Sargon of Akkad - Assignment Example

Check My and ID are at the top right of the first page. Check 2. I have a working of the paper centered at the top of the first page. Check 3. My outline is structured, numbered, and indented as specified in the provided sample (example: the first topic is identified by capital Roman numeral “I”, etc). Check 4. My outline has an Introduction as the first topic and a Summary/Conclusion as the last topic. Check 5. My thesis statement is one sentence summarizing the point of my paper at the end of the Intro. Check 6. My thesis statement is the last item in the Introduction (see sample) Check 7. The last page is a working bibliography of at least 5 sources that I intend to use in my paper: Check at least 2 sources are academic books on the subject Check I did NOT use Wikipedia, Infoplease, Answer.com, or other non-academic web sources. Check I did NOT use textbooks as sources. Check I included all reference works that I used, such as encyclopedias, dictionaries, or like web sites, but did not count them as sources. Check 8. My submission is a single file in MS Word format (a .doc or .docx file!) and is readable. Check 9. The file name for my submission is in the following format: FIRST NAME (space) LAST NAME (space) OUTLINE (example: Sam Student Outline) Check 10. This outline represents what will be an original paper of MY creation in MY words and not a re-work of a paper submitted previously to another class or by another person. I certify that this submission meets the above requirements. I understand the penalties for false certification or submitting this paper with items left unchecked. Name: ______________________________________________ Date: _________________ Name: ­­­­­­­_________________________ Class: ________________ CRN: ____________ Working Title of Paper: Sargon of Akkad I. Introduction A. Sargon of Akkad, also known as ‘the true king’, is remembered as one of the greatest kings that history has seen. He ruled the Dynasty of Akkad and many areas of Mesopotamia. B. Even though the limited events of this period are recorded in history, there are many which lead us to the belief that how important Sargon was as an Emperor and what made him so important in history. Thesis: Thus, the historic events which included the formation of Sargon’s empire, his influence on the military tradition that he founded in the empire, the use of language, observations made, and recorded in libraries, the political advancements, his role in creating the first multi-ethnic society, and his inspirational character even after his death; all these are events that are important to understand Sargon of Akkad. II. Sargon’s personal characteristics, life story, and the rise of the world’s great empire builder. A. Sargon was a completely self-made man who was initially a gardener. He was found as a baby floating on the river in a basket. B. Sargon thus rose without influential relations and attained the post of cupbearer of the ruler of Kish, a city in the north of Sumer. The first major defeat was of Lugalzaggisi of Uruk which brought Sargon to Supremacy and eventually he became the king of all southern areas of Mesopotamia. III. Founding of the military tradition and the political advancements A. Sargon established the first Semitic dynasty of the region and was the founder of the military tradition in Mesopotamia. B. The Akkadian Empire was very advanced politically. He also made efforts for secured favourable trade throughout the world. IV. During his reign, Akkadian was adopted as the language of the script and a new spirit of calligraphy was visible. A. He created a multi-ethnic society, influenced arts, observations were made and recorded in libraries, and an overall new artistic feeling was spread. B. These advances and norms in his empire showed clearly that Sargon influenced the people much more personally rather only politically or economically. V. Summary / Conclusion A. Later part of his empire was rebellious and after his death the empire didn’t collapse completely but his successors were able to maintain his legacy. B. I believe Sargon made history of one of the greatest empires and is seen as an inspiring ruler. He is thus correctly known as ‘the true king’. Introduction: Sargon of Akkad is known as the great king who ruled in Mesopotamia in 2334 BCE till 2279 BCE. He was the founder of Akkad and conquered the dominant Sumerians to form the Akkadian Empire. Throughout history he is known to be the greatest emperor who has ever lived. Sargon of Akkad, also known as ‘the true king’, is remembered as one of the greatest kings that history has seen. He conquered a large empire including city-states of Sumerian and ruled it in the 22nd and 23rd centuries until his death. He ruled the Dynasty of Akkad and many areas of Mesopotamia. It was unknown to many that where Akkad was located and how it became prominent and how it eventually fell. However, it was the Akkadian Empire that once ruled over the vast region of Mesopotamia. Akkad was known as the city which was possibly located on the western bank of river Euphrates, between the cities of Kish and Sippar, or perhaps elsewhere. The city was built by Sargon the Great who brought together ancient Mesopotamia under his rule and set standards for government forms in the Empire. The Akkadian Empire stretched across the Persian Gulf and till Kuwait, Jordan, Iraq, Syria to the Mediterranean Sea and Cyprus1. The scope and size of the Empire is disputed by undoubtedly Sargon was the king who founded the first multi-national empire of the world. Even though the limited events of this period are recorded in history, there are many which lead us to the belief that how important Sargon was as an Emperor and what made him so important in history. Thus, the historic events which included the formation of Sargon’s empire, his influence on the military tradition that he founded in the empire, the use of language, observations made, and recorded in libraries, the political advancements, his role in creating the first multi-ethnic society, and his inspirational character even after his death; all these are events that are important to understand Sargon of Akkad. Personal characteristics and rise as a King: This player came from Kish which was an undistinguished city-state in the uplands of Mesopotamia. Sargon was and is known as the ‘great’ who is remembered as the creator of the first great empire. He conquered city-state after city-state in Akkad and Sumer and eventually ruled a large region from the north to the west. However, history records that his empire could not last for more than a century and it collapsed in the 2200 BC. As long as it lasted, it became the greatest polity that was ever seen in the world. But it is important to understand and know who Sargon as a person was. It is surprising that history does not record Sargon’s real name as he was only commonly known as Sargon which means ‘the true king’ which was the name given to him after he rose to power. In the pitchy and inconsistent historical records, one version shows the name of his father while many other reliable ones tell that his mother was a priestess and no description of the father was given. His mother had given him birth secretly and set him as a baby away in the river in a basket. He was found by a gardener named Akki who adopted him and brought him up in every humble way he could. Sargon was thus initially a gardener but it was not unwell the King of Kish saw him and his fine qualities struck the King who appointed him as his cupbearer. This was his first step towards success2. The goddess Ishtar favored and loved Sargon and was ready to watch his path. Sargon became the part of the king’s court and he was disturbed with a prophetic dream which was about the King of Kish drowning in a river of blood. This troubled the King of Kish and Sargon was sent to deliver a message in another city and the message said ‘kill this messenger’. Eventually, Sargon was saved and was able to supplant the king with the help of goddess Ishtar. Sargon then built his own capital and went on to take over the kingdoms of everyone else. There are some mysterious assumptions about Sargon whether he was fathered by a god or his mother was a high priestess3. Mesopotamia in ancient times was combined of several small city-states that fought with one another for the water and fertile land. The king of Uruk Lugalzagesi marched on the land and conquered these city-states one after another and united them under his rule. Lugalzagesi was then thrown away and overpowered by Sargon who then gained power on the already united empire. He used this kingdom as an advantage for the military campaigns and then he established the first multi-national empire all across Mesopotamia4. The city-states had a hard time accepting Sargon after he had defeated Lugalzagesi. They did not show submission and grace but in fact rebelled against him and forcefully asked him to prove that he was legitimate as a king through the power of military. Sargon travelled across Mesopotamia and conquered all city-states one by one and expanded his rule till Lebanon and Turkey. The first city of Babylon was built by him where he instituted the military practices and combined different fighting forces5. Sargon eventually became the king of all the southern Mesopotamia and was the first ruler for whom the Akkadian tongue was natural. His victory was ensured only by the numerous battles that he fought against each city-state who would hope to regain the independence from Lugalzagesi. Sargon gathered his followers and created an army that he named ‘Sharru-kin’ which meant ‘rightful king’. The historical records are silent on these events of this period. Throughout his life and reign, Sargon continued to encounter the uprisings as the city-states would rise against the empire. There were several kings who rose against Sargon and he was victorious in all of them as he mentions in his autobiography that when I was 55, all the lands revolted against me but the old lion still had teeth and claws. He fought these rebellions bravely and defeated them and destroyed their huge armies6. Military and political: Sargon established the first Semitic dynasty of the region and was the founder of the military tradition in Mesopotamia. He conquered a vast empire and maintained his order through the military campaigns that he repeatedly carried out. This empire provided stability because of which roads were constructed, irrigation systems were improved, and trade was influenced at a vast level. The first postal system was created by the Akkadian Empire through clay tablets which were wrapped in clay enveloped and marked with the names and addresses of the recipients. These letters were only to be opened by the recipient as the only way to open them was through breaking it7. Sargon also wanted to keep his presence throughout the empire for which he strategically chose and placed his most trustable people in positions of power in every city. These people were administrators and governors in more than 65 cities across the Empire. Sargon’s daughter, Enheduanna was also placed as the High Priestess of Inanna to be able to manipulate cultural and religious affairs from afar. She is recognized today as the first writer in the world who was known by name as well as a powerful priestess as she created her impressive Hymns8. Sargon was not satisfied in dominating his area thus he wished to secure favorable trade throughout the world with an energetic temperament. Sargon had the ability to organize and manage the military and along with the legacy of the previously existing trade in the Sumerian city-states and other counties, there were many commercial connections which flourished throughout the world9. Sargon successfully designed and trained a new army which was skilled in all Sumerian methods of warfare. Before Sargon, Sumer consisted of several city-states with the King of Uruk who was defeated by Sargon when he captured all city-states and united them under his rule. He took over the absolute sovereignty of the Sumerian city-states and covered the whole of Mesopotamia. One of the major reasons for Sargon’s victories was his coordinated army movement. He had formed an army that was trained in the conventional methods of warfare. He had the ability to improvise the tactics and used his combined arms strategy. He used the tactics of intelligence to display his skill in warfare10. In the course of Sargon’s reign, Sumer and the neighboring countries developed a healthy commercial relationship. Sargon also established business connections with the Oman coast, the Indus Valley, and shores and islands of Persian Gulf, Lebanon, and even Greece. There were two main reasons for this success; Sargon’s military expertise and the inheritance of Sumerian existing trade relations between the city-states and other parts of the world. Even though the expansion of Sumer had started from before Sargon, the Mesopotamians greatly regard Sargon as the person who founded the military tradition in Mesopotamia. This is carved in the records of history and thus Sargon’s legacies were greatly preserved by the successors11. Sargon’s time was considered as the best time for military history as it was when professional soldiers who were properly equipped and paid were appeared for the first time. Every single city-state had an army standing of about 600-700 soldiers and they were considered as the bodyguards of the King. However, Sargon’s army consisted of more than 4000 men after he had overpowered Kish. This huge amount of army men helped Sargon to conquer the whole of Mesopotamia. His army is said to have consisted 5400 men at the height of his conquest. Sargon was successful in all his military campaigns because he used the modern weapons. The discovery of composite bow took place. At that time, there were many newest forms of body armors introduced which were made of bronze disks and leather. The simple bow could not penetrate it while the composite bow had the tendency to pull weight 3 times more than the normal bow. This period was this the peak of military development and there was no army that could match up with the weaponry and effectiveness of Sargon’s army. Sargon was highly successful because he had started early and he just never stopped. He had gathered several troops and developed technologies that changed the conventional warfare. These technologies included the bronze helm, the chariot, the composite bow, the body armor, and the sickle-sword. All these technologies gave Sargon the power and advantage over all his other enemies. Thus the Akkadian Empire was very advanced politically and militarily12. Arts and culture: Sargon’s Empire did not only see political and economic development but it also affected the arts and culture of the people. There was a certain proportion of Semitic elements which was in the population through their ancestors but they had a personal loyalty towards Sargon which made them replace the regional patriotism that came from the old city-states. This new conception is portrayed through the artworks and language of the Akkadian citizens. This change was evident in the features of the contemporary architecture and many examples show this such as the reconstruction and extension of several Sumerian temples, powerful fortresses, palaces with practical amenities. The ruins of these buildings cannot be suggested as architectural change in style of structural innovation13. Since that period, there are two Akkadian statutes of notable heads that have survived. One of these heads is in bronze and the other of stone. The bronze head is considered to be Sargon’s head as he was the king wearing a wig-helmet like that of the old Sumerian rulers. This statute was known as the masterpiece in ancient art. The Akkadian head in stone suggest those rulers who had made some progress other than the bronze14. The Akkadian language was also a major development in the arts and culture. The language was acquired as a literary prestige equal to that of Sumerian. Under the influence, the language spread across the borders of Mesopotamia. For several centuries it was employed as an indigenous script, the Mesopotamian script was adopted during the Akkadian period. The old Akkadian writing manner was a remarkably appealing method from the aesthetic viewpoint as it served as the monumental inscriptions model. During the Akkadian Empire, graphic arts and plastic arts especially sculpture reached a high point of perfection. Akkadian language was adapted to the script during Sargon’s rule. The script has previously been used in Sumerian language but there was a new spirit of calligraphy which was visible through the clay tablets of the empire and the beautiful scenes of festive life and mythology arranged and executed on them. This new artistic wave was not to be attributed directly to Sargon’s personal influence on the empire but it rather shows that in his reign, economic and military values were not the only factors important15. The Akkadian empire was based on an economic foundation. Sargon brought with him huge amounts of wealth and royal administrator who created a bureaucratic organization that would help him to rule his kingdom. The Akkadian Empire also embraced polytheistic religion like other ancient kingdoms. They believed in anthropomorphic gods which were those who took a humanly form. These gods also had humanly qualities such as being foolish, shy, humorous, intelligent, jealous, silly, or angry. These gods would also have unequal statuses like humans. These gods were derivative from the world of nature so that the Mesopotamian life could be controlled by the seasons16. The Mesopotamian gods included the sky god, the god of air, the sun god, and the moon god. They believed that these gods would create everything that is present in the universe, including humankind. These gods were responsible for the overall smooth running of the world and they ruled the world through their representatives on the earth, which meant Sargon in the case of the Akkadian Empire. Thus, Sargon had now become the mediator between ordinary people and god17. Sargon was highly responsible for creating a multi­ethnic society, influencing arts, making observations and recording them in libraries, and bringing out an overall new artistic feeling that was spread. Conclusion: Later part of his empire was rebellious and after his death the empire didn’t collapse completely but his successors were able to maintain his legacy. However, Sargon of Akkad was a brave, intelligent, and skillful leader who created the first multi-ethnic empire of the world. He is known for his great contributions to the military tradition, political advancement, social influence, religious and cultural beliefs, and arts. The Akkadian empire did not stand for long, but as long as it stayed, it was recognized as the world’s greatest empire. Sargon’s contributions were not only towards the building of the Akkadian empire but also towards the steps taken in forming the western civilization. I believe Sargon made history of one of the greatest empires and is seen as an inspiring ruler. He is thus correctly known as ‘the true king’. Working Bibliography 1) Hollingsworth Mary. Art in World History. (Italy: Giunti Editore, 2008), p. 27 2) Fattah Hala. A Brief History of Iraq. (USA: Infobase Publishing, 2009), p. 140 3) Hunt Courtney. The History of Iraq. (USA: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2005), p. 88 4) Cavendish Marshall. World and Its Peoples. (USA: Marshall Cavendish, 2006), p. 26 5) Postgate Nicholas. Early Mesopotamia. (USA: Routledge, 1992), p. 77 6) Heinz Marlies. Representations of Political Power. (IN: Eisenbrauns, 2007), p. 37 7) Schrakamp Ingo. Sargon of Akkad and his Dynasty. (USA: The Encyclopaedia of Ancient History, 2012), p. 48 Read More