Hammurabi
Hammurabi 𒄩𒄠𒈬𒊏𒁉 | |
---|---|
Babylon | |
Died | c. 1750 BC (aged 59–60) Babylon |
Issue | Samsu-iluna |
Hammurabi (
Hammurabi is best known for having issued the Code of Hammurabi, which he claimed to have received from Shamash, the Babylonian god of justice. Unlike earlier Sumerian law codes, such as the Code of Ur-Nammu, which had focused on compensating the victim of the crime, the Law of Hammurabi was one of the first law codes to place greater emphasis on the physical punishment of the perpetrator. It prescribed specific penalties for each crime and is among the first codes to establish the presumption of innocence. They were intended to limit what a wronged person was permitted to do in retribution. The Code of Hammurabi and the Law of Moses in the Torah contain numerous similarities.
Hammurabi was seen by many as a god within his own lifetime. After his death, Hammurabi was revered as a great conqueror who spread civilization and forced all peoples to pay obeisance to Marduk, the national god of the Babylonians. Later, his military accomplishments became de-emphasized and his role as the ideal lawgiver became the primary aspect of his legacy. For later Mesopotamians, Hammurabi's reign became the frame of reference for all events occurring in the distant past. Even after the empire he built collapsed, he was still revered as a model ruler, and many kings across the Near East claimed him as an ancestor. Hammurabi was rediscovered by archaeologists in the late nineteenth century and has since been seen as an important figure in the history of law.
Life
Background and ascension
Hammurabi ascended to the throne as the king of a minor kingdom in the midst of a complex
The powerful kingdom of
Reign and conquests
The first few years of Hammurabi's reign were quite peaceful.[10] Hammurabi used his power to undertake a series of public works, including heightening the city walls for defensive purposes, and expanding the temples.[11] The powerful kingdom of Elam, which straddled important trade routes across the Zagros Mountains, invaded the Mesopotamian plain.[12] With allies among the plain states, Elam attacked and destroyed the kingdom of Eshnunna, destroying a number of cities and imposing its rule on portions of the plain for the first time.[13]
In order to consolidate its position, Elam tried to start a war between Hammurabi's Babylonian kingdom and the kingdom of Larsa.[14] Hammurabi and the king of Larsa made an alliance when they discovered this duplicity and were able to crush the Elamites, although Larsa did not contribute greatly to the military effort.[14] Angered by Larsa's failure to come to his aid, Hammurabi turned on that southern power, thus gaining control of the entirety of the lower Mesopotamian plain by c. 1763 BC.[15]
As Hammurabi was assisted during the war in the south by his allies from the north such as Yamhad and Mari, the absence of soldiers in the north led to unrest.[15] Continuing his expansion, Hammurabi turned his attention northward, quelling the unrest. Soon after, he destroyed Eshnunna.[16] Next the Babylonian armies conquered the remaining northern states, including Babylon's former ally Mari, although it is possible that the conquest of Mari was a surrender without any actual conflict.[17][18]
Hammurabi entered into a protracted war with Ishme-Dagan I of Assyria for control of Mesopotamia, with both kings making alliances with minor states in order to gain the upper hand. Eventually Hammurabi prevailed, ousting Ishme-Dagan I just before his own death. Mut-Ashkur, the new king of Assyria, was forced to pay tribute to Hammurabi.[19]
In just a few years, Hammurabi succeeded in uniting all of Mesopotamia under his rule.
Vast numbers of contract tablets, dated to the reigns of Hammurabi and his successors, have been discovered, as well as 55 of his own letters.[21] These letters give a glimpse into the daily trials of ruling an empire, from dealing with floods and mandating changes to a flawed calendar, to taking care of Babylon's massive herds of livestock.[22] Hammurabi died and passed the reins of the empire on to his son Samsu-iluna in c. 1750 BC, under whose rule the Babylonian empire quickly began to unravel.[23]
Code of laws
The Code of Hammurabi was a collection of 282 laws dealing with a wide range of issues.
The Code of Hammurabi was inscribed on a
Because of Hammurabi's reputation as a lawgiver, his depiction can be found in law buildings throughout the world. Hammurabi is one of the 23 lawgivers depicted in
Legacy
Posthumous commemoration
Hammurabi was honored above all other kings of the second millennium BC[40] and he received the unique honor of being declared to be a god within his own lifetime.[41] The personal name "Hammurabi-ili" meaning "Hammurabi is my god" became common during and after his reign. In writings from shortly after his death, Hammurabi is commemorated mainly for three achievements: bringing victory in war, bringing peace, and bringing justice.[41] Hammurabi's conquests came to be regarded as part of a sacred mission to spread civilization to all nations.[42] A stele from Ur glorifies him in his own voice as a mighty ruler who forces evil into submission and compels all peoples to worship Marduk.[43] The stele declares: "The people of Elam, Gutium, Subartu, and Tukrish, whose mountains are distant and whose languages are obscure, I placed into [Marduk's] hand. I myself continued to put straight their confused minds." A later hymn also written in Hammurabi's own voice extols him as a powerful, supernatural force for Marduk:[42]
I am the king, the brace that grasps wrongdoers, that makes people of one mind,
I am the great dragon among kings, who throws their counsel in disarray,
I am the net that is stretched over the enemy,
I am the fear-inspiring, who, when lifting his fierce eyes, gives the disobedient the death sentence,
I am the great net that covers evil intent,
I am the young lion, who breaks nets and scepters,
I am the battle net that catches him who offends me.[43]
After extolling Hammurabi's military accomplishments, the hymn finally declares: "I am Hammurabi, the king of justice."[41] In later commemorations, Hammurabi's role as a great lawgiver came to be emphasized above all his other accomplishments and his military achievements became de-emphasized. Hammurabi's reign became the point of reference for all events in the distant past. A hymn to the goddess Ishtar, whose language suggests it was written during the reign of Ammisaduqa, Hammurabi's fourth successor, declares: "The king who first heard this song as a song of your heroism is Hammurabi. This song for you was composed in his reign. May he be given life forever!"[40] For centuries after his death, Hammurabi's laws continued to be copied by scribes as part of their writing exercises and they were even partially translated into Sumerian.[44]
Political legacy
During the reign of Hammurabi, Babylon usurped the position of "most holy city" in southern Mesopotamia from its predecessor,
The coup de grace for the Hammurabi's Amorite Dynasty occurred in 1595 BC, when Babylon was sacked and conquered by the powerful
A Neo-Babylonian royal inscription, which was intended for display on a stele, commemorates a royal grant of tax exemptions to nine Babylonian cities and presents the royal protagonist as a second Hammurabi.[50]
Relationship to Biblical figures and Mosaic law
In the late nineteenth century, the Code of Hammurabi became a major center of debate in the heated Babel und Bibel ("Babylon and Bible") controversy in Germany over the relationship between the Bible and ancient Babylonian texts.
Parallels between this narrative and the giving of the
References
Notes
- ^ from Amorite ʻAmmurāpi ("the kinsman is a healer"), itself from ʻAmmu ("paternal kinsman") and Rāpi ("healer"). The classicist Alan Millard insists that Hammurapi is a more correct spelling.[2]
- ^ It is predated by the Code of Ur-Nammu, the Laws of Eshnunna, and the Code of Lipit-Ishtar.[26]
- ^ Barton, a former professor of Semitic languages at the University of Pennsylvania, stated that while there are similarities between the two texts, a study of the entirety of both laws "convinces the student that the laws of the Old Testament are in no essential way dependent upon the Babylonian laws." He states that "such resemblances" arose from "a similarity of antecedents and of general intellectual outlook" between the two cultures, but that "the striking differences show that there was no direct borrowing."[58]
Citations
- ^ Roux 1992, between 266–267.
- ^ Millard 2004.
- ^ Khwshnaw 2023.
- ^ Hone, Charles F. (1917). Wikisource. [scan ] . Vol. 1 – via
- ^ Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 1.
- ^ Van De Mieroop 2005, pp. 1–2.
- ^ a b Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 3.
- ^ Van De Mieroop 2005, pp. 3–4.
- ^ Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 16.
- ISBN 978-0-7456-5459-1.
An early study claims that 'peace and prosperity prevailed during his reign', though more recent research confines this preponderantly peaceful period to the first two decades Hammurabi ruled.
- ^ Arnold 2005, p. 43.
- ^ Van De Mieroop 2005, pp. 15–16.
- ^ Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 17.
- ^ a b Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 18.
- ^ a b Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 31.
- ^ Van De Mieroop 2005, pp. 40–41.
- ^ Van De Mieroop 2005, pp. 54–55, 64–65.
- ^ a b c Arnold 2005, p. 45.
- OCLC 39762695.
- .
- ^ Breasted 2003, p. 129.
- ^ Breasted 2003, pp. 129–130.
- ^ Arnold 2005, p. 42.
- ^ H. Otto Sommer (1908). Wikisource. . Records of the Past, Volume II, Part III. – via
- ^ Driver & Miles (1952), p. 9.
- ^ Roth 1995, pp. 13, 23, 57.
- ^ a b Breasted 2003, p. 141.
- ^ a b c d Bertman 2003, p. 71.
- ^ Victimology: Theories and Applications, Ann Wolbert Burgess, Albert R. Roberts, Cheryl Regehr, Jones & Bartlett Learning, 2009, p. 103
- ^ Prince 1904, pp. 606–607.
- ISBN 978-0-19-872499-5.
... Akkadian (Babylonian) replaced Sumerian ... The Code of Hammurabi was written in the daily language of Babylon, Akkadian. Hammurabi (c.1810–1750 BC), the sixth king of the First Babylonian Empire, initiated language reforms to make Akkadian the pre-eminent lingua franca of antiquity; inscriptions have been found on stone, silver and clay artefacts.
- ISBN 978-0-495-57360-9. Archivedfrom the original on 17 June 2014. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
- ISBN 978-1-58477-489-1. Archivedfrom the original on 15 April 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
- ^ "Hammurabi". Architect of the Capitol. Archived from the original on 22 November 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2008.
- ^ "Courtroom Friezes" (PDF). Supreme Court of the United States. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 June 2010. Retrieved 19 May 2008.
- ^ Biskupic, Joan (11 March 1998). "Lawgivers: From Two Friezes, Great Figures of Legal History Gaze Upon the Supreme Court Bench". WP Company LLC. The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 18 August 2020. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
- ^ Cuneiform Tablets in the British Museum (PDF). British Museum. 1905. pp. Plates 44 and 45. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 January 2021. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
- ^ Budge, E. A. Wallis (Ernest Alfred Wallis); King, L. W. (Leonard William) (1908). A guide to the Babylonian and Assyrian antiquities. London : Printed by the order of the Trustees. p. 147.
- ^ For full transcription: "CDLI-Archival View". cdli.ucla.edu. Archived from the original on 4 November 2021. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
- ^ a b Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 128.
- ^ a b c Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 127.
- ^ a b Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 126.
- ^ a b Van De Mieroop 2005, pp. 126–127.
- ^ a b c Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 129.
- ^ a b Van De Mieroop 2005, pp. 129–130.
- ISBN 978-0-8028-2959-7, archivedfrom the original on 12 November 2021, retrieved 1 November 2020
- ^ Roux 1992, pp. 243–246.
- ^ a b DeBlois 1997, p. 19.
- ^ Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 130.
- from the original on 20 March 2023. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
- ^ a b Ziolkowski 2012, p. 25.
- ^ a b Ziolkowski 2012, pp. 23–25.
- ^ Rogers, Robert W.; Kohler, Kaufmann; Jastrow, Marcus. "Amraphel". The Jewish Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on 22 November 2021. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
- ^ "Bible Gateway passage: Genesis 14 - New International Version". Archived from the original on 20 November 2021. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
- ISBN 978-0-19-504645-8.
- ^ ISBN 978-3-11-022346-0.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-310-22983-4.
- ^ a b c Barton 1916, p. 406.
- ^ a b Unger, M.F.: Archaeology and the Old Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing Co., 1954, pp. 156–157
- ^ a b Free, J.P.: Archaeology and Biblical History. Wheaton: Scripture Press, 1950, 1969, p. 121
- ISBN 978-0-19-530475-6.
- JSTOR 43855622.
Sources
- Arnold, Bill T. (2005). Who Were the Babylonians?. OCLC 225281611.
- from the original on 29 December 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
- Bertman, Stephen (2003). Handbook to Life in Ancient Mesopotamia. Oxford: ISBN 978-0-19-518364-1. Archivedfrom the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
- Breasted, James Henry (2003). Ancient Time or a History of the Early World, Part 1. Kessinger Publishing. OCLC 69651827.
- DeBlois, Lukas (1997). An Introduction to the Ancient World. OCLC 231710353.
- OCLC 493362814.
- Khwshnaw, Ardalan (10 February 2023). "A New Old Babylonian Date List with Hammurapi Year Names". Journal of Studies in History and Archeology (84): 665–686. Archived from the original on 10 March 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
- ISBN 978-0-19-504645-8.
- Prince, J. Dyneley (1904). "The Code of Hammurabi". JSTOR 3153895.
- Roth, Martha T. (1995). Law Collections from Mesopotamia and Asia Minor. Atlanta: ISBN 978-0-7885-0104-3. Archivedfrom the original on 5 October 2022. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
- ISBN 978-0-14-012523-8.
- Van De Mieroop, Marc (2005). King Hammurabi of Babylon: A Biography. OCLC 255676990.
- Ziolkowski, Theodore (2012), Gilgamesh among Us: Modern Encounters with the Ancient Epic, Ithaca, New York and London, England: Cornell University Press, ISBN 978-0-8014-5035-8, archivedfrom the original on 9 October 2021, retrieved 1 November 2020
External links
- A Closer Look at the Code of Hammurabi at the Louvre museum
- Works by Hammurabi at Project Gutenberg
- Works by or about Hammurabi at Internet Archive
- Year Names of Hammurabi