Assyrian king Shalmaneser III
Assyrian king Shalmaneser III (reigned BCE - BCE) was one of the longest-serving kings of Assyria – but this also meant that at the end of his reign he was already old and frail.
Event | Time | Description |
|---|---|---|
Battle of Qarqar | BCE | Shalmanesser III faces a coalition of Levantine kingdoms at Qarqar. Ahab of Israel and Hadadezer of Damascus are members. Coalition succeeds (according to the Monolith inscription). |
BCE - BCE, and BCE | Shalmaneser III faces a coalition of Levantine kingdoms (according to the bull inscription and Black Obelisk) and Hadadezer of Damascus is mentioned, uncertain if Jehoram of Israel participated. | |
BCE | Damascus besieged and Jehu of Israel mentioned as paying tribute (according to the Black Obelisk). | |
BCE | Shalmaneser II attacks four cities of Hazael of Damascus (according to the Black Obelisk). | |
Dayan-Assur rises | BCE | The kingdom of Urartu commands a formidable army and invades Assyria from the north. But he can no longer serve as the military's commander-in-chief. Shamshi-ilu was effectively commander in chief of the military. And then in BCE, Shalmaneser III appointed Dayan-Assur – one of his eunuch – to the generalship of the highly important campaigns to beat back the Urartians. |
Civil War | BCE - BCE | Crown prince Ashur-da'in-apla was sidelined by the ascensions of Shamshi-ilu and Dayan-Assur. In BCE, he began a civil war against the king (his father) and was in direct confrontation with Dayan-Ashur and Shamshi-ilu. The war lasts until BCE when – under unclear circumstances – Shalmaneser III dies, and Dayan-Ashur and Ashur-da'in-apla both disappear. Instead of Ashur-da'in-apla becoming king of Assyria, it was the middle-aged Shamshi-Adad V instead. Much of our understanding of this civil war comes from his stele commemorating his subduing of the rebellion. |
Rebellions in Assyria
When Shalmaneser III was old and frail, central authority over the Assyrian territories diminished due to threats from inside and outside the empire. Urartians were still on the offensive to the north, and the king appointed officials to act in his stead. Shamshi-ilu led the military, with Dayan-Assur overseeing forces against the Urartians. However, Shalmaneser III's son Ashur-da'in-apla gained support from major cities to lead a rebellion which ended with Shalmaneser III dying, Dayan-Ashur and Ashur-da'in-apla disappearing, and Shamshi-Adad V ascending the throne.