THE FORGOTTEN EMPIRE

Mark Healy reveals why the Assyrian Empire was a power to be reckoned with

- Jonathan Gordon

The great civilisations of ancient Mesopotamia are often overlooked or play supporting roles in the history of neighbouring powers, but the ancient Assyrians were a remarkable people.

Between 912 and 612 BCE in particular, in what is called the Neo-Assyrian period, at its height this kingdom ruled from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf and from the Red Sea to the Caspian Sea and is considered by some to be the first world empire in history. We spoke with Mark Healy, author of a new book on the empire called The Ancient Assyrians, to dig into how they built such an extensive powerbase and how it collapsed very suddenly.

What attributes made the Assyrians unique among their contemporaries that helped them build their empire?

West 1940 1942, Ca BC and W The Old THis new t I think a number of things: ruthlessness, particularly. I think they were pretty efficient when it came to the use of the military. They clearly thought about their army in a way which doesn't seem to have been the case with their opposition. The core of their army was fully professional and I think they thought pretty carefully about things like tactics and how best to use the forces in battle. I also think a major factor would have been their development of an independent cavalry arm, which would have been the first in history and the progenitor of all the types of cavalry arms that came afterwards.

How did the Assyrian Empire compare in terms of its economy or its agricultural base to its regional neighbours of the period?