Assyrian Empire
Assyria
As-syr-ia One of the great ancient empires of the world, early capital Calah (Nimrud), later capital Nineveh; was involved with Babylonians, Hittites, and Hurrians. Slowly gained control of trade routes under Tiglath-pileser I during late 12th and early 11th cents. B.C. was esp. powerful in c. 884 to c. 782 B.C. when it reached Mediterranean in its conquests under Ashurnasirpal II and Shalmaneser III and their successors, and in c. 745 to c. 626 B.C. when it conquered Israel, Damascus, Babylon, and Samaria, and conducted successful campaigns against Egypt; its greatest rulers then were Tiglath-pileser III, Sargon II, Sennacherib, Esarhaddon, and Ashurbanipal. Lost power rapidly and completely 626-612 B.C. when Nineveh was destroyed by kings of Media and Babylonia (Chaldea).
Assyria
Assyria, An ancient Near Eastern empire that, at its height (9th-7th cents. BC), included lands in present-day Arabia, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Palestine, and Turkey. Assyria’s original capital, Ashur–named after the city’s principal god- From Ashur Assyrians expanded by means of successive military conquests. Innovative and effective soldiers and organizers of what they conquered, they were legendary in antiquity for their cruelty. Their greatest expansion began with Tiglath-Pileser III, who subdued Babylonia. Sargon II defeated Israel (722 BC) and deported the inhabitants. The wars of his successor, Sennacherib, with his vassal, Hezekiah of Judah, are mentioned in the Bible. Under Ashurbanipal, Assyria reached its height (7th cent. BC). The cuneiform library collected about this time, and excavated from the ruins of the Assyrian capital at Ninevah, constitutes one of the best sources of knowledge about the ancient Near East. Early in the reign of Ashurbanipal, Egypt broke away from the empire in a revolt led by Psamtik I. Thereafter the decline was rapid. The Medes and the Babylonians conquered Ninevah itself in 612 BC.
The Kingdom of Assyria
After Hammurabi’s death, wave after wave of Indo-European tribes invaded from the northern mountains. For centuries the entire civilized world was plunged into darkness. The Hyksos invaded Egypt. The Kassites overran Babylonia. The Hurrians occupied the rest of the Fertile Crescent, from Assyria into Palestine. This period has been called the Middle Ages of antiquity. In about 1400 BC the Assyrians freed themselves from the invaders’ rule. Then they extended their kingdom northward.
Assyria took its name from its chief city, Assur, on the upper Tigris. Lying north of Babylonia, on the great trade route of the Fertile Crescent, the country was frequently invaded from the north as well as from the south. Constant warfare made the Assyrians fierce fighters, and traders who passed their way were forced to pay them tribute for protection.
The Assyrians had long been under the control of Babylon and had absorbed Babylonian culture. Like the Babylonians they were Semites, and their language was almost identical with the Babylonian. From the Hittites of Anatolia they learned the use of iron and developed powerful weapons to build up a military state. From them they also acquired horses and were the first to use them in war as cavalry instead of for drawing chariots. In order to strike terror into the hearts of their enemies, they boasted of their cruelties.
Assyria’s greatest period of expansion took place as the power of the Hittites and Egyptians over Syria and Palestine gradually weakened. The Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser III (745-727 BC) took Damascus, in Syria. Sargon II (722-705 BC), most famous of Assyrian kings, made Israel an Assyrian province and carried into the interior of his empire 30,000 Israelites (the so-called Ten Lost Tribes of Israel). His son Sennacherib (705-681 BC) conquered Sidon, in Phoenicia, but Tyre resisted his assault. Esarhaddon (681-668 BC) conquered Egypt. Ashurbanipal (668-626 BC), the last of the great Assyrian kings, subdued Elam, east of Mesopotamia, and extended the empire to its greatest size. Roads were built to enable the Assyrian armies to subdue rebels quickly. A highly organized mail service carried messages from the court to faraway governors.
North of Nineveh, Sargon II built a palace far surpassing anything seen before his day. It covered 25 acres (10 hectares) and had nearly 1,000 rooms. Near it stood a seven-story ziggurat temple. Sennacherib put up three magnificent palaces in his capital at Nineveh. The Babylonians had covered their brick walls with glazed brickwork of many colors, but the Assyrians faced theirs with delicately carved slabs of limestone or glowing alabaster. Colossal human-headed winged bulls or lions, carved in alabaster, stood guard outside the main gates of palaces and temples. The Assyrians produced little literature, but in great libraries they preserved copies of Babylonian and Sumerian works. They worshiped the old Babylonian gods but gave their own god, Assur, first place.
After the death of Ashurbanipal in 626 BC, Assyria’s enemies joined forces. In 612 BC the Babylonians and Medes completely destroyed Nineveh. Six years later the Assyrian empire collapsed.
Nineveh
Nin-e-veh n-v anc. Ni-nus ns Ancient city, a capital of Assyria; One of the greatest cities of antiquity; excavations, begun by Sir Austen Henry Layard 1845, have revealed palaces, a library, many other buildings, city walls, and numerous gates. One of the oldest cities of ancient Assyria; greatest development took place under Kings Sennacherib and Ashurbanipal (7th cent. B.C. ); captured and destroyed by Nabopolassar of Babylonia and his allies (Scythians and Medes) 612 B.C.
Nineveh
Nineveh, Ancient city. Nineveh was the capital of the Assyrian empire, located near modern Mosul, Iraq. Sennacherib and Ashurbanipal greatly contributed to its glory by their buildings and sculptures. The fabulous royal library of Nineveh was organized by Ashurbanipal (q.v.). The city fell to a coalition of Babylonians, Medes, and Scythians in 612 BC. Its fall is celebrated in the Old Testament book of the prophet Nahum.