The Politics of Mesopotamia Was developed in this region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in the region that today occupy Iraq, Kuwait, eastern Syria, and southwestern Turkey. The name Mesopotamia literally means"between two rivers".
Generally considered as one of the cradles of civilization, Mesopotamia contained during the Bronze Age the Sumerian, Akkadian, Babylonian and Assyrian empires. During the Iron Age, the region was dominated by the Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian empires.
In this region was developed the Neolithic Revolution, which according to historians could have given rise to major developments in the history of mankind, such as the invention of the wheel, the first cereal plantations and the invention of writing, Mathematics, astronomy and agriculture.
It is also believed that the origins of philosophy can be found in Mesopotamia and its original wisdom, which was already based on certain ideas such as ethics, dialectics and proverbs. The thought of Mesopotamia was an important influence in the Greek and Hellenistic philosophies.
Why was politics so important in Mesopotamia?
Due to its strategic location, Mesopotamia Had a great impact on the political development of the region. Among the rivers and streams of the region, the Sumerians built the first cities that had irrigation systems.
The communication between the different cities, which were isolated from each other, was difficult and dangerous. Because of this, each Sumerian city became a city-state, independent of the others and protective of that autonomy.
Sometimes a city tried to conquer the others and to unify the region, nevertheless those unifying efforts were failed during several centuries. As a result, the political history of the Sumerian empire is made up of constant wars.
Finally, the unification took place with the establishment of the Akkadian empire, which achieved for the first time the establishment of a monarchical regime beyond a generation and a peaceful succession of kings.
This empire, however, had a short life and was conquered by the Babylonians in only a few generations.
Governance structure
The most relevant figure in Mesopotamian politics was the king. It was believed that kings and queens descended directly from the City of the Gods, although in contrast to Egyptian beliefs, kings were not considered as true gods.
Some of the kings of Mesopotamia called themselves"king of the universe"or"the great king." Another name that commonly used was the one of"pastor", since the kings had to see by its town and to guide it.
Kings of Mesopotamia like Sargon the Great, Gilgamesh and Hammurabi were dictators who only responded to their gods. They had under his command a series of officers. The kingdom was inherited from generation to generation, following the male line of lineage.
The hierarchy, under the king, was complemented by the high priests, the scribes, the military, the merchants, the commons and the slaves.
Kings
The king served as the leader of the Mesopotamian political system. Complete government, laws, rights and responsibilities were granted to the king and his family. Likewise, the king led the army and military forces.
Priests
After the king, the priests were the class that enjoyed the highest respect, rights and riches. The priests belonged to the upper classes of society, since religion had a central role in the culture of Mesopotamia.
The population approached the priests to solve any economic or health problem. Even the king considered the priests to be of great importance.
Write U.S
The scribes also belonged to the upper class of Mesopotamia and were educated people who worked in different professions. They worked for the royal family and in the palace, as they valued their skills and knowledge. Intensive training was required to reach one of these positions.
Merchants
Traders and artisans were individuals who enjoyed respect in the society of Mesopotamia. Many of them belonged to the upper class of society and enjoyed a good economic position due to their business or land ownership. It was the merchants who created the calendar.
The commons belonged to the lower class within the political system of Mesopotamia and were mainly engaged in agriculture. They had no education, no wealth and no rights or privileges. Some of them owned their own homes.
Slaves
The slaves were at the base of the political and social hierarchy of Mesopotamia. They had no rights. They worked for others as merchants or even commons.
Laws
The city-states of Mesopotamia created the first legal codes based on the decisions that the kings took, which were converted into legal precedents. Some vestiges of this practice are the Urukagina and Lipit Ishtar codes, which have been found in archaeological explorations.
However, the most famous code is that of Hammurabi, which is one of the oldest and best preserved systems of laws in history. Hammurabi codified more than 200 laws for Mesopotamia.
An analysis of the code shows that women's rights were gradually reduced and the treatment of slaves became more severe.
The code was written on clay tablets and established the prohibition of crimes such as murder, robbery and assault. It also indicated that if someone killed a clerk, he would be assigned the death penalty. Expeling air over the king while breathing was also a death penalty.
References
1- Mesopotamia political hierarchy. Taken from hierarchystructure.com.
2- Mesopotamia. Taken from en.wikipedia.org/.
3- Mesopotamian government. Taken from factsanddetails.com.
4- Mesopotamia. Taken from ancient.eu.