The era of Mesopotamia. Mesopotamia periodization and main stages of development

Keywords: sesame, Sumerians, Akkadians, Gilgamesh, Sargon the Great, Hammurabi, Nebuchadnezzar.

Geography and population.

The region that we call Mesopotamia (Greek: Mesopotamia) occupies the entire territory of modern Iraq and the adjacent regions of Turkey and Syria. It can also be considered as the southern "horn" of the so-called Fertile Crescent - a curved strip of land suitable for cultivation, including the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, the foothills of the Taurus and Zagros and the basin of two great rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates.

With all the diversity of the natural conditions of this region, two main zones are quite clearly distinguished in it: north and south. Northern (Upper) Mesopotamia is a heterogeneous area in terms of relief and landscape, where a hilly plain passes into the foothills of the Taurus and Zagros. The uneven landscape prevents the construction of any significant canals here, therefore the agriculture of Upper Mesopotamia was highly dependent on rains.

Cattle breeding was especially well developed here. The most important trade routes of antiquity passed through this region, along which they brought gold and precious stones from India, tin and lapis lazuli from Afghanistan, lead, silver and iron from the Iranian Highlands. Very early trade became one of the most important occupations of the population of this region.

Southern (Lower) Mesopotamia is a completely flat, gradually decreasing plain. Such terrain, combined with the ability to control the flow and floods of two mighty rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates, very early led to the emergence here of a wide network of diversion channels, locks and reservoirs. It was the canals and regular maintenance of them that ensured the functioning of the main economic sector of the population of the south - agriculture and made it possible to grow huge crops at that time.

Barley was the main crop, and wheat was also grown. The main technical culture was sesame (he is also the famous sesame or sim-sim). Oil was made from it. They also grew legumes, onions, garlic, herbs, which were seasoned with rather insipid and monotonous food - barley cakes and something like porridge. Different types of beer were brewed from barley. Sometimes ancient Mesopotamia is called the land of "barley, beer and sesame oil." Of fruit trees, the date palm occupied the most important place, from the fruits of which a wide variety of dishes were made.

Sheep were bred, mainly for wool, as well as cattle and poultry, but meat was consumed very rarely by the majority of the population, mainly during holidays. In the rivers and swamps of southern Mesopotamia, there was a huge amount of a wide variety of fish, marsh birds, turtles and other living creatures. There was almost no wood and stone here. Of the resources available in antiquity, clay and reeds were abundant.

Languages and ethnic groups.

The oldest known population of southern Mesopotamia was Sumerians, appeared here in the 5th millennium BC. e. The origin of this people is still a mystery to researchers, and the Sumerian language has no common features with any other language. It was the Sumerians who mastered the territory of Southern Mesopotamia, created here by the beginning III millennium BC. e. a powerful network of irrigation canals and built numerous cities. In the end III millennium BC. e. the Sumerians disappeared as an ethnic group, and since that time the Sumerian language has been used exclusively in the written and cult sphere.

The oldest ethnic group known to us in northern Mesopotamia were akkadians, which appeared here at the turn of IV and III millennium BC. e. The language they spoke (Akkadian) belonged to the eastern branch of the Semitic language family. The languages of this group were spoken by many peoples of the ancient Near East (Canaanites, Arameans, Phoenicians, etc.). The languages of the Semitic group also include the languages spoken by many modern peoples living in the Middle East (Arabs, Jews). In II millennium BC. e. the Akkadians were divided into two peoples related in language and culture: the Babylonians and the Assyrians, and the Akkadian language was divided into two dialects: northern (Assyrian) and southern (Babylonian).

In different periods of antiquity, other peoples also appeared on the territory of Mesopotamia: Amorites, Hurrians, Kassites, Arameans, Elamites. However, it was the Sumerians and Akkadians who played a decisive role in the history of Mesopotamia from the end of the 4th to the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. The Sumero-Akkadian civilization of Mesopotamia made a huge contribution to the history of mankind.

Writing. It was the Sumerians who were probably the creators of the oldest writing system in the world. At the end of the IV millennium BC. e. in southern Mesopotamia, the first written documents appeared: clay tablets with pictographic (pictorial) inscriptions. Later, these drawings turned into a combination of "wedges" - wedge-shaped strokes left on clay with a reed stick. Therefore, the writing that arose in Mesopotamia and existed here for almost 3 thousand years is called cuneiform. Particularly important inscriptions were carved in cuneiform characters on stone, but most often they were written in cuneiform on clay.

The Akkadians borrowed the cuneiform writing system from the Sumerians, adapting it to their language, and from the middle III millennium BC. e. the first cuneiform texts appeared in Akkadian.

Political history.

The existence of the Mesopotamian civilization - one of the oldest in the world - covers a long historical period from the middle of the 4th millennium BC to BC. e. and up to the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. During this time, like any other civilization, it went through many different stages of development: periods of prosperity, decline, "dark" periods, etc.

At the end of the IV millennium BC. e. in the south of Mesopotamia, inhabited by the Sumerians, there were already several dozen large cities (Eredu, Ur, Uruk, Kish, etc.). One of the largest Sumerian cities was the city of Uruk, in which in the XXVIII century BC. e. ruled by the famous hero of the Sumerian-Akkadian epic Gilgamesh.

Temples and administrative buildings were located in the center of each city, and around them were residential quarters, where from 10 to 40 thousand people lived. The cities were surrounded by walls, next to which were date gardens and vegetable gardens. Next was a zone of well-irrigated territory, where grain crops were grown. The city and the territory adjacent to it were considered the household (house) of the main city god, and the townspeople were servants of this household. Everyone, from the plowman to the chief priest, performed their role, which was necessary for the well-being of this economy.

The Sumerian cities were interconnected by close economic and cultural ties and constituted something like an urban union or federation. The center of this association was the sacred city of Nippur, where the temple of the main god of the Sumerians, the god Enlil, was located. It was here that the most important religious holidays were held, gathering all the inhabitants of southern Mesopotamia.

towards the middle III millennium BC. e. The climate of Mesopotamia became more arid, and the water resources needed to irrigate the fields were reduced. In the struggle for water and fertile land, the Sumerian cities began to increasingly enter into military conflicts with each other. The northern neighbors of the Sumerians, the Akkadians, took advantage of these civil strife, having conquered the south of Mesopotamia in the 24th century BC. e.

Akkadian king Sargon the Great (or Sargon of Akkad) for the first time united the entire territory of Mesopotamia into a single state, the capital of which was the city of Akkad, located not far from modern Baghdad. Sargon became famous for his campaigns and conquests, his warriors went from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea, visited Asia Minor and Cyprus. The memory of this great king and commander is preserved in numerous myths and legends telling about his life and deeds.

In recent centuries III millennium BC. e. Ur, one of the ancient Sumerian cities, became the capital of Mesopotamia. State III dynasty of Ur (XXII-XXI centuries BC) became famous for the precise organization of the management system. From this time, tens of thousands of clay tablets with cuneiform texts have been preserved, which are the reporting records of officials who carefully recorded all economic activities.

The raids of neighbors from the west (Amorites) and the southeast (Elamites) led to the death of the state III Dynasty of Ur, and Mesopotamia again broke up into separate city-states, between which there was a constant struggle for leadership. The city of Babylon, where the great king ruled, won this fight. Hammurabi(1792-1750 BC). From that time on, Babylon became not only the capital of the newly united Mesopotamia, but also became the most important cultural and religious center of the entire ancient Near East.

We have come down to laws written by order of Hammurabi, in which the legal norms of property and family relations were established. The text of the laws was carved on a stone stele under a relief depicting a king accepting laws from the god of the Sun and justice, Shamash. The society in which these laws were in force was divided into three social groups: free people (avilums), dependent people (mushkenums), who lived off salaries or land allotments issued for service, and slaves. The king was not only the head of state, but also the supreme judge and, most importantly, an intermediary between his people and the gods, on whose favor the life of the country depended.

In the end II millennium BC. e. in the north of Mesopotamia, a new state arose and gradually strengthened: Assyria with its capital in the city Auiuiy-re. It was Assyria in the 1st millennium BC. e. became the most powerful military power in the Middle East. The Assyrian army, famous for its invincibility and cruelty, conquered all of Asia Minor and even Egypt, turning Assyria into the first "world empire".

The conquered peoples paid huge tribute to Assyria, which allowed the Assyrian kings to build new capitals with beautiful palaces and temples, and the military nobility to grow rich beyond measure. At the same time, the working population of the country, peasants and artisans, ruined by exorbitant state requisitions and military drafts, were on the verge of ruin, and the country's economy was gradually falling into decay.

The last Assyrian king Ashurbanipal was not only a great conqueror, but also a highly educated person, a poet and a lover of literature. In his capital city Nineveh, he ordered the construction of a huge library building, where tens of thousands of cuneiform tablets with literary and religious texts were collected. Part of his huge library survived and was found by archaeologists.

In the end VII century BC e. the great Assyrian empire perished under the blows of the Medes and Babylonians. Power over the territory of the Middle East passed from Assyria to Babylonia. Great king of Babylon Nebuchadnezzar , whose name is mentioned in the Bible, turned his capital, the city of Babylon, into the richest and most beautiful city in the world. A powerful stone bridge across the Euphrates was built here, many beautiful palaces and high temples, one of which served as a prototype for the legend of the Tower of Babel, luxurious gardens were planted (the so-called gardens of Babylon). In addition to the Babylonians, many artisans and merchants from all over the world of that time lived in the city of Babylon. Different languages, customs and traditions coexisted peacefully in a huge city, the population of which exceeded one hundred thousand people.

In 539 BC. e. all of Mesopotamia, including Babylonia, was conquered by the army of the Persian king Cyrus and included in the great Persian empire.

The Mesopotamian civilization has played a huge role in the history of mankind. It was here that one of the oldest writing systems appeared, the first rudiments of mathematics and astronomy arose. Here appeared the oldest version of the legend of the Flood, the most ancient epic in the history of mankind, the epic of Gilgamesh, was recorded, beautiful monuments of art were created.

Hundreds of thousands of clay tablets, which contain Sumerian and Akkadian literary texts, royal inscriptions, economic documents, private letters that have come down to us from ancient Mesopotamia, are kept in various museums of the world and are waiting for their researcher.

The study of the languages, history and culture of ancient Mesopotamia, as well as other peoples of the ancient Near East who used the cuneiform writing system (Urartians, Hittites, Hurrians, Elamites, etc.) is engaged in a science called Assyriology.

test questions

1. Describe the geographical location of Mesopotamia.

2. Describe the population of Mesopotamia: languages and ethnic groups.

3. Indicate the main features of culture: writing, language.

4. What is the political history of Mesopotamia?

5. List the monuments of Mesopotamia.

Iran in Ancient and Middle Ages

Keywords: Zoroastrianism, Avesta, Manichaeism.

Media and the Achaemenid Empire. The Iranian Highlands, on which modern Iran (from the ancient Persian aryanam (khshasram) - “Aryans (kingdom))”) and Afghanistan, began to be settled by Iranian-speaking tribes from the Black Sea and Trans-Caspian steppes in the middle of the 2nd millennium BC. e. The Medes and Persians settled in the west and south of the highlands no later than the 9th century. BC e. At the end of the 8th century BC. e. the Medes were subject to Assyria, but a century later they achieved independence.

By this time, the Persians had created a small state in the south (the modern province of Fars), on the territory of the former Elamite Anshana. In the middle of the 7th century BC. e. Cyrus II, the king of Persia from the Achaemenid dynasty, captured Media, Parthia, Bactria, Margiana, Sogdiana, Khorezm and Babylon, initiating the creation of the Achaemenid state. The conquests were continued by the successors of Cyrus, including Darius I, who re-organized the system of government of the huge state, dividing it into satrapies.

The official language of the Achaemenid state was Aramaic with the Semitic alphabet, and in the satrapies, along with it, local languages were used. Royal inscriptions were carved on stone in three types of cuneiform writing in three languages - Old Persian, Akkadian and Elamite.

The subsequent period was marked by the gradual decline and disintegration of the Achaemenid state, which coincided with the campaigns to the east of the army of Alexander the Great.

The rise of Zoroastrianism. In the VII-VI centuries. BC e. Zoroastrianism arose in Eastern Iran - a religious doctrine, the founder of which was Zoroaster (Zarathushtra). The supreme deity of Zoroastrianism was Ahu-ra Mazda, personifying goodness, truth and peace and opposing Ahra Manyu - the embodiment of evil, lies and death. According to Zoroastrianism, man was created by Ahura Mazda and must help him in the fight against Ahra Manyu. During this period, the oldest parts were created And the news- the sacred book of Zoroastrianism - which included mythical and epic tales dating back to the Indo-Iranian (Aryan) community, Ghats("chants") - poetic sermons of Zarathushtra and hymns addressed to the pre-Zoroastrian gods.

After the death of Zarathushtra, his followers converted the Indian tribe of magicians to their faith, as a result of which magician became synonymous with the concept of "Zore-Astrian priest". In Persia, Zoroastrianism began to spread under Darius I, but the Achaemenid kings continued to worship the ancient gods, personifying the forces of nature (Mitra, Anahita, etc.). The Achaemenid religion was Mazdayasnian (“worshiping Mazda”), a modification of Zoroastrianism.

Seleucia and Parthia. After the death of Alexander the Great (323 BC), his power, which arose on the ruins of the Achaemenid Empire, broke up into several states, the largest of which was the state founded by Seleucus. A century later, the eastern regions of Seleucia became part of the Greco-Bactrian and Parthian kingdoms. The founder of the latter is Arshak, who gave the name to the Arshakids dynasty. Parthia became a world power in the 2nd century BC. e, when she extended her power to all of Iran and most of Mesopotamia. Arshak-dy fell at the beginning of the 3rd century AD. e., when the Sassanid dynasty rose in the province of Pars.

In Parthia, there was no Iranianization of the conquered peoples, and the latter continued to worship their gods. In the visual arts, the artists followed the same Hellenistic patterns. At the same time, the Zoroastrian deities received an anthropomorphic appearance and a pictorial portrait of the Iranian king was formed, which reached its peak in Sasanian art. The birth of the East Iranian heroic epic and the appearance of singer-storytellers date back to this time.

The Parthian state had several official written languages, including Greek and Parthian, which was written based on the Aramaic alphabet.

Sasanian powers a. Ardashir, the son of King Papak from the Sasan clan, was crowned to power in Pars in 227. The Early Sasanian state was a federation of separate kingdoms, but later centralization of power took place in Iran.

Under the Sassanids, Zoroastrianism developed as a dogmatic religion and became the state religion. At this time, the idea of the divine origin of royal power was formed, and the magicians concentrated in their hands the judicial proceedings and education.

The activity of the founder of his own religion, Mani, dates back to the 3rd century. He grew up in Babylonia and spoke Aramaic, and his teachings were eclectic and included Zoroastrian elements, assimilated by him through the Judeo-Christian tradition. Mani created his own alphabet for writing his texts in the Middle Iranian languages. Soon Manichaeism became different in different countries, where it changed in accordance with local teachings.

The supreme deity in Manichaeism was Zrvan - Divine Time, known in some Zoroastrian sects. Ormazd (Ahura Mazda) also fights the forces of evil in Manichaeism, this doctrine, like Zoroastrianism, contained the idea of the Last Judgment and the coming of the Messiah, but, unlike Zoroastrianism, Manichaeism denied the participation of man in the fight against evil and preached a refusal from any action. At the end of the 3rd century, Mani's teachings were declared heresy, and he himself was executed.

At the same time, the reform of Zoroastrianism was undertaken. She restored the cults of the pre-Zoroastrian gods (in particular, Anahita as the gods of fertility, plants and waters), revived the cult of the divine essence - the royal farrah (Khvarny Kaviy), the epithet "key" was added to the official royal title, i.e., a descendant of the legendary Kaviy dynasty. At the same time, the Little Avesta was compiled - a collection of prayers and hymns for daily reading.

In the 5th century, the priest Mazdak began to preach his teaching, combining Zoroastrianism with some of the ideas of Mani. Unlike the latter, he called on believers to take action for the coming of a better kingdom in the near future. This teaching became the ideological basis for popular uprisings. When Mazdak lost the support of the king, he was executed, and the Mazdakit movement was suppressed.

Iran under the last Sassanids. The years of the reign of the last Sassanids were a time of prosperity for the state. Khosrov Anoshirvan carried out reforms to strengthen the state, military and tax systems. At this time, epic legends about the legendary Kayanidah (Kaviyah), images of heroes and kings appear, numerous literary works are created.

Codification of the Avesta. In VI century, the codification of the Avesta was carried out, for which a special alphabet was created - on the basis of the Pahlavi script of the Middle Persian manuscripts. The most important parts of the Avesta were translated verbatim from Avestan, which had by then become a dead language used only for religious purposes, into Middle Persian. The texts were accompanied by a detailed commentary - zend ("explanation"). The surviving Avestan texts were sorted into books according to their content.

Of the 21 books of the Sasanian canon, four have survived to this day:

Yasna ("worship"), containing prayers and including the Gathas of Zara-Tushtra; Visprat ("all the dominant ones");

Additions to Yasna of a similar nature; Videvdat ("law against devas");

A set of ritual regulations, created at a later time; Yashty ("praise");

Hymns to individual deities, including pre-Zoroastrian ones. A collection of prayers, the Lesser Avesta, and Avestan quotations in separate Pahlavi texts have also been preserved.

At the beginning of the 7th century, the struggle between the court parties intensified in Iran. At this time, a massive invasion of the Muslim Arab country began, and Iran was finally conquered by the Arabs.

test questions

1. What is the origin of the name "Iran"?

2. What was the official structure of the ancient Iranian society?

3. What ancient Iranian states do you know?

5. Describe the Iranian state before and after Alexander the Great.

6. What is the Avesta and the codification of the Avesta?

7. Specify the main monuments of the ancient Iranian civilization.

China

Keywords: Kung Tzu (Confucius), legists.

China is one of the oldest civilizations, a country of continuous cultural tradition. According to Chinese legend, in the middle III millennium BC the first emperor ruled on earth - Huangdi, the progenitor of the Chinese nation. Archaeological research of the XX century made it possible to reveal the scale and stages of the Stone Age in the territory of ancient China. Ancient Chinese civilization arose on the basis of the Neolithic cultures that developed in the Vi-lli millennia BC. e. in the middle reaches of the Yellow River. Starting from the 4th millennium BC, the early Peiligan culture was replaced by the Yangshao culture, which is characterized by the cultivation of chumiza (a kind of cereal close to millet), breeding of dogs and pigs, hunting and fishing.

In the III millennium BC. e. the ethnic interaction of the Yangshao and tribes of southern origin leads to the formation of the Late Neolithic culture of the Longshan in Henan, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Shandong. Painted Yangshao pottery was replaced by unpainted black and gray Longshan pottery. The Lunypans were engaged in sedentary agriculture, cattle breeding, built walled settlements, used a potter's wheel, honed and polished tools made of stone and bone (sickles, reaping knives, etc.). The first dynasty of rulers, where power was inherited, was the Xia dynasty (XXI-XVII centuries BC).

During the era of the Shang-Yin Dynasty (1600-1046 AD), an early state was formed in the middle reaches of the Yellow River. In the XIV-XI centuries. BC e. Bronze culture existed here, cities with palaces and temples were built, hieroglyphic writing appeared, agriculture and sericulture developed.

Five times the Yin moved the capital, and then founded the great city of Yin (near modern Anyang in the Henan province). The reign of the vans (kings) of Pan-gen (1300-1251 BC) and U-ding (1250-1192 BC) became the time of prosperity and power of the early Shang-Yin state. We learn about the events of ancient Chinese history from large-scale archaeological excavations (cities, burials, palaces, temples, workshops, etc.), from epigraphics (Yin inscriptions on tortoise shells and animal bones, mainly of religious content). ), from later written monuments, from folklore materials, language data and other sources.

“The main affairs in the state are sacrifices and wars,” one of the inscriptions read. The supreme ruler (Wang Yin) was also the high priest, with the help of divinatory inscriptions on shells and bones, he made requests and commands to the supreme deity. The capture of prisoners usually ended with their sacrifice to Heaven. In the Yin Dynasty, social inequality already existed, as can be clearly seen from the four categories of burials. Bronze was used mainly for the manufacture of weapons and ritual objects for sacrifices. In agriculture, the main tool remained a wooden spade (two-pronged stick with a crossbar).

In the great city of Yin and around it, the Yin people lived, and then there were dependent tribes, whose leaders received titles from the Yin wang, had to come to the wang, send tribute and, at his request, put up a militia. The Yin state had no other system of territorial division, except for the tribal one.

In the XI century BC. e. the Zhou tribe, which lived in the basin of the Wei-he River, the western tributary of the Yellow River, strengthened. The Zhou defeated Yin and subjugated a huge territory, which was divided into 200-300 hereditary possessions. Wang Zhou became the supreme ruler and high priest.

The Zhou people quickly adopted the cultural achievements of the Yin people - the technique of bronze casting, hieroglyphic writing, etc. The social inequality of the free population during the Western Zhou period was fixed in the system of social ranks. The entire free population was strictly divided into five social groups. From Wang Zhou - "the only one among people" - to commoners. All lands in the Celestial Empire were considered to belong to the van, all "lower" in rank received from the "superior" the right to own land; land could not be sold, donated, mortgaged. There was no private ownership of land during the Western Zhou period.

In 770 BC. e. Wang Zhou, under the pressure of nomadic tribes, was forced to move the capital to the east, to the city of Loi. Wang's power is weakening, the princes of Zhuhou are strengthening, who are fighting among themselves for hegemony. Residents of the Central Chinese Plain in the VIII-VII centuries. BC e. for the first time they begin to oppose themselves as a cultural-genetic community of "huaxia" to all the "barbarians" surrounding them. The ancient Chinese used iron, mastered arable farming using irrigation, arable implements and draft cattle, plowed not only the floodplain lands, but also the hard soils of the Central Chinese plain.

The former "hierarchical" system of land tenure is disintegrating, private property and the purchase and sale of land appear, and a land tax is introduced in the ancient Chinese principalities. In the middle of the 7th century BC. e. in the principality of Qi, for the first time, the redistribution of fields in the community was abolished by law. For the period from 722 to 207 BC. e. 565 cities were built; hundreds of cities became centers of crafts, trade and culture. Many artisans, merchants, representatives of the top communities and clans, using the labor of slaves, become rich people, strive to improve their social status. Spiritual culture develops. Starting from 841 BC. e. in Western Zhou began to keep annual records of events.

In the middle of the first millennium BC. e. the first Chinese schools and trends appeared in social and philosophical and religious thought: early Confucianism, Mohism, Legalism, ancient Taoism, etc. A special contribution to the development of Chinese spiritual culture was made Kung Tzu (Confucius)(551-479 BC) was a philosopher from the principality of Lu on the Shandong Peninsula.

In the teachings of Confucius, for the first time in China, the norms of human behavior in society were developed, the image of the “perfect person” (jun-tzu) was created, which in subsequent Chinese history became a model for the elite. In the most simplified form, the Confucian doctrine can be reduced to two main provisions - to the self-improvement of a person and to the art of managing people.

Confucius founded the first school in China and taught three thousand students. For the first time in Chinese history, he preached personal moral responsibility. Confucius taught that the rulers should govern the Celestial Empire not arbitrarily, but according to the rules, they have great rights, but there are also duties. The state, according to Confucius, is like a large patriarchal family, and the "father" of the state must manage as carefully as the father manages the family.

For the first time in the history of China, Confucius placed at the center of his sermon the problems of culture and education, the problems of harmony in nature and society. The sermon of Confucius was aimed at ennobling the daily life of a person, in order to prepare a person through education for the proper performance of his social function.

“That's when the natural properties of human nature and the acquired culture in a person are combined, it turns out jun-tzu (a person of high merit),” taught Confucius. In the upbringing of ideal personalities, he saw the key to creating a harmonious society, two stages along this path - "Society of Small Prosperity" and "Society of Great Unity" - are described by Confucius. They were addressed in different eras of Chinese history by various historical figures, including the leader of the reforms of 1898, Kang Yuwei, revolutionary democrat Sun Yat-sen, Chiang Kai-shek, Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping.

So, Confucius taught to manage the Celestial Empire with the help of philanthropy, rules and norms of behavior, duty and ritual.

Representatives of another school legalists(fajia) considered the law, the system of punishments and rewards, the absolute power of the ruler to be the main thing in administration. Legist Shang Yang in the middle of the 4th century BC. e. strengthened the kingdom of Qin with his reforms. The legists of Han Feizi and Li Si helped Prince Ying Zheng of Qin unite the Celestial Empire and create the Qin Empire (221-207 BC). The absolute power of Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi and the centralized administrative system were combined with communal self-government.

Uniform legislation was introduced with extremely cruel punishments. The unification of coins, measures and weights, as well as writing was carried out. By order of the emperor, they built the Great Wall of China, dozens of strategic roads, a huge mausoleum, many dozens of palaces. Hundreds of thousands of warriors were sent to conquer the lands in the north and south. By order of the emperor, "unnecessary" books were burned and "dangerous" Confucian scholars were executed.

After the fall of Qin, the Han Empire was established (206 BC - 220 AD). Han China is a huge empire with a developed economy and social sphere (most of the population are peasants, owners of plots of land).

Imperial Confucianism, the official ideology of the state, was created. From legalism, the position on the law as a means of governing the country was borrowed. However, legalist universal equality before the despot-emperor was rejected, the Confucian inequality of people, fixed by ritual, was much more in line with the interests of the imperial elite in the next two millennia.

In the Han era, the principles and structure of Chinese historical writing were finally formed. The great Chinese historian Sima Qian (145-86 BC) wrote the Historical Notes (Shi-chi) - the first general history, and Ban Gu (32-92 AD) wrote the first dynastic history - History of (Early) Han (Hanshu). For the first time under the Han, the practice of state examinations was introduced for selection to official positions. Architecture, agronomy, medicine, astronomy, fine and applied arts developed. Paper was invented, a seismograph was designed.

In the 3rd century A.D. e. China broke up into three kingdoms (Wei, Shu and Wu), and then the era of the invasion of nomads and political fragmentation began (IV - the end of the VI centuries). The Sui dynasty (581-618) acted as the unifier of the country, and after its fall, an empire was created Tang (618-907). Tang China is a huge feudal empire, with a territory from Korea almost to Fergana and from the Great Steppe to Vietnam, with an allotment system, with an active exchange of cultural achievements with India, Central Asia and other civilizations. Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism become centers of spiritual life.

The Tang Empire is one of the three most significant empires in the world of that era (China, the Arab Caliphate, Byzantium). Their territories are characterized by arable farming, mining, urban life, crafts, trade, construction, the flourishing of literature and art, and the highest population density. The Tang Empire was considered the center of the Celestial Empire. The Emperor, the son of Heaven, is its only legitimate ruler, the holder of the mandate of Heaven for power.

The introduction of the state allotment system was the completion of the process of establishing feudal relations in China. However, further socio-economic development forced the state in 780 to impose taxes on the lands of landowners - landowners, officials, merchants, artisans,

allow the sale and purchase of land, and thus recognize private ownership of land. Estates with tenant peasants grew and strengthened on Chinese soil. In the Tang era, the system of state examinations for promotion to official positions finally took shape. This unique system, adopted in the countries of the East Asian civilization, stabilized society in China for many centuries, ensured cultural and ideological unity and a high educational level of the imperial bureaucracy.

It was during the Tang era that China had a huge cultural impact on Korea, Japan, Vietnam, as well as Tibet, and turned into the center of the emerging East Asian civilization. The ideological basis of the East Asian civilization was the philosophical teachings of China and, above all, Confucianism; religious base - Buddhism; the political base is the concept of the power of the Sovereign, bestowed by Heaven, the concept of the power of the emperor, who is capable of civilizing peoples with his good influence.

Chinese Tang law of the 7th century became the core of East Asian law. Korea, Japan and Vietnam borrowed from China hieroglyphic writing and with it significant layers of written culture, an examination system for appointment to positions, certain elements of military theory and other achievements. The authority of China as a civilizational center was practically unshakable until the middle of the 19th century.

History, book business, literature, fine and applied arts and architecture are further developed. After the collapse of the Tang empire and a period of fragmentation (X century), China was united by the Song dynasty (960-1279). Sung China is the most developed territory of the globe at that time. This is a society of developed feudalism, a high culture of agriculture, sericulture, with a developed urban guild craft, state-owned manufactories. GDP per capita and literacy rate in China during the Song era were significantly higher than those in Europe.

Maritime trade with the countries of South Asia and the Middle East is being activated.

It should be noted the success of urbanization, significant economic growth, the transfer of the center of development to the south in the Yangtze basin. The rise in the spiritual and material spheres found its expression in the invention of gunpowder, the compass and woodcuts, in the growth of literacy, the further development of historical writing, diverse genres of literature, and traditional painting.

The Sung Confucians reformed classical Confucianism on the basis of a synthesis of Taoist ideas and the teachings of Buddhism. The philosopher Zhu Xi gave neo-Confucianism a universal and systematized character: any aspect of being was interpreted in moral categories common to the Cosmos and society. Neo-Confucianism (Chzhusianism) was officially included in the system of state examinations for academic degrees.

Militarily, the Song was inferior to its northern neighbors and was forced to pay an annual ransom to the Tangut, the Khitan, and then the Jur-Chen. After the wars, the states of the Tangut (Western Xia, 982-1227), Khitan (Liao, 916-1125) and Jurchen (Jin, 1115-1234) appeared on the territory of Northern China, and under the rule of the Song dynasty after 1127 continued to exist. create South China with a prosperous economy and high culture.

In the 13th century, China was conquered by the Mongols, who established the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). The Mongol invasion and Yuan domination dealt a heavy blow to the economy and culture of the country, and hindered its development. The Mongols subjugated Tibet, made campaigns in Korea, Japan, Burma, Vietnam and Indonesia.

The anti-Mongolian movement led to the expulsion of the Mongols and the creation of the Chinese Ming Empire (1368-1644). The reforms carried out at the beginning of the Ming allowed the empire to achieve power and prosperity in the 15th century. However, attempts to establish maritime contacts with India and the countries of the Middle East were stopped due to the depletion of resources and the danger of the invasion of the nomads of the North. Agrarian problems and the growth of commercial and usurious exploitation caused a popular uprising and the overthrow of the Ming. China was conquered by the Manchu Qing Dynasty (1644-1912).

The end of the 17th - the middle of the 18th century became the heyday of the Qing Empire - one of the most powerful states of that time. The Qings captured Mongolia, Dzungaria and Kashgaria and included the nomadic periphery in the Empire. The Qing subjugated Tibet, fought with Burma and Vietnam. The Treaty of Nerchinsk (1689) determined peaceful and commercial relations with the Russian state for more than a century and a half.

Throughout the 18th century, the process of gradual destruction of independent peasant farms went on, the number of tenants, laborers, lumpen, and members of secret societies grew in the village. From the end of the XVIII century. England persistently tried to open the Chinese market. The British exported tea, silk, porcelain and imported opium into China.

After the victory of the British in the First "Opium" War of 1840-1842. and the conclusion of the Anglo-Chinese Treaty of Nanjing (1842), foreign powers forcibly included the Chinese (Qing) empire on an unequal basis in world economic, political and spiritual ties. China has become part of the dependent periphery of the world capitalist system. Attempts by a part of the elite to pursue a policy of "self-strengthening" were not successful. Popular uprisings and outside aggression weakened the Qing dynasty. As a result of the revolution of 1911-1913. she was overthrown and the Republic of China was approved.

China's first constitution (1912) proclaimed democratic norms for the life of society and the state. In the spiritual realm, a struggle against Confucianism begins, a movement is underway for a new culture.

After the First World War, a movement against militarism and imperialism unfolded in China. There has been an upsurge in the national liberation movement, in which at first the Communist Party of China and the Kuomintang go together, and after the break (1927) they wage a fierce struggle between themselves. In 1949, the People's Republic of China was proclaimed. In the history of the PRC, we see three periods: 1949-1957, 1958-1978 and the third period, which began in December 1978 and continues at the present time. Since 1978, a policy of "reform and openness" has been pursued, which has allowed the country to successfully develop, become a great power and one of the leading countries in the world. Modernization of China, development of the west of the country is proceeding at a fast pace, economic and military power of the People's Republic of China is growing.

The achievements of Chinese civilization were one of the basic foundations for the formation of East Asian civilization, the sphere of functioning of which for at least one and a half millennia (starting from the 7th-8th centuries AD) covered the territories of East Asia (China, Korea, Japan), part of the territory Central (Tibet, Mongolia) and Southeast Asia (Vietnam). Unique discoveries and inventions made in China (silk, tea, porcelain, compass, gunpowder, paper, typography, lacquerware, a system of state examinations for selection for positions in the administration, many principles and discoveries in literature, historical writing, copper - tsin, architecture, agronomy, some ethical and philosophical teachings, hieroglyphic writing and many others) were accepted by the peoples of East Asian and other civilizations, became a huge contribution to world civilization.

Chinese civilization has existed for more than 5 millennia, China is a country of uninterrupted cultural tradition.

On the modern territory of China, or on part of it, the states of Xianbei, Toba, Tibetans, Turks, Tanguts, Khitans, Jurchens, Mongols, Manchus and other peoples were created. Many ethnic groups have contributed to the development of Chinese civilization. But the most numerous and most developed in the economy and culture has always been the Han (Chinese proper) ethnic group.

For more than 21 centuries, empires have existed in China, from the first Qin empire to the Qing empire. Imperial structures and practices, imperial spirit and imperial ideology (as a rule, imperial Confucianism), imperial claims and actions left a deep mark on history, politics and ethnic consciousness. In our era, many states of the East Asian civilization are rapidly developing (China, the Republic of Korea, Japan, Singapore) and their civilizational traditions help them in this, we emphasize that they are not the reason, but serve as an assistant in this successful development.

test questions

1. Indicate the earliest Chinese states: how did they arise and what kind of political and social structure did they have?

2. Name the first Chinese trends and schools in social, philosophical and religious thought.

3. Specify the main provisions of Confucianism.

4. What do you know about the culture and art of Ancient China?

5. List the main monuments of Chinese civilization.

India

Keywords: Indo-Aryans, Rigveda, estates (“varnas”), dharma, Sanskrit, Buddhism, Sangha, Hindustani.

The modern states of the Republic of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh are the heirs of many ancient cultures that existed on the territory of the South Asia region. All three countries arose as a result of the split of British India along confessional lines on the eve of independence. The predominantly Muslim areas went to Pakistan, but eastern Pakistan achieved independence in 1971. As a result, the Republic of Bangladesh was proclaimed. A few more countries in the South Asian region felt the Indian civilizational influence, although they retained their originality. These countries include Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

India was probably not the region where modern man (homo sapiens) arose, but in the Stone Age (Paleolithic) there already existed settlements of ancient man: in the Lower or Early Paleolithic - Neanderthal (homo primigenius), in the Late Paleolithic, in the Mesolithic and the New Stone Age - Cro-Magnon or a modern type of person (homo sapi-ens).

Primitive people lived mainly in the foothills. The Middle Paleolithic era is characterized by the migrations of an ancient person across the territory of India, the development of river valleys and the sea coast. Neolithic man knew ceramics, created it by coating wicker baskets with clay, and in the late Neolithic he mastered the potter's wheel. The use of copper products as tools marked the beginning of the copper-stone century. In South Asia, settlements were found (Kili-Gul-Muhammad, Mergar), which existed in the Neolithic era (6 thousand years BC) and, possibly, belonged to the Chalcolithic culture during the birth of the Harappan civilization, one of the oldest urban civilizations.

The Harappan civilization arose in the Indus Valley (hence one of its names - "Indus Valley Civilization") around 3500 BC. and lasted for a thousand years. The oldest settlements of the Indus Valley Civilization were located along the ancient course of this river. Later settlements also arose to the east and south, up to the outskirts of the modern cities of Delhi and Mumbai. The largest centers of the ancient civilization of the Indus Valley are Harappa (probably the capital) in the current Pakistani Punjab, Mohenjo-daro and Chankhu-daro (in Sindh, Pakistan), Kalibangan (Rajasthan, India), Lothal (Gujarat, India).

The civilization of the Indus Valley is characterized by the presence of a large number of cities (about a thousand) with a correct layout and a perfect sewerage system, a lot of products made of copper, bronze, gold and silver, but the preservation of stone products in everyday life. The creators of this civilization sowed barley, wheat, millet, rice, traded with Mesopotamia and Crete, Elam and Turkmenistan created hieroglyphic writing, a system of weights, their religion probably left a mark on the modern beliefs of the Hindus. An analysis of objects of sacred art (sculpture, images on seals) allows us to assert that the inhabitants of the ancient cities of the Indus Valley knew some cults that were preserved and developed in later religious systems of South Asia (“the world tree”, the cult of the goddess mothers, cults of the bull, buffalo, tiger, etc.).

The "arrangement" of cities and settlements of the Harappan civilization: the layout of houses, standard architecture indicates the presence of a clear, complex and, apparently, a system of social organization throughout India. A single standard for planning Harappan cities, in which two parts are clearly distinguished - the “citadel” surrounded by a moat and the “lower city”, the uniformity of inscriptions and images on seals found throughout the territory occupied by the Indus Valley civilization, other features of this cultures, give researchers reason to assume the presence in the Harappan society of a certain unified system of governance. Probably, already in the Harappan era in India, such a phenomenon as the presence of one or two centers is noted, from which cultural influence diverges in waves over the territory of the entire subcontinent or most of it. Although in the extreme south of Hindustan, during the heyday of the civilization of Mohenjodaro and Harappa, Paleolithic settlements still existed.

Characteristic of the Harappan era, the coexistence of cultures different in terms of life and level of development within the framework of a single cultural space has been preserved at different stages of the development of Indian civilization. The ancient centers of the Harappan civilization perished, probably due to an ecological catastrophe. The latest centers could have been destroyed by the Aryan conquerors. The Indus Valley civilization did not have a direct heir in South Asia, but the elements of culture created by its creators were borrowed by the creators of other cultures that existed later.

Indo-Aryans came to India after the decline and death of most of the cities of the Harappan civilization around the 12th century BC. e. They penetrated into this territory gradually. It is likely that the process of penetration into India of the Aryans, presumably coming from Central Asia or the Black Sea region, took several centuries.

Religious beliefs of the ancient Aryans as they are described in hymns "Rigveda" indicate that for the Aryan tribes the main object of veneration remained the surrounding world, the circle of personified natural phenomena, divided into three environments - sky, air and earth. In the hymns of the Rig Veda, the gods are praised - Sura (Surya - the god of the sun, Agni - the god of fire, Ushas - the goddess of the morning dawn, the divine twin brothers Ashvins, personifying the morning and evening stars).

The main deities of Vedic mythology are the lord of the sky Varuna and the thunder god Indra. Characteristically, already in this period in the religious consciousness of the Indo-Aryans, the idea of a certain unified universal law - “rita”, which regulates the movement of the planets, the actions of the gods and the life of people, played a leading role. This concept was later preserved in all Indian religions.

The hymns of the Rig Veda and materials of archaeological excavations indicate that the Indo-Aryans were engaged in cattle breeding and farming, wandered around northern India, sowed and harvested barley, moved to a new place, fought with enemies - “dasyu”, hid cattle in pens - “purah ”, lit a sacred fire and sacrificed a sacred drink - “soma”.

In the era of Aryan migrations, the main institutions of social organization were created, which were characteristic primarily of ancient and medieval India (and were preserved to one degree or another in the subsequent era). The professional division of society in South Asia is not only the basis of the social hierarchy, but also to a large extent is associated with certain ethnic and linguistic groups. In the middle of the 1st millennium BC. e. society is divided into four main estates-via ("varnas")- priests - brahmins, bearers of spiritual power, warriors kshatriyas, in whose hands was political power (Kshatriyas, as a rule, Indian kings were considered), farmers and townspeople - Vaishya and sudra, representatives of the indigenous non-Aryan population, who occupied the lowest levels of the social hierarchy.

In the period following the creation of the Rig Veda (X-V centuries BC), the hymns of this monument are preserved in the memory of the sages-rgshi, who pass them on from father to son, from teacher to student. Part of the rishis supplemented the collections of hymns known to them with their own, and these collections with additional hymns that were not included in the Rigveda received separate registration as independent collections of Samaveda (chants) and Yajurveda (sacrificial formulas and interpretations) .

A significant part of the hymns known to us from the Rigveda is also found in the Samaveda and Yajurveda. It is known that the last two collections are later. The fourth Veda - "Atharvave-da" (magic formulas) is considered the youngest, but quite early works are also found in it. Later ritual texts and collections of ethical and legal prescriptions adjoin them. From these later recorded texts, as well as the sutras, also called "Vedanga", i.e. "part of the Vedas" or "continuation of the Vedas", one can learn about how the society of the Indo-Aryans was transformed in the late Vedic period.

For many centuries, the culture of the Indo-Aryans improved, and the area of \u200b\u200btheir distribution expanded to the east and south. In this late period, the Ganges valley was mastered by the Indo-Aryans, where independent states soon arose - janapadas. During this period, the formation of the Indian civilization, its main constituents and concepts, both ideological and socio-cultural, took place. In ideological terms, there was a formation of a system of ideas about time and space, the general principles of human behavior (dharma), about the cosmogonic process (the doctrine of the death and emergence of the universe). In sociocultural terms, the concepts of social hierarchy are determined. The tradition determined the norms of people's behavior depending on their age (stage of development), position in society (varna).

In the valley of the Ganges, the religion of the Vedas retained its importance, but underwent changes due to a change in social order. Wandering sages (munis) appeared who preached the doctrine of the Absolute, which was reflected in the philosophical texts of the Upanishads (lit. “Seating (student) beside (teacher)”). Among the wandering teachers were those who, without denying the existence of the deities of the Vedic pantheon, asserted their subordination to universal laws.

In the middle of the first millennium BC. e. there was a "next" geopolitical center of South Asia - the kingdom of Magadha. It is possible that there were two such centers, the second was Taxila (Takshashila), conquered by the army of Alexander the Great. In 334 BC. e. Alexander the Great began a campaign to the east, setting himself the goal of conquering the Achaemenid powers, which since the time of Darius I included northwestern India (the Iranian provinces of Gandhara and Hindu). In 326 BC Alexander took Taxila (Takshashila) without a fight, but faced resistance from the Kuru and the Malli. Alexander was forced to leave India, but the Greek-Macedonian garrisons remained in the country until 317 BC. e., even after the death of Alexander (323 BC).

In the wake of the anti-Macedonian uprising in northern India, Chandragupta came to power, overthrowing the power of the Nandas in Magadha and founding the Mauryan dynasty. The most famous ruler of the Mauryan dynasty was the grandson of Chand Ragupta - Ashoka. It is believed that Ashoka began to reign in 268 BC. and ruled for 37 years. The end of his reign falls on 231 BC. e. We know about the life and work of Ashoka from his texts on stone columns and steles, containing a summary of various judgments and decrees of this ruler. From the steles we learn about Ashoka's belonging to Buddhism.

The teachings of Buddhism are set forth in the 2nd volume of the educational and methodological complex, in Chapter 3 "World Religions".

Under the emperor (samrat) Ashoka (III century BC), Buddhism became the state religion of a united India (with the exception of the extreme south). Having completed the unification of the country, Ashoka began a campaign of ideological expansion of Buddhism. Buddhist missionaries from the state of Ashoka arrived, in particular, in Sri Lanka, where, thanks to them, Buddhism became widespread.

According to Buddhist tradition, Ashoka was deprived of power by his grandson Prince Sampadi (Samprati) and the nobility, who were concerned about too rich gifts to the Buddhist community, which could ruin the treasury. The displacement of Ashoka was followed by the disintegration of the Maurya state into the western (Taksha-shila) and eastern (Pataliputra) parts. During this period, there is a revival of religion - the successor of the Vedic (later known as Brahmanism), and now called Hinduism. During this period, the "triple cult" begins to play a leading role in the Hindu pantheon. (tprimur-gpi), reflecting the three hypostases of the Creator of the World: the Creator (Brahma), the Guardian (Vishnu) and the Destroyer (Shiva).

The design of Hinduism dates back to the first centuries of our era. Preserving the basic principles of the Vedic (Brahminical) religion (the doctrine of the World Law-dharma, the general cosmogonic concept, the doctrine of the four estates, etc.), Hinduism included in the system of images the mythological concepts of many "local" cults common among non-Aryan tribes and lower strata of society. Hinduism is also characterized by a general idea of the One Deity, the Creator of the World, who controls the destinies of all beings. Three deities receive a similar status of the Creator and the Performer - two gods and a goddess: Vishnu, often in the form of Krishna, Shiva and Devi (Durga, Kali, she is Shakti, the divine Power).

The beginning of the Middle Ages in works on the history of India is usually dated to the second half of the 1st millennium AD, although there was no clear transition from antiquity to the Middle Ages in India. Social and economic changes that spoke of the transition from slave landownership and slave labor to feudal landownership and the work of dependent peasants were not found. The absence of a clear division between the ancient and medieval periods of the history of India leads to the fact that the time of the existence of the Gupta state is attributed either to antiquity or to the Middle Ages. The collapse of the state in the presence of separate Gupta principalities in the 5th-6th centuries. n. e. led to feudal fragmentation. During this period, local dynasties flourished: the Maitraks of Valabha (Gujarat), the Maukharis in Kanauj and Bihar, the Gaudas in Bengal.

AT VII century in Northern India, the empire of Harsha (Harshavardhana) arose. The Harshavardhana Empire (606-646) is the last of the large early feudal states of Northern India. Under Harsha, a Buddhist assembly (council) was held in Kanauj, philosophical and theological disputes were held in Prayag. During this time, the university at Nalanda, the medical school at Takshil, and the astronomical school at Ujain flourished.

Period VI-VII centuries. n. e. rightly considered the era of the highest race-flowering of ancient Indian culture. New genres emerge in Sanskrit literature—the verse cycles of Amaru and Bhartrihari, the novels of Dandin (“The Adventures of the Ten Princes”) and Bana (“Kadambari”), the dramas of Vishak-hadatta and Bhavabhuti. In the same period, classical works on Indian philosophy were created, 6 darshan(philosophical systems): vedanta, mimamsa, sankhya, yoga, nyaya, vaisheshika. This period saw the flourishing of university science.

The coexistence (in many cases, cooperation and mutual influence) on the territory of South Asia of various ethnic groups, which has taken place, as far as one can judge, almost since the Neolithic, contributed to the emergence of another feature of Indian civilization - the language (languages) of interethnic communication.

The first of the languages known to us of "interethnic communication" should be considered the "Vedic language", in which the most ancient sacred texts were created, collected by the Brahmins in the four "Vedas" and commentaries on them. The language of the Vedic texts developed on the basis of various dialects of the ancient Indian language. A later form of these same dialects formed the basis of classical Sanskrit, which for many centuries served as the language of science, philosophy, literature, legislation and government and remains the language of religion and culture to this day.

By the first half of the first millennium A.D. e. the beginning of artistic prose and poetry in Sanskrit (Ashvaghosha "The Life of the Buddha", dramas by Bhasa on the plots of the ancient epic, dramas and poems by Kalidasa, drama "The Clay Wagon" by Shudraka, etc.), fairy-tale-narrative literature ("Panchatan-tra" ), at the same time there is literature related to the field of specific (including exact) sciences - astronomy and mathematics (treatises of Aryabha-ta). It is to this period that the earliest examples of ancient Indian art known to us - architecture and sculpture - belong.

In the XII-XIV centuries. n. e. on the territory of the Indo-Gangetic plain, a language arises Hindustani(the basis of Hindustani is Khari Boli, one of the dialects of Western Hindi). Later, in the 15th-16th centuries, two literary languages, Hindi and Urdu, were formed on the basis of Hindustani.

The appearance of the Arabs in India (VII century) and their conquest of Sindh (VIII century) marked the involvement of India in the sphere of influence of the Muslim civilization. This process became even more intense in the 11th-12th centuries after the campaigns of Mahmud Ghaznevi, Muhammad Guri, the conversion of part of the population to Islam and the formation of Muslim states in the Ganges valley and Bengal, and later in Central India. It should be noted, however, that in India, Muslim culture, to a much greater extent than in other regions, experienced local influence. As a result, in various cultural spheres (literature, architecture, painting), already in the XIV-XV centuries, a style emerged that can be called Indo-Muslim.

In spiritual terms, the development of literature in the "living" Indian (Indo-Aryan and Dravidian) languages should be considered the most significant phenomenon of this time. Poetic, narrative-epic, religious-philosophical texts are created in these languages. The creators of religious-philosophical texts proceeded from the fact that knowledge of God - inner contact between the believer and God - is possible only on the basis of "bhakti" - sincere love of the believer for God and God for the believer. This made any system of temple worship superfluous and, accordingly, unnecessary activities of those who were called to perform it (temple priests, etc.). Sikhism, the religion now followed by more than ten million Punjabis and Guru Nanak's followers worldwide, arose from this foundation.

The conquest of northern India in 1525 by Nanak's contemporary Babur and the founding of the Great Mogul dynasty by him, which ruled most of South Asia, mark the further involvement of India in the sphere of influence of the Muslim world. In 1858, the formal suppression of the Muslim Moghul dynasty and the transfer of power in the country to the British crown meant the integration of India into the European colonial system, begun in the 14th century by the Portuguese. However, neither Muslim nor European influence destroyed the traditional Indian culture that had developed by the 10th century AD. e. and continues to evolve under the influence of external and internal factors.

test questions

1. Civilization of the Indus Valley.

2. What was the influence of the Indo-Aryan culture on the development of mankind?

3. What religions and beliefs prevailed among the ancient Aryans? What do you know about the Rigveda?

4. List the reasons for the emergence of new creeds: Buddhism, Jainism, Hinduism.

5. What interethnic languages prevailed in the culture of India?

6. Indicate the main monuments of Indian civilization.

The name "interfluve" refers to the confluence of two rivers in the Middle East - the Tigris and the Euphrates. Consider how people lived on this earth thousands of years ago.

Ancient Mesopotamia

Historians divide this region into Upper and Lower Mesopotamia. The upper one is the northern part of the region, where the state of Assyria was relatively recently formed. In the Lower (southern) Mesopotamia, people lived long before the appearance of people to the north. It is here that the first cities of mankind arise - Sumer and Akkad.

On the territory of this region, about 7 thousand years ago, the first states were formed - the names of the first two cities. Later, other city-states arise - Ur, Uruk, Eshnuna, Sippar and others.

Rice. 1. Map of Mesopotamia.

Hundreds of years later, the cities of the Lower Mesopotamia will be united under the rule of the intensified Babylon, which will become the capital of Babylonia. To the north of it, Assyria arises.

The ancient civilization of Mesopotamia was formed in parallel with the Egyptian, but it has certain differences. Mesopotamia is a unique center for the emergence of agriculture, because it was not only located along the rivers, but also protected from the north by a chain of mountains, which ensured a mild climate.

Culture of ancient Mesopotamia

A prominent representative of the cultural heritage of Mesopotamia is the people of the Sumerians. No one knows how they appeared in this region, and most importantly, that they have nothing to do with the Semitic peoples who inhabited it. Their language was not similar to any of the neighboring dialects and was similar to Indo-European speech. Their appearance also differed from the Semitic - the Sumerians had oval faces and large eyes.

Babylonia and Assyria

The Babylonian kingdom arose at the beginning of the second millennium BC, and the city itself arose on the site of the earlier Sumerian city of Kadingir. They were a Semitic people, the Amorites, who adopted the early culture of the Sumerians but retained their language.

An iconic figure in the history of Babylon is King Hammurabi. He was not only able to subdue many neighboring cities, but is also famous for his great work - the set of "Laws of Hammurabi". These were the first laws, carved on a clay tablet, regulating relationships in society. According to historians, the concept of "presumption of innocence" was also introduced by this king.

The first mention of Assyria dates back to the 24th century BC. and lasted 2,000 years. The Assyrians were quite a warlike people. They subjugated the kingdom of Israel and Cyprus. Their attempt to subjugate the Egyptians was not successful, because 15 years after the conquest, Egypt nevertheless gained independence.

The culture of Assyria, like the Babylonian, had a Sumerian in its foundation.

What have we learned?

Mesopotamia is the oldest region of human settlement. We know what peoples lived in this territory several thousand years ago, but we still do not know where they came from. These mysteries have yet to be answered.

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Ancient Mesopotamia- one of the great civilizations of the Ancient World that existed in the Middle East, in the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Conditional chronological framework - from the middle of the 4th millennium BC. e. (epoch Uruk) to October 12, 539 BC e. ("Fall of Babylon"). At different times, the kingdoms of Sumer, Akkad, Babylonia and Assyria were located here.

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From IV millennium BC. e. and up to the 13th century. n. e. in Mesopotamia were the largest [ ] cities with the largest number of adjacent settlements. In the Ancient World, Babylon was synonymous with the World City. Mesopotamia prospered under Assyrian and Babylonian rule, and then under Arab domination. From the time of the appearance of the Sumerians and until the fall of the Neo-Babylonian kingdom, 10% of the population of the entire Earth lived on the territory of the Mesopotamian lowland. Mesopotamia is attributed to one of the oldest centers of civilization in the 4th - 3rd millennium BC. e., who formed the ancient city-states, including the Sumerian cities of Kish, Uruk (biblical Erech), Ur, Lagash, Umma, the Semitic city of Akshak, the Amorite / Sumerian city of Larsa, as well as the states of Akkad, Assyria and at the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC e. - Babylonia. Later, the territory of Mesopotamia was part of Assyria (IX-VII centuries BC), the Neo-Babylonian kingdom (VII-VI centuries BC).
Perhaps the most significant thing about the history of Mesopotamia is that its beginning coincides with the beginning of world history. The first written documents belong to the Sumerians. It follows from this that history proper began in Sumer and may have been created by the Sumerians.
However, writing did not become the only determining factor in the beginning of a new era. The most important achievement was the development of metallurgy to the point where society had to create new technologies in order to continue its existence. The deposits of copper ores were far away, so the need to obtain this vital metal led to the expansion of geographical horizons and a change in the very pace of life.
Historical Mesopotamia existed for almost twenty-five centuries, from the emergence of writing to the conquest of Babylonia by the Persians. But even after that, foreign domination could not destroy the cultural independence of the country. The Greek word "Mesopotamia" refers to the area between the Tigris and Euphrates. Just the existence of two rivers - the Tigris and the Euphrates - should be considered the main topographic feature of Mesopotamia. The late flood of the rivers forced people to build dams, dams, in order to save seedlings. In addition, in the conditions of standing heat, the water quickly evaporated, leading to soil salinization. Note that the Euphrates silt was far inferior in its fertility to the Nile, clogging the canals as well. The southern part of the interfluve, which became the cradle of Mesopotamian civilization, was a place where the rays of the scorching sun made the soil hard, like a stone, or it was hidden under the sands of the desert. From swamps, huge puddles of stagnant water came the danger of epidemics. Lev Mechnikov, who authored the book “Civilization and Great Historical Rivers”, published in Paris in 1889, considered it necessary to emphasize “that here, too, history turned away from fertile countries ... under the threat of the most terrible misfortunes, they were forced to complex and wise coordination of their individual efforts. Unlike the regular Nile floods, the floods of the Euphrates and the Tigris did not differ in frequency, which determined the more significant and permanent nature of human labor in creating irrigation.
In general, from the point of view of L. Mechnikov, historical rivers were the great educators of mankind. “All these rivers have one remarkable characteristic that can explain the secret of their outstanding historical role. All of them turn the areas they irrigate either into fertile granaries or infectious swamps .... The specific geographical environment of these rivers could be turned to the benefit of man only by the collective, severely disciplined work of large masses of the people ... ". L. Mechnikov considered significant the idea that the reason for the emergence, the nature of primitive institutions, their subsequent evolution should be seen not in the environment itself, but in the relationship between the environment and the ability of the people inhabiting this environment to cooperate and solidarity.
Mass archaeological studies of traces of the most ancient settlements of Lower Mesopotamia indicate that in the process of improving local irrigation systems, residents moved from more than small settlements of large family communities to the center of the nomes, where the main temples were located. At the beginning of the second quarter of the III millennium BC. e. city walls become an attribute of densely populated spaces around the main temples.
In accordance with another point of view, the rise of civilization was determined by the interaction of the settled population of the villages and the nomads of the Mesopotamian region. Despite the mutual suspicion, and even hostility, inherent in relations between settled communities and nomads, the latter, due to their mobility, pastoral lifestyle, occupied an important place in the life of the inhabitants of agricultural settlements, being necessary for communication, trade, raising livestock, possessing valuable information. Constant migrations allowed the nomads to keep abreast of political events in different places, to have information about the availability of certain resources, to act as intermediaries in the exchange of goods and ideas between the settled inhabitants of the mountainous regions and the Mesopotamian plain.

Chronology of events
- Middle of the 4th millennium BC e.- The Uruk era in Southern Mesopotamia, the beginning of the Bronze Age. Formation of the foundations of the Sumerian civilization, the formation of nomes, the first archives of economic documents written with pictographic signs (for example, the Tablet from Kish), deepening social inequality, the development of temple farms, proto-cities, the urban revolution, the Sumerian colonies in Upper Mesopotamia (Khabuba Kabira, Jebel Aruda), monumental temple buildings, cylinder seals, etc. In Upper Mesopotamia - the beginning of the Bronze Age, the formation of proto-cities on a local basis (Tell Brak), Sumerian colonies.
- End of IV - beginning of III millennium BC. e.- Jemdet Nasr period in Southern Mesopotamia. Completion of the formation of the nome system, deepening of social differentiation, images of leaders; towards the end of the period - the emergence of early states and dynasties of Sumer.
- XXVIII - XXIV centuries. BC e.- Early Dynastic period (abbreviated: RD) in Mesopotamia. The heyday of the Sumerian civilization - cities, states, writing, monumental buildings, irrigation systems, crafts, trade, science, literature, etc. It is divided into three stages: RD I, RD II and RD III.
- XXVIII - XXVII centuries. BC e.- the first stage of the Early Dynastic period (abbreviated: RD I). Rise of archaic Ur. Hegemony of Kish in Sumer. Prominent kings (lugali) of the 1st dynasty of Kish - Etana, En-Mebaragesi. The legendary rulers of the 1st dynasty of Uruk are Meskianggasher (son of the god Utu), Lugalbanda, Dumuzi.
- XXVII-XXVI centuries BC e.- the second stage of the Early Dynastic period (abbreviated: RD II). The defeat of the troops of the Kish king Aggi under the walls of Uruk (ruler - Gilgamesh), the fall of the hegemony of Kish. Invasion of the Elamites in Ki-Uri and the ruin of Kish by them and the accession of a new (II) dynasty there. Uruk is the strongest state of Sumer.
- XXVI-XXIV centuries BC e.- the third stage of the Early Dynastic period (abbreviated: RD III). Aggravation of political instability in Sumer. Rise and rise of Ur; tombs of the 1st dynasty. The kings of Ur are the strongest rulers of Sumer. Separation of Lagash from Kish dependence, strengthening of this state under Ur-Nanshe. The rise of Lagash under Eannatum. A series of frontier wars between Lagash and Umma over the fertile Guedinnu Plain. Unification of Ur and Uruk into a single state. Reforms of the Lagash ruler Uruinimgina and the creation of ancient laws by him. Lugalzagesi is the sole ruler of the Sumerian city-states. War between Lugalzagesi and Uruinimgina. Rebellion of the Eastern Semites in Ki-Uri.
- XXIV - XXII centuries. BC e.- Akkadian power in Mesopotamia. The East Semite uprising in Ki-Uri was successful; the leader of the rebellion under the name "True King" (Sargon) defeated a coalition of Sumerian city-states and completely unified Sumer for the first time in history. The capital of Sargon was transferred from Kish to Akkad, after which the new state and the Ki-Uri region itself began to be called Akkad. Strengthening of statehood, the fight against separatism under the successors of Sargon - Rimush and Manishtushu; the heyday of the policy of conquest under Naram-Suen. Drought, separatism, economic recession and movements of the Gutian hill tribes lead to the weakening of Akkad. In the XXII century. - civil strife, loss of independence and the destruction of the Akkadian kingdom by the Gutians.
- 22nd century BC e.- dominion of the Gutians in Mesopotamia. Rise of the Second Dynasty of Lagash; reign of Gudea and his descendants. Utu-hengal's rebellion in Uruk; overthrow of the power of the Gutians.
- XXII - XXI centuries. BC e.- The Sumero-Akkadian kingdom (Power of the III dynasty Ur) is the largest state in Western Asia. After the death of Utuhengal, power passes to Ur-Nammu, Ur becomes the capital. "Sumerian Renaissance". The reign of Shulga is the heyday of the Sumero-Akkadian kingdom. The flourishing of Sumerian literature, architecture, art against the background of the displacement of the Sumerian language by Akkadian in colloquial speech. At the end of the period - the economic crisis, the struggle against the Amorite nomads. The raid of the Elamites in the reign of Ibbi-Suen and the collapse of the state.
- XX - XVI centuries. BC e.- Old Babylonian period in Lower Mesopotamia. On the fragments of the power of the III dynasty of Ur, several states arise, the rulers of which retain the title "King of Sumer and Akkad": These are Issin and Larsa (both in Sumer). Capture by the Amorites of the Mesopotamian city-states, the establishment of Amorite dynasties there. The strongest Amorite kingdoms are Larsa (in Sumer), Babylon (in Akkad), Mari (in Northern Mesopotamia). Rise of Babylon, subjugation of Akkad. The struggle of the Babylonian kings with Larsa for influence in Sumer. The defeat of Larsa and the unification of the Mesopotamian states under Hammurabi. The beginning of the formation of the Babylonian people (from the Sumerians, Akkadians and Amorites). The rapid development of Babylon, turning it into the largest city of Mesopotamia. The flourishing of the economy and culture. Laws of Hammurabi. The weakening of the Babylonian kingdom under subsequent kings. Emergence of the Maritime kingdom in the south. The defeat of the Babylonian kingdom by the Hittites and Kassites in the XVI century.
- XX - XVI centuries. BC e.- Old Assyrian period in Upper Mesopotamia. After the fall of the Sumero-Akkadian kingdom, the ancient nomes - Nineveh, Ashur, Arbela and others - gained independence. International trade through the steppes of the upper Khabur and the future Assyria. The attempts of the early rulers from Ashur to gain a foothold on the trade routes - the formation of the Assyrian state. The rise of Mari, the influence of the Hittite kingdom, the settlement of the Hurrians and Amorites - the crisis of the Upper Mesopotamian trade. Creation by the Amorite leader Shamshi-Adad I of a vast state with its capital in Shubat-Enlil (the so-called "Old Assyrian state"); subjugation to them of a significant part of Upper Mesopotamia. The weakening of the state under the successors of Shamshi-Adad and the subjugation of these lands by Babylon. Formation of the people of the ancient Assyrians on the basis of the Akkadian-speaking population and other Semites of Upper Mesopotamia.
- XVI - XI centuries. BC e.- The Middle Babylonian or Kassite period in the history of Lower Mesopotamia. The capture of Babylonia by the Kassites and the revival of the kingdom of Hammurabi by them within Lower Mesopotamia. The destruction of Primorye. Heyday under Burna-Buriash II. Diplomatic relations with Egypt and the Hittite kingdom. The weakening of the centralization of Babylonia. Migration of a new wave of Semitic-speaking nomads - Arameans. Fall of Babylon.
- XVI - XI centuries. BC e.- Middle Assyrian period in the history of Upper Mesopotamia. Consolidation of the Hurrian world, rise of the Mitanni state. The confrontation between Mitanni, the Hittite kingdom, Babylonia and Egypt in the Middle East. Weakening of Mitanni. First rise of Assyria; its transformation into a major regional power (under Tiglathpalasar I). The sudden decline of Assyria as a result of the Aramaean invasion.
- Frontier II-I millennium BC e.- Catastrophe of the Bronze Age in the Middle East. The decline of all significant states, the movement of numerous tribes - Arameans, Chaldeans, "peoples of the sea", etc. The end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Iron Age. Beginning of Aramaicization of Mesopotamia; Aramaic and its dialects begin to displace Akkadian from spoken language.
- X - VII centuries. BC e.- Neo-Assyrian period in Upper Mesopotamia. The economic and military-political rise of Assyria against the background of the decline of its neighbors (the second rise of Assyria). Conquest policy of Ashurnatsirapal II and Shalmaneser III. Temporary decline of Assyria (late IX - first half of VIII). Reforms of Tiglath-Pileser III and the beginning of the third rise of Assyria; the defeat of the northern Syrian states, the unification of Mesopotamia, the annexation of part of Media. Sargon II, Sennacherib, Esarhaddon: Assyria is the first "world empire"; annexation of Egypt. Ashurbanapal: suppression of uprisings, civil war and the collapse of the Assyrian state. After the death of Ashurbanipal: war with Babylon, Media and Scythian tribes; destruction of the Assyrian state. The indigenous territory of Assyria is part of the Median power.
- X - VI centuries. BC e.- Neo-Babylonian period in Lower Mesopotamia. The penetration of the Arameans and Chaldeans into the country; crisis of the Babylonian statehood. Union with Assyria (Tiglathpalasar III - the first single king of Assyria and Babylon). Strengthening of the Chaldeans in Lower Mesopotamia, Chaldean rulers in Babylon. Sennacherib and the tightening of policy towards Babylonia. Revolts against Assyria and the destruction of Babylon. Restoration of Babylon by Esarhaddon. Rebellion of Shamash-noise-ukin. The resumption of the Babylonian struggle for independence. The collapse and death of the Assyrian state. Nabopolassar is the first king of the new independent Babylon. Creation of the Neo-Babylonian Empire. Nebuchadnezzar II. Economic, political and cultural flourishing of the state. Babylon is the largest city in the world; first metropolis. Domestic political struggle after the death of Nebuchadnezzar II. Nabonidus and the struggle with the priesthood. The war with the Persian state and the transition of the opposition of Nabonidus to the side of the enemy. Battle of Opis. The troops of Cyrus II enter Babylon without a fight.
- October 12, 539 BC e.- Persian troops occupy Babylon. The end of the history of Ancient Mesopotamia as a politically independent region.
Creation of irrigation

This country, separated from the rest of Asia Minor by barely passable deserts, began to be settled around the 6th millennium BC. e. During the VI-IV millennia, the tribes that settled here lived extremely poorly: barley, sown on a narrow strip of land between swamps and a scorched desert and irrigated by unregulated and uneven floods, brought small and unstable crops. The crops did better on lands that were irrigated by canals diverted from the small river Diyala, a tributary of the Tigris. Only in the middle of the IV millennium BC. e. separate groups of communities coped with the creation of rational drainage and irrigation systems in the Euphrates basin.
The basin of the lower Euphrates is a vast flat plain, bounded from the east by the Tigris River, beyond which the spurs of the Iranian mountains stretch, and from the west by the cliffs of the Syrian-Arabian semi-desert. Without proper irrigation and reclamation works, this plain is in places a desert, in places - swampy shallow lakes, bordered by thickets of huge reeds teeming with insects. At present, the desert part of the plain is crossed by ramparts of emissions from canal digging, and if the canal is active, then date palms grow along these ramparts. In some places, clay hills rise above the flat surface - telli and ash - ishans. These are the ruins of cities, more precisely, hundreds of adobe brick houses and temple towers, reed huts and adobe walls coexisting in succession in the same place. However, in ancient times there were no hills or ramparts here. Marshy lagoons occupied much more space than now, stretching across all of what is now southern Iraq, and only in the extreme south came across low-lying deserted islands. Gradually silt the Euphrates, the Tigris and those fleeing from the northeast Elamite rivers(Kerkhe, Karun and Diz; in ancient times they also flowed into the Persian Gulf, like the Tigris with the Euphrates, but at an angle of 90 degrees to the latter) created an alluvial barrier that expanded the territory of the plain by 120 kilometers to the south. Where there used to be swampy estuaries freely communicated with the Persian Gulf (this place was called in ancient times the "Bitter Sea"), now the Shatt al-Arab river flows, in which the Euphrates and the Tigris now merge, which previously each had its own mouth and its own lagoons.
The Euphrates within Lower Mesopotamia was divided into several channels. Of these, the most important were the western, or the Euphrates proper, and the more eastern, Iturungal; from the latter to the lagoon in the southeast, the I-Nina-gena channel departed. The Tigris River flowed further east, but its banks were deserted, except for the place where the Diyala tributary flowed into it.
From each of the main channels in the IV millennium BC. e. several smaller canals were diverted, and with the help of a system of dams and reservoirs, it was possible to retain water on each for regular irrigation of fields throughout the growing season. Thanks to this, yields immediately increased and the accumulation of products became possible. This, in turn, led to the second great division of labor, that is, to the singling out of specialized crafts, and then to the possibility of class stratification, namely, to the singling out of a class of slave owners, on the one hand, and to the widespread exploitation of slave-type servile people and slaves - with another.
At the same time, it should be noted that the extremely hard work of building and clearing canals (as well as other earthworks) was carried out mainly not by slaves, but by community members in the order of duty; every free adult spent an average of a month or two a year on this, and this was the case throughout the history of ancient Mesopotamia. The main agricultural work - plowing and sowing - was also carried out by free community members. Only noble people, invested with power and performing positions that were considered socially important, did not personally participate in duties, did not plow the land.
A massive survey by archaeologists of the traces of the most ancient settlements of Lower Mesopotamia shows that the process of improving local reclamation and irrigation systems was accompanied by the resettlement of residents from scattered, smallest settlements of large family communities to the center of nomes (units of administrative division), where the main temples with their rich granaries and workshops were located. The temples were centers for collecting nome reserve funds; from here, on behalf of the temple administration, trading agents - tamkars - were sent to distant countries to exchange bread and fabrics of Lower Mesopotamia for timber, metals, slaves and slaves. At the beginning of the second quarter of the III millennium BC. e. densely populated areas around the main temples are surrounded by city walls. About 3000 - 2900 years. BC e. temple households are becoming so complex and extensive that accounting for their economic activities was needed. As a result, writing was born.

The emergence of writing

The Sumerians created the first writing system in the foreseeable history of mankind. It's called cuneiform. The history of the creation of cuneiform is documented in Mesopotamia from icons-pictures to signs denoting syllables of speech and abstract concepts. At first, writing in Lower Mesopotamia arose as a system of three-dimensional chips or drawings. They painted on plastic tiles made of clay with the end of a reed stick. Each sign-drawing denoted either the depicted object itself, or any concept associated with this object. For example, the firmament, drawn with strokes, meant "night" and thus also "black", "dark", "sick", "illness", "darkness", etc. The sign of the foot meant "go", "walk", “stand”, “bring”, etc. The grammatical forms of words were not expressed, and it was not necessary, since usually only numbers and signs of countable objects were entered into the document. True, it was more difficult to convey the names of the recipients of the items, but even here at first it was possible to get by with the names of their professions: the forge denoted a coppersmith, the mountain (as a sign of a foreign country) - a slave, terrace (?) (perhaps, a kind of tribune) - a leader- priest, etc. But soon they began to resort to a rebus: if na meant “stone”, “weight”, then the sign of the weight next to the sign of the leg suggested reading the gene - “walking”, and the sign of the heap - ba - next to the same sign the lip prompted reading - “standing”, etc. Sometimes whole words were written in a rebus way, if the corresponding concept was difficult to convey in a drawing; so, ha (“return, add”) was denoted by the sign of “reed” gi. The process of creating writing took place from about 4000 to 3200 BC. BC e. It took at least 400 years until the letter from a system of purely reminder signs turned into an ordered system of information transmission in time and at a distance. This happened around 2400 BC. e.
By this time, due to the impossibility of quickly drawing curvilinear figures without burrs, etc., on the clay, the signs had already turned into simple combinations of straight lines, in which it was difficult to recognize the original drawing. At the same time, each dash, due to the pressure on the clay with the corner of a rectangular stick, received a wedge-shaped character; hence such writing is called cuneiform. Each sign in cuneiform can have several verbal meanings and several purely sound ones (usually they talk about syllabic meanings of signs, but this is not true: sound values \u200b\u200bcan also mean half a syllable, for example, the syllable bob can be written with two “syllabic” signs: baab; the meaning will be the same , as with one sign of women, the difference is in the convenience of memorization and in saving space when writing signs, but not in reading). Some signs could also be "determinatives", that is, unreadable signs that only indicate which category of concepts the neighboring sign belongs to (wooden or metal objects, fish, birds, professions, etc.); thus facilitating the correct choice of reading from several possible ones.
The study of the language of some later cuneiform inscriptions (from about 2500 BC) and proper names mentioned in the inscriptions (from about 2700 BC) showed scientists that already at that time a population lived in Lower Mesopotamia who spoke (and later wrote) two completely different languages - Sumerian and East Semitic. The Sumerian language, with its bizarre grammar, is not related to any of the languages that have survived to this day. The East Semitic language, which was later called Akkadian or Babylonian-Assyrian, belongs to the Semitic branch of the Afroasian family of languages. Like a number of other Semitic languages, it died out before the beginning of our era. The Afroasian family (but not its Semitic branch) also belonged to the ancient Egyptian language, and it still includes a number of languages of North Africa, up to Tanganyika, Nigeria and the Atlantic Ocean.
Before the IV millennium BC. e., in the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates, a population still lived who spoke the Sino-Caucasian languages. After the desertification of the savannas of the Sahara and the Arabian Peninsula in the IV millennium BC. e. nomadic peoples who spoke Afroasiatic languages inhabit the Nile Delta, and later the Levant and Mesopotamia. Up to the middle course of the Tigris, Semites and Sumerians mastered simultaneously. The upper course was repeatedly inhabited by Central Asian nomads. Most modern inhabitants of Mesopotamia are genetically descended from the Armenian Highlands. The Hurrians and Hittites left numerous written records in northern Mesopotamia. The Hurrians, presumably, were carriers of the Sino-Caucasian dialects, the Hittite, the oldest written Indo-Aryan language, borrowed the Sumerian cuneiform.
As for the most ancient Mesopotamian written texts (from about 2900 to 2500 BC), they are undoubtedly written exclusively in the Sumerian language. This is evident from the nature of the rebus use of signs: it is obvious that if the word “reed” - gi coincides with the word “return, add” - gi, then we have exactly the language in which such a sound coincidence exists, that is, Sumerian. Nevertheless, apparently, the population of southern Mesopotamia until about 2350 spoke mainly Sumerian, while in the central and northern part of Lower Mesopotamia, along with Sumerian, East Semitic also spoke, in Upper Mesopotamia Hurrian prevailed.
Judging by available data, there was no ethnic hostility between people who spoke these languages, so different from each other. Obviously, at that time people did not yet think in such large categories as monolingual ethnic arrays: they were friends with each other, and smaller units were at enmity - tribes, nomes, territorial communities. All the inhabitants of Lower Mesopotamia called themselves the same - "black-headed" (in Sumerian sang-ngiga, in Akkadian tsalmat-kakkadi), regardless of the language each spoke. Since the historical events of such an ancient time are unknown to us, historians use archaeological periodization to subdivide the ancient history of Lower Mesopotamia. Archaeologists distinguish between the Proto-literate period (2900-2750 BC, with two sub-periods) and the Early Dynastic period (2750-2310 BC, with three sub-periods).
Three archives have come down to us from the Proto-Written Period, with the exception of individual random documents: two (one older, the other younger) from the city of Uruk (now Varka) in the south of Lower Mesopotamia and one, contemporary to the later Uruk, from the settlement Jemdet-Nasr in the north (the ancient name of the city is unknown).

Note that the writing system used in the Proto-writing period was, despite its cumbersomeness, completely identical in the south and north of Lower Mesopotamia. This speaks in favor of the fact that it was created in one center, authoritative enough for the local invention to be borrowed by various nome communities of Lower Mesopotamia, although there was neither economic nor political unity between them and their main canals were separated from each other by strips of desert . This center seems to have been the city of Nippur, located between the south and north of the lower Euphrates plain. Here was the temple of the god Enlil, who was worshiped by all the "blackheads", although each nome had its own mythology and pantheon. Probably, there was once a ritual center of the Sumerian tribal union in the pre-state period. Nippur was never a political center, but it remained an important cult center for a long time.

temple economy

All documents come from the economic archive of the temple of Eanna, which belonged to the goddess Inanna, around which the city of Uruk was consolidated, and from a similar temple archive found at the site of Jemdet-Nasr. From the documents it is clear that there were many specialized artisans in the temple economy and many captive slaves and slaves, however, male slaves probably merged with the general mass of people dependent on the temple - in any case, this was undoubtedly the case two centuries later. It also turns out that the community allocated large plots of land to its chief officials - the priest-soothsayer, the chief judge, the senior priestess, and the foreman of commercial agents. But the lion's share went to the priest, who bore the title en.
En was the high priest in those communities where the goddess was revered as the supreme deity; he represented the community before the outside world and headed its council; he also participated in the rite of "sacred marriage", for example with the goddess Inanna of Uruk - a rite that was apparently considered necessary for the fertility of the entire Uruk land. In communities where the supreme deity was a god, there was a priestess-en (sometimes known under other titles), who also participated in the rite of sacred marriage with the corresponding deity.
The land allotted to the enu - ashag-en, or nig-en - gradually became specially temple land; the harvest from it went to the community's reserve insurance fund, for exchange with other communities and countries, for sacrifices to the gods and for the maintenance of the temple staff - its artisans, warriors, farmers, fishermen, etc. (priests usually had their own personal land in communities in addition to the temple) . Who cultivated the land of the nig-en in the Proto-literate period is not yet entirely clear to us; later it was cultivated by helots of various kinds. We are told about this by an archive from a city adjacent to Uruk - an archaic

On the territory of Mesopotamia from the 7th to the 4th millennium BC. e. there was a decomposition of the primitive communal system and the prerequisites were created for the formation of the foundations of civilization.

1) At the beginning of the III millennium BC. e. the first small states were formed in the southern part of the country, in the historical region of Sumer.

2) The period covering the XXVIII-XXIV centuries. BC e., is called the Early Dynastic. 3) The next period (the last third of the III millennium BC) is characterized by the creation of extensive, so-called despotic monarchies.

4) In the XXIV-XXIII centuries. the political center moves to the central part of Mesopotamia, where the state of Akkad arises, uniting Sumer and the northern regions of Mesopotamia under its rule.

5) From the Akkadian kingdom, which collapsed under the onslaught of the Gutians, the hegemony in Mesopotamia soon passes to the Sumero-Akkadian kingdom.

6) At the beginning of the II millennium BC. e. in the interfluve of the Tigris and Euphrates, there were several states, among which the Babylonian kingdom prevailed, uniting a vast country under its rule. Its history is divided into several periods: a) the Old Babylonian, or Amorite (XIX-XVI centuries BC), b) the Middle Babylonian, or Kassite (XVI-XII centuries), c) the period of the political weakening of Babylonia and the struggle for independence (XII-VII centuries) and, finally, d) the Neo-Babylonian short-term period of rise and revival (VII-VI centuries), which ended with the conquest of the country by Persia.

7) From the 16th to the 13th centuries. BC e. in the western part of northern Mesopotamia, the state of Mitanni played a significant role.

8) In its eastern part, at the end of the III millennium BC. e. the Assyrian state arose with the center in the city of Ashur, whose history is further divided into periods: a) Old Assyrian (XX-XVI centuries BC), b) Middle Assyrian (XV-XI centuries BC) and c ) Neo-Assyrian (X-VII centuries BC). In this last period, the state of Assyria, through conquests, grows into a huge great power that embraced almost all the countries of the Middle East.

25. Mesopotamia in the VI - IV millennium BC.

In the middle and second half of the VI millennium BC. e. the whole of Northern Mesopotamia is already being mastered. This stage, after the name of the most characteristic settlement - Hassuna - is called the Hassun culture.

The Hassun tribes are moving south to the region of modern Baghdad (Tell al-Sawwan, Samarra). At that time, an agricultural and cattle-breeding economy had already taken shape, for the Hassun people bred large and small cattle, cultivated three types of wheat, four types of barley, and also flax. Tools of labor remain stone, but there are single finds of copper beads and a knife, a lead bracelet. Weaving and pottery production is developing. Special kilns are used for firing vessels, and the dishes themselves are covered with elegant color patterns.

In the V millennium BC. e. in the life of the inhabitants of Mesopotamia, changes appear associated with a new culture, called Khalaf after the settlement of Tell Khalaf. Most of all, the new is manifested in the development of various industries. Khalaf ceramics are covered with two-color painting with geometric and zoomorphic motifs, glaze technique is used, molded and figured vessels are made. The stone is used in the construction of buildings and for paving streets. Daggers and chisels are already being made from copper. However, craftsmen work within the community and provide it with their products.

During the Neolithic period, the religious beliefs of the ancient inhabitants of Northern Mesopotamia are formed. During the excavations there are figurines of animals, for example, a bull.

The oldest of these settlements was the settlement of Eredu (modern Abu Shahrein) on the coast of the Persian Gulf (6 thousand BC). Archaeologists have discovered here the remains of 12 temples, about 1000 mud brick graves, where people were buried with personal belongings, utensils, food, pets (for example, dogs). Scholars initially assumed that this was a distinct archaeological culture, but analysis of the pottery showed that Eredu belongs to the origins of the El Ubeid stage. This stage itself (the last third of the 5th - the beginning of the 4th millennium BC) is characterized by the presence of a system of irrigation canals, the flourishing of crafts: ceramic, metallurgical, weaving. The population is growing. Along with small settlements, large centers of up to 10 hectares are also emerging. Monumental structures are erected: temples on platforms and buildings with powerful walls.

The Ubaid culture acquired a colossal scope and spread its connections and influence widely in the world of that time. Excavations at Choga Mami and Tell Awaili showed a combination of elements of the Samarra and Ubeid cultures in these settlements. Excavations by a Russian expedition in Syria discovered Ubaid painted pottery in the settlement of Tell-Khazna I.

The emergence of an early class society and statehood, the creation of the foundations of the Sumerian civilization are associated with the Uruk culture (mid - second half of the 4th millennium BC).

An increasing surplus product comes from irrigated agriculture. The process of separation of handicraft from agriculture is going on at an ever faster pace. Pottery is distinguished. Jewelry production, famous for products made of precious metals and stones, is becoming a special industry. External and internal exchange develops. Copper, gold, building materials, precious and semi-precious stones are imported into the country from neighboring regions, grain and handicraft products are exported. Settlements increase in size, with a temple, and sometimes an entire temple complex, at the center of such an early city. Monumental temples, richly decorated with columns, frescoes, mosaics, clearly emphasize the growth of the country's economic potential. The birth of civilization is crowned by the emergence of pictographic writing, numbering about 2000 pictorial characters - the proto-writing period.

Property stratification and social differentiation of society are proceeding rapidly.

As the social structure becomes more complex, there is also an isolation of the authorities, among which temples, headed by the priesthood, play a prominent role. A significant role in the life of the community was also played by such officials as the chief judge, the elder of commercial agents.

The results achieved in socio-economic development are consolidated at the end of the 4th millennium BC. e., during the period of the Jemdet-Nasr culture, bronze appeared, and burnt bricks were increasingly used in construction. On the land of Uruk, the so-called "White Temple" of the sky god An rises to the sky on a high platform. In Tell-Brak, a temple of the "sacred eye" was erected. Seals, which served as signs of ownership, are found in abundance in Tell-Brak. In order to capture slaves and other booty, military campaigns are carried out. Fortification develops: temples and palaces are fortified with thick and high walls. The settlements of the Proto-literate period were divided both economically and politically, but were connected by religious ties. The cult center at that time was and retained this significance for a long time the city of Nippur, where the all-Sumerian supreme god Enlil was revered and his temple Ekur was located.

Similar information.

Ticket 1.

Periodization of ancient Mesopotamia.

1) El-Ubey civilization (the last third of the 5th - middle 4th millennium BC)

2) Uruk culture (beginning-end of 4 thousand)

3) Jamdet-nasser (End of 4 - beginning of 3 thousand)

1. Proto-writing period (2900-2700 BC) - the city of Nippur - the center of the emergence of cuneiform writing.

2. Early Dynastic (3000-2000 BC) - Found a list with all Dynasties. Lugalism - royalty in Mesopotamia. Eridu is the first city where kingship was lowered.

First (28th-27th centuries);

Second (27th-26th centuries);

Third (225th-24th centuries);

3. The first centralized despotic state. Kingdom of Summer and Akkad (the last third of the III millennium BC 24-23 centuries BC);

4. Babylonian kingdom (beginning of the 2nd millennium BC);

5. Old Babylonian or Amorite (19-18 centuries BC - Hamurappi united Mesopotamia. Nomads overthrew the government.

6. Middle Babylonian or Kassite (17-10 centuries BC);

7. Neo-Assyrian period (the period of weakening of Babylonia) (9-7 centuries BC);

8. Neo-Babylonian (7-6 centuries BC) - Assyria fell.

9. The world Persian Empire (6-4 centuries BC) - the capture of Babylon by Tire II.

Rise of the world Persian Empire. Cyrus and Cambyses.

Persians are first mentioned in Assyrian inscriptions. 9th century BC e. in the Parsua region southwest of Lake Urmia. From there at the turn of the IX-VIII centuries. they moved south and by the 7th century. BC e. occupied the Elamite territory in southern Iran, which was named after them Persia (from the ancient Iranian Pars).

Already in end of the 8th century BC e. the Persians constituted a tribal union, headed by leaders from the noble family of the Achaemenids, named after the founder. Gradually, the Persians began to expand their territory, occupying more and more Elamite regions.

AT 639 BC uh. Assyrians defeated Elam, king of the Persians Cyrus I recognized the power of Assyria. Approximately from 600 to 559 BC. e. reigned in Persia Cambyses I , who was dependent on the kings of Media, and was married to the daughter of the Median king, and thus their son Cyrus II He was the grandson of Astyages, king of Media.

Cyrus II the Great: In 553 BC. e. raises an uprising against Media, defeats it and captures the capital ( in 550 BC e.). Further captures neighboring Elam ( 549) and Lydia( 547), and after that he takes by force all the Greek cities, except for one - its ruler decided to surrender himself. Then he leaves to conquer Central Asia ( 545 - 539 ), after it - Babylon ( 539 BC uh.). A series of conquests ends with the death of Cyrus in the battle with the Massagetae ( 530 g.). His son, Cambyses II , took Egypt almost without a fight, but did not advance further - on his return from Egypt to Persia he was killed. The result was the subjugation of the captured Asia.

Important detail: Persians take the form of a container that they fill. In Egypt they are pharaohs and sons of Ra. In Babylon they are related to Marduk. That is, they adapt to tradition. These are the first rudiments of imperial policy, which will fully take shape under Darius. Everything is done so that the peoples feel included, and not conquered and oppressed (the lesson of Assyria is taken into account).

However, behind the conquests, the first kings did not turn to internal problems as carefully as the instantly emerging state required. Hence the uprising of Gaumata, who tried to get away from the archaic system of Persia. But his methods are murder, destruction of temples, and so on. caused only the result of his murder. They choose Darius, who essentially creates a new state, first by military means (by suppressing uprisings), then by administrative means.

Ticket 2.

Periodization of the history of ancient Egypt.

1. Pre-dynastic I - the beginning of the 4th millennium. Decomposition of tribal relations.

2. Pre-dynastic II - the middle of 4 thousand. Irrigation. First Nomes.

3. Early kingdom - 0-2 dynasties. United Egypt. 33rd-29th centuries

4. Ancient kingdom - centralization of power, 3-6 dynasties. 28th-23rd centuries

5. The first transitional period is the disintegration into nomes. 7th-10th dynasty. 23rd-21st centuries

6. Middle Kingdom - 11-13 dynasties. Mid 21st-18th centuries

7. The second transitional period - 14-17 dynasty. Late 18th - mid 16th century The weakening of Egypt, popular uprisings, the capture of hexos.

8. New Kingdom - Dawn. 18th-20th dynasty. Mid 16th-11th centuries Creation of the Egyptian Empire. Division into 42 regions.

9. The third transitional period - 11-10 centuries. 21st dynasty. decline.

10. Late kingdom - Egypt under the rule of foreigners. 22-25 dynasties. Libyan, Ethiopian. 11. Syrian conquest. Revival under the Said dynasty (26th dynasty). 7th-6th centuries

12. Conquest of Egypt by Persia. Late 6th - early 4th centuries 27-30 dynasty.

Persian Empire under Darius 1.

Darius I (other Persian Darayavaush, which means "Holding good", "Good-equal") - Persian king, ruled in 522 - 486 BC. e. A representative of the younger line of the Achaemenids, the son of Vishtaspa (Greek Hystaspa). Darius was proclaimed king by the conspirators after the assassination of Gaumata. Upon accession to the throne, he was 28 years old. To finally consolidate his rights to royal power, Darius married the daughter of Cyrus II Atossa.

Reforms of Darius:

1. Administrative: the entire state is divided into satrapies. They are headed by appointees from the center, as a rule, Persians - satraps. They are deprived of military power. Should: monitor taxes, judge, deal with internal problems; can mint coins. Military power belongs to a special department, growing from the king. Control over the satraps was carried out by a special body under the king. The king and each satrapy has its own office. In reality, everything was not perfect: under one satrap there could be several provinces, a satrap could cooperate with a military commander, etc.

2. The single state language is Aramaic. Along with it, the languages of the provinces were used.

3. Codification of laws. The basis is customary Persian law + local variants.

4. Tax reform: the amount of taxes from each province is clearly fixed. The Persians do not pay in cash (only taxes in kind). The gift system is actually a tribute from territories that were not formally included in the state, but were subordinate to Persia. In reality, they led to a decline in the economy: taxes never changed. In many countries farmers go bankrupt and fall into bondage.

5. Monetary reform: a single coin - dariki and shekli. In reality: the role of the Persian coin is not great. Used mostly Greek. Stocks of silver, collected from all over the country, settled in the storerooms of the king, which caused damage to trade.

6. military reform. A guard is created: 10,000 "immortals" (because it's always the same number). The basis of the army is the infantry, recruited from all over the state. In each province there is a rather large contingent + warriors are settled along the borders.

Foreign policy:

In the reign of Darius I, the Persian state reached its peak. Having consolidated his power and completed the reforms, he began to expand his possessions.

Around 517 BC. e. The Persians conquered the northwestern part of India. In the same year, a large state was captured on the island of Samos, in the Aegean Sea.

In 516 B.C. Darius I gathered a large fleet and headed for the shores of the Black Sea. The tribes and Greek cities that were there submitted to the Persians without putting up any resistance.

Then the Persian army went on a campaign against the Scythians, who lived north of the Black Sea, but the Scythians decided not to take the fight openly, but gradually retreating burned the grass and filled up the springs, periodically attacking the enemy. The long pursuit of the Scythians in the depths of their territory exhausted the army of Darius, and he decided to retreat.

To 514 BC e. time, the borders of the Persian state stretched from the Indus in the east to the Aegean Sea in the west, from Armenia in the north to the first Nile threshold in the south.

Persia, after the capture of the Greek cities on the coast of Asia Minor (Miletus, Ephesus), began to support their rulers, who had sole power and were called tyrants.

In 500 BC. e. in Miletus uprising, leader - Aristagoras. I turned to Greece for help, it was rendered insignificantly. 498 BC e. the Persians defeated the Greeks near the city of Ephesus. spring 494 BC e. The Persians laid siege to Miletus from the sea and land, burned the city and took the inhabitants into slavery. AT 493 the uprising was finally crushed.

After that, Darius began preparations for a campaign against Balkan Greece. The first campaign ended in failure and the defeat of the Persian troops in the Maarafon valley.

In October 486 BC. e. an uprising broke out in Egypt against Persian domination, and at the same time Darius I himself died, not having had time to restore his power in Egypt.

Ticket 3.

Ticket 4.

Formation of the first centralized state in Mesopotamia. Sargon the Ancient. Naram-Suen.

Formation of a centralized state:

Sargon (24-23 centuries), also referred to as Sharrun-ken (true king), was the founder of the Akkadian kingdom. He took power as a result of a palace coup, subjugated Kish, Upi-Akshak, took the titles "Lugal of Kish", "Lugal of Starna", "Lugal of Akkad".

He waged wars with Lugalzaggesi, defeated 50 rulers, after 34 battles with Ur, Umma and Lagash expanded the state to the Persian Gulf. He made campaigns in the North-West (Mari, Ebla) and North of Mesopotamia.

Economic development of the state:

1) A common irrigation network was created in Southern and Middle Mesopotamia

2) There was a construction of roads, harbors

3) A nationwide system of measures and weights was introduced

Socio-political development of the state:

1) The power of the despot king was approved in the fight against the tribal aristocracy, which relied on the advice of elders.

2) A serving aristocracy was formed - the backbone of royal power

3) The tsarist bureaucracy replaces the local "ensi" in a number of cities

4) The temple economy passes into the hands of the ruler

5) Provided additional benefits to the priesthood

6) Property stratification occurs in the community, wealthy and ruined community members appear

7) There was discontent among the "elders", a rebellion in the communal army

Naram-Suen (23rd century)

Domestic policy:

Suppressed outbursts of discontent

The governors in the cities were the sons of Naram-Suen

- "Ensi" were demoted to the level of officials

The leading line of policy was reliance on the priesthood

Recognition of Naram-Suen as "God of Akkad"

Foreign policy:

Successful trips to the Northwest (Ebla)

To the North (Subartu, upper reaches of the Tigris)

On Vovtok (Elam, Persian Gulf countries)

To the Zagros Mountains (Lullubei)

He was even called "the king of the four countries of the world." At the end of the reign - the decline of irrigation, conflicts with the priesthood, famine.

Ticket 5.

Territorial issue.

The territory of Mesopotamia extends from the mountains of Armenia in the north to the Persian Gulf in the south, and from the mountainous regions of Iran in the east to the Syrian-Mesopotamian steppe in the west.

Mesopotamia is located in open space and in the center of the Middle East, which has provided it with a leading role in international trade since ancient times, because many land roads passed through it. Trade also went along the rivers and along the Persian Gulf.

Water issue.

The Euphrates and the Tigris originate in the Armenian Highlands and flow into the Persian Gulf, in ancient times - by two separate mouths, and now - by one. Feeded by mountain streams, in the upper reaches the Euphrates cuts through the Asia Minor mountain ranges of the Taurus and Antitaurus, and the Tigris cuts through the region of Kurdistan. In the middle and lower reaches, they flow along a clay plain. On the outskirts of their confluence with the Persian Gulf, they spill over a flat area, forming a vast swampy space. The Tigris was much more full-flowing than the Euphrates and had a faster

flow. The floods of the Tigris and Euphrates depend on the melting of snow in the Armenian Highlands. Usually they spill in March - April.

The waters of the rivers carried silt, which contained plant residues and dissolved salts of mountain minerals, and during the flood remained on the fields, fertilizing them. Therefore, the lands of Mesopotamia were distinguished by exceptional fertility. However, in order to engage in agriculture, a whole range of reclamation work was needed, carried out all year round. The inhabitants of Mesopotamia from ancient times dug canals, constantly monitored their condition, built dams, dams, sluices, wells, etc. They had to deal with soil salinity from river and underground waters saturated with mineral salts used for irrigation, as well as from a lack of rain moisture that washes the soil. The threat to the fertility of the Mesopotamian lands was represented by strong winds from the desert region, which brought clouds of sand. And the winds blowing from the Persian Gulf and driving large waves ashore and raising the water level in the Tigris and Euphrates, could lead to severe floods.

Climate.

The climate of Mesopotamia was not the same in the north and south. In the north, in the zone of dry subtropics, snow sometimes fell in winter, and it rained in spring and autumn. The south has an exceptionally hot and dry climate.

Ticket 6.

Chu and Han fight

The goal of the anti-Qin uprising was achieved. The territory of the empire was divided among the largest leaders of individual rebel groups. Liu Bang became known as "wang of Han", and the leader of another army became "wang of Chu". Soon, a bitter struggle for power breaks out between the former allies. In January 202, Liu Bang won a decisive victory. The Han Empire arose in ancient China.

The beginning of the uprising

With the rise of "strong houses" was associated with a sharp political struggle that broke out at the court in the 2nd century.

One of the social groups, called "scholars", criticized the court nobility from the standpoint of Confucianism. The eunuchs close to the emperor opposed the "scientists".

In 169 Emperor Lin-di, instigated by the eunuchs, ordered the arrest of the most active "scholars". Repressions hit the students of the capital's academy, which was a stronghold of the Confucians. Over a hundred people were killed.

In the early spring of 184, the uprising of the "yellow bandages" (followers of the Taoist teachings) broke out simultaneously in different parts of the empire. The rebels tied their heads with yellow scarves - a symbol of a new era of great prosperity. An army of 40,000 strong was sent to suppress the uprising, but detachments of large landowners played the main role in defeating the rebels. As a result of the massacre carried out after this, at least 80 thousand people died.

Despite the defeat of the main forces of the rebels, in 185 the uprising flared up with renewed vigor. The army of the "black mountain" creates a base on the northern bank of the Yellow River in the immediate vicinity of the capital. However, the inconsistency of the actions of individual groups leads to the fact that government

the troops succeed in defeating them. The uprisings were severely punished, but the Han was never able to recover from the blow inflicted by the rebels. After the death of Emperor Lin-di, his young son ascends the throne, who is then killed. This was followed by a fierce struggle between the military leaders and in the end, civil strife leads to the collapse of a single empire. The Age of the Three Kingdoms begins.

Ticket 7.

Association process.

An agreement is concluded on the division of spheres of influence between Qin and Qi: after the victory, the Qin ruler becomes the "Western Emperor", and the Qi ruler becomes the "Eastern"

In 246 BC. thirteen-year-old Ying Zheng (future Qin Shi Huang) ascended the throne in Qin. He suppressed a conspiracy against his power, strengthened his position. Qin decisively defeats Han, Zhao, Wei, Chu, Qi, Yan.

221 BC the process of unification of the country was completed, Ying Zheng takes the title of Qin Shihuang ("the first emperor of the Qin dynasty")

Administrative division

1. - 36 large administrative districts - at the head of their chiefs and district departments, commanders of troops.

2. - Counties headed by chiefs.

3. - Parish

4. - Communities led by elected elders.

Political management.

1. - The sovereign hereditary ruler of the country is the emperor.

2. - The emperor has two advisers to whom the central departments are subordinate

3. - There are Departments (military department, judicial departments, financial departments, personal special department of the emperor)

Introduction of unified legislation(a guarantee system for commoners). The punishments were particularly cruel.

Administrative

a. The borders of the former kingdoms were destroyed, as well as all the fortifications inside the country were destroyed.

b. Division into 36 regions (+4 were added later), at the head of each region 2 officials (civilian and military) appointed from the capital

Economic

a. A monetary reform was carried out - a single Qin coin, all the former ones were destroyed

b. Permission to buy and sell land

c. Roads and transport channels were built, wagons were unified (to maintain roads)

d. Unified system of measures and weights

Social

a. The common name for all peoples is henshaw (black-headed)

b. Former aristocratic titles destroyed, nobility for wealth and assistance to the state

c. "Family bail" was introduced - not only the offender was punished for the crime, but also his family, punishment with particular severity

d. Due to the free sale of land and high tax oppression, slavery develops

e. Introduced a single script.

Ticket 8.

The third stage of the XXV - XXIV centuries.

There is a tendency towards unification (the need for a common irrigation network, waging wars of conquest and defense against mountain and steppe tribes).

The 1st dynasty of Ur is advanced, the temple economy is subordinated to the ruler.

Conquest of Egypt by Kush:

8th century BC.- on the territory of Kush (Nubia), a state was formed with the capital Napata, which adopted the religion and traditions of the Egyptians. towards the middle 6th century BC. the capital moved to Meroe, which stood at the crossroads of trade routes and had iron ore deposits. Napata is a cultural and religious center.

Middle of the 8th century Napatian ruler chestnut made a successful trip to Egypt and left Kushite military units in Thebaid, made his daughter the high priestess of Thebes, the "wife of God" Amon.

Son of Kashta Piankhi won a number of victories (Thebes, Heracleopolis, Hermopolis) and forced Tefnakht (the ruler of Sais, who began the unification of Egypt) and other nomarchs to submit

XXIV dynasty

After Pianha left for Napata Tefnacht proclaims himself king. XXIV Dynasty arose: Tefnakht and his son Buckenranff (Bokhoris)

An attempt to resolve social and economic tensions:

a) Tefnacht law against luxury

b) the law of Bocchoris on the prohibition of imprisonment of debtors and the permission to take only property as security for a debt, reduction of interest

XXV Ethiopian dynasty

715 - Piankha's successor - Shabaka finally conquered Egypt, united it with Kush into one state, the capital - Memphis. Cautious foreign policy - There are no wars with Assyria, perhaps some kind of treaty was concluded.

Assyrians

674 and 671 - campaigns in which the Assyrian Esarhaddon conquered Egypt. Kushite king Taharka fled to his homeland. The country is divided between 20 nomarchs dependent on Assyria, Esarhaddon is the "king of kings" of Upper and Lower Egypt and Kush. FROM 671 on 655 Assyrian rule in Egypt.

Two uprisings in which Taharqa took an active part, trying to return Egypt to Kush. In 663 - the war of Assyria with Kush, the end of the XXV Ethiopian dynasty.

Sais revival.

Fight with Asiyria

Psammetichus I gathered a mercenary army from the Ionian Greeks and the Asia Minor Carians, defeated the rival nomarchs. Memphis, Thebes and Heracleopolis began to support the king, alliances were concluded with Lydia and Babylon. Displaced the Assyrians. In 655 - the unification of the country is completed

Ticket 9.

1. The kingdom of Sumer and Akkad (3rd dynasty of Ur): a classic example of a totalitarian state of antiquity.

III dynasty of Ur. (late XXII - early XX) Founder of Ur-Nammu.

Economy:

1) Irrigation restored, construction of a new canal network

2) Organized farms on the royal temple land

3) Handicraft production in the royal workshops

4) Unified system of measures and weights

5) Increased government trade with neighbors

6) construction of temples, the ziggurat of Ur-Nammu

7) The land of individuals and communities, the area is less than the royal one.

Royal fund of land absorbed the temple, the conquered and the land of local rulers. One part of the fund was royal and was processed by "gurushas" (workers), a part was allocated to temples, administrative and temple personnel, and soldiers.

Bureaucracy, laws:

Huge bureaucracy , the independence of city-states disappears, the local community nobility disappears. The country is divided into governorships under the control of "ensi" ("ishshakkum") - governors who are subordinate and appointed by the king. Further norms of labor service and food, reports and certificates for any business were developed.

Organized royal court (judges - officials, priests), there was a court within the community. The laws of Shulgi were drawn up (2093-2047).

Ideology:

The king had titles "king of Ur, king of Sumer and Akkad" and "king of the four countries of the world" . The power of the king was ideologically justified by religion. The head of the pantheon, the god Enlil, was considered the king of the gods and the patron of the earthly king.

Was compiled "Royal List" with a list of kings "before the flood" and "from the flood" - the idea of the original existence of royal power on earth.

From the time of the reign of Shulgi (2093-2047 BC), divine honors were paid to the kings and their cult was established. The priesthood was subordinate to the king.

Ticket 10.

1. The transformational activity of Uruinimgina in Lagash and its assessment by Struve, Dyakonov, Yakobson.

In all likelihood, Uruinimgina was a protege of the priesthood and tribal nobility, dissatisfied with the activities of the previous ruler, supported by the service nobility.

During his 6-year reign (2318-2312 BC), Uruinimgina carried out reforms that satisfied those who put him in power:

1. Contributions from the higher priestly staff were abolished

2. The natural allowance (rations) of temple workers has been increased.

3. The Rights of Dependent Temple Workers Are Guaranteed

4. Independence was returned to the temple economy.

There were concessions to the working population:

1. Reduced fees for performing religious rites

2. Removed some taxes from artisans

3. Irrigation duty for various categories of the population has been reduced.

4. Perhaps measures were taken against debt bondage and the sale of communal land.

Ratings:

Sturve– The tsar restored justice, the reforms were progressive, even revolutionary

Jacobson- prevented the strengthening of the state and private property. Not reform, but restoration of the old order.

Dyakonov- the reforms were peaceful and progressive, and did not affect everyone.

Mine

The ruler of the Upper Egyptian kingdom became the first king of all Egypt. In the lists of royal dynasties, he is called Mina. Mina became the ancestor of the I general Egyptian dynasty. In an effort to unite Egypt, Mina, at the junction of the Delta and the valley, founded the capital of the united kingdom, the city of Memphis, one of the largest cities in Egypt. Under Ming, a system of canals and dams was built, thanks to which a significant area around Memphis was developed. In the capital, a temple was erected to the god Ptah.

Ticket 11.

Economy

BUT) Development irrigation farming:

1) expansion of cultivated areas

2) heyday of horticulture (date palm)

3) large yields of cereals (barley) and oilseeds (sesame)

4) the state of the channels was monitored by special officials

5) According to the laws, for negligence (breakthrough of a canal, flooding of a neighbor) and evasion of the obligation to care for the canal - a fine, or the sale of the property of the offender

6) construction of the "River Hammurabi" - a grand canal.

B) Developing cattle breeding on a large scale, the laws mention herds of cattle and small livestock

AT) Developing responsibility for handicraft labor (poor-quality construction - the execution of a builder, poor-quality doctor services - chopping off a brush to a doctor)

G) AT trade:

1) unification of the trade space of the country

2) export - grain, dates, sesame oil, wool, handicrafts

3) import - metals, building stone, wood, slaves, luxury goods

4) state trade was carried out by "tamkars" (sales agents), often through smaller merchants

5) The largest centers are Babylon, Nippur, Sippar, Larsa, Ur.

The social structure of society:

- « avilum"(free) - slave owners and small producers (laws protect against the arbitrariness of usurers, regulation of interest, punishment for mistreatment of a hostage, limitation of debt bondage for 3 years, the principle of "talion" for causing harm)

- « muskenum”(workers in the royal household) - had property and slaves, but lost contact with the community, a fine for harming the mushkenum, their life, honor and health were valued less.

- « wardum"(slaves) - sources of slavery (war, debt bondage, self-sale and sale of family members, crimes, natural reproduction), privately owned, palace slaves, slaves of mushkenums, temple slaves, slaves had their own small property, could marry free people.

Ticket 12.

Mahabharata and Ramayana.

These are two epic poems, each of which includes several tens of thousands of verses.

Mahabharata

The main plot of the Mahabharata comes down to the struggle for power between cousins who belonged to the same royal family of Kuru.

Ramayana

The plot tells how Prince Rama fought the demon Ravana, who kidnapped and carried off his wife Sita.

However, more than half of the Mahabharata is not directly related to the main plot. It includes an exposition of myths and ancient legends, sometimes dating back to deep (perhaps even Indo-Iranian) antiquity.

In the centuries before the creation of the last editions of the poems, their text grew more and more at the expense of instructive chapters and entire independent treatises. In their final form, the Mahabharata and Ramayana became a true encyclopedia of Hinduism and an inexhaustible treasury of images for subsequent poets and artists.

Dramaturgy Calisade

There is a lot of controversy as to which works belong to him. At the moment, their list is something like this:

1. Shakuntala (This is a story about the mutual love of the king and the daughter of a nymph and a sage. The latter was guilty of not noticing the anchorite Dursava, immersed in her thoughts, this angered him and was cursed. Durvasa puts a curse on her: the king will forget her and only then he will remember when he sees on her the ring given to him.This curse, which remains hidden for Shakuntala, constitutes the dramatic plot of the play.The king pushes his sweetheart away from him, and only after a series of various vicissitudes and touching scenes, his ring catches his eye; he remembers the past and, having met Shakuntala in the sky, who in the meantime managed to give birth to a son, unites with her forever)

2. "Vikramorvashi" (Again the love of the King and the Nymph)

3. "Malavika and Agnimitra" (The plot is a light love affair between King Agnimitra and Malavika, the maid of his wife, the queen. The jealous queen hides her beautiful maid from the eyes of her husband, who, however, manages to open up to her and get her reciprocity, despite all kinds of the wiles and intrigues of the queen.At the end of the play, the royal origin of Malavika is revealed, so that the main obstacle to the union of both lovers is removed, and everything ends to the general well-being)

Also included in this list are three large poems: two epic and one lyric.

Ticket 13.

1. How was the great Egyptian military power created by the pharaohs of the 18th dynasty?
The reign of the 18th dynasty fell on the 16th-14th centuries. The founder was Ahmose I. Under this dynasty, the great Egyptian Power was created. What was the reason:

1. The expulsion of the Hyksos caused an increase in the military-political activity of the 28th dynasty.

2. The armies were enlarged and reorganized (chariots, massive straight and light sickle-shaped swords, lamellar armor, new types of tactical units, training, navy, fortification innovations). The Egyptian army is the best and most numerous army of that time.

Thutmose III and Amenhotep II

Around 1500 BC, after the death of Queen Hatshepsut, Thutmose III finally became the sole king of Egypt in the 22nd year of his formal reign. Destroys the memory of his mother, filters the royal environment. Inside the ruling elite of the country, supporters of the new king began to prevail, relying, like his warlike predecessors, primarily on the army and the new service nobility.

Already in the year of Hatshepsut's death, the Egyptian army, led by Thutmose III, sets out on its first campaign in a long time - into the depths of Asia Minor. Here is a clash with a coalition of princes led by the king of the city of Kadet on the Orontes. Battle Thutmose III decided to give battle at the city of Megiddo, having passed the gorge and withstood a 7-month siege, Thutmose III subjugated the city and all the princes to himself.

From the 22nd to the 42nd year of his reign, Thutmose III annually went on campaigns to Western Asia, capturing more and more new cities and regions of Syria. In one of the last campaigns, the Egyptians again captured Kadesh.

The city of Karchemish became the northernmost frontier of the Asian campaigns of Thutmose III. In the south, in Nubia, the possessions of Thutmose III extended up to the 4th Nile threshold. Not a single one of his successors went beyond the frontiers reached under him, both in the north and in the south. Egypt has become a powerful world power, stretching from north to south for 3,500 km along with its subordinate territories.

Thutmose III died in the 54th year of his reign. His son Amenhotep II ascends the throne. He also spends his reign on campaigns, putting down rebellions here and there. More than a hundred thousand Asians were brought by this king to Egypt - perhaps only after one large punitive expedition to Asia Minor.

The punitive expeditions of Amenhotep II laid down the resistance of the pre-Asian princelings. They recognized the power of Egypt and the states independent of it: the Kassite Babylonia, the Hittite kingdom and the city of Ashur.

Shudra

Despite differences in position, the Brahmins and Kshatriyas constituted a privileged and wealthy group, living at the expense of the working and dependent population. The most numerous was the vaishya varna, which included free community members, farmers, and merchants. Vaishyas were the main taxable class.

The three highest varnas were considered "twice-born", their representatives had the right to initiation. Shudras were considered as "once born" and were deprived of this right. Therefore, the Shudras were forbidden to participate in the cult, to study the sacred texts. Shudras, as a rule, were poor, economically dependent people, the lowest ranks of artisans, service personnel. Although the Shudras were not slaves, it is natural that they would fall into slavery at any moment.

Representatives of the upper classes sought to turn the varnas into a closed hereditary institution, prevented them from mixing with representatives of the lower groups and the latter from moving into the category of “twice-born”. Gradually, the varna estates (Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishas, Shudras) became more and more closed and, as it were, resembled “castes” in their form, which led to the frequent designation of varnas by the late term “caste”.

In the late Vedic era, smaller closed professional groups were already being created within the varnas, which took the form of castes.

Castes (Jati)- a closed group of Indian society.

Apparently, unequal marriages were often concluded, which destroyed class boundaries and led to a mixture of classes. According to some, this is how jati happened. As a rule, they were associated with one of the four varnas, and some were on the social ladder even lower than the Shudras and were called "untouchables."

Over hundreds of centuries, the social structure in India has become more complex, there has been a division of labor, and the number of social groups and statuses has increased from four to several thousand. Hinduism drew into its orbit and local tribes. They were included in the Indo-Aryan society and also became special castes. Thus, the caste system gradually took shape.

All castes are divided four main groups:

1. Supreme (brahmins, warriors)

2. Medium (merchants, farmers)

3. Lower (farmers and artisans)

4. Untouchables.

The most numerous are the lower castes. They comprise about 40% of the total population of India. The smallest are the upper castes (about 8% of the population). Middle castes unite approximately 22% of the population, and untouchables - 17%.

A caste can number from 200-300 people to several million. Members of some castes are scattered throughout India, others are grouped in one area. But in all cases, the members of each caste are isolated from the representatives of other castes, and each person is connected with his caste by hundreds of threads.

The caste of a person can be determined by many signs: by the type of clothing and the manner of wearing it, by the presence of certain relationships or their absence, by hairstyle, signs drawn on the forehead, the nature of the dwelling, food and even vessels for its preparation, as well as by names. Impersonating members of another caste in India was difficult.

Ticket 14.

The era of the New Kingdom.

XVIII-XX dynasty (16-11th century). Founder - Ahmose I.

1) economy:

Each campaign is a bunch of slaves, gold, silver, bronze, valuables. A system for collecting tribute from the occupied territories was organized: Ethiopia - gold, ivory, Palestine and Syria - silver, lead, tin, fabrics, paints, lapis lazuli, Lebanon - ship timber, cedar + cattle, slaves, grain.

Labor + raw materials + valuables + new technologies (bellows, vertical loom, metallurgy, paste glass, sheer-handled plow, watering shadufs, sheep, horses, mules) = economic recovery. Revival of agriculture: streamlining the irrigation system, increasing the area of crops, nilometers in Aswan and Memphis, repair and construction of canals, dams, wells, reservoirs.

social relations

3 classes:

a) dominant

b) small producers

The spread and strengthening of slaveholding relations. An increase in the number of slaves (Palestinians, Syrians, Phoenicians, Libyans, Nubians, etc.) The emergence of small slave owners (1-3 slaves).

Struct complication