This week we will be studying some of the most important ancient empires of the
western world, including the Old Babylonian Empire and the Jewish Empire. Your
assignment is to research one of the following great leaders: Hammurabi, Cyrus
the Great, Darius I, or Solomon. Here are some questions to consider as you read
the articles and write your essay:
What were the great accomplishments of the leader's reign?
What were the obstacles he faced?
How do you think the commoners he ruled felt about him? Why?
If it were possible for your selected leader to be a modern president, would he be good at the job? Why do you think he would/wouldn't?
Incorporate your answers to these questions in an essay format. You should start at www.worldbookonline.com (user id: scs; password: cougars) but you may have to do some additional reading to find all you are looking for. The requirements for this assignment are exactly as those of Homework 1; you must submit a 250 word essay (don't forget to cite your sources!) and you must respond to at least two essays by other students (responses are due Sunday, August 26, and must total at least 150 words). Keep up the good work!
What were the great accomplishments of the leader's reign?
What were the obstacles he faced?
How do you think the commoners he ruled felt about him? Why?
If it were possible for your selected leader to be a modern president, would he be good at the job? Why do you think he would/wouldn't?
Incorporate your answers to these questions in an essay format. You should start at www.worldbookonline.com (user id: scs; password: cougars) but you may have to do some additional reading to find all you are looking for. The requirements for this assignment are exactly as those of Homework 1; you must submit a 250 word essay (don't forget to cite your sources!) and you must respond to at least two essays by other students (responses are due Sunday, August 26, and must total at least 150 words). Keep up the good work!
Cyrus the Great was born around 580 BC in Persis, Iran. Cyrus was born into a noble Persian family, the Achaemenids. The reign of Cyrus the Great lasted for between 29 and 31 years. He was also known as Cyrus the Elder. Cyrus built his empire by conquering first the Median Empire, then the Lydian Empire and eventually the Neo-Babylonian Empire. Some of the many great accomplishments from Cyrus the Great are, he freed over 40,000 Jews from Babylon, founded a new capital city, he declared the first charter of human rights, and he invented the first postal system. As you can tell Cyrus the Great has accomplished so many great things. Some more things he accomplished were becoming the ruler of Anshan, then in about 550 B.C., Cyrus overthrew King Astyages of Media and made the Median Empire the center of what became the Persian Empire, he then later on would conquered Babylonia and take control of much of the Middle East, including Palestine. An obstacle that he faced was combining Babylonians, Medes, and Lydians and united most of the ancient Middle East into one state, extending from India to the Mediterranean Sea. I feel like his commoners were very pleases and happy with him and his ruling. Cyrus respected local customs and religions in his empire. I know that if I were living in under his power I would be very pleased. I think these people felt this way because he never did anything to upset them he was always trying very hard to please them and do what was best for their interest he cared about his people and wanted the best for them.
ReplyDeleteBalcer, Jack Martin. "Cyrus the Great." World Book Student. World Book, 2012. Web. 23 Aug. 2012.
http://www.essortment.com/biography-cyrus-great-founder-persian-empire-20478.html
Really good essay Sarah! I didn't know that Cyrus invented the first postal system!
DeleteSarah, Good job on your essay. You provided a lot of great and interesting points about Cyrus the Great! I didn't know he was known as Cyrus the Elder. You did so good.
DeleteCyrus the Great was born into a noble Persian family, the Achaemenids. According to ancient historians, Cyrus’ grandfather Astyages, was told in a dream that his grandson would over throw him. To avoid this from happening he ordered that Cyrus be killed. However the official who was to supposed to kill him gave him to a shepherd instead of killing him. When Cyrus was 10 years old, Astyages discovered this deception and because of Cyrus’ outstanding qualities, he was allowed to live in exile with his mother. In 554 BC Cyrus revolted against his grandfather and in 550 BC the prophecy came true when Cyrus entered Ecbatana conquering the Median Empire. Upon his victory over his grandfather he founded a government for his new kingdom, the Median Persian Empire. In 539 BC he conquered Babylonia and took control of most of the Middle East, including Palestine. In 537 BC, after he conquered Babylonia he allowed the Jews to go back to the land of Palestine. Because of what he did the Jews called him “The Anointed of the Lord.” Cyrus was killed in a battle against the Massagetae tribes in central Asia. The commoners thought he was fair and a great leader. Cyrus would be a great modern leader today because he tried to make good decisions concerning the people.
ReplyDeleteYour essay was really good very informative. I didn't know that Cyrus came to power by revolting against his grandfather. I agree that Cyrus would make a great modern leader.
DeleteSummer, I loved your essay! We did the same one but there is some information in yours that I didn't read about like I didn't know it was his grandson that overthrew him. I also didn't know that the Jews called him "The Anointed of the Lord". Great job on your essay!!
DeleteGood job, Summer! Your essay was so wonderful. I didn't know Cyrus the Great's grandfather was told in a dream that his grandson would over throw him, and that he would be killed! I also agree that he would make a good leader.
DeleteGreat job on your essay. I didn't know that about Cyrus's grandfather. I think Cyrus would make a great leader too.
Delete-Lydia
This is a really good essay Summer. I didnt know that Cyrus' grandfayther was told in a dream that his grandson would overthrow him. I aslo had no idea that it actually did happen. I find that a very interesting thing. Your essay was very informative and again really good essay.
DeleteFor this week’s assignment, I chose to write about Hammurabi. Hammurabi was the first great king of the Babylonian empire and ruled from 1792 to 1750 B.C. During this forty two year reign, a lot happened. At the beginning of his reign, he only ruled over the city of Babylon and a bit of surrounding land. However, Hammurabi conquered surrounding kingdoms to the south- even to the Persian Gulf. That is quite a bit of expansion in a short time. Besides the expansion of territory during his reign, Hammurabi is best remembered for his code of laws-282 to be exact in addition to the prologue and an epilogue. These laws pertained to the basics such as a code of conduct, trade, duty of workers, and matters dealing with contracts, etc. The reason these laws are so important is because the writings on this stele is one of the oldest deciphered writings in the history of the world. I believe that the commoners respected him because of his laws, so therefore I believe he was considered a respectable and decent leader. On the code it mentions his military victories and him promising to treat the people justly and honor their gods. With that being said, Hammurabi’s laws definitely favor those with more money and power and although he attempted to treat everyone fairly, there is obviously class distinction. He may have had the best motives, but because he based all of his code on human judgment, they were definitely subject to error.
ReplyDeleteThank you,
Rebecca
Really good essay Rebecca!
DeleteGreat essay. I agree that Hammurabi's laws were based to much on human division and not enough on as much on peace and equality. I think that Hammurabi would make a pretty good modern president because he would base his decisions on the principles of justice.
DeleteSolomon was the third ruler of Isreal, and inherited the kingdom in nine hundred sixty-five B.C. and ruled until his death in nine hundred twenty-eight B.C. All the history we have of Solomon and his kingdom is found in the Bible in the book 1 Kings. Solomon was the son of King David and Bathsheba. Solomon had great success in maintaining his empire because he had great administrative skills. He reorganized the many government aspects that his father had established. He also organized Israel into 12 districts, and appointed a governor for each and every district. Solomon was a very wise man as we can learn from the Bible which made him a great leader when having to deal with a variety of people in many differnt occasions. Although Solomon had all this great wisdom he didnt really use it all of the time. In the Bible it says Solomon had nine hundred wives and cocubines. Having all these woman in his really took his mind off of ruling the kingdom and kind of made him a bad ruler. Although Solomon did do some great things as a ruler, he wrote three books of the Bible: Ecclesiastes, Proverbs, and the Song of Solomon.I think the commoners that he rulerd would have liked him for the fact that he had so much wisdom and could help them with any of their problems. If Solomon could have been a president, I think he would be a great one because of all of the wisdom that he had.
ReplyDeleteJake,great essay! I had no idea that Solomom had nine hundred wives and cocubines.That's really crazy! I agree that Solomon would have been a great president but being distracted with all his wives might not be good!!
DeleteI really enjoyed reading your essay. I didn't know that he had that many wives and concubines either. That's crazy!
Delete*cocubines.
DeleteSolomon was king of Israel from about 965 BC- 695 BC. He was the son of King David and Bathsheba. An obstacle that he faced was the fact that his father, David, was the greatest king Israel ever had, this meant Solomon had a great standard to live up to. According to the Bible, when Solomon first came to power he was asked by God in a dream he wanted from Him. Solomon, recognizing his weakness as a young ruler asked God for a discerning heart. God granted this request by making Solomon the wisest man who ever lived or ever will live. Not only did God blessed Solomon with great wisdom but also made him the greatest and most powerful king of his day.
ReplyDeleteSolomon is known not only for his wisdom, but also for his skill in building an empire, his massive building projects, and his weakness for women. Solomon greatly expanded his Kingdom’s borders so much so that his empire reached all the way up to the Euphrates River to the north and the Gulf of Aqaba to the south. He also wanted peace with Israel’s neighbors. One tactic Solomon frequently used was marriage. He would often marry women from foreign nations to help build peace with these women’s home countries. Although to him this might have been a great idea at the time it would become one of his greatest failures as most of the women he married were from other countries and worshiped false gods, bringing those idols into his palace and exposing Israel to more pagan worship.
Another one of Solomon’s greatest achievements was the construction of the temple for the Lord. Solomon was commissioned by God to construct the temple because his father David was not allowed to after he had shed blood.
I think the people living in Solomon’s day were very blessed to be living under such a mighty, powerful, and wise king. The people of Israel would’ve enjoyed all the perks that came from Solomon’s progress.
I think Solomon would make a good president because he would encourage peace and progress and would have more wisdom than any other world leader there is.
Bobby, I really enjoy reading your essay about King Solomon, and you are right. The first part of his reign over Israel was very good. Solomon was probable the wisest man of his time. God blessed him not only with discernment, but also with luxuries and fame. Solomon was a good leader, but when he got caught up in all of the worldly pleasures he took his focus off of God. He began to mistreat the people and treat them unfairly. If he would have only stayed true to how he was before, he could have been one of the greatest leaders of all time. Great job on your report!
DeleteHammurabi was an ancient king of Babylon. His empire was made up of much of what we now call the Middle East. Once his kingdom was extended, he focused on building up and improving it.
ReplyDeleteThe great accomplishments of Hammurabi’s reign were: transforming a small city-state into an empire, conquering many trade routes in the Middle East, gaining control of parts of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, and his defense plans. He is most known for creating the Code of Hammurabi, the codification of the laws of Babylon. The Code of Hammurabi classified and organized law in Babylon. There were 282 laws that covered how the subjects should treat the king, the conduct of public officials the protection of women, children and slaves and much more.
One of the problems he faced was constant war in the last fourteen years of his reign. After he defeated the city of Mari, on the Euphrates River, he worked on building defense fortifications. During the last two years of his life, Hammurabi faced decaying health.
His subjects probably liked him because his laws were fair and balanced. He thought the weak. Some of his laws gave debt relief to victims of floods or droughts.
Overall, he would be a good president because his laws were fair to every class of people. His kingdom did not last and after his death, his kingdom dissolved. He had a little bit of a god complex, though, so that could be a problem. After all he did, he was a really good leader.
Nice work, Abby! I liked how you said that Hammurabi treated his people fairly and balanced. Some of the leaders in history were more like tyrants, but Hammurabi was not. He showed great intelligence in how he ruled over the people.
DeleteGreat job on your essay, Abby! We picked the same topic to write about. I really liked how you talked about the problems he faced of being a ruler. I didn't know some of his laws gave debt relief to the victims of flood or droughts.
DeleteGood job Abby i really enjoyed reading your essay. I liked you went into great detail of what Hammurabi accomplised. I didnt know that he tured a tiny little city state into a great empire. I agree with your point that he would be a good president. I think his law code would be a really good thing for his presisentcy.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteFor this weeks assignment I had to put some thought into it before I could decide who exactly I felt would be good to write my essay on. All of these leaders made some sort of contribution that has had an effect that has run over into todays society. I finally decided on King Solomon. King Solomon was renowned as a wise man, and is greatly remembered for writing Ecclesiastes, Proverbs, and the Song of Solomon. His success in maintaining his empire was based on his administrative skills, he reorganized the many government departments his father had built and he organized Israel into 12 districts, appointing his own governor for each one.
ReplyDeleteGod gave Solomon several obstacles to overcome in his reign, such as becoming ruler at the age of 12 and two of David’s closest advisors, Joab son of Zeruiah and the priest Abiathar, wanted his older brother, Adonijah, to be king. When Adonijah came to Solomon and requested the king’s servant as a wife, Solomon saw that this was a veiled threat to take over his kingdom and sent a messenger to kill Adonijah. He banished Abiathar to the city of Anathoth. Solomon then followed his father’s last instructions in which David had ordered him to kill both Joab and one of his father’s enemies, Shimei son of Gera. Solomon thus overcame the last potential threats to his kingdom. He then appointed his friends to key military, governmental and religious posts. Thankfully Solomon was smart enough to realize he wasn't going to be able to be a good leader, the kind of leader his people needed, without the help of the Lord.
Solomon's dedication to the Lord makes me feel like his people probably really respected him as a ruler. I think he would be a good leader today for those same reasons.
Good job on your essay! I thought it was really interesting how many obstacles Solomon faced and how many threats there were to his kingdom
DeleteGreat job on your essay. Solomon is a very interesting king to read about. Solomon had great wisdom because of his great relationship with Lord. Im sure he would be great leader like you said because of his wise decisions.
DeleteFor this week's homework, I chose the great leader of Hammurabi. Hammurabi was the king of Babylon from 1792 to 1750 B.C. He was the sixth king of Babylon and the first of the Babylonian empire. The Sumerians had created the first written cuneiform. Hammurabi used cuneiform to create a set of laws called Hammurabi’s code. Hammurabi’s code dated back to about 1772 BC, and it was made up of about 282 laws. He believed in “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.” This means, that whatever you did, it would be done to you too. For example, if you murdered someone, you would be murdered. His other accomplishments were: uniting Mesopotamia, defeating Elam, Larsa, Eshnunna, and Mari, and making Babylonia an important power. I think he would be a good president because all the mean people would be dead or in jail. The bad people probably didn’t like him because they couldn’t get away with anything, but the obeying citizens most likely did, because they were safer. He was a very strict ruler, but not everyone was treated equally. Some laws are fair, but others, I believe, are cruel. Law number 218 says “If during an unsuccessful operation a patient dies, the arm of the surgeon must be cut off.” I don’t think this is fair, because if the patient dies, it’s not always the doctors fault, but that's just my opinion. Other than that and a few more, I think he was a pretty good ruler.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.worldbookonline.com/student/article?id=ar244300&st=hammurabi
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/hamcode.asp
http://www.phillipmartin.info/hammurabi/homepage.htm
Lexie, I really loved your essay! I didn't know that Hammurabi was the sixth king of Babylon, I also didn't know that Hammurabi used cuneiform to create a set of laws called Hammurabi's code. Thank you for educating me with this information!
DeleteI really liked your essay, Lexie! It was really interesting.
DeleteGreat job on your essay. It was very interesting to learn about Hammurabi. Your right, those laws are intense! At least he was strict with criminals.
DeleteKing Solomon is a well-known figure in the Bible who lived around 928 B.C. He was the third ruler over ancient Israel. Solomon’s father, David, was king before him. Solomon became ruler from 965 to his death.
ReplyDeleteSolomon did several things during his reign. He built an elaborate palace and the Temple in Jerusalem, the capital. He also helped with the structure and development of this large kingdom that his father had conquered. He not only is talked about in the Bible in I Kings 1-11, but he also wrote some of the books of the Bible including: Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon. He also wrote many songs and proverbs. The Bible says Solomon ruled with great wisdom and justice. Many people respected him for this, at first. He made an effort to have peace with the other nations.
Unfortunately, he did not stay faithful to God, and he lost his way. Once he had turned from God, Solomon not only lost God’s favor, but he also lost the support of the people. He started to mistreat them by raising the taxes, forcing young boys to fight in the wars, and many other things. This caused the common people to lose trust in the king that they had once respected. Solomon began to rely on his own power instead of seeking God’s will.
If Solomon were selected to be a president I don’t think he would do a good job, because although he was very wise initially, he lost sight of God and came to oppress the people. A good leader should never lose sight of God and should always treat the people with justice.
Good essay on King Solomon. although I think that Solomon would have made a good modern president in the first part of his reign because of his wisdom.
DeleteGreat job on your essay. I don't think a lot of people know about the fall out between Solomon and God so I think it's cool that you mentioned it. I think Solomon would be a great leader today if he hadn't had a fall out with God because he was so wise, but I guess since he didn't stay true he wouldn't be a very good leader.
DeleteMeyers, Carol L. "Solomon." World Book Student. World Book, 2012. Web. 24 Aug. 2012.
ReplyDeleteFor my research, I researched about Hammurabi which was the sixth king of the Babylonian empire. He was the empire from 1792 BC to 1750 BC. As most of us know Hammurabi was most known for the code he invented known as “Hammurabi’s Code.” The code was one of the first code’s ever recorded in history. Hammurabi had written and placed the code/ law where the whole public would be able to see it although not many were literate. The Code placed in the public was stolen from the Elamites and the code was later founded in 1901 and now we can find them in Paris. The Hammurabi’s code we included 282 laws and the scribes wrote them on 12 scrolls. It is a fact that the code of Hammurabi is one of the greatest records. The code regulates how the society went about and everything. The code stated heavier/ harder punishment to children and families. It was more of death penalty and punishments more than anything. It is the oldest deciphered laws. It has to do along with punishment, deals with a matter of contract. There’s nearly only one complete part of the law left called the diorite stele, it is in the shape of an index finger. The code was arranged in an order so everyone who could read could read them and know what was expected by them. Also, another thing that is interesting about this code that it is the oldest from the Old Babylonian time period.
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammurabi
Bethany I really enjoyed reading your essay it was a very interesting topic to read about. I didnt know that Hammurabi's law code was actually stolen. And then founded. Im glad they found the law code because i would like to visit paris one day and seen the laws.
DeleteSarah F. I thought you did a fantastic job on your essay about Solomon. Solomon is always a favorite person to study in History and in the Bible. Solomon was a very intelligent man who was very wise and not only played an important role in the Bible but also in history. I like your opinion on how you thought you didn’t think he would be a good president!! Great Job!!
ReplyDeleteRebecca D. I liked your essay. I wrote about Hammurabi also, but I like how you added more information and how you told more about everything he did rather than I did by just talking about the laws he wrote. You added some pretty interesting facts and information!! I thought you did Great! Great Job on your essay!!
Sarah S. I enjoyed your essay on Cyrus the Great. I thought it had great information Great Job on your essay!!
Sarah Strehl- I really enjoyed your essay on Cyrus the Great this week! It was really interesting to learn about all of the amazing accomplishments he was able to achieve -such as the freeing of over 40,000 Jews and his inventing of the first postal system. I think it is really interesting, in addition to his accomplishments, that the people liked him and that he respected his people. Great job!
ReplyDeleteSarah Flinchum- I also really enjoyed reading your essay on King Solomon this week. It’s so amazing and humbling to think that even though you may be the wisest person in the world, if you lose sight of God, you can lose everything. Therefore, I agree with you that while he would have made an excellent president at the beginning of his reign, his turning away from God would not make him a beneficial leader today. Anyway, great job!
Thank you,
Rebecca Dunmore
this week im going to do my homework on Cyrus the Great. he was born into a noble Persian family, called the Achaemenids. According to ancient historians Cyrus grandfather Astyages had been told in a dream that his grandson would throw him off the throne. To avoid this from happening he did something horrable and had Cyrus killed. but the official who was told kill him sent him to a shepherd instead of killing Cyrus. When he was ten years old Astyages discovered this deception and because of Cyrus outstanding qualities, he was allowed to live in exile with his mother. In 554 BC Cyrus revolted against his grandfather and in 550 BC the dream his grandfather had came true when Cyrus entered Ecbatana defeating the Median Empire. after his victory over his grandfather he formed a government for his new kingdom the Median Persian Empire. In 539 BC he conquered Babylon and took control of the majority of the Middle East including the Palestine empire. In 537 BC, after he defeated Babylon he allowed the Jews to go back to the land of Palestine. Because of what he allowed the Jews to do they called him The Anointed of the Lord. but eventualy Cyrus got killed in a battle against the Massagetae tribes in Asia. The commoners thought he was just and a good leader. i think Cyrus would be a great modern leader today because he tried to make amaizingly great decisions concerning the people of his kingdom.
ReplyDeleteHammurabi was the 6th king of Babylon. He was most remembered for writing one of the first written law codes in recorded history. It was written on stone tablets that stood 8 feet tall each. It included 282 laws on 12 different written scrolls. One of the laws i ncluded that if a doctor caused pain or suffering during surgical proceedures, then his hand was cut off of his arm. He also developed the "eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth" law. He was in power from 1792 BC to 1750 BC. HIs law code was probably his biggest accomplishment. He did face some obstacles though. Some people rejected or thought that his law was cruel and unusual punishment. Which, in my opinion, it was. If he was elected president today, I feel that his job would be very harsh. His laws were sometime harmful or deadly. When a person does wrong, they should not have to suffer physical pain such as losing a body part or even their life for such a small wrong-doing.
ReplyDeleteI choose to do King Solomon. He was considered one of the wealthiest and strongest kings. He was one of the most memorable kings. He built the Holy Temple, He ruled over Israel for at least 40 years. He made many monuments and provided water for the city. He built a port for trading with other countries, which brought a lot of money to him. He was also the third king of Israel. God gave him great wisdom as well. Some of his obstacles were turning to idolatry. Eventually he begins to sin even more, taking up huge sums of money. He also marries foreign women, which lead him to even more false gods. The kingdom also splits in two because of these sins. I believe some of the commoners were mad about his gold and increasing wealth. They might have thought he was too powerful with his wealth. When he was worshipping God, He was fair to the people and followed Gods rules. As soon as he started to worship other Gods, the people either were very angry or followed his ways. When he asked God for wisdom, many people were happy with his decisions. I believe that Solomon would be a good leader. With God’s wisdom he would be able to make the right choices. Many people might be angry with his rulings and religion. Others might be mad about his wealth and importing too many things. I could see him building very many buildings and monuments around the country.
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solomon