Arik-den-ili
Encyclopedia
Arik-den-ili (1319 BC-1308 BC or 1307 BC – 1296 BC) (short chronology
) was an Assyria
n king
who succeeded Enlil-nirari
, his father, and was to rule for twelve years and inaugurate the tradition of annual military campaigns against Assyria’s neighbors.
’s accounts. He seems to have been the first of the Assyrian Kings to have institutionalized the conduct of annual military campaigns, some of which appear to be little more than livestock-rustling expeditions, as the chronicle mentions “a hundred head of sheep and goats and a hundred head of their cattle [...] he brought to Aššur.”
Arik-den-ili’s first victories were against his eastern neighbors, Turukku and Nigimhi, and “all the chiefs of the (Zagros) mountains and highlands in the broad tracts of the Qutu” (Gutians) to check the incursions of nomadic tribes on Assyria's northern and eastern frontiers. The Gutians had been vassals of the Kassites
who ruled in Babylon
and may have acted as their agents. Nigimhi’s ruler was Esini. The Assyrians had invaded and carried off their harvest and in retaliation Esini led a force into Assyria which resulted in a massacre. Arik-den-ili besieged the town of Arnuna, in which Esini was holed up. Destruction of the gate and walls forced Esini’s capitulation and so he swore allegiance to his Assyrian overlord.
The chronicle then lists, Habaruha, Kutila, Tarbiṣu, Kudina, Remaku and Nagabbilhi. Of these only Tarbiṣu is known, a town a short distance from Nineveh. The residents of Halahhu seem to have borne the brunt of his wrath as he claimed to have killed 254,000 of them, a fairly preposterous boast even for the period. He then turned westward, where he encountered the Sutû, the Aḫlamû and the Yauru, the nomadic tribesmen who would become the Arameans, in the region of Katmuḫi in the middle Euphrates.
But his activities were not limited to warfare. The temple of Šamaš
at Aššur
, as a mud-brick construction, had decayed into a mound of dirt surrounded by ad hoc shrines. “In order that the harvest of my land might prosper,” he had them cleared and rebuilt the temple laying its foundation during the eponym year of Berutu, a son of the earlier king Eriba-Adad I
. His own son credited him with the construction of the great Ziggurat
of Aššur
in one of his own building dedications.
Like his father, Enlil-nirari
, before him he had to battle against Babylon, in this case against king Nazi-Maruttaš
. His son was to recall “my father could not rectify the calamities inflicted by the army of the king of the Kassite land” in a contemporary Assyrian epic. That dispute was finally resolved with his son, Adad-nirari I's victory over the Babylonians.
Short chronology timeline
The short chronology is one chronology of the Near Eastern Bronze and Early Iron Age, which fixes the reign of Hammurabi to 1728 BC – 1686 BC and the sack of Babylon to 1531 BC....
) was an Assyria
Assyria
Assyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid–23rd century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia , that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur...
n king
Kings of Assyria
The list of Assyrian kings is compiled from the Assyrian King List, an ancient kingdom in northern Mesopotamia with information added from recent archaeological findings. The Assyrian King List includes regnal lengths that appear to have been based on now lost limmu lists...
who succeeded Enlil-nirari
Enlil-nirari
Enlil-nirari was King of Assyria from 1330 BC to 1319 BC, or from 1317 BC to 1308 BC . He was the son of Aššur-uballiṭ I...
, his father, and was to rule for twelve years and inaugurate the tradition of annual military campaigns against Assyria’s neighbors.
Biography
Our sources are slim for his reign, less than ten inscriptions, a fragmentary chronicle and references to his affairs in those of his son, Adad-nirari IAdad-nirari I
Adad-nirari I was a king of Assyria. He is the earliest Assyrian king whose annals survive in any detail. Adad-nirari I achieved major military victories that significantly strengthened the Assyrian kingdom and enabled Assyria to start to play a major role in Mesopotamian politics...
’s accounts. He seems to have been the first of the Assyrian Kings to have institutionalized the conduct of annual military campaigns, some of which appear to be little more than livestock-rustling expeditions, as the chronicle mentions “a hundred head of sheep and goats and a hundred head of their cattle [...] he brought to Aššur.”
Arik-den-ili’s first victories were against his eastern neighbors, Turukku and Nigimhi, and “all the chiefs of the (Zagros) mountains and highlands in the broad tracts of the Qutu” (Gutians) to check the incursions of nomadic tribes on Assyria's northern and eastern frontiers. The Gutians had been vassals of the Kassites
Kassites
The Kassites were an ancient Near Eastern people who gained control of Babylonia after the fall of the Old Babylonian Empire after ca. 1531 BC to ca. 1155 BC...
who ruled in Babylon
Babylon
Babylon was an Akkadian city-state of ancient Mesopotamia, the remains of which are found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province, Iraq, about 85 kilometers south of Baghdad...
and may have acted as their agents. Nigimhi’s ruler was Esini. The Assyrians had invaded and carried off their harvest and in retaliation Esini led a force into Assyria which resulted in a massacre. Arik-den-ili besieged the town of Arnuna, in which Esini was holed up. Destruction of the gate and walls forced Esini’s capitulation and so he swore allegiance to his Assyrian overlord.
The chronicle then lists, Habaruha, Kutila, Tarbiṣu, Kudina, Remaku and Nagabbilhi. Of these only Tarbiṣu is known, a town a short distance from Nineveh. The residents of Halahhu seem to have borne the brunt of his wrath as he claimed to have killed 254,000 of them, a fairly preposterous boast even for the period. He then turned westward, where he encountered the Sutû, the Aḫlamû and the Yauru, the nomadic tribesmen who would become the Arameans, in the region of Katmuḫi in the middle Euphrates.
But his activities were not limited to warfare. The temple of Šamaš
Shamash
Shamash was a native Mesopotamian deity and the sun god in the Akkadian, Assyrian and Babylonian pantheons. Shamash was the god of justice in Babylonia and Assyria, corresponding to Sumerian Utu...
at Aššur
Assur
Assur , was one of the capitals of ancient Assyria. The remains of the city are situated on the western bank of river Tigris, north of the confluence with the tributary Little Zab river, in modern day Iraq, more precisely in the Al-Shirqat District .Assur is also...
, as a mud-brick construction, had decayed into a mound of dirt surrounded by ad hoc shrines. “In order that the harvest of my land might prosper,” he had them cleared and rebuilt the temple laying its foundation during the eponym year of Berutu, a son of the earlier king Eriba-Adad I
Eriba-Adad I
Eriba-Adad was king of Assyria from 1392 BC to 1366 BC.He was probably a vassal of Mitanni. However, this kingdom got tangled up in a dynastic battle between Tushratta and his brother Artatama II and after this his son Shuttarna II, who called himself king of the Hurri, while seeking support from...
. His own son credited him with the construction of the great Ziggurat
Ziggurat
Ziggurats were massive structures built in the ancient Mesopotamian valley and western Iranian plateau, having the form of a terraced step pyramid of successively receding stories or levels.Notable ziggurats include the Great Ziggurat of Ur near Nasiriyah, Iraq; the Ziggurat of Aqar Quf near...
of Aššur
Ashur (god)
Ashur is the head of the Assyrian pantheon....
in one of his own building dedications.
Like his father, Enlil-nirari
Enlil-nirari
Enlil-nirari was King of Assyria from 1330 BC to 1319 BC, or from 1317 BC to 1308 BC . He was the son of Aššur-uballiṭ I...
, before him he had to battle against Babylon, in this case against king Nazi-Maruttaš
Nazi-Maruttash
Nazi-Maruttaš, Maruttaš protects him, was a Kassite king of Babylon ca. 1307–1282 BC and self-proclaimed šar kiššati, or “King of the World”. He was the twenty third of the dynasty, the son and successor of Kurigalzu II and reigned for twenty six years...
. His son was to recall “my father could not rectify the calamities inflicted by the army of the king of the Kassite land” in a contemporary Assyrian epic. That dispute was finally resolved with his son, Adad-nirari I's victory over the Babylonians.