Transcript Babylonia - Wantagh School

Babylonia
Main Ideas:
∙The Rise of Hammurabi and Babylonia
∙Babylonian Civilization
The Rise of Hammurabi and
Babylonia
~In 1792 B.C. Hammurabi became king of
Babylon
-located between the Tigris and Euphrates
Rivers.
~Hammurabi was a clever leader who controlled
all of Mesopotamia, as well as many other citystates.
~His empire was known as Babylonia.
~Hammurabi collected taxes to pay for his large
army and construction projects.
~Hammurabi sent officials throughout his
empire to carry out orders and to collect taxes.
~ One of Hammurabi’s
main goals was to gain
control of the Tigris and
Euphrates Rivers.
~ This would give him
control of all irrigation
systems and the farming
economy.
~ Hammurabi was a
brilliant warrior and his
military tactics could be
extremely brutal.
(Ex: flooding cities)
Babylonian Civilization
~ Babylonia had a strict class system.
~ Babylon, the capitol city of the Babylonian
empire, became a center of culture and
learning.
-Many advancements were made in mathematics,
literature, and law.
Code of Hammurabi
~ A set of 282 laws
~ Many of the laws dealt with business
practices
~ Others related to property ownership,
medical practice, marriage, and childcare
~ First complete code of law written in
Mesopotamia to have survived
~ This code gives us a good idea of the
structure of the Babylonian society and
the concerns of the Babylonians
Code of Hammurabi
~ “…to render [give] good to the people, to
make justice shine in the land, to destroy
the evil and wicked, that the strong do
not oppress [mistreat] the weak”
~ Hammurabi’s Code called for different
punishments based on the class of the
lawbreaker and the victim of the crime
~ Punishments always fit the crime
- “eye for an eye”
- “tooth for a tooth”
This stone slab contains the Code of Hammurabi.
Above the Code, Hammurabi is shown standing
before the god who is handing him the law.
Time to Review
~ Why did Hammurabi need tax money, and
how did he collect it? How is this different
from today’s society?
~ What was the purpose of the Code of
Hammurabi?
~ Identify at least three positive effects
Hammurabi had on the Mesopotamian
civilization.
~What was the capitol city of Hammurabi’s
empire? What was this city responsible
for?