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Hammurabi
Biography Makeup Assignment
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Read
this biography about Hammurabi. Write a 250 word essay and email it to
[email protected]
or turn it into the box.
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In your essay answer:
- Would Hammurabi of been found in the Fertile Crescent or ancient Egypt?
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- Explain what his code said.
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- Would you want him to be our president today? Explain.
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Died: c. 1750 BC
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Other Names: Hammurabi; Hammurabi, King of Babylon; Hammurapi, King of Babylon
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Nationality: Babylonian
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Occupation: King
Hammurabi (reigned 1792-1750 B.C.) was a Babylonian king. One of the outstanding rulers of early
antiquity, he is especially known as a lawgiver, the author of the code which bears his name.
Nothing is known of the early life of Hammurabi. His name, sometimes written Khammurapikh, is West
Semitic, and he was the sixth ruler of the Amorite dynasty founded by Shumu-Abum in 1894 B.C. On his
accession, Hammurabi inherited a kingdom of moderate size, one of a number of Mesopotamian citystates.
Early Rule
The first years of Hammurabi's reign were spent in consolidating his rule and in diplomatic maneuvers
which strengthened his position; in alliance with Rim-Sin, king of neighboring Larsa, he repelled the
Elamites from the eastern frontier, but in his thirtieth year, he turned against his former ally; Rim-Sin
capitulated, and Hammurabi became master of the south. He then conquered the kingdom of Mari, and in
1759 B.C. that city was razed by his orders. Eshnunna and Assyria soon fell to him as well.
These successes established Hammurabi as the leading power in western Asia. He controlled the trade
routes to the west and may even have campaigned beyond the Euphrates, though the once popular
identification of Hammurabi with "Amraphel, King of Shinar" (Genesis 14:9), does not nowadays find
credence. His organization of the captured territories was known from letters he sent to his officials and
the governors of provinces; these showed him as an able administrator who supervised in person every
aspect of his government.
Code of Hammurabi
The code of laws published by Hammurabi's order in every city of his realm has survived in several
copies. The most complete was a stele of polished black diorite, standing eight feet high at Susa, whither
it had been carried by a later conqueror. The laws, originally 282 in number, do not form a complete code
in the modern sense but are rather a series of enactments dealing with specific cases in which reform or
clarification was needed.
They deal with a variety of subjects: marriage and inheritance, slavery, debt and usury, and the activities
of trader, farmer, and tavern keeper. Compensation for specific injuries, the fees of surgeon and barber
and veterinarian, a scale of punishments for assault and theft, the wages of laborers, and charges for the
hire of boats and livestock are all laid down.
In the prologue to his code, the King declared his desire to "establish justice," and at the end he declared
that through his enactments "the strong shall not injure the weak, and the orphan and the widow shall
receive justice." Although this was not a new concept--earlier compilations of laws are known-Hammurabi yet stands out as one of the great humanitarian figures of history.