Sumerians: A History From Beginning to End by Henry Freeman

Author:Henry Freeman [Henry Freeman]
Language: eng
Format: epub

Chapter Nine

Kingdoms, Dynasties And Notable Events

“Man is the shadow of god, but the king is god’s reflection.”

—A Sumerian proverb

Early city-states had a king who was assisted by noble officials and priests in ruling their domain. Kings were often considered figureheads of the priests, although they did exercise decisive power over time. It is figured that the first rulers were probably priests. The Sumerian word for high priest was en. Behind the priests stood the immense power of the high Sumerian gods who were the deities of sky, fire, earth, salt, storm and water. The city was ruled by the elite headed by the king. In Sumerian, a palace was called an égal (great house) or élugal (house of king) and a temple was called an édingir (house of a god). A king was called the lugal. As mentioned earlier in the book, during their Early Dynastic Period (2900-2334 BCE), by many accounts it is believed that they shifted from priest kings (ensi) to more modern day concepts of kings as lugals, which is now construed to mean hegemon.

The concept of kingship was grounded in religion, and kingship was invented by the gods as the most effective means to govern themselves. Struggles for supremacy among the major cities continued throughout their history. The infamous Sumerian King List, which has mostly been preserved, was written about 2100 BCE and contains a list of all the kings of the regions and their accomplishments; it also includes high amounts of mythological hyperbole and links the kings to their gods. Therefore, it has been the task of Sumerologists to sort through this list to determine fact from fiction. However, it is still considered one of the greatest sources of information on Sumerian rulers. It also lists the lone female monarchy, Kubaba, who held the throne in the city-state of Kish around 2500 BCE. Certain excavations have reoriented skeptical attitudes toward the King List, given that the evidence supports some of the claims that were made in it. It also reflects old traditions within a chronological framework. Derivatives of the King List have also been found, although no two of these is has proven to be identical.

The list explains that kingship was considered a divine institution and talks about the great floods, like the Bible does during the times of Noah. It lists the kings who reigned before the flood and excites researchers, given the window it opens into the past. The list’s value has been a subject of debate, but many experts see that it influenced politics in its day, impacted various literary compositions and chronological recordkeeping, and inculcated a particular political vision. The king list describes several dynasties, which Sumerologists now consider ruled simultaneously. It also does not list all the dynasties.

The power of the lugals became great as they were elected as the leaders of war and to solve the problems that civilians faced. Once the Nippur League developed to deal with the conflicts across city-states, this alliance between these cities handled the

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