The rebirth of Assyria: the emergence of the New Syrian Empire
It took Assyria, which had been pushed back to its original core area but was well aware that it could lay claim to Upper Mesopotamia as its natural frontier, two centuries to gain control of the political, economic, military and cultural situation in the Middle East. The kings of Assyria then set out to dominate the entire Middle East, including Anatolia, Egypt and Iran.
In the 1st millennium BC, with the given technological innovations and the ability to use and distribute them, as well as the new social entities and ideologies mentioned in the previous chapter, the geopolitical sphere of interest faced new conditions and opportunities. The physical (as well as psychological and ideological) space has expanded, and very greatly and abruptly. What happened, in other words, was that the density of cities or states capable of exerting influence, whether politically, economically or culturally, in a given area (for example, in Mesopotamia) was drastically reduced, allowing the emergence of a single dominant state in a place that had been dotted with countless small rival kingdoms centuries earlier. But this dominant power was surrounded by other factors of power, which were also forgotten, and therefore had the same vast demographic and material resources at their disposal.
The organisation and complexity of the large state organisations presented an increasingly unified picture in a world where a certain balance of power had emerged, partly because of the distance between the new, much larger centres of power.
In the second half of the millennium, Mesopotamia became part of a small but still significant imperial complex with a network of direct power or alliance relations, which seemed immeasurable in terms of the typical geographically oriented mentality of Mesopotamian culture in the 2nd millennium.
Persia became the new centre on the map of the world, stretching from the Indian subcontinent to the Iberian Peninsula, from the Himalayas to the Strait of Giblaltar.
Technological and economic innovations in the service of Assyrian power
Technological innovations have played no small role in changing the way land is used and perceived. Iron has become an essential metal for making everyday utensils and tools, and this has not only led to the dispersal of centres of settlement, which have helped to increase the value of land and to shape and transform it to a much greater extent than before. For example, huge terraces were formed in the uplands and lowlands, allowing intensive farming. Means of transport, especially ships, were developed and cities became smaller and smaller, but as a form of settlement they became more widespread. In short, during the 1st millennium, both human society and the environment in which they lived began to take on a more 'modern' form.
Assyria was the first state to seize the opportunity of the millennium, especially in the political sphere. At first, perhaps even consciously, as they were essentially trying to revive what kings had called the country of Assyria since the late Bronze Age. Later on, they were determined to create a territorial state that was both unique and unified, i.e. culturally structured in such a way that everything was linked to the centre (the original core area of Assyria). This was achieved by the 'Assyrianisation' of Mesopotamia and the territories traditionally associated with it.
Thus, in the first phase, Assyria reclaimed the land that had been considered an integral part of the nation under Tukulti-Ninurta I, and then consolidated its borders. The army was also responsible for ensuring the payment of taxes owed by the vassal states. The history of this early phase is best marked by the campaigns launched by the Assyrian kings towards the three main fronts. To the north lay the region of the Tigris basin and its left bank tributaries, which even extended into the Taurus Mountains of Armenia and the Zagros in north-western Iran. The Key Area was the region around Lake Urmia and Lake Van, where the Urartu confederation of peoples ruled in the name of Nairi. Here, a unified state was soon formed, which was called Urartu.
On the western front were the Aramaic states of the former "Central Assyrian" territories, between the rivers Habr and Balih, and further west, across the Euphrates. This frontier was pushed by Tukulti-apil-Esar III into Palestine and up to the middle course of the Euphrates. The southern front was roughly Babylonia and the Chaldean tribes, who settled in the southern part of the country along the Persian Gulf and made several attempts to conquer Babylon. By the 10th century, it was thus under the rule of Adad-Nirar II and Tukulti-Ninurta II (911-891 and 890-884 respectively).
The structure of the empire: administration and central power
The main objective was to control the main trade routes to the Mediterranean and Anatolia, and to repel the Aramaeans who had infiltrated into Assyrian territory and re-colonised the zone. Assur-Nasir-apil II (883-859) led his army beyond the traditional frontiers, but his historical significance lies in the building works he initiated. He built a new capital, Kalhu, with the Northwest Palace, which he embellished with an impressive series of reliefs and statues.
During the reign of Assur-nasir-apil II, a new empire, Urartu, spread its wings in the north and was almost immediately attacked by Sulamnu-assaridu III (858-824), whose reign was marked by intense military activity on all fronts, including the south.
The internal political crisis and the decline of the New Syriac Empire
During the reign of the kings who succeeded him, V. Samsi-Adad V to Assur-Nirari V, Assyria lived through an era of internal political crisis, under the rule of grey eminences such as Queen Semiramis or Samsi-lli, who served as turtanu (commander-in-chief). By the mid-8th century, this crisis had effectively undermined Assyrian great power status. An anti-Assyrian neo-Hittite coalition led by Sarduri of Urartu was formed, and in 744 power was seized by Tukulti-apil-Esarra III, who introduced drastic reforms and achieved significant military successes. He won a battle near Kistan in 743 against Sardur and the new Hittite states, and immediately set about implementing his policy of permanent occupation, with Palestine as his main target, by establishing a provincial system. His successor, Sulmanu-Assaridu V (726-722), introduced some important administrative innovations, first of all by abolishing the privileges held by the holy cities of Assur and Harran (the latter being the cult centre of the moon god and the third most important New Assyrian religious centre after Assur and Nineveh). This led to a revolt, at the end of which Sarrukhin II (721-705) seized power.
