Sammu-ramat or better known as, Semiramis, was the queen regent of the Assyrian Empire who ruled from 811-06BC. Her husband, Shamshi Adad V (ruled 823-11BC) when he died, Semiramis held the throne for her young son Adad Nirari III, until he reached maturity. According to scholar Gwendolyn Leick, "This woman achieved remarkable fame and power in her lifetime and beyond. According to contemporary records, she had considerable influence at the Assyrian court". Which would explain how she was able to retain the throne, even after her husband's death. Women were not permitted to hold positions of authority in the Assyrian Empire, so to have a woman ruler would've been unthinkable, unless that woman could harness the power to take on these roles. But there is one glaring problem with this narrative; there is little to no information on her achievements and how she reached them. Despite this, enough survives that it can be surmised she was the equal of her predecessors and successfully held the kingdom after her husband's death.
It is after her husband defeated his elder brother who led a revolt, that Semiramis appears in the historical record. It's unknown when she married Shamshi Adad but after his death, Semiramis was able to provide the kingdom with a stability that her husband hadn't been able to. Due to the uncertainty of the times, Semiramis may have been held in even greater awe by the people, due to how unprecedented her new role was. In Ashur, she had her own obelisk erected and engraved with the following words "Stele of Sammuramat, queen of Shamshi-Adad, King of the Universe, King of Assyria, Mother of Adad Nirari, King of the Universe, King of Assyria, Daughter-in- of Shalmaneser, King of the Four Regions of the World."
Some of her achievements during her reign may have included commissioning a number of building projects and leading a series of military campaigns, she had also accompanied her husband on many such expeditions before his death. Whatever it was she did, Semiramis, stablized the empire after the civil war and provided her son with a large and secure nation, when he finally came to the throne. It is known she defeated the Medes and annexed their territory; she may have also conquered the Armenians and according to Herodotus, built the embankments in Babylon, along the Euphrates River. The rest of her story has merged with myth in the time since her death.
For example according to ancient accounts by Diodorus Siculus, he seems to have merged earlier accounts of Sammu-ramat reign with myths & legends of goddesses like Astare & Ishtar/Inanna, paving the way for Sammu-ramat to become the mythical semi-divine, Semiramis. Therefore, she remains one of the most controversial figures of ancient history. This has been exacerbated by the publication of the book, The Two Babylons by Alexander Hislop, in 1853. The Two Babylons links Semiramis with the whore of Babylon, from the biblical book of Revelations.
Side notes:
Assyrian Empire- streaches from what is now northern Iraq and southeastern Turkey
Shamshi Adad V- was the son of King Shalmaneser III, his father and grandfather's reigns were successful and would've provided Shamshi Adad with stability but his elder brother Ashur-danin-pal led a revolt but was defeated by his father and brother.
Medes- a group of ancient Iranian people, who lived in what is now the north and west of Iran, in an area called Media
embankments- raised structures made of typically earth, gravel or stone to hold back water or hold a roadway
https://www.ancient.eu/Semiramis/
YOU ARE READING
Women who Ruled
Non-FictionThese women were rare examples of women holding power in a male-dominated world. Many went on to became beacons of hope, strength and perserverance to their respective peoples. They are remembered for their beauty, intelligence, bravery and unwaveri...
