...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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...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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...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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...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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...Hammurabi’s code was not just because it was not fair to everyone in a criminal situation. Everybody knew there were consequences for their actions. If a person is about to die, and the doctor is trying to help, but the person still dies - the doctor is punished by having his hands cut off. Law 196 says, “If a man has knocked an eye of a free man, his eye shall be knocked out”. Then Law 199 says, “If he has knocked out the eye of a slave, then he shall pay half his value”. This is not far to the slave because he is a man just like the “free” man. Also Law 48, talks about how if a creditor gives a man money for his crops, but a flood prevents the crops from growing, the creditor does not get his money back. The code was supposed to protect....
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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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...Hammurabi’s code was it just or unjust? Hammurabi’s code was a set of 282 laws that were written by the king of Babylon Hammurabi in 1792 BCE. He said that he was told to write and enforce those laws by the god Shamash. Hammurabi was the only person who could change the laws. There are three areas of law where Hammurabi’s Code can be shown to be unjust. These are family laws property laws, and personal injury laws. Examples of injustice can first be found in the area of family law. First, law number 129 states that if a woman is caught cheating that she and the person whom she cheated with will be tied up and drowned. Second, law number 195 states that id a son hits his father that the consequence to his actions is that he will have his hands cut off. These examples show tat Hammurabi’s Code was unjust because the laws that Hammurabi created for families were too harsh. Hitting your father should not result in your hands being cut off, although it does deserve a punishment the one in place was too strict. Also cheating on you significant other does not need to be punished by death....
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...wrong doing our country now has a system to reclaim justice to the victim. This system of justice originated from a Babylonian King. King Hammurabi’s code would lay the foundation of justice for the people for generation to come after him. Before the greatness of Babylon in early Mesopatamia there was the III dynasty of Ur. The founder and king of the Ur dynasty Ur-Nammu ruled from 2113 - 2096 BC. “King Ur- Nammau was very involved in the rebuilding of his dynasty in agriculture and re- establishing civil order and security. King Ur-nammu would be succeeded by his son Shugli that ruled from 2096 -2048 BC. King Shulgi was very skilled in hunting and was an expert in military tactics” (Woolley 53). King Shugli would then have two sons to succeed him and take the crown unfortunately they had a very difficult maintaining the dynasty and as the legal and administration began to fall apart so did the dynasty and it would be reduced to a small city state. With the inevitable destruction of the Ur dynasty came the second phase of the Mesopatamia. Babylon would go through five kings spanning over a hundred years Hammurabi would get his shot at the throne. “During his rise to power Sin-muballit father of Hammurabi would finish off the last of the Ur dynasty and the transfer of power would begin through Hammurabi” (Oppenheim 157). “King...
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...It’s around 1750 B.C, and the first civilization is evolving, and so are the Babylonian laws… With 282 Babylonian laws created by Hammurabi, once the ruler of the Babylonian Empire, many of the laws were unjust and unfair to his people, and many examples to prove this. To begin, stated in code 213, if a man strikes a slave girl and causes her to lose the fruit of her womb (her baby), he shall pay 2 shekels of silver. This law is unjust due to law 209, which states that if a man strikes a free woman and causes her to lose the fruit of her womb, he shall pay 10 shekels of silver. Although the woman is a slave, she is still a human being and has lost her child just as the free woman had. In addition, law 195 states that if a son strikes his father,...
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...Hammurabi’s Code is the first set of laws ever to be translated. These set of 282 laws were created by Hammurabi, the sixth king of Babylon in 1758 B.C. The laws were made to make order for the citizens under his rule. The laws prove that the Babylonians had a culture, which is a way of life for a group of people. In a culture, there is a government where there would be judges to see if the citizen is guilty or innocent. A society, whether if the families were patriarchal, where men exercised authority or matriarchal, where women exercised authority, and an economy, the Babylonians had a form of currency and a way of trade. Hammurabi's Code is a useful source for an anthropologist studying Babylonian culture because it provides examples of ancient government, society, and economy. First of all in Hammurabi’s Code, there were laws that proved that there was ancient...
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...Hammurabi’s Law Hammurabi laws deal with all aspects of everyday life, and it describes both major and minor offenses and their punishments. It is one of the first written codes of law in history, and it is the longest code that has been discovered. The laws were made to equalize society, establish justice and fairness, bring about the rule of righteousness, and protect the weak from the strong. However, the rich and poor, men and women, and elites and commoners were treated differently under the law. This deepened the social hierarchy and distinctions between classes and genders, which soon became normal and accepted in society. L. W. King states that “Hammurabi laws also influenced the need for one, powerful leader. It used the political power to generate bonds between the people of different races and backgrounds. The Code of Hammurabi was developed by the Babylonian ruler, Hammburabi. He ruled Babylon, which he expanded to cover most of Mesopotamia, from 1792-1750 BCE. Laws, judgments, and decrees were incorporated into the 282 laws that make up the code. The code was given to Hammurabi by the sun God, Shamash. The Babylonian God, Marduk, facilitated Hammurabi's rule. He gave Hammurabi the authority to rule Babylon. Also, the code gave people moral standards, created distinct social classes, and worked to create equality. It was supposed to "protect the weak from the strong", but it in turn favored the rich and was harsher on the poor. After the fall of Babylon, Hammurabi left a...
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...Historical Laws and Security Sharon Dollar The Code of Hammurabi Draco’s law Law of the Twelve Tables Justinian Code Magna Carta Statute of Westminster The Code of Hammurabi was a Babylonian code that was established in 1750 B.C., it was developed by the Sumerian codes, expression “an eye for an eye” it contains 282 classes regulating a vast of obligations professions and rights, including clauses concerning commerce, slavery, marriage, theft and debts. Draco’s law can about in 621 B.C. from a Greek, citizen this person was chosen to write a code for Athens, and basically there were many offenses with the penalty being death, this was a most unreasonably form of punishment law. The laws he wrote was first mention in Greece, and these laws were highlighted as to why is they were introduce that the state and not the private citizens was responsible for carrying out and punishing the one who commit the crime. Law of the twelve tables was known 450 B.C. includes 10 laws but later on 2 were added to these laws. There were 10 Roman men who were given the powers to write the laws, and they were very different laws that were a form of set base of the modern to public law. These laws were aim to protect the lower class who suffer legal abuse of the ruling class, mainly for the enforcement of debts. This particular also set a basic that the judges could not handle, justice alone to improvise. This law prohibited interclass marriages seriously punished thieves and gave...
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