Urbanization (Prehistoric Era to 600 CE)

Introduction

A plentiful supply of food and water is the most crucial factor in the establishment of cities, but there are other considerations as well.
In the ancient world, it was typical for cities to be located close to rivers and coasts. * Examples of these are: * Mesopotamia's Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, * China's Yellow and Yangtze Rivers, * India’s Indus River, and * Egypts’s Nile River.
Other factors can also explain the location of cities. * Because of its strategic location, Constantinople grew into a thriving city despite the lack of good local farmland or freshwater. * Aqueducts and massive cisterns were constructed to bring water in from afar.
Important cities should have an army. * The following ancient sites could withstand invasion: * Tyre, a Phoenician city situated on an island; * Greece's Corinth had an acropolis atop a tall hill overlooking the harbor, and * Petra, which is situated in a desert and is only accessible via a strenuous journey through a pass. * Chang’an, the ancient capital of China, was secured by surrounding mountain routes that kept roving intruders at bay.
Even cities without natural defenses could endure, for instance: * Sparta, a plains-based city, or * Rome, was insufficiently protected by its seven hills above the Tiber River.

Protective Walls and Monuments

Walls and fortifications serve as protection in most ancient cities. * Jericho (7000 BCE): One of the oldest cities in the world, it was a significant settlement for its time, with 2,000 inhabitants, and was mentioned in the Bible for its supposedly unbreakable walls that protected its occupants.
Some cities also build innovative towers, gates, and moats that safeguard the people from enemies. * Mycenae (Agamemnon’s capital), is known for its famous Lion Gate (1200 BCE). * Babylonia, which is known for its great Ishtar Gate (550 BCE). * Pataliputra (Mauryan’s capital), had 570 towers and a moat. * As early as 250 CE, moats were used as Maya cities as well.
In order to demonstrate their dominance and dazzle citizens and guests, rulers adorned their capital cities with monuments and public works. * Teotihuacan (450 CE) colossal complex — found near Mexico City. * There were 600 pyramid temples in the city and 200,000 inhabitants. * It was called the "Place of the Gods" by the Aztecs. * The massive bas-relief sculptures of Nineveh depicted strangers cowering in fear before Sennacherib, the king of Assyria. * The Giza pyramids in Egypt were built to reinforce the pharaoh's reputation as the protector of maat, or cosmic equilibrium. * Pericles constructed the Parthenon in the fifth century BCE to highlight Athens' dominance over other Greek city-states.
A sufficient number of men were needed to support the armies and workers who guarded the cities. * Many powerful nations employed slave labor for public works projects and mercenaries to man their defenses. * Building walls, canals, and roads were one of the most intolerable demands made by the first emperor of China, who united the nation in 221 BCE. * Similar to this, the biblical king Solomon enslaved locals and taxed his people into poverty in order to build a temple, several palaces, and other enormous projects in the city of Jerusalem. * By 100 BCE, slaves made up one-third of Rome's population, and the city depended heavily on their labor.

Cities of Myth and Origins

Ur (5000 BCE) * It was located alongside the Euphrates River. * It housed a famous ziggurat tower and served as a long-standing Mesopotamian religious hub. * It was cited in the Jewish Bible as the homeland of Abraham. * Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa (2300 BCE): Cities on the banks of the Indus River and a tributary were ****in what is now Pakistan. * Both had developed with an urban plan and were densely populated.
In China's middle Yellow River basin, where the soil is fertile and silt-rich, the Shang dynasty established its capitals. * Ao, one of its capital, was enclosed by a wall that took 19,000 men, 18 years to construct, working 330 days per year, 30 feet high, and 65 feet wide. * Memphis and Thebes on the Nile were ruled by the pharaohs, and their urban monuments served as evidence of Egypt's strength and prestige.
The Americas, specifically the coastal plain of Peru, the Andes Mountains in the center, and Mesoamerica, were home to some of the most magnificent ancient urban centers. * Each city had a mythological story to commemorate its founding. * If a city was recently established, it might assert continuity with some other well-known divine figures and traditions to support its bid for respect.
People chose to live in cities for a variety of reasons, and they engaged in discussions about how to plan cities to foster the "good life." * Cities provided solutions for numerous human needs. * They offered the possibility of elevating public life or they may serve as the womb of demagoguery, decadence, and illness. * How to develop an excellent city inspired Zecharia, Plata, and Kautilya to give points and education about handling good cities.