ROMULUS & REMUS
783-743
Founders of Rome
TIGLATH-PILESAR III
Known as Pul in Biblical history, TP III was founder of the new Assyrian Empire. Using harsh tactics in which he incorporated fear and state-sponsored terrorism, and cruel practices of subdivision and resettlement. TP III ordered that the provinces be subdivided so that it would be harder for them to enact a unified revolt, and to further separate conquered peoples he had tens of thousands of subjects resettled far from those who shared their identity.770-720
Emperor of Assyria
SARGON II
"The Legitimate King." A natural born conquerer who took the power of Assyria to Babylonia, Armenia, Philistia and Israel, among others. Reorganized administration into 70 imperial provinces. At the height of his power, he was cut down in a battle with the Cimmerians... leaving all to Sennacherib.
745-705
Emperor of Assyria
SENNACHERIB
Sennacherib's reign did not focus on military expansion, but building projects. Stopped a rebellion by a Babylonian king allied with Chaldeans, Aramaens and Elamites by riding with Phoenician sailors down the Tigris. Later the Hebrew Hezekiah revolted, and he went to Israel and laid seige to 46 cities with battering rams to win the day. 10 of the 12 Israelite tribes were carried off never to be heard from again. Psalm 46 speaks of the joy of the last two tribes in surviving.
731-681
Emperor of Assyria
LYCERGUS
700-630
King of Sparta
NABLOPOLASSAR
h.
680-630
Emperor of Babylon
JEREMIAH
Son of a loved priest, Hilkiah, he was a Biblical prophet who came to the scene at the moment Judah had turned away from God, and he made it his mission to bring them back. Unpopular, Jeremiah prophisized the fall of Jerusalem, which later occurred under the hand of Nebuchadnezzar. He wrote two books of the Bible, and these books reveal the introspective, honest and saddened state that Judah's rejection and subjugation evoked from Jeremiah.
680-630
Israelite Prophet
DRACO
675-610
Ruler of Athens
ASHURBANIPAL
The last Assyrian ruler, probably the greatest... in an overall sense. He was learned, and built the first library in the Ancient World, to catalog all the knowledge known.
668-627
Emperor of Assyria
JOSIAH
Josiah became king of Israel at approximately 640 B.C. He placed a great deal of importance on the worship of YHWH, God, unlike his predecessors who introduced idolatry. He restored and refurbished the temple, and he put to death all prophets of Baal and other gods. Josiah was killed in 609 B.C. by an Egyptian king named Necho (MD).660-609
Israelite Prophet
NECHO II
26th Dynasty. War with Babylonia was unsuccessful as Nebuchadnezzar was ruler. Necho built a canal from the Nile to the Red Sea, and sent out a Phoenician expedition all the way around Africa, which took three years. He was erased (almost) from monuments by later pharaohs for losing to Babylon.
640-595
Pharaoh of Egypt
NEBUCHADNEZZAR
Emperor of Babylon the Great during its 100 years of glory. He took Egypt, rebuilt the city, including the Hanging Gardens. A moat was flooded from the Euphrates and water brought to the terraces where the gardens grew in arid Mesopotamia. Eight mile walls encircled the city, the Ishtar Gate with its glazed tiles, led to the ziggurat temple of Marduk- known by the Israelites as the Tower of Babel. Sacked Jerusalem, destroyed the temple, and carried the Jews off into the Babylonian Captivity.
630-562
Emperor of Babylonia
CROESUS
Croesus exemplified wealth. His Lydian Kingdom amassed in tribute from the Ionian Greeks. Biting off more than he could chew, he allied with some Greek cities against Persia, and fought them in Anatolia. He was captured one winter, and met demise. But it was his financial reforms that immortalized him: he instituted the use of currency to make transactions: money and coins. Think of Croeus next time you buy something with money.626-546
King of Lydia
SOLON
625-575
Ruler of Athens
THALES
620-555
Greek Scientist
ANAXAMANDER
611-547
Greek Scientist
SAPPHO
610-580
Greek Poet
PISISTRATUS
600-527
Ruler of Athens
CYRUS
585-529
Emperor of Persia
DANIEL
580-520
Israelite Prophet
LAO TZU
575-525
Chinese Philosopher
CLESTHENES
575-525
Ruler of Athens
ZARATHUSTRA
575-530
Founder of Persian Zoroastrianism
AESOP
Although most people have heard of Aesop's Fables, very little is actually known about the man who wrote them. A slave who became a freedman in Greece, Aesop both generated original fables, and codified existing ones. The fables have been contemplated by Socrates and Plato and others down the ages. Outspoken and a gadfly, he was murdered in Delphi. Still, his legacy is unmistakable and has a special place in the history of the Western tradition.572-522
Greek Writer
BUDDHA
563-483
Founder of Buddhism
PYTHAGORUS
560-510
Greek Mathemetician
