Fall of the Sumerians

<p>Tristan Hughes continues our special series on Great Disasters, journeying back to ancient Mesopotamia with Dr Paul Collins to explore the fall of the Sumerians.</p><br><p>4,000 years ago, the great cities of Sumer — Ur, Uruk, Lagash, Girsu — stood as glittering centres of power, crowned with mighty ziggurats and ruled by ambitious dynasties. Yet within a few generations, this world of splendour and tradition unravelled. From the collapse of the Akkadian Empire to shifting power struggles and environmental pressures, uncover why these prestigious city-states declined — and ask whether we can truly talk of a 'fall of Sumer.' Join us as we step into the chaos of Mesopotamia’s first great age of empires and witness how disaster reshaped the cradle of civilisation.</p><br><p>MORE</p><p><a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/6toJCMdM2XgaPDLGppKAQI?si=eoOPonOERgm2Fryr8ttiQg" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Sumerians</a></p><p><a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/4QsuLWDCOZy6GvSEfissD7?si=_Zpkk0UbRLmYjTDFloykGQ" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Sargon of Akkad</a></p><br><p>Presented by Tristan Hughes. Audio editor is Aidan Lonergan and the producer is Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.</p><p>All music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds</p><p><em>The Ancients is a History Hit podcast.</em></p><br><p><strong>Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at </strong><a href="https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><u>https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe</u></strong></a><strong>.</strong>&nbsp;</p><br><p>You can take part in our listener survey&nbsp;<a href="https://insights.historyhit.com/history-hit-podcast-always-on" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>here</strong></a><strong>: </strong></p><p><a href="https://insights.historyhit.com/history-hit-podcast-always-on" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://insights.historyhit.com/history-hit-podcast-always-on</a></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>