Page 85 - History of War - Issue 30-16

THE ASSYRIAN WAR MACHINE

Paul Ruben’s ‘The Defeat Suddenly, the Assyrians left. Hezekiah
Of Sennacherib’ follows even stayed on his throne. According to the
the Biblical account: God’s
angel saved Jerusalem Bible, God sent an angel into the camp of the
Assyrians, who had slain most of their army in
one night – an indication of a deadly plague in
the camp. Assyrian sources tell a different a
story: Hezekiah paid a high tribute in order to
save his city. Besides gold, silver and Judah’s
elite i ghting troops, Sennacherib claimed he,
“took out 200,100 people, (…) horses, mules,
donkeys, and camels, cattle and sheep, without
number, and counted them as spoil.”
Another theory suggests that Sennacherib
had to leave immediately because a rebellion
had broken out in Babylonia. His withdrawal
saved Jerusalem – at least for the time being.
Judah, however, had suffered dearly from the
political plunder of Hezekiah: the deportation of
a considerable part of its population affected
the economy and it took years for it to recover.
BCE, Assyrian ruler Shalmaneser III faced the only can historians rely on the annals of the The Assyrian Empire reached its climax
coalition in the famous battle of Qarqar (today’s Assyrian king and the biblical account – there in the following decades with the conquest
Tell Qarqur) at the shore of the Orontes River in are also plenty of archaeological remains. of Thebes, the capital of Egypt. However,
today’s north-western Syria – one of the biggest Hezekiah prepared for the consequences of internal power struggles led to the demise
battles ever fought until then. He led an army his decisions. He knew that Sennacherib would of the empire. At the end of the 7th
of over 70,000 men to the battlei eld, including come for him and that his forces would not century, Assyria fell to the rising power
1,200 cavalrymen and 4,000 chariots. stand a chance in an open battle. He had his of Babylonia. Desperate, they formed an
The anti-Assyrian alliance had mustered cities and strongholds readied for protracted alliance with their long-term rival: Egypt.
a formidable force as well. Contemporary sieges – above all the capital of his kingdom, During the Battle of Carchemish (in
sources tell the story of a bloody i ght with Jerusalem. He extended the city wall, including modern Syria) in 605 BCE, the Babylonian
thousands of soldiers dead. Assyrian accounts new quarters of Jerusalem on today’s Mount crown prince Nebuchadnezzar dealt the
present Shalmaneser as the victor, which is, Zion. In addition, he secured the water supply Assyrian Empire its inal
however, doubtable and probably resulted from of the city by the construction of a 550-metre blow. In the following Images: Alamy, Jose Cabrera
Assyrian propaganda, because Shalmaneser long tunnel that diverted the water from years, the Babylonian
was hesitating to move further south for years. Jerusalem’s only spring, the Gihon, to a huge ruler conquered the
It took him three more attempts to break the pool inside the city walls. entire Levant and
anti-Assyrian alliance and conquer the southern Sennacherib pushed forward along the established Babylon
Levant in the 840s BCE. In the end, internal Mediterranean coast and swept away any as the new super
struggles between the Levantine allies brought attempt at resistance. An increasing number power in the
the coalition down, giving the Assyrians a of cities surrendered before it came to a i ght. Middle East.
chance to i ght the kingdoms one by one. Eventually, Sennacherib turned towards Judah
The following 150 years were characterised and lay siege to the heavily fortii ed Judean city
by conl icts between the kingdoms of the of Lachish. Archaeological excavations revealed
Levant and rebellions against the Assyrian a 50-60 metre-long ramp, the Assyrians had
hegemon. Israel and Judah survived as piled up 19,000 tonnes of soil to create this
Assyrian vassals for the time being. Israel pathway for their siege engines. Mass graves,
pushed its luck too far by trying to play the hundreds of arrowheads and sling stones, and
regional great powers off against each other, traces of a horrii c i re in the city bear witness
namely Assyria and Egypt. The Assyrians didn’t of the bloody battle and the destruction. The
hesitate and crushed Israel in 722-1 BCE. To battle of Lachish has also been depicted in a
neutralise an annoying threat in a strategically relief in the palace of Sennacherib in Nineveh.
important buffer area between Mesopotamia Despite intensive preparations, Lachish
and Egypt, the Assyrians deported tens of and 45 other Judean strongholds perished.
thousands of inhabitants and resettled people Finally, Sennacherib moved towards Judah’s
from other parts of the empire there – this was capital, Jerusalem, where he encircled the city
the end of the kingdom of Israel. according to Assyrian standard siege practice.
The southern Hebrew kingdom, Judah, ruled Apparently, it was just a matter of time until the
by King Hezekiah (725-698 BCE), did not follow Assyrian ruler would drive home another victory.
Israel into the rebellion and was now rewarded Sennacherib’s annals claim: “I locked him
by years of political stability, prosperity and [Hezekiah] up within Jerusalem, his royal city,
even territorial expansion. When the Assyrian like a bird in a cage.”
king Sargon II died in 705 BCE, Hezekiah made
a crucial mistake when he joined with the
series of rebellions broke loose in every corner
of the Assyrian empire. As soon as the new
Assyrian king, Sennacherib (705-681 BCE), A HITTITE INFANTRYMAN WITH A SPEAR AND A SHIELD
consolidated his position at home, he set his MADE OF REEDS
army in motion towards the Levant. A particular feature of the Hittite troops was the round bronze plate as a
protection of the chest, and helmets with crests. Apart from that, the auxiliary
Sieges of Lachish and Jerusalem infantry troops were largely unarmoured. Auxiliary troops were usually
Sennacherib’s campaign against the southern responsible for the occupation in the provinces and could be mustered for
Levant in 701 BCE is one of the most well- support of the regular Assyrian forces in the course of campaigns.
documented military events of the Iron Age. Not

85