King Hammurabi of Babylon: A Biography

Marc Van De Mieroop traces Hammurabi’s career as a diplomat and conqueror, describing how he dealt with powerful rivals and extended his kingdom to create the large state of Babylon. He explores the administration of the kingdom and looks at the legacies of Hammurabi’s rule, especially his legal code, the earliest complete body of legal instructions in world history.

The book demonstrates how Hammurabi’s conquests irrevocably changed the political organization of the Middle East and shows that Hammurabi was long remembered by the ancient Mesopotamians as one of the greatest kings of the past.

"This is an excellent book, also easily accessible for the uninitiated. It provides authoritative information on a ruler who was a conqueror, the ancient lawgiver ... One can only look forward to the future volumes in the series on the lives of great men and women of ancient times." Scholia Reviews

"Insofar as it is possible to write Hammurabi's story, Van De Mieroop has done so. Based as it is on a thorough knowledge of both long-known and recently published evidence, a solid acquaintance with the most up-to-date scholarship, and a historian's awareness of the varying reliability of the ancient sources, this book is an excellent account of a fascinating ruler, and as near to biography as one is going to get." Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies