Babylonian and Assyrian time line



CHRONOLOGICAL OUTLINE

OF BABYLONIAN AND ASSYRIAN HISTORY.

B.C.8000 (?) - Early settlements at Nippur and Susa. 6000 (?)--Eridu, Lagash, and other cities in existence. 5000(?)-Semitic migration from Arabia. 4500 (?)--En-shag-kushanna, king of Sumer, defeats the Semite tribes of the north. 4200 (?)--The city of Lagash rules Sumer under a regular line of kings whose inscriptions have been found. 4000 (?)--A revolution of the lower classes in Lagash headed by Urukagina, the first reformer. Lugal-zag-gisi conquers Lagash and founds the earliest empire. 38000 (This date seems fairly established by later records, so that all the later dates are probably correct within a century or so.)--Sargon founds the kingdom of Akkad and rules over most of western Asia. 3750--His son Naram-Sin succeeds him. The many tablets recovered prove this to have been an age of high civilization, the "golden age" of Babylonia. 3700--After Naram-Sin the empire of Akkad fades. 3200--Ur becomes the chief city under its king Urgur, a mighty builder. 2500--Another Semitic incursion. 2450--Sumu-abi makes Babylon the capital of a Semitic kingdom. 2285--The Elamites in a frightful raid almost wipe out all the kingdoms of the Euphrates. 2265--Abraham repels the Elamites from Palestine. Hammurabi defeats them and makes Babylon the permanent capital of Babylonia. He is a great builder and lawgiver. 1830--Ishmedagan and his son, the first known rulers or high priests of Assyria, build a temple in Asshur. 1750--The Kassites conquer Babylon and become its kings. 1700--Bel-kapkapu of Asshur declares his independency of Babylon. 1530--The Egyptians under Thothmes III. ravage Asia to the borders of Assyria and Babylonia and receive tribute from both states. 1400--Period of the "Tel-el-Amarna," letters of diplomacy between Egypt and Babylon showing that Babylonian was the state language of Asia. 1278--Tukulti-ninib of Assyria captures and plunders Babylon. 1270--Babylon regains her freedom. 1135--Nebuchadnezzar I. of Babylon defeats the Elamites, regains the image of his god, Marduk, and restores Babylon's power. 1120--Tiglathpileser I. begins the building of Assyria's first great empire. 1110--He conquers Babylon. 1050--His empire grows weak under his successors. 885--The mighty "second empire" of Assyria begins under Assur-nazir-pal. 854--The conquest of Syria and wars with the Hebrews begun. 840--The prophet Jonah preaches in Nineveh. 834--Jehu, king of Israel, in alliance with Assyria against Damascus. 827--Assur-dain-pal rebels against his father, and civil war divides Assyria. 822--Assur-dain-pal is besieged in his capital and slain, giving rise to the Sardanapalus legend. 796--Babylonian religion established in Assyria. 763--An eclipse of the sun, civil war rages in Assyria until--745--Pul wins the throne and as Tiglathpileser III. establishes a new line of kings. 738--He holds a splendid celebration and receives homage from all the kings of western Asia. 729--He is declared ruler of the old Babylonian empire. 727--He dies. 722--Sargon II. completes the destruction of the Kingdom of Israel. He wins the battle of Raphia, completing the subjugation of Syria and Palestine. 705-681--Reign of the terrible Sennacherib. 701--He defeats the Egyptians in Palestine, besieges Jerusalem, his army stricken by pestilence. 691--He defeats the Elamites and Babylonians in a great battle at Khalule. 689--He destroys Babylon. 681--He is slain by his sons, who are defeated by another son, Esarhaddon. 680--Esarhaddon, a good king, rebuilds Babylon. 675--He invades Arabia. 670--He conquers Egypt. 668--He dies and is succeeded by his son Assurbanipal, the peaceful king. 655--Egypt frees herself. 650--A long war with Elam ends in its complete destruction. 626--Death of Assurbanipal, the last great Assyrian king. 625--The Scyths invade Assyria. Babylon rebels under Nabopolassar. 609--He unites with the Medes and besieges Nineveh. 607--Nineveh stormed and destroyed. Babylon's empire renewed. 605--Egyptian invasion repulsed by Nebuchadnezzar in a great battle at Karchemish. 604--562--Reign of Nebuchadnezzar the Great over Babylonia. 597--He storms Jerusalem. 585--He begins the great thirteen-year siege of Tyre. 568--He builds the "Hanging Gardens" of Babylon. 567--He invades Egypt. 555--Nabonidos, the last king of Babylonia, begins his reign. 538--Babylon captured by the Persians, becomes a Persian province. 514--Darius, the Persian king, destroys the walls of Babylon to prevent its frequent revolts. 487-Xerxes sacks Babylon after a revolt. 331--Babylon taken by Alexander the Great, who dies there, 323. 312--Seleucus, one of Alexander's generals, becomes king of an empire, including Babylon, and builds a new capital, Seleucia, so that Babylon decays. 140--Babylonia seized by the Parthians. 63--Seized by the Romans.

A.D. 750--The Babylonian city of Baghdad made the capital of the Mahometan caliphs. 1637--Babylonia conquered by the Turks. 1842--Modern excavations begun by M. Botta. 1848--Layard excavated Nineveh. 1866-George Smith started the reading of the Babylonian writing. 1877--M. de Sarzec began the excavations at Lagash. 1900--Discovery of the law code of Hammurabi.





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