Monarchs

By Peter Francis Kenny

Much of Europe and the Middle East have been governed by a king, Queen, Emperor, or Empress. These individuals in most cases began a dynasty which lasted many years, and are still reigning today. The Roman Empire grew so huge and vast that it needed two Emperors to rule both East and West, while the Middle Eastern countries suffered under their control. Russia was ruled by Tsars, and a great many dynasties existed. This book takes a look at these leaders, and uncovers the facts surrounding the reigns of these leaders.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris AU
• Release date: Feb 25, 2016
• ISBN: 9781514443750

Peter Francis Kenny

I was born in a plane, some thirteen thousand feet above the ground, in early February 1948, and I was both raised and educated in the lower north shore of Sydney. After I left school at the end of the year 1963, I commenced my working life as an artist with SMH in Sydney. This was the first of several occupations, finishing up as a police officer in the role of parking patrol. Both my parents were in the army, and it was from my dad that I grained my artistic skills, culminating in being awarded third place in a national Press Artist's Comp, which was organized by the Journalist Association in the mid-60s. I have always enjoyed art, and in my later life years, I took up writing. At this point in time, I have completed four (4) novels and three (3) historical books on historic events, person/s, and places.

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Copyright © 2016 by Peter Francis Kenny.

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Introduction

The information contained in this book was compiled from various sources, which included Encyclopedias, Libraries, and most importantly, the Embassies of the European countries, in Canberra. Without their endless assistance, my ultimate goal would not have been achieved, and for this I am eternally grateful. I started to compile the data contained herein several years ago. It is designed with predominantly students in mind, and also for the connoisseur of History. As a young child at school, where History was a subject I had to study, I was often frustrated when it came to finding a book or the information I needed on a particular person or place. For most of the time, it meant having to go to the local library to search for and then select several tomes, which was most time-consuming. These books could not be taken home, so my research had to be done at the Library, and quite often this proved to be most inconvenient to myself, my school colleagues, and to the other Library patrons. What I have endeavoured to achieve is the compilation of the information from these books into the one volume. The individual person’s full name and title, his/her life span, where and when they were born, who their parents were, his/her achievements during their reign, any major events which they were involved in, and wherever possible, the events leading up to the date and place of his/her death, have been supplied. Each of the countries mentioned has a brief history at its commencement, as well as a list of that country’s rulers, wherever I have been successful in obtaining the necessary data. At the end of the book, there is a Glossary of the various terms used and found throughout the publication from time to time, and a very simplified explanation of their meanings. There is also a list of the more notable events right down through the centuries, commencing with 3500 B.C. There is also a comprehensive list of the famous Treaties through the years for the pupil’s perusal. I trust the reader enjoys this volume, and is able to learn as much from

reading it, as I have done in compiling it.

Dedication

This book is dedicated to many friends, without whose constant support I would not have been able to complete it. Two of them, in particular my good mate Greg, who has been a constant inspiration, and especially to Sue, whose kind words have provided me with an endless source of encouragement. To all the ancient rulers and their descendants, without whom the book could not have been written, this book is also dedicated.

Peter F. Kenny

MONARCHS: PAST AND PRESENT

Afghanistan - its story, its history, and its rulers

The region now known as Afghanistan was the site of an ancient culture that flourished about the 2nd Millennium B.C. The centre of this civilization was Bactria, where Zoroaster, the Persian prophet, was very active in about 660 B.C. The region’s first recorded appearance in modern history was in about 516 B.C., when Cyrus the Great conquered it. In about 333 B.C., the Macedonian ruler, Alexander the Great, then subjugated the land, and following his death, the Seleucid ruler, Seleucas Nicotator, then dominated most of the area from about 358-280 B.C.

The Indian King, Chandragupta Sandrocottas (322-298 B.C.), ruled the area, while yet another Greek dynasty was fully established in Bactria, and a new State was founded that lasted from 246 B.C. until about 130 B.C. It then yielded to the Sakas, Iranian nomads, and then finally to the Kushans, who had adopted the religion of Buddhism. The Sassanian Persians then invaded the country in about the 3rd and 4th Centuries. The Epthalites (or White Huns), then controlled the country until, in the middle of the 7th Century, a large migration of Arabs swept over the region.

Several centuries passed before the official dominant religion became Islam. Both Persian and Turkish control eventually superceded the Arabs’ political control. Turkish total control was established late in the 10th Century, and early in the 11th Century by the Muslim Sultan, Mahmud of Ghazna (971-1030). Brilliance was gained by an Islamic culture under the native Afghan Ghuri dynasty (1148-1215). Their rule slowly extended over the border into northern India, but the Mongol, Genghis Khan, accompanied by his hordes, overwhelmed them after he came down from the north in 1220. Until the end of the 14th Century, Afghanistan remained under the Mongol control, and then Tamurlane took control of northern Afghanistan. Tamurlane was followed by Babur, who founded India’s Mughul dynasty, and then came the Safavids from Persia, along with the Uzbeks. Following two Afghan Wars, 1838-1842 and 1878-1879, the country of Afghanistan was a Constitutional Monarchy of Central Asia until July, 1973, when it was declared a Republic in a coup d’etat.

STATISTICAL DATA

THE RULERS

MAHMUD OF GHAZNA (971-1030) was a Sultan of Afghanistan who reigned from 997-1030. He was a son of Sabuktigin, and he became his successor after he successfully defeated and imprisoned his elder brother. The Caliph of Baghdad appointed him the Guardian of the Faith, and between 1000 and 1026, he undertook several expeditions against India, and the greatest of these was his expedition in 1025 against the Hindu Temple of Somnath, in Gujarat. In his capital, Ghazna, the Arts flourished, and Mahmud founded the Ghaznevid Dynasty. Mahmud passed away on or about April 30, 1030, and his full name was Yamin Al-daula Abu’l-qasim Mahmud Ibn Seb-uktigin.

AHMAD SHAH DURRANI (1725-1775) was the very first Emir of Afghanistan. He was born in the Indian city of Delhi on December 24, 1725, and later he became a chief of the Abdali tribe, and during the strong domination over the Afghans by Persia, his leadership of the other Afghan chieftains was even further extended. When Nadir Shah of Persia was assassinated in 1747, the Afghan chiefs soon declared their independence, and he was subsequently elected their Shah. The name of the Abdali tribe was changed by Ahmad to Durrani ("Pearl"), and this name was also taken as part of his title. He made several raids on the weakened Mughul Empire in India during his reign, he also captured the city of Lahore and the Kashmir region in 1748, and Delhi was later sacked. He was captured by the Marathas and blinded in 1754, and then he lived in confinement until his death in the city of Delhi on January 1, 1775. His full name was Ahmad Shah Bahadur Mujahid-ud-din Abu Nasr.

DOST MOHAMMAD KHAN (1793-1863) finally established himself as Amir of Afghanistan after ascending the throne in 1826, following eight long years of a civil war with Mahmud Shah. He was born in Afghanistan in 1793, a son of Payenda Khan, the chief of the Barakzay clan. He ascended the throne in 1826, after fighting a civil war with Mahmud Shah. British troops then invaded Afghanistan territory in 1839 because of his Russian alliance. He was deposed in favour of Shah Shuja, but after the British troops had been evacuated, he firmly re-established himself, and an alliance with Britain was later formed in 1855. Balkh and Kandahar were both conquered by him, and he soundly defeated the Persians in 1862. In 1863, his forces, led by his son-in-law, successfully captured the city of Herat in June, and Dost Mohammad Khan later passed away on June 9, 1863.

‘ABDUR RAHMAN KHAN (1844-1901) was an Afghan Emir, and with British assistance, he was able to take the throne. Born in 1844, he was the son of Afzul Khan, and also the grandson of Dost Mohammad Khan. Before he died in 1963, Dost Mohammad Khan named Shir ‘Ali, his third son, as his true successor. Both Afzul Khan and Azam Khan, Shir ‘Ali’s older brothers, later revolted on ‘Ali’s succession to the throne. ‘Abdur Rahman Khan fully supported them in a civil war, which lasted five years. The civil war was unsuccessful for the two brothers, and he was forced to flee to Samarkand, where General Konstantin Kaufmann offered him protection. Shir ‘Ali died during the Second Afghan War, and his son was deported, ‘Abdur Rahman Khan being then recognized as Emir by the British, and Britain was granted complete control of Afghanistan’s foreign relations in return. He eventually established a strong national Army, and effective tax collection was also instituted. He accepted the Durand Line as the Afghanistan-Indian border, and ‘Abdur Rahman Khan, Emir of Afghanistan, passed away in 1901.

HABIBOLLAH KHAN (1872-1919) was an Amir of Afghanistan, and he was born in 1872 in the city of Tashkent in Russian Turkistan (now in Uzbekistan), the eldest son of ‘Abdur Rahman Khan. On his father’s death in October, 1901, he ascended the throne peacefully, and reigned from 1901-1919. Many of the reforms and innovations in Afghanistan were forthcoming from Habibollah. He was the founder of the country’s first public school, he built the country’s first hydro-electric station, and a great many factories were also established. Photography and hunting were included in his many hobbies, and he was keenly interested in golf (he was responsible for introducing the sport to his country), and also in automobiles (for which he built many roads and bridges). He was both a highly competent and a very accomplished statesman, and Afghanistan’s neutrality was fully retained by him, even though he was under tremendous pressure from Czarist Russia and British India. The Convention of St. Petersburg was signed by them in 1907 without his consent, as the Convention had recognized Afghanistan as a buffer State. During World War I, in 1915, a German-Turkish mission tried several times to get him to join with the Central Powers, proposing that he wage and lead a jihad (Holy War) against British India. Rising nationalist forces opposed his refusal, as they firmly desired to end Britain’s control over all Afghanistan’s foreign affairs. He supported this goal, then he firmly demanded that Afghanistan be granted her independence from Britain in its foreign relations. Amir Habibollah Khan was assassinated on February 20, 1919, at Kalagosh in Afghanistan.

YA’QUB KHAN, Mohammad (1849-1923) was Amir of Afghanistan, Amir Shir ‘Ali’s eldest son. As Shir ‘Ali favoured a younger son, Abdullah Jan, he was so disappointed that he revolted in 1870. He captured the city of Herat, but, later coming under pressure from the British, he finally reconciled with Shir ‘Ali, who appointed him as Governor of Herat. Abdullah Jan was named heir-apparent in 1873 by Shir ‘Ali, who seized Ya’qub Khan and incarcerated him. He was later confined from 1874-1878, and during this period, Afghanistan once again became the focal point of Anglo-Russian rivalry in Central Asia. A British ultimatum was promptly issued against Shir ‘Ali simply because of his dealings with the Russians, and resulted in a British advance in November, 1878. Ya’qub Khan was then named as the Regent, as the heir-apparent had died in August that same year. In February the following year, Shir ‘Ali died, and Ya’qub then became the new Amir. He carried on the fight (Second Afghan War) against the British until May, when peace was finally restored. Under the terms of the Treaty, a British mission was sent to Kabul, but in September, Afghan troops killed the entire mission staff. After this massacre, the British again entered Afghanistan and took Kabul. Amir Ya’qub Khan later formally abdicated on October 12, 1879, and then went to India. On November 5, 1923, Mohammed Ya’qub Khan, Amir of Afghanistan, passed away in the city of Dehra Dun in northern India.

AMANOLLAH KHAN (1892-1960) ruled as King of Afghanistan (1919-1929), and was the third son of Amir Habibollah Khan. He was born on June 1, 1892, at Paghman in Afghanistan, and he ascended the throne in 1919. That same year he secured the recognition of Afghanistan’s Independence through the Treaty with Great Britain signed at Rawalpindi (now in Pakistan) in August. He tried to have both the country’s Constitution and its education system both liberalized and Westernized. He particularly desired education and emancipation for women in Afghanistan, but as very weak advisors constantly surrounded him, his plans and desires only provoked revolts. Amanollah Khan abdicated in January, 1929, and then left his beloved Afghanistan for permanent exile, and on April 25, 1960, Amanollah Khan, King of Afghanistan, sadly passed away in the city of Zurich in north-eastern Switzerland.

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Albania - its story, its history, and its rulers

Settling in the Balkan Peninsula in the 1st Millennium B.C., the people who later came to be called Illyrians appeared to have been a fairly advanced race, both economically and culturally. At first they were politically divided into tribes and principalities, but several strong and capable rulers united the tribes during the 4th and 2nd Centuries B.C., and thus the Kingdom of Illyria was formed. When the Romans finally conquered the Kingdom in about 167 B.C., the Illyrian phase of the history of Albania ended.

The Romans ruled from 167 B.C. - A.D. 395, and the Illyrian provinces prospered during this time, with most inhabitants becoming Romanized. Several Emperors were of Illyrian descent, among them Claudius, Marcus Aurelius, Probus, Diocletian, Constantine the Great, and Justinian. However, not all Illyrians became supporters of Rome. The group known as the Albani (or Albanoi), who lived in what is now Central Albania, fully preserved their culture and strongly resisted the Roman influence.

By the end of the 4th Century A.D., most of the people had embraced the religion of Christianity. Albania had become a part of the Byzantine Empire, after the Roman Empire’s division in A.D.395. The Albanian Church remained subordinate to the Roman Pope until 732, when it came under the Patriarch of Constantinople’s control. During the Byzantine Empire’s decline, from the 1100’s to the 1400’s, the external threat to Albania began to increase. Control of Albania was sought after by the Normans, Bulgars, Angevins, Venetians, and the Serbs, but none were successful enough to dominate the country for any great length of time, but by 1355, the power of the Serbs, the last of these groups, was broken, and the Byzantine Empire was too weak to re-assert its authority in Albania.

Albania now broke up into feudal States. Amongst most of the leading noble families, quarrels soon erupted, and by the end of the 1300’s, the Ottoman Turks had been approached by one of the warring factions for some assistance. Albania had been reduced to the status of a Turkish satellite by the end of the 1430’s.

The personage of Skanderberg (1405-1468) became Albania’s national hero when he took over the leadership of the country in 1443. The Turks were expelled by his armies between 1444 and 1468, and then he held them at bay. The organized resistance to the Turks gradually collapsed after he died in 1468, and the Turks eventually had regained total control of Albania by the end of the 15th Century, and they remained in control until 1912.

An international control commission was appointed by all the European Powers. The commission was to advise the Provisional Government, and was headed by Ismail Qemal, being charged with the choice of a permanent ruler for Albania. On March 7, 1914, Prince Wilhelm of Wied was chosen as King of Albania, but he only ruled for a short time. Because he was unable to suppress a series of uprisings that had broken out in both Central and Southern Albania, Wilhelm fled the country on September 3, 1914. Central authority completely broke down in Albania during World War I, as the country was occupied first by one belligerent and then another. Several Albanian notables later met on January 21, 1920, at Lushnje, with the aim of the meeting being to draw up a brand new Constitution for the country.

In 1923, the Conservatives took control of the Government, but were later overthrown in a revolt in June, 1924, by the pro-Noli faction, but his regime remained in power for only six months. Zogu later invaded Albania in December, 1924, and then he forced the Government into exile. He was King from 1925-1939, and he led Albania as President from 1925-1928, as it had by now become a Republic, and he eventually transformed the country into a hereditary Monarchy, and the title Zog 1, King of the Albanians, was formally assumed.

After the Communists had seized power in Albania in 1944, they named their Party’s first Secretary, Enver Hoxha (1908-1985), as head of Albania’s Provisional Government. The Soviet Premier, Josef Stalin, had given Marshal Tito of Yugoslavia a free hand in Albania from 1944-1948. The pact between both Albania and Yugoslavia of 1946, which preceded a series of economic agreements between the two countries, gave Yugoslavia a substantial controlling interest in the military and economic affairs of Albania.

After freeing itself of Yugoslav domination, Albania became a fully-fledged satellite of the Soviet Union. It began playing a more active role, although still somewhat limited, in the Communist world’s affairs. The country later became a member of the Council for Economic Mutual Assistance, and it had much increased economical and technical assistance made available to it by the Soviet Union during the early 1950’s. By the 1960’s, discontent was also growing within Albania’s intellectual and artistic circles, caused by many restrictions under which they had been placed, and there was a hint of political unrest also. The Government of Albania soon issued several decrees which transferred high State and Party functionaries to the provinces. At the same time, the office of political Commissar in the armed forces had been revived. These actions were so designed to firmly strengthen the Communist Party’s grip on the Albanian people.

STATISTICAL DATA

THE RULERS

ALI (ARSLAN) PASHA (1744-1822) was a Pasha of Janina who reigned as such from 1788 to 1822. Born at Tepelene in Albania in the Ottoman Empire in 1744, he was the son of Veli, Bey of Tepelene, and on his father’s assassination, he joined the mountain bandits (brigands), later becoming a notorious brigand leader, and used his band in his efforts to regain his Kingdom. He later married the daughter of the Pasha of Delvino in 1768, and later became Pasha of Janina in 1788. His fearless personality earned his the epithet "Lion of Janina", and he eventually gained control over Albania, as well as Macedonia, Epirus, Thessaly, and the Morea. He continued exerting his influence, and then Sultan Mahmud II, who was afraid he would become too strong, had him killed in 1822, and Ali (Arslan) Pasha passed away on February 5, 1822, in Janina (now Ioannina in Greece).

WILLIAM OF WIED (1876-1945) was the Prince of Wied. He was born on March 26, 1876, the third son of Prince William of Wied, nephew of Elizabeth of Romania, at Neuwied in Prussia. As an officer in the German Army, he was elected to the throne of Albania by the European Powers in 1913, but his successful acceptance was contrary to Kaiser William II’s advice. In February, 1914, he was crowned at Durresi, but through several intrigues and savage civil wars, and, sadly lacking support, his position soon became untenable. With World War I erupting in 1914, Essad Pasha led a successful rebellion, and he was forced to leave the country in September, 1914, but defiantly refused to abdicate. During the War he fought in the German Army, and was appointed the German Minister to Sweden in 1923. William, Prince of Wied, later passed away in 1945.

ZOG 1 (or ZOGU 1) (1895-1961) was President and then King of Albania. He was born Ahmed Bey Zogu on October 8, 1895, at Castle Burgajet in Albania, the son of a Muslim chieftain of the Zogoli tribe in the Mati district in Central Albania. Educated at military schools in Monastir in Turkey (now Bitolj in Yugoslavia) and in Constantinople (now Istanbul), he was prominent in Albania’s struggle for Independence (1912-1914). At the onset of World War I he was forced to flee, and then he fought as an Austrian Army officer. After the War he was appointed Minister of the Interior in 1920 in Albania’s post-war Provisional Government, and he later repulsed the invading Yugoslavs as head of Albania’s national Police. Again appointed as Minister of the Interior (1921-1922), he successfully crushed an international revolt. In December, 1922, he was elected Premier, but two years later, he was ousted and then exiled by Bishop Fan Noli, the Head of the Orthodox Church in Albania. In December, 1924, he successfully returned to power through a military coup against Noli, and was then chosen President of the Albanian Republic by the Parliament in January, 1925, and in 1928 he was proclaimed King Zog I. An autocratic ruler, he undertook a series of public works financially assisted by Italy, resulting in Albania becoming more and more under Italy’s influence. When the Italian forces invaded Albania in April, 1939, both Zog and his Queen, the former Countess Geraldine Apponyi of Hungary, who he had married in 1938, immediately fled the country with their infant son, Leka, and the family later lived in England during World War II. He was formally deposed "in absentia" in January, 1946, by the new Communist-dominated regime in Albania, and he then travelled across the Channel and then he took up residence in France. Zog I, King of Albania, later passed away in the town of Suresnes in north-western France on April 9, 1961.

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Arabia - its story, its history, and its rulers

The region’s physical geography dominated Arabia’s history, as well as its relative isolation, from the rest of the world, and by Islam, since the 7th Century. The Egyptians later sailed down the Red Sea in search of spices and incense in the 3rd Millennium B.C., and they also vied with the Assyrians for the control of trade in the 2nd Millennium B.C. The Arabs are mentioned in the Assyriand and Babylonian Empires, mostly as marauders, and they threatened the trade routes from the Persian Gulf into Syria, and into Egypt from Southern Arabia and the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Middle Eastern history explains in detail the long and bitter struggle for the total control of these trade routes right from the 1st Millennium B.C., and because of their geographical position, the northern Arabs were drawn into the struggle in turn by the Babylonians, Achaemids, Hellenes, Seleucids, Egyptians, and the Romans. A powerful naval expedition was later sent by Alexander the Great of Macedonia in 326 B.C., on a recon-naissance mission prior to the circumnavigation and the conquest of Arabia. The project was ended when he died three years later.

A base was established a century later by the Ptolemies of Egypt on the coast above Yanbu. The base was set up in an attempt to sever the incense road, just south of the junction where it branched to the north-east towards the Seleucid Empire and Syria. The Nabataeans, who both opposed and frustrated them, were of strong Arab stock from Anbut’s tribe, and were one of the first nomadic tribes to give up wandering and settle down in one place. Their capital was Petra, and for nearly two centuries they held the balance of power.

The Islamic religion arrived in 622 in the personage of Muhammad, and by the time he died in 632, several towns and districts in the Hejaz had paid him tribute and had fully acknowledged his authority. Following Muhammad, the Umayyids took over control in the late 650s, and the dynasty lasted until 750, when the Arab Empire had reached the pinnacle of its greatest extent. They were, in turn, followed by the ‘Abbasids, the Shi-ites, and later, the Seljuk Turks, followed by the Ottoman Turks.

Arabia received financial aid from the Allies during World War II, and after 1945, the United States continued its interest in Arabia because large oil deposits had been found there, and today, Arabia is one of the world’s greatest oil-producing countries. The country is comprised of eight States and a neutral zone. The remnants of its isolation have been dispersed, and it has ventured into a whole new world of turbulence.

STATISTICAL DATA

THE RULERS

ARETAS I, was a Nabataean King who had been asked by Jason the High Priest for refuge during his (Jason)’s flight from Jerusalem in 169 B.C., but was refused.

ARETAS II was King of Gaza. The Jewish King, Jannaeus Alexander, laid siege to Gaza in 96 B.C., and while he was defending his city, he encouraged a strong resistance from its residents against the Jewish King, and promised his full support.

ARETAS III (85-60 B.C.) participated in the savage conflict between Antiochus XII, Dionysus, the Seleucid King, and Demetrius III Eukairos, his brother. Antiochus was defeated and killed near Cana by Aretas, and all the Nabataean dominions were extended to Coelesyria (Lebanon). Jannaeus was defeated at Adida in Judea by Aretas, who then withdrew from Judea shortly after. When a civil war erupted between two brothers, Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II of Judea, he attempted to have Hyrcanus restored to the throne. He besieged Aristobulus at Jerusalem, but was intercepted by the Romans under Pompey, who persuaded him to withdraw his troops. As he withdrew, he was pursued by Aristobulus, who finally defeated him in the Transjordan. Aretas was ordered to pay tribute to the Romans after Judea was taken in 63 B.C. Three years later, in 60 B.C., King Aretas III passed away.

ARETAS IV (9 B.C. -40 A.D.) was formerly called Eneas, but it was changed to Aretas when he took over the Nabataean Government. He was the most celebrated of all the Kings bearing this name, and in many ancient inscriptions he was known as "rahem ammeh" (lover of his people). In the Jewish Wars that broke out in 4 B.C., he came to the aid of Augustus, after Herod the Great died. Herod Antipas, the Roman Tetrarch and son of Herod the Great, married his daughter, and she was his first wife. Aretas attacked and defeated him when it was discovered he had put his wife aside in favour of Herodius. An Imperial Roman Army had been mobilized to march against Aretas, but when Emperor Tiberius died in 37 A.D., it was then stood down. For the remainder of his reign, his Kingdom remained independent, and in 40 A.D., King Aretas IV passed away.

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Armenia - its story, its history, and its rulers

The Assyrian writings and inscriptions of the 9th Century B.C. first mention Armenia as the powerful Kingdom of Urartu. It was created by the union of confederated tribes indigenous to the area who were constantly being attacked and defeated by the Assyrians, but who were never subdued.

Armenia is often referred to as the Vannic Kingdom, and the Urartean State was later founded by Armenia’s legendary hero, Arame, in the mid-9th Century B.C. Urartu reached the peak of its power and influence between 810 and 733 B.C., being extended from Lake Sevan and the Kura River in the north, in the west to the Euphrates River, and in the east to Lake Urmia. From then on, the decline of the Kingdom began as it was invaded from the south by the Assyrians, who promptly began an orgy of looting and plundering. From the north the Scythians and the Cimmerians swarmed into the Kingdom, the Medes and the Persians invaded from the east, while the Phrygians and the Armenians came from the west. These Armenians were a branch of the Thraco-Phrygian tribes who had crossed into Anatolia from the Balkans. Establishing themselves as the new ruling aristocracy, the Armenians imposed upon the native populace their own Indo-European language, later intermingling with them to form the basic nation of Armenia. For over two thousand years, the nation preserved its national and cultural identity, even though it has been repeatedly invaded, conquered, and come under other rulers.

The suzerainty of the Medes was fully recognized by the Armenians, and by this they were eventually absorbed into the Persian Empire of the Achemenids, and for the very first time, Armenia emerged as a satrapy (rebellious province) of the Persian Empire. Alexander the Great later conquered the Empire in 331 B.C., and the Persian satrap of Armenia declared his full loyalty to Alexander. In 323 B.C., when Alexander died, all the former Achemenid satraps in the Armenian territories fully acknowledged the suzerainty of the Seleucids, the successors of Alexander in the east. The Seleucid, Antiochus the Great, suffered a major loss to the Romans at Magnesia in 189 B.C., and both Artashes (Artaxias) and Zareh (Zariades), two Armenian Princes, severed their bonds with the Seleucid Empire and successfully established two independent Armenian Kingdoms: Artashes was King of Armenia Major, and Zareh ruled Armenia Minor (Sophens). Under Tigranes (Dikran) the Great (r. 95-55 B.C.), the Armenian Kingdom reached the peak of its power and expansion. He gathered all the Armenian lands he ruled, and Greater Armenia was thus extended from the Caspian Sea to the borders of Egypt, and from the Caucasus to Ecbatana (Hamadan).

The crown of the weakened Seleucid Empire was accepted by Tigranes in 83 B.C. from Antioch’s heavily strife-ridden ruling aristocracy. As satrapies, both northern Syria and Cilicia were absorbed into his domain with their capital being Antioch, while his suzerainty was recognized by Palestine, Lebanon, and southern Syria, who had remained as his vassal States, but his Empire was extremely short-lived. Continual Roman assaults in the west could not be withstood, nor could Parthian attacks in the east, and thus the Empire became Rome’s client State. The flourishing dynasty of Artashes came to an inglorious end with Tigranes IV, when he was deposed in about A.D.1 by Augustus. A succession of dynasties occupied the Armenian throne for the next three hundred years, and most of these dynasties were Parthian in origin.

Rome’s influence in Armenia prevailed following the Treaty of Nisibis with Persia (298), and with Rome’s protection, the Arshakuni, Tiridates (Trdat) III was fully restored to the Armenian throne. He was finally converted to Christianity three years later by St. Gregory the Illuminator, and a new stage in its history was then entered by Armenia in that it was the world’s first Christian State. The Sassanid Empire collapsed at the hands of the Arabs in the 7th Century, and Armenia’s provinces in Persia then passed under the nominal control of the Arab Caliphate. In 653, under a Treaty’s terms, the Armenian "nakharas" accepted the Arab’s suzerainty in return for the preservation of their own local power and privileges. The Byzantines then attempted to expand their power in Armenia, which only served to plunge Armenia into constant turmoil, which was coupled with internal rivalries among the powerful Princely families, with the Bagratuni Princes gaining total ascendancy early in the 8th Century. The Armenian Kingdom was later re-established under a Bagratuni, Ashot V, in 885.

Other Princes continuously challenged the Bagratid Dynasty, and by the mid-10th Century they had successfully established five autonomous Armenian Kingdoms and several smaller principalities, while all the Bagratuni Kings established themselves at Ani. The Bagratid Kingdom, under Gagik Bagratuni I (r. 989-1000), had ushered in a golden era for Armenia during which the culture, learning, trade, and commerce of the country highly prospered. However, the Byzantines gradually annexed the Armenian Kingdoms and principalities, and Armenia’s independence once again ended. The Seljuk Turks later defeated Byzantium itself at Manzikert in 1071, and the victorious Turks quickly spread over eastern Anatolia, with much of Armenia being absorbed into their dominions.

Armenian immigration into the Byzantine Empire was fully encouraged by Armenia’s domination by the Seljuk Turks, particularly into Cilicia. Under the leadership of Prince Rupen of Armenia, Cilicia declared its independence in 1080, and was later transformed into a Kingdom, led by Prince Levon II (r. 1187-1219), surviving for nearly two centuries. The Seljuks were later replaced by the Mongols, and Armenia was then subjected to extreme devastation and slaughter on a grand scale. Cilicia, now called Lesser Armenia, hung on until 1375, when it was absorbed by the Mamluks into their Empire, and it was Armenia’s last independent State until the 20th Century. The Ottoman Empire and the Persians then divided Armenia following the death of the great Mongol leader, Tamerlane, in 1405. The smaller portion, Persian Armenia, developed strong economic relations with Christian Georgia, its neighbour, some time later, and it was incorporated into the Russian Empire in 1828.

Armenian nationalism’s growth in the Ottoman portion aroused both the wrath and suspicion of the Turkish Sultan, Abdul-Hamid II (r. 1876-1909). Constantinople’s Armenian quarter was burned and looted by both police and Turkish soldiers in 1867-1877. Beginning in 1894, a terrible series of bloody massacres saw some 200,000 Armenians slain over a two-year period. They were the result of sporadic acts of terrorism by Armenian terrorist groups. In 1908, the Young Turk Revolution raised false hopes of any reconciliation between both the Turks and the Armenians, but unfortunately the two nations had by now become wholly incompatible and also irreconcilable in their national interests. The following year, the wholesale massacre of the Armenians was then resumed, this time in Cilicia, and it was only arrested when the Great Powers, who also included the United States, intervened. Then the fate of the Turkish Armenians was sealed by the onset of World War I, as their sympathies were with the Allied cause. The invading Russian armies were enthusiastically embraced, and the Young Turks’ regime attempted to settle the troublesome Armenian problem by physically annihilating Turkey’s Armenians. Over 1,000,000 Armenians were taken into the Syrian desert, where they perished; many thousands were converted to Islam; and a great many more, survivors of the deportations, were finally evacuated by the retreating Russians on the Caucasian front. In October, 1920, the resurgent Turks overwhelmed the area, and they successfully detached Kars and Ardahan from Russian Armenia. The Armenian Soviet Republic was later formally proclaimed by the Armenian Communist Party in Yerevan on December 20, 1920, and it was placed under Bolshevik Russia’s control and protection.

STATISTICAL DATA

THE RULERS

TIGRANES II (140 B.C. - 55 B.C.) reigned as King of Armenia, and the country became a major power for the very first time under his rule. He was born in 140 B.C, being either a son or brother of Artavasdes I, a member of the dynasty founded in the early 2nd Century B.C. by Artaxias. Much of his youth was spent as a hostage in Parthia, and after returning, he invaded Parthia and occupied large parts of it. Much of Mesopotamia was also under his control by 83 B.C., and Cilicia and northern Syria had been subdued. The city of Tigranocerta was built after he proclaimed himself as King of Kings. After marrying the daughter of Mithridates of Pontus, he increased his interest in Asia Minor, and he overran Cappadocia in 78 B.C. Sadly, his fortunes changed when Rome soon declared war on Mithridates. The Roman, Lucius Licinius Lucullus, captured Armenia’s major cities from 69-67 B.C., and he was forced to flee into the mountains. Later compelled to surrender, he was allowed a truncated Kingdom, and the rest of his life was spent peacefully as a Roman vassal. Tigranes I, King of Armenia, later passed away in 55 B.C.

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Assyria - its story, its history, and its rulers

The history of ancient Assyria, following its first rise to national greatness, can be separated into three main distinct periods of time:

(I) 1300-1100 B.C. Ancient Assyria rose to prominence when the Kassites occupied the country of Babylonia, and Assyria then became an independent Kingdom in 1300 B.C. The Assyrians’ dominant priority was the security of their frontiers, as the once-powerful tribe of Mitannians in the west, the Urartu around Lake Van in the north, the Elamites in the east, and the Kassites in the south, were all a major threat to Assyria. The great Assyrian King, Shalmaneser I, and his successors, led Assyria in endless fighting against the Mitannians and Urartu, which fully occupied the early part of this period. When the frontiers finally became more easily defended and were secured on all fronts later in this period, the Assyrians were led by Tiglath-pileser I. Under his leadership, they were then able to turn their attentions to the south, where the Kassite Dynasty had only recently fallen in Babylonia in 1169 B.C. Tiglath-pileser had captured Babylon by the end of the 12th Century B.C., but after his untimely death, the Assyrians were unable to retain it. They were constantly under pressure from the Syrian Hittites, and once more, the Assyrians were forced to turn their attentions to the west.

(II) 883-763 B.C. After 200 confusing years (1100-900 B.C.) after Tiglath-pileser I’s death, Assyria finally emerged as a fully militarized State at the beginning of the 9th Century B.C. Ashurbanipal II, Shalmaneser II, and Adadnirari III, three great warrior-Kings, who all reigned during the period from 883-783 B.C., led Assyria in once more securing their eastern and northern frontiers. They also reached the Mediterranean Sea in the west, and then penetrated deep into Babylonia. Almost each year of his long reign, Ashurbanipal II fought against one or another Assyrian enemy, and the example he set was followed by his successors. Following a century of constant effort, the Assyrian State collapsed into temporary anarchy after 763 B.C.

(III) 745-612 B.C. Tiglath-pileser III had fully restored order in Assyria by 745 B.C., and he had also re-conquered Babylonia, and in 728 B.C. he was crowned King in the ancient city of Hammurabi. In 722 B.C., a new Assyrian dynasty began by the new leader, Sargon II. Under his leadership, Israelites were captured and later deported, the Hittite fortress of Carchemish was destroyed, and he extended his realm right to Egypt’s borders. Sennacherib (705-681 B.C.) carried Assyria’s standards into Elam and destroyed Babylon after its revolt in 689 B.C. Another Assyrian King, Esarhaddon (r. 689-669 B.C.), conquered Egypt, and the Assyrian Empire now reached its greatest heights, and then soon began to disintegrate during the reign of his son, Ashurbanipal, between 669 and 626 B.C. A short time before 660 B.C., Egypt’s independence was fully reasserted. The Cimmerians and Scythians then began new invasions of the Near East, and coupled with Media and Babylonia’s rise in nationalism, the least years of Ashurbanipal were saddened, and both Assyria’s military and economic reserves were fully sapped. The Assyrian capital, Ninevah, was captured by a large combined force of Medes, Babylonians, and Scythians, in 612 B.C., and so Assyria’s independence finally came to an end.

THE RULERS

URUKAGINA (c. 2500 B.C.) ruled the Sumerian city of Lagash, and he could be called the earliest reformer in history. The people were being oppressed by unfair taxes imposed by the greedy palace officials before he began his reign. A common practice at the time was illegal confiscating of private property, and for the benefit of the corrupted city officials, the Temple’s land was even put to use. Urukagina abolished these malpractices, and he also restored full and proper justice to the people of Lagash.

LUGAL-ZAGGESI (c. 2500 B.C.) was the son of the Governor of Umma, the Sumerian city-State, who later created a very short-lived Sumerian Empire. Following his defeat of Urukagina of Lagash, he brought under his control all the other Sumerian city-states. He then ruled over this Empire for about twenty-five years from Uruk, until his eventual defeat at the hands of Sargon I of Akkad.

SARGON I (r. 2568-2513 B.C.) was King of both Sumer and Akkad, located near the mouths of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in Lower Mesopotamia at the place where the delta had been reclaimed from the Persian Gulf. He built himself a vast Empire which stretched from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean Sea. Raised from humble beginnings, he became the cup-bearer to King Ur-Ilaba of Kish. Later, he led a revolt against the King, and soon set up a rival capital at Agade. From there he advanced up the Euphrates as far as Mari, then turned north, between the Tigris and the Euphrates, to where Baghdad is now located, with the aim of attacking Assyria. The many foreign wars he undertook carried him much further north and east, and he possibly invaded Cyprus. He also captured southern Babylonia and south-western Persia. Sargon founded the Agade Dynasty, and it existed until 2470 B.C. Sargon I, King of Sumer and Akkad, later passed away in 2513 B.C.

NARAM-SIN (c. 2320 B.C.) was the grandson of Sargon I, and was almost as famous as his grand-father as an Akkadian ruler. He reigned over his Empire for about thirty-seven years, and eventually turned out to be a most worthy successor to his grandfather. A general revolt, fermented by Kish, was suppressed by Naram-Sin early in his reign. Militarily, Naram-Sin’s campaigns took him to Syria, Upper Mesopotamia, Assyria, Elam, and to the Zagros Mountains north-east of Babylonia.

GUDEA (c. 2200 .C.) ruled Lagash, the Sumerian city-State, and was a contemporary of the first two Kings of the Third Dynasty of Ur, Ur-Nammu and Shulgi. Of all the Sumerian rulers, he is the best-known. The materials he required for his many extensive building projects came from as far away as Syria and Anatolia. His successors lost the control of Lagash to Ur.

RIM-SIN (r. 1878-1817 B.C.) was a King of Larsa, the southern Babylonian city, and he was one of Hammurabi’s most powerful opponents. He was born in Elam, and all the cities of Lower Babylonia, including a rival dynasty’s seat, were all brought under his control. Rim-Sin reigned for sixty-one years, until he was finally defeated and captured during Hammurabi’s thirty-first year of rule.

HAMMURABI (r. 1848-1806 B.C.) was the First Dynasty of Babylon’s most famous King, and his reign is the best-known in Babylonian history. In his seventh year of rule, he captured the cities of Uruk and Isin from Rim-Sin, his chief rival and the ruler of Larsa, the most powerful city at that time. From the eleventh to the thirtieth year of his reign, he concentrated on building up power. He marched north, south, east, and west, from his thirtieth year to his thirty-ninth year of ruling, and all opposition to his authority was quickly crushed. By the fortieth year of his reign, his Empire stretched from the Persian Gulf to the Upper Euphrates. King Hammurabi later passed away in 1806 B.C.

SHAMSHI-ADAD I (r. 1868-1836 B.C.) was a King of Assyria, and was an older contemporary of Hammurabi.

TUKULTI-NINURTA I (r. 1243-1207 B.C.) ruled Assyria, and also successfully conquered Babylon. Assyria had been liberated from Mitanni’s power by Ashur-uballit, and had commenced to assume both its growing political and military power. Tukulti-Ninurta was the last of a series of Kings (e.g. Ashur-uballit, Ireba-Idad, Adad-nirari, and Shalmaneser I), who all had one thing in common - under their rule, Assyrian power surged forward! The entire Near Eastern society was greatly disturbed by general unrest in about 1200 B.C. Tukulti-Ninurta decisively defeated King Kashtiliash IV, who was Babylon’s Kassite ruler, and through this defeat, he brought the ancient seat of Sumero-Babylonian culture under total Assyrian control for the first time. He came into conflict with the Hittite power when he attempted to annex Mitanni in the highlands between the eastern mountains and the Upper Euphrates. Tukulti-Ninurta later passed away in 1207 B.C.

TIGLATH-PILESER I (r. 1112-1074 B.C.) was a King of Assyria, who attempted to completely restore the Kingdom to the previous position of power it had held during the reigns of Tukulti-Ninurta and his predecessors. During the long reign of Tiglath-pileser I, the main threat to Assyrian power were raids by the Aramaean tribes into the Upper Euphrates’ regions, and he spent much time keeping them under control. He later undertook several expeditions in the lands around Lake Van in northern Assyria against the Nairi, and he also claimed to have conquered Babylon in the south, which was Assyria’s traditional rival, as well. Tiglath-pileser I later passed away in 1074 B.C.

ASHURNASIRPAL I (r. about 1050-1030 B.C.) was an Assyrian King and was also the grandson of Tiglath-pileser I, who reigned in the 1100’s B.C.

ASHURNASIRPAL II (r. 883-859 B.C.) was an extremely vigorous and very often cruel King, but once again he restored Assyria to a position of great power. The Aramaean States which had all been formed in the region between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, were dealt decisive blows by Ashurna-sirpal. He was the first ruler of Assyria after Tiglath-pileser I to successfully march to the shores of the Mediterranean, and Assyria’s Empire began to form under his rule. Provinces were created out of the conquered territories, and they were then, in turn, divided up into much smaller administrative units. The capital was moved from Ashur to the northerly Kalakh (Nimrud) by Ashurnasirpal II, who passed away in 859 B.C.

SHALMANESER III (r. 858-824 B.C.) was the son of Ashurnasirpal II, and King of Assyria. He continued to subjugate the Aramaean tribes in western Assyria, in particular the powerful Bit Adini. Fully utilizing the capital of the Bit Adini, the captured Til Barsip, he was able to penetrate further west into northern Syria and Cilicia. He made a number of attempts to try and conquer this territory, but was unsuccessful each time. He was repulsed at Qarqar on the Orontes River in 854 B.C. by a coalition of twelve Princes, who included Benhadad of Damascus and Ahab of Israel. He was also prevented from making any permanent conquests in the area around Lake Van by the growing power of the Kingdom of Urartu to the north of Assyria. Shalmaneser III passed away in 824 B.C.

TIGLATH-PILESER III (r. 745-727 B.C.) was an Assyrian King and also known as Pulu, or Pul, and he usurped the throne when Assyria was at her weakest. Urartu, a rival power, had cut off supplies of vital necessities such as horses from Media and metal from Anatolia, causing much dissatisfaction in northern Syria. He later defeated the Aramaean tribes in eastern Babylonia, and then turned on Urartu, crushing it and its allies in Syria. Assyrian control was then extended to southern Palestine, where he assisted Ahaz of Judah against Pekah of Israel. After he crushed a southern Babylonian rebellion, he proclaimed himself King of Babylon. Assyria once again became a dominant power, and he moved quickly to secure its position by widespread deportation of conquered peoples, and by reorganizing his administration in an elaborate way. The conquered territories were all incorporated under control of Assyrian Governors in a far-reaching system of bureaucracy. His reforms were the base on which his successors built their achievements. Tiglath-pileser III later passed away in 727 B.C.

SARGON II (r. 721-705 B.C.) turned out to be a very worthy successor to the great Tiglath-pileser III, whose son, Shalmaneser V, ruled only for a very short time (726-722 B.C.), and he was an Assyrian King. Among the many problems he faced were Urartu’s power in the north; the Syrian States’ total independence in the west; and the reluctance of Aramaean Babylon to submit to Assyrian power. By destroying Tushpa, the capital of Urartu, in 714 B.C., and by laying waste to the Syrian stronghold of Samaria and deporting its inhabitants in 721 B.C., he eliminated the first two of his pressing problems. Carchemish, another Syrian stronghold, was also destroyed by him in 717 B.C. After a minor setback in 709 B.C. at the hands of Marduk-apal-iddina, he promptly proclaimed himself Babylon’s King, and Sargon II passed away in 705 B.C.

DEIOCES (r. 699-647 B.C.) was a King of the Medes. H was called Dayaukku in Babylonia, and Herodotus also called him Deiokes, and he was the founder of the Median Dynasty. Assyrian annals mention him as a vassal of the Mannaeans, against whom he revolted, with aid from the Urartians.

SENNACHERIB (d. 681 B.C.) was King of Assyria who ruled from 704 B.C. until his death. He was the son of Sargon II, and also his successor. Almost right from the start of his reign, he was occupied quelling the many riots and rebellions occurring all over his realm, Babylonia and Palestine being the scenes of many major military campaigns. Fighting in the south took up the first four years of his reign. In Babylonia, Marduk-apal-iddina retook the throne after losing it to Sargon in 709 B.C., and with his allies, the Elamites, he then brought together a large Army and marched on the Assyrians. Sennacherib finally defeated him, and then triumphantly entered Babylon and Bel-ibni was established on Babylon’s throne. His attention then turned to the west in 701 B.C., especially to Palestine and Phoenicia. The death of Sargon II had partially succeeded in throwing off the Assyrian yoke on the two countries. The Phoenician coastal cities were first defeated, including Sidon and Arwad, and then he proceeded south to fight the cities of Ashkelon (Ascalon), Joppa (Jaffa), and Eknon (Akir), and then against Hezekiah, the King of Judea, but failed in his attempt to capture Jerusalem, and after imposing a heavy tribute on Hezekiah, he returned to Assyria. In 700 B.C., he marched on Babylon again, and he fought both the Babylonians and Elamites for several successive years. In 691 B.C., his forces met those of the enemy in the Battle of Khalule, and then he razed Babylon in 689 B.C., and peace was finally restored to the southern possessions of Assyria. Babylon’s destruction was thorough - the walls, temples, and houses were burnt, water from the canals was used to flood the city, the images of the Gods were smashed, and the people were put to the sword. His remaining years were peaceful ones, although there may have been the occasional punitive expedition carried out. He redeveloped his city of Ninevah by widening the streets; the old palace was demolished and replaced by a bigger and better one; parks were laid out and planted with all kinds of trees; many aqueducts were built to carry water from the mountains; and the city was surrounded by walls, which had some fifteen gates. King Sennacherib was murdered by one or two of his sons in January, 681 B.C., as he was worshipping in the Temple of Ninevah. His only remaining faithful son finally overcame the rebels and then he ascended the throne.

ESARHADDON (r. 680-669 B.C.) was one of the greatest Kings of Assyria. His full Assyrian name, ASSUR-AKH-IDDIN, which meant Assur has given a brother was to become Esarhaddon, through a Hebrew rendering some time later. Although Esarhaddon was a younger son, his father, Sennacherib, created him Crown Prince. His father was then assassinated by two of his other sons, who were then in turn defeated by the new King. As Monarch, one of his first tasks was to rebuild Babylon, which had been totally destroyed by his father. Right throughout his reign, Babylon’s restoration was continued. He treated the Babylonians extremely well, but this was offset by the many cities and countries that were destroyed by his very harsh treatment of rebels. The blockade of Tyre and also the conquest of Egypt (both in 671 B.C.), were among his most famous military feats. Egypt then became an Assyrian province, but Taharqo, its King, fled to Ethiopia and launched many counter-attacks from there. Sidon had already been destroyed in 677 B.C. by Esarhaddon, and the pacification of Media was devoted to by much of his reign, and Treaties were made by Esarhaddon with Media’s vassal rulers. He was also involved with the Scythians and Cimmerians from southern Russia through his wars in Armenia and Anatolia. Ashurbanipal, one of his many sons, was appointed by him as Crown Prince of Assyria, while another son, Shamash-shumukin, was appointed the King of Babylon. Some seventeen years after Esarhaddon’s death in 669 B.C., the two brothers fought each other in a civil war.

ASHURBANIPAL (r. 668-626 B.C.) was Assyria’s last great King, and was a son of Esarhaddon. In spite of the great military successes he enjoyed against Egypt, Babylon, and Elam, he was unable to successfully meet the challenge of Persia’s growing power. The Cimmerians, Medes, and Persians, had total control of the entire northern frontier of the Assyrian Empire. He was a great collector and reader of books, and his library contained a vast and priceless collection of documents which covered all the aspects of Mesopotamian history. The city of Ashur was later captured and completely plundered by the Medes in 614 B.C., and two years later, the Medes and the Babylonians together destroyed the city of Ninevah. Ashurbanipal passed away in 626 B.C.

SARDANAPALUS (d. 612 B.C.) was Assyria’s final King. He is identified with Sin-sar-iskun of Ass-yria who was King from 627-612 B.C., and who lost his life when Ninevah was sacked by the Medes and Babylonians.

NABOPOLASSAR (r. 625-605 B.C.) was the Neo-Babylonian (or Chaldean) Empire’s first King. He allied himself with Cyaxares the Mede, and helped in the overthrow of the Assyrian Empire. Of his many concerns, the deepest one was to have the temples of Babylon rebuilt, and the full restoration of the cult of Marduk, Babylon’s national God. Nabopolassar passed away in 605 B.C.

CYAXARES (r. 625-585 B.C.) was a King of the Medes who founded the Median Empire. His name is a Greek form of the Persian name Huvakhshtra. Cyaxares soundly defeated the Scythians, who had ruled Media for some twenty-eight years, in 625 B.C., and then set about further extending the Median domain. His Army was completely reorganized, and he was the very first ruler to arrange his troops into groups, according to their weapons. In company with the former Assyrian Governor of Chaldea, Nabo-polassar of Babylon, he later defeated the Assyrians and then captured Ninevah, their capital, in 612 B.C. Following Assyria’s destruction, Urartu (Armenia) was conquered by the Medes, and then they took eastern Anatolia, thus bringing them into conflict with the Lydians. A war between the two ended when an eclipse of the sun stopped a battle in 585 B.C., as it was taken as an omen. The truce that ensued set the Halys River as the boundary separating the two Empires, and shortly thereafter, King Cyaxares passed away.

NEBUCHADNEZZAR II (r. 604-562 B.C.) was the second King of the Neo-Babylonian Empire. By the decisive defeat of the Egyptians at the Battle of Carchemish (in what is now modern Turkey), he distinguished himself. He successfully captured Jerusalem in 596 B.C., and appointed Zedekiah as the new King of Judah. He once again captured Jerusalem in 586 B.C., and the independent Kingdom of Judah had finally come to an end. Nebuchadnezzar II passed away in 562 B.C.

NABONIDUS (r. 555-538 B.C.) was the Neo-Babylonian Empire’s last King. He moved his capital to Teima in the Arabian Desert in an attempt to rally the Aramaean tribes around him and form a united front against the power of the Persians, and he left his son, Belshazzar, to rule Babylon. Nabonidus later surrendered to the Persian, Cyrus II, at the city of Borsippa, after Cyrus had entered Babylonia, in 538 B.C., and King Nabonidas passed away that same year.

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Austria - its story, its history, and its rulers

The name Austria originally applied to a small principality on the middle Danube, almost identical with to-day’s modern province of Lower Austria. Upper Austria was the area west of the Enns River, and it extended to Bavaria and Bohemia. It also extended southward to the provinces of Salzburg and Styria. The term Empire of Austria was adopted to encompass all the lands then under the Habsburg Dynasty’s control in 1804. The name was then used exclusively for the non-Hungarian portion of the Habsburg lands, following an agreement with the Hungarian nationalist leaders. The original Austria came under Charlemagne’s vast dominion. The actual word was derived from the mid-Danubian area forming an eastern rampart of the Carolingian Empire, and was set up in about 800 A.D.

Following World War I, the Habsburg Empire collapsed and a Republic was formed, which basically covered the area of the country as we know it today. The German Reich annexed the new State in 1938, and it was finally liberated from Nazi control by Allied troops in 1945. This was later followed by the establishment of a Second Republic in 1955. The Republic gained its sovereignty and independence without being tied down as a neutralized country. Austria is situated between the Bohemian Massif and the Alps, and is crossed by the Danube from west to east. The Republic of Austria comprises of eight provinces: Burgenland, Carinthia, Lower Austria, Salzburg, Styria, Tirol, and Vorarlberg, and also the self-governing city of Vienna.

STATISTICAL DATA

CHRONOLOGY

THE RULERS

MARIA THERESA (1717-1780) was Archduchess of Austria, Queen of Hungary and of Bohemia, and a Holy Roman Empress, and she was born in Vienna on May 13, 1717, and an elder daughter of Charles VI. Through a sanction granted in 1713, she became the heiress to the throne. The Duke of Lorraine, Francis Stephen, married her in 1736, and in