Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-12-28
THE OUTLINE OF HISTORY
BY II. G. WELLS

! In the early days Of Sumeria and Akkadia
! the city kings were priests and medicine men
rather than kings, and it was only when
| foreign conquerors sought to establish their
| hold in relation to existing institutions that
| the distinction of priests and king became
definite.
| But the god Of the priests remained as the
| real overload of the land and of priests and
| king alike. He was the universal landlord;
! the wealth and authority of his temples and
establishments OutshOne those of the king
| Especially was this the within the city
walls.
Hammurabi, the founder of the first
BabylOnian empire, is one of the earlier
monarchs whom find taking a firm grip
upon the affairs Of the community. He does
/ it with the utmost politeness to the gods. In
an inscription recording his irrigation work
! in Sumeria and Akkadia he begins: when
Anu and Rel entrusted me with the rule Of
| Sumer and Akkad-" We possesses a code of
| laW-and at the head of this code we see
the figure of Hammurabi receiving the law
from its nominal promulgator, the god
Shamash.
Gods as Spells of War
An act OF great political importance in the
conquest of any city was the carrying off Of
its god to become subordinate in the temple
OF its cOnqueror. This was far more impor-
tant than the subjugation of king by king
Merodach the BabyIonian Jupiter, was
carried off by the Elamites, and Babylon
But sometimes conqueror was afraid of
the god he had conquered. In the collection
OF letters addressed to Amenophis III, and ~
at Tel-Amarna il Egypt, to which allusiOn
has already been made, is one from GER
tain king, Tushratta, king of IMitanni
who has conquered Assyria and taken the
statue of the goddess Ishtar Apparently he
has sent this statue into Egypt, partly to
acknowledge the overlordship of Amenophis
but partly because he fears her anger
(Winckler)
In the Bible is related (Sam., w.. II how
the Ark of the Covenant of the God of the
Hebrews was carried off by the Philistines
as a token of conquest, into the temple of the
fish god, Dagon, at Ashdod and how Dagon
fell down and was broken, and how the
people or AShdOd were smitten with disease
In the latter story particularly the gods
and priests fill the scene; there is no king in
evidence at all
Right through the history of the Baby
lonian and Assyrian empires no monarch
seems to have felt his tenure of mower Sc
cure in Babylon until he had taken the
hand OF BeP'-that is to say that he had
| been adopted by the priesthood of "BeP' as
the gods son and representative.
AS our knowledge of Assyrian and
! BaDyIonlan history grows clearer, it be-
comes palmer that the politics of that world
the revolutions, usurpations changes of dy-
nasty, 1ntrigues with foreign powers turn
F., ed largely upon issues between the great
wealthy pr1esthOods and the growing but
still inadequate power of the monarchy
The king relied on his army and this was
usually the mercenary army of foreigners
speedily mutinous if there was no pay or
plumber, and easily bribed
crib was involved in violent quarrel with
the priesthood of Babylon; he never ''took
! the hand of Bell; and finally struck at that
power by destroying altogether the holy part
OF the city Of BABYLON (691 B. c. and re-
moving the statue of Bel-Marduk to Assvria.
He was assassinated by one of his sons. and
MS successor, Esar-haddon (his son, but not
the son who was his assassin), found it ex-
pedient to restore Bel-Marduk and rebuild
his temple, and make his peace with the god