The Assyrian Empire, 934 - 612 BC By Undevicesimus Watch

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The civilisation of Assyria accounted for about nineteen centuries of history, centred on and named for its traditional capital of Ashur in northern Mesopotamia. In what became known as the Neo-Assyrian Period (911 – 609 BC), the Assyrians embarked on a campaign to become the dominant power in the Middle East and beyond, ultimately ruling an empire reaching from southern Egypt to the Caucasus and from the Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf.



Following the agricultural and governmental reforms of Ashur-Dan II (r. 934 – 912 BC) in the Assyrian heartland, his son Adad-nirari II (r. 911 – 891 BC) earnestly launched a war of conquest on Assyria ’ s neighbours, particularly gaining ground against the Aramaeans and Babylonians. Assyrian expansion gained further momentum under Ashurnasirpal II (r. 883 – 859 BC) and Shalmaneser III (r. 858 – 824 BC), whose reigns were marked by continuously successful efforts to bring Assyrian rule to most peoples in the Middle East and parts of Asia Minor and the Caucasus, either through direct annexation or extraction of tribute. Assyria ’ s position of power thus achieved during the ninth century BC was consolidated and further expanded by its able rulers of the eighth century BC, most notably Tiglath-pileser III (r. 744 – 727 BC), Sargon II (r. 721 – 705 BC) and Sennacherib (r. 704 – 681 BC). They conquered the southern Levant, penetrated east towards the Persian Gulf, drove back the peoples on the Assyrian frontiers (particularly the Egyptians, Urartians, Cimmerians and Scythians) and ruthlessly smashed the rebellions erupting all over the empire, thereby securing Assyria ’ s dominion over the entire Middle East at the dawn of the seventh century BC. More Assyrian successes followed under Esarhaddon (r. 680 – 669 BC), who conquered Egypt as far south as Thebes in 671 BC. However, the long era of Assyrian supremacy came to a sudden end upon the death of its last great ruler Ashurbanipal (r. 668 – 627 BC). The empire plunged into a series of civil wars and competing kings, an opportunity which the conquered peoples seized wholehandedly. A coalition of Babylonians and Medes invaded Assyria, taking Ashur in 614 BC, Nineveh in 612 BC and finally Harran in 609 BC. Thus the might and splendour of the Neo-Assyrian Period was put to an end …



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Published : Jan 10, 2016