Transcript Chapter 3 Section 2: Later Mesopotamian Empires

Chapter 3 Section 2: Later
Mesopotamian Empires
Pages: 61-63
About
2400 BC, Sumer
started to lose power.
New civilizations began to
develop
Sargon I
 Ruled
northern Mesopotamia land
called Akkad
 Created the world’s first empire by
uniting city states
 His empire included all of
Mesopotamia.
 Akkadian became the language,
but Sumerian gods were
worshipped.
 Sargon
I ruled his empire for more
than 50 years.
 When Sargon died, the empire
collapsed.
Sargon
Hammurabi of Babylon
 Around
1800 BC, the Amorites
took control of Mesopotamia.
 They built the city of Babylon, and
their king Hammurabi became
ruler of a great empire.
 Hammurabi was a great conqueror
and he improved: irrigation,
religion, and taxes.
 Hammurabi
set up a government housing
program and established a code of laws.
Hamurabi’s Empire
Hammurabi’s Code
 Covered
every aspect of life
 Innocent until proven guilty
 Fines or death…no prison
 Upper class punished more
severely than lower class
 Judges were appointed to hear
cases.
Code of Hammurabi
Trade
 Babylon
became an important
trade center.
 They traded their surplus (extra)
products.
 People paid gold and silver for
Babylonian goods.
End of Babylon
 Hammurabi
ruled for 40 years.
 His reign, or period of power, is
known as the golden age of
Babylon.
 After his death, the empire
declined and it was divided into
smaller city states.