Cites and Governments of Mesopotamian Civilizations (Victor)
Cities
There were many civilizations in Mesopotamia, the civilizations included are: Sumer, Akkadian, Babylonian and Assyrian Empires. each empire was centered around a main city.
The main cities of ancient Mesopotamia are shown in the map above
Many Mesopotamian cities would be located areas where natural resources were abundant. An example of such a city placement would be Uruk one of the first cities in Mesopotamia, it is located with nearby rivers and has fertile soil as well as well as animal nearby to hunt from. The city of Uruk was surrounded by high walls and had many temples. It was a small however an extremely dense population at it's height.
Uruk was the first known Mesopotamian city and served as a model for many other cites. Babylon a city of which not much of remains today had a similar structure both cities had mud brick structures it had large walls but, the difference in Babylon and Uruk was. Babylon was a city built latter in time and was the capital of an empire. It had a structure called the Hanging Gardens and was one of the 7 Wonders of the World, and it's walls were glazed in colorful brick. The city of Babylon also had a giant palace that was reconstructed by Saddam Hussian over the ruins of the palace.
Other important cities include Eridu, Kish, Lagash, Agade, Akshak, Larsa, and Ur, each of these cities were important because they aided in urban development. Latter the Empire of Sumer developed Chariots and Bronze.
The many cites of Mesopotamia were important because of how many empires were centered around different cities. Each empire was from a different city, the Babylon empire came from Babylon and the Akkadian empire was from Akkad. Each empire had their own respective bits of culture and each city wasn't the exact same as others, they may have shared similar traits but each has different traits such as how Babylon had glazed colored bricks on it's walls while Uruk the first City was simply a plain wall.
During the Reign of the Sumer Empire they built Zigguats in many of their cities to worship their pantheon of gods.
During the Reign of the Akkaddian Empire the structure of Akkad is unknown as it came after the Sumer empire and isn't listed in any of their maps. no one is sure of where the city of Akkad was built however there have been hints that their empire spread all the way to the Persian Gulf.
Babylonian cities would have Circular walls and used glazed stone bricks to build the more fancier building such as temples or palaces.
Assryian cities had extensive gardens in the homes of the people, the empire was also a very aggressive empire and had many safety mechanisms built into thier cities so should they come under attack the citizens would go to wait out the battle
Uruk was the first known Mesopotamian city and served as a model for many other cites. Babylon a city of which not much of remains today had a similar structure both cities had mud brick structures it had large walls but, the difference in Babylon and Uruk was. Babylon was a city built latter in time and was the capital of an empire. It had a structure called the Hanging Gardens and was one of the 7 Wonders of the World, and it's walls were glazed in colorful brick. The city of Babylon also had a giant palace that was reconstructed by Saddam Hussian over the ruins of the palace.
Other important cities include Eridu, Kish, Lagash, Agade, Akshak, Larsa, and Ur, each of these cities were important because they aided in urban development. Latter the Empire of Sumer developed Chariots and Bronze.
The many cites of Mesopotamia were important because of how many empires were centered around different cities. Each empire was from a different city, the Babylon empire came from Babylon and the Akkadian empire was from Akkad. Each empire had their own respective bits of culture and each city wasn't the exact same as others, they may have shared similar traits but each has different traits such as how Babylon had glazed colored bricks on it's walls while Uruk the first City was simply a plain wall.
During the Reign of the Sumer Empire they built Zigguats in many of their cities to worship their pantheon of gods.
During the Reign of the Akkaddian Empire the structure of Akkad is unknown as it came after the Sumer empire and isn't listed in any of their maps. no one is sure of where the city of Akkad was built however there have been hints that their empire spread all the way to the Persian Gulf.
Babylonian cities would have Circular walls and used glazed stone bricks to build the more fancier building such as temples or palaces.
Assryian cities had extensive gardens in the homes of the people, the empire was also a very aggressive empire and had many safety mechanisms built into thier cities so should they come under attack the citizens would go to wait out the battle
Goverments
All of the governments of ancient Mesopotamia were centered around kings, they believed the kings were part god and were given the right to rule like the Mandate of Heaven in China.
After the reign of Hammurabi the Mesopotamian people would normally follow the laws that he set during his reign. However the Sumer were before his time and the government that they set up was different. At first the kings were elected into power by a group of people much like the Greeks but the kings eventually became known as godlike themselves and when they became too old instead of electing a new king they gave power to their families.
The governing body of the Mesopotamian Civilizations had a system like the Romans, there would be governors placed in cities that were under the control of the respective empire. The governors would be responsible for the management of the cities collecting taxes and giving taxes to the central government, the king, and were responsible for carrying out the orders of the king in the city that they managed.
During the time period of 1792-1750 BCE Hammurabi wrote the first law of code that would be followed the the times to come.
After the reign of Hammurabi the Mesopotamian people would normally follow the laws that he set during his reign. However the Sumer were before his time and the government that they set up was different. At first the kings were elected into power by a group of people much like the Greeks but the kings eventually became known as godlike themselves and when they became too old instead of electing a new king they gave power to their families.
The governing body of the Mesopotamian Civilizations had a system like the Romans, there would be governors placed in cities that were under the control of the respective empire. The governors would be responsible for the management of the cities collecting taxes and giving taxes to the central government, the king, and were responsible for carrying out the orders of the king in the city that they managed.
During the time period of 1792-1750 BCE Hammurabi wrote the first law of code that would be followed the the times to come.
The social hierarchy of ancient Mesopotamia was: The king, Priests, Scribes, Artisans, Peasants, and Slaves. Like any ancient civilization they had slaves, the social model of this civilization was a common one through the Middle East, Africa and India. The only civilization that differed from this model was the Chinese civilization who ranked the common man higher than the artisans and priests were nowhere to be found on their social hierarchy.