Encyclopedia of Society and Culture in the Ancient World

tocratic government than was the case in Numidia. However, while Numidia was being united politically, in Mauretania there seeme ...

SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA In some parts of sub-Saharan Africa tribes operated without any predetermined rulers, with decisions reached ...

the gods and gain favor with their cults. Th e king was re- sponsible for maintaining the cult of the gods, and he did so by end ...

(2465–2323 b.c.e.) kings. Th e kings are brothers born to a priest in the cult of Re at Heliopolis and his wife, Ruddjedet. Th e ...

larly made whenever the need arose. Local mayors (haty) were responsible for the collection of these additional taxes. Along wit ...

the opinions of the elders carried more weight than did that of the ordinary citizen. To carry out policy, the assembly appointe ...

Settlements and their accompanying governmental organizations in the ancient Middle East were heavily concentrated in the basin ...

BEING A MESOPOTAMIAN KING Th e king’s duties were many. In times of peace he had to see to the administration of the city, the d ...

absolute ruler of the state; indeed, it could be said that he was the state, since no one was allowed to question his decisions. ...

Th ere were further safeguards to check the ambition of satraps. First, like the chief military offi cer, the treasurer and secr ...

Province. Th e fi rst half of this period, the Eastern Zhou, is called the Spring and Autumn Period (722–481 b.c.e.). During thi ...

Princes were given the power to create nobles within these territories and were allowed to pass their titles and lands to their ...

ing tribes to the south and west. When they took a tribe or a city-state, they typically enslaved it. Local and regional gov- er ...

things, the king was instructed to build up his own fortifi ca- tions, encourage trade, dig mines for metals, police the forest, ...

created rules for social interactions, had the best memories for sources of food and water, and knew all the tribal mythol- ogy. ...

THRACE Other than ancient Greece, one of the oldest civilizations to form a central government in Europe was Th race. Th e peopl ...

system of medieva l Europe as well as the nationa l monarchies that continue to exist in modern life. Like the Celts, the German ...

GREECE BY JEFFREY S. CARNES Th e famous quotation from Aristotle “Man is a political ani- mal” actually means “Man is an animal ...

Th e Age of Tyrants was an age of growing material pros- perity, and many tyrants used their wealth to glorify them- selves and ...

government the passing of laws was reserved for a smaller body known as the “lawgivers.” Th e ekklesia met four times per month ...