Hittites History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Hittites History - Essay Example The Indo-European-speaking Hittites probably began arriving peacefully in northwestern Anatolia from the Balkans about 2500 B.C., traveling from the Kurgan pit-grave culture of the Eurasian steppe. They settled in northwestern Anatolia, across the west and south of the peninsula about 2300 B.C., although many more may have immigrated from the south over the next three centuries. A northeastern route, through the Caucasus has also been suggested, but that seems linguistically and archaeologically less likely. In any event, when Assyrian traders reached central Anatolia around 1900 B.C., they found an Indo-European-speaking people firmly established, who had harmoniously integrated with the indigenous Hattian population of the local city-states. By 1650, the ruler Hattusilis I founded the Hittite Kingdom when he established the capital of Hattusas. The ensuing two centuries constitute the period known as the Hittite Empire's Old Kingdom. Hattusilis recognized that controlling trade routes and metal sources were fundamental to the early empire's prosperity, and he and his successor, Mursilis, began tracing the commercial route running along the Euphrates to northern Syria. Hattusilis failed to subjugate the northern end of the Euphrates from Aleppo, but Mursilis not only conquered Aleppo, he rashly advanced on Babylon, which he captured in 1595 B.C. Holding the city proved untenable, and when Mursilis returned to Hattusas, he was assassinated. The Hittite kingdom was rocked by a period of instability, known as the Middle Kingdom, lasting for a 70-year period from 1500-1430 B.C. Yet the seeds for the Hittites' emerging cultural prosperity and military dominance had been sewn. Hattusili's early and original contribution in legal thought, one that lays the groundwork for a crude form of democratic government, was the "pankus." The pankus was a council of nobles. It was not a popularly elected legislative body, however, but did serve as a check and balance to the actions of the king. The pankus was officially charged to "advise" the king, but its powers could extend so far as to execute the Hittite leader if he overstepped his moral authority. It's also clear, during Hattusili's reign, that the movement and trade of metals was a stimulus to the Hittite economy. Assyrian merchants had traditionally ventured into Anatolia in search of tin, silver, and gold, commodities that were essential to the outside world. But there were other valuable commodities as well, and Hittite miners and metal workers were intent on exploring them (James D. Muhly, Mining and Metalwork in Ancient Western Asia, in Civilizations of the Ancient Near East, ed. J. M. Sasson et al., New York: Scribner, 1995). Among merchant colonies and urban communities, the Hittites began acquiring a reputation as a people skilled in metallurgy. They were also recognized as fierce warriors, and the products their craftsmen forged - particularly in the area of weaponry - reflected their kings' strong imperialistic ambitions. Fortified double-walls with deep gorges between them made Hattusas impenetrable to invaders, and it was in the capital city that modern blast furnaces were

La Cosa Nostra Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

La Cosa Nostra - Essay Example It is the most notorious American organized crime in the country’s history, a notoriety that has often been depicted on the big screen such as the classic films The Godfather and The Untouchables. La Cosa Nostra: The Beginning When Sicily was annexed to Italy in the 1860s, the Sicilian authorities had trouble enforcing order due to a restructured society engendered by a land reform that redistributed public land to Sicilian peasants. Banditry became prevalent as peasants were forced to lawlessness to survive as the lands given to them were too small for them to live on. Traditional sources of livelihood such as firewood gathering were lost when church estates and public land were confiscated and redistributed by the government. The state of lawlessness gave rise to the formation of a secret society that offered its services for a fee to protect merchants and landowners from bandits and other lawless elements. This underground society was called the Mafia and protected merchant s and landowners. Although the group operated through vigilante means, a member is considered â€Å"A Man of Honor† because of the protection he gave his family and society. Eventually, members became abusive and turned to extortion to force landowners and merchants to hire them at high price. This was, however, tolerated because of their role as protectors (FBI). The Sicilian Mafia eventually branched out to politics, forcing people to vote for the candidates they want, but when Benito Mussolini came to power in the early 1920s he felt threatened by it and ordered a relentless campaign against its members. This became the turning point of the Sicilian Mafia as many of them were arrested and imprisoned. Some mafia members or Mafiosi, however, were able to flee to the United States (FBI). The American Mafia Mussolini’s campaign against the Mafia in Sicily drove many of them to flee to the US illegally. However, the first Sicilian Mafia who came into the US was Giuseppe Esposito, who fled with six other Mafiosi after murdering the chancellor and vice chancellor of a Sicilian province. He was deported to Italy after arrest in 1881 in New Orleans. In 1990, the first major Mafia operation took place with the execution of David Hennessy, New Orleans police chief superintendent. Although hundreds were arrested and 19 eventually indicted, a subsequent acquittal led New Orleans citizens to organize lynch mobs and killed many of the defendants (FBI). The LCN operates in such cities as Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, and in Miami, but the group’s greatest stronghold is New York. Previously, the group also operated in Cleveland, Detroit, Kansas City, Las Vegas, LA, New Orleans and Pittsburgh, but has been greatly weakened and is now almost non-existent. Eighty per cent of its estimated 1100 membership are said to be operating in the NY metropolitan area where five families are lording it over: the Bonanno family; the Colombo family; the Genovese family ; the Gambino family; and the Lucchese family (Finckenauer 1). LCN operation in the US officially began in the 1920s and since then this group has been known as the foremost criminal organization in the country associated with organized crime. The group is known for ruthless violence such as beatings and killings, which it uses as an operational tool externally and internally. Arson, bombings, explosions are used as tools by the LCN in operating its business and gain