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Evening Tonk.

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History: The faded glory of Iraq

Knight Ridder Tribune

Saddam Hussein's nation has been home to some of the most powerful empires in history. Iraq over the centuries saw the birth of civilization, built the first cities and vied to lead the Arab world. War could alter its history once again.

EARLY CIVILIZATIONS 550 B.C.-539 B.C.

Sumer and Babylon

Mesopotamia - the ancient region that includes most of present-day Iraq - comes from a Greek word meaning "between two rivers," referring to the plain between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Here the world's earliest civilizations developed. The Sumerians settled in southern Mesopotamia about 5500 B.C. They built sophisticated cities, including Ur, Lagash and Babylon, and invented irrigation, written language and the wheel. Around 1890 B.C., Babylon became independent from Sumerian rule and under Hammurabi the Great conquered all of Sumer. This Babylonian king created one of the earliest collections of written law, the Hammurabi code. The first empire of Babylon lasted until 1595 B.C., when it was overrun by Hittite warriors from the region that is now Turkey.

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The Assyrian Empire

The Assyrians settled on the shores of the Tigris in northern Mesopotamia by 2000 B.C., and built their capital at Assur. The Assyrians, like the Hittites, were masters of warfare. By 650 B.C., they had created an empire that stretched from Syria to the Persian Gulf. Later Assyrian kings devoted themselves to the arts, and built a vast library in Nineveh.

The Second Babylonian Empire

The Chaldean people migrated into Mesopotamia around 1100 B.C., and came to dominate the city of Babylon. After destroying Assyria in 609 B.C., the new Babylonians created an empire under Nebuchadnezzar II that encompassed much of the former Assyrian realm. Among his conquests was Jerusalem, where he destroyed the city and forced the Israelites into slavery. Under Nebuchadnezzar's rule, the city of Babylon achieved mythic power and beauty.