Law Code of Hammurabi
October 17, 2010
“Law Code of Hammurabi” Throughout the history of civilization there has been a need for order amongst societies. This order has been seen in the ruling of kings and the laws they created. Most of these laws were set into motion on the basis of whatever the king said is what happened. With the Code of Hammurabi there is a written law that was portrayed as something that not even the king could change. The purpose of this paper is to give a general background of ancient Babylon during the reign of Hammurabi, present the background of the Code of Hammurabi, and discuss the medium and manner in which it was presented. Hammurabi was the sixth king in the old Babylonian period. He became king in 1792 B.C. while still a young man. During his rule he spent time on many traditional aspects such as building and restoring temples, building city walls, and building canals. However, many accounts note Hammurabi as being the king to unite Mesopotamia under the rule of the Babylonian Empire. Hammurabi did this through a series of military and diplomatic alliances, as well as, through series military conquests. He had an organized and well-disciplined military. This allowed him to greatly extend his original empire in every direction. Despite the many wars and military conquest Hammurabi brought peace and prosperity into Mesopotamia. He was also thought to be concerned with being a just ruler and was viewed as a “guarantee of justice” (Ascalone, 114). The unification of the empire under Hammurabi led to increased trade with the Persians which ultimately led to more wealth being acquired. It also led to the incorporation new deities such as Shamash, Ishtar, and Adad. Shamash especially became important during Hammurabi’s rule. Shamash initially was the sun king and later also became known as the “guarantor of equity and social justice” (Ascalone, 136). Hammurabi was unique in comparison to the rulers before him in that he did not deify
“Law Code of Hammurabi” Throughout the history of civilization there has been a need for order amongst societies. This order has been seen in the ruling of kings and the laws they created. Most of these laws were set into motion on the basis of whatever the king said is what happened. With the Code of Hammurabi there is a written law that was portrayed as something that not even the king could change. The purpose of this paper is to give a general background of ancient Babylon during the reign of Hammurabi, present the background of the Code of Hammurabi, and discuss the medium and manner in which it was presented. Hammurabi was the sixth king in the old Babylonian period. He became king in 1792 B.C. while still a young man. During his rule he spent time on many traditional aspects such as building and restoring temples, building city walls, and building canals. However, many accounts note Hammurabi as being the king to unite Mesopotamia under the rule of the Babylonian Empire. Hammurabi did this through a series of military and diplomatic alliances, as well as, through series military conquests. He had an organized and well-disciplined military. This allowed him to greatly extend his original empire in every direction. Despite the many wars and military conquest Hammurabi brought peace and prosperity into Mesopotamia. He was also thought to be concerned with being a just ruler and was viewed as a “guarantee of justice” (Ascalone, 114). The unification of the empire under Hammurabi led to increased trade with the Persians which ultimately led to more wealth being acquired. It also led to the incorporation new deities such as Shamash, Ishtar, and Adad. Shamash especially became important during Hammurabi’s rule. Shamash initially was the sun king and later also became known as the “guarantor of equity and social justice” (Ascalone, 136). Hammurabi was unique in comparison to the rulers before him in that he did not deify