Gu-Edin

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Location of Gu-Edin, between Umma and Lagash in Sumer. Gu-Edin.jpg
Location of Gu-Edin, between Umma and Lagash in Sumer.

Gu-Edin (also transcribed "Gu'edena" or "Guedena") was a fertile plain in Sumer, in modern-day Iraq. It lay between Umma and Lagash, and claims made on it by each side were a cause of the Umma-Lagash war. [1] Argument over the territory continued for around 150 years. [2]

Contents

Early history

The Cone of Enmetena mentions the mediation of Mesilim and the subsequent conflict:          
me-silim lugal kis -ke4 inim istaran-na-ta es2 gana2 be2-ra ki-ba na bi2-ru2
"Mesilim, king of Kis, at the command of Istaran, measured the field and set up a stele there." Sumerian Cuneiform Stone Cone. Cone of Enmetena, king of Lagash.jpg
The Cone of Enmetena mentions the mediation of Mesilim and the subsequent conflict: 𒈨𒁲 𒈗𒆧𒆠𒆤 𒅗 𒀭𒅗𒁲𒈾𒋫 𒂠 𒃷 𒁉𒊏 𒆠𒁀 𒈾 𒉈𒆕
me-silim lugal kiš -ke4 inim ištaran-na-ta eš2 gana2 be2-ra ki-ba na bi2-ru2
"Mesilim, king of Kiš, at the command of Ištaran, measured the field and set up a stele there."

According to a peace between Umma and Lagash mediated by Mesilim, king of Kish had determined where the boundary lay and the terms of use of a canal used to irrigate the land. The terms of that agreement were recorded on a stone monument called a stele, but Umma continued to feel that Lagash were unfairly advantaged by it. [2]

Reign of Eannatum

It is recorded on the Stele of the Vultures that Gu-Edin was pillaged by a later (énsi) of Umma, who ruled that city on behalf of its god Shara, and whose name, according to the Cone of Enmetena, [lower-alpha 1] was Ush. Gu-Edin had been claimed by the énsi of Lagash, Eannatum – author of the Stele of Vultures – as the property of Lagash's god, Ninĝirsu, and the pillaging precipitated a war between the two cities. [7]

Eannatum attacked back and Umma was heavily defeated. [2] [8] By the time peace was re-established, Ush was either dead or deposed.

Treaty

A peace treaty was agreed between his successor, Enakalli, and Eannatum which established Gu-Edin as the property of Ninĝirsu. [8] A deep canal was dug to mark the freshly agreed border and two stone monuments were put in place: the Stele of Mesilim, which had been there before, and a newly carved one. [8] Leonard William King, writing in 1910, suggested that the second stele may have had much the same text as the Stele of the Vultures, but that the latter would not have been on the boundary itself. [9]

The treaty, which was sealed with oaths and the erection of temples, also included the establishment of an 'ownerless' tract of land intended as a buffer, and treated any barley Umma grew in that area of Gu-Edin to which it had access as a loan from Lagash, with resulting interest. [10] [2] That area of land, then, could be used by Umma but only by paying rent. However, Umma did not reliably pay up. [10]

Later events

Lamentation about the fall of Lagash to Lugalzagesi, Urukagina period, circa 2350 BCE Tello, ancient Girsu. Lamentation about the ruin of Lagash, Uru-Ka-gina period, circa 2350 BCE Tello, ancient Girsu.jpg
Lamentation about the fall of Lagash to Lugalzagesi, Urukagina period, circa 2350 BCE Tello, ancient Girsu.

Gu-Edin was invaded by Umma at least twice during the reign of Eannatum's son, Entemena: once by Ur-Lumma and once by his successor Illi. The first attack was defeated soundly, according to Entemena's account, and the second was not lastingly successful. [5]

Lagash finally fell to Lugalzagesi, king of Umma, circa 2350 BCE, ending the First Dynasty of Lagash. Tablets of lamentation have been found, recording the fall of Lagash to Lugalzagesi, during the rule of Urukagina. [12] Lugalzagesi went on to conquer the whole of Sumer, until he was himself vanquished by Sargon of Akkad.

See also

Notes

  1. In older work, including King's, "énsi" was transliterated as "patesi" and "Enmetena" as "Entemena". These are no longer preferred. [5] [6]

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Urukagina</span> 24th century BC Mesopotamian King

Uru-ka-gina, Uru-inim-gina, or Iri-ka-gina was King of the city-states of Lagash and Girsu in Mesopotamia, and the last ruler of the 1st Dynasty of Lagash. He assumed the title of king, claiming to have been divinely appointed, upon the downfall of his corrupt predecessor, Lugalanda.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ur-Nanshe</span> King of Lagash

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lugal-zage-si</span> Sumerian King

Lugal-Zage-Si of Umma was the last Sumerian king before the conquest of Sumer by Sargon of Akkad and the rise of the Akkadian Empire, and was considered as the only king of the third dynasty of Uruk, according to the Sumerian King List. Initially, as king of Umma, he led the final victory of Umma in the generation-long conflict with the city-state Lagash for the fertile plain of Gu-Edin. Following up on this success, he then united Sumer briefly as a single kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dudu of Akkad</span> King of the Akkadian Empire

Dudu was a 22nd-century BC king of the Akkadian Empire, who reigned for 21 years c. 2189-2169 BC according to the Sumerian king list. Unlike his two predecessors Naram-Sin and Shar-Kali-Sharri he was not deified.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eannatum</span> King of Lagash

Eannatum was a Sumerian Ensi of Lagash circa 2500–2400 BCE. He established one of the first verifiable empires in history, subduing Elam and destroying the city of Susa, and extending his domain over the rest of Sumer and Akkad. One inscription found on a boulder states that Eannatum was his Sumerian name, while his "Tidnu" (Amorite) name was Lumma.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Entemena</span> King of Lagash

Entemena, also called Enmetena, lived circa 2400 BC, was a son of En-anna-tum I, and he reestablished Lagash as a power in Sumer. He defeated Il, king of Umma, in a territorial conflict through an alliance with Lugal-kinishe-dudu of Uruk, successor to Enshakushanna, who is in the king list. The tutelary deity Shul-utula was his personal deity. His reign lasted at least 19 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rimush</span> King of Akkad

Rimush c. 2279–2270 BC was the second king of the Akkadian Empire. He was the son of Sargon of Akkad and Queen Tashlultum. He was succeeded by his brother Manishtushu, and was an uncle of Naram-Sin of Akkad. Naram-Sin posthumously deified Sargon and Manishtushi but not his uncle. His sister was Enheduana, considered the earliest known named author in world history. Little is known about his brother Shu-Enlil. There was a city, Dur-Rimuš, located near Tell Ishchali and Khafajah. It was known to be a cult center of the storm god Adad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enshakushanna</span> King of Uruk c. 2350 BC

Enshakushanna, or Enshagsagana, En-shag-kush-ana, Enukduanna, En-Shakansha-Ana, En-šakušuana was a king of Uruk around the mid-3rd millennium BC who is named on the Sumerian King List, which states his reign to have been 60 years. He conquered Hamazi, Akkad, Kish, and Nippur, claiming hegemony over all of Sumer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mesilim</span> King of Kish

Mesilim, also spelled Mesalim, was lugal (king) of the Sumerian city-state of Kish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stele of the Vultures</span> Historical and mythical limestone account / depiction

The Stele of the Vultures is a monument from the Early Dynastic IIIb period in Mesopotamia celebrating a victory of the city-state of Lagash over its neighbour Umma. It shows various battle and religious scenes and is named after the vultures that can be seen in one of these scenes. The stele was originally carved out of a single slab of limestone, but only seven fragments are known to have survived up to the present day. The fragments were found at Tello in southern Iraq in the late 19th century and are now on display in the Louvre. The stele was erected as a monument to the victory of king Eannatum of Lagash over Ush, king of Umma. It is the earliest known war monument.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enakalle</span> King of Umma

Enakalle or Enakalli was the king of Umma circa 2500–2400 BC, a Sumerian city-state, during the Early Dynastic III period. His reign lasted at least 8 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Akurgal</span> King of Lagash

Akurgal was the second king (Ensi) of the first dynasty of Lagash. His relatively short reign took place in the first part of the 25th century BCE, during the period of the archaic dynasties. He succeeded his father, Ur-Nanshe, founder of the dynasty, and was replaced by his son Eannatum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ush, king of Umma</span> King of Umma

Ush was King or ensi of Umma, a city-state in Sumer, circa 2450 BCE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ur-Lumma</span> King of Umma

Ur-Lumma was a ruler of the Sumerian city-state of Umma, circa 2400 BCE. His father was King Enakalle, who had been vanquished by Eannatum of Lagash. Ur-Lumma claimed the title of "King" (Lugal). His reign lasted at least 12 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lugalshaengur</span> Governor of Lagash

Lugalshaengur, , was ensi (governor) of the Sumerian city-state of Lagash.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lugal-kinishe-dudu</span> Sumerian king, 25th century BC

Lugal-kinishe-dudu also Lugal-kiginne-dudu , was a King and (ensi) of Uruk and Ur who lived towards the end of the 25th century BCE. The Sumerian King List mentions Lugal-kinishe-dudu as the second king of the dynasty after En-shakansha-ana, attributing to him a fanciful reign of 120 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enannatum II</span> Governor of Lagash

Enannatum II, son of Entemena, was Ensi (governor) of Lagash.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Umma–Lagash war</span>

The Umma–Lagash war took place in Sumer's Early Dynastic III period (2600–2350 BCE) in present-day southern Iraq. It was caused by the city of Umma infringing upon an old border treaty with neighbouring city-state Lagash regarding a fertile piece of land coveted by both. It has also been nicknamed the Sumerian "Hundred Years War".

References

  1. Lomazoff 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Flannery & Marcus 2012, pp. 492–493.
  3. "Cone of Enmetena, king of Lagash". 2020.
  4. "CDLI-Found Texts". cdli.ucla.edu. Retrieved 2018-03-12.
  5. 1 2 "Enmetena". Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. Oxford University. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
  6. "patesi". Oxford Dictionaries. Archived from the original on August 7, 2018. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
  7. King 1994, pp. 120–123.
  8. 1 2 3 King 1994, pp. 126–128.
  9. King 1994, pp. 142–143.
  10. 1 2 Wilcke 2003, pp. 73–75.
  11. "Site officiel du musée du Louvre". cartelfr.louvre.fr.
  12. "Site officiel du musée du Louvre". cartelfr.louvre.fr.

Sources