Sons+of+Creation

Who: Assyrians, Assyrian Empire What: //mâr banûti// or “sons of creation” were the top men in the administrative social structure of the Assyrian Empire. They were men placed in administrative positions by the king in areas that he had dominated. They hold the office for 30 years with huge estates and provided the king with the troops every year for military trips. When: 9th century BCE Where: Assyrian Empire Why: The sons of creation were rewarded large areas of land in return for them to provide the men needed to accomplish the large military campaigns the Assyrians took part in. Helped to increase the Assyrian army size, which was the major strength of their army. However, eventually posed a problem as the campaigns started to expand far out because the people the sons of creation gave to the king could not be away from their land for more than one military campaign because they were also the labor force for the empire.

Sources: Lecture notes 4.1