12 Key Cities In History - And Why They Fell

Alexander the Great named Alexandria after himself. He founded the city in Northern Egypt in 331 BCE. Ptolemy ruled the city later. After the Diadochi wars, Ptolemy made Alexandria Egypt's new capital. Alexandria took the place of Tyre as a major trade and commerce center. During the Ptolemaic dynasty, running from about 320 BCE to 30 BCE, Alexandria became the world's largest city.

In 48 BCE, Pompey fled to the city for safety after Julius Caesar defeated him at the Battle of Pharsalus, only to die by Ptolemy XIII. Caesar entered the city, declared martial law, and summoned his exiled co-regent Cleopatra. Civil war burned much of the city. Cleopatra ended the Ptolemaic dynasty with her suicide in 30 BCE.

People of different faiths used the city after it was rebuilt, sacked, and rebuilt over hundreds of years, making it a religious center. Christianity's rise caused the city's decline.

The Edict of Milan in 313 gave Christians more freedom and power. Theodosius (379-395) outlawed paganism. In 391, Alexandria destroyed or turned pagan temples into churches. After philosopher Hypatia died in 415, residents left Alexandria, causing the city'sswift declineloss of power and influence.

Babylon is perhaps the most famous walled ancient city. It sits on the Euphrates River in modern Iraq. The city was founded around 2300 BCE. King Hammurabi (c. 1792-1750 BCE) made Babylon a major military power, creating one of the earliest knownwritten legal codes, called the Code of Hammurabi.

The empire broke apart after Hammurabi died. For centuries, it was a small kingdom. Under Nebuchadnezzar II (c. 605-562 BCE), Babylon became a historically powerful city again. By 600 BCE, many considered Babylon the center of the world. Nebuchadnezzar II built walls around the city40 feet highand thick enough for chariot races. The walls circled Babylon three times.

Nebuchadnezzar II is not shown favorably in the Bible because he conquered Jerusalem and destroyed its temple. Babylon appears as a city of sin and evil. The Book of Daniel shows Nebuchadnezzar II as a stubborn tyrant who respects Daniel's god but refuses to submit until he goes mad.

Other ancient texts show Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar II was a cultural and intellectual center. Women had equal rights to men there. People showed tolerance for gods and beliefs from other faiths and cultures.

Babylon swiftly declinedAfter Nebuchadnezzar II died in 562 BCE, the city fell to the Persians in 539 BCE. People like Alexander the Great tried, but the city never got its former importance back.

According to the list '12 Key Cities In History - And Why They Fell', Jericho is described.The Bible saysGod brought down the walls of Jericho for Joshua, a leader of the Israelites. After razing the city and plundering its treasures, Joshua declared, "Cursed before the Lord is the one who tries to rebuild this city."

This is the biblical reason for what happened to the legendary walled city of Jericho. This place holds the oldest known protective wall in the world, and it was one of the earliest settlements.

The land near Jericho served as a popular hunting ground before it became a permanent settlement. This happened after the last ice age ended around 9600 BCE. Excavations show that by about 8000 BCE, a stone wall nearly 12 feet high and 6 feet wide surrounded the site. People thought the wall protected the settlement from floods.

Jericho reached its peak between 1700 BCE and 1550 BCE. The city and its area grew more urbanized because aristocrats called the Maryannu rose in the Mitannite state north of Jericho. At this time, Jericho had two impressive, though unstable, mud brick walls. Around 1573 BCE, a major earthquake destroyed the city.a major earthquake.

This contradicts the Bible story. The Bible says the Israelites destroyed Jericho first after crossing into Canaan around 1400 BCE. Archaeology shows Jericho was empty from the late 15th century BCE to the 10th century BCE. This makes the Book of Joshua story untrue.

Non-biblical scholars believe the Bible story is just an allegory. This story was written after 722 BCE, hundreds of years after the event it describes.

Carthage sat on the coast of North Africa. For hundreds of years, it remained the most powerful and wealthy city in the Mediterranean. A Phoenician queen named Dido founded the city around 814 BCE.Dido.

In 332 BCE, Alexander the Great destroyed Tyre, a powerful city. Many Tyrian refugees fled to Carthage, bringing their wealth and influence. Carthage also formed a working relationship with the Masaesyli and Massylii tribes. These connections made Carthage the wealthiest and most powerful city in the Mediterranean. Its power came from its sea trade moving goods in and out of its harbor.

Carthage's growth into the region's top city brought conflict. In 317 BCE, Agathocles of Syracuse invaded North Africa to take over Carthage. He lost the fight. However, in 264 BCE, the Carthaginians started a war again, this time against Rome.

Carthage's superior navy enforced its treaty with the Roman Republic, stopping Roman trade in the western Mediterranean. The Romans won several battles in the First Punic War, finally defeating Carthage in 241 BCE. Carthage gave up Sicily and paid a war payment.

The Second Punic War started in 218 BCE. Hannibal attacked a Spanish city allied with Rome. In 202 BCE, the Battle of Zama in North Africa defeated him, and Carthage faced another heavy war indemnity. Carthage also made a peace deal with Rome that stopped it from raising an army.

The Third Punic War began in 149 BCE. Carthaginians rejected Rome's demands, including dismantling and rebuilding Carthage inland. After three years of fighting, the Romans destroyed Carthage in 146 BCE and burned it to the ground..

Julius Caesar planned to rebuild Carthage. Five years after his death, the city rose again, becoming the most powerful of Rome's African colonies, replacing Utica. The Vandals took the city in 439. Carthage rose again in the sixth century as part of the Byzantine Empire. However, in 698, the Muslims destroyed it in the Battle of Carthage while driving the Byzantines from Africa.

Ur sat in Southern Mesopotamia, now Iraq. Ur served as an important port on the Persian Gulf. People think it formed as a small village between 5000 and 4100 BCE. By 3800 BCE, it was known as a city.

Ur's location made it a key trade center. The Tigris and Euphrates rivers meet the Persian Gulf there. Excavations show early on Ur held great wealth, and its residents lived better than people in other regional cities.

Ur-Nammu ruled from 2047-2030 BCE. He made a law system that predates King Hammurabi of Babylon by about 300 years. Ur-Nammu's son, Shulgi of Ur (r. 2029-1982 BCE), tried to build a community focused on cultural growth and excellence. He also built a 155-mile wall along the border of Sumer.

The wall lacked anchors at both ends, allowing invaders to bypass it. In 1750 BCE, the kingdom of Elam went around the wall, sacked Ur, and captured the reigning king.

Ur has a possible tie to the biblical figure Abraham. The Book of Genesis mentions Abraham was born in the city of Ur Kasdim. Many people believe Ur and Ur Kasdim are the same place. This idea remains contested.scholars dispute the idea that Abraham came from an area called Ura near Harran. They suggest the writers of the Book of Genesis simply mixed up Ur and Ura.Scholars think Abraham came from Ura, near Harran. They believe the writers of the Book of Genesis just mixed up Ur and Ura.

Ur stayed a cultural center for hundreds of years after the 1750 BCE sacking. Climate change and land overuse pushed residents toward northern Mesopotamia or south to Canaan. As the Persian Gulf pulled away, Ur lost importance and became deserted around 450 BCE.

Aztec legend says the people who founded Tenochtitlan in 1345 moved from a cave in the northwest desert of Mexico to Lake Texcoco. During this trip, Aztec priests carried a large idol of Huitzilopochtli. The god whispered directions, gave the Mexica their name, and promised great wealth if they worshipped him correctly.

During the journey, Copil, Huitzilopochtli's sister Malinalxochitl's son, tried to start a rebellion because the Mexica left their goddess mother. Copil died. Huitzilopochtli told the migrants to throw Copil's heart as far as possible into Lake Texcoco. Where the heart landed, they built Tenochtitlan.

The city's heart was the walled sacred precinct. It had three entrances and reportedly held 78 structures. The Great Temple or Temple Mayor was likely the most important. Twin temples sat on the pyramid platform, reached by two stairways. The north temple honored Tlaloc, the rain god. The south shrine honored Huitzilopochtli, the war god.

Tenochtitlan served as the Aztec civilization's capital and religious center for nearly 200 years. At its peak, it held over 200,000 people. In 1521, Spanish conquerors led by Hernán Cortés attacked the Aztec city. Cortés only had about 500 men, so he recruited Tlaxcalans and others to fight alongside him.

Cortés's armysacked Tenochtitlanon August 13, 1521. This event ended the Aztec civilization. Most structures were looted and destroyed. What remained of the city became the capital of New Spain, which is now Mexico City.

Uruk sits in Mesopotamia and King Enmerkar settled it around 4500 BCE. Uruk is considered theUruk, the oldest "true" city in the world.

Uruk was the most influential city in Mesopotamia from about 4100-3000 BCE. It was the region's largest urban center and a trade and administration hub. People think it is where written language started in southern Mesopotamia between 3500 and 3000 BCE. This first written language used marks made in red clay with a reed. This language is calledcuneiform.

But the city may be most famous for King Gilgamesh, who ruled in the 26th century BCE. The story is immortalized inThe Epic of Gilgameshwhich reportedly was written around 2150-1400 BCE. The tale centers around theKing's quest for immortality and the meaning of life.Legend says Gilgamesh was buried at the bottom of the Euphrates River. In 2003, German archaeologists claimed they found his tomb.

Uruk held continuous habitation from its start until about 300 CE. Natural and man-made issues caused the residents to leave the city. People left it abandoned and forgotten until excavation in the middle of the 19th century.Uruk sits in the middle of the 19th century..

Eridu sits in present-day Iraq. People say the gods founded Eridu around 5400 BCE. Sumerian legend claims the goddess Innana visited Eridu. She gave civilization gifts there. Innana then shared those gifts with humans after going back to Uruk.

Eridu mattered more for religion than politics. Enki, the god of wisdom and magic, lived there. Enki was a local god of fresh water. Enki appears in early stories of the Great Flood. The Eridu Genesis (written around 2300 BCE) describes the Great Flood first, preceding the biblical Book of Genesis. This story tells of Utnapishtim, a good man who builds a great boat by the gods' command and gathers 'the seed of life' at Enki's suggestion. This story is the beginning for the tale of Noah and the Ark.

Some people think Eridu was theBabel is a biblical city.Its Ziggurat of Amar-Sin was the Tower of Babel mentioned in the Book of Genesis. Berossus (around 200 BCE), a key source for later Greek historians, seemed to describe Eridu when he wrote 'Babel' as 'Babylon' because his Babylon sits on the southern Euphrates and honors the god of wisdom and fresh water.

People completely abandoned Eridu by 600 BCE. We do not know why, but evidence points to overusing the land.

Timbuktu often describes a place that is aTimbuktu is long distance away.It is "from here to Timbuktu," hard to reach, or isolated. Some people are surprised to learn it is a real place, not just a myth. But it exists, and once, it was a major trade center in Africa.

Tuareg nomads founded Timbuktu around 1100 in Mali. Timbuktu reached its peak in the 14th century. As a major trade hub, it sent gold, ivory, and slaves from Africa to the Mediterranean. Other goods, like salt, moved along the trade route to the south. The 14th-century Arabic historian al-Umari claimed that people in West Africa "Timbuktu will exchange.a cup of salt for a cup of gold dust.

This trade made Timbuktu a very rich city. Its ruler, Mansa Musa.Universities established in Timbuktu made it a major Islamic learning hub. Mosques held formal lessons, but scholars taught informally in homes. Moroccan soldiers took over the city in 1591, starting its decline as a learning center.

Stories circulated about Timbuktu's legendary wealth for years. Its remote location kept it a mystery to outsiders until 1830. Then, a Frenchman named Rene Caillie became the first European to reach Timbuktu and return.

Timbuktu made the news.This happened in 2012.Radical Islamic rebels from northern Mali attacked the city in 2012.

Baghdad remains a key Middle Eastern city. However, the city never regained the global importance it held before the Mongols destroyed it in 1258.

The Abbasids founded Baghdad in 762. Jafar Abdullah al-Mansur made it the new capital of the Islamic empire. The Abbasids gained power in 750. Their empire stretched across the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, Syria, Iraq, Persia, and parts of modern Afghanistan.

During the Islamic Golden Age, spanning the eighth to the mid-13th centuries, the walled city of Baghdad became a key knowledge center. People from around the world studied science, math, astronomy, literature, philosophy, music, and history there.

In January 1258, a huge army of nomadic Mongol warriors reached Baghdad's edge. They ordered Caliph al-Musta’sim to surrender. He challenged them to attack the walled city, which they did.Ten days of bloody fighting.The Mongol army captured Baghdad. They killed nearly all residents or forced them into slavery. Buildings, including the House of Wisdom, burned. Thousands of valuable manuscripts fell into the Tigris River.

By the time the Mongol army arrived, the Abbasids held no political or military power. They paid the Mongols an annual tribute for years. In 1251, the Abbasids sent a delegation to pay homage at Mongke's coronation. Mongke demanded that al-Musta’sim come to Karakorum, the Mongol Empire's capital, to fully accept Mongol rule. The caliph's refusal caused the Mongols to attack Baghdad.

Sacking Baghdad ended the Islamic Golden Age. The city took hundreds of years to recover. The Ottoman Turks captured the city in 1534. They held it until 1917, when the British took it during WWI. Baghdad gained independence from Britain in 1932 and became the capital of Iraq.

King Ramathibodi founded Ayutthaya in 1351 on an island where the Chao Phraya, Lopburi, and Pa Sak rivers meet in Thailand. He fled a smallpox epidemic and named the city the capital of his kingdom, known as the Ayutthaya Kingdom or Siam.

Ayutthaya sat above the Gulf of Siam's tidal bore. This location prevented other nations from attacking by sea. This spot made the city a major trade center across Asia. The city established trade relations with other countries early on.Ayutthaya traded with China. It sent goods like aromatics and ornaments to China. China gave back Chinese silks and ceramics. Portugal became the first European nation to trade with Ayutthaya in 1511.Ayutthaya traded with China, supplying goods like aromatics and ornaments. China returned Chinese silks and ceramics. Portugal became the first European nation to trade with Ayutthaya in 1511.

Ayutthaya served as a political link between the West and the East. The Ayutthaya royal court sent ambassadors to France, India, China, and Japan. Foreigners worked in the Siamese government.

Portuguese explorer Fernao Mendez Pinto called the city the Venice of the East. By 1700, Ayutthaya had about 1,000,000 people, making it one of the world's largest cities.

The Burmese ArmyKing Hammurabi of Babylon destroyed Mari. Only about one-third of the ancient city remains today. The Euphrates river washed away the rest.In 1767, the Burmese Army burned Ayutthaya to the ground and forced residents to leave the city.

Mari began around 2950 BCE. It is considered one of history's oldest, if not the oldest, planned cities. Located in eastern Syria, scholars think Mari started as a trade hub and a copper and bronze-smelting center until it fell to King Hammurabi of Babylon.In 1761 BCE, Mari and Babylon stopped being allies. Hammurabi's troops captured Mari.Only about one-third of the ancient city remains today. The Euphrates river wiped out the rest.

Mari was built three times. The first time was around 2950. A second version came around 2550 (about 100 years later, after the original city was abandoned). The Akkadian Empire destroyed the second version around 2220 BCE. The third version regained power after the Akkadian Empire fell around 2150 BCE.

Around 2000 BCE, nomadic Amorite people from Syria invaded and took control of Mesopotamian cities. The people of Mari fortified its walls but the city fell to the Amorites around 1880 BCE.

In 1761 BCE, Mari and Babylon stopped being allies. Hammurabi's troops captured Mari.Sometime between 1757 and 1759 BCEHammurabi completely destroyed the city.