Warfare in Sumer

Last updated January 11, 2025

Warfare in Sumer predominantly consisted of small-scale conflicts between nearby city-states. Sumerian armies consisted of bronze-armoured soldiers armed with various weapons, including spears, swords and sickle-swords, engaging each other in phalanx-like formations. When besieging cities, battering rams and sappers would be used to breach the defences; on the open battlefield, chariots were also used. Most wars were fought because of inter-city rivalries, or for wealth, resources, and prestige. Military victories were later glorified in Mesopotamian art — a major source of historical information.

History

Weapons and Tactics

Soldiers in ancient Mesopotamia militaries were well-trained and well-equipped. Archaeological studies show that the Sumerians used war-carts and iron or bronze weapons;^[1] most soldiers used axes, daggers, and spears; units with spears would be organized into close-order formations.^[2] Armor included copper and bronze helmets, as well as bronze armor and cloaks studded in metal discs, although some depictions of light infantry show them without armor, only wearing skirts adorned with feathers. The oldest known helmet ever, the Golden Wig, was made of beaten and engraved gold with a wadded linen liner. Bronze and copper alloy helmets dating back to 2500 BCE have also been found. By 2100 BCE, bronze scale armor had developed.^[3]

To support the main army there would be light infantry equipped with javelins and bows. Sumerian soldiers used basic bows before the Akkadian Empire, but Sargon's empire spread the composite bow throughout Mesopotamia. It is likely the bow was given to the Akkadians by nomadic peoples; it became a very important Mesopotamian weapon, and many soldiers used them.^[4]^[5] The armies also contained small war wagons, which generally had a crew of two: a rider and a warrior.^[4] They were pulled by donkeys, mules, or crossbreeds; horses were not introduced before the 2nd millennium BCE and when present may have been too expensive outside of elite units.^[1]

During the Uruk Period of Sumerian history, jobs in Sumeria became more specialized. Leading to city-states forming armies. The armies of Sumer could have thousands of soldiers; some city states could field armies five thousand or six thousand men strong.^[1] In ancient Sumerian militaries, the king was the supreme commander of the army. However, smaller units were commanded by lower ranking officers.^[6] Generals were valued in the ancient Akkadian military. Sargon of Akkad appointed one of his generals to the position of Sagi-mah or chief cupbearer.^[1] Other known units include the Shub-Lugal, which served as household troops and made up the majority of Sargon's army.^[5]

Causes and conflicts

One common cause for war was rivalries between city states, often caused by previous conflicts. For example, Umma and Lagash waged several wars against each other, while the cities of Ur, Uruk, and Kish all rivalled each other.^{[ citation needed ]} Wars were often started as one city-state tried to secure greater power — a legendary example is Gilgamesh, king of Uruk, declining to become a vassal of Kish. Records show that some wars were started to control trade routes and their valuable resources.^[4] King Meskiaggasher fought wars in the Zagros Mountains for timber, metal, and stone, while Sumerian myths recording wars against the mythical kingdom of Aratta most likely represent real campaigns in Iran for Lapis Lazuli and tin.^[7] Elamites and Gutians would often raid the city-states' vital supply routes; many city-states formed military alliances to defend against such raiding.^[1] It is probable that over time, inhabitants of villages migrated to the cities, because the cities provided greater protection, causing the rural population to shrink. Victory in war brought prestige and wealth to the king of the victorious city.^[2]

During the Early Dynastic Period, there were an increasing amount of wars between rival Sumerian city-states. These wars were very small-scale: the cities of Umma and Lagash, who fought many wars against each other, are only 25 miles apart. Most battles took place only a few days march from each involved city-state. One war known to have taken place over a comparatively long distance, was between Kish and Elam, who were located 160 miles apart.^[7] Modern historians know very little about the tactics of Sumerian armies because records glorify victories, but rarely talk about how the battle was fought.^[4] Sumerian soldiers would besiege cities using battering rams and sappers while the defenders built towers.^[1] Although the walls of some ancient Sumerian cities may not have initially served as defensive fortifications, being originally designed to protect cities from wild animals and floods, and to demonstrate the power and wealth of a settlement, they eventually took on a defensive aspect; moats also become widely used in the 13th century B.C.^[1] Once a city was captured, its walls would be destroyed in order to humiliate the city, which was also looted. A large section of the population would often be captured and enslaved, while the victor would dedicate the spoils of war to the patron deity of their city.^[1]

Depictions

Depictions of warfare are a common theme in Mesopotamian art. Usually the art, commissioned by the victors, would celebrate and glorify a military victory. Some notable examples are the Royal Standard of Ur and the Steele of the Vultures: the Royal Standard depicts soldiers, led by the king of Ur, marching over the corpses of their enemy, while others drag prisoners of war behind them; while the Steele of Vultures depicts the king of Lagash defeating the king of Umma, soldiers marching in a phalanx-like formation, and vultures carrying the severed heads of the soldiers from Umma, who had fallen in heaps in front of the soldiers from Lagash.^[8] Epigraphy and archaeological records show other depictions of warfare.^[5]

Warfare and violence are common themes in Mesopotamian literature. Military campaigns were a frequent subject. Often, writers praised wars and battles, describing the conquests as glorious, or glorifying the wealth garnered from looting. One royal inscription from the Akkadian Empire describes the campaigns of King Manishtushu. It reads: "Manishtushu, king of the world; when he conquered Anshan and Shirihum, had ships cross the Lower Sea. The cities across the sea, thirty-two [in number], assembled for battle, but he was victorious [over them]. Further, he conquered their cities, struck down their rulers, and after, he roused his troops, plundered as far as the Silver Mines. He quarried the black stone of the mountains across the Lower Sea, loaded it on ships, and moored [the ships] at the quay of Agade."^[9]

Related Research Articles

The Akkadian Empire was the first known ancient empire of Mesopotamia, succeeding the long-lived civilization of Sumer. Centered on the city of Akkad and its surrounding region, the empire united Akkadian and Sumerian speakers under one rule and exercised significant influence across Mesopotamia, the Levant, and Anatolia, sending military expeditions as far south as Dilmun and Magan in the Arabian Peninsula.

Sumer is the earliest known civilization, located in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia, emerging during the Chalcolithic and early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. Like nearby Elam, it is one of the cradles of civilization, along with Egypt, the Indus Valley, the Erligang culture of the Yellow River valley, Caral-Supe, and Mesoamerica. Living along the valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, Sumerian farmers grew an abundance of grain and other crops, a surplus which enabled them to form urban settlements. The world's earliest known texts come from the Sumerian cities of Uruk and Jemdet Nasr, and date to between c. 3350 – c. 2500 BC, following a period of proto-writing c. 4000 – c. 2500 BC.

The Sumerian King List or Chronicle of the One Monarchy is an ancient literary composition written in Sumerian that was likely created and redacted to legitimize the claims to power of various city-states and kingdoms in southern Mesopotamia during the late third and early second millennium BC. It does so by repetitively listing Sumerian cities, the kings that ruled there, and the lengths of their reigns. Especially in the early part of the list, these reigns often span thousands of years. In the oldest known version, dated to the Ur III period but probably based on Akkadian source material, the SKL reflected a more linear transition of power from Kish, the first city to receive kingship, to Akkad. In later versions from the Old Babylonian period, the list consisted of a large number of cities between which kingship was transferred, reflecting a more cyclical view of how kingship came to a city, only to be inevitably replaced by the next. In its best-known and best-preserved version, as recorded on the Weld-Blundell Prism, the SKL begins with a number of fictional antediluvian kings, who ruled before a flood swept over the land, after which kingship went to Kish. It ends with a dynasty from Isin, which is well-known from other contemporary sources.

The history of Sumer spans through the 5th to 3rd millennia BCE in southern Mesopotamia, and is taken to include the prehistoric Ubaid and Uruk periods. Sumer was the region's earliest known civilization and ended with the downfall of the Third Dynasty of Ur around 2004 BCE. It was followed by a transitional period of Amorite states before the rise of Babylonia in the 18th century BCE.

Lagash was an ancient city-state located northwest of the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and east of Uruk, about 22 kilometres (14 mi) east of the modern town of Al-Shatrah, Iraq. Lagash was one of the oldest cities of the Ancient Near East. The ancient site of Nina is around 10 km (6.2 mi) away and marks the southern limit of the state. Nearby Girsu, about 25 km (16 mi) northwest of Lagash, was the religious center of the Lagash state. The Lagash state's main temple was the E-ninnu at Girsu, dedicated to the god Ningirsu. The Lagash state incorporated the ancient cities of Lagash, Girsu, Nina.

The Third Dynasty of Ur or Ur III was a Sumerian dynasty based in the city of Ur in the 22nd and 21st centuries BC. For a short period they were the preeminent power in Mesopotamia and their realm is sometimes referred to by historians as the Neo-Sumerian Empire.

Naram-Sin, also transcribed Narām-Sîn or Naram-Suen, was a ruler of the Akkadian Empire, who reigned c. 2254–2218 BC, and was the third successor and grandson of King Sargon of Akkad. Under Naram-Sin the empire reached its maximum extent. He was the first Mesopotamian king known to have claimed divinity for himself, taking the title "God of Akkad", and the first to claim the title "King of the Four Quarters". His military strength was strong as he crushed revolts and expanded the empire to places like Turkey and Iran. He became the patron city god of Akkade as Enlil was in Nippur. His enduring fame resulted in later rulers, Naram-Sin of Eshnunna and Naram-Sin of Assyria as well as Naram-Sin of Uruk, assuming the name.

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.

Enmebaragesi (Sumerian: 𒂗𒈨𒁈𒄄𒋛Enmebárgisi [EN-ME-BARA₂-GI₄-SE]; fl. c. 2750 BC) originally Mebarasi (𒈨𒁈𒋛) was the penultimate king of the first dynasty of Kish and is recorded as having reigned 900 years in the Sumerian King List. Like his son and successor Aga, he reigned during a period when Kish had hegemony over Sumer.^a Enmebaragesi signals a momentous documentary leap from mytho-history to history, since he is the earliest ruler on the king list whose name is attested directly from archaeology.

Lugal is the Sumerian term for "king, ruler". Literally, the term means "big man." In Sumerian, lú "𒇽" is "man" and gal "𒃲" is "great", or "big."

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.

The Early Dynastic period is an archaeological culture in Mesopotamia that is generally dated to c. 2900 – c. 2350 BC and was preceded by the Uruk and Jemdet Nasr periods. It saw the development of writing and the formation of the first cities and states. The ED itself was characterized by the existence of multiple city-states: small states with a relatively simple structure that developed and solidified over time. This development ultimately led, directly after this period, to broad Mesopotamian unification under the rule of Sargon, the first monarch of the Akkadian Empire. Despite their political fragmentation, the ED city-states shared a relatively homogeneous material culture. Sumerian cities such as Uruk, Ur, Lagash, Umma, and Nippur located in Lower Mesopotamia were very powerful and influential. To the north and west stretched states centered on cities such as Kish, Mari, Nagar, and Ebla.

Aga commonly known as Aga of Kish, was the twenty-third and last king in the first dynasty of Kish during the Early Dynastic I period. He is listed in the Sumerian King List and many sources as the son of Enmebaragesi. The Kishite king ruled the city at its peak, probably reaching beyond the territory of Kish, including Umma and Zabala.

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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 1880s 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.

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King of the Universe, also interpreted as King of Everything, King of the Totality, King of All or King of the World, was a title of great prestige claiming domination of the universe used by powerful monarchs in ancient Mesopotamia. The title is sometimes applied to God in the Abrahamic tradition.

Gilgamesh and Aga, sometimes referred to as incipit The envoys of Aga, is an Old Babylonian poem written in Sumerian. The only one of the five poems of Gilgamesh that has no mythological aspects, it has been the subject of discussion since its publication in 1935 and later translation in 1949.

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 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 McIntosh, Jane (2005). Ancient Mesopotamia: New Perspectives. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-57607-965-2.
1 2 DK (2012-04-16). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Warfare: From Ancient Egypt to Iraq. Penguin. ISBN 978-1-4654-0373-5.
↑ Travis, Hilary & John (2014-12-15). Roman Helmets. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN 978-1-4456-3847-8.
1 2 3 4 Carey, Brian Todd; Allfree, Joshua; Cairns, John (2006-01-19). Warfare in the Ancient World. Pen and Sword. ISBN 978-1-78159-263-2.
1 2 3 Elliott, Simon (2020-05-19). Old Testament Warriors: The Clash of Cultures in the Ancient Near East. Casemate. p. 15. ISBN 978-1-61200-794-6.
↑ McNab, Chris (2022-08-01). A History of War: From Ancient Warfare to the Global Conflicts of the 21st Century. Arcturus Publishing. ISBN 978-1-3988-1862-0.
1 2 Hamblin, William J. (2006-09-27). Warfare in the Ancient Near East to 1600 BC: Holy Warriors at the Dawn of History. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-52062-6.
↑ Bertman, Stephen (2003). Handbook to Life in Ancient Mesopotamia. Infobase Publishing. ISBN 978-0-8160-7481-5.
↑ Fagan, Garrett G.; Fibiger, Linda; Hudson, Mark; Trundle, Matthew, eds. (2020), "Prehistoric and Ancient Warfare", The Cambridge World History of Violence: Volume 1: The Prehistoric and Ancient Worlds, The Cambridge World History of Violence, vol. 1, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 179–296, ISBN 978-1-316-34124-7 , retrieved 2023-06-24

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[:2-1] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 McIntosh, Jane (2005). Ancient Mesopotamia: New Perspectives. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-57607-965-2.

[:3-2] 1 2 DK (2012-04-16). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Warfare: From Ancient Egypt to Iraq. Penguin. ISBN 978-1-4654-0373-5.

[3] Travis, Hilary & John (2014-12-15). Roman Helmets. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN 978-1-4456-3847-8.

[:1-4] 1 2 3 4 Carey, Brian Todd; Allfree, Joshua; Cairns, John (2006-01-19). Warfare in the Ancient World. Pen and Sword. ISBN 978-1-78159-263-2.

[:4-5] 1 2 3 Elliott, Simon (2020-05-19). Old Testament Warriors: The Clash of Cultures in the Ancient Near East. Casemate. p. 15. ISBN 978-1-61200-794-6.

[6] McNab, Chris (2022-08-01). A History of War: From Ancient Warfare to the Global Conflicts of the 21st Century. Arcturus Publishing. ISBN 978-1-3988-1862-0.

[:0-7] 1 2 Hamblin, William J. (2006-09-27). Warfare in the Ancient Near East to 1600 BC: Holy Warriors at the Dawn of History. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-52062-6.

[8] Bertman, Stephen (2003). Handbook to Life in Ancient Mesopotamia. Infobase Publishing. ISBN 978-0-8160-7481-5.

[9] Fagan, Garrett G.; Fibiger, Linda; Hudson, Mark; Trundle, Matthew, eds. (2020), "Prehistoric and Ancient Warfare", The Cambridge World History of Violence: Volume 1: The Prehistoric and Ancient Worlds, The Cambridge World History of Violence, vol. 1, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp. 179–296, ISBN 978-1-316-34124-7 , retrieved 2023-06-24

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