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Akkadian Empire: A History from Beginning to End
Akkadian Empire * * *Download for FREE on Kindle Unlimited + Free BONUS Inside!* * * Read On Your Computer, MAC, Smartphone, Kindle Reader, iPad, or Tablet. The Akkadian Empire was one of the first empires in human history and certainly the first to involve the central government of a large, multi-ethnic populace. It also introduced things like the very first postal system and facilitated advances in science, art, and medicine. The heart of the empire, the city of Akkad, became the most important trading center in the ancient world and one of the largest cities in the world. Then, in a relatively short time, the empire disintegrated, and the city itself was abandoned. Now, we don’t even know where the city of Akkad was located. How is this possible? How could an empire which controlled most of the civilized world suddenly fall apart? Successors of the Akkadians thought that they had the answer. Many texts from the Babylonians and others talk of the Curse of Akkad, a curse placed on the empire after its king offended the gods which led to its destruction. For thousands of years, historians assumed that the story of the curse was nothing more than a quaint legend. However, modern research shows that the Akkadian Empire was most likely destroyed by a cataclysmic change as a result of sudden and unprecedented climate change. Inside you will read about... ✓ The Black Heads and King Sargon ✓ Palace Conspiracies and Assassinations ✓ Naram-Sin and the Curse of Akkad ✓ The 4.2 Kiloyear Event ✓ The Fall of the Akkadian Empire ✓ The Search for Akkad And much more! In little more than two hundred years, the Akkadian Empire rose from nothing to become the most important and powerful empire in the world, and then went back to obscurity. This is the story of the rise and sudden fall of the Akkadian Empire.
44 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 26, 2018
218 people are currently reading
246 people want to read
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Hourly History
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
January 9, 2026
2.5 stars
short review for busy readers:
Although easy to read, this Hourly History condenses facts too much which blurs the actual events and leads to some confusion and misunderstanding on the part of the reader.
For example: the text makes no mention that Akkadians and Sumerians lived as neighbours for hundreds of years. This lack makes it sounds like one day, a Sumerian (King Sargon) who was actually an Akkadian, took over Sumer, THEN established the culture of Akkad, then changed Sumer into Akkad and decreed the Akkadian language to be the official one, although he was a Sumerian speaker.
Not true, but what one could understand if about 300 years of events is condensed into a few paragraphs!
The book is much better about the later part of the Akkadian Empire, but focuses far too much on the kings and what they conquered, why they won or didn't, than on the culture.
These two points makes this Hourly History volume limited in its usefulness for the general reader. Others in the series are much better.
short review for busy readers:
Although easy to read, this Hourly History condenses facts too much which blurs the actual events and leads to some confusion and misunderstanding on the part of the reader.
For example: the text makes no mention that Akkadians and Sumerians lived as neighbours for hundreds of years. This lack makes it sounds like one day, a Sumerian (King Sargon) who was actually an Akkadian, took over Sumer, THEN established the culture of Akkad, then changed Sumer into Akkad and decreed the Akkadian language to be the official one, although he was a Sumerian speaker.
Not true, but what one could understand if about 300 years of events is condensed into a few paragraphs!
The book is much better about the later part of the Akkadian Empire, but focuses far too much on the kings and what they conquered, why they won or didn't, than on the culture.
These two points makes this Hourly History volume limited in its usefulness for the general reader. Others in the series are much better.
January 9, 2026
The Akkadians succeeded the Sumerians. A shame as the Sumerians came across as being more inventive and functional. Much of this story involved battles and accounts of changes of leadership. I thought the Sumerians died out or disappeared (I probably misread that) so it seems the populace carried on, only with new leaders installed across their cities. Strange then, that the Sumerian DNA didn’t make it to modern times. I enjoyed the climate-change-induced abandonment of cities in this Hourly History book. It was well written. The period itself had less exciting elements is all. 2.5 stars rounded down.
January 17, 2021
The author tries to understand what happened to Mesopotamia through global perspective.
It starts off with a great entr'/ intr'o-duct'ion.
(Kindle Ed. pp. 4-5)
...The part of Mesopotamia which became Sumer is very small—it had a total land area of just 14,000 square kilometers which is around the same size as the American state of Connecticut—and the flat alluvial plain and the lack of natural features such as mountains meant that most Sumer cities were within sight of one another.
Awesome piece of information I’ve never thought about studying history of Med'/ Mes'o-pot'am-ia. Have you?
With some of the author's "opinions" here I do not agree though.
(Kindle Ed. p. 5)
In the twenty-fifth century BCE, Eannatum, the king of the Sumer city of Lagash, conquered several other cities in the area. His conquest led to another landmark in human history—the first organized battle in which the professional soldiers of two opposing factions faced and killed each other on behalf of their leaders.
I don't think it was the first of that kind of battle. Organized battles have been around since the advent of surpluses and properties.
(Kindle Ed. p. 5)
Despite the fighting between cities, life was generally good for Sumerians. Advances in agriculture and the building of canals and drainage systems meant that food was plentiful and surpluses were traded with other areas to ensure that the Sumer people had access to anything they might want...
For whom in the Sumerian society? Definitely not the majority, but for the few el'ite and ra'/ ro'y-al family members who were not labeled as heretics or traitors.
(Kindle Ed. p. 5)
...This also meant that there was time to develop writing (and even literature) and advances in science including astronomy and medicine.
After reading the page it sounds a lot to me like the author believes they were sever’/ separ’ate activities independent from the ancient people's living. They are subjects for study in linguistics, history, anthropology or art for us today, but it was different back then. The first writing, too, began for business purposes for people’s living, and everything, even religious rituals and sacrifices, were all about making living by pleasing gods for better weather for successful grain production.
And I’ve found some errors that require to be edited.
(Kindle Ed. p. 21)
...He took his armies to the Sinai Peninsula, to the kingdom of Magan (in what is now Oman), and there he led his army to victory and “personally caught Mandannu, its king...”
Magan wasn't in Egypt, but in modern-day UAE and Oman, the Hormuz Strait, thus the "Sinai Peninsula", the bridge between the Mediterranean (Atlantic Ocean) and Red Sea (Indian Ocean), is wrong and must be revised.
One of the typos I’ve found in this book:
(Kindle Ed. p. 42)
...At its zenith, in controlled more territory than anything that had come before, covering not just Mesopotamia but also the Persian Gulf, parts of Asia Minor, and the Mediterranean Sea, perhaps as far as Cyprus...
...it controlled more territory...
This book needs more study and re-vis’ion. So far the book only earns a three-star average-rate.
But, of course, the book is also filled with very useful information as well.
For a brief read it's got such a large scale; I like it that the author tries to understand what happened to the Akkadian Empire in Mesopotamia within the global perspective.
And the book ends with a four-star con-clos’/ -clus’ion.
It is not complete, but still a good read with lots of useful in-form’ation and kn’ow-ledge written in simple and plain English for easy understanding.
You can read the full review here.
It starts off with a great entr'/ intr'o-duct'ion.
(Kindle Ed. pp. 4-5)
...The part of Mesopotamia which became Sumer is very small—it had a total land area of just 14,000 square kilometers which is around the same size as the American state of Connecticut—and the flat alluvial plain and the lack of natural features such as mountains meant that most Sumer cities were within sight of one another.
Awesome piece of information I’ve never thought about studying history of Med'/ Mes'o-pot'am-ia. Have you?
With some of the author's "opinions" here I do not agree though.
(Kindle Ed. p. 5)
In the twenty-fifth century BCE, Eannatum, the king of the Sumer city of Lagash, conquered several other cities in the area. His conquest led to another landmark in human history—the first organized battle in which the professional soldiers of two opposing factions faced and killed each other on behalf of their leaders.
I don't think it was the first of that kind of battle. Organized battles have been around since the advent of surpluses and properties.
(Kindle Ed. p. 5)
Despite the fighting between cities, life was generally good for Sumerians. Advances in agriculture and the building of canals and drainage systems meant that food was plentiful and surpluses were traded with other areas to ensure that the Sumer people had access to anything they might want...
For whom in the Sumerian society? Definitely not the majority, but for the few el'ite and ra'/ ro'y-al family members who were not labeled as heretics or traitors.
(Kindle Ed. p. 5)
...This also meant that there was time to develop writing (and even literature) and advances in science including astronomy and medicine.
After reading the page it sounds a lot to me like the author believes they were sever’/ separ’ate activities independent from the ancient people's living. They are subjects for study in linguistics, history, anthropology or art for us today, but it was different back then. The first writing, too, began for business purposes for people’s living, and everything, even religious rituals and sacrifices, were all about making living by pleasing gods for better weather for successful grain production.
And I’ve found some errors that require to be edited.
(Kindle Ed. p. 21)
...He took his armies to the Sinai Peninsula, to the kingdom of Magan (in what is now Oman), and there he led his army to victory and “personally caught Mandannu, its king...”
Magan wasn't in Egypt, but in modern-day UAE and Oman, the Hormuz Strait, thus the "Sinai Peninsula", the bridge between the Mediterranean (Atlantic Ocean) and Red Sea (Indian Ocean), is wrong and must be revised.
One of the typos I’ve found in this book:
(Kindle Ed. p. 42)
...At its zenith, in controlled more territory than anything that had come before, covering not just Mesopotamia but also the Persian Gulf, parts of Asia Minor, and the Mediterranean Sea, perhaps as far as Cyprus...
...it controlled more territory...
This book needs more study and re-vis’ion. So far the book only earns a three-star average-rate.
But, of course, the book is also filled with very useful information as well.
For a brief read it's got such a large scale; I like it that the author tries to understand what happened to the Akkadian Empire in Mesopotamia within the global perspective.
And the book ends with a four-star con-clos’/ -clus’ion.
It is not complete, but still a good read with lots of useful in-form’ation and kn’ow-ledge written in simple and plain English for easy understanding.
You can read the full review here.
November 14, 2020
When it comes to historical events, it’s always fun to start with some short books.
I appreciate this summary of the Akkadian Empire.
What puzzles me is that, according to the author, nobody knows where these people come from or how they disappeared, not sure what the author meant by it.
I have visited the Louvre Museum, and over there are displayed some (or perhaps all) the Akkadian scriptures, statues, and tablets. Maybe there is something else that we need to explore in the Akkadian civilization.
Overall, Hourly History makes it easy and entertaining to understand the past of the Akkadian or black-heads civilization.
I appreciate this summary of the Akkadian Empire.
What puzzles me is that, according to the author, nobody knows where these people come from or how they disappeared, not sure what the author meant by it.
I have visited the Louvre Museum, and over there are displayed some (or perhaps all) the Akkadian scriptures, statues, and tablets. Maybe there is something else that we need to explore in the Akkadian civilization.
Overall, Hourly History makes it easy and entertaining to understand the past of the Akkadian or black-heads civilization.
August 31, 2025
Great overview of the Akkadian Empire. One of the things that has always interested me about ancient civilizations is the accuracy of events surrounding their history. For example. I know through interpreting texts--how few there are--historians come up with all the timelines of events and the results of these events. Seems like there is plenty of room for misinterpretations. This is *not* a criticism of the book, just something to be aware of when learning about ancient civilizations which are far removed from our current time and understanding.
November 27, 2025
A Cautionary Tale
The Akkadian Empire started out a robust kingdom and survived for many years. But as this tells it was a major empire for its' day. There were a great many advances in such areas as the arts, science, government and military, but the one thing they could not do was control the weather. This book makes the point that no matter the success in advancing civilization it was climate that brought down the Akkadians.
The Akkadian Empire started out a robust kingdom and survived for many years. But as this tells it was a major empire for its' day. There were a great many advances in such areas as the arts, science, government and military, but the one thing they could not do was control the weather. This book makes the point that no matter the success in advancing civilization it was climate that brought down the Akkadians.
December 11, 2025
Quick read was ok, although the jumps across time sometimes seemed abrupt. Noticed a few typos and geographical errors, but it was overall quite coherent and so gave it 4 stars. Wondered from time to time if author was AI. I recall one thing that bothered, and that was calling the Hurrian language a semitic language, which it most definitely was not.
July 17, 2019
We don't know much about the Akkadian Empire
It is amazing how far back civilization reaches back, and it's fascinating how these empires come and go. Interesting that it may have been a catastrophic climate shift that brought them down.
It is amazing how far back civilization reaches back, and it's fascinating how these empires come and go. Interesting that it may have been a catastrophic climate shift that brought them down.
July 28, 2020
I love short books devoted to a single subject. Such works make it easy to follow the train of thought of ideas and events. The Akkadian Empire is interesting because of the many firsts: first standing army, first postal system, first administrative offices and system of weights and measures.
September 3, 2020
Short and interesting
Like most HourlyHistory books, I picked this up because I knew nothing about the Akkadians. It's a fast read and a good primer, covering the origins, heyday, and fall of the world's first empire. Interesting reading!
Like most HourlyHistory books, I picked this up because I knew nothing about the Akkadians. It's a fast read and a good primer, covering the origins, heyday, and fall of the world's first empire. Interesting reading!
October 7, 2020
Primer Imperio
Para leer libros hay que empezar por lo que te gusta, la historia antigua relata cómo se forman los imperios y también porque caen, hay que aprender más sobre la historia antigua para que las personas no caigan en los mismos errores. 🌾🌾🌾🌾🐟🐟🐟🐟🏞️🏞️🏞️🏞️🏞️
Para leer libros hay que empezar por lo que te gusta, la historia antigua relata cómo se forman los imperios y también porque caen, hay que aprender más sobre la historia antigua para que las personas no caigan en los mismos errores. 🌾🌾🌾🌾🐟🐟🐟🐟🏞️🏞️🏞️🏞️🏞️
January 4, 2021
Oof. Climate change.
Nice job, Hourly History, on the concise but illuminating narrative describing the Akkadian empire. I picked up many new insights including the invention of the postal service & the impact of catastrophic climate change.
Nice job, Hourly History, on the concise but illuminating narrative describing the Akkadian empire. I picked up many new insights including the invention of the postal service & the impact of catastrophic climate change.
Read
December 8, 2021I picked up this one, since it is at the time of writing, it is on Kindle Unlimited. It is probably of limited use, given the lack of references. Mesoptamia, and it's history is something I would like to explore further.
December 11, 2021
Archadia
This book filled in some of my childhood ancient history classes.
I wondered why I was being taught this. Now I understand this was the beginning of our political culture proving that humans are competitive greedy and cruel.
This book filled in some of my childhood ancient history classes.
I wondered why I was being taught this. Now I understand this was the beginning of our political culture proving that humans are competitive greedy and cruel.
February 1, 2022
Fascinating look into ancient history!
A short but fascinating history of the past culture of the Akkadian Empire. What really interested me was how a mighty and well organized society could just crumble due to a sudden climate change.
A short but fascinating history of the past culture of the Akkadian Empire. What really interested me was how a mighty and well organized society could just crumble due to a sudden climate change.
January 7, 2019
Good, quick read
Like the rest of the hourly history books I've read, this one helped refresh an important period of ancient civilization.
Like the rest of the hourly history books I've read, this one helped refresh an important period of ancient civilization.
February 25, 2019
I'm a Huge fan
This book was fascinating the first known human settlement and empire what's not to like. I couldn't out it down I was enthralled by the figures and first of mankind!
This book was fascinating the first known human settlement and empire what's not to like. I couldn't out it down I was enthralled by the figures and first of mankind!
July 26, 2019
Totally enlightening
A piece of history that was missed in my public education. Great insight into the genesis of Mesopotamia civilizations and collapse because of climate change.
A piece of history that was missed in my public education. Great insight into the genesis of Mesopotamia civilizations and collapse because of climate change.
November 27, 2019
A solid overview of the Akkadian Empire, how it began, and how it ended. A great way to jump start a deeper understanding of ancient cultures.
June 20, 2020
It filled in blanks in my reading.
July 5, 2022
Very concise, it does what it promises - a decent amount in information in short period of time (more than a promised hour though).
August 6, 2022
Very interesting
Very interesting and informative, enjoyed reading this book. We are facing climate change now but even thousands of years ago it was very much and
issue
Very interesting and informative, enjoyed reading this book. We are facing climate change now but even thousands of years ago it was very much and
issue
November 9, 2023
Interesting information
Major drought in 2300 bce? Global weather changes. I wonder what caused it??? To many cattle?? It is amazing what history can reveal.
Major drought in 2300 bce? Global weather changes. I wonder what caused it??? To many cattle?? It is amazing what history can reveal.
May 21, 2024
Decent overview of the Akkadian Empire
Not the most in depth book on the subject but overall it provides a derivatives and introduction to the Akkadian Empire. Worth a quick read.
Not the most in depth book on the subject but overall it provides a derivatives and introduction to the Akkadian Empire. Worth a quick read.
December 15, 2024
Short and informative
January 30, 2026
Excellent
Quick and easy read. Enjoyable. Perfect writing style for non fiction historical. Excited to read more from Hourly History! They have so many options.
Quick and easy read. Enjoyable. Perfect writing style for non fiction historical. Excited to read more from Hourly History! They have so many options.
March 17, 2025
I knew very less about Akkadian Empire. This book didn't add a great deal to it. The compacted information added a little bit to what I already have. But not much. Good attempt though. After all, there isn't much about them around, we don't even know where their stronghold was. In that sense, this is a great book but wasn't great for me.
It's definitely good for someone new to the Akkadians.
Book #10 of 2025..
Hourly History #10
It's definitely good for someone new to the Akkadians.
Book #10 of 2025..
Hourly History #10
May 14, 2024
Easy to read, a good starter book for anyone who might want to see if they have any interest in this empire before indulging into a more complex book on this topic.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews