ASSYRIA

The first city of Assyria was founded in 1900 BCE when King Erishum I built the temple of Assur. Assyria persisted through various kingdoms with the city of Assur [i] retaining some extent of autonomy. Assyrian kings, who previously held little influence, were strengthened through border treaties and support from Egypt. The kingdom grew to be of the greatest ever seen with extensive military campaigns. At the end of the seventh century BCE, Assyria collapsed following an assault by the Babylonians [ii]. The rapid downfall [iii] of the Assyrian Empire was attributed to a military defeat enabled by civil war within the kingdom in 635 BCE.

As the Assyrians fluctuated in strength and autonomy throughout their reign, their relationships with neighboring empires varied extensively. In their beginning, the Hurrian, Hatti, and Amorite peoples dominated the Assyrians. Their main rival was the Babylonian Empire; however, in the Neo-Assyrian period, a marriage between the rivals secured an 80 year allyship. During the Middle Assyrian Empire, the Mitanni and Hittite kingdoms maintained control over Mesopotamia. To the West, Assyrian rulers sought to expand to the Syro-Palestine cities of Israel and Judah, resulting in military conflicts. In their decline, a coalition of Babylonians, Persians, Medes, and Scythians [iv] eventually defeated the Assyrians.

Assyria was the first society to make its military central to its state governance. They also developed the use of the battering ram [v] among many other novel military innovations. They were the first to extensively arm troops with iron weaponry. The empire also had major advances in medicine, as well as created the first systematic listing of plants and animals within the kingdom [vi]. Among the greatest of their achievements, however, was the Aramaic alphabet [vii] which was imported into the Assyrian government from their conquering of Syria. The easier system allowed for the translation and recording of thousands of years of history and culture.

The king stood at the top of the hierarchy and all acts of the kingdom were attributed directly to the king alone. The king’s principal tasks were to engage in military expansion and erect public buildings [viii]. The Assyrians used a deportation policy [ix] in which they deported large segments of their population to newly procured lands, uniting them with the former occupants who were forced to surrender. The empire’s law codes [x] were also deeply influenced by the family structure. Men and women appear to have been equal in many areas of society, such as their ability to obtain divorces and inherit property.

Assyria lived through three periods in which they rose and declined: the Old Kingdom, the Middle Assyrian Period, and the Neo-Assyrian Empire [xi]. The city of Assur’s establishment in 1900 BCE marked the Old Kingdom. Trade from Assur to Kanis funded their rise; however, other empires continued to dominate the region. In the 14th century BCE, after the Mitanni Kingdom fell under control of the Hittites, the Assyrians were able to vie for autonomy creating the Middle Period. The final period, the Neo-Assyrian Empire, lasted from the 9th through 7th century BCE, in which they reigned from Egypt to the Persian Gulf.

The Assyrian Kings made substantial improvements to many cities including Nineveh [xii], Assur [xiii], and Nimrud (Calah) [xiv]. King Sennacherib created an irrigation system of 18 canals within Nineveh to bring water to the city. He also erected the “Palace Without Rival”. Assyrian King, Ashurbanipal built an extensive library which contributed to the “K” collection [xv] of over 20,000 tablets spanning subjects including mathematics, botany, lexicology and chemistry. Assur was originally made up of 34 temples dedicated to their gods. In Nimrud, Ashurnasirpal II created an arsenal that extended at least 12 acres yielding one of the richest collections of ivory in the world.

Cities in Assyria served as major trade centers [xvi], specifically Assur and Kanis. Merchants from Assur traveled to Kanis to sell tin and textiles procured from the East and Babylonia, and returned to Assur with gold and silver. Merchants from Assur traveled to Kanis, set up businesses, and after placing trusted employees in charge, returned to Assur and supervised their business dealings from there. This greatly contributed to the expansion of the empire and the consolidation of territorial control. The empire’s growth through military exploitation [xvii] provided the financial foundation for the King’s building development of palaces, temples, canals, and other public structures.