-
ance against crop failure and resulting famine, and the labour of ploughing could be spread
more evenly throughout the year. According to an estimate, shift to this method enabled a peas-
ant community to increase its production per peasant by 50 per cent, where enough land had
been cleared. The overall result was reclamation of vast amount of land in Northern France by
1100 ce. Another important innovation related to the rural life was watermills for food process-
ing. Although watermills were known to the Romans but as yet only human and animal power
was used to move the wheels to grind grain into flour. From 1050 ce, however, Northern Europe
witnessed a spurt in the building of watermills. Lead in this direction was taken by France,
where according to a figure, the number of such watermills increased from 40 in 1050 ce to 245
in 1175 ce. After mastering the complex technology involved in the construction of watermills,
significant steps were taken towards the construction of windmills from 1170 ce onwards par-
ticularly in regions such as Holland where there was a lack of swift flowing river streams. The
power generated by these mills were subsequently used in the industrial field and until the
invention of steam engine in the eighteenth century, the mills remained the major source of
mechanical power for manufacturing.
Most of these technological innovations (except windmill and tandem harness) in the agri-
cultural sector were already known to the Carolingians. However, widespread use of these
348 Ancient and Medieval World

technologies, which had a decisive impact on European agricultural production, became visible
only after the mid-eleventh century. The reasons behind this delay have been found in changes
in the climatic conditions in Europe between ninth and eleventh centuries ce and greater physi-
cal security after reduction in the number of Viking, Hungarian and Muslim attacks. However,
few scholars believe that the fundamental change lay in the growing confidence of entrepre-
neurial peasants and feudal lords of earning profit through investment in agricultural improve-
ment. The growing demand for agricultural produce consequent upon increase in European
population after the mid-tenth century and available market for the same encouraged peasants
and landlords alike to invest in agricultural technology.
In the industrial sector, most significant innovation was noticed in the field of textile manu-
facturing. The watermill, initially used for processing grain, now came to be widely used for
processing hemp and fulling (process of cleansing of wool) cloth. By the eleventh century ce,
stamp mills (for processing hemp) and fulling mill spread all over France, reaching England and
Germany by the twelfth century. Another significant innovation in textile industry was the verti-
cal pedal loom or spinning wheel that became popular in Europe by the end of thirteenth
­century ce. The new spinning wheel increased the yarn output and thus cheapened the common
grades of cloth, leading to high consumption of linen in the fourteenth century.
Next to textiles, the chief industry that witnessed technological improvement was metal-
lurgy. The increasing use of iron from the Frankish period (since the eighth century ce) and the
discovery of watermills facilitated the development of metallurgy in Europe. Although iron was
a difficult metal to work with, in Southern Germany, black smiths were already using water
wheels to power the hammer or bellows of their forges by the early eleventh century. However,
the definite evidence of the use of waterpower in the metal industry appears only by the mid-
twelfth century ce. By the end of the fourteenth century, cast iron was being produced by the
European metallurgists. The changes in warfare techniques and the consequent heavy demand
for iron objects was a major contributory factor in the technical progress in iron working.
During Late Middle Ages, the passion for mechanisation in Europe was unprecedented.
Along with the quest for new sources and application of power, there was notable development
in the field of machine design. An outstanding breakthrough in this field was the camshaft or
crank that allowed continuous movement, which could be converted into an alternating one
thereby enabling harnessing of water pressure to power harness, mallets and pounders.
Appearing in China in about 830 ce, cranks were in common use in Europe by the tenth century,
and compound cranks started appearing in Germany and Italy by the fifteenth century. Another
significant innovation in the field of machine design was the emergence of mechanical clocks.
Work on mechanical clock had been initiated in the second half of the thirteenth century but a
definite solution to such a complex machine was found not before the fourteenth century.
Subsequently, its use spread quickly all over Europe. Its gearing and the perfect coordination of
hundreds of moving parts make it one of the greatest technological achievements of human-
kind. The diffusion of clocks created an increasing corps of craftsmen to make and repair them
and carry their skills to related fields.
Another industrial innovation witnessed by Europe in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries
was in the field of paper manufacturing and printing. The quest for knowledge and demand for
books galvanised the activities related to manufacturing of paper. Although paper was a
Chinese invention diffused to Islamic land in the eight century, it was not mechanised. In
Europe, however, watermills were used for preparing paper pulp. Plentiful supply of rags low-
ered the price of paper, which was essential for promoting printing. Advancement in
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 349

commercial activities represented by bookkeeping, along with writing of handbooks for

­maritime traders and the increasing use of letters of credit, increased the market for books.
Invention of looking glass in the late thirteenth century further facilitated the demand for
printed books. As technology for paper manufacturing improved with labour saving devices, it
brought the cost of books within the reach of a huge potential market with the result that print-
ing became a major European industry by the second half of the fifteenth century.
European invention in the military field was no less significant. In fact, the superior military
technology allowed Europe to conquer several parts of the world during 1600–1800 ce. Before
the invention of gunpowder, the most significant innovation in the field of warfare was the
horse stirrup, which in combination with saddle enabled the rider to obtain a firm grip without
the fear of falling from the horse. The use of stirrup originated with Carolingians under Charles
Martel in the first half of the eight century ce. The stirrup made rider and the horse a single unit.
Combined force of the two multiplied several times the thrust of the weapon (lance) in the hand
of the rider. Lynn White, Jr (1962) has argued that stirrup had far-reaching military, political and
social implications. Use of stirrup enhanced the importance of cavalry vis-à-vis infantry leading
to the growth of an exclusively cavalry-based army consisting of professional mounted warriors
or knights. This, along with other changes in the warfare, enhanced the prestige of warrior class
in the society in general and had important consequences for the growth of feudalism in
Europe. Fiefs were granted in return for mounted troops; and, in order to meet the requirement
of land for this purpose, church land was confiscated. The increasing use of ‘mounted shock
combat’, as the new cavalry was called, boosted the metal industries because of the constant
look out for a stronger armour. In the thirteenth century, the application of waterpower for
forging led to the gradual replacement of suit covering of the warriors to plate armour, combin-
ing scores of shaped steel plates.
Gunpowder appeared in Europe through Islamic land from China in the mid-eleventh cen-
tury, and, by the mid-thirteenth century, rockets were used at Cologne. It is not clear whether
cannon was invented first in Europe or in China as it appeared at both these places in early
fourteenth century. The impact of gunpowder artillery was slow and handguns did not assume
the status of a crucial weapon until the second half of the fifteenth century. Nevertheless, by
1500 ce, Europeans possessed by far the best equipment in the world for military purposes. This
was made possible by the development of a large chemical industry to manufacture gunpowder
as well as the heavy metallurgy to cast cannons. Use of cannon was preceded by a crossbow
towards the middle of the eleventh century which was regarded as a Frankish novelty and
quickly adapted by the Byzantines and the Arabs. By the end of the century, machine was devel-
oped to save labour and to ensure accuracy of aim, trebuchet stones were used as cannon balls to
overcome air friction. Trebuchet stones were produced in England and acted as cannon balls
before the adoption of gunpowder cannon balls.
Another major arena of technological development in medieval Europe was related to
marine and shipping knowledge. To reach the transoceanic ports of the world, Europeans
needed ships and nautical methods appropriate for long sea voyages. The most important
breakthrough occurred in naval techniques. Ships increased their tonnage, and sturdier and
mobile stern rudders replaced the older lateral rudders. Rigging (an apparatus to use the force
of the wind to propel the ship forward that includes masts, yards, sails and cordage) was
improved through the use of lateen sail (triangular sail). The astrolabe and other instruments
for measuring the declination of the stars were perfected while the spread of Compass allowed
far better maps to be drawn. Late medieval European ships could venture into high seas without
350 Ancient and Medieval World

having to drop anchor with the onset of cold season. By the late fifteenth century, Venice’s
arsenal developed into a true naval factory where both warships and trading vessels were built
and repaired. It has been termed as Europe’s first ‘modern’ industrial enterprise. By the begin-
ning of the sixteenth century, Europe had the requisite technical means to discover and subse-
quently conquer large parts of the world.

Summary
1. The invasion of the Germanic tribes played an important role in the downfall of the
Western Roman Empire. Subsequently these tribes established their state in differ-
ent parts of the erstwhile Roman Empire. The interaction between German and the
Roman institutions had profound impact on the European polity, society and econ-
omy during seventh–fourteenth centuries ce. This interaction took place in two
phases under the ‘founder’ and ‘successor’ German states.
2. During the period of dominance of the ‘founder’ states, the Germans followed the
Roman estate system but the political and legal structure of these states displayed a
dualism. Under the ‘successor’ states, especially of Visigoths, Lombards and the
Franks, the fusion between German and Roman institution led to the growth of a
new type of political, social and economic structure widely known as feudalism. The
Visigothic kingdom of Spain witnessed the origin of a hierarchical system based on
service and protection. Under the Lombards of Italy developed a new type of politi-
cal structure based on decentralisation of authority, payment of salary in land grants
and military obligations laid on the Germanic chiefs. It was, however, under the
Franks that we see the developments of components of classical European
feudalism.
3. Feudalism has been given different connotations by the scholars. Economically, it is
seen as a mode of production determined by the relationship between landlords and
the peasants. In political terms, it represents a decentralised polity where the execu-
tive powers of the ruler were delegated to the local lords. Socially, feudalism is said
to represent a hierarchical society dominated by the landed aristocracy and where
individual relationship is bound by loyalty and protection. In military terms, feudal-
ism represents the importance of mounted cavalry in the warfare and which
accorded them a higher social status.
4. The components of classical feudalism, that developed under the Franks was a
direct outcome of the political, social and military measures adopted by Charlemagne
to sustain monarchy within a decentralised political structure. To maintain the
authority of the monarch, Charlemagne received the title of ‘Holy Roman Emperor’
from the pope. Besides, the monarchy was kept economically strong by turning the
seized Roman estates into royal estate. Acquisition of church land and plunder and
tributes acted as additional sources of income.
5. Charlemagne also balanced various components of the Frankish state comprising of
the feudal aristocracy, military leaders, landowners and the warriors. The provinces
were divided into counties and were given to counts and dukes to administer the
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 351

local areas and provide military assistance in return for land grants. The counts
appointed their own sub-vassals who in turn held land from the former. Charlemagne
also appointed missi dominici (emissaries of the master) and vassi dominici
(direct vassals of the emperor) in the counties for effective integration of the prov-
inces with the centre and to supervise the activities of the counts and dukes. In such
a decentralised political structure, authority of the monarch was hierarchically dis-
tributed among large number of feudal lords. This political arrangement has often
been termed as ‘parcelisation of sovereignty’.
6. After the end of the Carolingian rule, power of the monarchy declined all over
Europe. This was followed by the rise of autonomous states by the princes and the
powerful local lords. In France, it was the rulers of the Capetian Dynasty, particu-
larly Louis VI, Louis VII, Philip II and Philip IV, who restored the authority of the
monarch. This was achieved through territorial expansion and proper organisation
of local administration. In England, King Alfred united several warring kingdoms to
create a powerful Anglo-Saxon kingdom in the ninth century ce. After the Norman
conquest of England, power of the monarchy was further strengthened by King
William who claimed ownership of all land to be granted in lieu of service. Further,
under Henry I, a strong national monarchy was created in England by establishing
control over the local lords and by strengthening local government. But the exces-
sive demand of King John on the feudal nobility led to a rebellion of the landlords.
This ended only after the king issued the charter of liberty, popularly known as
Magna Carta, forcing the king to respect the feudal right of the nobility. In Germany,
however, monarchy remained strong due to the efforts of rulers, such as, Henry III,
soliciting support from the clergy and reserving important administrative posts for
the bishops who invariably belonged to the royal family. But conflict with the church
under Henry IV enabled the nobility to regain power. Power of the German monar-
chy was further reduced during the reigns of Frederick I and Frederick II, which
resulted in effective political power passing in the hands of large number of German
princes who established autonomous states.
7. The nobility in medieval Europe consisted of a hereditary aristocracy identified by
birth, landed wealth and participation in the warfare. With the grant of land and
devolution of central authority all over Europe during the period under study, the
nobility held wide control over the territories assigned to them. But the king’s power
of patronage in terms of office (honours) and benefice (fief) ensured the loyalty of
the nobles towards the rulers. Noble women also held property rights. Although
noble women could be denied the inheritance of property at times, but they shared
with men the status of noble birth. After the breakdown of Carolingian Empire, the
fragmentation of the empire as territorial principalities of princes, counts and dukes
brought about a change in the composition of the nobility. With the proliferation of
castles for protection against rising insecurities, the castellans (vassals of the
counts) and the knights (stationed as garrison heads in the castles) strengthened
their hold over the castles. But such devolution of power from the counts to the
castellans and the knights was clearly visible only in France. Whereas in Germany,
Italy and England, power of the counts and the princes persisted.
(Continued)
352 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

8. Knights, as a social category in medieval Europe, consisted of several social ranks.

They were not a part of the nobility until the eleventh century but mounted soldiers
played an important role in the feudal political structure. Knight originated from the
milites who served the castellans and the princes. But during the twelfth and the
thirteenth centuries as the construction of castles multiplied and warfare became a
specialised activity, the milites transformed into knights. This together with the
ideology of chivalry paved the way for the entry of knights among the ranks of nobil-
ity in the thirteenth century. The ideology of chivalry was a knightly code of values
which emphasised on bravery, loyalty, generosity, warfare skills and courtly behav-
iour. This facilitated the incorporation of knights into the ranks of aristocracy to
which they had not been born.
9. Rural lordship (seigneurie) was an important component of the feudal economy of
medieval Europe through which the landlords appropriated the surplus generated by
the dependent peasants (serfs) and ruled over the entire inhabitants of his adminis-
trative territory known as manor. The three main components of the manor were
demesne (lord’s land), virgates (land of the dependent peasants) and allods (land of
the free peasants) besides the communal land. All peasants of the manor were sub-
ject to the seigneurial domination of the lord. The serfs had to perform forced labour
(corvée in France) in the demesne on certain days of the week. Apart from the sur-
plus generated from the demesne and the rent collected from the dependent peas-
ants, there were several additional sources of income for the feudal lords, including
taxes such as taille and tithe along with banalites or exploitative monopolies over
the services of the manor.
10. The agricultural production in medieval Europe was organised through the manor
system. In the initial phase of the feudal economy, there was an agrarian expansion
caused mainly by the introduction of new technologies such as introduction of
heavy-wheeled plough, adoption of three-field rotation system and use of horses as
the draught animal. Such technological improvements brought about an increase in
agricultural production, besides an increase in area under cultivation. This in turn
brought about a demographic increase all over Europe. However, the population of
Europe went through an increase and decrease in a cycle between tenth and seven-
teenth centuries. The demographic expansion of the first phase led to an increase in
the labour available for the lord, and, at the same time, it also led to the fragmenta-
tion of land among the peasants as the limits of expansion had reached its limits by
the end of the twelfth century. At the same time, the demand for luxury goods and
gradual increase in monetisation raised the monetary needs of the lords. Therefore,
the landlords converted the labour rent into money rent. Another important develop-
ment of the thirteenth century was decrease in the size of the demesne as the land-
lords rented most part of their demesne to the peasants, keeping a small but fertile
portion for themselves. On the other hand, condition of most of the peasantry dete-
riorated due to high rent in money and decline in the productivity of land caused by
fragmentation and excessive use of land. Increase in the money rent rendered many
peasant landless and led to the creation of a class of hired labourers.
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 353

11. These developments brought about a crisis in the feudal mode of production in the
fourteenth century. The crisis first manifested itself in the form of decline in produc-
tivity that apart from the mentioned factors was also adversely affected by stagna-
tion in the agricultural technology. The severe famine of 1315–16 ce and the resultant
sharp rise in the prices of the food grains hit the agricultural workers and poor peas-
ants the worst. This was particularly noticeable in England, France and Germany.
This resulted in large-scale starvation deaths. Added to this was the Europe-wide
plague epidemic (Black Death) which covered the entire Europe between 1348 and
1350 CE. The mortality at such a scale drastically reduced the population of Europe.
Demographic decline of this level also brought about a change in the landlord–­
peasant relationship. Now sufficient land was available for the peasantry but the
decline in population adversely affected the rent in money for the feudal lords due
to decline in peasant holdings. This, along with increase in wages (caused by short-
age of labour), improved the condition of the peasants as well as the bargaining
power of the peasantry vis-à-vis the feudal lords. But a renewed attempt of the
feudal lords to increase rent and reintroduce servile conditions for the peasantry led
to peasant revolts all over Europe which was particularly marked in France,
England, Italy and Spain. Although these rebellions were crushed in the end, but
they brought about significant changes in the landlord–peasant relationship thus
loosening the bond of serfdom.
12. Eastern Europe on the other hand, did not undergo the kind of crisis faced by the
landlords of the West. The crisis in feudalism of fourteenth–fifteenth centuries was
well managed by the feudal lords of Eastern Europe due to the fundamental differ-
ence in the settlement pattern and landlord–peasant relationship between Eastern
and Western Europe. Eastern Europe did not witness the kind of agrarian expansion
that was seen in Western Europe. The landlords of Eastern Europe (particularly in
East Germany, Poland and Lithuania) therefore were able to establish firmer control
over the peasantry by using their political power as they were in a position to influ-
ence the policy decision. Thus, while Western Europe faced a crisis in feudal mode
of production during fourteenth–fifteenth centuries, Eastern Europe witnessed
strengthening of the feudal control.
13. While traditional scholars considered town and trade as antithetical to feudalism,
other scholars, in recent years, tend to argue that both towns and trade were an
integral part of the feudal world. Few modern scholars suggest that towns developed
in Europe after the revival of trade from the eleventh century onwards. Others, how-
ever, argue that increase in surplus created by better technology brought about
increasing wealth which promoted growth of towns and exchange.
14. Several reasons have been cited for the growth of towns in Europe. These included
proliferation of castles to provide security to the inhabitants which also included
traders, attempts of the feudal lords to develop economic potentiality of their manor
with a view to enhance their income, and economic needs of the monasteries which
stimulated urbanisation. From the point of view of merchants, wherever they found
an ideal location, security and freedom, those areas developed as centres of
exchange. Town formation thus started in the form of castles (burgs) and then in the
(Continued)
354 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

form of its extension burgus and finally as manufacturing centres. Few towns such
as Cologne and Mainz also witnessed their growth as transit points in international
trade. Growth of pilgrim centres such as Jerusalem, Rome and Constantinople also
stimulated the process of urbanisation.
15. As trading operations in towns became complex by the twelfth century, the mer-
chants organised themselves into guilds through which they regulated commercial
activities and also worked as agencies to seek some kind of recognition by the feudal
lords. Artisans also organised themselves into their own guilds which controlled
prices and wages and regulated hours of work. There were also exclusively female
guilds, but they did not have much say with respect to wages and the working condi-
tions in the presence of male-dominant craft guilds. Gradually, the merchants of the
towns also won freedom from providing feudal services and autonomy with regard
to managing their own legal matters through charters issued by rulers and the feudal
lords in return for money. These charters granted freedom to the inhabitants of the
town as well as the right to buy and sell urban properties within the town.
16. In European historiography, the period between sixth and tenth centuries in Europe
has been termed as ‘Dark Age’ on account of disruption of trade due to Arab penetra-
tion of the Mediterranean and disappearance of coins from circulation on account
of financial and political confusion in Western Europe. But recent researches have
suggested that even during this period, neither local nor long-distance trade suffered
a complete decline. Few regions of Europe such as southern part of Italy around the
Adriatic Sea and parts of Baltic and North Sea continued to be commercially active.
Constantinople was the focal point of the East–West trade. Venetian and Scandinavian
merchants played a significant role in the Adriatic and Baltic Sea regions
respectively.
17. Eleventh century ce is considered as the period of revival of long-distance trade.
While few consider this revival as a result of the crusades that opened the link
between East–West trades, others believe that the demographic expansion and inter-
nal growth of Europe (reflected in an increase in agricultural and industrial output)
were the chief reasons for this revival. It has been suggested that the increase in
production was induced by technological improvements in both rural and industrial
sector.
18. Revival of trade witnessed several developments that further stimulated both local
and long-distance trade. Transportation and shipping witnessed some important
new innovations. An efficient credit system in the form of credit letters replaced the
earlier debased coins. New commercial partnership also developed to ensure avail-
ability of capital.
19. The articles of trade include both goods of mass consumption and luxury items.
Food grains, salt and spices were the prominent articles of trade. Textile was
another major object of exchange. Development of mining and metallurgy promoted
exchange of such commodities as iron, copper, zinc, silver and small quantities of
gold as well as lead and tin. Forests of Eastern Europe were the major source of
timber which was in great demand for construction of houses and shipping industry
all over Europe.
 Feudal Polity, Society and Economy in Europe 355

20. Although exchange took place in practically every part of Europe after its revival in
the eleventh century, few regions dominated the trade network. These regions were
Northern Italy, Northwest Europe and Northeast Europe. All these regions had
important commercial cities situated on water as well as land routes. They were
further connected with the international trade routes.
21. Periodic fairs were important centres of exchange and continued to play an impor-
tant role in the promotion of trade and commerce until the emergence of commer-
cial towns. These fairs were both semi-annual and annual and were visited by large
number of traders coming from distant places. Most prominent among these in the
medieval period was the fair at Champagne which was spread out in a manner to last
the whole year. Most of these fairs were organised by regional lords or counts for
which tolls collected from sale of goods at the fair was a major source of income.
22. The agricultural and industrial growth of Europe was supported by an efficient tech-
nology. Although few of the technologies were borrowed from China and the Islamic
world but the technological developments in Europe has been considered as more
dynamic as it laid the foundation for the scientific and technological revolution in
the post-Renaissance period. In the agricultural field, the noticeable innovations
were the use of heavy-wheeled plough, improved harness of the oxen, use of horses
as the draught animal and improvement in the tools such as hoes, forks and shovels.
Besides, shift from two-field to three-field rotation and use of watermills and wind-
mills also augmented productivity.
23. In the industrial sector, textile industry witnessed some important innovations. Use
of stamp mills, watermills and vertical pedal looms increased the textile production
many fold. Metallurgy was another industry that benefitted greatly from the innova-
tion of watermills. Passion for mechanisation during the latter part of medieval
Europe led to developments in the field of machine design which promoted the
manufacturing of crank and mechanical clocks. Paper manufacturing and printing
industries were other important areas of technological innovations that were galvan-
ised by the quest for knowledge and demand for printed materials and books.
Invention of looking glass further stimulated the printing industry of late medieval
Europe.
24. Military innovations in Europe during the period under study were equally impres-
sive which enabled the Europeans to conquer different parts of the world during
1600–1800 ce. Horse stirrup, saddle and finally gunpowder were some of the notable
military innovations of this period. The growth of chemical industry further helped
in increasing the use of gunpowder. Whereas the growth of heavy metallurgy helped
to cast heavy cannons.
25. Marine and shipping knowledge were the other fields of technological developments
of medieval Europe that enabled the European mariners to undertake long sea voy-
ages. New type of rudders, triangular sails and the method of rigging enabled con-
struction of large ships that could carry more weight while the astrolabe and
compass allowed better navigation.
356 Ancient and Medieval World

KEYWORDS
Founder successor hospitalitas coloni dualism hierarchical decentralised seigneurie
manor monarchy benefice loyalty protection fief parcelisation vassal Magna Carta
milites knights castellans militarisation chivalry demesne virgates allods corvée
charrue demographic cycle Black Death burg burgus Dark Age charter
crusades voyages

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. Who were Germanic tribes? Analyse the impact of fusion between Roman and German
institution in medieval Europe during sixth–eighth centuries ce.
2. How did the measures of Charlemagne and his successors bring about the growth of
components of classical feudalism?
3. Define feudalism bringing out its essential characteristics based on recent interpretations.
4. How did the monarchy in different parts of Europe maintain its authority in the back-
ground of a decentralised polity?
5. Analyse the growth and power of the medieval European nobility.
6. Describe the origin and growth of the knightly class in medieval Europe.
7. Define rural lordship. Describe the organisation of agricultural production in Europe
under it during eleventh–thirteenth centuries ce.
8. Discuss the trends in the crisis of Feudalism in Europe during fourteenth–fifteenth
centuries.
9. Account for the growth of towns and trade in Europe during ninth–fourteenth centuries.
10. Give an account of the growth of European technology during eight–fourteenth
centuries.

REFERENCES
Airlie, Stuart. 1995. ‘The Aristocracy’. In The New Cambridge Medieval History, Vol II (c. 700–900), edited by
Rosamond Mckitterick, 431–50. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Anderson, Perry. 1974. Passages from Antiquity to Feudalism. London: NBL/Verso Books.
Bloch, Marc. 1961. Feudal Society, Vol 1. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Brenner, Robert. 1976. ‘Agrarian Class Structure and Economic Development in Pre-industrial Europe’. Past and
Present 70 (1): 30–75.
Coulborn, Rushton. 1956. Feudalism in History. New Jersey: Princeton University Press.
Critchley, John. 1978. Feudalism. London: Allen and Unwin.
Dobb, Maurice. 1946. Studies in the Development of Capitalism. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul PLC.
Duby, George. 1968. Rural Economy and Country life in the Medieval West. Columbia, SC: University of South
Carolina Press.
Flori, Jean. 2004. ‘Knightly Society’. In The New Cambridge Medieval History, Vol IV (c. 1024–1198), edited by
David Luscombe and Jonathan Riley-Smith, 148–84. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Ganshof, F. L. 1961. Feudalism. New York: Harper and Row.
Hilton, Rodney. 1985. The Transition from Feudalism to Capitalism. Brooklyn and New York: Verso.
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Keene, Derek. 2004. ‘Towns and the Growth of Trade’. In The New Cambridge Medieval History, Vol IV (c.
1024–1198), edited by David Luscombe and Jonathan Riley-Smith, 47–85. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
Le Goff, Jacques. 1988. Medieval Civilisation, 400–1500. Oxford: Blackwell.
Merrington, John. 1975. ‘Town and Country in the Transition to Capitalism’. New Left Review I/93 (September–
October): 71–92.
Nelson, Janet L. 1995. ‘Kingship and Royal Government’. In The New Cambridge Medieval History, Vol II (c.
700–900), edited by Rosamond Mckitterick, 110–41. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Pirenne, Henri. 1969. Medieval Cities: Their Origins and the Revival of Trade. New Jersey: Princeton University
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Postan, M. M. 1973. Essays on Medieval Agriculture & General problems of the Medieval Economy. Cambridge:
CUP Archive.
———. 1975. The Medieval Economy and Society: An Economic History of Britain in the Middle Ages.
Harmondsworth: Penguin Books.
———. 2002. Medieval Trade and Finance. Reprint, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Power, Daniel, ed. 2006. The Central Middle Ages: Europe 950–1320. USA: Oxford University Press.
Russell, J. C. 1972. ‘Population in Europe, 500–1500’. In Fontana Economic History of Europe, Vol 1, Carlo M.
Cipolla, 1–70. Glasgow: Fontana/Collins.
Stacey, Robert. 1999. ‘Nobles and Knights’. In The New Cambridge Medieval History, Vol V, (c. 1198–1300),
edited by David Abulafia, 11–25. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
White, Lynn (Jr). 1962. Medieval Technology and Social Change. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
 CHAPTER
Religion and Culture in

10 Medieval Europe

Chapter Contents

• Religion in Early Medieval Europe

• Culture in Early Medieval Europe
• Religion in Late Medieval Europe
• Culture in Europe During the High Middle Ages
• Summary

I
n the historical vocabulary, the period of medieval Europe covering roughly one thousand
years (600–1500 ce) is widely termed as the ‘Middle Ages’. Since the time of the Italian
Renaissance, the term ‘Middle Age’ has been used to contrast it with an earlier phase of the
European History, popularly termed as ‘Antiquity’. The Renaissance scholars treated ‘Middle
Ages’ as the darker side of the European history and as an antithesis of the ancient world or the
Antiquity. Recent scholars, however, do not subscribe to this notion of Middle Age being a dark
age even though they agree that it was a period of violence and of difficult living conditions. On
the contrary, they argue that it was during the so-called ‘Middle Age’ that the cultural, political
and religious foundation of the European civilisation was laid. One also has to keep in mind that
the Latin-speaking western European civilisation during the medieval period had to compete
with the contemporary Greek-speaking Byzantine civilisation and the Arabic-speaking Islamic
civilisation. The rivalries and interaction among these civilisations affected the religious and
cultural life of each one of them. It is now widely accepted that Middle Age was a formative
period in the history of these civilisations. Another important point to be kept in mind is the
fact that among these civilisations, the concept of medieval or ‘Middle Ages’ only relates to the
western European civilisation and even here it was not before the twelfth century that a distinc-
tive European religion, politics and culture developed. Therefore, while studying the religion
and culture of Europe, it would be prudent to divide the medieval period into ‘early’ and ‘late’
medieval for the sake of clarity and distinction.
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 359

We have already seen that by the time the Western Roman Empire collapsed, Christianity had
become the dominant religion of both Western and Eastern halves of the Roman Empire. The
dominance of Christianity over other religions and its influence on European culture can be
gauged from the fact that by the ninth century the term ‘Europe’ came to be replaced by
‘Christendom’, that is, the land of Rome-centred Christianity (where Latin Christian traditions
found greater allegiance) as the preferred term of cultural identification. But it would be a fal-
lacy to assume that Christianity had a smooth sailing, either with regard to its ideological
growth or in its relationship with the state, all through the medieval period. While, on the one
hand, political affinities and linguistic differences created schisms and heresies within it, con-
flict with the state over supremacy of temporal or spiritual authority (particularly during the
period 1050–1300 ce) led to the growth of constitutional governments and changes in the organ-
isation of the church, on the other.

RELIGION IN EARLY MEDIEVAL EUROPE

Generally, the seventh century is considered as the period of transition between ancient and
early medieval Europe, particularly with respect to economy, society, religion and culture. After
the downfall of the Roman Empire, the continuity or discontinuity of the Roman traditions in
the early medieval period has been keenly debated by the historians spearheaded by Alfons
Dopsch (1937) and Henri Pirenne (2005). The issue is beyond the scope of this book. However,
it can definitely be said that despite discontinuities in several aspects, Christianity and Christian
traditions were the major bridge facilitating religious and cultural continuity between ancient
and medieval Europe. In the period of post Roman Empire, Christianity was also the major link
between not only the Western Roman Empire (Western Europe) and the Eastern Roman Empire
(Eastern Europe) but also assimilated several migratory tribes such as Goths, Vandals and
Franks. The synthesis of these traditions resulted in a specific culture of Europe, distinct from
the other continents.
The predominance of Christian religion in the fourth and fifth centuries Roman Empire and
collapse of the Empire itself during the same period further strengthened the influence of
Christianity. The primacy of the Bishop of Rome (the Pope) was clearly established as the de
facto heir of the imperial Rome after the decline of the Western Roman Empire. In the city of
Rome, people connected with church took over many functions of governance that was earlier
fulfilled by the state. In the provinces, the Christian leaders and the community adjusted to the
new political scenario and became allies of the local warriors who founded new kingdoms. By
the end of the fifth century, adherence to Christianity had become widespread throughout the
Roman world and beyond. Between fourth and seventh centuries ce, Christian religion estab-
lished itself throughout the British islands; during the eighth and ninth centuries, it spread to
large parts of Germany, covering the region from Rhine to the Elbe; and during the course of
the tenth and early eleventh centuries, it spread from Germany until the Baltic region. Rulers
of Hungary, Poland, Denmark, Norway and the Russian principality of Kiev, all adopted
Christianity between the late tenth and early eleventh centuries. Even the communities of
Vikings of North Atlantic, who had turned farmers and settled on Iceland, collectively adopted
Christianity by 1000 ce.
As discussed before, in its early stages, Christianity attracted large following due to its doc-
trine, a strong community structure and, even more importantly, its ideal of human fellowship,
360 Ancient and Medieval World

charitable institutions and the development of its daily, seasonal and annual liturgical
­celebrations. Besides, Christianity brought with it new places of community gathering (church)
and new forms of social interaction. It has been argued that the brilliant liturgy (formulae of
Christian worship) of the urban basilicas (a large oblong building for public assembly) began to
rival the splendour of the games and public entertainments. In the early medieval period, the
progress and growth of Christianity has been explained in several ways. Julia Smith (2005) talks
about three essential characteristics of early medieval Christianity: (a) its decentralised and
small-scale form of organisation (b) multiple social definitions of a ‘Christian’ and (c) its doc-
trinal flexibility. Elaborating it further, Smith says that by 500 ce, Christians had evolved a
standard form of organisation in which regional communities of worship (known as dioceses)
were supervised by a bishop who had jurisdiction over professional ritual specialists (priests)
who served local churches. The bishop of Rome (the Pope) was acknowledged as the most
senior leader of Christians in the West. In the Middle Ages, it was customary for the Pope to
sanction the position of archbishoprics as national and superbishoprics as regional heads of the
Christians. But along with this, whenever needed, new dioceses could be established and new
village churches could be built and staffed without papal authorisation. Thus, in institutional
terms, the Christian modes of organisation remained decentralised and could easily be repli-
cated everywhere.
In social and doctrinal terms too, according to Julia Smith (2005), early medieval Christianity
displayed considerable flexibility. There was no uniform definition of a ‘Christian’ except estab-
lishing someone’s Christian identity through the initiation ritual of baptism that opened the
possibility of eternal life after death. A more rigorous definition of a Christian, however, empha-
sised ethical conduct, disengagement from social ties and intellectual understanding of that
belief. At the highest level, all aspects of human existence were brought into a relationship with
the divine in the course of a search for salvation in eternity. Thus, being Christian in the early
medieval ages was not susceptible to a standardised definition. Julia Smith concludes by saying
that before c. 1100, early medieval Christianity was neither centralised nor systematised.
Instead of providing a uniform cultural package, it comprised a combination of beliefs, social
practices and organisational forms that could be locally adopted. Christianity thus in effect
reinforced localism which was a characteristic feature of early medieval Europe.
There were several modes of transportation or dissemination of Christianity in the early
medieval period. These included trade and travelling, cross-border raiding and enslaving and,
of course, through warfare. The reception of travelling merchants, missionaries or political
envoys facilitated interaction leading to familiarity with the Christian religion. While such inter-
actions come under long-distance travel, and are confined to the level of elites and political
leaders, the local cross-border interactions also prompted the emergence of Christian commu-
nities in the hinterland. The best example of trade being a medium of dissemination of Christian
ideas relates to the non-Christian traders who entered Christian territories. The Scandinavian
traders encountered Christianity in this process in the ninth century. The most famous example
of cross-border raiding and slaving as a means of spread of Christian ideas was Patrick, a
Roman-British Christian who was enslaved by Irish raiders, who after escaping later returned
to Ireland to preach Christianity in the fifth century ce. In the early medieval period, it contin-
ued to function as a medium of religious interaction. Warfare also contributed to the spread of
Christianity. The Goths in the third century repeatedly raided Roman territories in the south and
returned with Christian prisoners of war through which they acquired the knowledge of
Christianity. Later, Charlemagne’s war against the Saxons in the eight century ce was also aimed
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 361

at spreading Christianity at sword point. Spread of Christianity during this period was also
dependent upon the political hegemony. The influence of an overlord over the lesser lords and
the search of a petty king for support from a powerful neighbourly king also played its part in
the spread of Christianity.
Although Christianity became the dominant religion of early medieval Europe and brought
about a new cultural unity in the form of Christendom, it was divided within itself due to the
schism that developed between Latin Church of the West and the Greek Church of the East.
This schism in cultural terms too created two different Europe, one dominated by Roman
Catholic Christianity in the West and the other by Greek orthodox Christianity in the East. This
division also had political dimensions and as a result, the newly converted tribes also were
aligned with one or the other. Thus, while tribes of the Baltic region, Poland, Czechoslovakia
and Hungary joined the Western half, the Russians and the Greeks fell on the Eastern side. One
of the earliest issues resulting in the breach between the Latin West and the Greek East was the
controversy related to iconoclasm, that is, opposition to the images of Christ and Christian
saints. The iconoclasts wanted to prohibit the worship of Christ and saints in the form of images
as these, according to them, smacked of idolatry and paganism. On the other hand, the tradi-
tionalists argued that it was not the images that were being worshipped but the heavenly reality
that lay beyond them. The iconoclastic movement was initiated by the Byzantine Emperor Leo
III the Isaurian (717–40 ce) and subsequently pursued more vigorously by his son Constantine
V (740–75 ce). Few scholars have argued that since the European Leo had saved Constantinople
from the Arab attack in 717 ce and Muslims opposed all religious images as ‘the work of Satan’,
iconoclasm may have been an attempt to answer one of Islam’s greatest criticism of Christianity
as well as to ensure that the Christian empire of the East was worshipping God correctly.
Political and financial considerations have also been attributed to behind this campaign. It has
been argued that by proclaiming a radical new religious movement, the emperor may have
intended to reassert their control over the church and check the growing strength of the mon-
asteries. Monasticism had become a dominant movement within Christianity in the East by the
fourth century ce. It was a response to the increasing worldliness of the fourth century church
and the Christians monks seeking to avoid earthly temptations had fled to the forests and des-
erts to practice an ascetic lifestyle in order to achieve salvation. Saint Basil (330–79 ce) in the
East and Saint Benedict of Nursia in the West were the two chief architects of the Christian
monastic movement.
It would be worthwhile to discuss monasticism in little detail as it was not only a distinguish-
ing feature of the early medieval Christian Europe but also gave a religious and cultural inde-
pendence to Christian West vis-à-vis the East. Throughout Christian Europe, the seventh
century witnessed a rapid growth in the foundation of monastic houses. While in the sixth
century, most of the monasteries were located in the Romanised cities of Southern Spain, Gaul
and Northern Italy, the new monasteries of the century were located in the rural areas with an
objective to Christianise the countryside. These monasteries, at times, were given special privi-
leges or immunities that freed them from the control of local bishops and cemented their ties
with the rulers. The new foundations were in the form of either a double monastery (in which
the house of religious men was joined with those of religious women) or in the form of woman
only convents. Both were ruled by abbesses chosen from among the women of the royal fami-
lies, dowager queens, royal princesses or sometimes even the reigning queen herself.
These monasteries, besides providing hermitages to the monks, held special appeal for the
royal and noble women of the Early Middle Ages. They were provided a socially sanctioned
362 Ancient and Medieval World

place where they could exercise some control over their lives denied to them in the imperial
household. It also gave them an honourable position in society through which they could influ-
ence family affairs and protect themselves from such unfortunate situations as abduction, rape
or forced marriages arranged to promote the dynastic interest of the male rulers. For the male
rulers too, the monastic convents provided a dignified place of retirement for inconvenient but
powerful women such as dowager queens. The prayers of holy women were considered particu-
larly effective in securing divine support for the kingdom. These convents also helped reduce
the number of rival claimants to the throne by limiting the number of royal women who could
reproduce. Few scholars argue that establishing royal women in convents was thus an impor-
tant way of controlling the succession disputes, which had become a norm in these early medi-
eval European kingdoms.
These monasteries were also quite active during the new wave of missionary activities that
began in the seventh century. The most famous example of the role of the monasteries in the
expansion of Christianity was the conversion of Anglo-Saxon England. This was brought about
by a group of Benedictine monks led by Saint Augustine of Canterbury who were sent by Pope
Gregory I (590–604 ce) to spread the traditions of Roman Christianity to the kingdom of Kent in
Southeastern England. By the end of the seventh century, the whole of England was brought
firmly within the boundaries of the Roman Christian world. The alliance between the
Benedictine monastery and the Roman papacy was architected by Pope Gregory I. Until this
time, the Roman popes were subordinate to the Byzantine rulers as well as to the Christian
traditions of the East. Pope Gregory I wanted to create a more autonomous western Latin
Church. He developed a theology based on the works of Saint Jerome, Saint Ambrose and Saint
Augustine of Hippo with distinctively western Christian elements. He emphasised on the neces-
sity of penance for the forgiveness of sins and the concept of purgatory as a place of purifica-
tion of soul before it was admitted in to heaven. This proved to be one of the major differences
in the teachings of eastern and western churches. He also wrote a book in simplified Latin prose
style on relationship between bishops and the laity (ordinary people distinct from the profes-
sional clergy). All these developments made the Christian West religiously and culturally more
independent of the Greek East than earlier. Pope Gregory I, while maintaining a good relation-
ship with the Byzantine ruler, asserted his authority as pope over the bishops of the western
church. His patronage helped the rule of Saint Benedict become the most predominant monas-
tic rule in the West, and Benedictine monks emerged as the most important missionary group
in early medieval Western Europe.
Coming back to the iconoclastic controversy, the monasteries of the East like the West sup-
ported the worship of images and were therefore persecuted by the Iconoclastic Emperor
Constantine V. The Pope, who until the eight century was a close ally of the Byzantine rulers,
strongly opposed iconoclasm as it questioned the cult of saints. Moreover, the claims of papal
supremacy were itself based on Pope’s role as Saint Peter’s successor. The papal opposition to
Iconoclasm led to serious religious differences between the Latin West and the Greek East. This
assumed a new dimension after the crowning of Charlemagne as the king of the Western Roman
Empire in 800 ce.
The reign of the Frankish King Charlemagne, besides his famous conquests of Italy, greater
part of Germany and parts of Central Europe, is also known for a new form of Papal-
Frankish-Benedictine relations. The crowning of Charlemagne by the Pope Leo III in 800 ce has
been seen by scholars, such as, Jacques Le Goff (1988), as providing several advantages to the
Pope. The Pope had been imprisoned and persecuted by his enemies in Rome and therefore
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 363

wanted to see his authority restored de facto and de jure by an Emperor whose authority would
be accepted without any dispute. Moreover, as a head of the temporal state, he wanted recogni-
tion of this temporal sovereignty to be corroborated by a king superior to all other in title as
well as in reality. Finally, with the support of the faction of the Roman clergy, he thought of
making Charlemagne an emperor for the entire Christian world, including Byzantium, so as to
fight against iconoclastic heresy and to establish the supremacy of the Roman pontiff over all
the churches of the Christendom. Charlemagne on his part took his responsibility seriously as
a Christian king though he did not wage a war against Byzantium. He saw himself not only as a
ruler of the Franks but a leader of a unified Christian society (called Christendom) which he
was supposed to defend both militarily and spiritually against its enemies.
Charlemagne’s reign also witnessed the development of new ideals of kingship known as
Christian kingship. Under this new notion of kingship, king’s role was defined as that of van-
quisher of enemies, the guardian and defender of churches and the clergy. God was requested
to bestow the king with such qualities as justice and piety to grant him victories over his ene-
mies and shower on him abundant harvests, good health, peace and heirs. Divine help was also
sought for to keep the subject people loyal and peaceable. The high ideals of kingship that
reached its maturity under Charlemagne and his successor has also been explained in terms of
unprecedented powers enjoyed by the Carolingians, which required equally powerful justifica-
tion. Charlemagne’s power had taken many different forms—military success, attempt at regu-
lation of many aspects of daily life, lordship manifested through economic exploitation of the
peasantry and manipulation of the rural aristocracy (appointment of counts, dukes and then
superimposing his own royal vassals in these areas). By stressing on cosmic order and not
human oppression, divine legitimation made submission to such a strong ruler acceptable. Julia
Smith (2005) says that for the king, supernatural sanction was a form of legitimacy far more
potent than mere political consensus, paternal designation or success in battle.
Imbued with these spiritual powers, Charlemagne, like other early medieval European kings,
appointed and deposed bishops and abbots just like his counts and other officials. He also
changed the liturgy of the Frankish church, reformed rules of Frankish monasteries, declared
changes in basic Christian beliefs, prohibited pagan worship and enforced tithe (one-tenth of
the peasant’s produce to be paid to the church) and enforced Christianity over the conquered
people of Saxony. As the dominant political power in central Italy, Charlemagne was also the
protector of the papacy. Although Charlemagne did recognise the Pope as the spiritual leader
of western Christians, he dealt with the Pope in the similar fashion as he did with other bishops
of the Frankish Empire. He supervised and approved papal elections and at the same time,
protected the Pope against his enemies.
The ideology of Christian kingship also brought about benefits for the clergy. Protection of
churches also meant endowing them with economic resources, which the early medieval
European kings granted generously. Thus, the tomb of Saint Martin among the Franks, the
tomb of Saint Columba among the scots and the tomb of Saint Patrick among the Irish along
with many others enjoyed landed wealth of royal origin. In return, kings and their queens
acquired the powerful spiritual patronage of Saints whose shrines they housed. At the same
time, churches and monasteries made their huge landed wealth available to support royal
power. The church also put their considerable legal and administrative expertise at royal dis-
posal and in this manner transmitting some late Roman bureaucratic skills and judicial prin-
ciples to early medieval rulers. An important consequence of this was the right of the clergy to
lecture kings about their responsibilities. Thus, the churchmen freely wrote letters, treatises
364 Ancient and Medieval World

and ­admonitions to the kings, encouraging, exhorting or chastising them. During the period
1050–1300 ce, this became an important factor in a series of conflicts that took place between
kings and popes.

CULTURE IN EARLY MEDIEVAL EUROPE

The cultural developments in the early medieval Europe were deeply influenced by the
Christian thoughts. Within Europe, while the West was still struggling with its political forma-
tion after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, the Eastern Europe under the patronage
of Byzantine rulers made good progress in the field of art, architecture and literature. This is
not to suggest that the West was completely devoid of cultural progress during this period, but
it is true that in terms of literary accomplishments it lagged behind the other contemporary
Islamic and Byzantine civilisations. The Islamic civilisation heavily influenced both the western
and eastern European cultures that developed during the late medieval Europe.
An important determinant of the development of culture in the early medieval Europe was the
movement of people in large numbers. These migrations provided a cultural synthesis through
contact between local forms related to art, architecture and literature. In Europe, with the
spread of Christianity, Latin and Greek alphabets became the medium of writing, learning and
authority. These were concentrated in the hands of the literate clergy or the priestly class. On
the other hand, common people spoke several vernacular languages that resulted from the
migration of people and their settling down in new areas. This duality of language of expression
affected not only literature but also the visual arts. Thus, in the field of architecture, based on
the doctrine and practices of Christianity, western or eastern, two major visual forms of Christian
liturgy and doctrine developed. One of these was ‘Latin’ wherever the western Christianity
expanded and the other was ‘Greek’ wherever the Eastern Christianity prevailed. The distinction
is most visible in the architectural style of the Christian sanctuaries of the East and the West.
The cultural developments in Western Europe in the early medieval period are generally
attributed to the efforts of the Carolingian rulers in general and Charlemagne in particular. In
terms of cultural and intellectual growth, the Carolingian period is considered as a period of
renaissance that was centred on the Carolingian court. The Carolingian rulers, starting with
Pepin, followed to a greater extent by Charlemagne and his successors, promoted a new cul-
ture, inspired by Christianity in Spain, Italy and the British Isles. The Carolingian rulers patron-
ised classical poetry and learning in their conviction that classical learning was the foundation
on which Christian wisdom rested and that such a wisdom was essential for the salvation of
those worshipping the God. In this process, the Carolingian court was turned into an intellec-
tual and cultural centre, and supporting scholarship became a supreme obligation of the
Christian ruler.
In the field of learning, the Carolingian rulers, particularly Charlemagne, revived the ecclesi-
astical schools to educate the clergy so that they acquired enough education to teach the people
entrusted to their care. He also encouraged the bishops to create rural schools in each village
and township. To promote classical learning and Christian wisdom, he recruited scholars from
the far-flung areas of Europe, prominent among them being the English Benedictine monk
Alcuin, whose command of classical Latin grammar established him as the intellectual leader of
Charlemagne’s court. The intellectual exercise of the scholars, led by Alcuin, was however lim-
ited to collating, correcting and recopying classical Latin texts, including the text of the
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 365

Latin Bible. Alcuin and his team of scholars also developed a new style of handwriting called
‘Carolingian minuscule’ in Charlemagne’s honour. This was written in simplified letterforms with
spaces separating words that reduced the likelihood of an error by the subsequent copyists. This
style of writing was not only admired by the Renaissance printers of the fifteenth century but it
is also considered as the foundation of present day typefaces. Charlemagne’s biographer
Eginhard informs us that although Charlemagne was himself unable to write, he took active
interest in subjects such as grammar, rhetoric, astronomy and theology. Religious, scientific and
philosophical questions were discussed in what has been termed as the ‘Palatine Academy’.
As a corollary to the royal patronage towards the intellectual renaissance, some of the lay
(not connected with the church) aristocrats, trying to model themselves on the rulers, also
sought to acquire scholarship. They ordered monks and clerics to produce treatises from the
large number of books in their possession that would guide them and their heirs towards good
conduct and attainment of salvation. These treatises were called ‘mirrors’. For the lay aristo-
crats who were ignorant of Latin, Charlemagne arranged for transcription of ancient poems in
Germanic or Romance that talked about history and wars of the former kings.
In the field of architecture, the Carolingian renaissance was marked by a sudden increase in
building activities. According to an estimate, about hundred or more royal residences were
either erected or altered, twenty-seven cathedrals were created and hundreds of monasteries
had new buildings added to them. The rediscovery of classical treatises on architecture enabled
buildings to be made in stone. The Carolingian architects also borrowed elements from the
beautiful Roman basilicas, triumphal arches and Palatine chapels. The most famous building of
this period is the Palace of Aachen built by Charlemagne after 795 ce as a rival to the palace at
Constantinople. It contains a royal chapel which is adorned with marble columns brought from
Italy and bronze grills and bronze doors. This chapel became the model for several chapels
constructed in the West between the ninth and eleventh centuries. Although the Carolingian
cathedrals have not survived but the archaeological excavations have indicated these churches
having twin facing après (a large semi-circular recess) a design that was later adopted in many
post-Carolingian buildings. A set of vaulted crypts (an underground room or vault) was built
towards the end of the sanctuaries in order to protect relics (a part of a deceased holy person’s
body or belongings kept as an object of reverence) and allow the faithful to worship them. The
churches were richly decorated with marble and stucco (white plaster) facings, capitals (the
broader section at the head of a pillar or column) and carved balustrades (short pillar or
column). The Carolingians also promoted music as a part of Christian ritual by encouraging the
creation of musical repertories as a part of Christian liturgy.
Just as the Carolingian rulers spearheaded the cultural progress in Western Europe in early
medieval period, the Byzantine kings contributed in the similar fashion to promote culture in
Eastern Europe during the same period. The only difference was that although Christian reli-
gion dominated the Byzantine life too, but allegiance to Christianity did not inhabit the
Byzantines from preserving and revering their ancient Greek heritage. In fact, one historian
termed the Byzantine state ‘the Holy Roman Empire of the Greek nation’, suggesting that the
Byzantine civilisation was rooted in these two traditions, that is, the Roman (with respect to
legislation and architecture) and the Greek (with respect to literature, science and arts). But
one has to keep in mind that all the manifestations of the eastern European culture like the West
were deeply permeated by Christianity.
The Byzantine literature was a continuation of the classical ancient Greek literature, and
same was the medium of instruction in the Byzantine schools. The ancient Greek scholar,
366 Ancient and Medieval World

Homer, remained the literary model of Byzantine teaching and a guide to personal morality and
wisdom. Although schools were few and education was imparted privately, there was a revival
of schools for higher learning in the ninth century in which rhetoric, philosophy, mathematics,
astronomy, music, law and medicine were taught. The Byzantine scholars intensively studied
the philosophy of Plato and historical account of Thucydides. However, the Byzantine intellec-
tual life like its Carolingian counterpart in the West was directed towards preservation rather
than innovation. This helped preserve the Greek classical literature until the present day. An
important feature of the Byzantine literary culture was the participation of aristocratic women
in the literary activities. One such famous woman intellectual was the princess Anna Comnena,
who wrote a biography describing the deeds of her father, King Alexius (1081–1118 ce), exten-
sively citing the Greek scholars Homer and Euripides.
The Byzantine contribution in the field of art and architecture is more pronounced than lit-
erature. Churches and fortifications dominated architectural production. In the construction of
churches, unlike the Latin practice in the West, no particular architectural form was prescribed
according to the functions of the churches, that is, monastic church, cathedral church and so
on. Most churches were now vaulted than timber roofed. The most famous church of the early
medieval Eastern Europe was the church of Saint Sophia at Constantinople (modern Istanbul)
with a massive dome resisting on massive piers, enveloped on three sides by an ambulatory (an
aisle or cloister for walking) built in the eight century. The Turks who turned the church into a
mosque added subsequently four minarets to it after the fall of the Byzantine Empire in the
fifteenth century. A distinctive feature of the church architecture in Eastern Europe after the
eight century was the modest size of the churches, perhaps with the idea of constructing greater
number of small churches rather than few large ones.
The churches were carefully decorated with fresco (painting on wall or ceilings on a wet
plaster) paintings and mosaics (pattern produced by arranging together stone, tiles or glass).
Until the early eight century ce, most religious buildings were decorated with representations
of Christ, the Virgin Mary, saints and scenes depicting events of an allegorical nature either of
the Old or New Testaments. A group of clergy and the faithful people were opposed to the rep-
resentations of Christ, the saints and religious scenes that appeared to them as pagan practices.
This opposition ultimately resulted in the iconoclastic crisis (mentioned earlier). But the icon
worshippers continued to decorate part of the church with figures of Christ surrounded by
angels and other parts by Virgin Mary, revered bishops and other saints.

RELIGION IN LATE MEDIEVAL EUROPE

The religious developments in the late medieval or the ‘High Middle Ages’, as it is often called
in Europe, brought about fundamental changes in the character of the European civilisation.
This period (mid-eleventh to mid-fifteenth century) witnessed the emergence of papacy as the
dominant organisational force in western Christianity, a permanent schism between western
and eastern Christianity and a remarkable effort on the part of the church to extend the influ-
ence of Christianity among the laity. This period also witnessed the development of new monas-
tic and religious orders that turned preaching, confession, pilgrimages and private prayers as
the central elements in the religious life of European Christians. Struggle against the Muslims,
termed as crusades, during the same period while on the one hand became a source of unity
among the western Christians, it increased the tension between the Eastern and Western
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 367

Europe on the other. This period was also marked by a growing social distinction between
Christian and non-Christian social groups leading to persecution of such minority groups as
heretics, Jews, Muslims and so on. Last but not the least, the late medieval Europe was also a
witness to a bitter conflict between the church and the state over the issue of superiority.
The rise of the feudal nobility and their entrenched position as local authority had disastrous
consequences for the religious life of Europe during the ninth and tenth centuries. The control
of bishops over the local clergy within their dioceses declined as many of the churches were
abandoned or destroyed. The surviving ones came to be considered as a property of the power-
ful local noble family. These families came to establish control even over the bishoprics and
often sold them as a property. Monasteries also went into decline as they became centres of
knight’s garrison. In the absence of a powerful central authority of the kings, the bishops could
not challenge the power of the feudal nobility. The papacy was equally helpless in correcting
the situation and few of them became examples of moral turpitude. A leading example of such
a moral decline was Pope John XII, who became Pope at the age of 18 due to the influence of
his family that had ruled the city of Rome for half a century. He was considered as illiterate and
licentious. The church itself came to be seen as a source of increasing one’s wealth as many
bishops turned into feudal lords with fiefs of their own.

Reforms of the Church

This overall decline of church in the wake of rise in power of the feudal nobility and the con-
tending clergy led to a series of reforms initiated by the monasteries, followed by the Pope in
the tenth century. Among the monastic reforms, the most prominent was the one initiated by
the abbey of Cluny in Burgundy (France). The reforms brought about constitutional changes,
one of which was to keep the monastery free from domination by local nobility or the local
bishop and placing the Cluny directly under the Pope’s protection. It also founded large number
of daughter monasteries, all of which were made subordinate to the motherhouse. Therefore,
during the reforms, there was an insistence on enforcement of Benedictine vows on all the
monks which made it famous for its high spiritual standards and carefully ordered liturgy. It
was also insisted that selections of new abbots and priors be achieved through free election of
the monks without any buying or selling of the post. France and Italy were the major centres of
the so-called Cluniac Reforms as the absence of effective kingship in these regions had made
royally sponsored monastic reforms a near impossibility. Here, the pious nobles took the lead
in promoting monastic reforms. In Germany and England, however, the Christian kings under-
took monastic reforms as their essential responsibility. Following the Cluniac Reforms, these
kings also insisted on the strict observance of poverty, chastity and obedience within the mon-
astery. Since the Kings themselves granted independence to the monasteries from outside influ-
ence, it was they who appointed the abbots just like bishops in their kingdoms. These parallel
monastic reforms made monasticism the dominant spiritual model for Latin Christianity in the
tenth and eleventh centuries. The monasteries also attracted the pious common people who
visited the monasteries seeking miraculous cures from the saints whose relics were housed
there. This promoted pilgrimage to saint shrines both local and long distance.
Another aspect of the church reform was reform from the top, that is, from the bishops. In
places such as England, reformed monks were appointed by the kings on the post of bishops
whereas in Germany, kings enforced strict requirement of piety and holiness on bishops and
368 Ancient and Medieval World

abbots appointed by them. With the royal support, the bishops began the expansion of the
cathedral churches in order to make them more suitable reflections of the divine deity. German
emperor Henry III appointed a German monastic reformer Leo IX as the Pope at Rome who,
during his tenure (1049–54 ce) issued several decrees against purchase of clerical offices
(Simony), clerical marriage (Nicholaism) and immortality of any sorts. In Leo’s reforms, the
church was seen as a hierarchical organisation in which priests obeyed bishops and the latter
obeyed the Pope who was considered not only as the spiritual and doctrinal leader of western
Christendom but also as the legal and jurisdictional rulers of the entire Christian church. Even
more significant in the series of church reforms were those initiated under Pope Gregory VII
(1073–85 ce) which is said to have heralded the rise of the truly Christian Middle Ages as an
important phase in European civilisation. The ‘Gregorian Reforms’, as it has been termed, com-
pletely freed the papacy from the control of the German Kings. As an old church reformer,
Gregory also supported the end of Simony and Nicholaism, but he had a firm conviction that
these goals could not be achieved unless free election to all church offices had been fully
realised. Under Gregory, the church ruled out any further investiture of bishops by any secular
ruler anywhere. This led to what is known as the ‘Investiture Conflict’ between the Pope and
the king. This conflict raised the fundamental issue about the relationship between temporal
and spiritual authority and the control that popes and kings should exercise over the clergy. The
Investiture Conflict was finally resolved in 1122 ce through a compromise termed as Concordat
of Worms. Through this compromise, the German emperor was forbidden to invest prelates
(high ecclesiastical dignitary) with the religious symbols of their office but was allowed to
invest them with the symbols of their right as temporal rulers as the emperor was recognised
as their temporal overlord. In this manner, the emperor was able to retain a great deal of influ-
ence over appointments to the post of bishop and abbeys despite allowing free elections. The
Investiture Conflict though ended with a compromise created a lasting conceptual distinction
between religion and politics in Western Europe, identifying the church with spiritual authority
(sacerdotium) and the state with political authority (imperium). At the same time, this conflict
also identified the bishops as a part of a hierarchical clerical order headed by the Pope.
The Investiture Conflict greatly enhanced the power of the papacy as it helped rally the west-
ern clergy behind the Pope and who now could claim his jurisdictional supremacy over the
clerical hierarchy. The popes of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries worked towards establish-
ing the monarchical authority of the papacy over the church. Pope Innocent III (1198–1216 CE)
was among the most successful late-medieval age pope in this endeavour. He primarily aimed
at unifying the whole Christendom under the hegemony of the Pope in order to bring about
‘right order in the world’. Although he did not question the rights of the kings in the secular
sphere as was done by Gregory VII, he believed that as a pope he was obliged to discipline kings
whenever they sinned. An often-quoted remark of Innocent III regarding the obligation of every
Christian was ‘just as every knee is bowed to Jesus… so all men should obey his vicar [the
Pope]’ (Coffin and Stacey 2008). To consolidate the papal authority, more territories in Central
Italy were brought under the papal control, thus earning Pope Innocent III the title of founder
of the Papal States. The present Vatican City is the last surviving remnant among these. Pope
Innocent’s influence also extended to Germany where he was able to install his candidate,
Frederick II, as the emperor, to England where he forced King John to appoint a person of his
choice as the archbishop of Canterbury and to France where he was able to discipline French
King Philip Augustus for his marital misconduct. A feather in the crown with respect to the
achievement of the Pope was the council at Rome in 1215 ce where the central dogmas of
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 369

Christianity were defined, leadership of the Pope within Christendom was clearly recognised
and his authority in disciplining the kings was validated. But the other popes of the thirteenth
century did not enjoy the stature of Pope Innocent III and in their prolonged struggle with the
temporal authorities (to be discussed later) brought down the prestige of the church.

Crusades and Their Impact

The Arab expansion in the seventh and early eighth centuries threatened both Eastern and
Western Europe. Arabs had annexed Jerusalem in 650 ce, most important among the earliest
holy places of the Christians, and also made a failed attempt to capture Constantinople in 717
ce. In the west, the Arabs conquered the entire Spain and continued to hold it until the twelfth
century. Although the Byzantine Empire had survived the Arab attack and conquered most of
the Asia Minor, a new Islamic power in the form of the Seljuk Turks drove the Byzantines from
Asia Minor in the eleventh century and also annexed Anatolia, which was considered as the
wealthiest and the most productive part of the empire. Jerusalem also fell in the hands of
the Turks, which they wrested, from the Shiite Fatimids. By the end of the century, however,
the Byzantine Emperor Alexius Comnenus (1081–1118 ce) was able to rebuild the Byzantine
finances and planned a campaign against the Turks. While doing so, he sought the help of Pope
Urban II in the form of fighters to be used as heavy cavalry. This initiated a series of armed
struggle between the Christendom and the Muslim world. Since the war started on the issue of
the capture of the Holy city of Jerusalem and assumed a religious colour, it was therefore
termed as ‘crusades’ by the Christians and jihad by the Muslims. Between 1095 ce and 1270 ce,
scholars have listed as many as seven crusades, which greatly affected the religious, political,
economic and cultural life of Europe.
The motives behind the first crusade that began in 1095 ce were varied and were the only one
to bring about some success to the Christendom. Through the crusade, the Pope (Urban II)
wanted to establish his superiority over the Western Christian society in a bitter struggle with
the German king Henry IV. Jonathan Riley-Smith (2004) is of the opinion that from the point of
view of Pope Urban, it was a war of liberation with two aims: the liberation of eastern Christians
and liberation of a place (Jerusalem) from Muslim domination. This, according to Riley-Smith,
placed the First Crusade firmly in the context of the struggle endangered by the eleventh-century
reformation that was taking place in Western Europe. Another objective was to bring back the
orthodox church of the Eastern Europe into communion with the papacy. However, the most
significant motive was religious, that is, to win back Jerusalem from the Muslim control as it was
considered as the holiest city of the Christians, being the homeland of Jesus. It has been argued
by some that Pope’s motive behind the crusade was not only to add Palestine to the lands of
Christendom but also to deflect Christian aggressiveness from inter-Christian wars and provide
an outlet beyond the confines of the West. But despite Jerusalem being taken in 1099 ce, it
proved to be a huge financial burden for the participants, particularly the knights besides being
bloody as large number of Muslims, Jews and Christian inhabitants of Jerusalem were slaugh-
tered in the process. But since Jerusalem was also considered as the holy city of the Muslims,
they recaptured it in 1187 ce under the leadership of Salauddin. All subsequent crusades failed
to bring about any major gains despite German, English and French emperors taking active part
in it. In fact, the civil war in Germany combined with war between France and England weak-
ened the crusades due to non-availability of the knights. The attack of crusaders on
370 Ancient and Medieval World

Constantinople in 1204 ce on the charge of Byzantine Empire allying with the Muslims clearly
showed that the crusades had become directionless. The westerners got hold of Jerusalem only
in 1229 ce after a treaty between Roman Emperor Frederick II and the Egyptian ruler.
The consequences of the crusades have been widely analysed by scholars and there is a near
unanimity that in political, economic as well as religious terms, its impact was more negative
than positive on Europe. It has been argued by scholars, such as, Jacques Le Goff (1988), that
material causes (mainly the growth in population) had played an essential role in triggering off
the crusades besides intellectual and emotional desires. The desire for land, wealth and knight’s
fees overseas was also a major attraction in the crusades. But Le Goff argues that the crusades
did not satisfy the westerner’s hunger for Western Europe, which had resulted due to earlier
links with the Muslim world and its own internal economic development. Except for a few
Italian towns such as Genoa and Venice, which were able to enrich themselves due to benefits
accruing from hiring out ships and lending money to crusaders, the crusades failed to bring
about western commercial growth. On the contrary, Le Goff argues, the crusades impoverished
the West, particularly the knightly class, who had to undertake long and arduous journey at
their own expense. However, other scholars such as J. G. Coffin and R. G. Stacey (2008), point-
ing out the long-term economic significance of the crusades, argue that the drive by the western
merchants (supported by the western military force) to control the trade in spices, silks and
gold by ‘cutting out the Islamic middleman’ in the thirteenth century eventually lead to the cre-
ation of worldwide European mercantile and colonial empires from the sixteenth century
onwards. Moreover, the conquest of Spain and the Iberian Peninsula from the Muslims by the
crusades during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries provided the motivation behind the
Portuguese and Spanish voyages of discovery during the fifteenth century and the conquest of
the Americas during the sixteenth century.
Internally, the crusades weakened the Christian states rather than creating a unity of mind
by encouraging national hostilities such as between Germans and the French. More impor-
tantly, the crusades created a lasting barrier between Latins and the Greeks, based on the con-
viction that the Byzantine Empire itself was an obstacle in the way of the success of the
crusades, grew sharper with each crusade culminating in the sack of Constantinople in 1204 ce.
Besides, the conflict between Christians and the Muslims deepened the mutual hostility
between the two, resulting in the rise in the spirit of holy war (  jihad) among the Muslims.
Among the excesses of the crusades were the merciless slaughter of the Jews, Muslims and
even Christian inhabitants of Jerusalem. But despite the armed confrontation between the
Christians and the Muslims, the contact between the two had important cultural consequences,
which will be dealt with later in the chapter.

The Heterodox Religious Movements

The church reforms spearheaded by Pope Gregory VII to cleanse the church and his explicit call
on the laity to help discipline their priests led to the growth of a series of religious revivalist
movements in the eleventh century. While, the church approved a few of these, others were
denounced as heresies for disobeying the authority of the church. By the eleventh century, the
religious commitment of the people had increased so immensely that Christianity did not
remain a mere religion but an ideal that began to govern and direct human lives. Few of these
revivalist movements became hugely popular despite attempt of the Pope to suppress it.
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 371

Two prominent examples of this new monastic revival of the eleventh and twelfth centuries
were the Carthusians and the Cistercians. The monks of the Carthusian monastic order were
required to live in separate cells, abstain from meat and fast three days each week on bread,
salt and water. However, Carthusian order remained a small group as they never sought to
attract a large number of followers. The Cistercians, on the other hand, acquired great popular-
ity due to their adherence to Benedictine rule in the purest and most austere way possible.
Under the leadership of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1090–1153 ce), who was considered as the
most influential European religious personality of his age, the Cistercian order grew immensely.
This order also brought about a change in the nature of religious belief and devotion by shifting
away from the worship of saints to an emphasis on worship of Jesus and veneration of Virgin
Mary. Virgin Mary became the patron saint of the Cistercians. Saint Bernard taught about her
life and virtues, and, as a result of her popularity, large number of magnificent new churches
and cathedrals (churches containing the seat of the bishop) were built at several places in
France by the term Notre Dame or ‘our lady’. Theologically, Mary was given the role of interces-
sor on behalf of her son (Jesus) for the salvation of human souls. It was held that Mary was the
mother of all, a repository of mercy who urges the salvation even for sinners. Historians regard
the popularity of this cult as significant because for the first time, a woman was given a central
and revered place in the western Christianity. Besides, it has also been argued that the rise of
the cult of Virgin Mary was closely associated with a general rise of hopefulness and optimism
in the twelfth-century Western Europe. These revivalist movements called for apostolic simplic-
ity and emphasised the need to go out in to the ‘desert’ (lonely place) and rediscover in solitude
the true values of Christianity from which the western world seemed to be distancing itself.
Few scholars have argued that by extolling manual labour and by organising new forms of eco-
nomic activity like new methods of cultivation such as crop rotation, stock rearing and adop-
tion of mills and iron works, they also performed significant economic role.
While these monastic revival movements were generally approved by the church, as they did
not challenge the papal/church authority, there were others that openly criticised the church for
losing its idealistic goals. Prominent among these popular heresies were Catharism and
Waldensianism. The Cathars, who were mainly popular in Northern Italy and Southern France,
preached about the need for extreme ascetic practices. The Cathars were not directly con-
nected with Christianity even though the followers claim to be Christians. They had their own
distinct theology, clergy and ritual practice. Waldensianism, on the other hand, was a movement
where the followers were mainly laypersons who wished to imitate the life of Christ and the
apostles (missionaries who followed Christianity strictly) to the fullest. Their popularity was
marked in Southern France, Northern Italy and Germany. They translated and studied the
Christian gospels and dedicated themselves to the lives of poverty and preaching. Even though
they were Christians, they invited the ire of the church for preaching without authorisation and
were later declared as heretics for disobeying the church. Pope Innocent III took definite steps
to curb these popular heresies by asking the rulers to declare a crusade against them. This led
to a crusading expedition known as the ‘Albigensian Crusade’, led by the church and supported
by the nobility of Northern France against those of the Southern France who had allowed the
Cathars to flourish in their territories. But the Cathar movement could only be fully overcome
by the end of the thirteenth century while a small group of Waldensians continued to survive
until the seventeenth century in the mountainous regions of Switzerland and Southern Germany.
Few other popular idealistic movements such as the Dominicans and the Franciscans also
flourished in Western Europe during this period. Their success lies in the fact that they
372 Ancient and Medieval World

remained obedient to the church and this suited the scheme of things of Pope Innocent III, who
wanted to promote these movements, which accepted the authority of the church and at the
same time worked to fight the heresy themselves. The Dominican order was founded by Saint
Dominic (1170–1221 ce) which particularly worked to fight against the heresy and also engaged
in the conversion of Jews and Muslims through preaching and public debate. They did not with-
drew to the monasteries and accepted the social life but also wandered through towns and
countryside preaching spiritual guidance. They accepted voluntary poverty and begged for their
subsistence thus resembling Waldensians. But unlike the latter, they accepted unquestioned
obedience to the Pope. Saint Thomas Aquinas was one of the famous thinkers of the Dominican
order in the thirteenth century, whose theological writings were used to convert the non-­
Christians (gentiles) to Christianity. The Franciscan order was founded by an Italian, Saint
Francis of Assisi (1182–1226 ce), who was the son of a rich merchant of Assisi. Disillusioned
with the materialistic value, he turned into a social rebel and a heretic. In order to ensure purity
in a materialistic and morally corrupt world, the Franciscans practised humility and poverty
and earned their livelihood by begging. Being disturbed at these activities, the Pope wanted to
impose a rule on Franciscans and turn them into a mendicant order which could be fitted in the
great order of the church. This led to a split between the Franciscans, enabling the church to
win the support of the moderates who did not adhere to absolute poverty and supported
coming to terms with the world. They became church’s new militia in addressing the inhabitants
of the urban areas and providing answers to the problems of the new society by their preaching,
their confessions and their examples. Both, the Dominicans and Franciscans established them-
selves in the towns and preached people through the church of the university chairs.
The growth of towns in Europe and the predominance of the church supported mendicant
orders like Dominicans, and the Franciscans pushed those monastic communities and hermits
into backgrounds that were linked to a rural and feudal society. This was particularly true for
such monastic sects as the Cistercians. Jacques Le Goff (1988) and some others believe that the
great heresies of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries such as Catharcism can also be termed as
‘anti-feudal’ heresies because by calling the very structure of society into question, these here-
sies attacked its basic component, that is, the feudal system. Many of these movements were
centred in towns where people lived of crafts and trade, and, their attitude, at least in the begin-
ning, was egalitarian whereas the basis of feudal society was strict adherence to social
hierarchies.

CULTURE IN EUROPE DURING THE HIGH MIDDLE AGES

The late medieval age or the ‘High Middle Ages’ was a period of tremendous growth in the field
of intellectual thought and culture. This ‘Renaissance of the Twelfth Century’, as it is often
called, was facilitated partly by the arrival of new works on literature and philosophy (including
the writings of Aristotle) from the Islamic world to Western Europe and partly due to more
rigorous thinking on fundamentals of theology and philosophy by the Europeans themselves.
Rapid growth of places of learning such as universities and schools further galvanised the pro-
cess. This period also witnessed the development of new literary forms such as vernacular
poetry and romances. Until the end of the thirteenth century, Western Europe had lagged
behind the Byzantine Empire and the Islamic world in the field of education, art and architec-
ture. But by the beginning of the fourteenth century, we are told, Europe had become the leader
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 373

among these three civilisations, particularly in the intellectual and artistic field. Ancient
Egyptian, Greek and Roman tradition became the basis of the intellectual and artistic revival of
Western Europe in the late medieval period. However, Europeans are also credited for having
made some major contributions of their own too.

Literature
In the field of literature, an interesting development in Europe in the late medieval age was the
simultaneous process of development of vernacular language and the Latin literature reaching
its high watermark. While the Latin literature facilitated the linguistic and ecclesiastical unity
of Europe, growth of vernacular language offered choices for the literate for their literary pur-
suits, resulting in an increase in the number of literary works. Jan M. Ziolkowski (2004) is of the
view that Latin performed the same function as the classical Arabic did among Muslims in the
modern Arab world, as the former served as essential mode of communication in religion, edu-
cation and certain administrative and commercial matters. Until the twelfth century, Ziolkowski
argues, the notion of literacy usually entailed knowledge of Latin in most areas of Western
Europe, and, since majority of litterati were clerics, to be a layman or laicus connoted lack of
Latin and illiteracy. The revival of grammatical training in the universities and schools helped a
great deal in popularising Latin among not only the students but also the knights who desired
to become litterati. As Latin became the sole medium of communication (oral as well as writ-
ten) in the educational institutions, it became the language of business and pleasure as well.
The literature of this period was affected by a sort of revolution in learning. One of the reasons
behind this expansion of learning was the fact that while during the reign of Charlemagne,
formal education was restricted to Monasteries and schools attached to them, by the end of
twelfth century, Cathedral schools and universities had expanded to several parts of France,
Italy and England. The vernacular languages that developed during this period gave the writers
new ideas and novel ways of expressing these. Now the literary genre was divided into letter
writing, verse writing and preaching. The High Middle Ages is known for excellent Latin poetry
written by a group of people popularly known as Goliards, which were mainly in the form of
secular lyrics. These are mostly in the form of satires as a kind of rejection of Christian
asceticism.
Apart from the variety of products of Latin Literature (both prose and verse), this period
also witnessed the development of literature in French, Spanish, Italian and German vernacu-
lar languages. Apart from the growth of educational institutions, growth of vernacular lan-
guage has also been explained by the desire of the literate to express themselves in their
mother tongue due to their emotional attachment. The literary experimentations of the twelfth
century also led to the inclusion of the vernacular languages in the literary compositions. Most
prominent among the vernacular languages of this period was Occitan that developed in
Southern France. Ziolkowski (2004) is of the view that in the field of literature, France stands
out in the twelfth century renaissance much the same way as Italy did in the fifteenth century
renaissance. Particularly notable among the French writers were the troubadour poets and
those who dealt in courtly romances. They became the model for all subsequent such writings
in Western Europe. Majority of the products of the troubadour poets are romantic poems
(canso). The canso extolled the virtues of ‘fine or true love’, which reflected the romantic pas-
sion and reverence for the beloved who improved the lover. The troubadour poems were also
374 Ancient and Medieval World

later adopted by the trouvères of Northern France and by the German poets popularly known
as Minnesingers (from Minnesang, the German version of canso) who, apart from following
their own traditions, were greatly impacted by the literary developments in Southern and
Northern France. Another important French literary invention was the long narrative poems
known as romances on account of their being written in Romance language which was derived
from Latin. The theme of the Romance poems was largely related to love and adventure and
the subject matter was made interesting by engaging stories and excellent portrayal of charac-
ters. One of the most prominent romance writers of the twelfth century was the French
Chrétien de Troyes who introduced new elements in the romantic poem. While the trouba-
dours exalted extramarital love, Chrétien advocated the idea of romantic love within the mar-
riage. The work of Chrétien was followed by two great German poets of the late medieval age
Wolfram and Gottfried. Wolfram’s Parzival (a story of love and search of the Holy Grail) also
talked about love within the marriage, a psychological profiling of the hero. There is also a
reference to contact with the Arabs as the hero is supposed to have married an Arab queen.
This suggests cultural links Between Christian and Arab world, which was a direct outcome of
the crusades. Gottfried’s Tristan is a tragic love story and is considered as a prototype of
modern tragic romanticism.
Poets of both humble background and high status had an important place in the prevailing
political scenario as their poems were used as editorials, war cries and advertisements. For
example, in order to rise soldiers into fighting to win Jerusalem from the Arabs, crusade songs
were composed in both Latin and vernacular languages. But despite their importance in the
polity and society of the late medieval age, the poets had to look for patrons as reflected in
both eulogies written in favour or criticism of the patrons. This also led to competition
between Latin and vernacular poets, both of which were vying for attention of the patrons.
There was also some sort of a hierarchy in the different ranks of the poets. At the top of this
hierarchy were the nobles, dominated by men. Women poets were miniscule in comparison
and were mostly engaged in vernacular love poems. Below the nobility were the clerics and
lesser nobles who produced lyrical romantic poem for their patrons. There were very few
people from the Knightly class who were engaged in such literature. Most of the literature was
produced for a privilege audience. Thus, while the Latin literature was aimed at bishops,
monks and clerics, the vernacular literature targeted kings, knights and clerics. Whatever be
the status of the poets and their patronage, the literature of the twelfth century, in the opinion
of Ziolkowski, represented the revival of classical learning as well as a new eagerness to
explore hitherto unrecorded resources of popular culture and the people living in Europe
engaged in an active and not always hostile confrontation with the worlds and religions
outside.

Art and Architecture

The growth of art and architecture in the High Middle Ages revolved around the image of the
church. Since great amount of divinity was attached with the church, an attempt was made
to attain high level of accuracy, beauty and technical precision in the field of architecture,
sculpture and painting. Through these, a particular imagery was created which displayed the
dominance of the church in the political, social and religious life of Europe. The
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 375

architectural development in the late medieval age has been divided into two distinct styles,
popularly known as Romanesque (a term used to describe an altered Roman architecture)
and Gothic. When it comes to defining the two, there has been a lengthy debate among the
art historians, based on their notion of the medieval art, and the historians who had devel-
oped a certain image of the medieval age. This debate led some scholars to consider
Romanesque as the architectural product of the Investiture Conflict whereas Gothic as the
product of the twelfth century renaissance. But others, such as, Peter Kidson (2004), argue
that both Romanesque and Gothic architecture were products of the immense discharge of
energy that galvanised the whole of western Christendom during the eleventh and twelfth
centuries. Both these styles, points out Kidson, were deliberately invented to serve the inter-
est of the ecclesiastical propaganda as well as to express the spiritual aspirations of the
society as a whole.
After the reform movement, the art served two main purposes for the church—as an aid to
teaching the finer aspects of Christianity and to make visible to the common Christians the
powers of the unseen and the past-events displaying pious aspects of the Christian life. Since
teaching the layman was the chief objective behind art, the abstracts forms such as arches and
columns would not have served the purpose to get across abstract ideas. Therefore, a new
kind of figurative art in the form of monumental sculptures was promoted, which was easily
accessible to the public, were large in scale and valuable in terms of their form and not the
material. In the Romanesque and Gothic sculpture, smaller subjects were depicted on capitals
whereas the monumental ones were displayed on jambs and tympana of portals as well as on
screens and on large panels in the cloisters. Explaining the economic importance of these art
forms, Peter Kidson (2004) argues that the Romanesque and Gothic churches exemplified a
new structural technology based on arches rather than walls that rested on the ability to cut
and shape stone at will. Simultaneously with this developed the new range of tools and the
skills to use them. Thus, according to Kidson, the imbalance between the skilled and unskilled
was removed.
The Romanesque style of architecture originated in the tenth century but reached its mature
form by the first half of the twelfth century as a part of the church reform movement that wit-
nessed a spurt in the construction monasteries and large churches. In this style, the architec-
tural details were made subordinate in order to display the majesty of the God in stone. The
distinguishing features of the Romanesque style were rounded arch, colossal walls and big
support columns or piers and small windows and horizontal lines. All these features combined
together provided stability to the buildings (see Figure 10.1). The interiors were mostly plain,
but, at times, they were intercepted by mosaics and frescoes in bright colours showing anony-
mous saints. Another feature of the Romanesque art form, which is considered as one of the
important innovation for Christian art was the introduction of decorative sculptures (in both
the exterior and the interior). Gradually, some of the facades were decorated with human fig-
ures that often crossed natural physical dimensions but definitely represented the revival of
interest in human sculptures.
The Romanesque style of architecture was replaced by the Gothic style all over Europe
during the course of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. While few art historians see continuity
between the two styles, others believe that the appearances of the two are enough to suggest
that the two were distinctively different from each other. Some scholars, such as, J. G. Coffin
and R. G. Stacey (2008), use the analogy of difference between an epic and romance to make a
376 Ancient and Medieval World

FIGURE 10.1  Notre-Dame la Grande, Poitiers, France, c.1086 (Romanesque Style)

Image Credit: Gibert Bochenek.

Source: [Link]

distinction between the two styles of architecture. To justify this analogy, Coffin and Stacey
argue that the Gothic style emerged in France in the mid twelfth century at the same time when
the romance did and because it was far more sophisticated, graceful and elegant than its pre-
decessor in the same way that the romance compared with the epic. The Gothic style was also
more intricate than all previous styles of architecture that developed in Europe. Distinguishing
features of this style were pointed arches, ribbed vaulting and flying buttress. In comparison to
the round arch and the massive columns of the Romanesque style, the above features of the
Gothic style made possible higher as well as lighter buildings. Gothic architecture therefore at
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 377

times is described as skeletal framework of FIGURE 10.2 Notre-Dame de Reims

stones that are enclosed by massive windows Cathedral, France, Built
(see Figure 10.2). c. 1220–99 (Gothic Style)
The façades of Gothic buildings were elabo-
rately sculpted and mythical monsters were
represented on the exterior as decoration. The
coloured glasses of the windows that provided
the richness of colour to the sunlight entering
the cathedral. An important feature of the
Gothic style was the inclusion of secular
themes within largely religious buildings.
Another significant sculptural innovation in
the Gothic buildings was the natural represen-
tation of human figures like that of Jesus,
Virgin Mary as well as plants and the animal
life. Since most of the Gothic buildings were
located in the medieval cities, they are regarded
as manifestations of urban life. They were the
locus of the urban community life and were
considered as pride of the town wherever they
were situated. The many symbolic figures that
adorn the cathedrals have led some to regard
Image Credit: Traveler100.
them as a kind of encyclopaedia of medieval
Source: [Link]
knowledge. [Link]

Summary
1. In European historiography, since the time of Italian Renaissance, the period c.
600–1500 has been termed as ‘Middle Age’ to contrast it with the earlier period
known as Antiquity. Traditionally, the Middle Age has been seen as a darker side of
European history. But in recent days, scholars argue that the Middle Age laid the
political, cultural and religious foundation of the European civilisation. The concept
of Middle Age, however, is applied only to the Latin-speaking Western Europe that
had to compete with the Greek-speaking Byzantine and the Arabic-speaking Islamic
civilisation.
2. In the sphere of religion, Christianity retained its predominant impact on the
European culture to the extent that by the ninth century the term Europe came to be
replaced by Christendom (the land of Rome cantered Christianity). Christianity and
Christendom acted as a bridge between ancient and medieval Europe with respect
to continuity in religious and cultural aspects. It also acted as a link between Western
(Continued)
378 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

and Eastern Roman Empires. Since the migratory tribes such as Goths, Vandals and
Franks were also integrated into the Christendom, European culture that developed
in Europe was a synthesis of all these traditions.
3. The decline of the Western Roman Empire further strengthened the influence of
Christianity. Bishop of Rome (pope) became the de facto heir of imperial Rome and
church officials gradually took over the function of state governance. In the prov-
inces, the clergy joined hand with the local feudal lords in the administration. By the
tenth century ce, Christianity had covered the whole of Europe. The rapid spread of
Christianity in the early medieval Europe has been explained in terms of their popu-
lar doctrine, a strong community structure, its decentralised and small-scale form of
organisation and its doctrinal flexibility. An important aspect of Christianity was that
it was a combination of belief, sound practices and organisational forms that could
be locally adopted. Thus, Christianity also promoted localism which was also a fea-
ture of early medieval Europe. Pope was the head of the Christian community, and,
in the West, it was he who appointed bishops and archbishops of the regional
centres.
4. There were several modes of dissemination of Christianity in early medieval Europe
that included trade and traveling, cross-border raids, enslavement and warfare. The
political hegemony of an overlord over the lesser lords also was an important factor
for the spread of Christianity.
5. Christianity, in the same period, had to face schism in the form of division of
Christianity into Latin Church of the West and Greek Church of the East. This schism
had both political and cultural dimensions. This schism also led to the iconoclastic
movement in the East which opposed worship of Jesus in the image form as it was
found to be similar to pagan practices. The emperors of the East by promoting
iconoclastic movement tried to assert their control over the church.
6. The early medieval Europe also witnessed the growth of monastic movement that
had developed in response to increasing worldliness of the church since the fourth
century. Many monks had moved to forests and deserts to avoid earthly temptations
and live an ascetic life in order to achieve the ultimate goal of salvation. The monas-
tic movement in the seventh century led to the development of large number of
monasteries that were particularly located in the rural areas. These included double
monasteries and women only convents. The convents had special attraction for
women of the royal families as it gave them independence to live their life away from
the threat of abduction, rape and forced marriage to improve the dynastic interests
of the royal families. For the male rulers too, these convents were ideal place to
retire powerful but inconvenient women such as dowager queens. This institution
also helped to control the succession disputes by limiting the number of royal
women who could reproduce.
7. The seventh century in Europe was also a period when the pope made an attempt to
secure the independence of the western Latin Church from the influence of the east-
ern Byzantine Church. Pope Gregory I, by promoting Benedictine concepts such as
necessity of penance for forgiveness and purgatory or purification of soul before its
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 379

entry into heaven, managed to secure a different identity for and independence of
Western Church. He also claimed his control over bishops of the West and popular-
ised monasteries that followed the teachings of Saint Benedict. Saint Benedict’s rule
became the most dominant monastic rule in the West and the Benedictine monks
became the most prominent Christian missionaries in early medieval Europe.
8. The reign of Frankish king Charlemagne is considered as significant for the estab-
lishment of superiority of the Western Church over the Eastern Church. Charlemagne
created a powerful empire and secured divine sanction from Pope Leo III to legiti-
mise his rule. In return, the Pope was declared by Charlemagne as religious head of
the entire Christendom. His reign also witnessed the development of new ideals of
kingship known as Christian kingship whereby he was designated not only as the
ruler of the Franks but of the entire Christian society. Under the notion of Christian
kingship, the king’s role was clearly defined as to act as vanquisher of enemies and
the guardian and defender of the clergy. While this ideal of kingship brought eco-
nomic benefits to the clergy (in terms of land grants to the churches), it also estab-
lished Charlemagne’s control over the clergy, particularly in matters of appointment
of bishops and abbots.
9. Cultural developments in early medieval Europe were deeply influenced by Christian
thoughts. Migration of people from one area to the other also played its role in bring-
ing about synthesis in the field of art, architecture and literature. While in the literary
field Latin and Greek were the chief mediums of instruction, common masses spoke
vernacular languages. This dualism was also reflected in visual arts. The difference
between Latin Christianity of the West and Greek Christianity of the East became
visible in the architectural styles of the Western and Eastern Europe.
10. Carolingian rulers such as Pepin and Charlemagne are credited for having played an
important role in the growth of a new culture inspired by Christianity. They brought
about a renaissance as the classical poetry and learning was revived under their rule.
The Carolingian court patronised the intellectual and cultural activities of this
period. In the field of learning, ecclesiastical schools were revived by these rulers to
educate the clergy, and bishops were encouraged to open schools in each village and
township. Intellectuals, such as, Alcuin, were invited in the royal court to impart
training in Latin Grammar. Alcuin and his group of scholars developed a new style
of handwriting called ‘Carolingian miniscule’, which was not only approved by the
fifteenth century renaissance scholars but also provided the foundation of for pres-
ent day typefaces. Treatises known as ‘mirrors’ were also developed by the laity to
teach their heirs good conduct and attainment of salvation.
11. The Carolingian period also witnessed a spurt in architectural construction. Large
number of royal residences, cathedrals and monasteries were built in stone.
Carolingian architects borrowed elements from Roman basilicas for such construc-
tions. The Palace of Aachen built by Charlemagne with a royal chapel was the most
significant building of this period. The churches were richly decorated with marble
and stucco facings, capital and carved balustrades.
12. In Eastern Europe, the Byzantine rulers promoted cultural growth in the same
manner as Charlemagne did for Western Europe. However, the Byzantines, besides
(Continued)
380 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

adopting Christian elements, also followed the Greek heritage while promoting cul-
ture in general. The Byzantine literature was a continuation of classical ancient
Greek literature which was also the medium of instruction in schools. There was an
increase in the number of schools of higher learning in the ninth century where
rhetoric, philosophy, mathematics, astronomy, music, law and medicine were taught.
Women actively participated in the literary activities that were an important feature
of Byzantine literary culture.
13. Churches and forts were the major architectural productions of the Byzantine rulers.
However, unlike the West, in the construction of churches in the East, specific func-
tions of the church (monastic or cathedral), was not kept in mind. Most famous
church of the East was the church of Saint Sophia at Constantinople built in the
eighth century. Changes in the architecture of the church were brought about by the
Turks after the downfall of the Byzantine Empire. The churches were modest in size
in Eastern Europe as the idea was to construct more small churches than to build
few large ones. Churches were decorated with fresco and mosaics. The iconoclastic
controversy also had its role in the decoration of these churches.
14. Religion in late medieval Europe (eleventh–fifteenth century) brought about funda-
mental changes in European civilisation. During this period, Pope emerged as the
most dominant organising force in western Christianity, and a permanent schism
developed between western and eastern Christianity. The High Middle Ages also
witnessed development of new monastic and religious orders. Moreover, the strug-
gle against the Muslims led to crusades. This was also a period of a bitter conflict
between church and the state over superiority.
15. Weakening of central authority and rise in the power of feudal nobility in late medi-
eval Europe had adversely affected the influence of the church which was also beset
with the problem of moral decline of the clergy. This ushered in a period of reform
movement within church (known as monastic reforms). Since these reforms were
initiated by the abbey of Cluny (France), these are also called Cluniac Reforms.
These included constitutional reforms to keep the monastery away from the influ-
ence of local nobility, formation of daughter monasteries subordinate to the mother-
house, selection of new abbots and priors on the basis of free election prohibiting
buying and selling of clerical posts. In Italy and France, these reforms were pro-
moted by the pious nobles in the absence of effective monarchy whereas these were
initiated by the kings in Germany and England.
16. The reforms began from the top, that is, from the bishops. In Germany and England,
the rulers placed strict moral conditions while appointing bishops. Major reforms
were brought under the leadership of Pope Leo IX and later under Gregory VII. While
Leo IX introduced a hierarchical organisation of the church, Gregory VII completely
freed the papacy from the control of the rulers. The ‘Gregorian Reforms’, as they are
called, led to what is popularly known as ‘Investiture Conflict’ between the Pope and
the king of Germany over the investiture of bishops by secular rulers. This conflict
was resolved through a compromise known as ‘Concordat of Worms’. Rulers were
forbidden to invest higher ecclesiastical authorities with religious symbols but were
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 381

allowed to invest them with symbols that signified temporal control of the rulers
over the clergy. This conflict increased the power of the Pope, and, by thirteenth
century, the Pope was able to establish monarchical control over the church. Pope
Innocent II even went to the extent of claiming the right to discipline the kings.
17. The Arab expansion in the seventh and eighth century had threatened both western
and eastern empires. Conquest of Jerusalem by the Arabs in 650 ce, Spain in 717 ce
and attack by Turks on the Byzantines in Asia Minor resulted in a series of armed
conflict between Christendom and the Islamic world. Since the conflict began on the
issue of control over Jerusalem (a holy place for both Christians and the Muslims),
it assumed a religious colour and was termed as crusades by the Christians and
jihad by the Muslims. Between 1095 and 1270 ce, at least seven such crusades are
said to have taken place. The impact of the crusades has been debated widely by the
scholars by taking into account both positive and negative impacts.
18. The church reforms led by Gregory VII resulted in a series of religious revivalist
movements in the eleventh century. Carthusians and Cistercians were two early
examples of the heterodox religious movements that took place in late medieval
Europe. While few of these prescribed an austere lifestyle for the clergy, others
advocated making Jesus and Virgin Mary the centre of devotion in place of saints.
The Virgin Mary cult developed out of activities of Cistercians and new churches and
cathedrals (called Notre-Dame) dedicated to Virgin Mary came into existence. But
those heterodox movements such as those of Cathars and Waldensians, which
opposed the practices of the church, had to face persecution at the hands of the
papacy with support from the rulers. However, those that remained obedient to the
church such as Dominicans and Franciscans were promoted by the Pope.
19. The cultural growth in the late medieval Europe has been described as ‘Renaissance
of the Twelfth Century’. This was facilitated both by immigration of new works on
literature and philosophy from the Islamic world to Europe and also by a rethinking
on the part of Europeans themselves.
20. In literature, late medieval Europe witnessed Latin reaching its high watermark
alongside the growth and popularity of vernacular languages, particularly in France,
German and England. Latin proved to be a unifying force for Europe just as Arabic
was for the Islamic world. Revival of Latin Grammar and proliferation of schools and
universities made Latin the basic determining factor to distinguish between literati
and a layman. The growth of vernacular language provided the writers the freedom
to express themselves in their mother tongue. Most prominent among the vernacular
language was Occitan that developed in Southern France and inspired the vernacu-
lar writings of England as well as Germany. The troubadour poets of France were
renowned for their romantic poems. Poems written in Romance language only
gained popularity and differed from the troubadour poems particularly in matters of
emphasis on a particular nature of love.
21. Art and architecture of the High Middle Age continued to revolve around the image
of the church. An attempt however was made to attain high level of craftsmanship,
particularly in the field of art and architecture. Since art was used by the church as
an aid to teach the clergy and the layman and also to make visible the power of the
(Continued)
382 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

divine, an attempt was made to remove abstract things. This led to the growth of
figurative art which took the form of monumental sculptures. The two prominent
architectural styles of this period were Romanesque and Gothic. The Romanesque
style developed in France in the eleventh century and reached its mature form by the
beginning of the twelfth century. Distinguishing features of the Romanesque build-
ings were round arches, colossal walls and huge support columns. The interior and
exterior was decorated with sculptures that included human figures that lacked
naturalism. In the twelfth and particularly in the thirteenth century, Romanesque
style was replaced by Gothic forms all over Europe. Gothic style also emerged in
France but was considered more elegant and intricate than the previous style. Chief
features of Gothic architecture were pointed arches, ribbed vaulting and flying but-
tress. This made it possible to give height to the building and keeping it light at the
same time. The façades were elaborately sculpted. A distinguishing feature of the
Gothic sculptural art was depiction of secular themes as well as natural representa-
tion of humans, animals and plants.

KEYWORDS
Middle Age antiquity Christendom synthesis Early Medieval Late Medieval liturgy
doctrine basilica pope schism iconoclasm monasticism convents worldliness
asceticism Latin Christianity Greek Christianity Benedictine Monks Christian
kingship vernacular visual arts renaissance laity clergy salvation cathedral
fresco mosaic Cluniac Reforms Gregorian Reforms Investiture Conflict Concordat
of Worms temporal authority crusade Cathars Cistercians Dominicans Franciscans
troubadour Romanesque Gothic

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. Analyse the factors that led to the rapid growth of Christianity in Early Medieval Europe.
2. What role did the iconoclastic controversy play in developing schism in Christianity?
3. Examine the role of Carolingian and Byzantine rulers in promoting culture in Early
Medieval Europe.
4. What were the major issues in the conflict between church and state in Late Medieval
Europe?
5. Bring out the major differences between Romanesque and Gothic art and architecture.

REFERENCES
Al-Bakhit, M. A., L. Bazin, S. M. Cissoco, and A. A. Kamel, eds. 1999. History of Humanity, Vol IV. London:
Routledge/UNESCO Publishing.
 Religion and Culture in Medieval Europe 383

Coffin, Judith G., and Robert C. Stacey. 2008. Western Civilizations: Their History and Their Culture. Reprint,
340. New York: WW Norton and Company.
Dopsch, Alfons. 1937. The Economic and Social Foundations of European Civilization, Reprint. London: K
Paul, Trench, Trubner, and co.
Kidson, Peter. 2004. ‘Architecture and the Visual Arts’. In The New Cambridge Medieval History, Vol IV
(c. 1024–1198), edited by David Luscombe and Jonathan Riley-Smith, 693–731. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
Le Goff, Jacques. 1988. Medieval Civilisation, 400–1500. Oxford: Blackwell.
Pirenne, Henri. 2005. Economic and Social History of Medieval Europe, Reprint. UK: Taylor and Francis.
Power, Daniel, ed. 2006. The Central Middle Ages. Europe 950–1320. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Riley-Smith, Jonathan. 2004. ‘The Crusades, 1095–1198’. In The New Cambridge Medieval History, Vol IV
(c. 1024–1198), edited by David Luscombe and Jonathan Riley-Smith, 534–63. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
Smith, Julia M. H. 2005. Europe After Rome: A New Cultural History 500–1000. New York: Oxford University
Press.
Ziolkowski, Jan M. 2004. ‘Latin and Vernacular Literature’. In The New Cambridge Medieval History, Vol IV
(c. 1024–1198), edited by David Luscombe and Jonathan Riley-Smith, 658–92. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
 CHAPTER
Islamic Societies in

11 West Asia

Chapter Contents

• Rise of Islam and Making of Political Authority

• Religious Traditions
• Adab Literature
• Urbanisation and Trade
• Summary

RISE OF ISLAM AND MAKING OF POLITICAL AUTHORITY

I
slam emerged in the beginning of the seventh century ce in the Arabian Peninsula (south of
the Fertile Crescent) in an area now identified as Saudi Arabia. It was here that Prophet
Mohammad laid the foundation of not only a new religion termed Islam but also a new civili-
sation that spread to the entire Near East within two centuries of Prophet’s death. Traditionally,
it was believed that majority of the people of Saudi Arabia lived an isolated life away from the
settled societies. However, now it is increasingly accepted that the people who inhabited the
Arabian Peninsula were in regular contact with the people of Middle East. The reasons cited for
this interaction is the absence of a geographical or political boundary that facilitated frequent
migration from and into the Arabian Peninsula. The itinerant preachers and merchants too
played their roles in this interaction by introducing religious ideologies such as monotheism
and taste for luxury in life by getting textiles, grains and wine into the desert-dominated
Peninsula. The imperial powers surrounding the Arabian Peninsula (mainly the Byzantines and
the Sassanids) too intervened politically and diplomatically to further their own strategic inter-
ests, thus indirectly passing on military techniques to the Arabs who were used as auxiliaries in
these armies. Thus, it would appear that the Islamic civilisation that emerged in the Arabian
Peninsula was built upon the essential features of the Middle Eastern societies.
Few other common features that the Islamic civilisation of Arab shared with other contem-
porary civilisations have also been identified. These include role of an urban mercantile
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 385

economy in shaping the religious developments. The regional and trans-regional trading
­networks, while discouraging a regional and parochial approach to religion, promoted spread
of religious ideas from one city to another. Moreover, just as Christianity was closely associated
with the Roman state and Zoroastrianism with the Sassanid state of Iran, Islam too remained
closely associated with political and religious authority all through the course of its expansion.
Besides, the universalistic character of Islam has also been found synonymous with such mono-
theistic religions as Christianity, Judaism and Zoroastrianism where belief in a single god
bonded the people of the faith within not only a particular geographical area (the Arabian
Peninsula in case of Islam) but also those who became a part of these religions with their ter-
ritorial expansion. Apart from the similarities that Islam and the Islamic civilisation demon-
strated with the contemporary faiths and civilisations, it should also be kept in mind that while
the Arab Peninsula remained the cultural centre of Islam, it was the other more populated
regions of the Near East such as Egypt and Iran that played a crucial role in the integration and
expansion of Islam.
A debatable issue related to the study of origin and growth of Islam is the availability of reli-
able sources. Most of the Muslim sources dealing with the pre-Islamic period and the portion
dealing with Prophet Muhammad’s career have been written more than one and a half century
after the actual event. For the Muslims, the events described in these sources have been con-
sidered as foundational and therefore are taken as the basis of later Islamic ideas and institu-
tions. In recent years, however, scholars have casted doubt on the reliability of these sources
(many of which have been handed down orally) on the ground that these were put together to
deal with later issues and so they seem to reflect what the later Muslims wanted to remember
rather than the historical truth. Moreover, there are doubts also regarding the period of compi-
lation of Quran (the holy book of the Muslims). While the Muslim sources do tell us about its
revelation to the Prophet and its compilation during the first 20 years of his preaching, sceptics
argue that the final compilation of Quran did not complete until about the next 200 years of the
death of Prophet. However, despite a debate on the authenticity of these sources, scholars such
as Jonathan P. Berkey (2002) argue that the available sources suggest at least two things. First,
the formation of an Islamic identity and tradition was a gradual and uneven process which was
not completed before the beginning of the eighth century. Second, despite all its roots in Arabia,
Islam was more a product of the encounter between the Arab followers of Muhammad and the
existing religions and cultures of Syria and Iraq. Islam in other words, according to Berkey, was
less a disruption than continuation of some of the important cultural and religious development
of late antiquity. But before entering into a full-fledged discussion on the emergence of Islam
under Prophet and its expansion under his followers, it would be worthwhile to have a discus-
sion in the following section on the tribal background of the Arabian Peninsula that prepared
the foundation for the birth of a new religious movement and a new civilisation.

The Tribal Background

Geographically, Arab is a large peninsula covered mostly by desert and dry steppe with a very
scanty rainfall restricted mainly to the coastal areas along its southern fringes. Consequently,
the Peninsula lacks regular rivers but its land mass is dotted with several springs and oases
which was the lifeline of the people inhabiting these harsh conditions. While most of the
Arabian Peninsula suffered from low rainfall and consisted mainly of deserts fringed with
386 Ancient and Medieval World

MAP 11.1  Pre-Islamic Arabia, Its Neighbours and Trade Routes

Source: Adapted from a blank map by Daniel Dalet. Available at [Link]

oases, its southwestern part (corresponding with modern Yemen) was blessed with more rain-
fall where organised irrigation enabled a settled agricultural society in contrast to the pastoral
society in other parts of the peninsula. The central part of the peninsula was covered by a vast
stretch of desert known as Najd. The Najd merges with the Syrian Desert (also known as Nafud)
in the north and towards the northeast, it extends until the Euphrates in southern part of Iraq.
The western part of the Arabian Peninsula is an arid zone known as Hejaz where Mecca and
Medina, the two birthplaces of early Islam, were situated. The southwestern corner of the pen-
insula (Yemen), as mentioned earlier, contained mountains and sufficient rainfall made avail-
able fertile valleys. It was also thickly populated with agriculturalist following a sedentary life,
and its towns were developed enough for the growth of political institutions and material
growth. Thus, geographically, South Arabia was a sharp contrast to the other parts of the
Arabian Peninsula. Another important area of the peninsula was Oman situated in the south-
eastern region. Situated at the entrance to the Persian Gulf, Oman was less arid than Najd and
Hejaz and was integrated with the Arabian Peninsula at a later date (see Map 11.1).
In contrast to South Arabia, the inhabitants of Central, Northern and Western Arabia had to
survive in the harsh desert environment. They lived a nomadic life with camel rearing as their
basic occupation. As camel was the best means of transport in a desert terrain, they used
camels to exploit the scarce resources of the desert. Besides, the camel also provided milk,
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 387

meat and hide. The available oases and springs in these desert regions also provided
­opportunities for cultivation of dates, fruits and some grains. Prominent among the camel
­pastoralist in this part of the peninsula were the Bedouins who had developed an intimate
knowledge of the life in desert over a period of time. Camel herders, the Bedouins, had some
definite advantages that have also been noticed by the great Islamic thinkers such as Ibn
Khaldun, who described the camel herders as better than sheep rearers because they had
greater mobility and could cover larger distances between the water holes in the desert. The
Bedouins diversified their activities by acting as camel herders in the deep desert and as sheep
rearers in the areas surrounding the oases and springs, particularly in Medina and Khaybar in
Hejaz, which allowed cultivation of small amount of grain, fruits and vegetables. While raids at
times on the settled population were one of the means to increase the resources of the
Bedouins, the latter generally had a symbiotic relationship with the farming population. The
Bedouins exchanged products of nomadic life such as the animal products with the farmers,
taking in return food grains, dates, cloth, wares as well as weapons. Many a time the farmers
also bought protection from the Bedouins in the form of a tribute known as khuwwa as the
latter had the military advantage.
The social organisation of the Bedouins was based on an independent tribe consisting of
tightly-nit kinship groups or clans. These groups were further divided into several patriarchal
families. The families moved together, shared the pasture area and fought as one in battles. The
clans moved away from the tribes as the population grew because the existing desert resources
could not sustain a very large population. An important binding feature of the Bedouins was
their sense of loyalty to the clan and the collective responsibility of the clan as a whole. For
instance, if a member of the clan were harmed, the whole group would avenge it, and if a
member had harmed someone, the whole group would take responsibility for it. With this kind
of solidarity (asabiyya), the Bedouins considered theirs as a complete polity, rejecting any
external authoritarian political entity. Although largely egalitarian, the clans were led by a chief
(shaykh, sharif or sayyid) selected by the clan elders from among the prominent families. The
position of the shaykh could be hereditary but the personal charisma played the decisive role
in selection of the chief. The responsibilities of the chief included defence of the tribe, settling
disputes within the tribe and maintaining tradition of the groups set by the elders. Despite the
selection of the shaykh, the identity of a member was with the collectivity as a whole and not
individually. An important aspect of the nomadic life of the Arabs was the linguistic unity
despite existence of several dialects. All of them spoke Arabic language, which was popularised
by the tradition of oral poetry known as rajaz from 500 ce onwards. It was followed by another
form of poetry known as qasida (panegyric) that could be recited or sung, and it became quite
popular throughout Arabia. Arabic thus became the lingua franca of pre-Islamic Arabia. A
common language understood by all gave them a sense of shared identity and provided the
dispersed Arab tribes a cultural homogeneity which Scholars, such as, Patricia Crone (1996),
find unusual in tribal societies.
The religious practices of the Arabian tribes were polytheistic and animist in nature as they
believed that all natural objects were living spirits (jinn) which could be helpful as well as
harmful to the human beings. The negative spirits had to be defeated through the magical prac-
tices and the good ones were to be propitiated. Besides the natural forces, the Bedouins also
worshipped ancestors, stones, trees and moon and star gods in the form of idols that were
placed in protected sanctuaries. Muslim traditions also talk about the existence of soothsayers
or sorcerers, both men and women, who resembled the shamans of the Near Eastern religious
388 Ancient and Medieval World

practices. The Bedouins attached great importance to the sanctuaries (haram) which were
often looked after by some of the elite clans of the tribe. These were also used at times to settle
disputes, and violence of any kind was strictly prohibited around these shrines. The shrine at
Kaaba in Mecca was such a shrine that housed several deities arranged in a hierarchy. The triad
of goddesses Allat, al-‘Uzza (both associated with Venus) and Manat - (the goddess of fate) were
specially revered and their sanctuary was situated close to the main Meccan sanctuary. The
Muslim traditions inform us that along with the main shrine, the sanctuary of these three god-
desses was also maintained by the Quraysh clan (to which Prophet belonged). However, the
modern scholarship has casted doubts on the veracity of this information. The Meccan sanctu-
ary was also a place of exchange besides pilgrimage ceremonies and religious festivities. This
brought the people of several parts of the peninsula together and also led to awareness of
common religious beliefs and lifestyles. Recitation of poems in Arabic during the religious fairs
facilitated the development of a collective identity. Carole Hillenbrand (2005) is of the opinion
that the Arabs possessed the linguistic and ethnic foundation on which Muhammad formulated
the supra-tribal community. This edifice, according to Hillenbrand, was cemented by Islam,
which in a way was a new monotheistic revelation from Arabia.
Besides the existence of several tribal cults, the pre-Islamic Arabian religion was also
impacted by the religions of the Near East. By the end of the sixth century ce, monotheistic
religion was introduced in Arabia by the Christians and Jews who entered Arabia as preachers
and merchants and also because of the political conflict between the Byzantine and Sassanid
Empires (to be discussed later). Christians inhabited Yemen in large numbers and were quite
influential in other parts of the peninsula too because they represented a monotheistic religion
having large number of adherents and a well-developed civilisation. Jews had their concentra-
tion in Western Arabia, particularly in Mecca where their presence was felt as preachers
(rabbis) and as officials of the Sassanian Empire responsible for the collection of taxes.
Through political link between Iraq and Hejaz and through the Sasanian military presence along
the Persian Gulf, Zoroastrianism was also known to the Arabs. All of these were monotheistic
religions quite in contrast to the polytheism practiced in Arabia. Ideologically, monotheism dif-
fered from the ideas of the polytheists a great deal. The monotheist looked at the universe as a
single entity governed by a single god who was the only source of salvation and establishing
moral and spiritual order. Monotheism also advocated brotherhood through adherence to a
common faith without any distinctions of race or clan. Polytheism on the other hand advocated
multiple paths to salvation and envisaged a society divided by clan and community, each having
its own deities. Mecca was the centre of these contrasting worldviews as it gave shelter to het-
erogeneous group of people having diverse religious convictions with no definite clan attach-
ment. Thus, the population at Mecca was not bound by old tribal religious and moral convictions.
Incidentally, it was here that Prophet Muhammad introduced the new monotheistic
religion—Islam.
The developments in the Arabian Peninsula, prior to the birth of Islam and the subsequent
Muslim conquests, was also affected by the Arab contact with Syria and Palestine (in north),
with Iraq (in northeast) with Yemen (in southwest) and with Ethiopia (across the Red Sea) and
more importantly by the political rivalry between two great empires of the Middle East, the
Byzantine and the Sassanids, on the issue of control over Syria and Palestine. The political
struggle between the two powerful empires dragged Arabia into it as both these powers wanted
to establish their respective spheres of influence in North Arabia in order to pursue their objec-
tives in Syria and Palestine. The Arabs had also penetrated into the armies of these two empires
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 389

as auxiliaries. Syria was under the control of the Byzantine Empire but the Sassanids, who had
entrenched themselves in Northern Mesopotamia, were trying to establish their control over
Syria by dislodging the Byzantines. The two powers, in order to increase their sphere of influ-
ence in Arabia and also to protect their respective territories in Syria and Palestine, had entered
into lose alliances with various tribes who had accepted the overlordship of the two. The
Sassanids had allied with the tribal kingdom of Lakhm, organised under the Lakhm family. The
kingdom was situated along the border between Iraq and Northeast Arabia and had its capital
at al-Hira on the lower reaches of the Euphrates River. The Byzantines, on the other hand, had
allied with Ghassanids (Arab–Christian people) who had created their state on the outskirts of
Syria in order to prevent penetration of Bedouins and Sassanians into Syria. The Ghassanids are
said to have contributed to the Christianisation of Arabia (particularly in the south) by actively
supporting the missionary activities. Najran, a city in South Arabia, had become a major centre
of Arabian Christianity by the fifth century ce. Thus, both the Lakhmids and Ghassanids acted
as buffer states for the Sassanid and the Byzantine Empires respectively.
Yemen, on the southwest corner of the peninsula, was a settled society with a well-developed
state apparatus. Its main source of income was agriculture as the area was blessed with fertile
valleys. Thus, the political elite of Yemen consisted mainly of landed elites. The common
masses were organised into clans and were supposed to provide agricultural surplus and mili-
tary services to the state. The primarily agrarian economy of Yemen was supplemented by trade
that had led to the growth of a number of urban centres by the beginning of the fifth century.
The disruption of international trade route passing through the Persian Gulf and Iraq caused by
the conflict between Byzantine and Sassanian Empires proved as a boon for the trade activities
in Arabia. The new trade route included the Red Sea channel or overland route between Yemen
and Syria via Hejaz. This turned Yemen into an important transit point in the land trade and the
Hejaz route came into prominence. Yemen was ruled by independent states until it was unified
by Abkarib Asad in the middle of the fifth century. Abkarib was able to extract tribute from a
tribe named Kinda which was a confederation of Bedouin tribes of South Arabia. Majority of
the inhabitants of Yemen practiced Judaism with a small section following Christianity.
Ethiopia, an African country was situated across the Red Sea, opposite of the Arabian Peninsula.
It was a Christian state with its capital at Aksum. Ethiopia was an ally of the Byzantine Empire;
the latter used it to maintain its influence in Arabia through keeping a close eye on Yemen.
However, in the sixth century, several peripheral states along with tribal vassal states disap-
peared in an attempt by the two powerful empires to absorb these areas into their respective
empires. The persecution of the Christians in Yemen at the hand of its ruler Dhu Nuwas gave
Ethiopia an opportunity to invade Yemen in 525 ce. The rulers of Yemen on their part solicited
the support of the Persians to keep the Ethiopians and the Byzantines away. By 570 ce, however,
the Persians had established their control over Yemen. The Kinda confederation had also
broken up by 529 ce. In North Arabia, the Byzantines and the Sassanids removed their vassals
and an attempt was made to conquer these territories. Both the tribal states of Lakhm and
Ghassan lost the support of their respective overlords and ultimately their independence. By
the beginning of the seventh century, the mutual wars of the Byzantine and the Sassanids had
exhausted both of them.
Amidst this period of political and social fragmentation in the sixth century, however, Mecca
remained the focus of social and economic order in the Arabian Peninsula. Apart from being an
important pilgrim centre, Mecca also housed a colony of the traders operating on the Hejaz
route. Ira M. Lapidus (1988) is of the opinion that the pilgrimage at Mecca, not only served the
390 Ancient and Medieval World

purpose of religious worship but also for the arbitration of disputes, settlement of claims and
debts and indeed trade. With the disruption of the Persian Gulf–Iraq route, due to rivalry among
the Byzantines and the Sassanids as well as the disruptions caused by the Lakhm and Ghassan
tribes, Mecca became an important caravan route for trade in spices, leather, cloths, weapons,
grains and wine. This was also a boon time for the tribes who participated in this trade either
by providing camels for the traders or organising caravans themselves. These tribes, prominent
among them being the Quraysh (led by Qussay) also entered into an alliance with other domi-
nant tribes of the region such as Thaqif and Tamim to protect the traders from Bedouin attacks.
According to Lapidus, a loose Meccan diplomatic hegemony was established in the desert and
with the decline of Abyssinia (Ethiopia), Ghassan and Lakhm, Meccan influence was the only
integrative political force in the late sixth century Arabia.
In other parts of Arabia, however, the influence of the Bedouins became paramount as large
parts of the North Arabian Desert and areas bordering the Fertile Crescent came to be inhabited
by them. They also penetrated the settled societies of South Arabia as the bordering states went
into a decline. The Bedouin attacks on the settled communities in the oases areas led to pastur-
age becoming more important than agriculture as a means of livelihood in the desert. Conflict
between clans and tribes also became more regular. Mecca was the only settlement where some
sort of political and economic order could be seen. A complex society that developed in this
settlement also represented a new conception of personal worth and social status besides fos-
tering new social relationships. But while on the one hand the complexity of commercial activi-
ties liberated the individual from the shackles of their clan traditions and made them adopt new
values, the Meccan society became economically more competitive making few families more
prosperous than the others. Thus, the commercial activities at Mecca created social stratifica-
tion on the basis of wealth that was antithetical to the ideas of clan loyalties or traditions. Thus,
by the beginning of the seventh century, the Arabian society was in ferment with development
of class distinctions, experimentations at some sort of political authority by the tribal councils
(mala) at places such as Mecca and existence of monotheistic religions without an established
institutional mechanism. It was in this background of social conflicts, political uncertainties
and economic complexity that Prophet Muhammad started preaching about a new religion.

Formation of an Islamic State Under the Prophet

Our information related to the life of Prophet Muhammad is more abundant compared to those
of the founders of other religions. These sources include the Quran which is supposed to be
God’s revelations through Gabriel (the angel) to Muhammad and which is the ultimate source
of Muslim religious belief. The others are hadis or hadith (sayings of the Prophet) which is an
important source on Prophet’s life and his teachings and deal primarily with ritual, moral and
other religious aspects of the life of Muslims. The other sources are based on oral traditions and
written accounts such as the biography of Prophet Muhammad written by Ibn Ishaq (d. 769 ce)
which was subsequently revised by Ibn Hisham (d. 833–34 ce). These sources inform us that
Muhammad was born in 570 ce in the prominent clan Banu Hashim of the Quraysh tribe. The
Hashims, besides being prominent traders had also been the caretaker of the holy well called
Zamzam at Mecca. But the Hashims had lost their prominence in the caravan trade by the time
Muhammad was born. Muhammad’s father, Abdullah, died before his birth and Muhammad was
brought up by his grandfather and then Uncle Abu Talib, who was a well-known merchant.
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 391

FIGURE 11.1  Family Tree of Prophet Muhammad

Quraysh
Qussay

Abd al-Uzza Abd al-Manaf Abd al-Dar Abd Qussay

Hashim Abd Shams

Abd al-Muttalib Umayya

Al Abbas Abdullah Abu Talib Abu Lahab

The Banu
Muhammad Umayya and the
Umayyad
Fatima Ali
Caliphs
Hassan Hussayn

The Banu Abbas Shii Imams and

and the Abbasid Fatimid Caliphs
Caliphs

Source: (Lapidus 1988, p. 22).

Subsequently, as the Muslim sources suggest, Muhammad worked under an influential woman
merchant Khadija who traded with Syria and Palestine. Later, at the age of 25, Muhammad
­married Khadija who was much older and had several children, only one of whom, Fatima,
could reach adulthood and later became the mother of two much-revered sons, Hassan and
Hussain (see Figure 11.1 for the family tree of Muhammad).
Muhammad right since his adulthood, was of a religious bent and practiced meditation.
Sources inform us that it was during one of his meditation exercises in 610 ce at Mount Hira
that Muhammad (at the age of 40) had a spiritual experience in the form of God’s revelations.
These revelations showed him the vision of a great and just God (Allah) who would give
rewards or punishment to an individual based on their bad or good deeds on the day of the
judgment (last day of an individual human being on this earth). The ideas of desirability of char-
ity and piety and the fear of pride in human power, attachment to worldly things, neglect of the
poor and almsgiving became the operational aspects of these revelations. It is this emphasis on
the last day of judgement that forms the earliest Meccan Chapter (suras) of Quran. Muhammad
became the chief messenger (Prophet) of the god’s revelations. In the initial years, it was only
Khadija who believed in his prophet-hood but later from 613 ce onwards, he started preaching
to a small group of his followers in Mecca. The earliest of his followers included Khadija, Abu
Bakr and Ali; the latter two became the Caliphs (successors of Muhammad and leaders of the
Muslims). Modern scholars are of the opinion that there are many similarities between the
Quranic revelations and the principles of Christianity and Judaism. Similarity with Christianity
has been found in the concept of the last day of judgement which was also preached by the
Syrian monks and missionaries at the fairs of Arabia. Whereas similarity with Judaism have
been found in such characteristics as strict monotheism, belief in written revelations and the
concept of a chosen messenger. In this context, Ira M. Lapidus (1988) argues that despite these
similarities, Muhammad was not a convert to either Christianity or Judaism and he understood
392 Ancient and Medieval World

god’s revelations in the sense of Arabian monotheists who believed in a transcendent god. The
uncompromising monotheism of Muhammad identified only one god, Allah, who was to be
worshipped, rejecting all other deities. Few are of the opinion that this was aimed at replacing
diverse religious practices of the Arab tribes by a single faith in order to bring about a tribal
unity which was the need of the hour.
The followers of Muhammad were called as Muslim, which meant those who had submitted
to Allah and the religion was called Islam (submission). A strong emphasis was placed on the
equality and unity of all the worshippers of Allah in the religious ideology of early Islam. This
is the reason that most of the early converts to this religion were poor men, members of weak
clan, rootless migrants and all those who did not approve of the changing moral and social
climate of Mecca. To them, the new religion provided an alternative. But since majority of the
Meccans followed a polytheistic religion, there was a strong opposition to the strict monothe-
istic ideas of Muhammad. Members of the Quraysh tribe were also opposed to the preaching of
Muhammad and ridiculed the notions of the last day of judgement and resurrection, and they
also declared him as kabin or soothsayer. Muhammad, however, continued to preach the tenets
of a new religion with the support of his clan, Khadija and Abu Talib. But the unfortunate death
of both Khadija and Abu Talib in 619 ce made it difficult for Muhammad to preach in Mecca. The
followers too were subjected to social and economic boycott as Muslims were not sold food
items in the market. Explaining the reasons behind the opposition to Muhammad, Lapidus
(1988) argues that Muhammad’s religion strove to establish that bonds of common belief were
stronger than the bonds of love. In this manner, the new religion threatened to dissolve the old
order of the society and to create a new one. Faced with this kind of ostracism and gradual loss
of support from his Hashim clan, Muhammad decided to look for a political base from where
he could effectively appeal to the inhabitants of Arabia. On the invitation of some of the inhabit-
ants of Yathrib, another prominent city in Hejaz, Muhammad decided to move to this city.
Yathrib was later known as Madinat al-nabi, ‘the city of Prophet’ or Medina. The emigration of
Muhammad (with a group of followers numbering 75) from Mecca to Medina in the year 622 ce
is known as hijrah, meaning ‘migration’. Later when the Islamic calendar was introduced, the
year 622 ce was considered as the beginning of the Islamic era to commemorate Muhammad’s
‘emigration’ from Mecca to Medina.
The situation at Medina was ideal for Muhammad to establish his political base and spread
the wings of Islam. Medina was a cluster of small villages settled around agricultural oases,
covering several springs and wells and allowing cultivation of fruits and cereals. Unlike Mecca,
the economy of Medina was dominated by agriculture and, again unlike Mecca that was domi-
nated by the Quraysh tribe, Medina was inhabited by several tribes. Few of the prominent tribes
such as Aws and Khazraj were feuding to establish control over this agricultural settlement.
Few of the tribes at Medina were of Jewish origin that also joined this feud creating an anarchi-
cal situation and thus threatening the existence of this settlement. But the Jewish presence also
facilitated the acceptance of monotheistic ideas. Few of the members of the prominent tribes
of the Aws and Khazraj invited Muhammad to act as an arbitrator (hakam) to resolve the tribal
disputes. The Madinese also took a pledge to protect Muhammad, give recognition to his
prophet-hood and accept the Quranic revelations. The supporters of Muhammad who travelled
with him to Medina were known as muhajirun (emigrants) whereas his followers at Medina
were known as ansars (helpers). After a political agreement with the Madinese, Muhammad
and his Meccan follower along with the Madinese helpers constituted the earliest Islamic politi-
cal structure. This new Islamic political and social community was known as umma. It was also
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 393

agreed that the Meccan and the Madinese would jointly protect Muhammad and this nascent
state from the external threats.
In this new political structure centred in Medina, Muhammad was not only considered as the
religious leader but also as a law giver and one who could set rules of governance. Carole
Hillenbrand (2005) refers to a document known as the constitution of Medina, contained in the
biography of Muhammad by Ibn Ishaq, dating from the early years of the Madinese period,
which informs us about the great skills of Muhammad as an arbitrator and his attempts to weld
the heterogeneous elements of the Medinan society into a unified community. But the early
attempt of Muhammad to include the Madinese Jews into the fold of Islam met with resistance
and the Jews refused to accept Muhammad as prophet as it was against their Hebrew tradition.
They also challenged his legitimacy as the political and religious leader of Medina. This is why,
according to Hillenbrand, the Quranic messages also reveal an increasing disenchantment with
the Jews and a heightened emphasis on exclusivity and originality of the new faith, Islam. Thus,
Muhammad, in order to achieve his political and religious mission, decided to exile or execute
the Jewish clan in Medina and their property was seized and distributed among the umma. The
tribes around Medina were not won over by the use of military force but by negotiations and
alliances. This was primarily because Muhammad first wanted to integrate the umma at Medina
peacefully.
But the staunchest enemy of the newly formed umma was the Quraysh tribe of Mecca as
Muhammad had to face external attacks from the Meccans, threatening the very existence of
the nascent umma. Muhammad’s policy towards Mecca has been termed as extremely hostile.
But prior to attacking Mecca, Muhammad set up his army and revenue resources of this nascent
state. All male adult followers of Muhammad became a part of the army of this new state. Raids
on the Bedouin tribes along with agricultural income constituted the revenue of which one-fifth
was to go to the Prophet for sustenance of the state. The tax and tribute collected from the
tribes who had accepted the leadership of Muhammad took the form of zakat that all Muslims
had to pay to the state. Payment of zakat was taken as a sign of membership of the umma and
acceptance of Muhammad as the prophet. A planned attack was carried out on the Meccans
after setting up of some sort of administrative structure. Medina was situated on the busy Hejaz
route and several Quraysh caravans used to pass through this settlement. These caravans were
attacked for booty by the army of Muhammad. A major victory for the forces of early Islam was
the battle of Badr (624 ce) where Muhammad defeated a large Meccan force. This victory not
only dented the Meccan supremacy but also enhanced the prestige of Muhammad in the entire
Arabia, leading to defection of large number of Bedouins who were employed by the Quraysh
to protect the caravans. After facing some reverses at the hands of the Meccan forces during
the years 625 ce (at Uhud) and 627 ce (at Ditch), Muhammad was able to reach a truce with the
Meccans. As per the truce, the Muslims were allowed to perform pilgrimage (umra literally ‘the
lesser pilgrimage’) at Mecca for three days but Meccans refused to recognise the prophet-hood
of Muhammad. However, this truce reduced the hostility of the Meccans towards Muhammad
and his umma.
In the year 630 ce, Muhammad attacked Mecca and forced the Meccan leaders to surrender
the city. The Meccans accepted Islam and since the Quraysh tribe had assisted Muhammad in
this endeavour, lavish gifts were showered on several chiefs. Subduing of the most powerful
tribe of Mecca ensured that all other recalcitrant tribes, including the Bedouins, soon come
under the political and religious influence of Muhammad. Ira M. Lapidus (1988) is of the opinion
that the victory over Mecca was also the culmination of Muhammad’s tribal policy as, by the
394 Ancient and Medieval World

end of his life, Muhammad had been able to create a large-scale Arabian federation of oases and
tribes. Thus, Muhammad, after a long time, had provided a solution to the destructive anarchy
of Arabian life. Alongside this, all idols at Kaaba were removed and it was declared the holiest
shrine of Islam. Mecca became the focal point of the most sacred pilgrimage (hajj) of the
Muslims and this pilgrimage assumed the role of the pillar of Islam. Under Muhammad, Medina
became the political centre of the Islamic state whereas Mecca became the focal point of the
Islamic religion. S. D. Goitein (1968) is of the opinion that one of the reasons for Meccans ulti-
mately supporting Muhammad was also the fact that the shrewd sons of the caravan city had
quickly realised the enormous economic advantages provided by their sanctuaries becoming
the centre of the new religion. By the end of his life (632 ce), Muhammad had laid the founda-
tion of a political structure based on Islam. He also provided the followers of this religion a way
of life that was based on the concept of oneness of God. The profession of faith, prayer, fasting
during the holy month, almsgiving and pilgrimage became essentials of the Islamic way of life.
The revelations of Quran, besides containing new Islamic ideas of monotheism, were also a
synthesis of the religious ideas of the Arabian Peninsula, Judaism and Christianity. But Lapidus
(1988) is of the opinion that although the elements of Quranic teaching resembled Jewish and
Christian beliefs, Muhammad’s unique religious vision and formation of a community based
upon that vision made Islam a new religion. The scale of the following of this new state based
on Islam can be gauged from the fact that during his campaign against Syria in 632 ce, which
also happened to be his last military venture, Muhammad was able to raise an army of 30,000
soldiers.
The Muslim community (umma) created by Muhammad is said to have brought a radical
transformation of the existing Arab society which was marred by fratricidal conflict among the
Bedouin tribes with conflicting values. The brotherhood that the concept of umma entailed
integrated various individuals, clans, ethnic groups and cities into a single Arabian community
in which loyalty towards one religion superseded all other loyalties. This in turn created an
ideal setting for the formation of a new common law and a political authority that could regu-
late the affairs of the entire community as a whole. The concept of umma, as a basis of coopera-
tion in political and social life, according to Ira Lapidus (1988), was not a new principle but was
an adaptation of traditional Arabian concept. But the umma that developed under Muhammad,
argues Lapidus, redefined the meaning of the tribe as a group that defended its brothers to
include religious as well as blood brothers. The umma was to be led by a person (shaykh) who
was chosen as an arbitrator not on the basis of customs but out of the divine will. This umma
was also to be governed by the traditions of the prophet (Sunna) rather than by tribal tradi-
tions. Although the tribal tradition of blood revenge was accepted by the umma, the latter
replaced the clan. But on his part, Muhammad preached restraint and forgiveness. Jonathan
Berkey (2002) is of the opinion that membership of umma required a commitment to an iden-
tity grounded in Muhammad’s religious message rather than in traditional tribal relations. By
the end of his life, argues Berkey, Muhammad presided over a polity that was broader in its
geographical reach, uniting almost whole of the peninsula and characterised by a greater cen-
tralisation of power than anything most Arabs had previously known.
The socio-political organisation created by Muhammad, believe modern scholars, had similar
characteristics as those in Middle East as a whole. In a fragmented Arabian society, argues Ira
M. Lapidus (1988), Muhammad integrated the feuding small clans into a larger confederacy on
the basis of religious loyalty, built a state structure through which political and economic order
might be achieved and resolved the conflict of Bedouin familial and Meccan commercial values
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 395

in a religious point of view. Thus, according to Lapidus, under the leadership of Muhammad,
Islam fused the tribal society and the monotheistic religious mentality with religious commu-
nity, trading confederacy and political organisation to create a new society built upon a
‘church’–like religious community and incipient imperial organisation. Thus, concludes
Lapidus, the formation of the Islamic community in Arabia established a type of religious polity
that had already been created under Jewish, Christian and Zoroastrian auspices throughout the
Middle East.
The modern historiography, although generally agreeing on the role pf Prophet Muhammad
in the birth of Islam, tend to differ on reasons that led to such rapid expansion of this faith
among the Arab tribes in such a short span of time. W. M. Watt (1953), for example, studied the
nature of the Arabian society while explaining the rise of Islam. Watt argues that the rise of
Islam was closely connected to a new sedentary way of life adopted by the Meccans subsequent
to the growth of Meccan trade. The expansion of Meccan commerce brought in prosperity to
the leading tribes involved in the trade that seems to make society inequitable (as the prosperity
generated at this trade and pilgrimage centre did not benefit all) and erode traditional ties lead-
ing to tribal conflicts. This was not confined to Mecca based tribes but also among those tribes
who were part of this network of exchange. Apart from this, the conflict between pastoral and
settled societies in Arabia had brought increasing social tensions within the peninsula.
Muhammad’s attempt to bring about unity under a new faith, according to Watt (1953), was an
answer to the social conflict and Islam also provided a foundation for state formation in Arabia.
Few other scholars, such as, Maxime Rodinson (1961) and Marshall G. S. Hodgson (1974), while
agreeing with Watt, have further elaborated upon this ‘Meccan trade’ hypothesis.
However, Patricia Crone (1987) has seriously questioned the validity of this hypothesis in the
context of the rise of Islam. Crone is of the opinion that Meccan trade was mostly in goods of
mass consumption and not in luxury goods which was not likely to create such big property
inequalities. Moreover, according to Crone, a brief period of Meccan prosperity arising out of
trade was not likely to create such deep property inequalities as it takes more than a century of
commercial success to undermine a well-established tribal order. Crone also argues that the
Quranic traditions also do not testify to the increasing awareness of such social differentiation
or distress in the Arabian society. To strengthen her case further, Crone argues that the support
that Muhammad received by his own clan first as an orphan and then as a prophet during the
period of crisis also proves that the tribal order had not broken away and the traditional way of
life was still intact. Lastly, Crone points out that Watt’s thesis fails to account for the fact that it
was in Medina rather than Mecca that Muhammad’s teaching was accepted widely and so the
problems to which Muhammad is supposed to have provided solution was that of Medina to
which the ‘Meccan trade’ hypothesis is not applicable.
While explaining the reasons behind the rise of Islam, Crone (1987) on the other hand argues
that the early resistance of the Meccans to Islam suggests that instead of a breakdown in the
Meccan tribal society, the society was doing too well as they preferred traditional way of life to
Islam. According to Crone, there were several reasons why the Arabs accepted Islam. One of
the reasons was that the Arabs were not very rigid in their loyalty towards their gods and
changed their loyalties as per their practical needs. Therefore, when they heard about Allah
possessing a greater power than any other spirit so far known in Arabia, they agreed with
Muhammad that ‘Allah is great’. Second, Allah was described as the only god of Abraham, the
ancestor of the Arabs and it was around ancestral deities that tribal groups were traditionally
formed. It effectively meant that it was around Allah and only Allah that the Arabs were to be
396 Ancient and Medieval World

grouped together and all ancestral deities that sanctioned current divisions were declared as
false. Third, in Arabia, before Islam, raids and plunder were usual methods of gathering eco-
nomic resources by the Bedouin tribes, which was also legitimised by Islam. Fourth, and more
importantly, Crone argues, Muhammad offered a programme of Arab state formation and con-
quest through formation of umma and the initiation of jihad (the holy war). Without conquest,
first in Arabia and then in the Fertile Crescent, the unification of Arabia could not have been
achieved.
As an alternative to the ‘Meccan trade’ hypothesis, Patricia Crone suggests ‘nativist move-
ment’ theory to describe the character of early Islam. The ‘nativism’ of the Arabs was denoted
by their deep attachment to the Arabian way of life in reaction to the penetration of alien domi-
nation or influence. The alien domination was represented by the Byzantine and Sassanian
attempt to dominate the territory of Arabia. Crone explains that a nativist movement takes
place where people lack a political organisation and it invariably takes a religious form. The
leaders usually claim to be prophets or messiah and the initial action of the movement against
the foreigners is always militant, the objective being to expel the foreigners in question. In Arab,
according to Crone, Muhammad used the Jewish version of monotheism against the dominant
Christianity and used it for self-assertion, both ideological and military, of his own people.
However, Patricia Crone agrees with Watt when she argues that the process of settling down in
Arabia had indeed necessitated the growth of some political structures at the cost of tribal ties.

The Caliphal State

The death of Muhammad in 632 ce created a grave crisis for Islam as well as the nascent Arab
state. Since Muhammad had declared that he was last in the chain of the prophets, including
those of Judaism (Moses) and Christianity (Jesus), no one could assume the position of prophet
after him. But there was a pressing need of a person of authority to take charge of the political
state as well as to guide the newly formed religious community of the Muslims. Lack of clarity
regarding who would fill the political and religious vacuum created by the death of Muhammad
led to early crisis in Islam. Despite several Muslim traditions suggesting that Muhammad had
chosen his successor, other disputing sources make this assertion suspect. In the absence of
any agreement on the issue of succession, there was a real threat of disintegration of the
Muslim community. The early supporters of Muhammad, the muhajiruns (of Mecca) and the
ansars (the Medinese helpers) put forward the claim that since they aided Muhammad at
the time of crisis therefore they should have the first right to decide the successor. On the other
hand, the group of people known as ‘legitimists’ (Alids) argued that the succession should
remain in the family of Muhammad. Since Muhammad had no surviving male heir, this group
wanted Ali, cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad (husband of Muhammad’s daughter Fatima)
to succeed. Whereas a politically powerful group of Quraysh aristocracy known as Umayyads
(one of the late converts to Islam) wanted to have their own say in the succession. In the end,
a prolonged all-night discussion led to selection of Abu Bakr, one of Muhammad’s close associ-
ates and his father-in-law (father of Aisha, another wife of Muhammad, whom he married after
the death of Khadija), as the Caliph (from Khalifa or successor) of Muhammad. The Khalifa
was supposed to act like a shaykh or chief and not as a prophet and was required to lead the
umma, arbitrate disputes and follow the precedents (Sunna) set by Muhammad. Abu Bakr and
the later three caliphs, Umar, Usman and Ali, are considered as Rashidun or ‘rightly guided’
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 397

Caliphs, mainly on account of their closeness with Muhammad and also because of the fact that
their religious and political authority derived from their loyalty to Islam.
Abu Bakr’s period of caliphal leadership (632–34 ce) was marked by an attempt to deal with
the threat of disintegration as many of the tribes such as those of the Bedouins broke away from
the Islamic state. This arose from the fact that the concept of an Arabian state was new for the
tribes who had pledged loyalty to Muhammad as a Charismatic leader and were not used to
formal state institutions. Many of such tribes declared their independence and few of the pow-
erful leaders among these pronounced themselves as prophets and started pursuing their own
version of Islam. Such leaders were described by the Meccan and Medinese Muslims as ‘false
prophets’, and Abu Bakr had to wage a war called Ridda (‘return’ or ‘apostasy’) against them to
re-establish control over them. In 633 ce, Muslims defeated a combined tribal confederation at
al-Aqraba and established their control over Eastern Arabia. This has been considered as the
defining moment in the history of early Islam in few Islamic traditions as this victory is sup-
posed to have preserved a unitary state as well as strengthened the identification of Islam with
the Arabs. Another significant battle was fought with the Byzantine who had come to support
the small tribes under attack by the Muslims. The Byzantine forces were defeated in the Battle
of Ajnadayn (634 ce). This victory was of great significance because it was for the first time that
the Arabs were fighting as a single army rather than a separate raiding tribal unit. The attempt
under Caliph Abu Bakr to consolidate a political federation in Arabia ultimately resulted later
in a full-fledged war against the Byzantines and the Sassanids under the leadership of Umar.
After the death of Abu Bakr, Umar, who was one of the earliest Meccan believers in
Muhammad’s prophet-hood, was nominated as the next caliph, who controlled the Islamic state
and the umma for 10 years (634–44 ce). Since the period of Umar’s caliphate witnessed the
unification of Arabia as well as the beginning of Arab conquest in several part of the Middle
East, he is considered as the real builder of the Arab Empire. After having seen through the
early crisis, the Arabs then set out to assert their authority first in Arabia and then in the entire
South West Asia and North Africa. The Arab victory in these regions, among other things, was
also facilitated by a prolonged conflict between the Byzantine and Sassanid Empires for
supremacy over West Asia that had become fierce in the first half of the seventh century ce. This
conflict had weakened both these kingdoms without any substantial gains. The Arabs in their
quest to control West Asia started with a double-pronged attack on both these kingdoms. With
the fall of Damascus (636 ce), Jerusalem (638 ce) and important cities of Mesopotamia (641 ce),
the first substantial territory to fall in the hands of the Arabs was Syria which was under the
control of the Byzantine Empire. Egypt was another Byzantine province to fall to the Arabs.
Egypt was considered as the granary of the Eastern Roman Empire. Its proximity to Hejaz, its
naval yards and as a strategic location for conquests in North Africa, made Egypt attractive to
the Arabs. With the capture of Heliopolis, Babylon and Alexandria by 643 ce, the conquest of
Egypt was also complete. Conquest of Egypt was followed by that of North Africa, beginning of
which was made with the capture of Tripoli in 643 ce, but the entire North Africa could be
brought under the Arab control only by the beginning of the eighth century. But the Byzantines
continued to hold on to their own by strengthening their position in Anatolia and Balkans.
Simultaneously, the Arabs attacked the Sassanian territories and gradually destroyed the
Empire. Hira (the Lakhmid capital under the Sassanian control) was conquered by the Arabs in
636 ce and, after defeating the Persian army in the Battle of Qadisiya (637 ce), the Arab army also
took control of the Sassanian capital Ctesiphon and the last Sassanian emperor Yazdagird had to
flee and take refuge under the Turkish princes. Subsequently, the entire Iraq was brought under
398 Ancient and Medieval World

their control by the Arabs. Iran (consisting of quasi-independent kingdoms under Sassanian
sphere of influence) on the other hand posed some problems for the Arabs not because of any
powerful political opposition but mainly on the account of existence of small principalities situ-
ated in remote areas protected by deserts and mountains. However, starting from the garrison
base of Kufa, the Arabs took control one by one of the Iranian territories and, by 644 ce, the
entire Western Iran fell to the Arabs. By 650 ce, the entire Iran also came under the control of
the Arabs. Thus, by the middle of the seventh century, the Arab Empire came to comprise of the
entire Arabian Peninsula, Syria, Palestine, Iraq, Iran, Egypt and parts of North Africa.
Apart from the weakness of the Byzantine and Sassanid Empires, few other factors have also
been highlighted by scholars to explain the rapid expansion of the Arabs. One of these, accord-
ing to Ira M. Lapidus (1988) was the rapid acceptance of the Arab rule by the inhabitants of
these kingdoms as they were detached from their earlier imperial masters. G. E. von Grunebaum
(1953) has highlighted the role of camels and horses besides weapons in the early success of
the Arabs. Grunebaum points out that the use of camels tremendously increased the mobility
of the Arab army in the desert terrain. This was added by the introduction of trained archers in
the army who, apart from those carrying lance and sword, proved to be extremely effective
against the enemy that was not used to such determined attack from a tribal army. The religious
zeal that took the form of jihad has also been considered as additional motivation for the Arab
army. These conquests were secured due to the migration of large number of Arabs in the
regions previously held by the two mighty kingdoms. Ira M. Lapidus (1988) points out that this
Arab migration was a culmination of centuries-long infiltration of peoples from Arabia into the
settled lands.
After the conquests, Umar was faced with the problem of governing these territories along
with controlling the migrant Arabs. Another major issue was to ensure that the Bedouins do not
destroy the agricultural property in these regions and to set a mechanism through which the
Meccan and the Medinese elite could exploit the resources of these territories. Umar was able
to solve these by evolving two principles to govern these territories. First, the Bedouins were
to be prevented from attacking the settled societies in these areas and that the Arab elite would
cooperate with those of the conquered territories. Following on these, Umar turned the Arab
conquerors into an elite army who garrisoned the conquered areas but prevented them from
taking up professions of the subdued population either as landowners or peasants. In order to
segregate the Arab population from the population of the subdued territory and to prevent
Bedouin attack on the agricultural societies, the Arabs, including the Bedouins, were settled in
Garrison cities (amsar). Prominent among these were Basra (at the mouth of the Persian Gulf),
Kufa (on the Euphrates River) and Fustat (below the Nile Delta in Egypt, modern Cairo). The
function of the amsar was not restricted to housing the Bedouins but it also had to organise the
army (as all of them were strategically located) and distribute the spoils of victory. The spoils
of war were distributed on the basis of the principles laid down earlier by Muhammad. One-fifth
of these went to the state whereas rest was distributed among the umma. Spoils of victory also
included taxes collected from the peasants and tributes paid by the inhabitants of the towns.
The Arabs were only entitled to revenue from the land as spoils of victory and not the land
itself. This ensured that the conquered areas would not be pillaged and the spoils of victory
would be distributed equitably. While distributing the spoils of victory, Umar had to ensure the
distribution in an organised manner. It was distributed in the form of a lump sum military sti-
pend, the amount being determined by the length of service and the stage at which the family
or clan had been inducted into Islam. Explaining the reasons behind the acceptance of such an
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 399

arrangement by the people of the conquered territories, Ira Lapidus (1988) argues that Islam
was a crucial factor in the formation of the great garrisons because the faith made strangers
willing to cooperate in a common cause. In this manner, argues Lapidus, Islam facilitated the
acceptance of the Caliphate and justified its authority.
Another significant aspect of the early Arab conquest was the policy of Umar not to force
people of the conquered areas to accept Islam. This was an extension of the policy followed by
Muhammad who had permitted the Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians of Arabia to keep their
faith in return for a tribute called jizya. Umar extended this principle to the Middle Eastern
Christians, Jews and the Zoroastrians. This would suggest that the Arabs while conquering
these territories did not possess any significant missionary zeal. In the Middle Eastern territo-
ries, the exemption from payment of jizya given to the Christian Arabs has led scholars, such
as, Jonathan Berkey (2002), to point out that Umar regarded himself the first and foremost as
the leader of the Arabs, and their monotheistic creed as the religious component of their new
political identity. Just as the Arabs did not force the subdued people to accept Islam, they also
did not alter the social and administrative structure of these areas. The governors were sent by
Umar to supervise collection of taxes and tributes and distribution of these as salary to the Arab
troops besides leading the Arabs in war. But no attempt was made to replace the administrative
machinery established by the Byzantines and the Sassanids in these regions. Further, while the
local elites were integrated and were made part of the new Arab regime, the old landowners,
chiefs and village headman were allowed to retain their authority and they continued to collect
taxes. Through a series of treaties that the Arabs signed with the subjects and notable persons
of the towns, chiefs and provincial chieftains, the old elite was allowed to retain their power
with autonomy to administer their territory. In return, the Arabs could collect fixed sum as
tribute from these notables.
Under his caliphal regime, Umar projected the military and religious authority of the Caliph.
He declared himself as Amir al-Mu’minin (Commander of the Faithful) assumed the role of
commander of the Arabian troops. The early Arab troops consisted of all adult male of the
umma, who had to perform military service. The forces were divided on the basis of the tribes
who fought under their respective chiefs under the overall command of Amir al-Mu’minin. In
the religious sphere, Umar systematised the Islamic rituals. Prayer was to be performed in the
mosques collectively. This was essential particularly in the garrison towns outside Arabia
through which the Islamic community good be brought together and could also give the troops
from diverse tribes a sense of unity and identity. Umar also initiated the writing down of the
text of Quran, which was hitherto in oral form. Umar is also credited for having introduced a
new Islamic era which began from the year of Muhammad’s migration to Medina, that is, 622 ce.
However, the early caliphate also faced early troubles due to the division between the
Muslim community of Arabia and the Arab tribal forces that were instrumental in conquering
the territories in the Middle East. This division arose from the fact that the Muslims and the
Arabs had differing notions about the caliphate. Umar, while organising the Islamic Empire in
the Arabian Peninsula, favoured the Meccan and Madinese supporters of Muhammad whereas
in the garrison towns, he supported those who had helped the Medina-based state in the
Arabian wars and who had been the early participants in the Arabian quest to capture Middle
Eastern territories. The latter were conferred with governorship and generalship as well as
important administrative posts with high salaries. This led to disappointment among the
Meccan elite consisting chiefly of the elite of the Quraysh. The complication further arose when
continuous emigration from Arabian Peninsula led to influx of large and prestigious clans to
400 Ancient and Medieval World

these garrison towns. They demanded their own share in the power leading to a fierce conflict
of interest that could not be resolved until the death (by killing) of Umar in 644 ce.
Usman (644–56 ce) was nominated as the third Caliph by a board of selectors appointed by
Umar. Usman was one of the early companions (muhajirun) of Muhammad but belonged to
the powerful Meccan clan of Umayyads. Therefore, Usman, after becoming the caliph, started
favouring the Umayyad and other Meccan clans at the expense of the original supports (muha-
jiruns and ansars), thus reversing the policies of Umar. Most of the important government
positions were given to the members of the Umayyad clan and revenues of the conquered ter-
ritories were redistributed to favour the newly migrant large clans. In order to achieve this,
Usman asserted greater central control over the provincial revenues and asked for the closer
accounting of the lands that earlier belonged to the Persian rulers. In the religious matters too,
Usman tried to have his way by promulgating a standardised edition of Quran, the compilation
of which had been undertaken under Umar. By doing these, according to Ira M. Lapidus (1988),
Usman stood for reassertion of the pre-Islamic coalition of Meccan and Arabian tribal aristo-
crats against the new elements produced by Islam, and claimed an enlarged authority for the
Caliph to effect social, economic and religious changes. Through these policies, Usman invited
lot of opposition from the original supporting clan of Muhammad, the Hashimites, who were
aggrieved at favouritism shown by Usman towards the Umayyads. The religious step of Usman
to undertake the standardisation of Quran was also resented by those members of the umma
who considered them to be the custodians of the holy book of Quran. The opposition to Usman
ultimately resulted in his assassination by a group of Arabs from Fustat in 656 ce.
Under Usman, not much territorial expansion was undertaken by the Arabs after 650 ce,
except establishing complete control over Iran. However, there was a distinct shift in the Arab
policy towards the conquered areas. With the consolidation of their power, the Arabs sought to
increase their control over the local areas and the earlier agreements were given a go by. The
Arab policy towards the provinces differed from one province to the other. For example, in
Mesopotamia and Syria, ignoring the earlier agreements, the Arabs insisted on payment of taxes
(instead of tribute) in direct proportion of the population and resources of the areas. In these
areas, urban and rural administration was also separated thus ending the era of city-states in
these regions and instead Mesopotamia and Syria were placed under the provincial bureau-
cracy. In Iraq and Egypt, the earlier centralised bureaucracy was replaced by the new Arab
bureaucracy. The Sassanian crownland was confiscated and made the caliphal domain. In
Egypt, the administrative system was simplified by abolishing the division of fiscally indepen-
dent estates and municipalities as separate units of administration.
By the time of the death of Usman, the taxation system of the Arabs in these provinces had
taken a definite shape. In Iraq, the Arabs collected land tax (kharaj) and a poll tax (  jizya). The
land was measured with the help of a rope (  jarib) and tax was applied to it based on such fac-
tors as the quality of land, the type of crop sown, productivity of the soil, type of irrigation
system and estimated value of the produce. In Mesopotamia and Syria, the tax was collected on
the basis of the amount of land that could be worked by one man and his animal in a day. The
urban non-farming population had to pay a special poll tax. In Egypt, the poll tax and the land
tax was collected separately but the former was levied on the entire village and were divided
internally by the villagers. In all these conquered territories, the incidence of the Arab demand
was pretty high, sometimes amounting to 50 per cent of the produce. Such high rate of taxation
was bound to affect the agricultural productivity of these areas as there was no surety whether
the peasants would continue to till the land or leave the land en masse due to high incidence of
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 401

taxation. Ira M. Lapidus (1988) is of the opinion that the settled societies of these regions were
exploited by the Arab conquerors in similar fashion as the Bedouins had dealt with the settled
societies of pre-Islamic Arabia. The only difference was that in this case, the conquerors aligned
with the conquered elite to exploit the peasantry.
The death of Usman was marked by another succession dispute which created conditions of
a virtual civil war in the Islamic Empire. Although Ali (656–61 ce) became the next Caliph with
the help of his Madinese supporters (ansars) and rebels from Egypt who were instrumental in
the assassination of Usman, he had to face stiff opposition from several quarters. As a caliph,
Ali was opposed to the centralising tendencies of the caliphate as established by Usman with
respect to distribution of taxes and tribute from the outside provinces and adopted a policy of
equal distribution of these among the Arabs. The claim of Ali to be made Caliph was made ear-
lier too immediately after the death of Muhammad by his Madinese supporters (ansars) on the
grounds that he was the son-in-law of Muhammad besides being one of the earliest converts to
Islam. His closeness to Muhammad and his devotion to Islam were again made the basis of his
claim to the position of caliphate after the death of Usman, but the only difference now was that
his support base had increased to include the rebels of Kufa as well as Egypt.
But Ali’s accession to the position of Caliph was opposed by several groups, leading to a civil
war within Arabia. This situation continued during the entire reign of Ali, which resulted in a
permanent division of the Muslim community on political and religious matters. Opposition to
Ali came first from the Umayyads and other faction led by Meccan aristocrats such as Talha and
Zubayr, the latter being associated with Muhammad. This faction also included Muhammad’s
widow Aisha. But this faction was defeated by Ali in the Battle of Camel in 656 ce. However, the
most determined opposition to Ali came from Muawiya, who was the governor of Syria and a
cousin of Usman. Muawiya had a large support base in Syria but most of the other regions had
accepted Ali as the next Caliph. To subdue Muawiya, Ali undertook a military campaign from
his capital Kufa (shifted from Medina) to Syria and fought the battle in 657 ce at a place called
Siffin in Northern Mesopotamia. The victory in the battle remained undecided and after a series
of negotiations and arbitrations, Muawiya was allowed to retain the independent charge of
Syria whereas Ali ruled rest of the Arabian Empire from Kufa. But Ali’s withdrawal from Siffin
angered a group of his supporters known as Kharijis who thought that Ali had erred in reaching
a compromise with Muawiya and claimed that this decision had gone in favour of the Umayyads.
Since the Kharijis had seceded from Ali, Muawiya as well as the Umayyads, they were termed
as ‘secessionists’.
The events following the war at Siffin created a permanent political and sectarian division of
the Muslim umma. Opposed to the accusation of the Kharijis was a group that held the belief
that Ali was endowed with divine qualities of leadership being connected to the family of
Muhammad and therefore could not have erred. This group was known as Shiah (meaning
‘party’ and in this case ‘party of Ali’) and the Shiites having unquestioned faith in Ali’s leadership
and religious credentials endorsed the actions of Ali at Siffin. Although Kharijis were defeated
in a battle, the Muslim support for Ali started dwindling and the opponents started demanding
setting of a council (shura) to elect a new Caliph. Ali of course rejected this demand but opposi-
tion to Ali kept on rising as the tribal chiefs of Kufa failed to support him. These civil wars had
also threatened to disintegrate the Islamic Empire with rebellions in different parts such as
Iran. These rebellions affected the revenue resources of the empire now based at Kufa and
opinion started turning in favour of Muawiya to be made the next Caliph on the grounds that
he was supported by a disciplined army and also that he could maintain unity of the Arab
402 Ancient and Medieval World

Muslim elite as well as Arab control over the empire. Thus, after the death of Ali at the hands
of the Kharijis, Muawiya declared himself as Caliph and his claim was accepted by the then
dominant Umayyad section. The attempt by the Shias to put Hasan (one of the sons of Ali) on
the throne of Caliph was unsuccessful as the Shiites failed to garner enough support for Hasan
against Muawiya.
With the succession of Muawiya, the period of the ‘rightly guided or pious caliphs’ (Rashidun)
came to an end. Under the four Caliphs who succeeded Muhammad, Islam had gained ground
not only in Arabia but had also spread to the entire Middle East. The victory of the Arabs against
the two powerful kingdoms of Byzantines and Sassanids and conquest of large territory turned
Islam, in a true sense, into a politico-religious movement. This period also witnessed the begin-
ning of internal conflict between the Muslim elite and the Meccan aristocracy of the Quraysh
who were late converts to Islam. This was followed by deeper divisions in the Muslim umma,
resulting in a serious civil war that threatened the existence of the Islamic Empire. The assas-
sination of three Caliphs (Umar, Usman and Ali) is sufficient proof of this. The claim of
Muawiya during the reign of Ali brought out these divisions into open, and the former’s succes-
sion to the position of Caliph also settled some of the burning issues of the times. The caliphate
passed into the hands of the Quraysh aristocracy and with this was reduced the importance of
Mecca and Medina as the two politico-religious centres of Islam. The political focus of Islam
now shifted to Damascus (Syria) which symbolised the dominant power of the Arab tribe over
the early Muslim elite. The civil war of the last decade before the death of Ali also created per-
manent schism within the Muslim community. There was a division of opinion over who had
the legitimate right to the position of caliphate. Those who supported the accession of Muawiya
as the Caliph were known as Sunni Muslims whereas those who believed that only the descen-
dants of Ali had the legitimate right over the position of caliphate were known as Shias. At the
ideological level, while the Shias emphasised the religious role of the Caliph and denounced
their political adventures, the Sunnis on the other hand were more tolerant towards the politi-
cal role of the Caliph and wanted to limit his religious role. The Kharijis on the other hand were
of the opinion that the Caliph should not be from either of the families (Ali or Umayyad) instead
he should be elected by the Muslim community at large and the tenure of the Caliph should be
limited by his conduct of his office. The political differences entered the religious sphere too,
leading to the sectarian division of Islam. As a result, the Sunnis, Shias and Kharijis developed
their own versions of Islam and formulated separate religious bodies within Islam.

Umayyad Caliphate
The accession of Muawiya to the position of Caliph heralded the beginning of a monarchical
rule based on dynastic principles in Islam. Muawiya held the position of Caliph for almost two
decades (661–80 ce) and all Caliphs following him belonged to the Umayyad clan. Therefore,
the time span between 661 ce and 750 ce is known as the period of Umayyad Caliphate. Muawiya
made fresh attempts to restore the authority of the Caliph to end the factionalism within the
ruling Arab elite. In order to centralise the authority of the Caliph, Muawiya set up new moral
principles and political idioms to ensure loyalty to the Caliph and also sought to increase the
military and administrative powers of the Caliphate. He compensated the Arab chiefs by
embarking on a fresh military campaign towards North Africa and Eastern Iran. At the same
time, an attempt was made to ensure the private control of the Caliph over the revenue
resources of the confiscated Byzantine and Sassanian crownland. Muawiya gained popularity
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 403

through his emphasis on the Arab virtues of conciliation, generosity and respect for tribal tradi-
tions. In this context, Ira M. Lapidus (1988) is of the opinion that while earlier caliphate (under
the Rashidun) was based on closeness to Muhammad and great religious integrity, Muawiya’s
reign was based on his ability to exemplify the Arab tribal patriarch. But the two decades of
Muawiya’s rule could not bring about an end to the civil war.
Muawiya, by choosing his son, Yazid (680–683 ce), as the next Caliph, not only established
the notion of hereditary rule but also created conditions of another round of civil war among
the Arabs. The Shiites, the Kharijis and the old Muslim families of Mecca and Medina opposed
the succession of Yazid and immediately rose to control the office of the caliphate. The Shiites
made a fresh claim of Ali’s second son Husayn (Hasan having died in 669 ce) to the position of
the Caliph. But in a battle fought at Karbala (Iraq) in 680 ce, Husayn’s forces were defeated and
massacred along with Husayn. The death of Husayn in the battle brought him martyrdom. His
shrine at Karbala is at present an important pilgrimage centre of the Shias, and Husayn’s mar-
tyrdom is observed as a period of mourning during the Islamic month of Muharram. Besides this
also became a rallying point of Shias for their future cause. Another prominent faction to
oppose Yazid was another Meccan aspirant Abdullah Ibn Zubayr, who gained support in Arabia
and Kufa. Kharijis, who, operating in small bands, had taken to militant activities in several
parts of the Arabian Peninsula, were the third group to lay claim to the position of caliphate.
Apart from this direct opposition to the Umayyads, there was a widespread factional fighting
among several Arab groups over the issue of tribal or Islamic loyalties. Moreover, with the shift-
ing of capital of the Islamic state first to Kufa and then to Syria had severely undermined the
position of both Mecca and Medina. The alienation of the inhabitants of these two original
centres of Islam became a reason of support for Ibn Zubayr, who declared himself as the new
Caliph in 684 ce with his capital at Medina. This practically made Arab independent with its
control being partitioned in the hands of Ibn Zubayr and the Kharijis. Ibn Zubayr’s authority also
extended beyond Arabia and included Egypt and Iraq whereas a uniform support for the author-
ity of the Umayyads in Syria was also not certain as many of the tribes settled there also
extended support to Ibn Zubayr. These developments, according to Jonathan Berkey (2002),
establish two important facts. First, the institution of Islam until this time was still grounded in
Arab identities as the warring factions fought over the issue of which family of the Quraysh
would have the right to lead the new polity. Second, with different claimants to the title of ‘com-
mander of believers’ spread out through Syria, Iraq and Arabia, we cannot yet speak of a unified
Muslim polity.
However, with the Umayyad leadership coming in the hands of the Marwan clan (Muawiya
belonged to the clan of Abu Sufiyan), the Umayyads prevailed over the opponents by the use of
force. It was under the caliphal leadership of Abd al-Malik (685–705 ce) that the process of the
rebuilding of the Umayyad state began. But it was only after the successful military campaigns
against Ibn Zubayr (in which Zubayr was killed) and the Kharijis and occupation of Mecca and
Medina (691–92 ce) that the Umayyad Rule was stabilised. Subsequently Abd al-Malik demilita-
rised the garrison cities of Arabs and they were replaced by Syrian forces. Iraq and eastern
territories of the Umayyad Empire were brought under the control of a powerful Governor
Al-Hajjaj who governed these territories with an iron hand for 23 years (692–715 ce) and
secured a prolonged period of peace. Abd al-Malik’s reign was followed by that of al-Wahid
(705–715 ce) and both the Umayyad rulers brought about significant changes in the Islamic
polity that was carried forward by their successors. These changes were necessitated by strong
404 Ancient and Medieval World

political, religious and social challenges from the Shias, Kharijis and the tribal factionalism, the
latter being caused by social stress created after changes in the garrison cities.
Under Abd al-Malik, the power of the caliphate was further centralised and caliphate became
an absolute monarchy. Small elite controlled much of the political and military power that was
presided over by the Caliph. This period also witnessed the bureaucratisation of the administra-
tion and growth of a professionally trained army, replacing the tribal contingents. The earlier
tribal units under the command of rais al-qabila were turned into regular regiments (  junds)
commanded by qaids (military commanders) who were not tribal chiefs. The Arabisation of
administration was affected during 697–98 ce through changes in the administrative language
from Greek (used by Byzantines) and Persian or Pahlavi (used by the Sassanids) to Arabic.
Under the rule of Abd al-Malik’s successors, attempts were also made to revise the rules of taxa-
tion in order to establish uniformity in areas such as Egypt, Mesopotamia and Khurasan (Iran).
An organisational identity was introduced by the Umayyads by replacing the Greek- and
Persian-speaking officials with Arab-speaking ones who were loyal to the caliphate. A new class
of officers, mainly scribes, came into being and later dominated administration of the Arab-
Muslim Empire until the tenth century ce. A new courtly culture developed in the Umayyad
court as the business of governance, hitherto under the Arab chiefs now fell in the hands of the
court chamberlain, the scribes, officials of the chancery, officials of the royal seal and the
guards. Thus, Ira M. Lapidus (1988) comments that ‘from patriarchal rule, the Caliphate trans-
formed itself into an imperial government’.
The Umayyads changed the character of the Umayyad state at the level of ideology too. The
earlier coins (gold and silver) of the Byzantine and Sassanid regimes carrying Christian and
Zoroastrian ideological symbols were replaced by coins containing Arabic script that symbol-
ised sovereignty of the Umayyad state and its independence from the earlier regime. The build-
ing activities undertaken by the Umayyads also expressed the ideological victory of Islam.
Under the reign of Abd al-Malik, Jerusalem (earlier the holy place of the Jews) was now
declared as that of the Muslims. He also built the famous ‘Dome of Rock’ (close to Al-Aqsa
mosque) at the site of an ancient Hebrew temple at Jerusalem in 692 ce. The massive dome of
the mosque became an important element of all subsequent Islamic structures. During the reign
of al-Wahid, several mosques and palaces were constructed at Medina and at Damascus (capital
of the Umayyads). These mosques and their decoration, in the opinion of Ira M. Lapidus (1988),
while on the one hand symbolised the unity of the Arabs, it was also an expression of the pri-
macy of the state and its indispensability to the Muslim community on the other.
Jonathan Berkey (2002), however, is of the opinion that the architecture of the Umayyads
while underscoring the underlying Arabness of the Umayyad state also displayed a transi-
tional character, particularly with reference to the palaces constructed on the margins of the
settled areas of Syria by the rulers and the court elite. Construction of few of these in the
countryside beyond the confines of the city life (still dominated by the Christian settlements)
was reflective of the political reality that it was in the rural areas that the Muslim command-
ers could easily meet the tribal chiefs and their followers. Certain architectural features of
these rural palaces such as the absence of elaborate bedrooms and indoor kitchens too,
argues Berkey, reflect the persistence of tastes and lifestyle associated more with the desert
lifestyle rather than that of an urban aristocracy. At the same time, Berkey believes, a few of
the architectural forms (presence of complex baths) of the Umayyad buildings and art forms
(wall paintings, floor mosaic and sculpture) within them also draw on pre-Islamic Near
Eastern patterns and conventions. The depiction of images of rulers and royal princes in the
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 405

Expansion of the Islamic Empire During 632–750

MAP 11.2   ce

Source: Adapted from a blank map by Die Buche. Available at [Link]

sion_of_Caliphate.svg

Near Eastern style on the other hand, says Berkey, was reflective of the imperialisation of the
Muslim polity.
Militarily, the second phase of the Umayyad rule after its consolidation by the Marwan family
was marked by resumption of the policy of Arab conquest. This new phase of territorial expan-
sion, initiated by al-Wahid, was inspired by imperial ambitions rather than the motive of tribal
expansion and therefore they were better planned and underlying these was the hidden agenda
of world domination. The areas that the Arabs targeted included Northern Africa and the
Western Mediterranean. Egypt was made the base for attack on Northern Africa. The specific
target was the region called ‘Maghrib’, comprising present day Libya, Algeria, Morocco and
Tunisia and covered a long stretch between western borders of Egypt to the Atlantic coast. The
conquest of North Africa was completed by the beginning of the eighth century ce. The Arabs
consolidated themselves in the Maghrib region through their alliance with the local Berber
tribes, many of whom converted to Islam. The Berbers also assisted the Arabs in their subse-
quent conquests in the Mediterranean. In the Mediterranean region, the Arabs established their
control on Spain by displacing the Visigoths in 711 ce, but their further advance was interrupted
by the Franks who had established themselves in Spain. Thus, by the middle of the eighth cen-
tury, the Arab Empire under the Umayyads had spread to the whole of Near East, Egypt, North
Africa and parts of Mediterranean (see Map 11.2).
Regarding the conversion of the non-Muslims beyond Arab Peninsula under the Umayyads,
it can be said that it was a slow process. In the areas of Arab control in Byzantine and Sassanid
territory, the process of conversion was not individual but a tribal affair. In the initial stages, the
Arabs mostly lived in the garrison towns and were not permitted regular interaction with the
inhabitants of the areas they ruled from the amsar. But the task of administering a vast territory
and collection of surplus required interaction with and active cooperation of the local non-
Muslim elite. In Syria as well as Iraq and Iran, the local elite had been allowed to maintain their
406 Ancient and Medieval World

local position. Under the Sassanid in Iran, the local landed elites were called dihqans, who
assisted the government in collection of taxes. When the Arabs took control of Iran, these elites
were allowed to continue in their position with reduced privileges and they continued to collect
taxes for the Arabs. In due course of time, many of them started residing in the amsar and
converted to Islam. In Syria on the other hand, the Arab settlers penetrated the countryside and
developed social and economic relations beyond the amsar which also resulted in the conver-
sion of these tribes into Islam. However, one must add here that a non-Arab could convert to
Islam only by becoming a ‘client’ (mawla or plural mawali) of the Muslim Arab at whose hands
the conversion took place. This need arose from insuring that if any Arab was to be harmed by
a convert, there should be someone to account and compensate for by the latter’s actions. The
mawali were given an inferior social status. Patricia Crone (2003), explaining the reasons
behind subordinate status accorded to the mawali, has argued that in the early part of the
Umayyad rule, most of the converts were war captives who had been turned to slaves. Many of
these in due course of time were manumitted and converted to Islam but were given a low
status in the Muslim society. This, according to Crone, was possibly also the reason behind the
inferior status given to the mawali. But with large number of mawali included in the Arab
administration, army and government, the Arab exclusiveness ended and the mawali started
demanding equality of status and privileges with the original Muslim community. The peasant
converts on their part demanded exemption from discriminatory taxes levied on the non-­
Muslims. In areas such as Iran and Iraq, this was one of the major sources of disenchantment
with the Umayyad rule.
The stability of the Umayyads depended upon balancing of conflicting interest of the various
Arab factions. The Yemeni faction was in favour of assimilation of Arab and non-Arab elements
in the army and decentralisation of authority. They also demanded equal treatment towards the
converts besides desiring peace rather than continuous wars of expansion. On the other hand,
few tribes like that of the Qays represented that Arab faction for whom continuous wars were
a major source of income and who were in favour of a centralised authority and wanted distinc-
tion between Arabs and non-Arabs to continue. Umayyad rulers from Abd al-Malik until Hisham
(724–43 ce) had been able to balance the conflicting interest of these factions. But these con-
flicts assumed serious proportion during the reign of Umar II (717–20 ce). Umar II, on his part,
had followed a pragmatic approach by advocating equal status to the Arabs and non-Arabs with
the objective of ensuring Muslim unity. His taxation policy exempted the Arab converts from
payment of poll tax (jizya) but, keeping in mind economic interest of the state, imposed a
Muslim alms tax, sadaqat, for all Muslims. But the other Umayyad rules vacillated between tax
concessions and cancellation of taxations as well as between reconciliation with the demands
and maintenance of status quo. This prepared the ground for the third round of civil war among
the Muslim community.
The opposition to the Umayyad rule was both religious and political in nature. The Sunnis
as a religious group were opposed to the Umayyads because of their administrative and mili-
tary policies. The centralisation enforced by Umayyads to them was an attempt by the latter
to assume religious authority through display of political power. The Sunnis were not
opposed to the caliphate per se for the simple reason that they identified Caliph with the
religious authority, but the Umayyads seem to undermine this role of the Caliph. The Shias on
the other hand were still holding the dream of seeing someone from the family of Ali to
become Caliph as they claimed that caliphate rightfully belonged to the family of Ali who they
believed were chosen by the God to lead the Muslim umma. The Shias rebelled against the
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 407

Umayyads during 736–40 ce but with the defeat of Shia rebel, Zayd ibn Ali (grandson of
Husayn), the opposition of the Shias came to an end for the time being. After the failure of
the movement of Alids in Kufa, the most resilient political opposition to the Umayyads came
from the Hashimites whose l­eadership was now in the hands of Abbasids (descending from
al-Abbas, paternal uncle of Muhammad and belonging to the other branch of Banu Hashim).
The Abbasids started their movement to oust the Umayyads in a secretive manner with the
added objective of taking revenge for Ali’s murder and to establish a new era of peace and
equal justice. Under the leadership of Abu Muslim, the Abbasids organised military support
in Khurasan that also became headquarter of their opposition movement. On the other hand,
military strength of the Umayyads had been sapped due to the excessive use of the Syrian
army to control the Arabs and the frontier areas. Besides, the Umayyad army came under
severe pressure at several parts of the Islamic Empire. They were driven out of Transoxiana
by the Turks, and the Byzantine army defeated Arabs in Acrazas in Anatolia in 740 ce, destroy-
ing a part of the Syrian army. Earlier, the Arabs were also driven out of Central France by the
Carolingian rulers in 732 ce. Ira M. Lapidus (1988) opines that these military defeats ended
the imperial phase of the Arab-Muslim Empire building and left Syria militarily exhausted.
Having based a century of rule on the ever-increasing power of the state, the Umayyad
Dynasty, argues Lapidus, now found itself without a military basis for effective central
government.
The Abbasids waited for the final assault on the throne of the caliphate and in the mean-
time, under the leadership of Abu Muslim, gathered the support of the agriculturists of
Khurasan (especially around the region known as Marw) who not only felt the burdened of
taxation but also were treated as inferior citizen of the Islamic state. A propaganda campaign
was also undertaken to convince people about the end of the world and coming of a Messiah
(Mahdi) which would lead to the beginning of a new era of universal justice. Backed by such
a support, Abu Muslim was able to defeat the last Umayyad ruler, Marwan II, in 749–50 ce and
seized the position of the caliphate by simultaneously defeating other rival factions with the
support of a small army. Ira M. Lapidus (1988) has pointed out that there is no unanimity
among the scholars on the issue of the support base of the Abbasids. One school of thought
believes that the Abbasid organisation was founded by the Yemeni Arabs and their clients in
Kufa whose agents in Khurasan mobilised the support of the aggrieved Persians. These
Persians included those who were agents of Umayyads but were dissatisfied with them for
having not been included in the army payrolls and those Persians who were recently converted
to Islam but were subject to unjust taxation. The other view, however, suggests that Abbasids
were primarily supported by Arabs from the villages around Marw who belonged to the Yemeni
faction. These Yemenis reached Iran as a part of the Arab army to conquer the eastern regions,
but they were gradually acculturated to Iran after settling there. But now they were subject to
unjust taxation at the hands of the Persian dihqans. The third theory, which Lapidus considers
the most convincing, suggests that the Abbasid revolution was a revolt against the dominance
alliance of the Arab military chieftains, mainly of the Qays faction, and high-ranking Iranian
nobles. According to this theory, the Abbasids were supported by a coalition of middling land-
owners (both Arab and Persian). The Persian landowners and tax collectors were alienated by
the Umayyad policy of exempting converts from payment of poll tax. Whereas the Arab set-
tlers and their clients were opposed to the Umayyads, they were made subject to the tax rais-
ing authority of the Persian dihqans. Thus, this theory suggests that the Abbasid movement
was supported by both Arabised Persians as well as Persianised Arabs who were ideologically
408 Ancient and Medieval World

united by their commitment to the family of Muhammad. The Abbasid Caliphate was thus
established in 750 ce with Abbasid leader Abbas al-Saffah (al-saffah meaning ‘the avenger’) as
the new Caliph.

Abbasids Caliphate
The Abbasid takeover of the caliphate has been termed as Abbasid ‘revolution’. Historians, such
as, Jonathan Berkey (2002), argue that the Abbasid movement was a direct response to the
religious turmoil of the mid-eighth century but its success altered the political and religious
terrain and the subsequent Abbasid Caliphs and their supporters adjusted to the changed cir-
cumstances by constructing new justification to their rule. Berkey further argues that the
upheaval that resulted in the seizure of power by the Abbasid should not simply be termed as
coup d’état through which one ruling family replaced another. Because, by the middle of the
eighth century, ‘Islam’ was an unmistakable identity and the Abbasids had to justify their claim
in an Islamic idiom. So, the Abbasids claimed to undertake restoration of an ideal Muslim order
associated now with the Prophet and the primitive Islamic community. Talking about the char-
acter of the ‘revolution’, Berkey is of the opinion that ideologically, the Abbasid movement was
directed towards the restoration of an ideal society associated with the Arab Prophet
Muhammad rather than any resurgence of Iranian culture and identity despite the fact that they
were supported by few mawali of the Iranian origin. Sociologically too, argues Berkey, the
movement had a deep Arab colouring as most of its leaders were Arabs and the rivalry between
the Qays and the Yemenis played an important role in determining which Arab settled in
Khurasan joined the rebellion and which opposed it. But another aspect of this ‘revolution’ was
the fusion of Arab and Iranian traditions which had resulted from Arab expansion in Iran,
including the present day Afghanistan and extending beyond the Oxus River. This synthesis led
to transfer of many of the Iranian monarchical traditions into the Islamic civilisation.
The first major step taken by the Abbasids after coming to power was to shift the administra-
tive base of the caliphate from Syria to Baghdad (Southern Iraq). Baghdad (now called ‘City of
Peace’ or Madinat al-Salam) was strategically located on the route between Iraq, Iran and
Syria, and included the most fertile tract of Iraq with an easy access to the waters of Tigris and
Euphrates. In fact, it was in this fertile region that the Sassanids too had built up their empire.
However, the Abbasid capital of Baghdad included three complexes—the administrative city
(Madinat al-Salam), the army camp (al-Harbiya) located north to the administrative wing, and
the workers quarters (al-Karkh) which was situated in the south of the main administrative city.
Gradually, Baghdad became the chief metropolitan centre after the Abbasid rulers built several
palaces and buildings not only within the administrative centre but also on both sides of the
Tigris River. Few of the scholars consider founding of the city of Baghdad by al-Mansur in
762 ce as symbolising attempt by him to project himself as an imperial monarch in the Byzantine
and Sassanid tradition as founding of a city, since ancient times, was seen as denoting imperial
power. Jonathan Berkey (2002) is of the opinion that foundation of Baghdad as the capital city
also reflected growing tension between Abbasids and the members of the family of Ali who
were strong in Kufa, which was also the early capital of the Abbasid Caliphate. Berkey, further
points out that the foundation of this city was an ambitious exercise, and grand construction of
the city including palaces, gardens and grand reception halls signalled unabashed absorption of
pre-Islamic imperial traditions as well as sharpening of Iranian influence on the character of the
Islamic civilisation. Besides the growth of Baghdad as a premier urban centre, the period
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 409

covering the eighth and ninth centuries is also considered as a phase of urban expansion in the
Islamic world which would be dealt with in a separate section in this chapter.
The Abbasids, after coming to power, had to face several challenges. This ranged from secur-
ing loyalty for a rebel regime from the subjects to building effective governing institutions and
mobilising political support from Arab Muslims, converts and other tax paying non-Muslim
communities. In order to get the support of the entire Muslim community, the Abbasids aban-
doned the practice of making distinction between Arabs and non-Arabs. This was reflected in
recruitment, in large numbers, of the Iranian elite and placing them on high administrative and
military positions. This policy of assimilation was facilitated by several factors such as develop-
ment of Arabic as the lingua franca of the empire, further spread of Islam followed by conver-
sion of new set of population and growth of trade and commerce subsequent to Baghdad
becoming major emporia. Baghdad, being the capital of the Abbasids apart from being a major
commercial centre, provided opportunities for the recruitment of large number of Arab and
non-Arab Muslims thus strengthening the political base of the Abbasids. Both Arab and the non-
Arab subjects of the empire, opines Ira M. Lapidus (1988), became a co-sharer in the emerging
network of political, social, economic and cultural loyalties which defined a new cosmopolitan
Middle Eastern society. This has prompted few western scholars, such as G. E. von Grunebaum
(1970) to consider Abbasid period as the ‘classical’ period, marking the end of Arab parochial-
ism and embracing a truly cosmopolitan worldview in which many of the norms that defined
‘Islam’ in later centuries took recognisable shape. But recently, Jonathan Berkey (2002) has
pointed out that it would be wrong to describe this period as ‘classical’ phase of Islam because
what has been identified as the characteristic features of Islam took clearer shape only after the
mid-ninth century by the time of which authority of the Abbasids was severely undermined.
Under the Abbasids, army and administration was organised on new principles. The military
superiority of Arabs in the army was reduced and new forces were recruited that were organ-
ised in a manner that they remain loyal to the dynasty rather than to their respective tribes. The
Umayyads had begun this practice by recruiting large number of Syrian troops but had failed to
organise them into a professional army. The Abbasids on the other hand abandoned the policy
of conquest. Therefore, they required limited army to look after the security of the frontier
areas, to take up occasional expeditions against the Byzantine Empire and to suppress internal
rebellions. With the reduction in need of manpower, the Arab soldiers deputed in Syria, Iraq,
Khurasan and Egypt were made to retire. In addition, out of the Khurasan, Arab troops and their
clients (mawali) with the help of which the Abbasids had risen to power, a professional army
was created that remained loyal to their paymaster, that is, the Caliph. Similar process of inte-
gration was noticed in the field of administration of the Abbasids that became highly bureau-
cratised, similar to those of the Sassanids. Large number of Khurasanis, Iranian Christians,
Jews, the Shiite families and the mawali, who had played an important role in the administra-
tion of the Umayyads, continued to enjoy prominence in the bureaucratic structure of the
Abbasids. Although the Arabs did not lose their prominence in the administrative hierarchy but
their privileges now depended on loyalty to the dynasty. Thus, the Abbasid administration now
assumed a cosmopolitan outlook with a combination of Arab, Iraqi, Syrians and Khurasanis
bureaucracy.
Like the Umayyads, the Abbasid Caliphs also centralised power to the extent that it reached
the level of absolute monarchy under al-Mansur (754–75 ce). This is said to be a direct outcome
of adoption of the Sassanid and Byzantine notion of Kingship that combined both temporal and
spiritual authorities. Added to this were the elaborate court etiquettes and ceremonials that
410 Ancient and Medieval World

tended to restrict accessibility to the Caliph, signalling difference between rulers and subjects.
The practice of prostration and kissing the ground before Caliph along with splendour of the
Caliph’s court at Baghdad were all symbolic of Caliph’s supreme authority. The opulence and
splendour of the caliph’s court at Baghdad has been noted in the early tenth century account of
the renowned contemporary historian al-Tabari which has also been corroborated by the ninth
century account of life in the caliphal court in the famous Kitab al-Taj, supposedly written by
al-Jahiz. Under the Abbasids, administration became more routinised with the organisation of
administration into three main bureaus (diwans)—revenue (diwan al-kharaj), chancery
(diwan al-rasail) and the army (diwan al-jaysh). The bureau of revenue was responsible for
tax collection, the chancery for keeping records and correspondence and the army bureau was
to look after payment of the centralised army and to look after the court expenses and payment
to the pensioners. As the administration became more elaborate, these bureaus were further
sub-divided to carry on supplementary activities. As it became increasingly difficult to super-
vise these administrative branches by the Caliph, system of checks and balances were created.
A controller’s office (diwan al-azimma) was attached with each bureau and barids (messen-
gers) were appointed to provide information secretly about all the offices. Besides the admin-
istrative officials, the Abbasids appointed qajis or judges to dispense justice. Most of the
appointees were leading scholars of Muslim law and they were required to adjudicate in all civil
matters concerning the Muslim community.
However, the most prominent administrative institution to develop under the Abbasids was
office of the wazir or vizarat. The main responsibility of the wazir was to coordinate, check
and supervise the operations of the bureaucracy. In effect, he presided over the bureaucracy as
he was well versed in the working of various branches of administration. Originally, close assis-
tants of the Caliph were given the title of wazir and their powers varied at the pleasure of the
Caliph. Subsequently, vizarat became the most characteristic administrative institution of the
Islamic state in different parts of the world. However, it was only by the middle of the ninth
century that wazir became the chief of administration, controlling the bureaucracy, forwarding
names of the provincial governors to the Caliph and assisting the Caliph in dispensing justice.
Few claim that the institution of vizarat was borrowed by the Abbasids from the Sassanids and
had a Persian origin. But scholars, such as, S. D. Goitein (1968) and some others, argue that this
institution was founded by the early Abbasids with an added emphasis that the term wazir is
an Arabic term meaning ‘helpers’. Under the Caliphs al-Mahdi (775–85 ce) and Harun al-Rashid
(786–809 ce), the position of wazir was dominated by the family of Barmakids but their promi-
nence always depended upon the whims of the Caliph which is exemplified by the execution of
the leading members of the family by the Caliph Harun al-Rashid.
The administration of the provinces under the Abbasids varied from direct supervision under
the centralised administration to a loose control exercised through a military governor with a
help of a garrison. The provinces in close proximity to Baghdad such as Iraq, Mesopotamia,
Egypt and Western Iran were directly governed with a governor and the provincial bureaucracy
working in tandem with the central government with the objective of maximising the remit-
tance of tax revenue from the provinces. The tenure of service of the Governors was deliber-
ately kept short and a policy of rotation ensured that they do not develop local support base
and remain at the mercy of the Caliph. The power of the governor was further reduced by sepa-
rating functions of law and order and collection of taxes and keeping of finances. The judicial
function was also delegated to some other official. All these provincial officials thus kept a
check on each other and a barid kept an eye on each of these. However, such a strict division
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 411

of civil and military functions, frequent rotation of governors and control over them was not
always feasible as several local warlords and members of the royal family who had supported
the Caliph had to be appeased. Therefore, in several cases, various provisions of the provincial
governance had to be waived off. Provinces located at a distance from the capital, such as, the
ones in Caspian highlands and inner Asian provinces and in North Africa, were not ­administered
directly and had to be given autonomy. In the frontier provinces, military governors were
appointed, who were given a garrison to assist in collection of taxes. In some provinces gover-
nors merely collected tributes, tax collection being in the hands of the local people. Few other
provinces such as Khurasan and Transoxiana were governed by the local dynasties that were
recognised as ‘governors of the Caliph’. Khurasan was under the control of the Tahirids who
paid substantial tribute to the Caliph, and Transoxiana was in the effective control of the
Samanids who had converted to Islam after incorporation of Transoxiana into the Islamic
Empire.
The local administration was organised by the Abbasids with the basic purpose of collection
of taxes. The local administrative units in Iraq and Egypt were divided into revenue units such
as kura, tassuj and rustaq. Local surveys were undertaken by the local officials to find out the
land under cultivation, the expected yield and the crops grown which was then conveyed to the
central government. The estimated tax of a region was divided into various districts and the unit
below it. After the deduction of local expenses, the remainder was sent to the central govern-
ment. Lands of the local areas did not include crownland, the confiscated imperial land of the
Byzantines and the Sassanids, the church properties and the reclaimed wasteland. There was
extensive tract of the crownland in Iraq and Iran and they were kept out of the purview of the
provincial administration. Out of the provincial land, few were earmarked to be given as land
grants to the members of the Abbasid family, important courtiers and officials who were look-
ing for rewards having extended their support to the Abbasids. These grants were called iqta.
There were two types of iqta grants—iqta tamliq and iqta istighlal. The first type of grant
usually consisted of uncultivated but cultivable wasteland with an objective of extending area
under cultivation as despite the growth of trade and commerce, land tax remained the chief
source of the caliphal state. Such lands were assessed at concessional rate for first few years
and later assessed in normal rates with full proprietary right given to the grantee which was
also hereditary. The second type of iqta grant was assigned to those individuals who agreed to
pay the central government a fix sum of money in return for the right to tax the peasantry.
Thus, the imperial organisation of the Abbasids has been termed by Ira M. Lapidus (1988) as
a complex bureaucracy highly elaborated at the centre and in touch with provincial and local
functionaries throughout the empire. However, the relationship between centre on the one
hand and the province and the locality on the other was not hierarchical. Administration at each
level was run by independent people. In some cases, points out Lapidus, there were princes or
independent governors who controlled the whole provinces, and, in other cases, they were the
local village chiefs and landowners without whom the central and provincial governments were
helpless. Lapidus concludes that since the ties of the government were not strictly hierarchical,
a complex system of constraints and opportunities, obligations and loyalties, bound the central,
provincial and local notables to the Abbasid regime.
For the purpose of collection of land revenue, a clear distinction was made between the
holding of the Muslim and non-Muslim peasants. The Muslims paid a tax on land known as ushr
which was assessed at one-tenth of the produce and also paid zakat (for charitable purposes)
which was assessed at 2.5 per cent of the value of their property. The non-Muslims or those
412 Ancient and Medieval World

outside the Muslim umma were required to pay, as mentioned earlier, a poll tax called jizya
which was levied on the basis of the paying capacities of the zimmis, as the non-Muslims were
called. In addition to this, the zimmis had to pay a land tax called kharaj which was at the rate
of one-third of the produce. This distinction did not matter much to the caliphate until a large
number of non-Muslims had not converted to Islam, particularly in the Sassanid territory from
where the caliphate collected substantial amount of revenue in the form of kharaj from the
local landed aristocracy (dihqans). But by the beginning of the eighth century, a large number
of Muslims had become landed gentry due to land grants including iqtas whose owners were
required to pay ushr at a very low rate. Moreover, the conversion of a large number of non-
Muslim landed gentry to Islam made them Muslim landholder, making them liable to pay only
ushr. This created a problem of shortage of revenue to the state as the ushri land had surpassed
the kharaji ones. Thus, in the beginning of the ninth century, all land was turned kharaji
whether it was owned by a Muslim or non-Muslim landholder. This ensured continuous flow of
revenue to the Abbasid state, removing financial uncertainties.
Although the Abbasid Caliphs tried to recruit officials without much consideration to their
ethnic background and their administration was based on a coalition of provincial and city
elites, yet opposition to the regime was always present. At times, the Abbasid state did have to
use its military power to subdue dissident population located mostly in mountainous provinces
situated away from Baghdad. Besides these dissidents, opposition to the Abbasid regime also
came from those Arabs who had to face unemployment due to formation of a single central
army. Thus, Syrian Arabs revolted in 760 ce and the policy of the Abbasids to deploy their own
garrison in Egypt provoked Arab tribal rebellion during 793–94 ce. Since the Bedouins were
fiercely independent minded, any attempt on the part of the Abbasid regime to restrict their
autonomy met with rebellion. In order to justify their opposition, the Bedouins took the ideol-
ogy of the Kharijis. In the beginning of the ninth century, however, Shiites and their ideology
became the basis of chief tribal opposition to the Abbasid rule. The new religious opposition to
the Abbasid rule was represented by syncretic ideas as the Abbasid Empire presented itself as
an orthodox Muslim state. The religious tension in the Abbasid regime was also caused by the
fact that propagation of Islam had led to disorganisation of traditional religions such as
Zoroastrianism and Christianity whereas Islam as a religion was yet to be organised fully. The
inclusion and dominance of Turkish mercenaries in the Abbasid army, particularly from the
time of Caliph al-Mutasim (833–42 ce) onwards, created another religious and ethnic dichotomy
in the traditional tie between the umma and the army. Religious opposition to the Abbasids was
led by the Shiites who had earlier supported the Abbasid movement in the hope that one of the
legitimate heirs of Ali would succeed the Umayyads. But the seizure of the power of caliphate
by the Abbasids disappointed them and they therefore organised minor rebellions in Mecca,
Medina, Basra and Kufa and a major one between 813 ce and 816 ce with the support of the
Bedouins. In the early tenth century, Ismailism (an offshoot of Shiism) initiated a new wave of
religious opposition to the Abbasids.
The religious opposition to the Abbasids was accompanied by centrifugal tendencies in the
provinces which became acute by the end of the ninth century. This led to effective political
power outside Iraq going in the hands of the local regimes despite the caliphal state remaining
a symbol of Islamic unity. In Egypt, Ahmad ibn Tulun, a Turkish soldier, appointed as governor
by the Caliph, declared his independence and founded an autonomous local government. In
Khurasan and Central Asia, the Samanids (governor of the Abbasid Caliphate) established their
control with their capital at Bukhara and the Buyids (originally from Daylam, south of the
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 413

Caspian Sea) took control of effective political power at Baghdad in the middle of the tenth
century. Although the Buyids recognised the religious authority of the caliph, they became the
de facto rulers of the central provinces of the Islamic Empire until the mid-eleventh century. It
has been pointed out by Jonathan Berkey (2002) that shifting of power in the hands of local
regimes such as the Samanids and the Buyids, both having Shiite connections, had profound
impact on the religious developments in this region. The period of the Samanids, for example,
witnessed a renaissance of Persian culture and language, which proved to be the medium for
future medieval religious growth in Islam, particularly in the area of Sufi mysticism. Egypt later
came under the control of the Fatimids (belonging to the Ismaili Shia sect) who rejected the
caliphal authority of the Abbasids and established their own rival imamate, claiming supreme
religious authority and political sovereignty. By the mid-eleventh century, many parts of the
erstwhile Abbasid rule came under the control of the Turks that were ultimately displaced by
the Mongols in 1258 ce, thus formally bringing about an end to the Abbasid Caliphate.
Thus, from this analysis of the Abbasid political structure, it becomes apparent that the
Abbasids ruled a vast territory having a heterogeneous community. Each community was
headed by different elites, including headmen, landowners and men of wealth, who were allied
to their patrons in the provincial and central government. Although the Abbasid administration
was highly bureaucratic, success of this system depended upon a social mechanism that
involved regular contact between provincial elites and the central government. The central
officials on their part tried their best to ensure loyalty of the local elite to the caliph. Caliph was
presented as an exalted person ruling by the mandate of the God, which echoed both Muslim
and Near Eastern traditions. Yet there were large number of groups and communities inhabiting
in areas away from the capital which refused to accept the imperial order of the caliph. Thus,
the Abbasid regime was marked by constant struggle with these groups that ultimately sapped
its vitality. The political opposition was often mired in religious tones, creating social and reli-
gious ferment in the Islamic Empire.

RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS
The Islamic civilisation that developed under the Umayyads and the Abbasids had two dimen-
sions. For the caliphate and the political elite, the court of the Caliph was the focal point of
religious and cultural development whereas for the heterogeneous urban communities, Islamic
civilisation developed out of the city milieu. So, while on the one hand Islam was seen as an
expression of the political identity of the Caliph by the political elite, the urban communities
perceived Islam as an expression of the religious, moral and social values of the Muslim urban
populace, on the other. However, the Muslim community (umma) as a whole considered
caliphs as the heirs of Muhammad’s religious and political authority. But right since the time of
the Umayyads, there was a friction between the religious obligations and political need of the
Caliph. The main Shiite opposition to the Umayyads rested on this friction, which prompted the
former to support the Abbasids. But the Abbasids created a strong centralised political appara-
tus and an attempt was made to provide semi-divinity to the Caliph through court rituals. This
provoked another reaction from the Shias that took a political form and proved to be a major
factor in the decline of the Abbasid regime. Away from the opposition to the Caliph, the urban
Muslim community witnessed the development of a religious elite that arose out of the garrison
community of artisans, traders, teachers and scholars who swore loyalty to their newly defined
414 Ancient and Medieval World

Islamic identity. Within this group, few had devoted themselves to the study of Quran and to the
practice of Muslim rites. Away from the state patronage, few of them became ulama (religious
scholars), readers of Quran (qurra) and Sufis (ascetics), and, through these activities, they
presented themselves to the Muslim community as custodians of the legacy of Muhammad.
Although theoretically the Caliph continued to lead the Muslim community, but the learned and
pious people were accepted by the ordinary Muslim as the true authority on religious, social
and moral aspects of Islam. Therefore, the ordinary Muslims looked towards these people for
moral instructions and religious guidance rather than the Caliph. These religious and pious
activities led to the growth of individual religious authorities within Islam which remained
independent of the caliphate. Thus, from a religious and communal point of view, argues Ira M.
Lapidus (1988), the caliphate and Islam were no longer wholly integrated.
Despite being followers of the same religion as preached by the Prophet, Muslims developed
into various sectarian groups. Few of these differed on the political and religious role of the
caliph that made them supporters or opponents of the caliphate. Some of these religious per-
sonages confined themselves to the study of scriptures, study and interpretation of Quran and
compilation of the sayings of the Prophet. Still others adopted the ideology of asceticism and
mysticism. This explains the various religious traditions that developed within Islam. This
urban Islamic culture is said to be a combined product of all these orientations, the struggle
among these traditions and the confrontation between them on the one hand and the caliphate
version of Islam on the other. Another important factor, largely political in nature, which facili-
tated the growth of religious sects in Islam, was the issue of succession which had been a
source of struggle since the death of Muhammad. These sects supported the claim of different
persons for the position of Caliph at different points of time and religious debates at times were
closely connected with the issue of succession. Prominent among the religious traditions that
arose out of Islam and had substantial followings were the traditions of the Sunnis, Shias and
the Sufi mystics.

Sunna
Quran is the revelation of God’s will to Muhammad and is considered as the basis of Islamic
faith and a guide book for the Muslim believers. It embodies the Muslim vision of the God and
the world. It also prescribes dos and don’ts for each follower of Islam related to Islamic rituals
as well as relationship of the Muslims with their fellow believers. The five pillars of Islam—
prayer, fasting, alms giving, pilgrimage and profession of faith—have also been illustrated in
this holy book. For the day-to-day life of Muslims, Quran also prescribes rules of marriage,
divorce, inheritance and business. For an Islamic state too, Quran was the guiding principle but
its provisions had to be interpreted correctly for the purpose of governance, particularly when
doubts arose over particular issue. It was resolved through the example of how the prophet
dealt with such a situation. Since Muhammad’s deeds and actions presented authoritative
examples of how a proper Muslim life was led, they acquired prime religious importance. The
habitual behaviour or practices of Muhammad (Sunna) thus became the basis of determining
what was ‘Islamic’. The principle of Sunna, according to Jonathan Berkey (2002), was aimed at
balancing centripetal forces (need for a clear Muslim identity) with centrifugal ones (the diver-
sity of actual Muslim practices). Berkey further points out that although the principle of Sunna
seemed to define a clear ‘Muhammadan’ identity and to restrict the range of practices, but
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 415

ultimately the diversity of actual practices triumphed over the homogenising tendency of the
Sunna principle. Prophet’s actions in dealing with issues became the norm for the caliphs who
took upon the mantle to govern Islamic polity. The first four caliphs are said to be familiar with
the behaviour of Muhammad while dealing with a particular problem as they were personally
close to him. In the early part of the caliphate rule, Sunna was mainly in the form of oral
­traditions which was passed down by the people who had actually heard or seen the actions of
the Prophet.
The oral tradition of the Sunna was subsequently formally recorded in the form of hadis or
hadith under Caliphs Umar and Usman. In the ninth century, hadis was compiled and written
by al-Bukhari (870 ce) and Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj (875 ce). Bukhari and al-Hajjaj are said to have
closely scrutinised all the hadis that were available until then and prepared a voluminous com-
pendium. The hadis compiled by Bukhari have been organised into headings such as faith,
prayer, alms, fasting, pilgrimage, inheritance, business, crimes, murders, judicial procedure and
so on. Each chapter is supplemented with the anecdotes of the life of Muhammad and apprises
people about the practices followed by Muhammad while dealing with these issues, thus turn-
ing hadis into an authoritative document. Hadis are interpreted in close relationship with
Quran and are primarily meant to clarify, supplement and, at times, expand the guidance con-
tained in Quran. Thus, in a way, the hadis are open and not prescriptive. This has led to embrac-
ing within Islam several practices that are often contradictory. But despite difference of opinion
on whether or not a particular hadis is a proper recording of Sunna, particular emphasis was
placed on consensus of the majority (known as doctrine of consensus or ijma). Thus, all those
who followed the Sunna accepted by the majority were called Sunnis. This type of ideological
identification became definite during the time of Abbasids who in their eagerness to legitimise
their political and religious leadership tried to demonstrate that their state was based on
Islamic ideals.
Some of the scholars, who have worked on the several stages of the growth of Islamic iden-
tity, tend to argue that Sunnism eventually became a term to distinguish these people from
those who did not follow the doctrine of consensus, that is, the Shias. Jonathan Berkey (2002),
in fact, goes on to suggest that what we now call Sunni Islam is in a way non-Shii Islam. In
support of his argument, Berkey explains the reasons behind the differences between Sunnism
and Shiism, which according to him rested upon the two factors—first, the different memories
about what occurred in the earliest years of Islam (related to the succession dispute after the
death of Muhammad) and second, the radically different views on the nature of religious
authority (with respect to that of the Caliph). Thus, while the Shias in the tenth century started
the practice of celebrating Muhammad’s alleged recognition of Ali as his intended successor at
the pool of Khumm during his final pilgrimage, the Sunnis as a reaction started celebrating
Prophet taking refuge in a cave outside Mecca during hijrah in the company of Abu Bakr as a
marker that the Prophet had intended to make his companion Abu Bakr his successor and not
his cousin (Ali). This historical memory, argues Berkey, also found its expression in the differ-
ences over the notion of religious authority. Central to the Sunni view of history was the idea
that the community as a whole had gotten things right (at the time of choosing Muhammad’s
successor) and it was also in conformity with the will of God. This claim was further justified
by a famous statement of Muhammad that ‘my community would never agree upon an error’.
On the other hand, opines Berkey, Shias insisted that Muhammad, as the bearer of God’s guid-
ance, had named Ali as the divinely inspired imam who was to follow him. Another difference
between the Sunnis and the Shias is that while the Sunnis accept the guidance of the consensus
416 Ancient and Medieval World

of the scholars, the ulama, who have been identified in Bukhari’s hadis as the ‘heirs of Prophet’,
the Shias look for guidance to their divinely appointed imam, that is, Ali. Thus, in a way, the
major ideological difference between the two is the fact that while the Sunnis give extreme
importance to the principle of consensus, the Shias stick to their emphasis on the tradition of
Ali. But we must understand that the difference between Shias and the Sunnis in no way
­suggests that the Shias do not follow the Sunna; they follow the Sunna but have a different set
of traditions than the tradition of consensus as followed by the Sunnis.
The development of Muslim law (Sharia or Shariat) was also a result of the desire to put
into practice a divinely guided way of life. Although Sharia was not considered as God’s revela-
tions, but it was widely considered by the Muslims as the extension of divinely inspired teach-
ings of Quran and the hadis. Thus, Sharia was in essence rules related to the way of life of the
Muslims. The Islamic law is considered as the result of science of jurisprudence (fiqh) which
involved lengthy discussions and discourses. But since the Islamic law was not codified, there
was considerable scope of difference of opinion among the ulama. Yet this law acted as the
unifying force within the Muslim community touched as it did the everyday life of the believers
in very intimate ways. It covered the social, religious and even personal life (such as the pre-
scribed length of the beard) which made it desirable for the Muslims to have some elementary
understanding of these laws. This could be acquired through the self-study of the legal texts or
in consultation with the ulama who were trained in jurisprudence. Marshall G. S. Hodgson
(1974) considers the evolution of the Islamic law as the most defining characteristics of Islam
and the biggest achievement of the early centuries of the Abbasid rule. Hodgson, while talking
about the origin of these laws, refers to the challenges of the Abbasid rule that presented itself
mainly in the form of conversion of large number of non-Arabs into Islam that made the univer-
sal acceptance of Arab culture a near impossibility. This demanded a new set of legal system to
bind the heterogeneous Islamic umma together. The Muslim law also originated from the desire
of the judges and the scholars to reform the existing legal practices and bring it in consonance
with ethical standards of Islam. There was no single source of the Muslim law, and scholars at
several places such as Basra, Syria, Mecca and Medina studied the existing legal practices
related to the daily life of several ethnic groups, including those of the Jews and Christians and
those followed under the Byzantines and the Sassanids, and formulated a set of rules which was
a combination of ethical, moral and theological teachings. Moreover, as Jonathan Berkey (2002)
suggests, formulation of Islamic law was central to cementing a specifically Islamic identity as
other religious communities in the Near East had well-developed legal systems of their own.
The Sunni Islamic law has been divided into three broad categories that include ritual regula-
tions (ibadat), rules concerning social relations (muamalat) and theory of collective organisa-
tion (imama). Since these laws were to be applicable to all the believers, non-Islamic laws and
customs were reconciled to the Islamic religious principles in all these matters. Despite its
importance to the Muslim identity and the social organisation of the Sunna, the Islamic laws
took considerable time to take a definite shape. Traditional sources suggest that it was in the
eighth and ninth centuries that the Islamic laws crystallised as it was in this period that four
major schools of Sunni Islamic law developed led by four renowned scholars who gave their
name to these schools. These were the schools of Abu Hanifa (Hanafi), Malik ibn Anas (Maliki),
al-Shafifii (Shafii) and Ahmad ibn Hanbal (Hanbali). Even though these schools have been tra-
ditionally identified with their founders, but modern scholars claim that crystallisation of the
laws of these different schools took place later in the ninth and tenth centuries mainly due to
the efforts of their disciples and intellectual descendants of later generations who, after
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 417

collecting the juridical opinion of the founders, wrote extensive commentaries before finally
compiling them. Despite the fact that these four schools of law became the focus of intense
religious and social rivalries in the tenth and eleventh century, all of them had equal standing in
the Sunni concept of jurisprudence and, until date, these remain the four widely acceptable
Sunni Shariat traditions. The main reason behind the wide recognition of these four schools of
jurisprudence is that they have been derived from a variety of sources—Quran, the Sunna and
the religious consensus (ijma) of the recognised body of religious experts. These laws thus set
the parameters of Sunni Islam which was binding on the followers. The doctrine of consensus
was to be enforced by the ulama which reiterated its growing cultural and religious authority.
Being against the consensus was considered as going out of the tradition which could invite the
condemnation of a heretic. Traditionalism of the Sunni Islamic laws restricted innovations that
were termed as bida which was taken as opposite of Sunna. In the sphere of politics, Sunni
traditionalism, as reflected in the Islamic laws, tended not only to legitimise the authority of the
earliest caliphs and that of the Abbasids in the face of opposition by the Shias but also declared
excommunication from the Muslim community of those opposing the authority of the Caliph.

Shia
As pointed out earlier, Shias were the supporters of Ali and had refused to accept the authority
of all early caliphs except Ali. Their opposition to the caliphal authority continued under the
Umayyads and assumed greater momentum under the Abbasids. Although their political opposi-
tion to the caliphate had ebbed to a great extent after the defeat at Karbala (680 ce) and for the
next two centuries, they quietly accepted the political leadership of the Caliph, but they refused
to acknowledge caliph’s religious leadership. For them the religious leadership remained in the
hands of the successors of Ali and his grandson Husayn. The Shiites considered the descen-
dants of Husayn as their religious leader or imam, who remained aloof from the political activi-
ties. This aloofness from the political competition has been explained by their continuous
failure to seize the caliphate. The Shias also failed to get the recognition of religious leadership
for their imams from the umma. Despite these failures, the eighth and ninth centuries proved
to be fruitful for the Shiites as their support base expanded in different parts of the Islamic
Empire during the course of their opposition to the Abbasid rule. Although the Shiite revolts at
Hejaz in 762 ce led by Muhammad ibn Abdallah (great grandson of Muhammad’s grandson al-
Hasan) and at Basra led by his brother Ibrahim was easily crushed by the Abbasids but support
for Shiite sentiments spread beyond Kufa (the traditional support base of Shias in Southern
Iraq) to reach Iran as well as Daylam (a mountainous province to the south of Caspian Sea). It
was, as historians believe, around this time that the doctrinal foundation of Shiism was laid.
The Shiite Muslims were not much concerned with the Islamic laws or mysticism but for
them the major concern was loyalty to the Caliph Ali and his descendants. The development of
religious activity among the Shias was determined by their opposition to all caliphs who did not
belong to the line of Ali. Since the Shias had denied the legitimacy of Abu Bakr and Umar
(though both belonged to the family of Muhammad), the latter could not be accepted by the
former as the legitimate source of Muslim religious teaching. For the Shias, any hadis or law
could receive acceptance only if it had originated from Ali. Thus, rejecting the Sunni Laws, the
Shias developed their own hadis and law that however differed from the Sunni version only in
matters of details and the sources of transmission. The Shias accepted the hadis of the imams
418 Ancient and Medieval World

particularly that of Ali which has been collected in Nahj al-Balagha (literally ‘path of
­eloquence’) and which is also considered as the central teaching of Shiism. In order to legiti-
mise the claim of religious leadership of the Shii imams of the Muslim community, attempts
were made to provide divine attributes to the imams.
Jafar al-Sadiq (d. 765 ce), the sixth imam in the line of Ali, put forward the view that the true
Caliph and the leader of the Muslim community descended from the family of Ali and was
imbued with sovereignty (both political and religious) over the world (wilaya). The designation
of imam to the descendants of Ali was given through nass (designation by the present imam to
his successor) just as Muhammad, according to Shiite tradition, had appointed Ali as his suc-
cessor. Moreover, Shias believed, through the nass, the present imam inherited a secret knowl-
edge and exclusive authority to interpret the Quran and hadis and therefore to formulate the
laws for the umma. An additional quality of the Shiite imam, which the Sunni Caliph was devoid
of, was that the former was ma-sum or mafisum (free of sin) and infallible, which gives them
to speak authoritatively on both political and religious matters. Thus, for the Shias, their imams
had the authority to interpret the divine laws that in the Sunni Islam had passed into the hands
of the community as a whole, expressed through the principle of consensus of the ulama. In
this manner, imamate became a necessary institution of the Shias who could speak authorita-
tively on behalf of God. Later on, the Shii imam was given the status of a Mahdi (Messiah),
chosen by God to restore the true faith of Islam and to establish justice and kingdom of God on
earth. An element of mysticism was also attached with the imam as the divinely graced imam
became a guide to mystical reunion with God, thus bringing the Shii belief closer to Sufism.
After the death of Jafar al-Sadiq, the Shia community came to be divided into two groups,
one following the teaching of Jafar’s son, Abdallah, and the other following another son, Ismail.
The followers of Abdallah, and their ninth century descendants were prominent in Baghdad,
having an access to the Abbasid court. But the death of the eleventh imam of the Shias (874 ce),
Hasan al-Askari, without any heir led to uncertainty over the institution of imamate. This uncer-
tainty was finally removed with the development of the notion of a twelfth hidden imam (who
supposedly was related to Ali’s son Hasan) which in the tenth century gave rise to the Twelver
Imami sect (the largest Shii sect of the present times) which had the conviction that the twelfth
hidden imam would return as Mahdi. The Shii doctrines is said to have taken a definite shape
under the Imami Shiites as a Shiite scholar al-Kulayni (d. 941 ce) compiled the collection of the
Shiite traditions (Kitab al-Kafi) which laid the foundation of the Shiite Islamic law. Kulayni’s
role has been found similar to those of Bukhari and Muslim ibn-Hajjaj with respect to the foun-
dation of the Sunni laws. The popularity of the Twelver sect suited the Abbasids as the former,
though opposed to the latter, showed their willingness to postpone their active opposition in
expectation of the twelfth imam and the reign of justice, which had an indefinite future.
The other prominent Shiite sect was that of the followers of Ismail, popularly known as
Ismaili sect. While the Ismailis were willing to accept the doctrine of a sinless and infallible
imam, they refused to accept the imamate of Abdallah and instead considered Ismail as the true
imam. From a religious point of view, the Ismailis had a different notion about Quran. They
believed that Quranic revelations had both outer (zahir) and inner (batin) meanings and the
imam was the teacher and a guide to these external and internal meaning of Quranic revela-
tions. The Ismailis also put forward a historical and eschatological (a part of theology dealing
with death, judgement and final destiny of soul and human beings) concept of the imam. In the
Ismaili doctrine, there is a provision of the appearance of a wasi (executor and interpreter of
the inner meaning of the Quranic revelations). According to this doctrine, there were to be six
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 419

‘speaking’ (natiq) prophets (Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad) who were
the bearers of law in its exterior (zahir) form, each of whom was followed by a ‘silent’ (samit)
one who secretly reveals the inner meaning (batin) of the Quranic revelations to the person
initiated. According to the Ismaili belief, the work of each samit was taken forward by a cycle
of seven imams. Muhammad was the sixth Prophet and his samit was Ali who was then to be
followed by a cycle of imams which would ultimately culminate in return of Muhammad, the
son of Ismail as the Mahdi and the seventh natiq Prophet. The Ismailis with their popularity in
some areas posed an active challenge to Islamic traditions. The missionary activities of the
Ismailis also distinguished them from the Imami Shias who settled down in Baghdad and
became a part of the Abbasid government and society. The Ismailis on the other hand carried
their missionary activities in the tribal and settled agricultural areas of Iran, Iraq, Khurasan,
Sind, Azerbaijan, North Africa besides Arab and Syria. In challenging the established Islamic
tradition, the Ismaili dawa (mission) was more active and often violent as Ismaili uprisings and
military campaigns were recurrent, particularly in Syria and Iraq in the early tenth century. In
the opinion of Jonathan Berkey (2002), the Ismaili movement not simply aimed at replacing the
existing Caliph with an imam as the rightful leader of the umma but rather at revolutionary
transformation of the Islamic society by bringing out the concept of a messianic leader that had
all the potential to provoke social and economic grievances. Besides, argues Berkey, the Ismaili
doctrine of cyclical history implied that, in returning, the Mahdi would surpass or complete the
work of the Prophet suggesting abrogation of the laws of Muhammad.

Sufism
While the Sunni and Shiite scholars were busy formulating their respective versions of Islamic
laws to govern the lives of the Muslim community, a group of Muslims called mystics and ascet-
ics were looking for another way of religious fulfilment. Thus, while the Muslim jurists were
debating on the rules of the God to govern the lives of the believers and were trying to find a
rational explanation of these, the mystics or Sufis were in quest of personal experiences of the
reality of God. In their endeavour to have direct experience of God, the mystics sought to reor-
ganise their life, redirect their thoughts and feelings, and follow and adopt a particular language
of promoting unity of human being that would help the mystic realise his goals. The mystics,
despite having a completely religious orientation had to face opposition from both the jurists
(ulama) and the political authorities on the grounds of doctrine as well as their practices which
were abhorred by the jurists. Although claims of the mystics tracing their origin from the earli-
est period of Islam has been termed as fictional but modern scholars do agree that Quran itself
approves some aspects of asceticism which was the hallmark of Sufi tradition. However, by the
tenth century, Sufism had made its presence felt in the entire Islamic world not only among the
common masses but also among few of the prominent Muslim jurists.
Sufism as a religious movement, like Islam, took considerable time to develop. Its origin is
generally traced to the spiritual and pious practices of Muhammad and his umma during the
early centuries of the development of Islam. Few even try to trace the beginning of mysticism
to the pre-Islamic religious traditions, although this theory has been discredited in recent times.
Few scholars have tried to find similarity between Islamic mysticism and the Near Eastern
religious traditions. Jonathan Berkey (2002), for example, argues that the term ‘Sufi’ has been
derived from the Arabic word suf meaning ‘wool’, which the ascetics wore in the hot Near
420 Ancient and Medieval World

Eastern climate. Moreover, argues Berkey, the concept of awliya (‘friends of God’) which was
a characteristic feature of Sufism in the later centuries had a very strong similarity with the
notion of ‘holy man’ of Near East in late antiquity. Often the historical origin of Sufism has been
traced to the crisis of the eighth century when few Muslims started questioning the value of a
worldly life and took to works of piety at a time when the Arab-Muslim elite was engaged in the
conquest and formation of an empire. Many such pious Muslims in reaction took to zuhd
(renunciation) which denotes an orientation to shun the distractions of the worldly life in
favour of divine activities. A Sufi was therefore often described as a faquir (poor) and exalta-
tion of poor was one of the major themes of the later Sufi traditions. The term zuhd at times
took extreme forms as few of the ascetics took to fasting and weeping for their and others’
worldly sins which is best exemplified by the ascetic practices of Hasan al-Basri (d. 728 ce). For
Hasan, who although took part in the holy war (  jihad), individual renunciation and self-
restraint was the basis of responsibility and moral conduct in political affairs. Thus, Sufi mysti-
cism is said to have emerged out of this ascetic attitude that cultivated psychological, emotional
and spiritual awareness.
The two developments that helped to lay the foundation of Sufism and facilitated its recogni-
tion as an important aspect of Muslim religious experience was the inclusion of mysticism to
the ascetic tradition and organisation of this mystical tradition in the form of teaching by a
master to his disciple. The element of mysticism was introduced through the emphasis on
secret and intuitive knowledge (marifa) as a means of comprehending God’s will and the
notion of ‘annihilation’ (  fana) of the individual self in God. Both these concepts later in the
tenth and eleventh centuries became the hallmark of Sufi ideology. Another important develop-
ment was the teaching of asceticism and mysticism as distinctive feature of Islamic thought by
particular individuals or masters. The disciples, through a personal attachment with the master,
learnt ascetic and mystic disciplines and as a marker of their progress in learning, they were
presented with khirqa, a worn and patched garment that symbolised individual’s indifference
to worldly wealth. Another important development that suggested institutionalisation of
Islamic mysticism that took place towards the end of tenth century was the growth of khanqas
as centres of worship and instruction that housed and supported the activities of the ascetics
and the mystics. Jonathan Berkey (2002) is of the opinion that the routinisation of the ascetic–
mystic tradition, along with programmes of spiritual discipline and institutions to house and
support the disciples, may have guaranteed the tradition’s survival by bringing it under some
control.
In the initial phase of the development of Sufism, the ascetic quest for union with God was
mainly expressed in Quranic terminology and the literal meaning of the religious preaching in
Quran was used to arrive at its spiritual meaning by the Sufis. But from the beginning of the
ninth century, Sufis developed their own language to express several stages of their spiritual
experience. Mystics, such as, Shaqiq al-Balkhi (d. 810 ce), talked about four stages for union
with God which included renunciation of the worldly appetites of the body, fear of God and
constant humility, yearning for paradise and love of God. Later, Abu Said Kharraz (d. 890s ce)
wrote about seven stages on the way to union with God. But, as the stages were added and
became more elaborate, the Sufis came to stress on certain stages. Now prominence was given
to patience in accepting God’s will (sabr), gratitude (shukr), trust in God (tawakkul) implying
complete reliance on God and acceptance of the vicissitudes of life (rida) with joy and love.
Love was given a different spiritual meaning by the Sufis. Here, love implied yearning for union
with God which was best exemplified in the passionate poems of a famous Sufi poetess, Rabia
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 421

(d. 801 ce). Later, this concept of love was used to reach even higher stage of tawhid (unity)
meaning absorption in the divine being.
In the ninth century, two major trends developed within Sufism, identified as Khurasani and
Baghdadi. The Khurasani trend is best represented by the writings of Abu Yazid al-Bistani (d.
873 ce) and Al-Hallaj (d. 923 ce). The Khurasani tendency emphasised on resignation to God’s
will, which was to be expressed through voluntary poverty and renunciation of the world
(tawakkul). Since these notions seem to disrupt the ordinary pattern of Muslim religious prac-
tices, it was considered to be in contradiction with Quranic commands. Both Bistani and Hallaj
emphasised upon the annihilation of self and union with the divine. Al-Hallaj not only talked
about self-annihilation for union with God but also performed miracles and claimed religious
authority that surpassed that of the Caliph. This was bound to irk the Islamic jurists and there-
fore such activities were termed as heresy and Hallaj was executed in 923 ce. The Baghdadi
tendency, represented by Al-Harith al-Muhasabi (d. 857 ce) and Al-Junayd (d. 911 ce), on the
other hand, were less radical. They emphasised heavily on asceticism and renunciation of
worldly things in combination with patience, trust, gratitude and love of God. As opposed to
Khurasani, the Baghdadi trend believed in the observance of Quran as per the Muslim law. In
this context, Ira M. Lapidus (1988) opines that practically and intellectually, the Baghdadis were
more closely integrated with ordinary Muslim religious practices and belief. However, despite
differences on the various stages for the union with God, the Sufis, by the end of the ninth cen-
tury, had collectively formulated a theory of spiritual progress in combination with Quranic
inspirations and vocabulary for the followers of the mystic tradition. Another significant aspect
of Sufism was the magical qualities attached to individuals who had achieved the knowledge of
God through their visionary sight. Such individuals were considered as a manifestation of the
divine being and a mediator between God and humans. Magical, healing and miraculous quali-
ties attached with such persons led to the development of the notion of sainthood and the belief
that such Sufis represented the possibility of salvation by entry into the presence of God.
Thus we see that Sufism that first developed as a quest for individual salvation in the seventh
century developed as collective religious movement by the end of the eighth century. Sufis were
now distinguished by their white coarse wool apparel and their khanqas as collective retreats.
By the beginning of the tenth century, Sufism developed as a well-organised movement that
combined ascetic renunciation with spiritual development as a way to achieve union with God.
The base of Sufism was well grounded with the philosophical and metaphysical conception of
God and a doctrine of venerable and miraculous nature of the saints. Gradually, after the col-
lapse of Abbasid Empire, Sufism developed as a social organisation with a public mission.

ADAB LITERATURE
The Arabic–Persian literature that developed under the Umayyads and the Abbasids is generally
referred to as Adab literature. Development of literature was one of the most effective means
of cultural legitimacy for these Islamic dynasties which also fulfilled the imperial cultural needs
of these empires to integrate disparate elements of the governing class which apart from the
Caliph, his family and the Arab elites also included Iranian administrators and non-Arab sol-
diers. Literature, besides art and architecture, was used to define the authority of the regime
and the legitimacy of the ruling classes. The Arabic poetry that was mainly derived from pre-
Islamic conventions and oral traditions and included subjects connected with the life of
422 Ancient and Medieval World

Prophet, the origin of Islam and the rule of the early Caliphs was promoted by both the
Umayyads and the Abbasids as a part of imperial culture. But with the growth of urban centres
such as Kufa, Basra and other cities, the Arab language deviated away from the Quranic studies
and with the integration of various tribes in the Arabic lingua franca, there were rapid changes
in the Arabian vocabulary, grammar and syntax. This prompted the religious scholars (who
feared that people would lose touch with the Arabic Quran) to create a classic form of Arabic
with defined rules of speech of grammar and syntax, words to be specified and a particular
vocabulary to be selected and explained. Gradually, through various literary attempts, Islam as
a religion was made a part of the general Arab literary culture so much so that understanding
of Quran was measured against the knowledge of Arab literary traditions.
However, the urban side of the Arab milieu with secular orientations witnessed the develop-
ment of a new type of poetry that reflected the interests, entertainment and imagery of the
urban and court environment. The Adab literature developed out of this attempt to secularise
the Arabian literary traditions. The word adab has been derived from dab meaning manner,
state or behaviour that originally conveyed the Sunna sense of way or path for religious pur-
poses but in a secular context. Adab, in a literal sense, indicated a set of rules related to practi-
cal ethics with little or no connection with the teachings of Quran and also included norms of
a particular behaviour for individuals that emerge out of certain type of education received.
Broadly speaking, then the Adab literature would mean a particular and approved way of writ-
ing on various subjects largely secular in nature. The growth of Adab literature has also been
associated with recruitment by Umayyads and the Abbasids of political elites and official
scribes from various parts of the empire. During the reign of Umayyad Caliph Hisham, Iranian
court procedures and etiquettes were adopted by translating Persian works into Arabic. Under
the Abbasids, Persian scribes, merchants and soldiers who had made Baghdad their home fol-
lowed the Persian manuals and protocol (adab) translated into Arabic. These manuals pre-
scribed the ways to conduct as officials of the state, carry out various duties along with
describing various qualities required for different official positions. Besides these manuals,
Indian and Greek ideas on medicine, mathematics and astronomy were also transmitted
through Iran.
The Adab literature has been divided into three main categories. The first (parenetic adab)
consists of ethical writing which was associated with moral behaviour. The second (cultural
adab) dealt mainly with upper classes that represented high culture which contains elements
of entertainment through wits and humorous anecdotes in the form of both prose and poetry.
This category of writing is also at times equated with good upbringing in a high-culture family.
The third category (training or occupational adab) consisted of manual and handbooks meant
for the members of the ruling, intellectual and the professional class. Thus, it appears that the
Adab literature, though not confined to these, was aimed at training people to in ethics, culture
and crafts. But few common features have been identified in all three types of Adab literature
which are use of simple Arab prose articulated in an artistic fashion, heavy Persian influence
with regard to ethics and norms of behaviour and lack of emphasis on Islamic elements though
they have been expressed in Arabic language.
The non-Arab scribes (kottab), which were employed in the caliphate administration, are
considered to be the real founders of the Arabic prose as reflected in the Adab literature since
they already possessed the Persian Pahlavi tradition of Adab writing. But prior to the kottabs,
two Persian scholars, Ibn al-Moqaffa and Abd al-Hamid, are considered as the pioneers of Adab
literature which is seen as the earliest attempt to blend Islamic teachings with Iranian court
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 423

etiquettes. However, the popularity that the Persian literature and translation gained in Arab
created a rivalry between Arab courtiers and scribes and their Persian counterparts. This
rivalry resulted in the growth of a Persian literary movement popularly known as Shuubiya
which, in the opinion of Ira M. Lapidus (1988), was primarily aimed at establishing cultural
superiority of the Persians to Arabs and to influence the official culture of the Abbasid
Caliphate. The Persian idea of absolute monarch was in sharp contrast to the Arabic notion of
limited authority of the monarch who was selected by the community and was therefore
responsible to the community and its religion. In the literary field, the Arab scholars tried to
meet the challenge of the Persian literary sophistication by bringing about a synthesis of
Persian Adab with Arabic literature. However, Lapidus argues that although this new genre of
Arab literature displayed imprints of Persian manner, style and subjects, they were firmly
wedded to Arabic and Islamic ideals. Thus, Lapidus concludes, the Arabic writers offered some
of the fruits of Persian thought to Muslims, but obscured the elements that were in conflict with
Islam and Arabic values.

URBANISATION AND TRADE

The Arab conquests in the eighth and ninth centuries set in motion a process of urban expan-
sion that covered not only the Arab Peninsula but also the entire Near East hitherto under the
control of Byzantines and the Sassanids. Although there were a few urban centres in pre-Islamic
Arabia too, but the expansion of the Arab Empire under the Umayyads and Abbasids initiated
a new phase in the process of urbanisation. Unification of areas previously held by the
Sassanids and Byzantines under one polity brought about substantial changes in patterns of
international trade by removing trade barriers. The frontier between Persia and the Roman
Empire formed by the Euphrates River disappeared and facilitated revival of commerce. Few
scholars argue that the lure of commerce and benefits arising out of it also motivated Arab
expansion into inner Asia (parts of East and North Asia, comprising China, Mongolia and
Russia) and India, and develop cities in Northern Syria, Iraq, Iran and Transoxiana. The policy
of settling Arabs in the conquered territories in garrison towns was another major factor in the
growth of urbanisation in the Islamic world. As mentioned earlier, since early caliphate rulers
(starting from the time of Umar) in order to distinguish between Arab and non-Arab population
and to organise army for further expansion had set up garrison towns (amsar) in strategically
located areas. Chief among these amsars were Basra, Kufa and Fustat. The later caliphs of
Umayyad and Abbasid Dynasties further made addition to these and as we shall see later, few
of them such as Baghdad grew into major metropolitan cities. These urban centres besides
promoting trade and commerce also became a source of social change. The interaction between
Arabs and non-Arabs in few of these cities (particularly in Iran) also brought about synthesis of
Arabic and Persian culture that became an integral part of the Islamic civilisation for several
centuries.
Under the Umayyads, few of the garrison towns in Iraq such as Kufa, Basra and Wasit devel-
oped into big cities. Initially Kufa was a tent city, and it was under Umar that brick buildings
were constructed. The residential arrangement of tis campsite clearly distinguished between
Arab, mawali and non-Muslim population. Under the Abbasid Caliph Al-Mansur, a wall was
built around the garrison town in 770 ce which became a norm for all garrison towns from this
period onwards. Kufa contained a market that was not only a place of exchange of goods
424 Ancient and Medieval World

(market) but also a place of cultural, linguistic and intellectual exchange. As per the contempo-
rary estimate, the population of Kufa at the beginning of the eighth century was close to one
hundred thousand. Basra was another major city of Iraq with a population of around two hun-
dred thousand in the beginning of the eighth century. Its location on the mouth of the Persian
Gulf turned it into a major transit port in the Indian Ocean trade network. Its easy proximity to
the Tigris and Euphrates rivers on the other hand turned into a real city. Like Kufa, Basra was
also an open city but later Al Mansur added a wall around the city in the same year when a wall
was added to Kufa. However, the most important city to develop under the Islamic Empire in
Iraq was Baghdad.
The foundation of Baghdad was laid by Al-Mansur in 758 ce and the construction of the city
was completed by 762 ce. Beginning as an administrative and military head quarter of the
Abbasid Caliphate, it rapidly grew into a major city. Known under the Abbasids as Madinat al-
Salam (City of Peace), the city had three major complexes housing the troops, the workers and
the administrative centre. The Abbasid Caliphates further added to the growth of the city by
constructing quarters on either side of the Tigris River. With a population between 300,000 and
500,000 in the ninth century, Baghdad was the largest city in the Middle East even larger than
Constantinople. Its large size, according to Ira M. Lapidus (1988), was an index of its incompa-
rable importance in the formation of the Abbasid Empire, society and culture. It gradually also
developed into a great city of international trade, dealing in commodities such as paper, textiles
and leather. Apart from this, Baghdad was a cosmopolitan city that attracted soldiers, officials,
merchants and scholars from several parts of the Middle East and beyond which included sev-
eral ethnic groups such as Jews, Christians and Muslims. Baghdad thus provided the financial
support and manpower to the Abbasids to govern a vast empire. Few Scholars point out that
the design of Baghdad also had symbolic significance. It was a round city divided into four
quadrants and in the centre was constructed the palace of the Caliph. This represented the
central place of the Caliph in the Islamic Empire and the rest of the structure of the city seemed
to be a reminder of the hierarchical society. Lapidus argues that the central position of the
Caliph’s seat was also symbolic of his sovereignty over the four quarters of the world.
In Iran, the Arabs did not develop new urban centres, but the Arab Conquest and migration
did foster trade and security that stimulated economic growth. Arabs constructed garrisons in
pre-existing cities such as Nishapur, Marw, Isfahan and Hamadan. Right since the time of early
caliphate, both the rulers and their governors added new structure in these old cities with their
own set of officials, soldiers and guards. This stimulated the construction of palaces, quarters,
barracks, mosques, canals and gardens. The later caliphs’ added new structures and groups of
quarters along with the surrounding villages were converted into towns. In this process,
Isfahan, Qazvin and Qum were turned into large cities. With the coming of Abbasid Caliphate,
the Khurasan region reached a new stage of prosperity with Nishapur as its chief town.
Khwarizm, another region of Iran, which was located on the delta of the Oxus River and where
the settlement consisted of small hamlets, also became densely populated and urbanised.
In Syria, Damascus reached a high level of prosperity when it became the capital city of the
Umayyads in 661 ce. It was a large trading centre and traded in olive oil, textiles, metal, medi-
cine, paper and dry fruits with Baghdad and Fustat. But after the decline of Umayyads, it lost
its pristine position as an imperial city but remained an important provincial town and chief
metropolitan city of Syria. Antioch and Aleppo, which were provincial Roman towns, were
other important cities of Syria under the Arabs. In Palestine, Jerusalem, which was a holy place
for both Christians and the Jews, now became the chief religious centre of the Muslims too
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 425

under the Umayyads and reached a new level of fame. In Egypt, Fustat (the present Old Cairo)
was the largest city that eclipsed Alexandria as the chief Mediterranean port under the Arabs.
The Arab expansion in the Maghrib region led to the growth of cities like Qayrawan and Fez. In
Spain, the Arabs founded the city of Qurtuba (Corboba) in 719 ce that, after its expansion,
became the chief Arab city in Western Europe. Despite development of few of these cities,
scholars, such as, Ira M. Lapidus (1988), believe that the long-term economic effect of Arab
conquest in places such as Syria, Egypt and Mesopotamia was negative. At some places, such
as, Syria, opening up of new frontiers with Anatolia stifled the economy of Damascus. The pen-
etration of Bedouins in Northern Syria and Mesopotamia led to attack on towns and villages
there. Thus, Lapidus concludes, the net effect of Arab conquests and empire was prosperity in
Iran, a redistribution of the pattern of development in Iraq and the economic decline of
Mesopotamia, Syria and Egypt.
The growth of urban centres in this period has also been attributed to the expansion of trade
besides military and administrative factors. The political unification of a large area covering
Western Mediterranean to Central Asia by the Arabs and the ensuing stability of the eighth and
ninth centuries not only promoted local commercial exchange but also long-distance trade
between Mediterranean, Indian Ocean and Central Asia. Goods from China to Persian Gulf via
India landed in two major Abbasid ports of Siraf (Iran) and Basra (Iraq). From here, goods were
taken to Southeast Asia by the Arab, Iranian and Jew traders. From Siraf and Basra, goods were
also taken overland to Syria and Palestine, which then became the part of the Mediterranean
trade. Besides the maritime route, the Central Asian overland route linking China with West
Asia and the Mediterranean was another busy route of international commerce. The articles of
trade were varied and consisted chiefly of luxury goods. From Southeast Asia and India, these
included spices, fine quality silk along with cotton textiles, precious stones, chinaware and fur
that reached West Asia and Europe and fulfilled the demands of the urban Arab population. The
ostentation of the court of the Caliph and his aristocracy, which tried to emulate their master’s
lifestyle, created sufficient demand for the high value luxury goods. Biggest consumers of these
commodities were the residents of Baghdad, Nishapur, Fustat, Damascus and Qurtuba. Many of
the cities of the Arabic world during the process of their expansion also became centres of
production of such handicraft goods as paper, ivory and weapons and along with this traded
olive oil, sugar, horses and gold in exchange for imported items. Thus, it can be argued that
trade and commercial activities also played a prominent role in promoting urbanisation in the
Arab world.
The urban centres that developed during the process of Arab expansion also proved to be
harbingers of social change. The prosperity and settlement pattern in these urban centres
changed the kinship society of the Arabs into a stratified society with occupational differentia-
tion. Along with this, the interaction between Arabs and non-Arabs in the garrison towns cre-
ated a cosmopolitan community, best exemplified by Basra and Baghdad that became a melting
pot of people from diverse ethnicity. Construction of palaces by the tribal chiefs in these urban
centres was also led to their disjunction from the mass of their clans living in the villages, which
was symbolic of breakdown of the tribal society that was replaced by a differentiated society
based on wealth and power. These urban centres also helped breaking down the Arab and non-
Arab barrier. The administrative policy of the governors led to influx of people from several
areas to such urban centres as Basra where soldiers, bodyguards, tax collectors, merchants and
workers flocked to seek their fortunes. The non-Arabs were assimilated into the Arab popula-
tion as clients (mawali). The inclusion of Iranians in the practically every part of administration
426 Ancient and Medieval World

managed from these urban centres brought about significant cultural changes. The growth of
trade and commerce led to the growth of a Muslim urban middle class that included traders,
shopkeepers, ship owners and commission agents who provided financial services. But this
Muslim middle class should not be equated with the European bourgeoisie as the former had
no control over the political institutions of the cities. Since these urban centres were developed
primarily as administrative and military centres, the ruler and the ruling class kept a strict
supervision over the functioning of these cities. This has prompted few scholars to suggest that
it was precisely this control of the governing class that prevented these cities from being har-
bingers of the transition towards capitalism despite performing several economic functions.

Summary
1. Islam originated in the Arabian Peninsula in seventh century in an area identified
with modern Saudi Arabia. Although Arab was surrounded by vast stretches of
desert, its inhabitants had regular interaction with people of Middle East through
intellectual, economic and religious exchanges. Thus, the growth of Islamic civilisa-
tion is seen by many as an extension of the Middle Eastern civilisation.
2. Geographically, most of the Arabian Peninsula was covered by desert and dry steppe
with scanty rainfall limited to the coastal areas in the southern fringes. Major regions
of the Peninsula included the Najd desert (Central Arab), Hejaz (Western Arab),
Yemen (Southwest Arab) and Oman (Southeast Arab). South Arabia contained fertile
valleys and experienced regular rainfall that supported agriculture. But in Central,
North and West Arabia, people lived in harsh desert environment and relied on camel
pastoralism for subsistence that was supplemented by dates, fruits and some grains
in area having oases and water springs. Bedouins were the prominent tribe of the
Peninsula as they had a good knowledge of the desert resources and used camels as
transport to exploit these resources. They also at times attacked the settled agricul-
tural population but over all they had a relationship of mutual exchange with the
latter. Bedouins also collected a tribute from these agricultural communities as a
security against their attack. Bedouin tribe was comprised of a tightly knit patriar-
chal clans led by their chiefs.
3. Religious practices of pre-Islamic Arabia was polytheistic in nature and the Arabs
worshipped various deities connected with natural forces as well as ancestors,
stones, trees, stars and moon in the form of idols kept in the sanctuaries. Few of the
big sanctuary such as the one at Mecca were also places of exchange besides being
centres of pilgrimage and religious festivities. The Arab polytheism was also affected
by the Christian, Jew and Zoroastrian religions as the followers of these resided in
Mecca. Thus, Mecca was a meeting point of people following different religions.
4. The political rivalry between Byzantines and the Sassanids, the two great empires of
the Near East, on the issue of control over Syria and Palestine dragged the Arab
Peninsula into this conflict. In order to develop spheres of their respective
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 427

influences, the Byzantines and the Sassanids entered into alliances with different
Arab tribes. This conflict between the two powers also disrupted the trade route
passing through Persian Gulf and Iraq. This opened a new overland route between
Yemen and Syria that passed through Hejaz. This enabled few of the Arab tribes to
take part in this trade by providing camels or themselves acting as caravan traders.
Mecca, through which the Hejaz route passed, also assumed economic significance
in addition to being the most sacred Arab pilgrim centre. Quraysh and other tribes,
who were dominant in this centre, formed a league to protect the Meccan trade from
the Bedouin attacks. With increase in commercial activities, property inequalities
increased in the Meccan society, leading to social tension. It was in this background
of Arab social ferment that Muhammad started preaching a new religion—Islam.
5. Our information about Muhammad is based on Quran, hadis and other oral tradi-
tions and written accounts. Muhammad started preaching about a new religion after
a spiritual experience in the form of God’s revelations. He declared himself to be the
Prophet of the God (Allah). Although many of his teachings have been found to be
similar to those of Christianity and Judaism, but Islam retained its uniqueness
through uncompromising monotheism which called for worship of only one God
(Allah) in rejection of all other deities.
6. Islam meant submission and the followers of this religion were called Muslims, that is,
those who had submitted to Allah and considered Muhammad as their Prophet. But
Muhammad’s preaching of strict monotheism was opposed by majority of the Meccans
as they followed a polytheistic religion. Opposition to Muhammad and persecution of the
Muslims forced him to migrate to Medina in the year 622 ce, which is known as hijrah
(emigration). Medina was an ideal place for Muhammad to preach his religion as Medina
was in a state of anarchy due to feuding tribes. Muhammad was recognised as the arbitra-
tor to settle the disputes and was promised protection and independence to propagate
Islam. Those who accompanied Muhammad to Medina are known as muhajirun (emi-
grants) and Medinese supporters of Muhammad are known as ansars (helpers).
7. Muhammad created a new political structure at Medina with the help of a new politi-
cal and social community of Muslims called umma. Tribes around Medina were won
over through negotiations or use of force. Muhammad created an Islamic state at
Medina under his leadership with his own army, administrative structure and taxa-
tion system. All members of the umma had to pay a tax called zakat to Muhammad
which ensured their membership of the umma. But the Quraysh tribe of Mecca
posed a serious challenge to this nascent politico-­religious Islamic state. But after a
series of armed battle with the Quraysh and through diplomacy, Muhammad was
able to establish his control over Mecca by 630 ce. After the capture of Mecca, Kaaba
was turned into the most important shrine of the Muslims and all earlier idols were
removed from the shrine. Muhammad died in 632 ce but his formation of umma
under a new religion integrated various warring clans and ethnic groups of the
Peninsula into a new single Arab community.
8. Scholars debate as to the reasons behind such rapid expansion of Islam in the Arab
Peninsula. Scholars, such as, W. H. Watt, M Rodinson and Marshall Hodgson, have
propounded and elaborated upon a theory popularly known as the ‘Meccan Trade
(Continued)
428 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

Hypothesis’. This theory proposes that the increasing Meccan trade and the resultant
property inequality in the Meccan society lead to social tension. Muhammad’s
attempt to bring social unity in the form of umma and preaching equality through
Islam was the reason behind Islam’s popularity and Islamic state formation in the
Arabian Peninsula. But Patricia Crone has rejects this hypothesis and argues (among
other things) that the Meccan trade mostly dealt in low value goods that were inca-
pable of generating enough wealth to create such a huge income disparity. For her,
it was a ‘nativist’ movement of the Arabs that involved deep attachment to Arabian
way of life which seemed to be threatened by external influences due to penetration
of Byzantines and the Sassanids into Arabia.
9. Death of Muhammad was followed by a succession dispute between the early sup-
porters of Muhammad (muhajiruns and ansars), Alids or legitimists who wanted
someone from the family of Muhammad to succeed and the Umayyads (a section of
the Quraysh aristocracy) who wanted their own say in succession. After a long delib-
eration, Abu Bakr was selected as the Caliph (successor) of Muhammad who was to
act as chief and lead the umma. Abu Bakr and the later three Caliphs, Umar, Usman
and Ali, are together known as Rashidun (‘rightly guided Caliphs’) on account of
their closeness to Muhammad and their loyalty towards Islam.
10. The period of Abu Bakr’s caliphate (632–34 ce) was marked by the threat of disinte-
gration from the various tribes. Few of the chiefs of the tribe declared they to be
Prophet and Abu Bakr had to wage war (Ridda) against these to maintain the unity
of the Muslim community. It was under Abu Bakr that the Muslim community fought
against the Byzantines for the first time as a single Arab army rather than a tribal
unit.
11. Umar (634–44 ce) is considered as the Arab Empire builder because it was under his
rule that the entire Arabian Peninsula was unified and the phase of Arab conquest of
the Middle East began. This conquest was facilitated by the weakening of both
Byzantine and Sassanid Empires due to their mutual rivalries. By 643 ce, the Arabs
had conquered Syria, Egypt and parts of North Africa. After the defeat of the
Sassanids, entire Iraq and Iran fell to the Arabs. The Arab success has also been
attributed to such factors as their efficient use of camels that improved the mobility
of the Arab army, use of trained archers, introduction of the notion of jihad (reli-
gious war) and acceptance of the Arabs by the inhabitants of these territories.
12. In order to establish effective control over these territories, Umar turned Arab
tribal conquerors into an elite army and created garrisons (amsar) at Basra, Kufa
and Fustat to settle Arabs in these territories and to prevent plunder of these areas
by the Bedouins. An effective system of distribution of spoils of victory, tribute and
taxation was created through these garrisons. Umar also followed the policy of
Muhammad not to force conversion to Islam in these areas and instead collected a
tribute from them called jizya. The local administration was also not disturbed and
the local elite continued to retain their authority to collect taxes. Umar emphasised
upon the military and religious authority of the Caliph and called himself Amir al-
Mu’minin (commander of the faithful). Umar also regularised the prayer of the
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 429

Muslims in mosques and initiated the process of writing down of Quran. He also
introduced a new Islamic calendar, starting from 622 ce, which corresponds with
Muhammad’s hijrah from Mecca to Medina. But Umar’s support to the Meccan and
the Medinese supporter of Muhammad by giving them important administrative and
military positions led to discontentment among the Meccan elite that resulted in
Umar’s assassination in 644 ce.
13. Usman (644–56 ce), though a muhajirun, belonged to the powerful Meccan clan of
Umayyads. He reversed many of the policies of Umar by promoting Meccans
against the early supporters of Muhammad. He also sought to establish better con-
trol over the provincial resources by centralising Caliph’s authority. Although his
rule did not see much of Arab territorial expansion but an attempt was made to
collect regular taxes rather than tributes. A new Arab bureaucracy replaced the
earlier bureaucracy in Iraq and Egypt whereas Iran and Mesopotamia were placed
under provincial bureaucracy. The taxation system was also given a definite shape
under Usman. Collection of agricultural tax (kharaj) and poll tax (jizya) was
streamlined. Usman also took to standardisation of Quran, which was resisted by
some sections of the Muslim community that considered themselves to be custodi-
ans of the holy book. Ultimately, the opposition of the Hashimites led to the
­assassination of Usman in 656 ce.
14. After another round of succession dispute, Ali (656–61 ce) became the next Caliph
with the support of the ansars and the rebels of Egypt. He was opposed to the cen-
tralising tendencies of the Caliph and believed in equal distribution of the tax pro-
ceeds among the Arabs. Ali’s accession was opposed by several groups, leading to a
civil war within Arabia. Conflict between his supporters (Shias) and his opponents
Umayyads created the ideological schism in Islam between Shias and Sunnis.
However, the most determined opposition to Ali came from Muawiya, who was a
cousin of Usman and held the position of governor of Syria. Ali had to fight a major
battle at Siffin with Muawiya. Withdrawal of Ali brought opposition from another
group of Kharijis who seceded from Ali and subsequently killed him in 666 ce. The
death of Ali brought an end to the phase of the Rashidun Caliphs in Islam.
15. The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 ce) marked a new era in the development of Islam
and the Arab Empire. Mecca and Medina lost their importance as the politico-­
religious centre of Islam and were replaced by Syria. Syria represented the dominant
power of the Arab tribe over the Muslim elite. Accession of Muawiya further deep-
ened the differences between Shias, who believed only someone from the family of
Ali had the right to become Caliph and the Sunnis who supported Muawiya. Another
major point of difference between the two was while Shias emphasised on the reli-
gious role of the Caliph and denounced their political adventures, the Sunnis were
more tolerant towards the political role of the Caliph. This period also marked the
beginning of monarchical system in Islam. Succession of Muawiya’s son, Yazid, at
the position of Caliph led to another round of civil war which resulted in the famous
Battle of Karbala (680 ce) where the Shiite forces led by Husayn (second son of Ali)
were defeated, Husayn was killed and was considered a martyr by the Shias. But

(Continued)
430 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)
opposition to Yazid was continued by Ibn Zubayr and the Kharijis, which led to
uncertainties.
16. It was under the Marwanid family that the Umayyad Caliphate was rebuilt. The 23
years of the reign of Abd al-Malik and al-Wahid stabilised the Umayyad rule through
several changes in the Islamic polity. Caliphate was turned into an absolute monar-
chy. Administration became more bureaucratised and the tribal contingents were
replaced by a professional army. Arabisation of the administration was achieved by
making Arabic as the language of administration. Greek- and Persian-speaking offi-
cials were replaced by Arabic speaking ones to introduce organisational identity. A
new courtly culture developed which witnessed the prominence of scribes, court
chamberlain and officials of the chancery.
17. At the ideological level, introduction of coins with Arabic script inscribed on it and
construction building such as the ‘Dome of Rock’ at Jerusalem on the site of an
ancient Hebrew temple were attempts to display the victory of Islam. This was fol-
lowed by the construction of several mosques and palaces at Medina and Damascus.
The architectural forms of the buildings of the Umayyads also displayed pre-Islamic
Near Eastern patterns. Conversion of non-Muslims remained a slow process due to
the application of the condition of becoming a ‘client’ (mawali) to the Muslim Arab.
However, the mawali were given an inferior status among the Muslim community.
But the inclusion of large number of mawali in the Arab administration and the
army brought about an end to the Arab exclusivism, and the former started demand-
ing equal status and privileges as that of the umma. Militarily, this period was
marked by resumption of the policy of conquest which was backed by imperialistic
ambitions. By the first decade of the eighth century, large parts of North African
region (called Maghrib), besides Spain in the Mediterranean, were brought under the
Arab control.
18. Opposition to the Umayyads came from both Sunnis, who were opposed to the
Caliph for assuming religious authority through political power, and the Shias, who
continued to hold on to the idea of caliphate going to the family of Ali. However, the
biggest opposition to the Umayyads came from the Hashimites whose leadership
was in the hands of the Abbasids. The Abbasids started their movement in a clandes-
tine manner to oust the Umayyads. The excessive use of Syrian army to control the
Arabs had sapped its vitality. They were gradually driven out of Transoxiana,
Anatolia and Central France. The Abbasids, through a propaganda campaign, won
the support of the elites of Khurasan. They were supported by several groups,
including Yemenis, their agents at Kufa, Persian and Arabian elite.
19. The Abbasid takeover of the caliphate in 750 ce is termed as ‘revolution’ because
their reign marked several changes in the Islamic polity. The administrative base of
the Arab Empire was shifted from Syria to ideally and strategically located Baghdad
that developed into a massive cosmopolitan city. The Abbasids ­abandoned the policy
of making distinction between Arab and non-Arabs in administrative and military
positions, which strengthened the political base of the Abbasids. By abandoning the
policy of conquest, the Abbasids reduced the need of a huge army and created a new
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 431

professional army consisting of Khurasani Arabs and the mawali loyal to the Caliph.
Same policy was followed in the field of administration, giving it a cosmopolitan
outlook. The Caliph became an absolute monarch and the Caliph’s court at Baghdad
echoed the Byzantine and Sassanid notion of kingship with elaborate court rituals
and etiquettes.
20. Administration under the Abbasids became more routinised with creation of the
bureaus (diwans) to deal with revenue, chancery and army affairs. Vizarat was an
important administrative institution that developed under the Abbasids. Wazir was
supposed to supervise and coordinate the operations of the bureaucracy. By the
middle of the ninth century, wazir became the chief of administration. The adminis-
tration of the provinces ranged from direct central control to a lose control exer-
cised through the military governor with the help of a garrison. Provinces located at
a distance from the capital had to be given autonomy. The local administration was
organised with the purpose of tax collection. Land grants or iqtas were given to the
members of the royal family and important courtiers and officials who supported the
Caliph. Extension of cultivation was another reason behind the grant of iqtas. Land
tax was collected after making a distinction between Muslim and non-Muslim hold-
ings. While the Muslims paid ushr (one-tenth of the produce) and the non-Muslims
paid kharaj (one-third of the produce). However, after large number of conversions,
all landholders were required to pay kharaj.
21. Opposition to the Abbasids developed in the form of discontentment from both
within and without. Arabs who had lost employment due to reduction in the number
of troops with the creation of a professional army showed their discontentment.
Bedouins were opposed to the Abbasids, as they did not much relish central control
over themselves. Religious opposition came in the form of development of syncretic
ideas as the Abbasids projected their rule as that of an orthodox Muslim state. The
Shiites, already opposed to the Abbasids, organised a series of rebellions. The cen-
trifugal tendencies in the provinces led to political power slipping into the hands of
local regimes. This was particularly true for Egypt and Khurasan. Gradually, Central
Asia came to be controlled by the Samanids and Buyids established their effective
control over Baghdad.
22. The various religious traditions that developed within Islam such as Sunnism, Shiism
and Sufism were largely the product of the religious activities of the urban Muslim
community who had turned themselves away from the court in the pursuit of reli-
gious, spiritual and pious activities. Although all these traditions followed the basic
tenets of Islam, but they developed into separate sectarian groups based on support
or opposition to the caliphate or through their involvement in the study of scriptures
or through adopting the ideology of asceticism and mysticism.
23. For the entire group of Muslims, the habitual behaviour or practices (Sunna) of the
Prophet became the guiding principle to decide what was ‘Islamic’. The oral tradi-
tion of Sunna was recorded under Umar and Usman in the form of hadis or hadith.
Hadis is interpreted in close relationship with Quran and is meant to supplement,
clarify and expand the guidance for the community as mentioned in Quran. This had
(Continued)
432 Ancient and Medieval World

(Continued)

led to several interpretations of hadis but a particular emphasis is placed on consen-

sus of the majority. Those who follow Sunna, accepted by the majority, are known
as Sunnis. Many believe that Sunnism is non-Shii Islam, based on their opposition to
and differences with the Shia ideology. The Islamic law (Shariat) was introduced to
put into practice a divinely guided way of life for the Muslims, and it is widely con-
sidered as an extension of the teaching of Quran and hadis. There are four main
schools of Islamic law practiced by the Sunnis—Hanafi, Maliki, Shafii and Hanbali—
that have been named after that of their respective founders.
24. The Shias were supporters of Ali and their opposition to the caliphate stemmed from
their allegiance to Ali and his descendants. As opposed to Caliph, they considered
their Imams as their religious leader who hailed from the family of Ali and Husayn.
Since the Shias rejected any interpretation of hadis not having originated from Ali,
they developed their own hadis and laws, which though in conformity with Sunna
differed from those of the Sunnis. They considered their imams as sinless and infal-
lible and therefore having the right to speak authoritatively on political and religious
matters. In the course of time, Shias were divided into two groups—Imami and
Ismailis. The Imami Shias were moderate while the Ismailis were radical in their
opposition to the Abbasid Caliphate.
25. A group of Muslims, away from the Shia–Sunni ideological conflict, were adopting
different means of achieving religious fulfilment. They were known as mystics or
Sufis. The Sufis aimed at personal experience of the reality of God through ascetic
and mystic practices. The origin of Sufis is generally traced to the spiritual and pious
practices of Muhammad and his umma during the early stages of the development
of Islam. The tradition of asceticism and mysticism along with the development of
organised teaching of these practices in Khanqas made Sufism popular. In early
stages, the Sufis used Quranic terms to derive its spiritual meanings, but, by the ninth
century, they developed their own language to express different stages of their spiri-
tual experience. Magical and healing qualities attached to a divine person led to the
development of the concept of sainthood among the Muslims.
26. Adab literature was a product of the synthesis of Arabic and Persian literature which
took place under the rule of Umayyads and Abbasids. While the court literature
during this period remained within the bounds of religion, a different kind of litera-
ture developed in the urban milieu that reflected the worldly life. Adab literature
refers to a particular and approved way of writing on various subjects largely secular
in nature. The policies of the Umayyads and the Abbasids to recruit political elite and
official scribes from various parts of the Islamic Empire, particularly Iran, and the
translation of Persian works into Arabic led to the development of Adab literature.
The scribes (kottabs) from Iran are considered the founders of this literature in the
Arab Empire, as they were already aware of the Persian Pahlavi tradition of writing.
The Adab literature was aimed, among other things, at training people in ethics, cul-
ture and crafts. The Arab writers tried to meet the challenge posed by the Iranian
literary style by beginning to synthesise Persian Adab and Arab literatures.
 Islamic Societies in West Asia 433

27. The Arab conquests in the eighth and ninth centuries set in motion the process of
urbanisation, covering the Arab Peninsula and large parts of the Near East which
was earlier controlled by the Byzantines and the Sassanids. The political unification
of a large area under one polity facilitated trade and therefore urbanisation by
removing trade barriers. The policy of the Caliphs to create garrisons (amsar) to
settle Arabs in the areas outside the Arabian Peninsula played a major role in gal-
vanising the process of urbanisation. In Iraq, the chief garrison towns that developed
as substantial urban centres were Basra, Kufa, Wasit and later Baghdad. All of these
contained markets, administrative buildings, mosques in their initial stage of devel-
opment but later they performed various economic functions as well. Most of these
urban centres housed population ranging between 100,000 and 500,000. Few of
them, such as, Baghdad, developed into big cosmopolitan cities, attracting people of
various professional and ethnic groups. In Iran, Nishapur, Marw and Isfahan reached
new heights of prosperity under the caliphate rule. However, in Syria and in Egypt,
the process of urbanisation was slow and even hampered as the creation of new
frontiers cut many of these away from their hinterlands. In Spain, Qurtuba was
developed as a major city under the Caliphate.
28. Besides pure military and administrative factors, growth of urban centres was also
facilitated by the expansion of trade. Political unification of a large area and stability
and security of the eighth and ninth centuries promoted long-distance trade between
Central Asia, Mediterranean and the Indian Ocean. This led to the development of
Islamic ports of Siraf (Iran) and Basra (Iraq). The overland trade route linking China
with West Asia and Mediterranean was another busy route of long-distance trade.
Trade was carried in various commodities, although it was dominated by luxury
goods. As demand of high-value goods by the caliph’s court and the aristocracy
attached to the court kept on increasing, few of the urban centres developed manu-
facturing activities. Prominent among these were Basra, Baghdad, Nishapur and
Fustat.
29. Apart from being administrative and military centres, these urban centres also
became harbingers of social and cultural change. The commercial activities and resi-
dences of the aristocracy in big cities, such as, Baghdad, brought about a class strati-
fied society. This was reflected in a clear-cut occupational differentiation in the
settlement pattern and arrangement of houses. These urban centres were also sym-
bolic of breakdown of tribal and clan society as the tribal chiefs started settling in
the palatial houses in the cities. These cities also brought about cultural changes.
Since many of these were administrative centres, they attracted several ethnic
groups of various professionals who became residents of these cities. The ensuing
interaction brought about a synthesis of Arab and non-Arab cultural elements.
434 Ancient and Medieval World

KEYWORDS
Peninsula arid oases camel pastoralism Bedouins Najd Hejaz tribe clan Shaikh
polytheism monotheism Kaaba Mecca Byzantines Sassanids Quraysh stratification
caravan Prophet Muslim Medina Islam hijrah muhajirun ansar umma zakat
Caliph Rashidun Alids amsar jihad jizya Quran hadis kharaj ushr Arabisation
mawali diwan wazir barid iqta Sunna Sunni Shia Sufi khanqas scribes
urbanisation cosmopolitan synthesis

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. Describe the chief features of the pre-Islamic Arabian society.
2. Analyse the steps taken by Muhammad to integrate the Arabian society.
3. Examine the factors that led to the growth of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula under the
leadership of Muhammad.
4. Who were the Rashidun Caliphs? Analyse the factors that led to expansion of the Arab
Empire under them.
5. Describe the growth and expansion of the Islamic Empire under the Umayyads.
6. Analyse the political, administrative and economic policies of the Abbasids.
7. Discuss the ideological background to the growth of various religious traditions within
Islam.
8. Bring out the major issues of conflict between Shias and Sunnis that arose during the
seventh–eight centuries.
9. Account for the growth of Adab literature in the Islamic Empire.
10. Examine the factors that led to the growth of Urbanisation under the Umayyads and the
Abbasids.

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———. 2003. Slaves on Horses: The Evolution of the Islamic Polity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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Grunebaum, G. E. von. 1970. Classical Islam: A History 600–1278 ce. Chicago: Aldine Transaction.
Hillenbrand, Carole. 2005. ‘Muhammad and the Rise of Islam’. In The New Cambridge Medieval History, Vol 1,
c 500–c 700, edited by Paul Fouracre, 317–45. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Hodgson, Marshal G. S. 1974. The Venture of Islam, Vol 1. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Lapidus, Ira M. 1988. A History of Islamic Societies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Rodinson, Maxime. 1961. Mohammed. New York: New Press.
von Grunebaum, G. E. 1953. Medieval Islam: A Study in Cultural Orientation. Chicago: University of Chicago
Press.
Watt, William. 1953. Muhammad at Mecca. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
 Index

Abbasids, 408–13 science and technology, Anthropoidea/Anthropoids (or

Abu Bakr, 397–400 development of, 219–21 advanced primates), 5
Abu Hureyra, 57, 59 slavery practice in, 203–205 aquatic resources, 25
Abydos (or Abdju) urban centre thought, 216, 217 Arab
in Egypt, 108 ancient Rome trade practices in, 423–26
aceramic Neolithic phase, 63 foundation of, 235 urban expansion in, 423–26
Acheulean culture, 19 geographical setting of, 236 Arabian tribes
Adab literature, 421–23 andrapodon, 208 religion impact on pre-Islamic
Aegean Islands, 188 Andronovo culture, 161 religion, 388
Aegyptopithecus, 5 animal breeding, 74 religious practices of, 387
Aequi ethnic group, 237 animal domestication, in Arabisation, 404
African Origin model, 14 Southwest Asia and Arbian Peninsula
agonists, 305 Europe, 76 Islam birth, development
agora, 194, 197, 206 animal husbandry prior to, 389
agro-pastoralism, 152 animal domestication in Archaic period, 111
al-‘Uzza, 388 Southwest Asia and archons, 193, 195
Ali, 401, 402 Europe, 76 Ardipithecus ramidus, 6
Ali Kosh, 57, 62 definition of, 72 Argissa Magoula village, 68
Allat, 388 domestication process, 73, 74 Aristagoras, 201
alluvial plains, 155 early causes of domestica- Assimilation model, 14
Amartian culture, 104 tion, 72, 73 Assyrians, 164, 170
Amorites, 164 impact of, 76, 77 Athenian slavery, 205–10
Amu Darya (Oxus), 155 wild and domesticated Athens, 193–98
Anatolia (modern Turkey), ­animals, identification Attica, 142, 188, 191, 201
63–66 of, 72 Augurs (or augures), 281
ancient Greece animal keeping, 74 augustus (venerable or
art and architecture, 213–15 ansars, 392, 396, 400, 401 exalted), 254
Dark Age period, 189–93 anthromorphic Aurignacian culture, 25, 28
geography of, 189 deity(ies), 39, 117, 276, 278, Australopithecus afarensis
history writing, 218, 219 285 (‘Southern Ape of
literature and drama, 215, 216 divinities, 115 Afar’), 6
Peloponnesian War, 201–203 figurines, 30 Australopithecus Africanus
people of, 189 religion, 167 (‘Southern Ape of
Persian War, 201–203 Roman cults of Juno, 276 Africa’), 8
Polis, emergence of, 189–93 sculptures, 69 Australopithecus anamensis, 6
 I–2 Ancient and Medieval World

Australopithecus Boisei (‘Boise Campani, 233 culture

Southern Ape’), 8 Canaanites, 164 acquisition of, 2, 10
Australopithecus garhi (‘garhi’ caprovines (sheep and goat), 76, definition of, 4
meaning surprise in the 76 in early Medieval Europe,
local dialect), 8 carburisation process, 175, 176 364–366
Australopithecus robustus catacombs, 295 Cuneiform script, 97, 101
(‘robust southern Ape’), Cayönü, 57, 64 cuneiform writing, 92
8 Ceboidea (New World Czechoslovakia, 12
Monkeys), 5 Çatal höyük (Anatolia or
Babylonian period, 102 Cenozoic era (the age of Turkey), 57
Bactria–Margiana Archaeological mammals) Çatalhöyük (fork mound), 64,
Complex (BMAC), evolution of, 2
159–61 types of, 2 Dark Age period, 151, 189–93
Bagaudae, 305, 333 Central Asia deltas, 155
Bandkeramik culture, 70 Bronze Age in, 157, 158 democracy, 193, 199–201, 251
barbarians, 188, 203, 294 Iron Age in, 161–63 Athenian, 196, 210
barids (messengers), 410 Late Bronze Age in, 159–61 demos, 191
bartering, 68 Middle Bronze Age in, 158, diffusion, 66
bas-relief sculpture, 28 159 diffusionists, 67, 106, 139
Basilica, 288 Central Greece, 188 diwan al-azimma, 410
Basra, 416 ceramic Neolithic phase, 63 diwan al-jaysh, 410
Bedouins, 389, 393, 397, 401 Cercopithecoidea (Old World diwan al-kharaj, 410
developed intimate knowl- Monkeys), 5 diwans, 410
edge of life in desert, Chatelperronian/Perigordian dmōs, 208
387 culture, 25 domesticated animals,
sanctuaries (haram), impor- chattel slavery, 204, 208 ­identification of, 72
tance to, 388 chief (shaykh, sharif or domestication
social organisation of, 387 sayyid), 387 early causes of, 72, 73
worship, 387 Christian liturgy, 364, 365 optimum environmental
Belgium, 12 civilisation ­conditions for, 76
bilingualism, 289 archaeological research in process of, 73, 74
bipedalism, 2, 6 early, 84 doulos (male slave), 208
terrestrial, 9 definition of, 84 Dryas, 64
boule, 194, 196, 197, 198 origin of, 84 Dryopithecus, 5
Britain, 12 Clactonian culture, 20
Bronze age in China classical feudalism, 314 Early Iron Age
cultures in, 132 clay sculpture, 28 in Central Asia, 161–63
evolution of, 128 climatic crisis theory, 48, 49 in West Asia, 170–72
Shang civilisation, 132 colonus, 299 early Roman religion
Bronze Age Copper Age, 17 at popular and state level,
in Central Asia, 157, 158 Coptos (or Qift), 108 277, 278
in West Asia, 164–170 corbelling, 286 beliefs and practices, 275, 276
bureaucratisation, 404 cosmopolitan, 282 Greek influence, 277
Buto, 108 cosmos, 216, 217 priestly class in’, role of, 281
Byzantine civilisation, 358 Crete, 188 territorial expansion, impact
Byzantine Empire, 108, 261, 296, Croton city, 216 of, 278–80
370, 388 cultural onslaught, 294 early Rome, culture external
cultural synthesis, 159–61, 237, influence, 287
Caere, 233 287 ecology, 48
Caliphal State, 397 cultural theory, 52 Egypt
 Index I–3

geographical location of, 103 rural lordship, 324–28 Hittites, 164, 168, 169, 170, 176
hieroglyphs, 103 technological developments Holocene era, 2
mathematics and science, in, 346–50 hominid species, evolution pro-
growth and develop- towns, 345, 337–41 cess of, 6
ment of, 118, 119 trade practices in, 341–45 Hominidae, 5
monumental architecture, Western, feudalism crisis in, Hominoidea (apes and
113, 114 331–35 humans), 5
Old Kingdom as mature phase Homo erectus, 11, 12, 19
of, 112 Flamen Dialis, 280 Homo ergaster, 11
origin of, 103 Flaminica Dialis, 280 Homo habilis, 9, 10, 17
pharaoh and, 111–13 foederati, 306 Homo neanderthalensis, 12
political developments in, 111 Foedus Cassianum (after Homo sapiens, 12–14
religious practice in, 115–18 Roman signatory Homo sapiens sapiens, 15,
social stratification, 114, 115 Cassius), 237 14–16
trade practices in, 118 foraging, 70 homo species, 9
transitional cultures in, 104 France, 12 human cultural progression, 17
urban centres, 107, 108 Franchthi cave, 68 human-like species, origin of, 9
Egyptian pantheon, 117 frescoes, 288, 289, 366, 375 humans
Egyptologists, 106, 108, 111, 114, adaptive strategy of, 4
116 Ganj Dareh, 57, 62 evolution of, 1, 2
ekklesia, 194, 197 genos, 191 Hurrians, 169
elite class (patricians), 237 Germania, 305
Eneolithic phase, 157 Germanic tribes Ibn Khaldun, 387
English monarchy, 319 invasions of, 312 Ice Age, 13, 21, 32, 2–4
engravings, 28 Roman territories acquisition Iliad epic, 190
eons, 2 by, 313 Imperator (emperor), 254
Epirus, 188 gerousia, 198, 199 Indo-European
epochs, 2 Gerzean culture, 104 groups, 151, 155
equilibrium, 49 Ghassan tribe, 390 language, 163
eras, 2 gracile (slender) creature, 8 stock, 168, 170
Erlitou culture, 131, 132 Gravettian culture, 25, 26, 29 tribes, 165
Ertebolle phase, 34, 35 Greek inflation, 260, 261, 293, 302
Etruscan philosophy, 217, 218 intensification of hunting and
cities, linguistic groups of, religion, 221–24 gathering activities, 33,
273 religious pantheon, 222 36, 37
influence in central Italian states, 195, 201, 203, 206, 210, Intermediate model, 14
Peninsula, 235 239 Ionian Islands, 188
Europe/European Grotta dell’ Uzzo, 68 iqta, 411
agricultural production, iqta istighlal, 411
328–31 hadis or hadith (sayings of the iqta tamliq, 411
aristocracy, 320–22 Prophet), 390, 415, 417 iron/iron technology
culture of chivalry, 322–24 Halaf, 88 development causes, 174
Eastern, feudalism crisis in, Hassuna (or Tell Hassuna), 87 manufacturing process, 174,
335, 336 Haçilar, 57, 64 175
economy during (eight–­ Hejaz, 392, 393, 397, 426 military field, uses in, 178, 179
fourteenth centuries), hektemoroi, 192 non-military field, uses in,
314–16 Hierakonpolis (‘City of Falcon’ 176–78
feudal society in, 314–16 or’City of Hawk’), 107 origin of, debate on, 172–74
knights in, 322–24 hijrah, 392, 415, 429 spread of, 175, 176
monarchy rule in, 316–20 Hittite pantheon, 167 Iron Age, 17
 I–4 Ancient and Medieval World

Iron Age in Central Asia, 161–63 Levant, 57–60 Mesopotamia, 60–63

Isagoras, 196 liturgy (formulae of Christian long-distance trade in, 101,
Islam worship), 360 102
political authority, making of, living spirits (jinn), 387 monumental architecture, 98,
385 Longshan culture, 129–31 99
rise of, 385 lower Palaeolithic Age, 17–21 Northern, transitional cul-
Islamic civilisation tures in, 88
Arabic speaking, 358 Macedonia, 188 origin of, 86
contemporary faiths and civil- Magdalenian culture, 25, 29 religion, 97, 98
isations, 385 Maglemose phase, 34 South, transitional cultures
dimensions of, 413 mammals, 4, 20, 21, 26, 30 in, 92
religious traditions in, 413–21 manumission (freedom from urbanisation, 93
tribal background, 390 slavery), 207, 209, 210, Mesopotamian
Italian Peninsula, 237–40 212, 299 delta, 88
Italy, 12, 213, 232 Mana- t (the goddess of fate), 388 low lands as nuclear zones,
linguistic groups of, 273 maula, 406 52
Southern, 192 mawali, 406, 423 religion, 97
ivory sculpture, 28 Mecca, 386, 388–93, 416 soil, 93
Meccan trade, 396 urbanisation, 93
Jarmo, 57, 63 Medieval Europe, early metics (or metoikoi), 197
jaziya, 399, 406, 412 culture in, 364–66 Miaodigou culture, 129
Jemdet Nasr, 92 religion in, 359–64 microliths, 35, 40
Jericho, 57, 58 Medieval Europe Middle Ages, 358
jihad (holy war), 369, 370, 396 Arab expansion impact in, Middle Bronze Age in Central
Kaaba, 394 366–69 Asia, 158, 159
Kaaba shrine, 388 art and architecture, growth middle Palaeolithic Age, 21–23
Karakum, 155 of, 377 migration(s)
Karanovo culture, 69 culture during High Middle of Africans, 14
Kassites, 168, 170 Ages, 373 of nomads, 154
Kazakhstan, 155 heterodox religious move- of pastoral nomadism, 152
Kenyapithecus, 5 ments, 370–72 military
Khalifa, 396 literature, development in, conflict, 161, 256, 332
khanqas, 420, 421 373–74 monarchy, 258, 297
kharaj, 400, 412 medimnoi, 194 Minoan civilisation, 85
kharaji, 412 Medina, 386, 387, 416 development of, 139
khuwwa, 387 Merovingian Dynasty, 316 geographical location of, 139
kinlesness of slaves, 205, 208 Mesolithic culture/period, 25 metallurgy, development of,
kleroi or klaros (singular), 211 art forms, 38–39 139
Kongemose phase, 34 burial custom, 36–38 neo-palatial phase, 142–44
Kyrgyzstan, 155 climate conditions, 32 post-palatial phase, 145
Kyzylkum, 155 Europe, 32–35 proto-palatial phase, 141, 142
meaning of, 17 Minoan religious pantheon, 144
Lakhm tribe, 390 religious beliefs, 38, 39 Miocene era, 2
late Bronze Age, in Central Asia, settlement pattern, 36–38 Mitannis, 164, 167, 168, 170, 176
159–61 social organisation, 36–38 mobiliary art, 28
late-Neolithic culture of China, Southwest Asia, develop- modern humans ancestors, cate-
132 ments in, 39–41 gories of, 6
legal fatherland, 282 subsistence economy, 35, 36 monarchy, 106, 135, 198
Lepenski Vir, 69 tool technology, 35, 36 monotheism, 116, 283, 284, 384,
Levalloisian culture, 20 391, 394
 Index I–5

mos maiorum (custom of oikos, 190 pontiffs (public priests), 250,

ancestors), 244, 274, 277 Oldowan culture, 10, 18 280, 282, 288, 363
Mousterian culture, 13, 21 oligarchy, 193, 195, 199, 200 pontifices, 280
muhajiruns, 392, 396, 400 Oligocene era, 2 post-Pleistocene climate, 32
Multiregional Evolution model, Olympian pantheon, 221, 222 post-Roman expansion, cultural
14 Oman, 426 synthesis, 287–89
multivariable theory, 53 omnipresent, 279 pre-Islamic Arabia, neighbours
mummification, 114, 119 ordinary citizens (plebeians), and trade routes, 435
murals (wall paintings), 28 237 preachers (rabbis), 388
mutation, 50, 77 primates
mutual assimilation, 161 pagan, 285 definition of, 2
Mycenaean civilisation, 85, 139, Palaeolithic Age suborders of, 5
151 lower Palaeolithic, 17–21 primitive primates, 5
mysticism, 223 meaning of, 17 Proconsul, 5
middle Palaeolithic, 21–23 prophecy, 223
Najd desert, 426 upper Palaeolithic, 23–27 Prophet Muhammad
Naqada (or Ombos) urban Palaeolithic family tree, 435
centre in Egypt, 108 art, 27–31 followers as Muslims, 392
Naqada culture, 104 cultures, 13, 24, 25, 26 Prosimii, 4, 5
Naqada III culture, 106 Paleocene era, 2 Provincialism, 296
Natufian culture, 40, 57 Paleontologists, 4 pull theories, 51
naturalism, 31, 291 pastoral nomadism/nomads Punic War
Neanderthal culture, 13 characteristics of, 153 First, 240
Neanderthals, 12 definition of, 152 Second, 240
Neolithic evolution of, 155 Third, 241
Central Europe, 70 iron technology on, impact of, push theories, 49, 50
culture in Europe, 66–68 154, 155 Pythagoras, 216
definition of, 17, 55 issues in, 153 Pythagorus theorem, 102
features of, 55 variations in, 154
Northern Europe, 71 Patrician (rich Aristocracy), 243 qajis, 410
origin of, 53 patrocinium, 299, 304 quaternary Cenozoic era, 2
package, 55 pax deorum, 280, 281 Quran (the holy book of the
revolution, 55, 56 Pax Romana, 256, 279, 298, 302 Muslims), 385, 390, 394,
South and Southeast Europe, peculium, 299 399, 400, 414, 416, 417,
68–70 Peloponnese, 188, 198, 201 422
Nile River, 103 Peloponnesian War, 201–203 Quranic terminology, 420
Nomadic groups percussion technique, 24 Quraysh aristocracy, 396, 402
in Central Asia, 157 periods, 2 Quraysh caravans, 393
in West Asia, 172 permanent settlement, 55 Quraysh tribe, 390, 392, 393
North Mesopotamia, transitional Persian War, 201–203
cultures, 88 Phoenicians, 164 Ramapithecus, 5
Northern Mesopotamia, heavy phratriai, 191 Rashidun (or rightly guided
rainfall impact, 86 phyle (tribe), 191 Caliphs), 397
nuclear DNA, 15 piedmonts of mountains, 76 recalibrated radio carbon dating
nuclear zones, 52 Plebeian (poor common method, 57, 63
numen, 275, 276 masses), 243 redistributive system, 143
Pleistocene era, 2 religion
oases theory, 48 Pliocene era, 2 in early Medieval Europe,
Odyssey epic, 190 Pongidae, 5 359–64
oiketes, 208
 I–6 Ancient and Medieval World

in late Medieval Europe, Sabines, 233 urbanisation and surplus

366–69 Sabines ethnic group, 237 ­production in, 92–94
religious pantheon, 112, 116 Sais, 108 Sunna Muslims, 414–17
Roman Empire Samarra, 88 symbiotic relationship, 48, 77
agrarian economy, 267 Samnite wars, 239 Syr Darya (Jaxartes), 155
Christianity, birth of, 283–86 Samnites, 233 Syria, 416
cultural developments in late, sarcophaguses, 295
290 Sassanid Dynasty, 260, 297, 409, Tajikistan, 155
culture during Third Century 411 Tamim, 390
Crisis, 293, 294 Sassanid Empire, 388 Tarquinii, 233
decline in trade, 302–304 sedentism, 37, 55 Tarquinius Superbus (Tarquin
division under Diocletian and semi-sedentary pastoralism, 152 the Proud), 236
Constantine, 260–62 shamanism, 27, 31, 39 Tayacian culture, 22
dominate rulers, new trends shamanistic rituals, 39 tempering process, 175
under, 294, 295 Shang Dynasty terrestrial (those who exploit
fiscal crisis in, 299–301 capital cities, 133, 134 resources on land)
gold age under the Principate, economy and crafts, 135, 136 ­primates, 4
290–93 information through oracle terrestrial animals, 35
monetary crisis in, 301, 302 bones, 132 terrestrial living, 9, 11
political crisis in, 296, 297 origin of, 132 terrestrial resources, 37
religion at popular level, 282, religious practice in, 137 tertiary Cenozoic era, 2
283 state and society, 134, 135 tetrapoda, 208
slave mode of production, writing, beginning of, 137 Tetrarchy system, 297
crisis in, 298, 299 Shia Muslims, 417–19 Thaqif, 390
social tension in, 304, 305 slaves (doulos), 197 Thessaly, 188
Third Century Crisis, 260 social theories, 51, 52 Thessaly (or Thessalia) sea
trade and industry, 268–70 solidarity (asabiya), 387 coast, 188
traditional religion, revival of, Solultrean culture, 25, 29 thetes, 191, 194
281, 282 Sophists, 217, 223 Thrace, 188
tribal attacks or invasions on, South Arabia, 386 transhumance, 152, 162
305–307 South Mesopotamia, 86, 87, 88 tribal councils (mala), 390
urbanisation process, decline transitional cultures in, 92 Turkmenistan, 155
in, 302–304 Southern Italy, 239 tyranny, 193, 195, 200
urbanisation, growth of, 268 Spain, 12
Roman polytheism, 276 Sparta, 198–201 Ubaid culture, 89–91
Roman Principate, 259 helotry in, 210–12 Umayyad Caliphate, 408
Roman Republic Starcevo culture, 69 Umayyads, 396
conflict of orders, 249, 250 Stoicism, 282 Umbrians, 233
constitution, nature of, Stone Age, 17 umma, 393, 394
250–52 stone sculpture, 28 upper Palaeolithic Age, 23–27
foundation of, 237 Sufism, 419–21 urban revolution, 84–85
last century of, 252, 253 Sumeria (South Mesopotamia) Uruk culture, 91–92
officials of, 245–47 metallurgy and craft speciali- ushr, 411, 412
Senate, 243–45 sation, 94, 95 Usman, 400, 401
social orders, 243–45 origin of, 95, 96 Uzbekistan, 155
voting assemblies, 247–49 science and mathematics,
Rome Empire, slavery practice growth and develop- Veii, 233
in, 262–66 ment of, 102 Vestini, 233
ruralisation of European econ- social stratification, 96, 97 Vetulonia, 233
omy, 327, 336 villas, 143, 313
 Index I–7

vizarat, 410 Bronze Age in, 164–70 Yemen, 386, 389

Volsci, 233 Early Iron Age in, 170–72 Yemen (Southwest Arab), 426
Volsci ethnic group, 237 Western Mediterranean, 240–41 Yugoslavia, 12
votive double axes, 144 wild animals, identification of,
votive offerings, 176 72 Zagros Mountains, 60–63
votive weapons, 173 workmanship, 291 zakat, 393
Vulci, 233 Zamzam, 390
Xia Dynasty, 132 Zawi Chemi Shanidar, 57, 61, 63
wazir, 410 Zeugitai, 194
West Asia Yangshao culture, 128 ziggurat, 91, 97, 159