The ruler of the state of Akkad, the lord of the Sumerians, the founder of the dynasty of kings of Akkad. For a long time it was believed that this ancient ruler was legendary, but there was irrefutable evidence that Sargon actually lived. This evidence is extant inscriptions of the ruler himself. The biography of Sargon of Akkad will be presented to your attention in the article.
Childhood and adolescence
Where was Sargon of Akkad born? The exact answer is very difficult, if at all possible. It is worth trusting such a source as the poem "The Legend of Sargon." According to this poem, the birthplace of the future king is a city with an exotic name Azupiranu (this name is translated in two ways - the town of crocuses or the saffron town). The mother of Sargon was the priestess of one of the temples, but absolutely nothing is known about the father, there are only speculations (this was facilitated by Sargon himself). Secretly giving birth to a child, the priestess put him in a box of reeds, then threw the box into the stormy waters of the Euphrates River.
Fortunately, the child was saved - an aquifer named Akki noticed a reed box floating on the river, decided to find out what lies in it. With the help of a hook, a water carrier picked up a box, pulled it to the shore and saw a baby. The water-carrier raised the boy as his own son. Also, the legend says that Sargon served as a gardener and casket-bearer at the court of King Ur-Zababa, the ruler of the city-state of Kish.
The foundation of the kingdom of Akkad
When the city-state was defeated by the troops of King Lugalzagesi, the matured Sargon thought that it was time to create his own kingdom. Thinking about where exactly the capital of the state should be, Sargon concluded that this does not require a city with rich traditions like Kish, but an almost unknown city of Akkade. Almost nothing is known about this city, because no ruins were found (if there were ruins, there would be evidence).
And since there are no ruins, it remains to trust the written sources. According to some sources, the city of Akkade was located near Kish. The literary source claims that Akkade was in the vicinity of Babylon. Which of the sources is more truthful is hard to say. We can only confidently conclude that the capital of the kingdom of Sargon was located in one of the districts of Noma (that is, a city-state) Sippar. The region adjacent to the city was named Akkad, and the East Semitic language was called Akkad. The king named the capital of his kingdom in honor of his adoptive father.
The reign of Sargon began in 2316 BC. The board was very long - 55 years.
If at school the students will be tasked to describe the campaigns of Sargon of Akkad, using the names of historical areas in the story, then this will not be very simple. The following information will help them in this.
The first campaigns of Sargon
So the reign has begun. It was necessary to solve two problems - to defeat dangerous neighbors, and first of all - Lugalzagesi, and also to seize strategically important lands. First, Sargon organized a military campaign, culminating in the capture of two strategically important places. The first of these is the city-state of Marie, as a result of its capture, access to the mines of Asia Minor appeared. The second of the captured places is the city of Tuttul standing on the Euphrates River, also known as the “Gateway to the Upper Kingdom” (the current name of the city is Hit).
The northwest was subjugated, strategically important lands fell into the hands of King Sargon. After this success, another important task could be tackled - eliminating the dangerous southern neighbor. Gathering a strong army, the king began a military campaign against Lugalzagesi. In the vicinity of the city of Uruk, a battle ensued. Sargon was better prepared for the battle, so the battle quickly ended in the defeat of Lugalzagesi and his Ensie allies. After the victory, the city of Uruk was devastated, and its walls were destroyed. The fate of the king, who once ruined the city-state of Kish, was sad: it is believed that he was executed by order of Sargon (revenge for an old insult, not otherwise).
A year later, hostilities broke out again, only this time Sargon did not go to war on the enemy, but, on the contrary, repelled the attack of enemies. The South Ensi did not want to put up with their defeat at the Battle of Uruk and united under the command of the ruler of the city-state of Ur. However, the battle ended with a new defeat for Ensie. Sargon went on the offensive, captured the city-states of Ur, Ummah, Lagash and reached the shores of the Persian Gulf (in those days the gulf was called the Lower Sea). The result of two campaigns - in the power of the king from Akkad were all the Sumerian lands lying between the shores of the Mediterranean Sea (then it was called the Upper Sea) and the Persian Gulf.
For everyone to see who became the ruler of Sumer, Sargon of Akkad washed his weapons in the Persian Gulf. It was the washing of weapons in the waters of the so-called Lower Sea that became the tradition of all Sumerian monarchs who ruled after Sargon.
What happened to the rulers of the three city states? The fate of those who ruled Urom and Lagash remains unknown - whether they were executed, or missing. Sargon acted normally with the ruler Ummu - this emci became a prisoner (it’s good that he was not executed, he was lucky). Everything is clear with the cities: their walls have been eliminated.
In cuneiform records of King Sargon it is said that there have been 34 battles throughout the campaigns to the south and north-west. Also mentioned is the restoration of the city of Kish.
New Northwest Campaign
After strengthening our positions in southern Mesopotamia, in the state of Sumer, and the restoration of the city of Kish (it was there that the king spent his childhood and youth), it was time to again go on a campaign to Asia Minor. The results of the previous campaign were fragile, and the state needed high-quality wood and metal. The large city of Marie was captured and then destroyed.
The tsarist forces were able to capture two important raw material sources - the Lebanese mountains, famous for their magnificent cedar wood, and the highlands of the Asia Minor Taurus, famous for silver mines. The result of the campaign: both metal and wood were freely delivered to Akkad and Sumer.
Cuneiform tablets with the records of the king himself are the only reliable source of information. In later times, numerous legends began to form around the military campaigns of Sargon. It is very difficult to distinguish fictional details from real ones, only studies by archaeologists make it possible to refute, for example, the legend of the conquest of the island of Cyprus and the island of Crete.
Campaigns in Elam and Mesopotamia
As the story tells us, Sargon of Akkad, having become the ruler of the north, west and south, decided to continue successful campaigns. This time the powerful king will organize a military campaign to the east, to northern Mesopotamia and the state of Elam. The military campaign ended in yet another triumph - part of the land lying in the vicinity of the Tigris River became regions of the Akkadian kingdom, while some states, including Elam, recognized the power of Sargon and became vassal lands.
Is there evidence that King Sargon of Akkad during his reign was able to subjugate northern Mesopotamia? There is. Firstly, tablets with cuneiform text in Akkadian language testify to this , because they appeared during the reign of Sargon. The second evidence is that in the same period a bronze image of the head of Sargon of Akkad appears in the region of Nineveh.
After the conquest of Northern Mesopotamia and Elam, Sargon of Akkad became the king of the four cardinal points.
Secrets of Sargon's military success
Why did the founder of the Akkadian kingdom manage to conquer the lands to the north, west, south and east of his state? How did you manage to become Sargon of Akkadian king of the four cardinal points? After all, his opponents were no less sophisticated in military affairs.
To answer these questions, you need to look at the differences in the military tactics of opponents. Who could the Sumerian rulers of city-states rely on (these rulers were also called lugals)? On a hired army. But that is far from all. A hired army can be numerous, well trained, but what kind of weapon it uses is another question.
Interestingly, in Sumer there was simply no suitable wood for making excellent combat bows. Because of this, Lugali decided that small arms were simply not needed, and decided to bet on hand-to-hand combat. Detachments of soldiers with shields and detachments of soldiers armed with spears moved in close formation. The speed of their movement was not very high, the agility is not very high. These shortcomings were revealed precisely in a collision with the army of the king from Akkade.
And what kind of army did Sargon gain? On the one hand, Tsar Sargon of Akkad had a standing army, quite numerous - there were 5400 soldiers in the army, and the army was fed at the expense of the ruler himself. On the other hand, the king had an additional trump card - volunteer militias. It turned out numerous detachments, but how did you manage to use these trump cards? All salt is in armament. Not without reason, before going to Sumer, the king was heading to the northwest: capturing strategically important places, he gained access to yew trees or thickets of wild hazel. Great bows were made from this wood. It is also possible that the so-called glued onions could be invented.
The ancient Sargon of Akkadian did not refuse hand-to-hand tactics, but at the same time developed a different tactic: betting on a horde of archers attacking either with a wide chain or in loose directions. During the campaign against Lugalzagesi, the Akkadian king used both types of troops: for hand-to-hand combat and for shooting from a distance. Archers bombarded squads of warriors with shields or spears of a cloud of arrows, while not engaging in hand-to-hand combat. As soon as the system of the enemy army was upset, fighters from the regular army of Sargon attacked the enemy and smashed him.
The result was an interesting picture: both warring parties had warriors - masters of hand-to-hand combat, and archers - only with the lord of the kingdom of Akkade. The result is a crushing victory over the Sumerians.
Organization of the state, religion
The founder of the dynasty of kings of Akkad created a state where the economy of the ruler himself and the economy of the temples were one. Sargon was one of the first rulers to experiment with a centralized type of state. In this kingdom, self-government bodies were transformed into a grassroots type of administration, and tsarist bureaucrats of noble origin took the place of the noble influential aristocrats.
For the ruler of a large country, which included the entire territory of Sumer, it was necessary to justify with the help of religion the legality of his power. Sargon relied on several cults: the god Zababa, the clan cult of the god Aba, as well as the cult of the god Enlil (the supreme deity for all Sumer). It is worth noting a very remarkable fact: the ruler of Akkad founded an unusual tradition, according to which the eldest daughter of the ruler should be the priestess of the moon god.
In later times, the priests of Babylon spread many unreliable rumors related to the alleged spitting of Sargon on the gods. One of these myths (in the worst sense of the word) said that for the construction of the suburb of Akkad, the king needed to destroy the brick structures of Babylon. This contradicts the facts: in those years, Babylon was a secondary, and even a third-rate city of Sumer.
Riots against the king
At the end of the reign of the first king of the Akkadian dynasty, serious problems began in the state. The main troublemakers were the influential noble aristocrats - and not surprisingly, because they were ousted from power, replacing the artful bureaucrats.
The real threat to the state was the rebellion led by Kashtambila, the ruler of the city of Casallu. Sargon was able to defeat the rebels, the city of Casalla was captured and destroyed.
But this rebellion was only innocent flowers, there were still those berries in front - the noble aristocrats of the whole kingdom plotted against the ruler. To save himself from reprisal, the king was forced to hide. True, a little later Sargon the Ancient Akkadian was able to gather faithful associates and with their help defeat the rebellious nobility.
As if these misfortunes were not enough, so in 2261 BC a new misfortune occurred - famine in the southern part of Mesopotamia, which became a convenient occasion for a new rebellion of the aristocracy. During the suppression of the rebellion, the king died without completing his plan.
Surviving Images of Sargon
Photo of Sargon of Akkad, of course, could not be saved. There are only three images that can be associated with the ruler of Akkad. The stele from Susa, discovered by French archaeologists, has been preserved in only two parts. Due to the severe damage from the figure of the king himself, only fragments of arms and legs remained, and therefore it is very difficult to prove that this is really a stele dedicated to the ruler.
Another stele, found again by the French, was preserved in a three-tier version. On the middle tier, images of warriors and the lord of Akkad himself are clearly visible. It is this image, according to most experts of archeology, an authentic portrait of Sargon of Akkad.
The most famous image is the head of Sargon of Akkad, this image was found by British archaeologists during the excavation of one of the temples of Nineveh. It was these archaeologists who gave the name "Head of Sargon" to the artifact. True, many experts dispute this : in their opinion, the image is not associated with the ancestor of the Akkadian kings, but with one of the rulers of this dynasty.
Sargon of Akkad and Moses
What is the relationship between these individuals who lived at different times and did not meet each other? It turns out that all the salt is in the legends. According to legend, the baby, the future king of Akkad, was put in a wicker cane basket and launched along the river, and later saved by an aquifer. So, an extremely similar legend is associated with another really living celebrity - Moses.