Sumerians
(3000 BC – 2000 BC)
Important Leader(s):
Gilgamesh:
• 5th King of city of Uruk
• Became known as a demigod with superhuman
strength
• Would later be immortalized in the Epic of
Gilgamesh
Empires of
Empires of the
the Fertile
Fertile Crescent
Crescent Mesopotamia
Sumerians
(3000 BC – 2350 BC)
Major cities:
• Ur
• Uruk
• Nippur
• Lagash
• Eridu
• Kish
Empires of
Empires of the
the Fertile
Fertile Crescent
Crescent Mesopotamia
Sumerians
(3000 BC – 2000 BC)
Major Achievements
First major cities established throughout Mesopotamia
Established religious basis for Mesopotamia
Math: number system based on 60/planned irrigation projects
(geometry)
Architecture: ziggurat designs led to pyramid structures and
shapes
Writing: Cuneiform created (first writing system)
Empires of
Empires of the
the Fertile
Fertile Crescent
Crescent Mesopotamia
Akkadians
(2350 BC – 2000 BC)
Important Leaders
Sargon of Akkad:
• United all Sumerian city-states into the first empire.
Naram-Sin:
• Grandson of Sargon
• Akkadian Empire reached it’s height
• First Sumerian ruler to proclaim god status.
Empires of
Empires of the
the Fertile
Fertile Crescent
Crescent Mesopotamia
Akkadians
(2350 BC – 2000 BC)
Major Cities:
• Akkad
• Mari
• Assur
Empires of
Empires of the
the Fertile
Fertile Crescent
Crescent Mesopotamia
Akkadians
(2350 BC – 2000 BC)
Major Achievements:
• Created a government structure
that future Mesopotamian
civilizations would follow.
• Traded with Indus Valley region for
metal ores, cedar wood, etc.
• Created realistic expression of art
and sculpture
Empires of
Empires of the
the Fertile
Fertile Crescent
Crescent Mesopotamia
As armies battled one
another for control of
fertile land, the region
passed from one
empire to another.
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Hittites
A strong kingdom arose in
Asia Minor (Turkey)
Their success came from
two different military
advantages:
• Mastered ironworking
• Could make the
strongest weapons of
the time
• Used the chariot skillfully
• Made them very
mobile in battle.
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
Babylonians
(1792 BC – 1595 BC/616 BC – 539 BC)
Major City:
• Babylon
Empires of
Empires of the
the Fertile
Fertile Crescent
Crescent Mesopotamia
Babylonians
(1792 BC – 1595 BC/616 BC – 539 BC)
Important leader
• Hammurabi
Empires of
Empires of the
the Fertile
Fertile Crescent
Crescent Mesopotamia
Babylonians
(1792 BC – 1595 BC/616 BC – 539 BC)
Major Achievements
• Babylon became a “Crossroads” of
Trade
• Hammurabi’s Code
Empires of
Empires of the
the Fertile
Fertile Crescent
Crescent Mesopotamia
For several
generations, rule of the
Fertile Crescent would
switch back and forth
between Assyria and
Babylonia.
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Assyrians
(1900BC-1781BC/1360 BC – 626
BC)
After conquering Babylon, they
were invaded and overthrown in a
rather short amount of time.
For the next 300 years, the
Assyrians gathered their strength
and improved their military.
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Assyrians
Important Leaders
Shamshi-Adad Sennacherib Ashurbanipal
• (1813 -1791 BC) • (705 - 681 BC) • Ashurbanipal was the last strong
king of the Assyrian Empire.
• conquered many • conquered the city of • built a massive library in the capital
surrounding city-states in Babylon. city of Nineveh that contained over
northern Mesopotamia. • rebuilt much of the 30,000 clay tablets.
excellent leader and Assyrian city of Nineveh, • ruled Assyria for 42 years, but the
• empire began to decline after he
organizer. turning it into one of the died.
• established the first great cities of ancient
Assyrian Empire. history.
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Assyrians
Important Cities
Ninevah (capital)
Assur
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Assyrians
Retooling their military paid off in huge
fashion.
Like the Hittites, the Assyrians used the chariot
and iron weapons
They were incredibly well organized militarily
and extremely fierce in battle.
They spread terror among their enemies by
burning and looting the villages before battle.
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Assyrians
Roads and other infrastructure moves made
the Assyrian war machine very feared.
They imposed high taxes on their conquered
subjects and crushed anyone who dared not
pay.
Local leaders were used to govern the large
Assyrian empire.
Collect taxes
Enforced laws
Raised soldiers for the army.
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Chaldeans
A series of wars weakened the Assyrian empire
and the Chaldeans moved in to attack.
A group of people from the Syrian desert (the
Chaldeans) attacked and destroyed the capital
city of Assyria – Ninevah.
Nebuchadnezzar rebuilt Babylon into a
beautiful city. It's here that he built the
Hanging Gardens of Babylon (one of the seven
wonders)
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Chaldeans
The Chaldeans admired Sumerian culture so
much that they studied the Sumerian language
and rebuilt Sumerian temples.
The Chaldeans were very interested in science
– specifically astronomy.
• They charted the positions of the stars
They created a calendar
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Chaldeans
The Chaldeans admired Sumerian culture so
much that they studied the Sumerian language
and rebuilt Sumerian temples.
The Chaldeans were very interested in science
– specifically astronomy.
• They charted the positions of the stars
They created a calendar
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Phoenicians
A trading people that developed
on the Mediterranean coast in the
area today known as Lebanon.
Major cities included:
• Tyre
• Sydon
• Gebal
• Arvad
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Phoenicians
A trading people that developed
on the Mediterranean coast in the
area today known as Lebanon.
Major Leaders:
• Hiram of Tyre
• Provided King Solomon with
the cedar planks needed to
build the Israelite temple in
Jersusalem
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Phoenicians
Achievements: Developed a major trade route
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
The Phoenicians
Achievements: Created the first alphabet that
would eventually be used by the entire world.
Empires of the Fertile Crescent Mesopotamia
