Hammurabi the First Babylonian Empire

Out of all of the city-states of the ancient world, from all of those confusing dynasties, indecipherable names and all-powerful kings who fill the history books, one name stands out above all else. Babylon. That mighty city which once stood at the very centre of the world in terms of culture, learning and sheer power. Yet Babylon was not always such a great state. Since its founding, the city had long been overshadowed by older, larger and more powerful cities such as Elam, Mari, Issin, Larsa and the city-states of Assyria. A century later, by 1792 BC, Babylon was just one of a vast number of city-states that dotted the southern Mesopotamian landscape and waged war upon one another for control of rich, fertile agricultural land. Just over 40 years later however, by 1750 BC, Babylon had solidified all of those warring states into a single political whole and ruled over one of the largest and most powerful states the world had ever known. All this happened under the reign of one ruler, one of the most famous in the ancient world. His name was Hammurabi. By the time Hammurabi inherited the Babylonian throne in 1792, his kingdom was a mere minor player on the world scene. His father had conquered the neighbouring city-states of Borsippa, Kish and Sippar and established a hegemony over these surrounding areas. Yet Babylon was still surrounded by larger and more powerful states. To the north along the Tigris lay the powerful kingdom of Eshnunna, whereas Larsa controlled the south. To the east, in modern day Iran, the ancient and already well-established kingdom of Elam regularly extended its dominance over the smaller states of Mesopotamia. And far to the north, the Assyrian kings had long ruled over colonies across the mountains of Asia Minor, and they sought to conquer yet more territories. Babylon lay in a vulnerable position amongst all of these long-standing powerful states, just one unremarkable kingdom amongst many. Yet millennia later, above all of these others, it is perhaps the one kingdom most well-remembered and celebrated. The first few years of Hammurabi's reign were relatively peaceful, and he undertook a number of great public works, expanding the temples of Babylon and heightening the city walls. Soon enough however, the Elamites again invaded the Mesopotamian plain, conquering several of the city-states adjacent to Babylon. They then attempted to turn Babylon against her neighbour to the south, Larsa. In response, Hammurabi was able to use masterful diplomacy to at first align himself with Larsa to push back the Elamites, and later when they were defeated, he moved on Larsa itself, for allegedly not sending enough aid against their common foe. Hammurabi had also been assisted by a number of states from the north, such as Yamad and Mari, and the absence of soldiers in their lands allegedly led to unrest, which he was able to then capitalise on by moving north with his now veteran armies. Finally, the last independent Mesopotamian state to the north, Assyria, survived, but it was forced to pay tribute, and lost nearly all of its subject states to Babylonian rule. By 1750, Hammurabi now ruled over almost the entirety of the Mesopotamian plain, nearly all of the lands between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. In just over 40 years, he had conquered a vast empire, and usurped the prestigious position of Most Holy City from the ancient Sumerian city of Nippur. He is perhaps best remembered today for his Code of Laws, which was rediscovered by archaeologists in the former Elamite capital of Susa in 1901. The Code of Hammurabi contained 282 laws, written by scribes and recorded on 12 tablets. It was written in Akkadian, the common language of Babylon and much of the Mesopotamian world, since the conquests of Sargon of Akkad several centuries before. It could therefore be read by any literate person in the empire. It was also carved into pillars placed all over his lands for all to see. The Code is one of the earliest examples of the idea, innocent until proven guilty, and it also suggests that the accused and the accuser should give evidence during a dispute. The first instance of this idea in history. The structure is very specific, with each offence requiring a specific punishment, often matching the crime itself, but other times forcing the guilty party to pay goals to the victim. It is perhaps best described by the term eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. For example, Law 195 literally reads, if a man destroys the eye of another man, they shall destroy his eye. And Law 8 reads, if any person steals cattle or sheep or an ass, or a pig or a goat, if it belongs to a god or to the court, the thief shall pay thirtyfold. If they belong to a free man of the king, he shall pay tenfold. If the thief has nothing with which to pay, he shall be put to death. This law code, although brutal at times, was exceptionally just for the day, and it instigated an unprecedented period of peace and prosperity in Mesopotamia amongst the subject peoples of Babylon. Roads and irrigation systems were improved upon, and temples expanded, as Hammurabi ruled over the vast plethora of different cultures within his borders. Shortly after his reign, however, Hammurabi's state began to fall apart, suggesting that it remained intact simply because of his sheer force of will and masterful statesmanship. Soon enough, after further incursions by the Elamites and other states to the north, Babylon was reduced to the position of a small and minor state once more, like it had been upon its founding. Yet the names Hammurabi and Babylon are still well remembered today, whereas no Elamite or ruler of Eshuna or even their powerful kingdoms are remembered in such a manner nor held in such high esteem today.