History 26Paper TopicsHistory 26

Paper Topics

1) Keeping in mind the historical, social, and cultural context of this poem, what can the Epic of Gilgamesh tell us about the ideals of kingship in ancient Mesopotamia?

2) How does the Epic of Creation reflect contemporary concerns? What can it tell us about the political, social, and cultural context of second-millennium Babylonia?

1) Keeping in mind the historical, social, and cultural context of this poem, what can the Epic of Gilgamesh tell us about the ideals of kingship in ancient Mesopotamia?

2) How does the Epic of Creation reflect contemporary concerns? What can it tell us about the political, social, and cultural context of second-millennium Babylonia?

HISTORY 26

Lecture Fifteen:

The Age of Territorial States

(c. 1500 - 1200 BC)

HISTORY 26

Lecture Fifteen:

The Age of Territorial States

(c. 1500 - 1200 BC)

The Near East, c. 1500 BCThe Near East, c. 1500 BC

The ‘Household’ of Great Powers

The ‘Household’ of Great Powers

• From city-states to territorial states• Mitanni, followed by Assyria in northern

Mesopotamia and Syria• Kassite Babylonia in southern

Mesopotamia• Elam in southwest Iran• The Hittite New Kingdom in Anatolia

• Egypt as a perpetual territorial state• The city-states of Syria and Palestine

• From city-states to territorial states• Mitanni, followed by Assyria in northern

Mesopotamia and Syria• Kassite Babylonia in southern

Mesopotamia• Elam in southwest Iran• The Hittite New Kingdom in Anatolia

• Egypt as a perpetual territorial state• The city-states of Syria and Palestine

DiplomacyDiplomacy• Diplomatic letters, written on clay tablets

in Babylonian by professional scribes• The Amarna letters: 350 tablets found at

Akhetaten covering the period from 1365 to 1335 BC

• Near Eastern rulers as members of a single household or community• Between ‘brother’ and ‘brother’, or ‘lord’ and

‘servant’• Status was important and treaties personal• Royal marriages frequently sealed treaties

• Gift-exchange

• Diplomatic letters, written on clay tablets in Babylonian by professional scribes• The Amarna letters: 350 tablets found at

Akhetaten covering the period from 1365 to 1335 BC

• Near Eastern rulers as members of a single household or community• Between ‘brother’ and ‘brother’, or ‘lord’ and

‘servant’• Status was important and treaties personal• Royal marriages frequently sealed treaties

• Gift-exchange

WarfareWarfare• A constant rivalry to extend

territorial influence• Conflict occurred in two ways:

• In Syria and Palestine, territorial states acted through proxies

• At first, Egypt vs. Mitanni; after 1340, Egypt vs. the Hittites

• In other regions without such buffer zones, direct conflict occurred

• Primarily border wars; no real attempt at annexation or destruction

• A constant rivalry to extend territorial influence

• Conflict occurred in two ways:• In Syria and Palestine, territorial

states acted through proxies• At first, Egypt vs. Mitanni; after 1340,

Egypt vs. the Hittites

• In other regions without such buffer zones, direct conflict occurred

• Primarily border wars; no real attempt at annexation or destruction

Palace Culture and the International Elite

Palace Culture and the International Elite

• A growing discrepancy between a tiny elite centered on the palace and dependent on the king, and the free but exploited rural populace

• The emergence of an international elite• A hybrid of local traditions mixed with

foreign influence• The importance of Babylonian language and

literature• Competition in wealth and prestige

• A growing discrepancy between a tiny elite centered on the palace and dependent on the king, and the free but exploited rural populace

• The emergence of an international elite• A hybrid of local traditions mixed with

foreign influence• The importance of Babylonian language and

literature• Competition in wealth and prestige

The Tomb of TutankhamunThe Tomb of Tutankhamun

The Tomb of TutankhamunThe Tomb of Tutankhamun

Hattusa (Hittite New Kingdom)

Hattusa (Hittite New Kingdom)

Assur (Middle Assyrian Temple)

Assur (Middle Assyrian Temple)

Ziggurat at Dur-Kurigalzu (Babylonia)

Ziggurat at Dur-Kurigalzu (Babylonia)

Mycenaean GreeceMycenaean Greece