lurkers-guide/ftp/History.Babylonia

     At the request of a few people, I've written a brief sketch of
the history of ancient Babylonia.  I've written this article
because JMS has mentioned that there may be many parallels between
Babylon 5 and ancient Babylon; however, for the same reason, I have
to be extensively careful not to turn this article into a bunch of
what some people may consider "story ideas."  In other words, I'm
going to do my best to describe Babylonian history while not adding
my ideas about how the history might relate to Babylon 5--these
conclusions are up to you, as the reader, although I'll gladly
discuss the topic anywhere but in alt.tv.babylon-5 (which JMS
currently reads).
 
     Note that this is =not= to serve as a complete history of
Babylon (nor, in fact, anything even remotely close to a complete
history).  If anything, this is merely supposed to be a back-
ground--an outline according to which Babylonian history actually
developed.  There are many historically important points which are
not included here for reasons of space and clarity.
 
============================
     Most scholars mark the beginning of Babylonian history with
the rise of Hammurabi.  However, I'm going to go back a little
further and describe the setting upon which Hammurabi rose to
power.
     At the end of the 2000's B.C. (2050-2000), the great kingdom
of Sumer was disintegrating at the hands of external invaders. 
Sumer had been a powerful kingdom in the western part of Asia, and
it had roughly occupied the land that was one day to become
Babylonia.  After the ruling dynasty of Sumer fell, the cities of
Larsa and Isin moved in to conquer.  After hundreds of years, Larsa
eventually defeated Isin.
     However, just as Larsa defeated Isin, Hammurabi came to power
in the city of Babylon.  Hammurabi went on to defeat Larsa and
establish a vast kingdom in the region formerly occupied by Sumer. 
However, as Sabatino Moscati explains in his famous book, =The Face
of the Ancient Orient= (meaning the Near East), "The relationship
between the Akkadins [the Babylonians and Assyrians] and the
Sumerians is growing more and more like that which exists between
the Romans and the Greeks ... the newer people is permeated with
the older and superior culture ... and makes a cultural capitula-
tion at the very moment of its political victory." 
     Hammurabi, needless to say, was a very capable military and
political leader; further, that the Hammurabi Code ("An eye for an
eye, a tooth for a tooth.") is still quoted today attests to its
importance.  Hammurabi's dynasty, otherwise referred to as the
First Dynasty of Babylon, ruled for about 200 years, until 1530
B.C.  Under the reign of this dynasty, Babylonia entered into a
period of extreme prosperity and relative peace.  As H.W.F. Saggs
points out, however, in his book, =Everyday Life in Babylonia &
Assyria=, "It would be a mistake to think of Babylon as the only
city-state of significance at this period."  Saggs goes on to quote
a letter that was written around this period, which reads: "There
is no king who of himself alone is strongest.  Ten or fifteen kings
follow Hammurabi of Babylon, the same number follow [Larsa], the
same number follow [Eshnunna], the same number follow [Qatanum]
..." etc.  Five kingdoms are listed, all of which are considered to
be just about as powerful, except for one, which has twenty kings
following it (rather than fifteen).  Saggs also mentions another
important city-state, the Mari.  It was an outpost of Sumer, and
"in the early second millennium B.C. was the capital of a kingdom
extending over 200 miles along the river.  In 1796 B.C., it
experienced ... a change of dynasty [when Assyria took over]".
     Also, importantly, as Moscati points out, in his book which I
referred to before, "Under Hammurabi the two cultures which compose
Mesopotamian civilization [the Assyrians and the Babylonians]
achieve complete and harmonious fusion."
     In the meantime, however, a tribe known as the Cassites
(Kassites) began to attack Babylonia as early as the period when
Hammurabi's son ruled the empire.  Over the centuries, Babylonia
was weakened by the Cassites.  Finally, around 1530 B.C. (given in
some sources as 1570 or 1595 B.C.), a Cassite Dynasty was set up in
Babylonia.  Saggs describes what seems to be a common trend--that
the Cassites adopted many of their predecessors' customs.
     The Mitanni, another culture, were meanwhile building their
own powerful empire.  Saggs refers to the Mitanni as having a
"considerable, if temporary importance"--they were very powerful
but were around for only about 150 years.  Still, the Mitanni were
one of the major empires of this area in this time period, and 
they came to almost completely control and subjugate the Assyrians
(who were located directly to the east of Mitanni and to the
northwest of Cassite Babylonia).  I mention this because the
Assyrians, after they finally broke free of the Mitanni (who were
having political troubles of their own), were the next major power
to assert themselves on Babylonia.  Saggs again writes a very
relevant line: "We have already seen that Assyria was for a time
actually a vassal of Mitanni [and was under pressure from other
peoples].  The human response to this continual pressure was the
development of a sturdy warlike people prepared to fight ruthlessly
for their existence."
     After defeating and virtually annexing Mitanni, the Assyrians,
as I said, reasserted themselves on Babylonia.  They weakened
Babylonia so much that the Cassite Dynasty fell from power; the
Assyrians virtually came to control Babylonia, until revolts in
turn deposed them and set up a new dynasty, known as the Second
Dynasty of Isin.  Nebuchadnezzar the First, of this Dynasty, added
a good deal of land to Babylonia and eventually came to attack
Assyria.  However, because of the influx of many nomadic tribes,
Babylonia was eventually plunged into virtual anarchy.  It stayed
this way for more than 150 years.
     Eventually, during the 800's B.C., one of the most powerful
tribes outside Babylon, the Chaldeans (Latin Chaldaeus, Greek
Khaldaios, Assyrian Kaldu), entered the scene.  The Chaldeans rose
to power in Babylonia and, by doing so, seem to have increased the
stability and power of Babylonia.  They fought off many revolts and
aggressors.  Chaldean influence was so strong that, during this
period, Babylonia came to be known as "Chaldea"
     In 626 B.C., the Chaldeans helped Nabopolassar to take power
in Babylonia.  At that time, Assyria was under considerable
pressure from an Iranian people, the Medes (from Media).  Nabo-
polassar allied Babylonia with the Medes.  Assyria could not
withstand this added pressure, and in 612 B.C., Nineveh, the
capital of Assyria, fell.  The entire city, once a great capital of
a great empire, was burned and sacked.
     Later, Nebuchadnezzar the Second (Nabopolassar's son)
inherited the empire of Babylonia.  He added quite a bit of
territory to Babylonia and rebuilt Babylon, still the capital of
Babylonia.
     However, Babylonia did not hold together much after Nebuchad-
nezzar died; Nabonidus, the new king, could not seem to unite the
various elements of Babylonian civilization.  To quote =Funk &
Wagnalls New Encyclopedia=, "A somewhat enigmatic figure, he
[Nabonidus] in some way antagonized the influential priestly class
of Babylon."
     Shortly after the end of Nabonidus's reign, the Persians moved
in to conquer.  Babylon fell, never to rise again.  "And then the
history of the ancient Mesopotamian empires in ended for ever"
[Moscati].
 
For further reference:
H.W.F. Saggs has written a wonderful description of Babylonian and
Assyrian culture and history entitled =Everyday Life in Babylonia
and Assyria=.
 
Sabatino Moscati's classic book, =The Face of the Ancient Orient=
(again, "Orient" refers here to the Middle/Near-East), is always
helpful.  His chapter on "The Babylonians and Assyrians" was
particularly useful.
 
=Funk & Wagnalls New Encyclopedia=, 1983, Volume 3 ("ASSIS-BERKS"),
provides nice, albeit brief, outlines of both Assyrian and
Babylonian histories.  [Further, you only have to take out one
volume. :) ]
 
These sources were used in the preparation of this document.
============================
Copyright 1994, Shawn Bayern.  Permission granted to distribute
noncommercially as long as this document (and this notice) is not
changed in any way. 

Shawn Bayern
shawn.bayern@yale.edu