The History of the Magnificent City of Mari Ancient Sumer Akkad Babylonia YouTube 1

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And right now, Trade is offering new subscribers a total of $30 off your first order plus free shipping when you go to Trade.com backslash HistoryWithSai or click the link in the video description. That's more than 40 cups of coffee for free. Get started by taking their quiz at DrinkTrade.com backslash HistoryWithSai and let Trade find a coffee you'll love. That's DrinkTrade.com backslash HistoryWithSai for $30 off. Let me know which coffee you selected in the comments below. I'm actually really excited about this program because in it, we're going to examine the history of one of my favorite cities from the Bronze Age. Not Babylon or Uruk, but Mari. The story of Mari really starts with the beginning of Sumerian civilization itself. It's mentioned in the Sumerian King List as being the 10th city after the legendary Great Flood to rule over the land of Sumer. In Mari, Anbu became king and ruled for 30 years. Anba, the son of Anbu, reigned for 17 years. Bazi, the leather worker, reigned for 30 years. Zizi, the fuller, reigned for 20 years. Limir, the anointed priest, reigned for 30 years. Sharum-Itr reigned for 9 years. In Sum, 6 kings reigned for 136 years. Then Mari was defeated and the kingship taken to Kish. We have here a very interesting group of rulers, including a leather worker and someone who was an anointed priest. However, there has of now not been any archaeological evidence to corroborate the existence of such a dynasty. So, nothing about these kings can be confirmed, including their very existence. Archaeologists though have uncovered a lot of artifacts beneath the sands of Mari, dating to the period of Mesopotamian history known as the Early Dynastic Period, roughly between 2900 to 2334 BC. Situated along the Euphrates River in what's today the eastern edge of Syria, the early layout of Mari was circular, with its city walls being surrounded by a dike to protect it from the river's floodwaters. Remains of private houses and a marketplace surrounding what appears to have been the city's main square were uncovered and dated to the Early Dynastic Period, along with the palace and temples dedicated to the goddess Ishtar. Due to the fertile farmland surrounding it, as well as its prime location along the main trade between the prosperous cities of Sumer and those of the Levant further to the west, by around 2500 BC, Mari became the region's main commercial hub, and due to this, quite wealthy. Objects made of gold, silver, bronze, textiles, wheat, barley, precious stones, and raw materials such as copper and tin, timber and pottery, really, anything that was of value passed through Mari's streets, to be sold in the city, or on their way to destinations far beyond. Of course, when you become too prosperous, others seem to notice and covet what you have. The Akkadian king, Sargon of Akkad, also known as Sargon the Great, was one such person. Though Mari would have been a prize for any king, holding it doesn't seem to have been easy for him or his successors, since the archaeological record indicates that the city suffered a violent period of destruction sometime between 2300 to 2250 BC. Mari's location, though, was too strategically important, and so the city seems to have been quickly rebuilt and put under the authority of an Akkadian military governor. When the Akkadian empire began to disintegrate around 2200 BC, the descendants of this governor founded what became known as the Shakanaku dynasty. Its kings, of which little is known, presided over the city as an independent city-state until it was eventually taken over by the Neo-Sumerian kings of the 3rd dynasty of Ur. They may have left the Shakanakus in power to rule as their vassals. Like previous kings, the rulers of the Neo-Sumerian dynasty recognized Mari's importance, and spent lavishly on building up the city. We see during this time the renovation and expansion of many temple complexes, as well as new administrative buildings and stronger fortifications being laid throughout the city. In addition, a new palace was constructed on top of the ruins of the older one, but in a new style that would be similar to those that we eventually see in later periods of Babylonian and Assyrian history. The palace was much larger than the previous one, and had multiple rooms that were grouped around open courts, including a large courtyard known as the Court of the Palm, due to the numerous palm trees planted there. The palace seems to have been the center of life in Mari during the Neo-Sumerian period, and even afterward, since it's clear that it was renovated and expanded several times, with new rooms added that were used as administrative offices, archives, and a scribal school. Eventually, the later Neo-Sumerian kings lost their grip on power between the years 2020 to 2004 BC, with many of the cities once under their control, including Mari, declaring their independence or being taken over by different Amorite tribal chieftains and warlords. We don't know exactly how the Shakanaku dynasty came to an end, but without the backing of the Neo-Sumerian state, it must have succumbed to the will of the various warlords of the Amorite tribes passing through the region around Mari. Though there may have been others ruling the city after the Shakanakus, the first Amorite that we know of in Mari began with a king named Yadun Lim around 1810 BC. He's best known for fighting with his neighbors, specifically the rival Amorite kings of Aleppo in the west and Shamshiedad in the east. Yadun Lim was able to exercise his authority over much of the land around Mari, including the cities of Turka and Tutul. He's also famous for leading an expedition to Lebanon for the purpose of obtaining timber for his newly renovated palace. At first, things between Yadun Lim and the neighboring kingdom of Yamhad, whose capital was the city of Aleppo, were going well. Eventually though, Yamhad's ruler, Sumu-Epa, grew angry with him for forming an alliance with his rival, the king of Eshnunna. As punishment, he supported the rebellions of several Yaminite tribes living on land claimed by Mari. The squabbling between the two kingdoms went on until Yadun Lim's son and successor, Sumu-Yaman, came to power and tried to fix relations with Yamhad, but within just two years, he was assassinated under mysterious circumstances. This paved the way for Shamshiedad and the kingdom of Upper Mesopotamia to attack and annex Mari into his growing empire. Shamshiedad not only added to Mari's great palace, but also installed his rather incompetent son, Yasma-Adu, as viceroy of the city. There are several letters between Yasma-Adu and his father outlining the latter's displeasure with his son. One of them reads, I gave you this city. Why do you ask me to decide this matter? If you are able to hold this city, hold it. If you are not, there are many others who have enough energy to hold it. I will not abandon my house to administer yours. A real man must administer his own house. For eight years, Yasma-Adu held his position as the viceroy of Mari. Then, in 1775 BC, his capable and charismatic father, Shamshiedad, died. Within a year, Yasma-Adu was overthrown by a prince claiming to be a descendant of Yadun Lim. His name was Zimri-Lim. For the next 13 years, Zimri-Lim reigned over what may have been the most magnificent period in Mari's history. By pacifying the Yemenite tribes and maintaining strong alliances with his neighbors, including Hammurabi of Babylon, Zimri-Lim's Mari once again prospered from the commerce and trade routes that flowed through its territory. Like his predecessors, he also renovated and expanded Mari's great palace to include as many as 300 rooms. Under Zimri-Lim, Mari had, along with Yamhad, Babylon, Eshnunna, and Larsa, become one of the most prosperous and powerful kingdoms in Mesopotamia. In this web of kingdoms and alliances, Mari was most closely aligned with Yarim-Lim of Yamhad and Hammurabi of Babylon. However, by the mid-1760s BC, Hammurabi's growth in power and influence threatened Zimri-Lim, who thought that his Babylonian ally would one day become his rival. He ended up being right. When Hammurabi requested Zimri-Lim to help him conquer the kingdom of Larsa, the king of Mari basically ignored him. In the end, it didn't really matter, because in 1763 BC, Hammurabi was able to take Larsa and depose its king, Rim-Sin. The very next year, he turned his gaze towards Mari. Using the excuse that Zimri-Lim had failed to be an equal partner within their alliance and had basically betrayed him, the now much more powerful Hammurabi led his troops into Mari and took over the city. The Babylonians remained there for several months and plundered the great palace that Zimri-Lim had just renovated. Then, Hammurabi ordered the city to be set on fire, with Mari's people being forced to relocate elsewhere. It's believed that Zimri-Lim was in neighboring Yamhad at the time, though we never really find out ultimately what happened to him. Just why Hammurabi would have committed this seemingly senseless act of destruction has baffled scholars for decades. After all, Mari, with its location on the principal trade routes between Hammurabi's expanding Babylonian empire and the Levant, would have been an extremely valuable asset. It's possible though, that Hammurabi feared that he wouldn't be able to hold the city, and that eventually, Zimri-Lim might return with the backing of Yerim-Lim of Yamhad to take it from him. This would have also created a new, hostile kingdom on his northwestern border. Whatever the reason, Hammurabi's destruction of Mari proved to be the fatal blow in the city's glorious history. Mari never recovered, and eventually succumbed to the sands of time. Luckily for us, many of the 22,000 cuneiform tablets from Mari's extensive archives have survived. These consist of both state and private archives that include administrative documents, legal texts, and letters sent to foreign rulers and government officials. With documents extending as far back as the mid 3rd millennium BC, these archives are truly a treasure trove of information about this most amazing period of ancient history, without which many of the stories of Mari's kings, including Yadun and Zimri-Lim, would be lost to us. So, I hope that you enjoyed this quick look into the history of the once-magnificent city of Mari. There's lots more on the way, so stay tuned! Thanks so much for watching, I really appreciate it. I'd also really like to thank Check out the benefits to being a Patreon member, and if you'd like to join, feel free to click the link in the video description. You can also follow History with Sai on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, as well as continue to listen to special audio programs on the History with Sai podcast. Thanks again, and stay safe!