Ashur-dan III facts for kids

Ashur-dan III (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform:  Aššur-dān, meaning "Ashur is strong") was a king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. He ruled from 773 BC until he died in 755 BC. Ashur-dan was the son of Adad-nirari III and became king after his brother, Shalmaneser IV.

His time as king was part of a difficult period for Assyria. Not many records from his reign have survived. This means we don't know much about what happened. During this time, important officials in Assyria became very powerful. Also, Assyria's enemies grew stronger. Ashur-dan's rule was especially tough. He faced two outbreaks of a serious illness, like a widespread sickness. Also, for five of his eighteen years as king, he had to deal with rebellions.

Ashur-dan's Rule

Ashur-dan III became king in 773 BC. This was a time when the Neo-Assyrian Empire was not as strong as it used to be. The king's power was getting weaker. This was because some officials in the government became very influential. They started acting like they had supreme power. They even wrote their own official messages, just like kings did. In fact, we have more writings from these officials than from the kings of this time.

At the same time, countries that were enemies of Assyria grew stronger. For example, the Kingdom of Urartu in the north was at its peak. Assyrian kings usually led military campaigns every year. But Ashur-dan stayed in Assyria for four years of his rule. This might show that there were problems inside the country.

What We Know About His Reign

We only have one small piece of writing from Ashur-dan himself. It's on a clay cone and is badly damaged. This writing talks about some repair work. It mentions fixing the main courtyard of the temple in Assur. This temple was for the Assyrian god Ashur.

Other writings from after Ashur-dan's time mention him. The Assyrian King List tells us how long he ruled. Another list of eponyms (year names) also mentions his reign. From these lists, we know some of his actions:

• In 772 BC, Ashur-dan fought against Hatarikka in northern Syria. This area used to be under Assyrian control. Having to fight there showed that Assyria was losing its grip on its western lands. He fought there two more times later.
• In 770 BC, he led a campaign in Babylonia. He fought against the city of Marad.
• He also fought against Gananati in 771 BC and 767 BC.
• In 769 BC, he campaigned against Ituʾa. Both Gananati and Ituʾa were likely cities in Babylonia.
• In 766 BC, Ashur-dan fought against the Medes.
• In 765 BC, he again fought against Hatarikka.

Difficult Times

After 765 BC, the records show a very unstable period.

• A widespread sickness, like a plague, was reported in 765 BC and 759 BC.
• There were many revolts (uprisings) in Assyria.
  • A revolt in the Assyrian heartland happened from 763–762 BC.
  • Another revolt in Arrapha from 761–760 BC.
  • A revolt in Guzana from 759–758 BC.
• Peace was finally restored in 758 BC.

These many revolts might have happened because of the sickness. Also, a solar eclipse happened on June 15, 763 BC. Solar eclipses, especially full ones visible to everyone, were seen as bad signs. People might have thought the gods were no longer supporting Ashur-dan's rule.

The last campaign mentioned was a third trip to Hatarikka in 755 BC. It's possible that some, or even all, of these campaigns were led by a general named Shamshi-ilu, not the king himself. Ashur-dan died in 755 BC. His brother, Ashur-nirari V, became the next king.

Titles

On the clay cone from Assur, Ashur-dan is called by these titles:

Ashur-dan, chosen by the god Enlil, helper of [Ashur, son of] Adad-nirari, chosen by the god Enlil, helper of [Ashur, son of] Shamshi-Adad, [(who was) also] chosen by the god Enlil and helper of [Ashur].