Mesopotamia Later Empires

1. By 1000 B.C. the Babylonian Empire was losing the power and another empire to the north started its rise in Mesopotamia.

2. This new empire was called the Assyrian Empire, named in honor of its chief god, Assur.

3. The people of Assur learned warfare, or skill in war, from the Hittites.

4. They learned to make iron weapons and use chariots from the Hittites.

5. Assyrian innovations included lances and battering rams.

6. Assyrian kings worked to unite the peoples of their huge empire by improving transportation and communication.

7. They built a system of paved roads, which enabled them to develop the first postal system.

8. A decree is an official order or a decision made by a ruler.

 9. Other Assyrian achievements included locks that opened with a key, plumbing and flush toilets, as well as running water.

10. King Sennacherib assembled one of the first libraries.

11. One important Assyrian innovation was the organization of government.

12. A territory is a large division of a country, which is governed by a local leader.

13. The Assyrian capital was located at Nineveh.

14. A relief is a wall carving that stands out from the surface of the building.

15. A scribe was a person who wrote things for others 15. A scribe was a person who wrote things for others. Most people in the ancient world could neither read nor write, although Nineveh was home to an enormous library.

16. In 612 B.C. the Medes attacked Nineveh and killed the king of Assyria.

17. Free of the Assyrians, Babylon again became the center of civilization in Mesopotamia. It was called the New Babylonian Empire.

18. Nebuchadnezzar is remembered for his great building projects, including a palace, several temples, and a ziggurat known as the Tower of Babel.

Tower of Babel

19. He is also thought to have built one of the Wonders of the Ancient World, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.