Introduction

Chapter 1. Formation of the state of Urartu

1 Country “Nairi”

2 Strengthening the state of Urartu

3 Urartu is a powerful state in Western Asia

Chapter 2. Urartu and neighboring states

1 Political confrontations between Urartu and Assyria

2.2 Medes and the collapse of Urartu

Chapter 3. Culture, economy and states government system Urartu."

1 Social system

2 State system.

3 Economy of Urartu.

4 Construction in Urartu.

5 Cuneiform.

6 Religion in Urartu

Conclusion

Bibliography

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of our course work is to examine the formation and further existence of the state of Urartu. The relevance of my work is due to my personal interest in who and how the predecessors of my people lived. We will look at several stages of the existence of the state, from formation, the country of “Nairi” IX century BC, to the collapse of the state VI BC.

Weakening and collapse of the Hittite kingdom by the end of the 12th century BC. weakened external pressure from the west, and the process of state formation in the western part of the Armenian Highlands slowed down significantly. However, at the same time, pressure from the south, from Assyria, increased. Assyrian kings often invaded the southern regions of the Armenian Highlands to capture slaves and material assets. The aggressive policy of Assyria objectively contributed to the acceleration of the process of consolidation of forces and formation of the state. The “kingdoms” of Nairi, Shubria, and Uruatri, located in the southern part of the Armenian Highlands, suffered most from the invasions of the Assyrian kings. Naturally, here the most favorable conditions developed for the consolidation of forces and the formation of a single Armenian state.

The merger process was led by kingdom Biayna, who managed to unite others kingdoms Armenian Highlands in the fight against a common enemy. According to Assyrian sources, by the end of 860 BC. A united state arose, the territory of which covered the southern and western coasts of Lake Van.

In my work, I focus on the kings who ruled the country, from Aram I to Rusa II, on their state activities. It is impossible to talk about Urartu without touching on Ancient Assyria. Throughout its existence, Urartu fought with Assyrian troops for territory, of course, there were other enemies, but the Assyrians from time immemorial have been the main opponents of the Urartian state.

Also in our work we will talk about writing, religion, construction and the economy of the state of Urartu.

Also in our work we will give a couple of examples that prove that Urartu is an Armenian state.

Chapter 1. “Formation of the state of Urartu”

1 "Country of Nairi"

The name “Urartu” became widespread in the works of scientists of the 19th century, when large-scale excavations were carried out on the territory of ancient Assyria, Assyrian cuneiform texts were deciphered and read. Only at the beginning of the 20th century were the cuneiform inscriptions left by the kings of Urartu collected, studied and translated, and the name “Biaina” was read for the first time. In their inscriptions, the Urartian kings called their state "Biaina", while Assyrian sources called the country "Urartu". In the Bible, Urartu is referred to as “the country of Ararat”.

Urartu was first mentioned in the cuneiform writings of King Salmonazar I (reigned 1280<#"justify">According to the source of Assyrian cuneiforms and the teachings of Movses Khorenatsi, the first king of Urartu was Aram I, who ruled at the beginning of the 9th century BC. Urartu was located around Lake Van (Nairi). During the reign of Aram I, the Assyrian king Salmonazar III made several attempts to conquer the territory of Urartu (859, 857 and 845 BC), but they were unsuccessful. In his cuneiform writings, Salmonazar III boasted that he had ravaged almost everything on the territory of Urartu, but none of the sources mentions that he captured the capital of Urartu - Van (Tushpa), and this indicates that the Assyrians always received a worthy rebuff from the army of Aram .

The image of Aram can be characterized based on the teachings of Movses Khorenatsi; in his work “History of Armenia” he writes: “Aram accomplished many feats in victorious battles. He also expanded the borders of Urartu from all sides.” Also, Khorenatsi, based on the teachings of Mar Abas, writes:

“King Aram I was very hardworking. He was a patriot of his homeland. He believed that it was better to die for his homeland than to see “outsiders” take over his land.”

1.2 “Strengthening the state of Urartu”

The heyday of the state of Urartu was during the reign of Sarduri I (845-825 BC) and his son Ishpuin.

Three cuneiform writings of Sarduri I have been preserved near Lake Van. It was during the reign of Sarduri I that the first cuneiform writings appeared in Urartu. They were in Akkadian. On one of them it was written: “This was written by Sarduri I, the Great King, the King of the country of Nairi, that King who has no equal, who is not afraid of wars, the King who collects tribute from all kings.”

King Ishpuin (also referred to as Ushpina in Assyrian cuneiform) (825-810 BC) during his reign there were internal wars in Assyria, this contributed to the fact that peace reigned in Urartu, so he became famous for what he did construction. The main legacy of Ishpuin was the city of Musasir - the religious center of Urartu, which was located south of Lake Urmia.

Ishpuina passed on his throne to his young son Menua, but he remained the king's chief advisor.

Father and son in the city of Van, on a rock called the Mher Gate, left a cuneiform writing in which they listed all the gods worshiped by the inhabitants of Urartu. This cuneiform is the main source about the Urartian gods.

1.3 "Urartu - a powerful state in Western Asia"

Urartu Assyria state Armenian

After the death of Ishpuin, Menua ruled Urartu for another 24 years (810-786 BC). During the reign of Menua, more than a hundred cuneiform scripts were written, which tell how he expanded the borders of his state, and how construction developed in Urartu.

King Menua undertook a series of campaigns that expanded the border of Urartu. As a result of these campaigns, he captured the countries of Manu, Pushta and Parsua. Also, during his campaigns, he expanded the borders in the west to the upper reaches of the Euphrates River. He was also the first to reach the Araks River, thereby opening the Ararat Valley to the Urartian people. On the slope of Mount Ararat he built the city of Menukhinili.

Over the long years of his reign, Menua maintained a good relationship with Assyria. The cuneiform records mention only two battles that took place far from the capital Urartu

The absence of confrontations with Assyria allowed Menua to focus on construction within the country. Menua's most famous structure is a canal 80 kilometers long, 4.5 meters wide and 1.5 meters deep. Fourteen cuneiforms were placed along the sides of the canal. The canal provided water to the city of Van (Tushpa). The people of Urartu called the canal the River of Semiramis (Shamirama). Movses Khorenatsi says that Queen Semiramis herself participated in the construction of the canal.

After his death, Menua left an heir, Argishta I (786-760 BC). During his reign, Argishty I successfully repelled the attacks of the Assyrians. Argishty I undertook a number of successful campaigns against the country of Manu, thereby expanding the borders of Urartu. Having annexed the Arart Valley to his state, he built the city of Argishtikhinili there.<#"justify">In the 7th century BC. A tribal union of the Medes was formed. With the capital of Ecbothan. Led by their ruler Kashtariti, the Medes rebelled and gained independence from the Assyrians in 673 BC. Allied with Babylon, the Medes conquer Assyria in 612 BC. The battles continued until 605 BC. After the collapse of Assyria, their entire territory was divided between the Medes and Babylon.

At the end of the 7th century BC. Urartu had difficulty fighting off the invasions of the Scythian and Cimmerian tribes. The territory of Urartu gradually shrank, and those under control ceased to submit to the central government. kings and tribes. The power of the Urartian kings extended only to the territory adjacent to Lake Van from the east.

In one of the Babylonian chronicles there is a mention that in 610 the Medes conquered Urartu, but the Bible mentions that Urartu still existed until the 90s of the 6th century, the last king of the Great State of Urartu was Rusa III.

Chapter 3. “Culture, economy and state government structure of Urartu

1. "Social order"

The largest slave owner in Urartu was the king. He had supreme ownership of the land. Slaves worked on his lands, most of whom were prisoners. As a result of successful wars, entire peoples moved to the royal lands. Thus, in the inscription of King Sardur carved on a stone slab we read that in one year he captured and drove away from other countries 12,750 youths, 46,600 women, 12,000 warriors, 2,500 horses, and many other livestock. The king owned palaces with untold riches, a huge number of livestock, gardens, and vineyards. Captured artisans worked for him. The slave-owning class also included members royal family, priests, regional rulers, military nobility, who owned large farms based on the labor of slaves.

Priests formed a significant and influential part of the slave-owning class. A large number of temples were built in the country, possessing enormous wealth. The temples had their own farm, where slaves worked. The priests carried out the ideological function of the state. As a result of successful military campaigns, the kings donated part of the spoils to temples.

The bulk of those exploited were slaves. Their labor was widely used in the construction of irrigation structures, water pipelines, fortresses, palaces of the nobility, temples, roads, and outbuildings of the king and other slave owners. The main source of slavery was captivity. For this purpose, military campaigns were carried out in neighboring countries. Most of the slaves were appropriated by the king and the slave-owning nobility. Only a small part of them fell to ordinary soldiers. Slaves were a completely powerless part of the population. They were brutally exploited. Sources indicate such a form of slave protest as mass escapes.

The bulk of the free population were peasant farmers. They were united into rural communities. Communal peasants paid taxes and carried out various duties. They were involved in the construction of irrigation systems, roads, performing military service, and supplying horses for the tsarist army.

In the cities lived merchants and artisans who were famous for processing iron, copper, precious metals, stone, and wood. Most of the artisans apparently belonged to slaves. Some of the farmers also lived in the cities, who cultivated the king’s land and were on state support, without having their own farm. In the fortified cities, which were administrative centers, officials of the local apparatus also lived and garrisons were stationed.

3.2 "Government system"

The slave state of Urartu was a monarchy. At its head was the king, who owned the supreme, temporal and spiritual power. The center of government was the royal court, where the main positions were occupied by members of the royal family. Urartu, like other countries of the Ancient East, was characterized by the presence of three departments: financial or robbery department own people, military, or department for the robbery of neighboring peoples, and department public works.

Extensive irrigation work was carried out in Urartu, without which it was impossible to manage the economy. An important link in the state apparatus was the armed forces needed to repel the attacks of Assyria, Scythians, Cimmerians, to conquer and rob other peoples, to keep exploited slaves and communal peasants in obedience. The army consisted of permanent royal detachments, and in the case of a military campaign, also of detachments brought by the rulers of the regions, and militias. At that time, the army was well organized: there were war chariots, cavalry, foot troops of archers, and spearmen. As written Assyrian sources testify, in Urartu there were areas where horses were specially raised and trained for cavalry.

The local government apparatus was clearly organized at that time. The entire territory of Urartu was divided into regions headed by regional commanders appointed by the king. They had military, administrative, financial, and judicial powers. The administrative center of the region was in the fortified city. In their area, the rulers essentially had unlimited power, which in some cases led to protests against the king, especially when he suffered a military defeat. In an effort to limit the power of regional rulers, Tsar Rusa I disaggregated the regions.

3.3 "Economy of Urartu"

In Urartu, the main productive force was agriculture and cattle breeding. The construction of canals contributed to the development of agriculture, in addition to the Menua canal, a 25-meter water canal was laid out not far from the capital, which was called the Rusa I water canal. The water canal has still been preserved, not far from modern Yerevan, which supplies water to the Ararat Valley from the Rzdan River through a tunnel. Gardening and viticulture flourished.

In the mountainous areas, the bulk of the population was engaged in cattle breeding.

Craftsmen have achieved great success. During excavations in Urartian fortresses and cities, it was found military weapons, jewelry, dishes made of bronze, iron, silver, gold, different types stones, clay, bone and other materials made by Urartian craftsmen. Pieces of clothing and carpets made of wool, fiber and animal skin were also found.

3.4 “Construction in Urartu”

The Urartian kingdom left a rich cultural heritage. Urban planning has reached a high level of development. Fortress cities were built, becoming administrative and military-political centers of the region, region, district. The fortress city had a citadel where the regional commander lived. Here, in huge clay containers with a capacity of more than 1000 liters, large reserves of food for military and government needs were stored. The city itself, in which ordinary people lived, spread around the citadel. Many fortresses of that period have been excavated on the territory of the Republic of Armenia - Erebuni, Teishebaini, Argishtikhinili, etc.

In construction, stone, clay, and less often brick were mainly used. The architecture of the palaces and houses was simple, the buildings were one-story, the roofs were made of wood, reeds and covered with clay. The inside of the living quarters was decorated with frescoes and wall paintings; stone sculptures of gods and mythical animals were placed at the entrance. Hewn stones were used in the construction of temples. On a stele found in the palace of the Assyrian king Sargon II, an image of the capture and plunder of the sanctuary of the god Khaldi in Musasir was preserved. The architectural structure of the temple resembled the famous Hellenistic temple of Garni.

3.5 "Cuneiform"

We learn a lot about the history and culture of Urartu from the cuneiform inscriptions of the Urartian kings. The inscriptions of the Assyrian kings were also written in cuneiform. Urartu quickly mastered Assyrian cuneiform and adapted it to their language.

The language of the Urartian inscriptions is not Indo-European, but the so-called Urartian. It has long been deciphered, all the inscriptions have been read. This language was probably spoken by the ruling elite, the population of the Biaynili region, lying east of Lake Van. After the formation of the unified state, this language became official state language Urartian kingdom. Construction inscriptions were made on it, letters were written. But on the vast territory of the state, which united numerous public education and tribal unions of the Armenian Highlands, the spoken language was Indo-European Armenian. These languages ​​existed in parallel. They contain many borrowed words, which indicates long-term contact and interpenetration of these languages. After the fall of the Urartian kingdom, the Urartian language ceased to be the official state language, its writing was forgotten, its speakers were completely assimilated and absorbed by the Indo-European majority of the population of the Armenian Highlands. The non-Indo-European population fully participated in the completion of the process of formation of the Armenian people and language.

3.6 "Religion of Urartu"

In religion, the state religion was paganism. There were more than a hundred gods in the Urartian pantheon. They are listed in the cuneiform "Door of Mher", which was written during the reigns of Ishpuin and Menua. For each god it is written how many sacrifices must be made. Most of all was required for the god Khaldi, who was the patron of kings. The second and third places were occupied by the War God Teishebaini and the Sun God Shivini. After them came their wives and other deities.

Among the Urartian gods there were also Gods of rivers, lakes and mountains.

Apparently, there were legends about this Gods that have not reached us, but their traces have been preserved in the most ancient legends of the Armenian people.

Conclusion

In our course work, we examined the features of the development of the ancient powerful state of Urartu, located on the Armenian Highlands. Having studied the history of Urartu, we found out how difficult the fate of this state was; from the very beginning of the state’s emergence, it fought for territory with the mighty Assyria. But in the end the state fell at the hands of the Medes.

Who can call themselves the ancestors of the Urartians? Undoubtedly, the state in question was multinational, but the bulk of the population were Armenians.

This proves several facts, which we present below:

)Two brothers rebel against their father, the Assyrian king, kill him, and find refuge in Urartu (Assyrian sources). In the Fourth Book of Kings Old Testament the same events, only it says that they fled to the state of Ararat.

2)The Armenian epic “Sasuntsi David” describes the same events and says that the brothers fled to Sasun (southwest of the Armenian Highlands)

)Movses Khorenatsi, describing these events, writes ... they came to us

)In the 6th century BC. The kingdom of Akhimineta was created, which left us evidence in three languages: Akkadian, Elamite and Old Elmite and Elamite. The Persians call the territory Armenia-Armina. In some places the same territory is indicated as Uruatri (Akkadian), Bianstron inscription (Darius I). Urartu and Ararat are the same word; Ararat appeared earlier from them.

)Professor Meshantsev says that the main deity of the Urartians is Khaldi, this is the same Armenian god Hayk.

Bibliography

1.Melik Bashkhyan: “History of the Armenian people” 1988

2.Khachikyan. A. E: “History of Armenia” (Brief essay). Second edition, additional. Yerevan 2009

.Chobanyan P: “History of Armenia” 2004

.Sargsyan G: “History of Armenia” 1993

.Chistyakov I.O: “History of the domestic state and law.” part one 2007

.Novoseltsev, A.P.: “The most ancient states on the territory of the USSR.” 1985

.Barkhudaryan V.B: “History of Armenia.” 2000

.Harutyunyan N.V. “Biainili - Urartu. Military-political history and issues of toponymy." St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg University Publishing House, 2006.

9.Piotrovsky B.B. "Kingdom of Van (Urartu)". Moscow: Publishing House of Eastern Literature, 1959.

Melikishvili G.A. "Urartian wedge-shaped inscriptions". Moscow: Publishing House of the USSR Academy of Sciences, 1960

Bagrat Ugubabyan. "Collection of conversations. Yerevan" 1991

R. Ishkhanyan. Illustrated History of Armenia. Book 1. Yerevan 1990

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The history of the state of Urartu is known to us from cuneiform tablets found in 1827 by the young archaeologist Friedrich Schulz. In the wake of extraordinary interest in the study of historical antiquities and the rapid development of archeology as a science, the Assyrian city of Nineveh, the palace of King Sargon II in Khorsabad, and the famous library of Ashurbanipal were soon discovered - all this greatly contributed to the rapid deciphering of cuneiform sources and obtaining information about the history of Urartu.

At the end of the 2nd millennium BC. e. The indigenous population living on the territory of the Armenian Highlands enters into a stubborn and lengthy struggle with the Assyrians, and the legendary king ancient history Tiglathpalassar I goes on military campaigns against the “country of Nairi.” In the area of ​​Lake Van in the middle of the 9th century, a united state of proto-Armenian tribes was formed, which in a short period of time became so strong that it was able to decisively repel the Assyrian invaders. The inhabitants of the new Urartian state could be called Khaldi (on behalf of Khaldi, the main god of the Urartians), and their country - Biayni. The long confrontation with the Assyrian kingdom became a powerful impetus for the unification of previously disparate tribes, and natural resources The Armenian Highlands created the economic prerequisites for the formation of a strong and prosperous state in this territory.

Fragment of an Urartian fresco

One of the main stages in the formation of the state of Urartu was the reign of King Ishpuini (828 - 810 BC), the son of the legendary founder of the Kingdom of Van - Sarduri I. Reforms and rearmament of the army gradually turned Urartu into one of the most influential states in Western Asia. During the reign of Ishpuini, Urartu began to undertake its own campaigns of conquest and expand its territory. The most important achievement of this ancient king was the capture of the city of Musasir, which was a religious center for the veneration of the god Khaldi, the supreme deity of the Urartian pantheon. In addition to Haldi, the divine triad included the god of thunder and war Teisheba and the god of the solar disk Shivini. The analogue of the Babylonian fertility goddess Ishtar was Arubaini, the wife of the supreme god Khaldi. As you can see, the schematic basis for constructing the divine pantheon of even ancient peoples indicates the presence of a single plot and composition of cosmogonic myths and religious rituals.

The memory of Urartu is preserved in the genetic code of modern Armenians

The capture of Musasir gave Ishpuini the legal right to carry out religious reform in Urartu, promoting the centralization of royal power. For the state ancient world, which was Urartu, the religious reform of Ishpuini was very important. The inhabitants of Urartu believed that their successes directly depended on the power of their supreme god. In the eyes of the Urartians, the God Khaldi, who was also revered in northern Assyria, could resist Ashur himself, the supreme god of his southern neighbor.

Image of the god Khaldi, Arin-Berd, Historical Museum of Armenia

The apogee of the struggle against foreign intervention occurred during the reign of King Argishti (778 - 750 BC). The long-term confrontation ended with the victory of the Urartians, for the glory of which the ruler ordered a description of this long-awaited event to be carved on the Van Rock, not far from the residence of the rulers of Urartu in the capital - the city of Tushpa. In general, Urartian architecture is characterized by an abundance of rooms carved into rocks. Thus, the internal spaces of the Van Rock probably served as tombs for the Urartian kings, and the surface itself was carefully processed with the tools of stonemasons, the rocky slopes are covered with numerous ledges, stairs and niches.

Urartu fought with Assyria for hegemony in the Middle East

In terms of its political system, Urartu was a typical despotic state of the ancient Eastern type, the basis of which was a strong central government that kept various conquered tribes in subjection. To weaken local ethnic conflicts, the Urartu authorities used all those methods of state coercion that they would later use until our time. This includes punitive campaigns, the destruction of rebel tribal unions, and the resettlement of residents of occupied areas to other parts of the country. At the same time, their territory was given to new settlers, forcibly brought here from the most remote corners of the state. To strengthen power on the periphery of their kingdom, the Urartians built fortresses, created administrative centers and sent their governors there, on whose shoulders fell control over the timely payment of tribute and the work on the construction of fortresses and irrigation systems - artificial lakes and canals. They have become a vital necessity for the population of both lowland and mountainous regions of the country. The main wealth of the Van kingdom was cattle. Among the crafts in Urartu, metallurgy achieved great development, because iron began to be used here earlier than in other regions of Western Asia. Culturally, the Urartian state was close to Assyria, from which it, in particular, borrowed its writing, taking a ready-made linguistic system and adapting it to the peculiarities of its own language. It is interesting that the temple of the supreme god Khaldi in Musasir was significantly different from Assyrian buildings: with its gable roof and decorated pediment, it was more similar to archaic Greek temples.

Cuneiform tablet from Urartu

The feature that distinguished Urartu from previous and subsequent empires that existed on the territory of Western Asia was the unified architectural and urban appearance of the entire state, known in archaeological literature as “fortress cities.” They were built on high hills dominating the surrounding plain, which either never had settlements or were abandoned by the inhabitants before the Urartian conquest, and in some cases destroyed. Among the unique features of the Urartian worldview, it is also worth noting the widespread cult of wolves or dogs - totemic analogues of ancient Egyptian cats. According to local beliefs, wolves accompanied the souls of the dead to afterworld and even had the ability to resurrect the dead. In collections of Urartian art you can often find a ritual figurine of Aralez, a deity of the ancient Armenian pantheon who revived the fallen on the battlefield by licking their wounds.

The Urartians were tolerant of non-believers

By the middle of the 8th century. BC e. the power of the state of Urartu began to gradually weaken, and the main rival, the Assyrian kingdom, on the contrary, entered its heyday. The country was headed by the talented ruler Tiglath-palassar III, who set as his goal to restore the former influence of Assyria. Having won a confident victory over the Urartian army, Tiglathpalassar in a cuneiform inscription says the following: “I locked Sarduri Urartu in Turushpa (Tushpa), its main city, and carried out a great massacre in front of the city gates. I installed the image of my dominion opposite the city.” The defeat of the ancient Urartian capital and the devastating march of the Assyrian army through enemy territory weakened the Urartian state, which soon lost its former dominant position in the northeast of Western Asia.

At the archaeological excavations of the city of Tushpa, 1915

The weakening of the Assyrian kingdom, which began a long and bloody war with Babylon and Media in the second half of the 7th century, did not stop the decline of the Urartu civilization. Around 590 BC e. The kingdom of Van lost its independence and was captured by Media and then by Persia. It should be noted that neither in eastern Turkey nor on the territory of modern Armenia have any post-Urartian structures been discovered earlier than the 1st century AD. e., ancient geographers and historians do not mention the existence of urban culture. The population of the Armenian Highlands during this period was heterogeneous and consisted of remnants of the Urartians, Proto-Armenians, Semites and Hittites. The memory of the state of Urartu entered into the traditions and customs of the Armenian nobility, which used Urartian art objects, jewelry and clothes. The population of the Armenian Highlands maintained the functionality of the Urartian hydraulic structures necessary for agriculture. For example, the Menua canal, 70 km long, is in operation to this day and, in terms of its engineering characteristics, is not inferior to modern hydraulic structures.

The rise of the ancient kingdom of Urartu

For about two centuries, from the beginning of the 8th to the beginning of the 6th century BC, the southern part of Transcaucasia was part of the kingdom of Urartu. On the territory of the Armenian SSR, a large number of Urartian monuments have been preserved - wedge-shaped inscriptions on rocks marking conquests and construction work, the remains of ancient fortresses - often on inaccessible hills in the mountains.

Urartu, a powerful slave state of the ancient East, was formed in the central part of Western Asia, on the Armenian Highlands, in the middle of the 9th century BC. It was then that the Assyrian king Shalmaneser III had to wage a stubborn and lengthy struggle with this new rival of his, a struggle reflected in the royal chronicles and on the reliefs of the Balavat Gate. At the end of the 9th century BC and especially at the beginning of the 8th century BC there was an intensive growth of the territory of Urartu. At the same time, in the center of the kingdom itself, in the city of Tushpa, a grandiose canal more than 70 kilometers long was being built, leading to Tushpa drinking water and preserved longer under the name “Shamiram Canal”, many temples, palaces and fortresses were erected. The Urartian troops successfully resist the Assyrians, in the west they reach the Euphrates River, in the east they capture mountainous regions important for the defense of their country, which covered access to the center of their state, and in the north they reach the Araks River.

The Urartian wedge-shaped inscriptions of King Menua, the son of Ishpuimi, talk about equipping a large army for that time in the Transcaucasian regions, consisting of 65 war chariots, numerous cavalry and 15,760 infantry. On the northern spurs of Mount Ararat, a fortress was built, called Menuakhinili, which served as an important strategic point , which ensured further movement to the north, through the Araks.

The campaigns in Transcaucasia were aimed at annexing the fertile Ararat plain to Urartu, stealing prisoners from conquered regions and capturing livestock in mountainous regions. The Urartians were also attracted by the mountains of the Lesser Caucasus, rich in copper ore, which the Urartians lacked.

Under Argshnti, the son of Menua, further expansion of the territory of Urartu continued.

In the second quarter of the 8th century BC, after a short war with small tribes of Transcaucasia, the entire Ararat plain was annexed to the Kingdom of Van, and the administrative Urartian center was moved to the left bank of the Araks. On a coastal cliff at that time, which dominated the entire plain, Argishti built his fortress, calling it Argishtikhinili. Later, Armavir, the ancient capital of the Armenian kingdom, was located on the same site.

In the area of ​​the Armavir Hill, 14 wedge-shaped inscriptions were found, mainly on stones from ancient buildings dating back to the time of two Urartian kings - Argishti and his son Sardurn. The inscriptions tell of large construction works undertaken by the Urartians in the first half and mid-8th century BC around Argishtikhinili. They talk about the construction of fortresses and temples, the construction of canals, the cultivation of gardens and vineyards, and vast fields. The Ararat plain became one of the centers of agriculture and cattle breeding, and great wealth accumulated in the storerooms of the Urartian administrative center. The Urartians attached great importance to these events in the southern Transcaucasus, and information about them is also reported in the Khorkhor chronicle of Argishti, carved on the Van rock.

At the same time as they took care of the improvement of the area around their administrative center, the Urartians devastated entire regions of Transcaucasia, especially those whose population stubbornly resisted them, wanting to maintain their independence. In addition to the Ararat plain, the Urartians also conquered the mountainous regions of Aragats and the Sevan coast, rich in livestock. This conquest was accompanied by the destruction of fortress settlements of rebellious tribes, the devastation of small countries, the destruction and captivity of inhabitants, and the theft of large numbers of livestock. Crowds of prisoners and livestock were driven from Transcaucasia to the center of Urartu - Biaynu.

The conquered countries were part of the Kingdom of Vienna, which was expressed in the chronicles with the phrase: “the country was included in my country.” The inhabitants of these countries were counted among those whom the Urartians called Biainians; The modern name of the lake comes from the name of the country Biaina (Viaina), located near Lake Van and which occupied a dominant position in the ancient Eastern state association. But due to the fact that in Urartian inscriptions the term “country of Biaina” very often refers only to the central part of the state and there are often cases when this term is contrasted with the names of countries annexed to the kingdom, in science it is customary to use the Assyrian term - Urartu and the inhabitants of this country are called Urartians, so As the Assyrians used this term to understand the heterogeneous and variegated population that formed the large slave state of the ancient East, and not just the territory and population of its central part.

The countries conquered and included in Urartu were subject to military and construction duties, as well as a certain tribute. The management of new governorate regions was entrusted to governors, usually military leaders, along with whom sometimes dynasties of local rulers remained. In the chronicle of King Sarduri, son of Argishti, one can find a cliché phrase that “such and such a ruler came, fell prostrate and embraced Sarduri’s knees.” . But there are also texts talking about the capture of the king, his taking to Biaynu and the appointment of an Urartian governor.

Bronze figurine - part of the throne, found at Toprak-Kala, near Vann (State Hermitage)

The upper part of the quiver of King Sarduri (8th century BC), found at Karmir-Blur (State Hermitage Museum)

For almost the entire 8th century BC, Argishtikhinili was the largest, if not the only, administrative center in Transcaucasia. The Urartian governor lived in it and there was a permanent large garrison. In this fortress, campaigns were prepared deep into Transcaucasia along two routes: to the north, beyond Mount Ararat, and along the Zanga River to Lake Sevan. Both of these paths are clearly marked with Urartian inscriptions on the rocks and on the stones of ancient buildings.

On the northwestern coast of Lake Sevana, near the village of Lchashen (Ordaklyu), a wedge-shaped inscription carved on a coastal rock has long been discovered. The inscription notes the capture of the city of Kiehuni, the ruins of which were discovered not far from the rock with cuneiform writing. This huge fortress, distinguished by its size and power of the structure, was supposed to serve as a barrier on the way to the western coast of the lake. Having captured it, Argishgi gained access to the entire rich lakeside region. That is why the capture of this city is also noted in the chronicles of the Urartian king, discovered in the center of the state.

The chronicle, along with the story of the conquest of the city of Kiehuni, also notes the construction of a powerful fortress, the city of Irpuni, which was supposed to glorify the country of Urartu and frighten enemy countries. “...at the command of the god Khaldi, Argishti, son of Menua, says: I built the city of Irpuni for the power of the country of Biaina and to intimidate enemy countries... I accomplished mighty deeds there - I settled 6,600 prisoners from the country of Khate and the country of Tsupani there.” Thus, we learn that settlers from remote areas lived in the city near the administrative Urartian center of Argishti. The country of Khate should be understood as the small Hittite principalities in northern Syria, while the country of Tsupani corresponds to Sophene of Greek sources, the Armenian region of Tsopk, located on the left bank of the Euphrates, in its western bend. Argishti led a persistent and successful struggle with the Assyrians for access to the Mediterranean Sea and for mastery of the main trade routes of the ancient East. It turns out that some of the prisoners captured during these military operations were resettled in Transcaucasia.

In 1950, thanks to a lucky find, it was possible to establish with complete certainty the location of the city of Irpuni. During restoration work carried out on the site of an ancient fortress on the Arin-Berd (Ganli-Tapa) hill, on the southern outskirts of Yerevan, the architect K. Hovhannisyan discovered two stones with cuneiform writing. On one of them there was the following text: “With the greatness of God Khaldi, Argishti, the son of Menua, built this powerful fortress, finished it, called it the city of Irpuni, for the power of the country of Biaina and to intimidate enemy countries. Argishti says: ...I did mighty deeds there.” The inscription ends with a lengthy title of the Urartian king.

It is no coincidence that the Urartian governor of the time, Argishti, son of Menua, built his fortress on the very outskirts of the Ararat plain, and not higher, in the mountains, where the climate was much more pleasant. It was this area that was firmly mastered by the Urartians, and here they could consider themselves completely safe.

Small exploratory excavations on Arin-Berd established that the building on the hill was a huge palace-type structure, reminiscent even of Assyrian palaces. Around a large, square courtyard there were rooms, one of which we have a more or less clear idea of. This is a long and relatively narrow room adjacent to the western part of the courtyard and reminiscent in its character of the first room of the Assyrian palaces, especially decorated. During exploratory excavations and clearing of the destroyed parts of this room, it was possible to discover the remains of remarkable paintings on its walls, made mainly in blue and red paint on a white background. Clearing the south-west corner of the room allowed us to establish the sequence of ornamental elements. At the top of the wall, on a protruding cornice, there were circles with multi-rayed stars inscribed in them like rosettes. Below there was a row of palmettes with a characteristic Assyrian ornamental motif, and under it a belt of a number of stepped turrets, also common in Assyrian paintings. Under these three ornamental rows there was a narrow frieze filled with figurines of bulls, and even lower there was a painting depicting sacred trees with deities standing around them. The lower part of the wall had a wide panel painted over with blue paint.

The palaces of the Assyrian kings, opened in the middle of the 19th century, were decorated in their ceremonial parts with painted reliefs, but they also had rooms with paintings, and the palaces of the Assyrian governors on the outskirts of the state, such as Til-Barsip - the residence of the most prominent Assyrian governor Shamshiilu, who had to fight the troops of Argishti, were decorated only with paintings.

In addition to the above Argishti inscription, two more Urartian cuneiforms were discovered on Arin-Berd. One of them, known since 1893, marks the construction of a building by King Argishti, and the other, discovered in 1950, contained a building text by Sarduri, the son of Argishti. Thus, the city of Irpuni dates back to the period of the rise of the Urartian state, when it was at the zenith of its power. At this time, Urartian power was firmly established in the Transcaucasus and in the Urmi region, and campaigns directed to the west, to northern Syria, ended with success. Assyria could not counteract the increased strength of Urartu and began to lose region after region. As a result of all this, the former dominant position of Assyria in Western Asia passed to Urartu. Sarduri, the son of Argishti, rightfully bore the titles of “king of countries” and “gift of kings.”

But the situation in Western Asia in the second half of the 8th century BC changed. After Tiglath-palassar III ascended the Assyrian throne in 745 BC, Assyria again began to experience a period of rise and began not only to restore its former power, but also to return its lost possessions. Already in 743 BC in northern Syria, the Assyrians inflicted a heavy defeat on the troops of Sarduri, who was forced to return to Assyria areas that were of exceptional importance for trade relations with the Mediterranean and Asia Minor. The chronicles of Tiglath-palassar III tell of the Assyrian victory over Sarduri and his four allies, the Syrian princes, and the capture of a large number of prisoners and booty in the Urartian military camp.

The Urartian king's traveling bed, his jewelry, his signet ring, and his personal chariot fell into the hands of the Assyrians. Sarduri himself fled under cover of the night, and the Assyrians pursued him “to the borders of Urartu, to the bridge (crossing) over the Euphrates River.”

In 735 BC, Tiglath-palassar III launched a campaign against Urartu and, having crossed the Euphrates, headed into the country without encountering resistance. The Assyrians reached the capital of Urartu - Tushpa and besieged the citadel on the Van Rock. But Sardur did not surrender the fortress and held it.

Military failures and the defeat of Sarduri had dire consequences for Urartu. Due to the weakening of Urartian state power, the kingdom collapsed. It was at this critical moment that the fragility of the state unification of Urartu became especially clear - characteristic all states of the ancient East. Around 730 BC, in difficult times, Rusa, the son of Sarduri, ascended the Urartian throne. In addition to collecting lands that fell away from Urartu after 735 BC, he also had to wage a stubborn and very aggravated struggle with the governors of the regions who were striving for independence. Letters from Assyrian intelligence officers, kept in the royal archives in Nineveh, tell in detail about this struggle, which at times reached the point of direct mutinies of military leaders against the Urartian king. Rusa, the son of Sarduri, rightfully inscribed on his bronze statue, which, according to Assyrian information, was in the Musasir temple: “With my two horses and my charioteer, with my hands I conquered the kingdom of Urartu.” Indeed, the restoration of the collapsed state was tantamount to its new conquest.

In his activities, Rusa focused his main attention on Transcaucasia and the region of Lake Urmia; in the north of his kingdom, he had to ensure the protection of the borders from the Cimmerians invading Asia Minor, and in the southeast he had to prepare for military actions against Assyria, which would inevitably break out.

In Transcaucasia under Rus, the son of Sarduri, great changes took place. In response to the rebellion of military leaders and regional governors, he carried out a reform of the management of the outlying regions, which was expressed in the disaggregation of the old governorships and the replacement of large administrative centers with smaller ones. By this, he tried to weaken the position of the governors, whose local power had grown excessively.

In his capital, in the city of Tushpe, Rusa moved the royal residence from the Van Rock to the heights of Toprah-Kale. In Transcaucasia, apparently, it was at this time that the old administrative center of Argishtikhinili lost its former significance, and some of the fortresses built by these couples, in particular the city of Irpuni, fell into decay. It is no coincidence that the vast majority of inscriptions found in the vicinity of the Armavir Hill refer to Argishti and Sarduri; out of 15 cuneiforms, only one inscription, insignificant in size and content, refers to the last Urartian king of the early 6th century BC, Ruse, son of Erimene. I think that it is no coincidence that all three cuneiforms from the city of Irpuni belong to the Urartian kings Argishti and Sarduri. Exploration work on Arin-Berd shows that the city of Irpuni was not suddenly destroyed, but, apparently, was abandoned and gradually fell into decay. There are no traces of fire in the examined premises and the finds there are also very insignificant. The Irpuni storerooms were probably emptied, and the valuables stored in them were transferred to the new administrative centers.

In Transcaucasia, Rusa, the son of Sarduri, began to carry out extensive construction activities. On the coast of Lake Sevan, two fortresses built by the Urartians have been preserved, the ancient names of which are known to us from the wedge-shaped inscriptions associated with them. One of them bore the name of the main Urartian god Khaldi - “the city of the god Khaldi”, and the other - the name of the god of war Teisheba - “the city of the god Teisheba”. The first of them was built on a high rock dominating the entire area. In 1927, a stone from the masonry of an ancient wall with a wedge-shaped inscription was found on its territory, telling about the conquest of the enemy country of Uelikukhi, the capture of the king of this country, the appointment of the Urartian governor and the construction of the “gate of the god Khaldi,” probably a temple. In conclusion, the inscription speaks of the construction of a powerful fortress - “the city of the god Heldn for the power of the country of Biaina.”

The second fortress is located on a hill, on the southern shore of the lake, between the villages of Tsovinar (Kölagran) and Aluchala. On a rock in the northern part of the hill, above the water of the lake, a wedge-shaped inscription of Rusa, the son of Sar Duri, known since 1863, has been preserved. Its first copy was very incomplete and incorrect; access to it was difficult, and copying from a boat, from the side of the lake, did not give good results, since the inscription was largely covered with a lime crust. In 1893, A. A. Ivanovsky made an attempt to remove the print from this very interesting inscription. With great difficulty, a cart was brought into the water of the lake, under the inscription, on which they placed a table, a stool on the table, a chair and another small stool on it. With this shaky structure, tied with belts and ropes, A. A. Ivanovsky began his difficult work of removing the print. The first day did not bring luck to the researcher; in the evening, when the work was already ending, says A. A. Ivanovsky in his report, “a fairly strong wind blew, the canvas began to lag behind the rock, I hurried with all my might to finish the work, but suddenly a terrible whirlwind came, and before I had time to do anything take this step, he tore my photograph off the cliff. I wanted to hold it in the air, completely forgetting what shaky ground I was standing on, and, losing my balance, in an instant I found myself in the water along with the chair and stool.” Only the next day A. A. Ivanovsky finished his printmaking, which was transferred for publication to M. V. Nikolsky, who for the first time published the text of the inscription with the correct number of lines and the name of Rusa, the son of Sarduri. But still, even after A. A. Ivanovsky’s printmaking, the text remained incompletely reproduced; further work was needed to copy the inscription. In 1927, an expedition of the Committee for the Protection of Antiquities of Armenia removed a new print, lowering an employee from above on a rope, who, standing on a board suspended in front of the inscription, carried out the work. The text on this print was published by G. A. Kapantsyan and I. I. Meshchaninov. In 1934, taking advantage of the experiences of my predecessors, I also made an attempt to remove the stack. A table was suspended on ropes, with its legs up, and I, having lowered myself onto it along the rope, worked in it like in a cradle, but the strong wind that rocked this cradle made copying very difficult. On the same day, the architect N. M. Tokarsky and I tried to take a stereo photograph of the inscription from the side of the lake. A large tripod was brought up on the boat, which, by hanging stones from it, was lowered evenly to the bottom and an apparatus for stereo photography was installed on it. The photograph was successful, but the limescale crust that covered the inscription made the inscription illegible. Nevertheless, based on all these copies, it was possible to basically decipher the entire text, occupying 20 lines.

The inscription tells about the conquest of 28 countries, which are divided into two groups. The first consists of only four names of countries on the Sevan coast, while the second lists 19 countries conquered by the Urartians in the same year in other areas. In conclusion, the inscription speaks of the construction of a powerful fortress “the city of the god Teisheba”, built for the power of the country of Biayna.

On the rock, above the inscription, the ruins of this city, the wall of the citadel, made of large stones with powerful corner towers and buttresses, are preserved.

Excavations inside the citadel, carried out by me in 1934, revealed the remains of dwellings, badly destroyed, in which fragments of clay vessels, iron weapons, bone artifacts and stone grain grinders were discovered.

This Urartian fortress in Transcaucasia is still awaiting research, and there is no doubt that it will yield interesting results. Nowadays, the study of the inscription is also easier. Due to the grandiose work on using the waters of Lake Sevan for hydropower and irrigation purposes, the constant water level in the lake will significantly decrease; and now the water has receded from the rock and the inscription can be studied from a structure installed on solid ground.

As mentioned earlier, in 714 BC, Assyrian troops inflicted a severe defeat on the Urartians and marched victoriously throughout the entire kingdom of Van. The Urartian king Rusa himself also died. Sargon wrote in his chronicles: “I brought misfortune to Urartu and its entire region and made the people living there moan and cry.” Urartian government in Transcaucasia was shaken again.

In the history of Urartu there was another period of political and cultural upsurge. Under the long reign of King Rusa, son of Argishti (second quarter and mid-7th century BC), a contemporary of the Assyrian kings Esarhaddon and Ashurbanipal, Urartu again became one of the largest states of the ancient East. Assyrian written sources convey Esarhaddon's anxiety regarding the plans of Rusa, king of Urartu, whose actions worried him no less than the actions of the Cimmerians, Indians, Manaeans and Scythians. The Assyrians, apparently, did not want to wage an open struggle with the Kingdom of Van, but the Urartians, in turn, avoided military clashes with Assyria.

During the reign of Ashurbanipal, Rusa sent his envoys to Assyria, as stated in the Assyrian chronicles: “At that time, the Urartian king Rusa heard about the power of my gods and fear of my greatness defeated him. He sent his princes to welcome me to Arbela." Urartian ambassadors arrived in Arbela immediately after Ashurbanipal's victory over Teumman of Elam and the capture of Susa. The reliefs of Ashurbanipal depict the presentation of ambassadors to the Assyrian king standing on a chariot, and their presence during the brutal executions of the Elamites.

The period of the reign of Rusa, the son of Argishgi, according to extant cuneiform sources, seems to be a period of intensive construction and strengthening of the power of the Kingdom of Van, the completion of the reform of the governorship, begun by his grandfather, Rusa, the son of Sarduri. Two Urartian inscriptions tell in detail about the great construction work of Rusa, the son of Argishti, in the north of his state, in particular in Transcaucasia: one from Maku, northeast of Lake Van, the other from the Zvartnots Temple. The last inscription testifies to the extensive work the Urartians carried out in the area of ​​the new administrative center in the Ararat Plain, which replaced the old center, Argishtnkhinili, which had fallen into decay. The “city of the god Teisheba” became such a center, the ruins of which are preserved on the Karmir-Blur hill, near Yerevan.

Excavations of this fortress, carried out by the Academy of Sciences of the Armenian SSR and the State Hermitage, provided a wealth of material characterizing the culture of the last period of the history of Urartu.

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Civilization arose in the 33rd century. back.
Civilization stopped in the 25th century. back.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
This civilization of Transcaucasia originated from the Sumerian-Akkadian civilization..

Toynbee classifies it as a companion to the flourishing civilizations.

The Urartians are the ruling tribe of the Urartian civilization, which was heterogeneous in its ethnic composition..

The population of Urartu included a large Hurrian population.

Urartu also included proto-Armenian tribes, speakers of the proto-Armenian language.

The state of this civilization was the Urartian kingdom. Ararat. Biaynili. Kingdom of Van.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

This is the ancient civilization of Transcaucasia.

The Urartians were a tribe that spoke the written Urartian language.

WITHAmong the population of Urartu there were people of both sedentary and nomadic types. Migrants came to Urartu from the southeast, northeast and west. The population of Urartu included a large area of ​​the Hurrian population, possibly designated by the Assyrians with the word “Nairi”, remaining after the collapse of the Mitanni state.

INUrartu also included proto-Armenian tribes, speakers of the proto-Armenian language. Proto-Armenian tribes (flies in Assyrian sources) migrated to the Armenian Highlands from the west and settled on the territory of historical Armenia before the formation of the state of Urartu - at the end of the 2nd millennium BC. (modern Turkish province of Malatya on the site of historical Melitene). In Armenian historiography, the prevailing tendency is to talk about the autochthony of the Armenians in the Armenian Highlands in the Hayas region.

The state of this civilization was the Urartian kingdom.Ararat. Biaynili. Kingdom of Van. An ancient state in southwestern Asia, located on the territory of the Armenian Highlands (modern Armenia, eastern Turkey and northwestern Iran). Urartian art of this time has Assyrian features.

UThe Rartian language is similar to Hurrian. The Urartians probably spread across the Armenian Plateau from the Revanduz region in Western Azerbaijan, where ancient city Musasir. It is likely that the ancient Urartian city of Musasir was located on the territory of the initial settlement of this tribe.

WITHThe existence of Urartu as a union of tribes has been documented since the 13th century.The process of decomposition of primitive relations received intensive development among the tribes that lived in the area of ​​​​Lake Van and bore the name Urartians. Eight countries under the general name Uruatri are mentioned in this region in Assyrian sources as early as the 13th century. BC.

Urartu as a state has been mentioned in sources since the 8th century BC.

In the first quarter of the 1st millennium BC. Urartu occupied a leading position among the states of Western Asia.

Urartu ceased to exist in the 6th century BC.

Later, the civilizations of Colchis, Iberia, Armenia, and Caucasian Albania were formed here.

Sources.
1 . Assyrian mentions of Urartu in the period from the 13th to the 8th centuries BC. Assyrian sources are the basis of much of the historical data about Urartu, as well as the basis of the chronology of Urartu. The oldest known mention of Urartu is found in the inscriptions of the Assyrian king Shalmaneser I (Shulman-Ashared I, reigned 1280-1261 BC). From the texts we can conclude that the “kings of Urartu” during this period were in a long military confrontation with Assyria, and the organized military campaigns of the Assyrians regularly brought them success in the wars with the Urartians. The stronger Assyrian troops at that time, as a rule, pursued predatory goals; the main purpose of raids on Urartu was to seize valuables and steal livestock.
2 . Babylonian chronicles of the 7th century BC, relating mainly to the decline of Urartu;
3 . brief mentions in Hittite hieroglyphic texts;
4 . Urartian inscriptions, made mainly in cuneiform, borrowed from the Assyrians.
5 . The Assyrian name for the state of Urartu has been in use since the 9th century BC. in Assyrian and Babylonian inscriptions. There is an assumption that this name meant “high country.” In the 10th century BC. in Assyria there was also a variant “Uratri” (U-rat-ri).
6 . Biaini (Biainili). Local name with unclear etymology. The word Biaini acted both as the self-name of Urartu and as the name of the internal region of this country where the consolidation of the Urartian tribes first took place, in the area of ​​the first capital of Urartu - the city of Arzashkun. The word “Van” in the name of the city of Van, located on the site of the former Urartian capital, and in the name of the lake of the same name probably etymologically go back to the word Biaynili.
7 . Kingdom of Van. The name Urartu currently used by many.
8 . Country of Nairi. Nairi is the early Assyrian name for a “group of tribes” living in the territories of Urartu. This name is found in the 13th-11th centuries BC, and Lake Van in Assyrian texts retained its old name “sea of ​​the country of Nairi” (Akkadian tâmtu ša mât Nairi) in the subsequent period. Some researchers considered the Assyrian word "Nairi" to be the name of the Hurrian people, which is consistent with modern research on the relationship of the Urartian language with Hurrian.
9 . Ararat. Inaccurate Masoretic vowel of Aram. rrt = Urartu, which is used in biblical texts and is preserved in modern toponymy.
10 . Country of Alarodiev. Herodotus mentions the Urartians under the name Alarodia.
11 . Haldia. Some historians of the late 19th - early 20th centuries identified Urartu with the country of the “Chaldai” mentioned by ancient historians on the basis of a phonetic comparison with the name of the supreme deity of the Urartians, the god Khaldi.
12 . Aratta is an ancient mountainous country, mentioned back in the 3rd millennium BC. in Sumerian texts. The identification of Aratta with Urartu is not a generally accepted statement in scientific circles, made by individual researchers on a phonetic basis, and also partially argued by the English scientist David Rohl. But most scientists believe that Aratta was located in the mountains of central or southwestern Iran and is in no way connected with Nairi/Urartu.

In documents from the reign of the Assyrian king Ashurnasirpal II, instead of numerous small possessions, a country named Urartu is mentioned.

Another state association of Urartian tribes formed to the southwest of Lake. Urmia was called Mutsatsir. The all-Urartian cult center was located here.

WITHThe formation of Urartu statehood dates back to the 9th-8th centuries. BC. Geographically, it was located on the Armenian Highlands in the area of ​​Lake Van. The state was called Biainili, the Assyrians called it Urartu and it became the successor to the intertribal union of Urautri. (Toynbee)

ANDIt was Assyria, through its actions, that contributed to the emergence of the state of Urartu on the Armenian Highlands. The desire of the local population to protect themselves from the predatory raids of the Assyrians contributed to the emergence of tribal unions, and over time, state formation. The natural resources of the Armenian Highlands initially created the economic prerequisites for the emergence of a state here, however, the military-political prerequisites and, accordingly, the opportunity to create such a state appeared only in the Iron Age: it became possible for the local population to effectively resist the formidable Assyrian army only after the technology of stone processing iron guns allowed the construction of numerous defensive fortresses on the Armenian Highlands.

PThe process of uniting tribes and developing technology for building fortresses continued for centuries. In the 9th century BC. Assyria managed to conduct its last successful campaigns against Urartu: under the leadership of Shalmaneser III (Shulman-Ashared III) in 858-856 BC. During the reign of Arama, Shalmaneser III destroyed the first capitals of Urartu, the cities of Suguniya and Arzashka, the exact location of which has not been established, and successfully advanced deeper into Urartu.

The first ruler of the united Urartu was King Aram (864-845 BC). However, the army of Shalmaneser III launched campaigns against him. Assyrian politicians apparently already sensed a potential threat in the emerging young state. However, these military actions did not affect the main regions of Urartu and Mutsatsir, and contrary to the hopes of the kings of Assyria, the strengthening of the new state continued.

The Urartian ruler Sarduri I (835-825 BC) had already formalized his ambitions. He adopted a pompous title borrowed from the Assyrian kings. This was a direct challenge to the power of Assyria. The capital of the Urartian state became the city of Tushpa in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bLake. Van, around which powerful stone walls are being built.

PRi Sarduri I, Assyrian raids could no longer reach the capital of Urartu, but only disturbed the southern outskirts of the country. Although in a direct clash the Urartian army lost to the Assyrian, the fortresses built by the Urartians no longer allowed the Assyrian army to penetrate far into the interior of the country. In addition, the harsh winter climate of the Armenian Highlands made the task more difficult for the Assyrians; they could carry out all offensive campaigns only in summer time and were now forced to carry heavy siege weapons with them. Under such conditions, the power of the Assyrian army was only sufficient for small successes. The power of Assyria in the region began to come to an end, and a new power in the Middle East began to flourish - the united Urartu.

The reign of the Urartian king Ishpuini (825-810 BC) was marked by active activity. If the inscriptions of Sarduri were written in Assyrian, now the official texts are compiled in the Urartian language, for which slightly modified Assyrian cuneiform was used. PUnder King Ishpuini, son of Sarduri I, (reigned c. 828-810 BC), the central power of Tushpa was further strengthened. The borders of Urartu are expanding: from the south, Urartu is joined by the territory between lakes Van and Urmia, as well as the territory south of Lake Urmia; in the north, in Transcaucasia, successful military campaigns are being carried out to capture the fertile valley of the Araks River. There is also a “centralization” of the Urartian religion. The deities of individual tribes are united into a single pantheon, headed by the gods of the central part of the country: Khaldi, Teisheba and Shivini. During the same period, cuneiform tablets appeared in the Urartian language.

The young state more and more clearly asserted its independence. The borders of the ruler Tushpa's possessions expand to the lake. Urmia, and the second Urartian formation - Mutsatsir - becomes one of the dependent possessions.

For the ideological unity of the new state, a religious reform was carried out - a special role was given to the three main deities: Khaldi - the god of the sky; Teisheba - the god of thunder and rain; Shivini - to the sun god.

The influence of the ancient religious center of the Urartian tribes Mutsatsir, where the main temple of the supreme god of the Urartian pantheon, Khaldi, was located, was strengthened. Intensive construction activity covers almost the entire territory of the state. Numerous Ishpuini inscriptions tell about her; they also tell about numerous campaigns.

The true creator of Urartian power was King Menua.

WITHWith the accession of Ishpuini's son Menua to the throne, massive construction work is being carried out on the territory of Urartu. During the reign of Menua (810-786 BC), fortresses were built protecting the approaches to Van, palaces and temples in many Urartian settlements, as well as a canal supplying water to the city of Tushpu, which has survived to this day. The period of Menua's reign overlaps with the reign of the famous Assyrian queen Semiramis. The lull in hostilities with Assyria was marked by the cultural influence of Assyria on Urartu.

Although many buildings near Lake Van during Menua’s life, including the canal to Tushpa, were associated with his name, after some time they began to be associated with the name of Semiramis, as those built in her time. The Armenian medieval historian Moses Khorensky cites legends about the personal participation of the queen in the construction of buildings near Van during the time of Menua. During the reign of Menua, irrigation work was also intensively carried out throughout the country, and the expansion of the Urartians continued to the north in Transcaucasia and to the southwest, where the borders of Urartu reached the middle reaches of the Euphrates.

Some of the official annals have been preserved, describing the activities of this ruler year after year (similar annals in Urartu were also one of Menua’s innovations). Menua's military campaigns went in two directions - to the south, towards Syria, where his troops captured the left bank of the Euphrates, and to the north, towards Transcaucasia. At the same time, special attention was paid to the organization of subordinate territories. Apparently, in a number of cases the power of local kings was retained, but at the same time representatives of the central government were appointed - the heads of the regions.

Obviously, administrative reform also dates back to the time of Menua - the division of the Urartian state into regions governed by representatives of the central government.

Menua's construction activities were also very large-scale. In the area of ​​the capital city of Tushpa, a canal about 70 km long was built, and in some places water was transferred through aqueducts made of stone, reaching a height of 10-15 m. In addition to this structure, which in ancient times was called the “Menua Canal,” canals were also built in other regions of the kingdom.

INDuring the reign of Menua's son Argishti I in 786-764 BC, Urartu was at the zenith of its power and became the most powerful state in Western Asia.Urartian troops penetrate into Northern Syria, where they win over the local rulers to their side. In the southeast, having included the Mannaean kingdom in their orbit of influence, the Urartians descend along the mountain valleys to the Diala basin, practically reaching the borders of Babylonia. As a result, Assyria finds itself surrounded on three sides by the possessions of Urartu and its allies.

Urartu firmly took possession of the area around Lake Urmia, the territories of Transcaucasia and blocked trade routes from Asia Minor to Assyria. The eternal rival of Urartu, Assyria was thus deprived of militarily strategic supplies of horses and iron, and was at that time in a state of economic and political decline. King of Assyria Shalmaneser IV, a contemporary of Argishti I, called the Urartian king this way: “Argishti Urart, whose name is terrible, like a heavy storm, whose forces are vast.” Argishti I was succeeded on the throne by his son Sarduri II, who continued his father’s work, carrying out a series of military campaigns, expanding further the country’s borders.

MThe state of Urartu reached its height in 774 BC, when the army of Assyria was defeated under the leadership of King Argishti.

Argishti also attached great importance to advancement in Transcaucasia. Urartian troops reach Colchis in Western Georgia, cross the Araks and take possession of a vast territory on its left bank up to Lake. Sevan. An extensive program of economic and construction activities is being carried out in the newly annexed regions. Near Armavir in 776 BC. the large urban center of Argishtikhinili is being built. On the site of modern Yerevan in 782 BC. Another city is being built - Erebuni.

In the Argishtikhinili area, four canals are being built, vineyards and orchards are being established. Giant granaries are built in fortified cities, where state grain reserves are concentrated. The policy of creating a second important economic center of the Urartian state in Transcaucasia, in an area remote from the main theater of military operations, fully justified itself in the course of subsequent events.

The work of his father was continued by his son Argishti Sarduri II (764-735 BC).

IN744 BC Tiglath-Pileser III ascended the throne of neighboring Assyria and immediately began the struggle to restore Assyria's former dominance in Western Asia. Tiglath-pileser III carried out a number of reforms in the Assyrian army and began successful fighting on the western borders of Urartu, aimed at returning Assyria control over trade routes to Asia Minor. By 735 BC. A decisive battle took place between the Assyrian army and the Urartian army on the western bank of the Euphrates. The Assyrians defeated the Urartian army and captured big number prisoners and various trophies. Sarduri II, commander of the Urartian army, fled from the battlefield to Tushpa. Tiglath-pileser III continued his military campaign deep into Urartu:

But the fight was not over. King Rusa I (735-713 BC) sought to revive the power of Urartu. In foreign policy, he tried to avoid open confrontation with Assyria, while at the same time supporting anti-Assyrian sentiments everywhere. Carrying out an active policy in the south also made it difficult for the Cimmerian nomads to invade the northern regions of Urartu. But the Urartian possessions in Transcaucasia systematically expanded, new cities were founded. Great work to create a powerful economic complex carried out by Rusa I in the area north of the city of Urmia. The king did not forget the traditional center of his state - the lake area. Wang. An extensive reservoir was built there, vineyards and fields appeared, new town, named Rusahinili.

IN722 BC a more decisive and militant Sargon II came to power in Assyria, younger son Tiglath-pileser III.

Seeing the energy with which Rusa I strengthened the power of Urartu, Assyria hastened to strike a new blow. The trip was carefully prepared.

In 714 BC. Assyrian troops, led by Sargon II, moved to the area east of the lake. Urmia against local rulers, skillfully set against Assyria by the Urartian king. But Rusa I also considered the moment opportune for a decisive battle and tried with his army to go to the rear of the army of Sargon II. The battle ended with the defeat of the Urartians.Decisive for Urartu was the very fact of defeat in battle and the loss of Musasir, the religious center of Urartu, the place of coronation of the Urartian kings since the time of Ishpuini. With the death of Musasir, the greatness of the supreme Urartian god Khaldi was shaken.

As a result of this campaign, Urartu was defeated in the struggle for political hegemony in Western Asia and ceded this role to Assyria.

However, in the future both sides avoided direct clashes.During the period of truce, Rusa I devoted a lot of time to internal construction, especially in the area of ​​the northern part of Lake Urmia, where through his efforts a large Urartian center arose - the city of Ulhu. In addition, Rusa I built the new capital of Urartu - Rusakhinili on a rock a few kilometers from Tushpa.

INlate 8th century BC Sargon II died as a result of a palace conspiracy, and soon after Assyria plunged into a crisis associated with the confrontation with Babylonia and Media, which eventually, 100 years later, in 609 BC. led to the destruction of the Assyrian state.

In the meantime, the son of Rusa I, Argishti II (reigned 714 - ca. 685 BC), ascended the throne in Urartu. The nature of relations between Assyria and Urartu after the campaign of Sargon II changed: the parties began to resolve conflict situations through negotiations, and Urartu, fearing new defeats, ceased to lay claim to the northern possessions or zones of influence of Assyria.

Under these conditions, Argishti II (713-685 BC) directed his campaigns to the east, reaching the coast of the Caspian Sea. Here the traditional policy of the Urartian kings continued - the defeated regions were not ruined, but were subjugated on the terms of paying tribute. Argishti II carried out irrigation work in the central regions of the Urartian state - near lake. Wang. This stable situation continued under Ruse II (685-645 BC).

INThe son of Argishti II, who later ascended the throne of Rusa II (reigned c. 685 - c. 639 BC), taking advantage of the long truce, devoted himself to capital construction. During the reign of Rusa II, a large number of new fortified cities, temples and other structures were built in Urartu. Rusa II built the new capital of Urartu - Rusakhinili, located near Tushpa.

Apparently, Ruse II managed to conclude an alliance with the Cimmerians, together with whom he made successful campaigns in Asia Minor. In Transcaucasia, he carried out large irrigation works and built the city of Teishebaini.

Rusa II carried out large construction both in the capital and in Transcaucasia. This was the time of establishing cultural contacts with the Scythians. There is information about the successful campaigns of the Urartu army together with Cimmerian detachments against Phrygia, when the king of the Phrygian kingdom Midas died. From that time on Lydia stood up.

However, the threat to Urartian power lay in a new force - in the Scythian nomadic tribes that penetrated into Western Asia and created in the 670s. BC. own "kingdom". The Scythians defeated the allies of Urartu - the Cimmerians. Apparently, a number of regions of Urartu were also affected at the same time.

ABOUTAround 654, Rusa established peaceful relations with the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal, when the latter was preparing for war with Babylonia. (Toynbee)

PAfter the death of Rusa II, Urartu was quite quickly, within 100 years, completely destroyed and subsequently forgotten even by ancient authors. Over the years, Urartu has seen several rulers: Sarduri III (ruled from c. 639 to c. 625 BC), Sarduri IV (ruled from c. 625 to c. 620 BC) .), Erimena, who reigned during the period ca. 620 - approx. 605 BC. and saw the death of Assyria, as well as Rus III (ruled in the period ca. 605 - ca. 595 BC) and Rus IV (ruled in the period ca. 595 - ca. 585 BC) - the last king of Urartu. During the reign of these kings, almost no new construction was carried out, and, despite the deepening crisis in Assyria, Urartu did not resume attempts to take control of the strategic trade routes between Mesopotamia and Asia Minor until the end of its existence.Construction activity continues in the Van region and in Transcaucasia, but its scale is decreasing. At the beginning of the 6th century. BC. Urartu falls into vassalage from the new powerful state of the ancient East - Media, and by 590 BC. ceases to exist as an independent state.

TO590 BC. Urartu lost its independence. Under Sarduri III, the son of Rusa II, Urartu was already actually a vassal state in relation to Assyria. At this time, the Teishebaini (Karmir-Blur) fortress in Transcaucasia was destroyed. Local residents tried to defend the fortress, since the Urartu army detachment had left it by this time.

INUrartian religion, an important place was occupied by the cults of deities of mountains, waters, various phenomena nature. A special place was occupied by the Sky God Khaldi and his wife Uarubani, the God of thunder and rain Teisheba (Hittite-Hurrian Teshub), and the Sun God Shivini.

The Urartian state paid great attention to economic development, especially taking care of the construction of irrigation canals and the construction of reservoirs. Royal farms played a significant role in the economy. During the construction of Teishebaini, Rusa II simultaneously constructed a canal and created extensive agricultural land. According to rough estimates, Teishebaini's granaries and wine warehouses were designed for products obtained on an area of ​​4-5 thousand hectares. According to cuneiform inscriptions, the staff of the royal household in Rusakhinili was estimated at 5,500 people. On the royal farms, agricultural products were processed and craft workshops operated. Temple farms were of much less importance.

The achievements of the Urartians in the field of culture were remarkable. The history of Urartu is the history of the urbanization of Transcaucasia. The territory of cities is usually quite large - from 200 to 300 hectares (Argishtikhin or even 400-500 hectares). Cities, as a rule, were created at the foot of high hills, the tops of which were occupied by citadels. The layout of some Urartian cities had a regular character, for example, in Zernakitepe. Apparently, a rectangular planning system also existed in Teishebaini. City builders sought to ensure that the boundaries of urban development coincided with natural obstacles (river, steep hillsides, etc.). The defensive systems of cities consisted of one, usually two, and sometimes three lines of walls. City walls, 3.5-4 m thick, were usually equipped with buttresses and massive projecting square towers.

Urartian palaces were of two types. The basis of the composition of the palace in Erebuni consists of two courtyards, around which there are premises for various purposes. One of the courtyards is surrounded by a colonnade, and all the most important rooms of the palace are grouped around it. The core of the second type of palaces are the columned halls. The palace complex of the western citadel of Argishtikhinili was divided into two parts: ceremonial residential and economic. The center of the front part was a large columned hall (two rows of ten columns). The temple architecture of Urartu is very diverse. The temple of the god Khaldi in Erebuni consists of a main oblong hall with a columned portico in front of it and two square rooms, one of which is a tower. This type is close to the Hurrian-Mitannian structures. The most common, however, is another type of temple: a square one-room building, erected on a platform, with corner projections and a tent-shaped crosshair. Another type of temple is known only from its reproduction on the relief. This is a famous Assyrian relief depicting the capture of Mutsatsir. The temple in Mutsatsir is reminiscent of ancient ones.

The monumental art of Urartu is represented by stone reliefs, round sculpture, and wall paintings. Stone sculpture is divided into two clearly distinguishable groups. One includes monuments of Urartian sculpture proper, associated with the art traditions of the ancient Near East. True, finds of this sculpture are very rare. In particular, a damaged statue made of gray basalt, found in Van and apparently depicting one of the first Urartian kings, has been preserved. Much more common is folk sculpture of the “traditional conventional style”, which continues the traditions of Bronze Age sculpture. Monumental reliefs are best known from finds in Adyldzhevaz, where a procession of gods was apparently represented.

Urartian wall painting is the most studied. The picturesque panels were arranged in the form of often alternating horizontal stripes - ornamental and pictorial. Urartian paintings are included in the general circle of Western Asian ancient monumental painting. They are characterized by great conventionality and canonicity, reflected in the use of certain stereotypes when depicting living beings and plants, the use of a certain, strictly limited set of themes (images of deities, kings, ritual scenes predominate), very strong symbolism that links together both pictorial and ornamental motives.

The Urartu people achieved great mastery in applied arts, especially in the production of bronze works of art. This was achieved, in particular, thanks to the high technical level of Urartian metalworking.

The works of Urartian toreutics were extremely popular. Their finds have been recorded in Asia Minor (in particular, in Gordion), on a number of islands of the Aegean Sea (Rhodes, Samos), on mainland Greece (Delphi, Olympia), even in Etruria. Vivid examples of Urartu art are ceremonial shields, helmets, and quivers that served as offerings to temples. They were decorated with relief scenes (images of horsemen, war chariots, and sometimes sacred scenes). During the excavations, a large amount of gold and silver jewelry of high artistic level was also found.

Urartian culture played an exceptional role in the subsequent destinies of the culture of the entire Near East. Its greatest achievements were adopted by Media, then by Achaemenid Iran and spread widely throughout the Near and Middle East.

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25 Apr 2017 - 05:18

As a result of the unification of eight local tribes in the south of the Armenian Highlands, the Uruatri tribal union was formed. In the 13th century BC. As a result of the Assyrian invasion, the country was destroyed and plundered.

Two centuries later, Uruatri regained its strength in the 9th century BC. In the basin of Lake Van, a strong political union emerges - the state of Urartu.

At the beginning of its existence, Urartu was a small state, barely holding back the onslaught of neighboring powerful Assyria. Having strengthened themselves, the rulers of Urartu began conquests and created one of the most powerful states of the ancient world, uniting almost the entire Armenian Highlands under their rule.

The Assyrians called this state Urartu, the Urartians themselves called their country Biaynili. The state formed in the Lake Van basin is called by historians the Kingdom of Van or Airarat.

Since 859 BC. Assyrian inscriptions mention the name of the first king of Urartu - Arame. The army of Shalmaneser III launched campaigns against him. Assyrian politicians probably already sensed a potential threat in the fledgling young state. However, these military actions did not affect the main regions of Urartu, and, contrary to the expectations of the kings of Assyria, the strengthening of the Armenian state continued.

The Urartian ruler Sarduri I (844-828 BC) had already formalized his ambitions. He adopted a pompous title borrowed from the Assyrian kings. This was a direct challenge to the power of the Assyrian power. The capital of the Urartian state was the city of Tushpa, located in the area of ​​Lake Van. Impressive stone walls were built around it. At the western foot of the Van Rock, a fortress wall has been preserved, built from large imported stones, reaching a length of 6 meters and 1 meter in height. On this wall you can read inscriptions in Assyrian, which testify to the construction of the fortress by King Sarduri, the son of Lutipri.

Remains of a fortress built by Sarduri I

During the reign of Sarduri I, Assyrian raids could no longer reach the capital Urartu, but only disturbed the southern outskirts of the kingdom. Although in a direct clash the Urartian army lost to the Assyrian, the fortresses built by the Urartians no longer allowed the enemy to penetrate deep into the country. In addition, the harsh winter climate of the Armenian Highlands made the task more difficult for the Assyrians - they could carry out all offensive campaigns only in the summer and were now forced to carry heavy siege weapons with them. Under such conditions, the power of the Assyrian army was only sufficient for small successes. The power of Assyria in the region began to come to an end, and a new power in the Middle East began to flourish - the united Urartu.

At the end of the 9th century BC. e. the kingdom of Urartu was ruled by the son of Sarduri I Ishpuini (828-810 BC). Under him, the central power of Urartu was further strengthened. The borders of the kingdom are expanding: from the south, Urartu is joined by the territory between lakes Van and Urmia, as well as lands south of Lake Urmia; in the north, in Transcaucasia, successful military campaigns are being carried out to capture the fertile valley of the Araks River. There is also a “centralization” of the Urartian religion. The deities of individual tribes are united into a single pantheon, headed by the gods of the central part of the country: Khaldi, Teisheba and Shivini. During the same period, cuneiform tablets appeared in the Urartian language.

With the accession to the throne of Ishpuini’s son Menua (810-786 BC), massive construction work was carried out on the territory of the kingdom of Urartu - fortresses were built protecting the approaches to Van, palaces and temples in many Urartian settlements, as well as a canal , supplying water to the city of Tushpu, which has survived to this day. The period of Menua's reign overlaps with the reign of the famous Assyrian queen Semiramis. The lull in hostilities with Assyria was marked by the cultural influence of Assyria on Urartu. Although many buildings near Lake Van during Menua’s life, including the canal to Tushpa, were associated with his name, after some time they began to be associated with the name of Semiramis, since they were erected during her reign. The Armenian medieval historian Moses Khorensky cites legends about the personal participation of the queen in the construction of buildings near Van during the time of Menua. Under the reign of Menua, irrigation work was also intensively carried out throughout the country and the expansion of the Urartians continued to the north - in Transcaucasia, and to the southwest, where the borders of Urartu reached the middle reaches of the Euphrates.

The expansion of the borders of the Armenian kingdom to the south led to the fact that trade routes from Assyria to Asia Minor came under the control of the Urartians, which complicated the strategic position of the Assyrian kingdom, which had long supplied iron and horses from Asia Minor, and also made it difficult to transport horses from the country to the east of Lake Urmia. The ruler of Assyria Shalmaneser IV (Shulman-Ashared IV, reigned 783-772 BC) spent six of the ten years of his reign on campaigns against Urartu. By this time, Urartu was already ruled by the son of Menua, Argishti I, who, judging by written monuments, waged an intense struggle with Assyria at its northern borders and, in the end, emerged victorious, not allowing Shalmaneser IV to return to Assyria its lost influence in the border areas. territories. In addition, Argishti I made several successful campaigns to the southeast, to the area of ​​​​Lake Urmia against the Mannaeans. The ruler of the Kingdom of Van also built new settlements and fortresses in Transcaucasia, on the territory of modern Armenia, in particular, he founded the city of Argishtikhinili (in the vicinity of modern Armavir), which for a long time remained the major administrative center of Urartu, and the city of Erebuni (the ancestor of modern Yerevan). The Erebuni fortress was later used by Urartian troops for campaigns deep into the region of Lake Sevan and to protect the Ararat Valley.

In 744 BC. e. In Assyria, neighboring Urartu, political changes took place. The relatively peaceful rulers Ashur-dan III (772-755 BC) and Ashur-nirari V (754-745 BC) were replaced by the decisive Tiglath-pileser III, who immediately began the struggle to restore Assyria to its past power in Western Asia. Tiglath-pileser III carried out a number of reforms in the army and began successful military operations on the western borders of the Kingdom of Van,

In 734 BC. Assyrian armed forces engage in battle with the Urartu-led coalition in Northern Syria near the city of Arpad. The allies are defeated, and Sarduri retreats to the indigenous lands of his power. In 735 BC. Tiglath-pileser III strikes at the very heart of the Urartian state, in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bLake. Wang. Row central regions was given over to fire and sword.

The circumstances surrounding the death of Sarduri II remain unclear. After the defeat of the Urartian army, the state partially collapsed, and many previously conquered tribes rebelled against the central government. Rusa I, ascended the throne in 735 BC. e. - in difficult times for the state. However, thanks to decisive actions, he managed to preserve the statehood of Urartu and for a long time repel the onslaught of the Assyrian army. “With my two horses and my charioteer, with my hands I conquered the kingdom of Urartu,” engraved on the stele of Rus I. He suppressed uprisings in the regions of the country and for a long time wisely avoided confrontation with Assyria. During the reign of Shalmaneser V in Assyria, a truce was established between Urartu and Assyria. During the period of the truce, Rusa I devoted a lot of time to internal construction, especially in the area of ​​​​the northern part of Lake Urmia, where through his efforts a large Urartian center arose - the city of Ulhu. In addition, Rusa I built the new capital of Urartu - Rusakhinili - on a rock a few kilometers from Tushpa.

In 722 BC. e. the more decisive and warlike Sargon II, the youngest son of Tiglath-pileser III, ascended the Assyrian throne. He overthrew his older brother Shalmaneser V and intended to restore Assyria to its former power. In 722-719 BC. e. years, Sargon II was busy with military operations in the west - in Syria and Palestine, and from 718 BC. e. concentrated on the north. The actions of Sargon II were always carefully prepared; in his residence, Dur-Sharrukin, cuneiform tablets with systematic intelligence reports from Urartu were preserved. Intelligence data was given great importance, and therefore the son of Sargon II, Sennacherib, who later became the king of Assyria, was appointed responsible for reports from Urartu. From 718 to 715 BC. e. Sargon II and Rusa I did not dare to engage in direct battles. Their struggle unfolded in the territory of the country of Manna, which lay east of Lake Urmia. Several times during this period, Sargon II captured the country of the Mannaeans and placed a king he liked on the throne, and Rusa I, in response, organized uprisings of the Mannaeans in favor of a king loyal to Urartu.

Finally, in 714 BC. e., Sargon II launched a carefully prepared campaign against the Kingdom of Van, immediately after receiving a report about the unsuccessful military campaign of Rusa I against the Cimmerians.

The campaign began with Manna, which the Assyrian troops easily took. Sargon II then moved further east, pursuing troops loyal to Urartu, but received information that Rusa I had amassed large forces in a mountain gorge east of Lake Urmia, from where he was preparing to attack the Assyrian army from the rear. Sargon II abruptly changed plans and moved towards the troops of the Urartian king. He managed to suddenly attack the Van camp at night, as a result of which the Urartu troops suffered a crushing defeat. Rusa I himself was forced to flee.

Sargon II was able to continue moving north, where he defeated the city of Ulhu and approached the shore of Lake Van. Based on intelligence data, Sargon II did not dare to move to Tushpa, but turned his army back, where he made a difficult trek through the forested mountains and suddenly appeared in Musasir, the religious center of the kingdom, for the Urartian forces. He destroyed and plundered both the city itself and the main temple of the god Khaldi. Rusa I, having learned about the events in Musasir, committed suicide. The exact route of Sargon II's campaign remains the subject of scientific debate: some researchers, following Thureau-Dangin, believe that the Assyrian army circled Lake Van from the north, others believe that Sargon II only circled Lake Urmia from the north.

At the end of the 8th century BC. e. Sargon II was killed as a result palace coup, after which Assyria plunged into turmoil associated with the confrontation with Babylonia and Media, which, in the end, 100 years later, in 609 BC. e., led to the death of the Assyrian state. In Urartu, meanwhile, the son of Rusa I, Argishti II (714 - ca. 685 BC), ascended the throne. The nature of relations between Assyria and Urartu after the campaign of Sargon II changed: the parties began to more often resolve conflict situations through negotiations, and Urartu, fearing new defeats, ceased to lay claim to the northern possessions or zones of influence of Assyria, both on the western side of the Euphrates and on the eastern shores of the lake Urmia. At the same time, the crisis in Assyria did not give it the opportunity to conduct significant military campaigns in the northern direction. Argishti II agreed to ransom the bronze “main” statue of the god Khaldi captured in Musasir from Assyria, as a result of which it returned to Urartu. During these years, Urartu's expansion was directed to the east - Argishti II advanced further than any other Urartian ruler.

Rusa II, son of Argishti II (c. 685 - c. 639 BC), who subsequently ascended the throne, took advantage of the long truce and devoted himself to capital construction. During the reign of Rusa II, a huge number of fortified cities, temples and other structures were built in Urartu. He built and founded the capital of Urartu - Rusakhinili, located in the vicinity of Tushpa.

After the death of Rusa II, the kingdom was ruled by Sarduri III (c. 639 - c. 625 BC), Sarduri IV (c. 625 - c. 620 BC), Erimena (c. 620 - c. 605 BC), and saw the death of Assyria, as well as Rus III (c. 605 - c. 595 BC) and Rus IV (c. 595 - c. 585 . BC) - the last king of Urartu.

During the reign of these kings, despite the deepening crisis in Assyria, Urartu did not resume attempts to take control of the strategic trade routes between Mesopotamia and Asia Minor until the end of its existence. Moreover, based on an analysis of the correspondence of Sarduri III with Ashurbanipal, some researchers believe that under Sarduri III, the son of Rusa II, Urartu was actually already a vassal state of Assyria.

During this period, the balance of power in Western Asia changed; both Urartu and Assyria had new dangerous opponents, who ultimately destroyed both states. Urartu was opposed by the Scythians and Cimmerians from the north, and the Medes from the southeast. The Medes destroyed most of the Urartian fortresses, including the capitals of the kingdom Tushpu and Rusakhinili, displacing the remnants of the Urartian army and the royal house in Transcaucasia. The capital of Urartu during this period moved to the city of Teishebaini located in Transcaucasia, and the final blow that destroyed Urartu was the destruction of this fortress. It has been suggested that Teishebaini was also destroyed by the Medes or Babylonians, but most scholars now believe that this was done by the Scythians and Cimmerians.

Inner life of Urartu

The kingdom of Van paid great attention to economic development, especially taking care of the construction of irrigation canals and the construction of reservoirs. Royal farms played a significant role in the economy. During the construction of Teishebaini, Rusa II built a canal and created extensive agricultural land. According to approximate data, Teishebaini's granaries and wine warehouses were designed for products obtained on an area of ​​4-5 thousand hectares. According to cuneiform inscriptions, the staff of the royal household in Rusakhinili was estimated at 5,500 people. On the royal farms, agricultural products were processed and craft workshops operated. Temple farms were of much less importance.

City building

The achievements of the Urartians in the field of culture were remarkable. The history of Urartu is the history of the urbanization of Transcaucasia. Cities, as a rule, were created at the foot of high hills, the tops of which were occupied by citadels. City builders sought to ensure that the boundaries of urban development coincided with natural obstacles (river, steep hillsides, etc.). Defensive systems consisted of one or two, and sometimes three, lines of walls. City walls, 3.5-4 meters thick, were usually equipped with buttresses and massive protruding square towers.

Art

Objects of Urartian art are thus found mainly in the center of the country, as well as near large Urartian cities. The heyday of Urartian art occurred during the peak years of the power of the state itself. Most of the finds of Urartian art are associated with the reigns of Menua, Argishti I and Sarduri II. The cultural proximity of Assyria and Urartu introduces certain difficulties in the study of Urartian art: many objects ended up in museums around the world not as a result of archaeological excavations, but after the resale of looted burial goods, so in many cases there are still discussions among scientists about which state should be attributed to this or that item. The art of Urartu arose under the strong influence of Assyria and was highly canonized, sometimes even stenciled]. Among the striking examples of Urartian art are fragments of a bronze royal throne, some of which ended up in the British Museum, and some in the Hermitage, as well as various bronze figurines, jewelry, weapons and elite horse harnesses. Many architectural structures of Urartu have preserved traces of bright colored painting, which was widespread. During the excavations, a large amount of gold and silver jewelry of high artistic level was also found.

Bronze figurine of a winged bull that adorned left side Urartian royal throne, Hermitage. A similar figurine that adorned the right side of the same throne ended up in the British Museum.

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