Whether Rim Sin I thought Hammurabi would be less of a threat to Larsa is also unknown but, if so, he would be proven wrong. Bookmark them as necessary on your computer. The third precept indicates the existence of a judicial system with elders serving as judges. In the prologue, Hammurabi claims that his authority comes directly from the gods. Everyone under the law was expected to already know what the gods required of them, and the king was expected simply to administer the god's will. In this 1934 depiction, King Hammurabi goes to war. In their presentations to the class, students should point to the specific precepts from which they derived their conclusions. What kind of domestic improvements or policies did groups recommend? In this exercise Hammurabi has gathered his councils of advisors together. Religion was central to everyday life in Babylonia. Each group will play the role of a council of advisors to King Hammurabi.

Hammurabi's code differed from the earlier laws in significant ways. Begin by reading the first and last paragraphs of the preamble with the class. If desired, groups can use the chart, Chart for Gathering Information from Hammurabi's Code, which is available as a PDF, while gathering information. Why would Hammurabi want his name associated with the names of gods? According to the third paragraph, what achievements does Hammurabi claim occurred during his rule? The vast kingdom Hammurabi had built during his lifetime began to fall apart within a year of his death, and those cities that had been part of vassal states secured their borders and announced their autonomy. This lesson is designed to extend world history curricula on Mesopotamia and to give students a more in-depth view of life in Babylonia during the time of Hammurabi. At this point it is uncertain what exactly happened, but it seems that Sin-Muballit was compelled to abdicate in favor of his son Hammurabi. Since that time, however, earlier similar "codes" have been unearthed. New discoveries reveal an era when awe-inspiring monuments were all the rage. The Hittites sacked Babylon and the Kassites inhabited and re-named it. But he also provided unity and stability to his empire by compiling a code of laws, or legal precedents, that applied to all of his subjects. Primeval seals and inscriptions transmit him to us partially a youth full of fire and genius, a very whirlwind in battle, who crushes all rebels, cuts his enemies into pieces, marches over inaccessible mountains, and never loses an engagement. Tell the class we have quite a bit of information about this ancient stele, which you will share with them later, but, for now, you want them to consider the object itself. Historian Karen Rhea Nemet-Najat writes: The king was directly responsible for administering justice on behalf of the gods, who had established law and order in the universe. There were earlier codes in Mesopotamia but Hammurabi's were the clearest and most inclusive and so came to serve as a model for other cultures, including the laws set down by Hebrew scribes in the Bible. Students should be directed to the EDSITEment Study Activityfor the Activity, where they should click on the link to their group's worksheet which will form the basis of their presentations. Which precept appears to apply to which class (the amelu, mushkinu, or wardu)? Cuneiform Tablet Listing the Names of Old Babylonian KingsOsama Shukir Muhammed Amin (Copyright) Rulers down through Napoleon Bonaparte issued their own codes to unite realms that contained people of many different customs and conceptions of justiceand to discourage them from taking the law into their own hands. Hammurabis Code was based partly on Sumerian laws but prescribed its own harsher penalties for some offenses, including death or mutilation for crimes by commoners resulting in bodily injury. Based on independent or group research, students consider the relationship between these daily practices and Hammurabi's Code. Number one hundred and eight indicates that women could own at least some kinds of businesses in Old Babylonia. Begin this activity by showing students the Large Image of Hammurabi's Stela, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed web resource The Oriental Institute: The University of Chicago. In this exercise they will use what they have learned about Mesopotamia in the classroom, as well as the information presented here, in order to imagine what might prompt a ruler to write an organized set of rules. Such a system requires some standardization of the law as well as an educated class to serve as judges and court recorders. At the time, it was the oldest known set of what appeared to be laws. If desired, attempt to arrive at a class consensus in one sentence. The prologue to his famous law code begins: When the lofty Anu, King of the Annunaki and Bel, Lord of Heaven and Earth, he who determines the destiny of the land, committed the rule of all mankind to Marduk, when they pronounced the lofty name of Babylon, when they made it famous among the quarters of the world and in its midst established an everlasting kingdom whose foundations were firm as heaven and earth at that time Anu and Bel called me, Hammurabi, the exalted prince, the worshipper of the gods, to cause justice to prevail in the land, to destroy the wicked and the evil, to prevent the strong from oppressing the weak, to enlighten the land and to further the welfare of the people. The importance of religion? Mark, Joshua J.. The IUCN also announced that sturgeon are in rapid decline, while tiger populations are stabilizing. Heres what its like to dive French Polynesias shark alley, Theres a better way to hike the Inca Trail, 10 epic family adventures for last-minute planners, Illustration courtesy Private Collection/Look and Learn/Bridgeman Images. In so doing, he ignored an inscription that cursed anyone who desecrated the shrine and entreated the gods to cut the offenders throat and annihilate his offspring. Under him the petty warring states of the lower valley were forced into unity and peace, and disciplined into order and security by an historic code of laws. The code also favored men over women. For only $5 per month you can become a member and support our mission to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide. A popular title applied to Hammurabi in his lifetime was bani matim, 'builder of the land', because of the many building projects and canals he ordered constructed throughout the region. His legacy as a lawgiver reflects his genuine concern for social justice and the betterment of the lives of his people. Initially, Hammurabi gave Rim Sin I no cause for alarm. Zimri-Lim is thought to have been killed in this engagement as he vanishes from the historical record in that same year. World History Encyclopedia is a non-profit organization. Hammurabi (r. 1792-1750 BCE) was the sixth king of the Amorite First Dynasty of Babylon best known for his famous law code which served as the model for others, including the Mosaic Law of the Bible. How Hammurabi's Code actually reflects life in Old Babylonia will be the subject of the following activities. Despite such inequities, the laws promulgated by Hammurabi offered some protection to women, commoners, and slaves. Scholars have long debated why Hammurabi would break his alliance with Zimri-Lim but the reason seems fairly clear: Mari was an important, luxurious, and prosperous trade center on the Euphrates River and possessed great riches and, of course, water rights. There were no rules restraining kings or emperors from attacking one another, even when they had formed alliances and pledged eternal friendship. In the last years of his life his son, Samsu-Iluna, had already taken over the responsibilities of the throne and assumed full reign in 1749 BCE. Once that barrier was gone, and news of the great king weakening spread, the eastern tribes prepared their armies to invade. Hammurabi's law code thus set the standard for future codes in dealing strictly with the evidence of the crime and setting a specific punishment for that crime. Depending on the translation you read, most or all of the pronouncements begin with "If." Mark, J. J. The existence of ancient codes such as Hammurabi's reflects a body of common law; yet collections of royal judgments were not codes of law as we understand the concept. What does this preamble state is the purpose of the code to follow? When these are done, conduct a brief discussion. None of Hammurabi's successors could put the kingdom back together again, and first the Hittites (in 1595 BCE), then the Kassites invaded. Zimri-Lim had led successful military campaigns through the north of Mesopotamia and, owing to the wealth generated from these victories, Mari had grown to be the envy of other cities with one of the largest and most opulent palaces in the region. See how stones, strength, and smarts built Stonehenge. The Elamites, who had been so completely defeated by Hammurabi decades before, invaded and carried off the stele of Hammurabi's Law Code which was discovered at the Elamite city of Susa in 1901 CE.

Copyright 1996-2015 National Geographic Society, Copyright 2015-2022 National Geographic Partners, LLC. Next, work through the following questions: In order to give the students a general overview of the pronouncements, ask the class to work on the following questions and tasks: Hammurabi's Code ends with an epilogue, a concluding statement. (180). With what god does Hammurabi associate his achievements? He has taught history, writing, literature, and philosophy at the college level. The empire he created is known as Babylon, while the civilization is often referred to as Old Babylonia. Challenge the groups to include information about Babylonian society that they have learned in this lesson in the script. Students may also be interested in seeing where the borders of Babylonia fall in terms of the Modern Political Map through a comparison with Mesopotamia in 1750 BCE, both available through a link from The Oriental Institute: The University of Chicago. Each group will create a script for a hypothetical Babylonian trial based on one of the precepts from Hammurabi's Code listed below. A technique he seems to have used first in this engagement would become his preferred method in others when circumstances allowed: the damming up of water sources to the city to withhold them from the enemy until surrender or, possibly, withholding the waters through a dam and then releasing them to flood the city before then mounting an attack. Why place the stele near temples? Ask the students to each write a one-sentence hypothesis as to the purpose of Hammurabi's Code. Classify series of historical events and developments as examples of change and/or continuity. Then, one or more representatives from each group will report their advice to the king. Hammurabi is best remembered today as a lawgiver whose code served as a standard for later laws but, in his time, he was known as the ruler who united Mesopotamia under a single governing body in the same way Sargon the Great of Akkad had done centuries before. Now, however, when urban citizens commonly rubbed shoulders with nomads following a completely different way of life, when speakers of several west Semitic Amurru languages, as well as others, were thrown together with uncomprehending Akkadians, confrontation must all too easily have spilled over into conflict. From Mari, Hammurabi marched on Ashur and took the region of Assyria and finally Eshnunna (also conquered by damming up of the waters) so that, by 1755 BCE, he ruled all of Mesopotamia. Information and an image of the stele can be found by visiting the Louvre Museum, which is available through EDSITEment-reviewed resource The Oriental Institute: The University of Chicago. Larsa was the most lucrative trade center on the Persian Gulf and the profits from this trade enriched the city and encouraged expansion so that most of the cities of the south were under Larsa's control. The History of the Ancient World: From the Earliest Accounts to the A History of the Ancient Near East ca. Ensure that students can vieweither in print or onscreenthe. Unauthorized use is prohibited. 1764 BCEAttar-Aram syria, using a modified map originally made by Smhur. The fifth king of the dynasty, Sin-Muballit (r. 1812-1793 BCE), successfully completed many public works projects but was unable to expand the kingdom or compete with the rival city of Larsa to the south. In this exercise students will be hypothesizing what the meaning of the stele might be. However, today he is most famous for a series of judgments inscribed on a large stone stele and dubbed Hammurabi's Code. World History Encyclopedia, 16 Apr 2018. Students will participate in a simulation in 35 groups. Our publication has been reviewed for educational use by Common Sense Education, Internet Scout, Merlot II, OER Commons and School Library Journal. (2018, April 16). Holding the city directly, instead of having to negotiate for resources, would be preferable to any ruler and certainly was so to Hammurabi. World History Encyclopedia. Analyze multiple factors that influenced the perspectives of people during different historical eras. The code certainly favored people of wealth and rank, who were required only to pay a fine if they injured commoners. Begin by informing students that Hammurabi became the sixth ruler in the First Dynasty of Babylon in the 18th Century BCE. Hammurabi destroyed his rivals palacealong with a temple to Shamash. This was a method previously used by Hammurabi's father but with considerably less efficacy. As ancient communities grew larger, they needed a stronger central government to complete and take care of necessary public projects -- such as the canals that enabled Babylon to grow surplus foods -- and to maintain law and order for keeping life in cities running smoothly. The epilogue states that the stone on which the Code is inscribed was set up in the E-Sagil temple in Babylon. Much about Babylonia can be learned from the precepts (rules or instructions designed as a guide) in Hammurabi's Code.

(Exodus 21:22-25). NCSS.D2.His.1.6-8. It is a testimony to his rule that, unlike Sargon or his grandson Naram-Sin from earlier times, Hammurabi did not have to re-conquer cities and regions repeatedly but, having brought them under Babylonian rule, was, for the most part, interested in improving them and the standard of living of the inhabitants (a notable exception being Mari, of course).

When the Elamites invaded the central plains of Mesopotamia from the east, Hammurabi allied himself with Larsa to defeat them. Can we hack DNA in plants to help fight climate change? Once the groups have presented, help the class generalize what life was like in ancient Babylonian society as a whole during Hammurabi's reign. (87). EDSITEment is a project of theNational Endowment for the Humanities, The Oriental Institute: The University of Chicago, The Emergence and Evolution of Cuneiform in Mesopotamia, The Cuneiform Writing System in Ancient Mesopotamia: Emergence and Evolution, For more information on Hammurabi and the Hammurabi Code, teachers can read the, You can find information about where the borders of Babylonia fall in terms of the, Review all websites and materials students will view. He could be merciless to enemies, destroying cities that defied him. If a man knock out the teeth of his equal, his teeth shall be knocked out. Want to help Californias kelp forests? All rights reserved. Groups are to frame their advice on the basis of the information provided in the speech and from what they will have already learned in class on Mesopotamia. The woman who did so and survived the ordeal would be recognized as innocent, but then her accuser would be found guilty of false witness and punished by death. Mark has lived in Greece and Germany and traveled through Egypt. The empire he created is known as Babylon, while the civilization is often referred to as Old Babylonia. In the hypothetical speech below, Hammurabi invokes some of the Babylonian gods (Anu Bel, Shamash), as he does in his Code. Sign up for our free weekly email newsletter! (219). The graphic on the stone communicated Hammurabi's message that the gods, the ultimate source of justice, provide legitimacy for his authority. Once on the Louvre website, click on the link for "selected works" at the left; then, click on Oriental Antiquities; under "selected works" click on Mesopotamia and Anatolia; and finally, you will see an image of the stele by scrolling down through the thumbnail images.

Divide the class into five groups. The World History Encyclopedia logo is a registered trademark. NCSS.D2.His.5.6-8. Hammurabi's code stipulates that: If a man's wife has been pointed out because of another man, even though she has not been caught with him, for her husband's sake she must plunge into the divine river. Submitted by Joshua J. If it kill the son of the owner of the house, the son of that builder shall be put to death. Scholars are still debating its precise significance as a set of laws, but the Code's importance as a reflection of Babylonian society is indisputable. He is also known as Ammurapi and Khammurabi and assumed the throne from his father, Sin-Muballit, who had stabilized the kingdom but could not expand upon it. The success of Hammurabi's military operations expanded Babylon north along the Tigris and Euphrates and south to what is now called the Persian Gulf. Each will report back to the class what they have inferred about their assigned aspect of Babylonian civilization during the time of Hammurabi. . Prepare the students to read excerpts from the text of Hammurabi's Code by sharing the essay Law and Government from The Oriental Institute: The University of Chicago. Make inclusion of such information an important part of your evaluation of the presentation. This activity serves to establish an anticipatory set for what is to follow. Cite This Work Choose from among the following precepts around which to create a courtroom scene: #9, 122, 125, 135, 142, 168, or 233. He was the first ruler able to successfully govern all of Mesopotamia, without revolt, following his initial conquest.

The vast kingdom Hammurabi had built during his lifetime began to fall apart within a year of his death. This illustrated graphic takes you through one of the greatest and most enigmatic engineering achievements of all time. A sculpture depicts Babylonian king Hammurabi and the deity Shamash. According to the second paragraph what is one supposed to do at one of these stele? The scholar Stephen Bertman notes how Hammurabi's personal character worked to his advantage early in his reign: Hammurabi was an able administrator, an adroit diplomat, and canny imperialist, patient in the achievement of his goals. The code of laws attributed to him is one of the earliest and most comprehensive of such law codification efforts. In earlier Sumerian-Akkadian times, all communities had felt themselves to be joint members of the same family, all equally servants under the eyes of the gods. the teacher, presumably) will deliver a short speech, which is available here as a PDF. It informs the reader that through these precepts one can find out "what is just." The historian Durant writes: At the outset of [Babylonian history] stands the powerful figure of Hammurabi, conqueror and lawgiver through a reign of forty-three years. In order to simplify matters, Hammurabi's code sought to prevent vendetta and blood feuds by stating clearly the crime - and the punishment which would be administered Invasive green crabs: If you can't beat them, eat them. Number one hundred ninety-six is perhaps the most famous of the precepts.

Analyze connections among events and developments in broader historical contexts. He instituted his famous code of laws (c. 1772 BCE), paid careful attention to the needs of the people, improved irrigation of fields and maintenance of the infrastructures of the cities under his control, while also building opulent temples to the gods. Adultery by a husband might go unpunished, but an unfaithful wife would be executed. Without revealing anything more specific about the stele at this point, tell the students the original, though the only one in existence, is thought to be one of many. (221). Hammurabis Code did not allow for personal acts of vengeance; that alone was a significant contribution to law and order in civil society. Though Hammurabi's Code is not unique, it is still the longest code yet discovered and one of the only ones known to have been inscribed on a stele. This will clarify what actually happened during Hammurabi's reign. As noted, he is best known in the modern day for his law code which is often cited as being the first in history although it is not. Have them think about the following questions: Ask students to look carefully at the stele. Last modified April 16, 2018. Attar-Aram syria, using a modified map originally made by Smhur. Evaluate the relative influence of various causes of events and developments in the past. For example, wives abused by their husbands could sue for divorce, and all defendants were somewhat shielded from false testimony by a law prescribing the death penalty for witnesses who committed perjury. Its leader, Father Vincent Scheil, translated the code the following year. The hypothesis might begin with the following words: Ask students to share some of their hypotheses with the class. https://www.worldhistory.org/hammurabi/. His law code is not the first such code in history (though it is often called so) but is certainly the most famous from antiquity prior to the code set down in the biblical books. Larsa was the last stronghold of Rim Sin and, with its fall, there was no other force to stand against the king of Babylon in the south. The ordeal was resorted to regularly in what were considered the most serious crimes, adultery and sorcery, because it was thought these two infractions were most likely to undermine social stability. More fire. He (i.e. The alliances he made with other states would repeatedly be broken when the king found it necessary to do so but, as rulers continued to enter into pacts with Hammurabi, it does not seem to have occurred to any of them that he would do the same to them as he had previously to others. What other document(s) do students know that has/have (a) preamble(s)? Allow time for the groups to meet and then present their recommendations. That accomplished, he broke the alliance and swiftly took the cities of Uruk and Isin, previously held by Larsa, by forming alliances with other city-states such as Nippur and Lagash. King Hammurabi ruled Babylon, located along the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers, from 17921750 BCE. Now share with the class the brief section on Babylonia from the British Museum's Mesopotamia site's Introduction to Mesopotamia, accessible through the EDSITEment-reviewed web resource The Oriental Institute: The University of Chicago. World History Encyclopedia. Please be respectful of copyright. A second reading of the meaning of this stone may be found in the possibility that the image communicated to viewers that Hammurabi's position was one of an intermediary between the human world and the world of the gods. Think about large public objects with which students might be familiar, such as the statue of Lincoln at his memorial. This is a much greater mystery than why he would march against it in the first place. Groups should remember that Hammurabi is an absolute ruler and the consequences of a presentation that displeases the king could be severe. Law Code Tablet of King Hammurabi from NippurOsama Shukir Muhammed Amin (Copyright). Let the students know that some current books and websites still contain claims that Hammurabi's Code was the first set of laws ever made. They will meet to plan their advice to the king. He also states that the purpose of the Code is "to bring about the rule of righteousness in the land so that the strong should not harm the weak." NCSS.D2.His.3.6-8. There is an image at the top and an inscription underneath. If he break another man's bone, his bone shall be broken. The monumental size of Hammurabi's stele dramatized the king's power. He began his reign by centralizing and streamlining his administration, continuing his father's building programs and enlarging and heightening the walls of the city. Web. Some Rights Reserved (2009-2022) under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license unless otherwise noted. Conquered cities were absorbed into Hammurabi's kingdom & then repaired & improved upon. They never served as a source of precedent when courts rendered decisions. InvestigateHammurabi's motives for creating and distributing his "Code.". Who is likely to have ordered the creation, design, and placement of the stele?

Although Hammurabi spent a considerable amount of time on campaign, he made sure to provide for the people whose lands he ruled over. Other conquered cities were absorbed into the kingdom and then repaired and improved upon. "Hammurabi." It is a stele, made of basalt (a hard black volcanic rock), standing taller than seven feet and measuring about six feet around at its base. NCSS.D2.His.16.6-8. For what purpose does the first paragraph say the gods called upon Hammurabi? Read with the class the first three paragraphs (starting near the end of the first paragraph with the words "That the strong might not injure the weak") and the first sentence of the fifth paragraph. The technical knowledge, tools, and skills of the Babylonians? Extremely rare spoonie bird added to ark of imperiled animals, Monarch butterflies are now an endangered species, Penguins are slow to evolve, making them vulnerable, For orphaned elephants, friends may be key to stress relief, These stunning insect close-ups reveal dazzling bug complexity, Dazzling photos show horseshoe crabs thriving in protected area, Extreme drought threatens Italys rice cropsand its beloved risotto, Increasingly heavy farm equipment is crushing fertile soils, The key to protecting Yosemites sequoias from wildfires? (83).

Then, with his power at home secure and his military forces primed, he began a five-year series of campaigns against rival states to the south and east, expanding his territory. The Amorite Kingdom of Mari in Syria had long been an ally of Amorite Babylon, and Hammurabi continued friendly relations with the king Zimri-Lim (r. 1775-1761 BCE). In the third paragraph, Hammurabi pledges his allegiance to the god Marduk-the highest in the Babylonian pantheon, comparable to Zeus in the Greek pantheon. King Hammurabi at WorshipOsama Shukir Muhammed Amin (Copyright). Have students describe the image at the top of the stele and then answer the questions about the stele available as a PDF. Its purpose is to stimulate student thinking about the reasons behind Hammurabi's Code. A preamble, like the introduction to an essay, states the purpose of what follows. Ask students to point to a specific example. Unlike Sargon the Great, however, whose multi-ethnic empire was continually torn by internecine strife, Hammurabi ruled over a kingdom whose people enjoyed relative peace following his conquest. Sin-Muballit led a force against Larsa but was defeated by their king Rim Sin I. Download and prepare as necessary handouts from the downloadable PDFs for this lesson. How has Hammurabi's Code influenced subsequent codes of law?

Tales of evil sorcerers and sorceresses are found throughout many periods of Mesopotamian history and the writers of these tales always have them meet with a bad end as, it seems, they also did when submitted to the Ordeal. Unlike the earlier Code of Ur-Nammu, which imposed fines or penalties of land, Hammurabi's code epitomized the principle known as Lex Talionis, the law of retributive justice, in which punishment corresponds directly to the crime, better known as the concept of 'an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth', made famous from the later law code of the Old Testament, exemplified in this passage from the Book of Exodus: If people are fighting and hit a pregnant woman and she gives birth prematurely but there is no serious injury, the offender must be fined whatever the woman's husband demands and the court allows. World History Encyclopedia. Read through the lesson plan and visit the websites you plan to have your students use. Related Content After the students become more familiar with the contents of the code, they will be given the opportunity to form their own hypotheses. This should enable the students to appreciate the context of the excerpts they will read on their own. Hammurabis dynasty lasted only a few generations before it toppled. The Code of Ur-Nammu (c. 2100-2050 BCE), which originated with either Ur-Nammu (r. 2047-2030 BCE) or his son Shulgi of Ur (r. 2029-1982 BCE), is the oldest code of laws in the world. But we now know that Hammurabi's was one of many codes created before and after his reign. The success of Hammurabi's military operations expanded Babylon north along the Tigris and Euphrates and south to what is now called the Persian Gulf. By 1755 BCE, when he was the undisputed master of Mesopotamia, Hammurabi was old and sick. by the state for committing such crime without assuming a communal understanding of the god's will in these matters: If a man put out the eye of another man, his eye shall be put out. All rights reserved. "Hammurabi." To what extent does Hammurabi's Code still influencehow we create and enforce laws? Explain multiple causes and effects of events and developments in the past. Its purpose, he declared, was to cause justice to rise like the sun over the people, and to light up the land..