Assyria: a land filled with all kinds of power

It is interesting to note how the Kingdom of Assyria was ruled. Unlike the way we talk about Michael Mann’s sources of power, the king of Assyria uses multiple types of power to control his land, not just one. The king employs economic, political, and military power to rule over Assyria.

Politically, Assyria is very organized. It is made up of both urban and rural areas. It functions similarly to a centralized government; client-states were focused around the periphery and “a certain amount of frontier provinces which were placed under the responsibility of high-ranking palace dignitaries” (53).

These Assyrian provinces and client-states are economically empowered. They have “a more extensive agricultural area” and “exploit[s] the plains of Upper Mesopotamia as far as Harran” (53). The agriculture gives the land a richness which is used for survival and even trade during years of surplus.

Probably the most developed source of power that the Assyrians employed was the military. Assyria was set on obtaining more territory so it “allied the use of specialized corps and a familiarity with war that was maintained by virtually annual campaigns” (54). The kingdom became a “multi-ethnic empire” through “the integration of local contingents and the building of an increasingly complex system of permanent garrisons” (54).

While the kingdom of Assyria favored military power, it used other types as well. This allowed it to gain land, strength and authority as a whole, therefore making it one of the most dominant realms of its time.