Mesopotamia

By 2lo38
  • 5500 BCE

    Sumerians

    The first archaeological evidence of Sumerians in Mesopotamiaj
  • 5400 BCE

    Irrigation

    Advanced farming methods, including irrigation projects, first appear in Mesopotamia
  • 3500 BCE

    Towns and Pictographs

    The first Sumerian towns appear, and primitive writing is developed
  • 3400 BCE

    Uruk

    Uruk becomes the first large Sumerian city, with a population of around 50,000
  • 3000 BCE

    Early Cuneiform

    Early cuneiform writing begins to replace pictographs
  • 3000 BCE

    Ox-drawn Plow

    The ox-drawn plow, invented in the Near East, changes the landscape as farmers clear forests to make bigger fields
  • 3000 BCE

    City-States Flourish

    Independent Sumerian city-states flourish in southern Mesopotamia (Iraq)
  • 2900 BCE

    Ziggurats

    In Sumer, the first ziggurats, stepped temple-towers are built
  • 2750 BCE

    Gilgamesh

    Gilgamesh becomes ruler of Uruk. Hel will later be immortalized as a semi-divine king in the world's first literary epic, the Epic of Gilgamesh
  • 2600 BCE

    Tombs

    Rulers of the southern city-state of Ur are buried in tombs together with their attendants
  • 2500 BCE

    Writing Spreads

    Sumerian writing spreads abroad as trade routes are opened
  • 2350 BCE

    Sargon of Akkad

    The Sumerian city-states are overrun by Sargon of Akkad, a ruler whose power base lies farther north within Mesopotamia. Sargon establishes the first empire known in history.
  • 2100 BCE

    King Ur-Nammu

    From Ur, King Ur-Nammu reasserts Sumerian power, founds schools for scribes, introduces calendar reforms, and promotes international trade
  • 1950 BCE

    Sumerian Civilization Ends

    Ur is sacked by the Elamites from southwestern Iran, bringing the great age of Sumerian civilization to an end
  • 1900 BCE

    Babylon

    The Amorites establish a dynasty of kings in the town of Babylon
  • 1850 BCE

    Abraham

    The patriarch Abraham, father and founder of the Jewish religion, lived in Ur around this time
  • 1792 BCE

    Hammurabi

    Hammurabi I comes to the throne of Babylon. By his death in about 1750 BCE the city is the center of an empire stretching to Assyria and Iran
  • 1750 BCE

    Epic of Gilgamesh

    The earliest literary classic, the Epic of Gilgamesh, is written down
  • 930 BCE

    Assyrian Empire

    The Assyrian Empire becomes dominant in the Tigris Valley region
  • 732 BCE

    Assyrian Conquests

    Assyria conquers Damascus. Over the next 17 years the Assyrians also overcome Babylon and make Israel and Judah vassel (subject) states
  • 673 BCE

    Astrology

    Babylonian astrologers correctly predict a solar eclipse
  • 612 BCE

    Assyrian Empire Falls

    The Assyrian Empire falls to the Babylonians
  • 586 BCE

    Jerusalem Falls

    After a long siege, Jerusalem falls to Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon. He destroys the city including the Temple, and takes many Jews captive to Babylon
  • 539 BCE

    Cyrus the Great

    Babylon falls to Cyrus the Great, ruler of the Persian Empire. This brings Mesopotamia under Persian rule. Jewish exiles are permitted to return to their homeland of Judah
  • 331 BCE

    Alexander the Great

    Alexander defeats a Persian army winning control of Mesopotamia
  • 305 BCE

    Seleucid Empire

    Seleucus, one of Alexander's former generals, establishes the Seleucid Kingdom in Mesopotamia and Persia
  • 224

    Sasanian Empire

    Persia's Sasanian Empire is founded when the Parthian realm is overthrown.
  • 620

    Sasanian Empire Declines

    King Khusrow II is captured and executed by the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius, heralding the decline of Persia's Sasanian Dynasty
  • 639

    Rashidun Caliphate

    Byzantium is seriously weakened by the Arab conquest of Mesopotamia, Syria, and Egypt.
  • 651

    Arab-Islamic Conquest

    Muslim armies of the Rashidun Caliphate defeat the Sasanian Empire at the Battle of Nahavand, known as the "Victory of Victories."
  • 750

    Abbasid Caliphate

    As-Saffah mounts a successful revolt against the Umayyad Caliphate.
  • 1258

    Siege of Baghdad

    Mongol forces extend their rule into Mesopotamia with the siege and sack of Baghdad. This marks the end of the Islamic Golden Age.
  • 1401

    Timur the Lame

    A warlord of Mongol descent, Timur the Lame, invaded Iraq. After the capture of Baghdad, 20,000 of its citizens were massacred. Timur ordered that every soldier should return with at least two severed human heads to show him (many warriors were so scared they killed prisoners captured earlier in the campaign just to ensure they had heads to present to Timur).
  • 1508

    Safavid Dynasty

    Iraq fell into the hands of the Iranian Safavids. Owing to the century long Turco-Iranian rivalry between the Safavids and the neighbouring Ottoman Turks, Iraq would be contested between the two for more than a hundred years during the frequent Ottoman-Persian Wars.

  • Ottoman Empire

    With the Treaty of Zuhab in 1639, most of the territory of present-day Iraq eventually came under the control of Ottoman Empire as a result of wars with the neighbouring rival, Safavid Iran. Throughout most of the period of Ottoman rule (1533–1918), the territory of present-day Iraq was a battle zone between the rival regional empires and tribal alliances.