Historical Cycles

self | 2/7/16 | Self

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

The two theories I have heard have to do with weather or a string of earthquakes.

I tend to go with weather myself. Three years of crop failure will leave civilization weakened, five will destroy most and seven is flat out not survivable.

Volcanoes are a possibility that somewhat combine both theories.

Eric Cline's book 1177 BC is not a bad read.

[Little Bill]

I kind of agree, seems to be a thousand year cycle more or less.

[SunkenCiv]

No cycles. No Sea Peoples, per se, either. :’) The same kinds of stimuli can result similar outcomes.

Here’s a good keyword for the end of the Akkadian phase of the Assyrian Empire and the end of the Old Kingdom:

http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/curseofagade/index

The End of the Early Bronze Age
[also the adjacent chapters regarding the formation of the Dead Sea during historical times]
http://www.varchive.org/itb/bronzage.htm

[Little Bill]

The same kinds of stimuli can result similar outcomes.

Every thousand years, at least according to the links you posted. Summer started around 3200 BC, Sargon was a continuation of that civilization, and croaked around 2200 BC.

After a period of recovery the Minoan warm period croaked after 1200 BC and nasty times followed. A massive migration caused by an unknown source caused a lot of problems.

Then after a period of recovery the Roman warm period came to an end, going out on a limb during the Reign of Caracalla, a lot of nastiness started then.

The Medieval warm period went South around 1300 AD, Great Famine , and we ain't out of it yet.

[SunkenCiv]

The Sumerians were outbred by the locals, Semitic groups for the most part, such as the Akkadians. The Akkadians got dumped by a physical upheaval, possibly a large impact structure identified in Iraq around 20 years ago. The Minoans were superseded by the Mycenaeans in most places of the Aegean, and other groups in Anatolia, over quite a period of time, and some centuries after 1200 BC.

If you’re making a case for natural climate change playing a role in ebbs and flows, I’ll tell you I agree with you, but not as some kind of absolute single reason, not least because nature can’t keep a beat.