Babylonia

A

The Sumerians

Toward the end of the 3rd millennium bc, Sumer and Akkad was a kingdom of empire proportions ruled by a Sumerian dynasty known as the 3rd Dynasty of Ur. After a century or two, hordes of Semitic nomads, the Amurru, or biblical Amorites, who had migrated from the Arabian desert lands to the west, made themselves masters of some of the more important cities such as Isin, Larsa, Babylon, and Eshnunna (now Tell Asmar). About 2000 bc the last ruler of the 3rd Dynasty of Ur was carried off into captivity by the Elamites. The kingdom of Sumer and Akkad disintegrated, and civil strife became rampant. At first the city of Isin attempted to control Sumer and Akkad, but in the course of time its authority was challenged by Larsa, considerably to the south, and the two cities were constantly at war. About 1790 bc King Rim-Sin (reigned about 1823-1763 bc) of Larsa conquered and occupied Isin, an event considered so important that it actually marked the beginning of a new, though limited, dating era in the scribal annals.

B

Hammurabi

Rim-Sin was unable to exploit his victory, because at the same time in the previously unimportant city of Babylon to the north, the ruler Hammurabi came to the fore. As king, Hammurabi combined astute diplomacy and military leadership; he defeated Rim-Sin, as well as the kings of Elam, Mari, and Eshnunna, and about 1760 bc became the ruler of a united kingdom extending from the Persian Gulf to the Habur River. The history of Babylonia is considered to begin with Hammurabi.

An unusually active and capable administrator, Hammurabi gave his personal attention to such details as the cleaning of irrigation canals and the insertion of an extra month into the calendar. He was an outstanding lawgiver; the Code of Hammurabi is one of the most significant legal documents ever uncovered. He was also an inspiring religious leader; during his reign the Babylonian city god Marduk became a recognized leader in the pantheon of deities.

C

The Kassites and the 2nd Dynasty of Isin

During the reigns of Hammurabi and his son Samsu-iluna (reigned about 1750-1712 bc), who succeeded him, Babylonian civilization reached the zenith of its cultural development and political power. Some of the more important cities of Babylonia began to seek independence, however, and, in the reign of Samsu-iluna, the Kassites first invaded the country. Although Samsu-iluna succeeded in beating them off, the Kassites continued to infiltrate Babylonia in the centuries that followed. Samsu-iluna suffered another serious setback when a rebel leader, Iluma-ilum, founded a dynasty in the southern Babylonian district, bordering on the Persian Gulf, commonly known as the Sea-land.

---

---

Under Samsu-iluna's successors Babylonia suffered a serious decline in power and territory. When, about 1595 bc, a Hittite army penetrated as far south as Babylon and carried off Babylonian prisoners and wealth to far-off Anatolia, the kingdom became badly disorganized. Babylonia later fell under the rule of the dynasty of the Sea-land, at least for a brief period. Finally, toward the middle of the 16th century bc, a Kassite ruler named Agum (reigned about 1570 bc) became master of Babylonia and extended its territory from the Euphrates River to the Zagros Mountains.

Under Kassite rule, Babylonia once again became a power of considerable importance. At the beginning of the 15th century bc, for example, it was one of the four major powers of the Orient, the other three being the Egyptian, Mitanni, and Hittite empires.

After Assyria made itself independent of Mitanni domination early in the 14th century bc, its rulers began to interfere in the affairs of Babylonia and sought to control it politically. They were eventually successful, and Babylonia became so weak that it fell prey to the Elamites who invaded it from the east, deposed its Kassite king, and practically reduced it to a state of vassalage. A revolt then broke out in southern and central Babylonia, and a new dynasty, known usually as the 2nd Dynasty of Isin, was founded. Toward the end of the 12th century bc, Nebuchadnezzar I (reigned about 1125-1103 bc), one of the Isin kings, defeated the Elamites and even attacked Assyria. Not long afterward Aramaean nomads began swarming into Babylonia. For about two centuries thereafter the country was in a state of political chaos.

D

The Chaldean Period

Among the surrounding tribes was one powerful group known as the Chaldeans. They settled in and dominated the district along the Persian Gulf. Beginning in the 9th century bc, the Chaldeans were destined to play an important political role in the history of the Orient; their rulers helped destroy the Assyrian Empire and, at least for a brief period, made Babylonia, or, as it gradually came to be known, Chaldea, the dominant power of Mesopotamia.

One of the outstanding Chaldean kings was Merodach-baladan II (r. 722-710 bc), who fought bitterly and bravely, if unsuccessfully, against four mighty Assyrian monarchs: Tiglath-pileser III (r. 745-727 bc), Shalmaneser V (r. 727-722 bc), Sargon II (r. 722-705 bc), and Sennacherib (r. 705-681 bc), the destroyer of Babylon. Sennacherib's successors, Esarhaddon (r. 681-699 bc) and Ashurbanipal, retained political control of Babylonia in spite of numerous rebellions and defections. In 626, however, when Assyria was in turmoil and menaced by the Medes, the Scythians, and the Cimmerians, a Chaldean named Nabopolassarbc proclaimed himself king of Babylonia. Acknowledged as king in 625, Nabopolassar allied himself with the Medes and helped to destroy Assyrian might.

With Assyria no longer to be feared, Egypt began to menace Palestine and Syria. Nabopolassar's son Nebuchadnezzar II marched against the Egyptians and defeated them at Carchemish. Nebuchadnezzar, who reigned for 43 years, extended Babylonian political control over practically all of Mesopotamia. To students of the Bible he is known as the destroyer of Jerusalem and as the king who took the captive Jews to Babylonia. To archaeologists and historians he is known as the great builder and restorer. He reconstructed Babylon, his capital, in elaborate style and restored many temples throughout Babylonia.

The Babylonian revival did not long endure. After Nebuchadnezzar's death (562 bc), a struggle for power apparently went on among various parties and individuals for several years. In 556 bc Nabonidus, one of Nebuchadnezzar's governors, became king of Babylonia (r. 556-539 bc). A somewhat enigmatic figure, he in some way antagonized the influential priestly class of Babylon. Nabonidus left the city of Babylon under control of his son Belshazzar and lived for a while in the city of Harran and later in the oasis of Teima, in the Arabian Desert. In 539 bc the Babylonians were defeated by the Persian king Cyrus the Great, who had defeated Media. Nabonidus was captured at Sippar (near modern Baghdād, Iraq), and the Persians entered Babylon without resistance. Babylonia was then annexed to Persia and lost its independence for all time.

E

The Babylonian Legacy

More than 1200 years had elapsed from the glorious reign of Hammurabi to the subjugation of Babylonia by the Persians. During this long span of time the Babylonian social structure, economic organization, arts and crafts, science and literature, judicial system, and religious beliefs underwent considerable modification, but generally only in details, not in essence. Grounded almost wholly on the culture of Sumer, Babylonian cultural achievements left a deep impression on the entire ancient world, and particularly on the Hebrews and the Greeks. Even present-day civilization is indebted culturally to Babylonian civilization to some extent. For instance, Babylonian influence is pervasive throughout the Bible and in the works of such Greek poets as Homer and Hesiod, in the geometry of the Greek mathematician Euclid, in astronomy, in astrology, and in heraldry.

See also Assyria; Elam; Hittites; Kassites; Media; Ur.

	More from Encarta
	•  Important Notice: MSN Encarta to be discontinued. Learn more. •  Presidential Myths Quiz •  Coffee break: Recharge your brain