The Neo-Assyrian Empire emerged out of a renewed phase of Assyrian state-building in northern Mesopotamia, transforming an earlier regional kingdom into a powerful, expansionist empire. Beginning with rulers such as Adad-nirari II (reign 911–891 BCE) and strengthened under Ashurnasirpal II (reign 883–859 BCE), Assyria adopted sustained military campaigning as a core instrument of state policy. This period marked a decisive shift from defensive consolidation to imperial expansion, laying the foundations for an administrative and military system that would dominate the Near East for three centuries.
At its height, the empire stretched from the Taurus Mountains to the Arabian desert and from Egypt and the Levant to the Zagros Mountains, governed from a sequence of capitals: Assur, Kalhu (Nimrud), Dur-Sharrukin, and finally Nineveh. Neo-Assyrian power rested on innovations in siege warfare, logistical organization, and a highly structured provincial bureaucracy. These systems enabled unprecedented territorial integration, leading many historians to view the Neo-Assyrian state as the first true empire in world history. Its methods of governance, deportation policies, and imperial ideology influenced later Near Eastern empires long after Assyria itself fell in 609 BCE.
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APA Style
Netchev, S. (2022, January 21). Map of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/15148/map-of--the-neo-assyrian-empire/
Chicago Style
Netchev, Simeon. "Map of the Neo-Assyrian Empire." World History Encyclopedia, January 21, 2022. https://www.worldhistory.org/image/15148/map-of--the-neo-assyrian-empire/.
MLA Style
Netchev, Simeon. "Map of the Neo-Assyrian Empire." World History Encyclopedia, 21 Jan 2022, https://www.worldhistory.org/image/15148/map-of--the-neo-assyrian-empire/.
