ANCIENT CIVILISATIONS

ANCIENT CIVILISATIONS

1. RIVER CIVILISATIONS

   • The first civilisations are known as river civilisations.
   • The first civilisations were Mesopotamia (rivers Tigris and Euphrates) , Egypt (Nile), India and Pakistan (Indus) and China (Huang He - Yellow and Yangtze - Blue).
   • The flooding of great rivers fertilised the land and produced abundant harvests. For this reason, people had enough food.
   • The importance of writing
     • Writing was first used in Mesopotamia in about 3500 BC
     • It was a decisive development. People could made detailed notes of taxes, trade and population
     • This discover separate the History from Prehistory.
   • The characteristics of river cilisations
     • Political power
       • They had powerful rulers.
       • The king led the army, made laws and was also a religious leader. He was assisted by state officials.
     • Social hierarchy
       • There was a small minority of priveleged people, who where often members of the king's family.
       • Most people were poor.
     • Large-scale building works
       • They had irrigation canals carried water from the river to the fiels were crops were grown.
       • The kings built impressive palaces, temples and tombs.

2. MESOPOTAMIA

   • The natural environment
     • It developed in the fourth millennium BC in the region betwen the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.
     • It was a very dry region, but they used irrigation canals.
     • It had commercial links with Asia Minor (now Turkey), Syria and the Mediterranean.
   • City-states and empires
     • City-states were ruled by kings
     • Some kings expanded their territories and became empires.
     • Periods
       • Sumer. In 3000 BC, the Sumerians lived in independent city-states,like Uruk and Ur.
       • Akkadian Empire. In BC, King Sargon conquered the Sumerian city-states. He founded the Akkadian empire.
       • Babylonian Empire. After 1800 BC, the rulers of the city-state of Babylon established the first Babylonian Empire.
       • Assyrian Empire. After 1350 BC, the Assyrians created a series of empires. In the seventh century BC the Assyrian stretched from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf.
       • Neo-Babylonian Empire. In the late seventh century, a new Babylonian empire was founded. Nebuchadnezzar was its most famous ruler.

3. EGYPT

   • The importance of the river Nile
     • Ancient Egypt is one of the most important ancient civilisations . It developed in north-eas Africa more than 5.000 years ago.
     • Egyptians lived near the river Nile.
     • They called the river valley the black land because it was covered by dark fertile mud from the river
     • The dry deserts were called the red lands.
     • It provided water, for human needs and agriculture and it was also the main route of communications
   • The history of Egypt
     • In the fourth millennium BF, independent kingdoms appeared in Lower Egypt ( near the Nile Delta) and Upper Egypt (further south).
     • In 3100 BC King Menes united these kingdoms and became the first pharaoh.
     • Periods
       • The Old Kingdom (3100-2050 BC)
         • The Egyptian state was created
         • Pharaoh became powerful and was a divine figure. Ex. Khufu, Khafra and Menkaura.
         • The Pyramids was built in Giza.
         • The capital was Memphis
       • The Middle Kingdom (2050-1580 BC)
         • The power of pharaohs increased.
         • They conquered new territories in the south
         • The capital was Thebes
       • The New Kingdom (1580-31 BC)
         • The famous pharaohs were Thutmose I, Amenhotep III, Akenhaten and Ramesses II
         • Large palaces and temples were built.
         • Lybra and Syria were conquered.
       • From 1100 BC , there was severalforeign invasions. Egypt was invaded by the Assirians, Persians, Greeks and Romans.
   • Society in Ancient Egypt
     • The pharaoh
       • He was who governed the country and he had absolute power.
       • He governed the country, led the army, creed laws and owned much of the land.
       • Egyptians believed that the pharaohs were gods. So they had magical powers and control de water of Nile.
       • Paraohs were succeeded by their children, so dynasties were created
     • The Egytian state
       • There was different people who helped to govern the Egyptian state
         • Civil servants organised the vast territories of the empire.
         • The noblemen received land and treasures from the pharaoh. They often belonged to the paraoh's family. They were governors of the provinces.
         • The priests directed religious rituals in the temples. They also owned land. Peasants worked for them.
         • The scribes kept official records and counted the goods in the royal warehouses. They had a very important role because they knew how to read, write and count.
         • Soldiers protected the frontiers. They received land, gold and slaves from the pharaoh.
     • Other people
       • Peasants
         • Most people were peasants.
         • They lived in mud brick houses along the Nile .
         • They worked on the lands beloning to the pharaoh, the priests or noblemen and pay taxes to them.
         • When the land was flooded, they worked to bult pharaoh's monument.
       • Craftsmen
         • They made sculptures, pottery, textiles and papyrus.
       • Merchants
         • They exchanged products because they didn't have money. They brought wood, minerals and perfums from other regions.
       • Servants
         • They were free people who worked for a salary
       • Slaves
         • They were often prisoners of war and had no rights.
         • They worked in domestic service, the mines and building works.
       • The role of women
         • Egyptian women had some rights and enjoyed more freedom than other ancient civilisations.
         • They could do housework or worked as peasants or servants.
         • It was unusual that they could have official posts. However, Hatshepsut and Cleopatra were female pharaohs.
   • Religion in Egypt
     • A polytheistic religion
       • They believed in many gods.
       • The most important god was the Sun, who was called Ra, Amun or Atum.
     • Other important gods were Isis, Osiris and Horus.
     • Other sacred figures were some animals (cat, croccodile), the River Nile and pharaohs.
     • Egyptians believed that the religion maintened the order of universe. So religious rituals made that River Nile flooded each year.
     • Each god had a temple, where priests made offerings to its statue. On the god's feast day, the statue was taken out in procession
     • Attitudes to death
       • Egyptian believed that people had a life after death if there bodies were preserved.
       • They mummified their bodies when they died. They dry the body and made a mummy. Then it was placed in a sarcophagus.
       • The tomb of a wealthy pearson contained everything they needed in the afterlife. The biggest tombs were the pyramids.
     • Temples
       • The most important temples had an avenue of sphinxes leading to the entrance, There were great halls and a sanctuary insidee the building where was the staute of the god.
       • Ex. Karnak
       • There was tall columns with representations of flowers or gods.
   • Art in Egypt
     • Artists where the pharaoh's officials and worked in teams. They were considered craftsmen.
     • Most of the art had a religious meaning. Temples and tombs were decorated.
     • Other works had political meaning. Temples were decorated with war paintings or the life of the pa¡haraoh.
     • Painting
       • It changed very little during 3000 years and arists followed strict rules
       • Figures are represented in a hierarchical order: the largest figures are the most important.
       • Figures are painted without perspective.
       • Objects are seen from the front
       • The human body is shown the front but the head, arms and legs are seen in profile.
       • Important people were idealised. They were always young and beautiful
       • Human figures are static.