CITY
STATE OF URUK
City
State of Uruk / Erech / Unug / Urak (Eanna) :
The
city of Uruk was situated to the east of the present course of
the Euphrates, on the line of the ancient Nil Canal, in a region
of marshes. It was one of the oldest and most important cities
in Sumer. At Uruk, already a major city by 3300 BC, Sumerian civilisation
seems to have reached its creative peak. Trade with many regions
outside Mesopotamia was already flourishing by the start of the
third millennium BC, notably with the Hatti in Anatolia.
The
first documented king of Uruk founded his own dynasty in Eanna,
which only became part of Uruk during his son's reign. Meskiaggasher
won control of the region extending from the Mediterranean to
the Zagros Mountains, east of Sumer, while Enmerkar officially
gained the kingship after conquering Kish's First Dynasty.
FeatureAccording
to the Sumerian king list, a total of 22 kings ruled for 2,610
+ X years, six months and fifteen days, five times (dynasties)
in Uruk. Here, List 1 is primarily used, backed up by List 2 and
List 3 (see Sumer for details).
First
Dynasty :
c.2750? - 2550 BC :
Shortly
after the end of the reign of Etana of Kish, Meskiaggasher founded
a rival dynasty at Erech (Uruk), far to the south of Kish, which
dominated Sumer. In this period, the city's rulers gradually grew
in importance, and increasingly sought luxury materials to express
their power. These goods, often from abroad, were acquired either
by trade or conquest.
This
is the second set of entries on the Sumerian list comprising kings
24-35. Twelve kings ruled for 2,310 / 3,588
years (Lists 1 & 2).
fl
c.2750 BC :
Meskiaggasher
/ Mec-ki-aj-gacer : Of Eanna.
Son of Utu. Ruled for 324/325 years.
The king list states that 'after kingship was brought to Eanna,
Meskiaggasher, the son of the Sun God, Utu (Shamash), ruled as
both en (priest or lord) and lugal (king) for 324 years during
which time he entered the sea (the Mediterranean) and climbed
the mountains (the Zagros Mountains)', ie. he created an empire.
![](Sumer_Uruk_Stoneware01_full.jpg)
Stone
bull, Late Uruk Period, 3300-3000 BC, probably from Uruk
fl
c.2730 BC :
Enmerkar
: Ruled for 420 years. Founded Uruk.
Enmerkar's reign is notable for an expedition against Aratta,
a city state far to the north-east of Mesopotamia. He is succeeded
by one of his military leaders. The exploits and conquests of
Enmerkar and Lugalbanda form the subject of a cycle of epic tales
constituting the most important source of information on early
Sumerian history.
Lugalbanda
: Ruled for 1,200 years. The 'Shepherd'.
c.2700
BC :
Following Lugalbanda's reign, domination of Sumer passes back
to Kish, although the king list still has Uruk as possessor of
the kingship.
Dumuzi
/ Dumuzid :
Ruled for 100/110
years.
Dumuzi is 'the fisherman' who comes from the city of Kuara (Kua).
fl
c.2650 BC :
Gilgamesh
/ Gilgamec :
Ruled for 126 years.
Arguably
the most famous of all Sumerian kings, according to the king
list Gilgamesh is the son of a nomad. Traditionally, he is responsible
for building the massive walls surrounding Uru and is recorded
in the Epic of Gilgamesh.
Urnungal
/ Ur-Nungal :
Son. Ruled for 30 years.
Udulkalamma
/ Udul-kalama :
Ruled for 15 years.
Labasher
/ La-ba'cum :
Ruled for 9 years.
Ennundaranna
/ En-nun-tarah-ana :
Ruled for 8 years.
fl
c.2600 BC :
Meshede
/ Mec-he :
Ruled for 36 years. The 'Smith'.
Melamanna
/ Melem-ana / Til-kug
: Ruled for 6/900
years.
Lugalkidul
/ Lugal-kitun :
Ruled for 36/420
years.
c.2550
BC :
Then Uruk is defeated and the kingship taken to Ur.
fl
c.2440 BC :
?
/ En-cakanca-ana
/ Enshakushanna : Ruled for 60 years.
Under
Enshakushanna, Uruk conquers Hamazi, Agade, Kish, and Nippur to
claim hegemony over all of Sumer. He also throws the Elamites
out of Awan. He is the first ruler known to take the Sumerian
title en ki-en-gi ki-uri, or 'lord of Sumer and Akkad'.
Despite his own conquests he is briefly subject to Eannatum of
Lagash.
Lugalure
/ Lugal-kinice-dudu
: Ruled for 120 years.
c.2430
BC :
Uruk
helps Lagash to defeat Umma.
![](Sumer_Bad-tibira_Peg01_full.jpg)
A
terracotta foundation peg of Entemena from Bad-tibira, dated between
2404-2375 BC, mentioning a treaty with the king of Uruk
Argandea
/ Lugalkisalsi : Ruled for 7 years.
Uruk
is defeated and the kingship is taken to Urim (Ur).
Third
Dynasty :
c.2355 - 2330 BC :
Under
the priest-king Lugalzaggesi, Umma overthrew Lagash's domination,
captured Uruk, displaced Kish as the dominating power, and claimed
an empire which extended from the Mediterranean to the Persian
Gulf.
This
is the fourteenth entry on the Sumerian list comprising king 81.
One king ruled for 25 / 34 years (Lists 1 & 2). Some lists
combine the third and fourth dynasties as the third dynasty of
Uruk, which also affects the numbering of the fifth dynasty.
c.2355
- 2330 BC :
Lugalzaggesi
/ Lugal-zage-si :
King of Umma. Ruled for 25/34
years.
Lugalzaggesi
of Umma is the last ethnically Sumerian ruler of Uruk. Around
2330 BC, he is defeated and captured by Sargon of Akkad. Sargon
claims the empire and the kingship.
Fourth
Dynasty :
c. 2254/2223? - 2193 BC :
According
to the the Sumerian list, the fourth dynasty of kings saw to the
final defeat of Agade and claimed the kingship, or overlordship,
of Sumer. In fact, it is possible that they were instead contemporaries
of the later kings of Agade, holding some degree of dominance
in southern Mesopotamia. The starting date of circa 2254
BC for this dynasty was calculated by counting back from the point
at which the Gutians invaded Sumer and using the List
2 lengths of reign. It is perhaps only coincidental that
this was the very same year at which it is thought Naram-Sin came
to power in Agade, and who faced serious revolts from the start
of his reign. Fourth Dynasty Uruk was a key player in those revolts,
leading a coalition of southern Sumerian cities under Amar-girid.
This is the sixteenth set of entries on the list, comprising kings
93-97. Five kings ruled for 30 years (List 1), or five kings ruled
for 30 / 43 / 26 years, or three kings ruled for 47 years (List
2).
fl
c.2254? BC :
Amar-girid
(?) : Vassal of Agade. Not on the king
list.
c.2254?
BC :
Uruk
leads a revolt against the Akkadian empire, rallying the southern
Sumerian cities of Ur, Lagash, Umma, Adab, Shuruppak, Isin, and
Nippur, placing a well-organised army in the field which is then
defeated.
c.2254?
BC :
Urnigin
/ Ur-nijin :
Ruled for 7/3/15/30
years.
Urgigir
/ Ur-gigir :
Son. Ruled for 6/7/15
years.
Kudda
/ Kuda :
Ruled for 6 years.
Puzur-ili
: Ruled for 5/20
years.
Ur-Utu
(or Lugal-melem)
/ Ur-babbar :
Ruled for 6/25
years.
Fifth
Dynasty :
c.2120 - 2113 BC :
A
surviving clay tablet containing the Sumerian king list was dated
by the scribe who wrote it in the reign of King Utukhegal of Erech
(Uruk), which places it at around 2125 BC. Uruk was responsible
for driving out the Gutians. It was also prominent in the Sumerian
struggles against the Elamites up to 2004 BC, during in which
it suffered severely.
This
is the eighteenth entry on the king list comprising king 119.
One king ruled for seven years, six months, and fifteen days (List
1), or one king ruled for 427 years and an unknown number of days,
or seven years, six months, and fifteen days, or seven years,
six months, and five days (List 2),
or one king ruled for 27 years (List 4).
c.2120
BC :
Utuhegal throws out the Gutians once and for all, claiming the
kingship and becoming something of a hero figure to Sumerians.
He also seems to govern Lagash for a time.
c.2120
- 2113 BC :
Utuhegal
/ Utu-hejal
/ Utukhegal :
Ruled for 7 years, 6 mths, 15 days, or 427
years, or 27 years.
c.2112
BC :
The
kingship passes to Ur.
![](Sumer_Script08_full.jpg)
An
administrative tablet showing five commodities which to date have
not been identified
c.2004
BC :
With the collapse of Sumerian civilisation and the fall of Ur,
Uruk is briefly occupied by invading Elamites before becoming
a possession of Isin.
Amorite
Rulers of Uruk :
The
Amorites had been inhabitants of Sumer for some centuries, and
rose to fill the gap left by the end of Sumerian civilisation.
Uruk was controlled by Isin for approximately 133 years before
that city state's decline allowed Uruk to break away under its
own independent dynasty of kings.
Under
Sin-Kashid, Uruk saw the renovation and reconstruction of the
Temples of Ishtar/Inanna, which had fallen into disrepair in the
previous century, and the building of one of the largest Old Babylonian
Period palaces. It also appears to have become a centre of trade,
as inscriptions giving the (ideal) prices of goods in the region
show. The city became prosperous, although it apparently remained
politically insignificant.
c.1865
BC :
Sin-Kashid, breaks free from the control of a declining Isin and
founds his own dynasty in Uruk, which is the final period of independence
for the city. He calls himself 'King of Uruk, king of the Amnanum',
which is the name of his tribe of Amorites who had probably settled
in the area during the Third Dynasty of Ur.
c.1865
- 1833 BC :
Sin-Kashid
: Married daughter to king of Babylon and established
close ties.
c.1833
- 1827 BC :
Siniribam
: Son.
c.1827
- 1824 BC :
Singamil
: Son.
Records become very sparse from this point under kings who seem
to achieve very little.
c.1824
- ? BC :
Ilumgamil
: Brother.
Eteja
Anam
/ Dingir-Am / Digiram
c.1816
- 1810 BC :
Irdanene
: Son. Captured in battle.
c.1810
BC :
Rim-Sin of Larsa is aggressively expanding his empire, and following
the fall of Isin, Uruk is a prime target. The city falls and becomes
a vassal state, although still with its own kings who desperately
struggle to assert their own authority.
c.1810
- ? BC :
Rimanum
?
- 1803/2 BC :
Nabi'ilisu
c.1803/2
BC :
Rim-Sin
of Larsa captures the city. It appears that Sinkashid's palace
and the surrounding district are plundered and burned to the ground,
after which time nothing is built in the area.
![](Sumer_Uruk_Trough01_full.jpg)
The
Uruk trough belongs to the late prehistoric period, about 3300-3000
BC, but as it was probably a cult object in Inanna (Ishtar), it
may have remained in use for quite some time
c.1787
BC :
Still under
the control of Larsa, Uruk is attacked and defeated by Hammurabi's
Babylonian empire,
c.1763
BC :
With
the defeat of Larsa by the Babylonian empire, Hammurabi controls
Uruk.
Source
:
https://www.historyfiles.co.uk/
KingListsMiddEast/
MesopotamiaUruk.htm
#Second%20Dynasty