Conquerors of Mesopotamia

1. Conquerors of Mesopotamia From 5000BC to the Persians

2. Early Conquerors of the Land • Religious leaders held power first, then wars broke out • With more wars, military leaders come to power • Eventually leaders start taking over nearby villages • Leads to the beginning of empires and empire building • 1st Empire builder- Sargon of Akkad

3. Sargon of Akkad • Takes power over Sumer • Came from the city of Akkad • Adopted many of the Sumerian practices and beliefs • Becomes the 1st time all of Sumer has been unified • Sargon dynasty unifies Sumer from 2340BC – 2125BC • Expands empire from north of Sumer to Persian Gulf • Empire- many areas under the rule of one leader

4. New Leaders Come to Power • Empire of Sargon begins to weaken • Amorites take power of Sumer around 2000BC • Make Babylon their capital • Moves it from Ur • Amorites become known as the Babylonian Empire • Still keep practices of Sumer • Babylonian Empire will reach its height under the leader known as Hammurabi

5. Map of the Early Empires

6. The Reign of Hammurabi • Hammurabi comes to power around 1790 BC • Rules until 1750 BC • Best known for creating a code of law for all people • Known as Hammurabi’s Code • Was based off earlier codes • Hammurabi’s Code was based on revenge • Eye for an eye, tooth for tooth • Rules applied differently to the rich and the poor • Also changed religion under Hammurabi- Marduk main god

7. Babylonians Fall From Power • Babylonian empire falls apart around the 1600 BCE • Weak leadership follows death of Hammurabi • Also lost power due to a powerful opponent attacking • The Hittites attacked from the west; area known as Anatolia • Used chariots for attacks • Group had iron tools/weapons • Were far superior to Bronze • Hittites also adopted Sumerian beliefs

8. Map of Hittites Location

9. Advancements of the Hittites • Hittites first group to smelt iron • Start of the Iron Age • Made the Hittites superior to all other groups • Iron weapons easily defeated other soldiers’ weapons • Chariots were also invented • Made their warriors faster and could attack quickly • Hittites would later fall to the Assyrians; very fierce group

10. The Assyrian Empire • The Assyrian Empire comes to power around 850 BCE • Very warlike people • Built a large empire with constant attacks on neighboring groups • Sennacherib – great military leader of Assyrian empire • Burned Babylon to the ground • Made Nineveh their new capital • Assyrian empire expanded through the entire Fertile Crescent and into Egypt

12. Assyrian Military Advancements • Archers- launched waves of arrows at opponents • Ladders- used to climb over the walls of opponents • Weapons- were iron tipped, also had protective armor • Tactics- if not killed in battle, the remaining were impaled or beheaded • Women murdered or sold to slavery • Tunnels- tunnels were dug under the walls or foundation to make them fall

13. The Assyrian Empire Falls • Assyrians were attacked by groups who they defeated • Groups wanted to get revenge • Burned Nineveh to the ground • Chaldeans responsible for the defeat of Assyria • Other groups also help • Chaldeans were the rebirth of the Babylonians • Led by Nebuchadnezzar • Made Babylon their capital again • Kingdom became one of the 7 wonders of the world

14. The Persians End It All • Persian Empire was led by Cyrus, Cambyses, and Darius I • Started in the area between Mesopotamia and Indus Valley • Empire would eventually spread and take Chaldeans