The Kassites were a people of uncertain origin, probably from the Zagros mountains to the east, who took control of Babylonia in the 16th century BCE after the Hittite sack of Babylon, and ruled it for roughly four centuries. This was the longest dynasty in Babylonian history, and under it the country was relatively stable and prosperous. The Kassite kings adopted Babylonian language, religion and customs, and kept good diplomatic relations with Egypt, as the Amarna letters show. They built a new capital, Dur-Kurigalzu, and issued boundary stones recording land grants. Their rule ended when the Elamites invaded around the 12th century BCE.
Before and after
- from c. 1,600 BCE to 1,100 BCEMycenaean Greece
- from c. 1,580 BCE to 1,550 BCESeventeenth Dynasty of Egypt
- from c. 1,550 BCE to 1,292 BCEEighteenth Dynasty of Egypt
- from c. 1,550 BCE to 1,070 BCEEgyptian Empire
- from c. 1,531 BCE to 1,155 BCEKassites
- c. 1,507 BCEBirth of Hatshepsut
- from 16th century BCE to 5th century BCEVedic period
- 16th century BCEVedas
- from 16th century BCE to 3rd century BCEMumun pottery period
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- 13th century BCEAncient Celts
- from c. 753 BCE to 476 CEAncient Rome
- 7th century BCEConstruction of Hanging Gardens of Babylon
- from 312 BCE to 63 BCESeleucid Empire
- 80 CEThe Colosseum is inaugurated
- from 285 CE to 1453Byzantine Empire
The era
This moment belongs to the Ancient civilizations (3,200 BCE to 500 CE), writing, cities and empires. You can also browse everything in the 16th century BCE.