Hammurabi: A Powerful Ruler Of Babylon

Cutting off a son’s hands if they strike their father - that may seem harsh to us nowadays, but in Hammurabi’s time, this rules united the whole entire empire and maintained order throughout the kingdom. Hammurabi was a powerful ruler of the kingdom of Babylon. He ruled for 42 years and ruled over most of Mesopotamia. Hammurabi became the ruler in 1792 BCE and made many great advancements including: a postal system, an irrigation maintenance system, and most importantly, a code of laws. Hammurabi had a strict code of laws that every citizen of Babylon had to follow. The code of laws were written on a stele and were divided into three parts: the Prologue, Laws, and Epilogue. Hammurabi claimed that the “gods” told him to write these 282

Hammurabi’s Code covered many issues, including trade, marriage, and divorce. I believe that Hammurabi’s code was fair and just. There many reasons why Hammurabi’s code was fair. For example, Property Law number 21 states: “If a man has broken through the wall [to rob] a house, they shall put him to death and pierce him, or hang him in the hole in the wall which he has made.” This law is fair because if you broke through someone’s wall, they will have to spend lots of time and money to repair it. The victim would also have to replace the items the robber stole. I think that this law is a threat to deter any burglars. Also, Family Law number 168 states: “If a man has married a wife and a disease has seized her, if he is determined to marry a second wife, he