151 lines
7.3 KiB
Markdown
151 lines
7.3 KiB
Markdown
<!-- factbase:25cc1e -->
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# Hammurabi
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## Overview
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Hammurabi (~1792–1750 BCE) was the sixth king of the First Babylonian Dynasty who transformed Babylon from a minor city-state into the dominant power in Mesopotamia. He is best known for the Code of Hammurabi. @t[1792 BCE..1750 BCE]
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## Key Facts
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- Reign: ~1792–1750 BCE @t[1792 BCE..1750 BCE]
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- Title: King of Babylon; also styled "King of the Four Corners of the World" @t[1792 BCE..1750 BCE]
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- Capital: Babylon
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- Dynasty: First Dynasty of Babylon (Amorite)
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- Father: Sin-Muballit (predecessor, abdicated due to failing health)
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- Successor: Samsu-iluna (r. ~1750–1712 BCE) @t[~1750 BCE..~1712 BCE]
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## Achievements
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- Inherited a small kingdom (Babylon, Kish, Sippar, Borsippa) and expanded it through military campaigns and diplomacy [^3]
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- Formed a temporary alliance with Larsa to repel an Elamite invasion, then turned against Larsa and absorbed its territories [^3]
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- Conquered city-states of Larsa, Eshnunna, and Mari; ousted Ishme-Dagan I of Assyria, forcing his son Mut-Ashkur to pay tribute [^3]
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- Was the first ruler to successfully govern all of Mesopotamia without revolt following his initial conquests [^3]
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- Issued the Code of Hammurabi (~1754 BCE): 282 laws inscribed on a diorite stele @t[~1754 BCE] [^1]
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- Improved irrigation systems and infrastructure; control of canal flow also served as a strategic tool against rival city-states [^3]
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- Established Marduk as the supreme deity of Babylon
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- Over 200 surviving royal letters document his direct administrative oversight of conquered territories, including correspondence with officials in Larsa [^3]
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## The Code of Hammurabi
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- The longest, best-organized, and best-preserved legal text from the ancient Near East [^3]
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- Written in the Old Babylonian dialect of Akkadian cuneiform
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- Structured as: poetic prologue, 282 case laws, and epilogue (~4,130 lines total) [^3]
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- The stele's relief depicts Hammurabi receiving the laws from Shamash, the sun god of justice, symbolizing divine authority [^3]
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- 282 laws covering property, trade, family, labor, and criminal matters
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- Among the first legal codes to establish the presumption of innocence [^4]
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- Principle of *lex talionis* ("an eye for an eye") with class-based distinctions
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- Influenced later legal traditions, including Mosaic Law in the Hebrew Bible [^3]
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- Stele discovered at Susa in 1901, now in the Louvre [^2]
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- Not the earliest code (preceded by Code of Ur-Nammu) but the most complete
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---
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[^1]: Roth, M.T. *Law Collections from Mesopotamia and Asia Minor* (1997)
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[^2]: Harper, R.F. *The Code of Hammurabi* (1904)
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[^3]: World History Encyclopedia. "Hammurabi." https://www.worldhistory.org/hammurabi/ (accessed 2026)
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[^4]: Wikipedia. "Hammurabi." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammurabi (accessed 2026)
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---
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## Review Queue
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<!-- factbase:review -->
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 10: "Capital: Babylon" - when was this true?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 11: "Dynasty: First Dynasty of Babylon (Amorite)" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 12: "Father: Sin-Muballit (predecessor, abdicated due to failing health)" - when was this true?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 16: "Inherited a small kingdom (Babylon, Kish, Sippar, Borsippa) and expanded it t..." - when was this true?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 17: "Formed a temporary alliance with Larsa to repel an Elamite invasion, then tur..." - when was this true?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 18: "Conquered city-states of Larsa, Eshnunna, and Mari; ousted Ishme-Dagan I of A..." - when was this true?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 19: "Was the first ruler to successfully govern all of Mesopotamia without revolt ..." - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 21: "Improved irrigation systems and infrastructure; control of canal flow also se..." - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 22: "Established Marduk as the supreme deity of Babylon" - when was this true?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 23: "Over 200 surviving royal letters document his direct administrative oversight..." - when was this true?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 26: "The longest, best-organized, and best-preserved legal text from the ancient N..." - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 27: "Written in the Old Babylonian dialect of Akkadian cuneiform" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 28: "Structured as: poetic prologue, 282 case laws, and epilogue (~4,130 lines tot..." - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 29: "The stele's relief depicts Hammurabi receiving the laws from Shamash, the sun..." - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 30: "282 laws covering property, trade, family, labor, and criminal matters" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 31: "Among the first legal codes to establish the presumption of innocence [^4]" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 32: "Principle of *lex talionis* ("an eye for an eye") with class-based distinctions" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 33: "Influenced later legal traditions, including Mosaic Law in the Hebrew Bible [^3]" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 34: "Stele discovered at Susa in 1901, now in the Louvre [^2]" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 35: "Not the earliest code (preceded by Code of Ur-Nammu) but the most complete" - when was this true?
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- [ ] `@q[temporal]` Line 13: Malformed temporal tag @t[~-1750..~-1712] — see docs for valid syntax
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- [ ] `@q[conflict]` Line 8: "Reign: ~1792–1750 BCE @t[1792 BCE..1750 BCE]" @t[-1792..-1750] overlaps with "Title: King of Babylon; also styled "King of the Four Corners of the World" @..." @t[-1792..-1750] - were both true simultaneously? (line:9) [pattern:parallel_overlap]
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 8: "Reign: ~1792–1750 BCE @t[1792 BCE..1750 BCE]" - what is the source?
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 9: "Title: King of Babylon; also styled "King of the Four Corners of the World" @..." - what is the source?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 10: "Capital: Babylon" - what is the source?
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 11: "Dynasty: First Dynasty of Babylon (Amorite)" - what is the source?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 12: "Father: Sin-Muballit (predecessor, abdicated due to failing health)" - what is the source?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 13: "Successor: Samsu-iluna (r. ~1750–1712 BCE) @t[~1750 BCE..~1712 BCE]" - what is the source?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 22: "Established Marduk as the supreme deity of Babylon" - what is the source?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 27: "Written in the Old Babylonian dialect of Akkadian cuneiform" - what is the source?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 30: "282 laws covering property, trade, family, labor, and criminal matters" - what is the source?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 32: "Principle of *lex talionis* ("an eye for an eye") with class-based distinctions" - what is the source?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[missing]` Line 35: "Not the earliest code (preceded by Code of Ur-Nammu) but the most complete" - what is the source?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[stale]` Line 20: "Issued the Code of Hammurabi (~1754 BCE): 282 laws inscribed on a diorite ste..." - Roth source from 1997 may be outdated, is this still accurate?
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>
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- [ ] `@q[stale]` Line 34: "Stele discovered at Susa in 1901, now in the Louvre [^2]" - Harper source from 1904 may be outdated, is this still accurate?
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>
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