...Code of Hammurabi Western Civilization and the World I 100 Professor Preface This paper will examine the Code of Hammurabi and how it affected the people of Babylon before, during and after its creation. The nature of the topic is to have a better understanding of how the Code of Hammurabi changed society, hindered women’s rights and independence and left a lasting impression for future generations. Chronology 1810 BC Hammurabi was born to the then-king of Babylon Sin-muballit. 1792 BC Hammurabi, king of Babylon, started his rule. 1787 BC King Hammurabi captured Uruk and Isin. 1784 BC King Hammurabi campaigned against Rapigum and Malgium. 1772 BC Code of Hammurabi was created. 1763 BC With the aid of Mari and Eshnunna King Hammurabi conquered Larsa, putting an end to the long reign of Rim-Sin I. 1755 BC Captured Eshnunna which was the last of his Mesopotamian rivals. 1750 BC King Hammurabi died and passed the reigns of the empire to his son, Samsu-iluna. 1738 BC Under Samsu-iluna’s rule his empire fell to the Sealand Dynasty. 1595 BC Babylonian empire restored to glory of the Hammurabi’s age. 1901 Code of Hammurabi monument is discovered by French archaeologists. 1910 The Code of Hammurabi was translated by Leonard William King. During the rule of King Hammurabi he wrote the Code of Hammurabi. This consisted of many laws that changed the society, hindered women’s rights and independence and left a lasting impression for future generations...
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...King Hammurabi, of Mesopotamia, reign from 1792-1750 B.C.E. He, in the search of equity and fairness to his people, wrote the Code of Hammurabi. It is composed of 280 laws and standards, in which sets fines and punishments as a consequence of a dishonest or immoral behavior. As he united Mesopotamia, he wanted a set of laws that everyone can relate to, but did not give the same opportunities to everyone to fully understand the code. Each law servers his people accordingly to their statues. This is where we see how the new civilization begun to set hierarchical positions and eventually formed a society where everyone could keep their position. There were the priests, the lugals, the peasants, the servants, and slaves. However, within this categories, there was the group of women that were subjected and dependent to men. Women, according to the Hammurabi’s Code, had certain behavior and economic freedom, but still not much autonomy....
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...Code of Hammurabi The code of Hammurabi was written by King Hammurabi, the sixth king of the first babylonian dynasty.Hammurabi ruled the Babylonian Empire from 1792 BC. to 1750 BC. Hammurabi came to power by using his advanced military and political tactics to unite many smaller city states to unite his mighty empire. Not long after his reign began, Hammurabi created the code of hammurabi. Written on large clay tablets, the code of Hammurabi consisted of 262 rules/laws covering a variety of subjects including adultery,family law and property law. Hammurabi created these laws following a philosophy of the punishment must fit the crime. In essence, the magnitude of a crime must fit the magnitude of the punishment. Furthermore, the code of Hammurabi played a detrimental role in the development of the babylonian empire. Many speculations can be made from reading these rather harsh, laws about the babylonian empire. Law’s played an important role in the development of Hammurabi’s empire....
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...Charlie Mate The first set laws in history can be dated back to the code of Hammurabi and the Magna Carta. These laws set up an established government, created laws, and gave the people rules to live by. In same ways we still follow this justice system today. The Code of Hammurabi and the Magna Carta share the same principles but are different in many ways. The Code of Hammurabi brings the iron fist down on the people. When on the other hand the Manga Carter’s gives power to the people. These documents shaped the way our government is today. Hammurabi’s code is a set of laws created to keep “peace” throughout the Babylon ages. This differs from the other set of laws called Magna Carta, which is the more modernized set of laws that are more understanding and fair to the people. The Hammurabi Code and Magna Carter’s laws have greatly affected the people of their time. The Hammurabi Code Originated in Mesopotamia the land between the Tigres and Euphrates River. Hammurabi was a son God named Sun Shumesh. It was written in stone in 700 BC. The code was created so that if people did negative things they would be punished rather than thinking they can get away with it. False accusation is the first code of law. If you steal you will be put to death and if someone stole goods from you the whole community has to give back what was stolen (Allen & Hall, 2015p.115) The Magna Carta originated because of negotiation between the people and the king. The people were sick of...
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...Yes, the code of Hammurabi is a dependable source to rely on when studying the lives of the early Mesopotamians because it conveys information about their society, culture, and government that cannot be found elsewhere. The society, culture, and government are important characteristics for anyone to know when attempting to understand a civilization. According to the code of Hammurabi society was organized into three categories; nobles, free persons, and slaves. Unlike some early civilizations, the Mesopotamians did not view every person as equals. However, their society was relatively fair. For example, a noble was charged more for medical assistant than a slave (Mathisen). The code of Hammurabi depicts their culture as male dominant; men could...
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...The world’s oldest and most structured set of laws, was created to protect all of the people; however, the Hammurabi Code set unfair standards amongst the different classes. Slaves were treated different that freemen, men were treated different than women, and children were treated different than adults. This code was extremely harsh and unfair. One of the unfair standards was between the freemen and slaves. Under the Hammurabi Code slaves were considered property of their masters. The had little to no rights because they weren’t even considered people. An example of this unfair treatment is that if a doctor was doing surgery on a free man and he died during the procedure, then the doctor’s hands would be cut off, but if a doctor was doing surgery on a slave and the slave died, then the only thing the doctor would have to do was replace the slave. Obviously, cutting off the doctor’s hands is extremely harsh, but the differences between the punishments to the doctor is extremely unfair. Another act that was not equal in fairness was if a man, free or slave, injured a freeman then that same injury would be put upon him. But if a man, free or slave, injured a slave then he would just have to pay half of what the part cost that he injured....
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...Justice is a system that promotes equality within society by restoring balance and providing closure, with a foundation of vindication and rationalization .The Hammurabi’s Code attempted to accomplish this idea by making “justice visible in the land, to destroy the wicked person and the evil-doer, that the strong might not injure the weak” however “the Babylonians clearly did not live under a social system that treated all people equally” (Hammurabi’s Code). As a result, the Hammurabi’s code, “an eye for an eye” is not a justice system but rather a complex system based and supported on the ideas of revenge and inequality( ideas that are not ethically supported). This code fails in resonating justice for it does not provide adequate closure...
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...The Code of Hammurabi is thought to be a set of laws and statue’s put in place to bring about equality in ancient Mesopotamian times (5000-1000 BCE). An eye for an eye was the basic principal of the law and or law’s. Yet there were social classes that were deemed to be more upper class than others. During Mesopotamian times the women did not have rights as an individual, but as an attachment to their male counterparts, such as their fathers or their husbands, these rights were limited if not null and void. However majority of these rights along with the laws favored the aristocrat class a great deal. It also appears that adultery was one of the crimes that was greatly shunned upon by Babylonians and in most cases warranted a conviction of death. In the event of a law being broken, such as being a bad husband, women were given the right to obtain a divorce. At that point, the woman was to return to her father’s home until she remarried. In terms of men, it seem as if many of the laws were biased and leaning in their favor. In one of the statues, men were permitted to sleep with other women as so long as she has his name. As for women, it is not the same. With that being said, women were not equal to men, and instead not considered as an individual human being, but as a product under the name attached to her. References Horne, C., Johns, C., King, L. (n.d.). Ancient History Sourcebook: Code of Hammurabi, c. 1780 BCE [Online]. Fordham University. http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/ancient/hamcode...
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...Introduction Paragraph Have you ever heard of Hammurabi’s code ? Hammurabi was a king in Mesopotamia nearly 4,000 years ago . He ruled the kingdom of Babylonia for 42 years .Hammurabi’s codes were laws that needed to be followed in his kingdom . The purpose Hammurabi’s code was to protect his people . Hammurabi’s code was just for 3 reasons Family law's , Creation of codes , and Property laws . Examples of just laws can first be found in the area of Creation of Codes . The first example is “ Below the two figures down in the prologue in which Hammurabi lists the names of the gods , saying that they have given him the right to rule “.This means that all the gods gave Hammurabi the right to rule . This matters to show it is just because...
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...accept that his will could be bound by the law. It explicitly protected certain rights of the King's subjects, whether free or fettered most notably the writ of habeas corpus, allowing appeal against unlawful imprisonment that led to the rule of constitutional law today in the English speaking world. The earliest legal system known in its entirety is the Code of Hammurabi which was established in ancient Babylonia nearly 4000 years ago. The Code of Hammurabi was compiled by King Hammurabi himself. Hammurabi was the most notable ruler of the first Babylonian dynasty, and unified Mesopotamia under one central government. Hammurabi's life is unknown, it is predicted that he established his reign around 1792-1750 B.C., thus dating the Code to approximately this period. Draco was a legislator in Athens who was authorized by the Alcmaeonidae to write the law codes around 621 B.C. It marked the first time the laws in Athens were set down in writing and they were lauded for their impartiality. Although impartial, according to Aristotle, the newly-recorded laws were so harsh they were written in blood instead of ink. Under Draco's codes, even the most...
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...1. What qualifies Hammurabi to make these rules? Is this qualification legitimate? Why or why not? Hammurabi was the sixth Babylonian King. He used this status of power to enact this code. This qualification was legitimate because he was the king who could create or destroy any rules. 2. What might be the motivation to create laws such as these? Are the punishments for these infractions fair? Why or why not? I think the motivation to create these were to try to carry out the concept of “eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth.” The punishments for these infractions I think are not fair. There are some punishments such as throwing someone...
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...who attempting the task. To conquer and control the new empire come up with its own problems. In order to reach a perfect society , Ruler must aware that the key to the success is the code of conduct or the law to govern his or her society. Justice is essential to regulate peaceful and tranquil society. To solve this issue , most rulers from the past enacted laws with brutally consequences for the culprit. The Code of Hammurabi was written by Hammurabi , the Ruler of Babylonian Empire (1795-1750 BCE), which was a code of conduct for citizen of this empire to follow. It was carved on a large stone and clearly shown the cause and the consequences of an action led by a person. He was intend to bring the virtuous in to his land and eliminate all the iniquitous people from the land. The Writings of Master Han Fei was a writing of Master Han Fei , a Chinese Philosopher (280-233 BCE), that express his idea of Legalist thinking. Which later guided the customary of Qin Dynasty’s Shihuangdi. The basic principle is based on the equality of the people. “High and low would have no distinction”, The right is to bestow rewards and the wrong is subject to be condemn. Both sources have the similar thought of bringing an empire to a righteous state by enact a harsh law. In the Code of Hammurabi , Laws are clearly stated with causes and consequences. The consequences of an action are harsh and brutal. In my opinion, i think this is the strategy to scare the evil doers. In the Writings...
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...the Code of Hammurabi and Exodus Upon examination of the selections provided of the Code of Hammurabi and Exodus similarities are seen concerning the governing of their respective populations and provide insights into their values. Both sets of laws are seen to be given to the chosen prophet from a divine source. These laws are then presented to the populations to guide behavior, economics, and dictate justice. In the ancient East rulers claimed divine right to govern, this is seen in the opening of Hammurabi’s Code, as presented in Kathrine Lauldi’s book, Sources of The Making of the West, Hammurabi ruler of the Babylon, is seen to have been given the mandate from the deities Anu and Bel to “… bring about the rule of righteousness to the land.” (19). Hammurabi by claiming, the Gods had chosen him to bring justice is shown to be a benevolent ruler....
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...An Eye for the Truth The Laws of ancient civilizations may be confusing to some people nowadays, but, when put into the context of the location, time, and mindset of the people who created these laws, they become much more reasonable within that framework. In this essay, two distinct sets of laws from the ancient civilizations will be compared and contrasted; The Code of Hammurabi, by Hammurabi, the sixth Babylonian king in the 1700s B.C. and the Ten Commandments and Exodus, written, or at least attributed to Moses. The first difference that must be noted is the way that the laws are introduced, or the prologues, one obviously polytheistic, the other blatantly monotheistic. The Code of Hammurabi says in its prologue, “at that time Anum and Enlil named me to promote the welfare of the people.”1 It also mentions Igigi and Anumnaki, minor gods who attend to the major gods Enlil and Anum respectively, so very clearly a polytheistic setting there, as these gods appoint Hammurabi as the promoter of the people’s welfare. The Ten Commandments states, in contrast, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, you shall have no other gods before me.”2 This starting sentence immediately says that there is only one god, and later in the passage it also mentions as one of the laws not to create any idol.3 These two societies then might be said to have different social values in the idea that as a monotheistic person, you would be expected...
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...The Ancient Mesopotamian Law Hammurabi was an Amorite who lived and reigned from 1792 BC to 1750 BC. He is remembered in history as the 6th king of the Mesopotamian Society. He is known as a great leader who conquered and brought many different kingdoms under the protection and governance of the one great umbrella of Babylon. As a ruler of a large society, Hammurabi recognized the need for organized law and knew that in order to govern effectively he had to establish his authority as a fair and impartial ruler. It is generally accepted that Hammurabi’s Code was developed around 1780 BC, during his 44 year rule as king. The Amorites believed that kings were appointed by the gods to administer the law and protect the kingdom. Hammurabi’s Code was a set of 282 laws which established rules for bringing accusations against another and the corresponding punishments to fit the crimes committed, through an “eye for an eye” mentality. The development of Hammurabi’s Code gave structure and order to the kingdom by addressing each of the three social classes; the poor (mushkenu: a free person who was essentially lower or middle class), the rich (awilu: a free person of the upper class), and the slaves (wardu). The code also shows consideration for the protection of women and children and for the weak and the poor (that they might not be destroyed by the strong or the rich and powerful). The code also addressed unpaid debt, allowable reasons for a man or a woman to divorce...
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