**ASSIGNIES, JEAN d'.** – Belgian Cistercian, ascetical writer, born of noble family c. 1565 at Baufre, near Chièvres. He entered the abbey of Cambron, where he remained for many years; from 1618 he was abbot of Nizelles, where he died in 1642.
Among his many writings we recall: *Vies des personnes illustres en sainteté de l'ordre de Citeaux*, 2 vols., Douai-
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ASSYRIANS. – A people settled on the middle Euphrates, so named from Aššur (q.v.). It was commonly held that they were originally Subareans, who, first colonized by the Sumerians and then by the Akkadians, fused with the latter, adopting their Semitic language, art, and culture. From this fusion emerged the Assyrian people, warlike, cruel, and the terror of the ancient East (cf. Is. 5:26-29).
Recent scholars (Goetze, Gelb, Poebel), however, consider them originally Semitic nomads, as stated in the Assyrian King List after the first 17 names. They settled in northern Mesopotamia, where they first suffered an Akkadian invasion at the time of the 19th Semitic empire (q.V. BABYLONIANS), and then, from c. 1800, the invasion of the Hurrians. The Hurrian, i.e., Indo-European, blood contributed by these new peoples descending from the mountains gave rise to a new culture, fundamentally Semitic in character but distinguished by features derived from these foreigners: the harshness of its laws, its warlike spirit, and its art.
It is difficult, however, to trace this evolution among the Assyrians. From c. 1800 to 1400 B.C., they were subject to the kingdom of Mitanni, the most important of those founded by the Hurrians, situated between the Hittites and the Assyrians.
In the 14th century, the kingdom of Mitanni became a vassal of the Hittites; Assyria took advantage of this to assert its independence. Its kings extended their conquests over the former Hurrian territory, first with Aššur-uballiṭ I (c. 1350) and especially under Adad-nirari I (1330–1290), Šulmānu-ašarēd I (Shalmaneser I, 1290–1260), and Tukulti-Ninurta I, who around 1247 conquered Babylon, albeit briefly.
Around 1200, new Indo-European waves surged into Asia Minor and destroyed the Hittite empire, whose remnants formed the small principalities of northern Syria. The "Sea Peoples" (v. PHILISTINES) descended upon Egypt. From these upheavals, Assyria derived every benefit, and with the Hittite empire no longer in existence, it began its victorious westward expansion.
The founder of Assyrian power was Tiglath-pileser I (1115–1093), who extended his empire from the Persian Gulf to the Mediterranean. The history of this militaristic empire, which had to defend itself on all sides against various defeated kingdoms—often more civilized—was a continuous succession of campaigns against Babylon, Urartu, Elam, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt. Assyria owed its dominance and splendor for nearly five centuries (until 612) to the valor of its generals and the warlike nature of its soldiers.
Tiglath-pileser initiated the westward drive toward the sea, which his successors continued intermittently until the end of the kingdom. They clashed with Israel and Judah. Shalmaneser II (885–859) advanced as far as Arvad (Aradus) in Phoenicia, causing alarm. Ahab (q.v.) therefore allied with Ben-hadad II, king of Damascus (1 Kings 20:31–34). Shalmaneser III (859–824), continuing his father’s policy, conducted four campaigns against Damascus and its allies (854, 858, 841, 838). In the first, among the defeated confederates, he records 2,000 chariots and 10,000 soldiers from Ahab’s Israel. In 841, he dealt a severe blow to Hazael, the Damascene usurper, and on the Phoenician coast received the homage of Syrian kings, including *ya-a-na mar Hu-um-ri-i*, "Jehu, successor of Omri" (q.V. OMRI).
The energetic Tiglath-pileser III (745–727) spent his life on the battlefield; he defeated the Urartians, destroying Arpad, their capital (743–740; cf. 2 Kings 18:34). In 738, he received tribute from Syrian kings, including *Ra-su-nu-mât Dimasqî* and *Me-ni-li-im-me ali Sa-me-ri-na-a-a*, "Rezin of Damascus and Menahem of Samaria" (2 Kings 15:37; 16:5–9; 2 Chron. 28:5ff.; Is. 7:1ff.). In 734, he marched against the rebellious Syro-Palestinian kings, capturing Gezer, Ashkelon, and Gaza.
There he received the rich embassy of Ahaz, king of Judah, who sought aid against Rezin and Pekah, king of Israel (2 Kings 16:7ff.). Tiglath-pileser devastated Israel, deporting inhabitants of many localities; meanwhile, Pekah was killed by supporters of the Assyrian party, and he installed Hoshea (Heb. *Hôšēa‘*) as his successor, who paid him a tribute of 10 talents of gold (2 Kings 15:29ff.). He then captured and devastated Damascus (cf. 2 Kings 16:9; Is. 17:1ff.), killing the king and deporting the population to Kir.
Having subdued the West, he entered ancient Babylon in triumph and made himself king under the name of *Puḥu* (Pûl in 2 Kings 15:19ff.).
Sargon II (722–705) captured Samaria (722–721), which had already been besieged for three years by Shalmaneser V; he deported 27,290 of its inhabitants, transported people from other conquered lands (q.V. SAMARITANS), and made the kingdom of Israel an Assyrian province (2 Kings 17:3–6, 24; 18:9ff.).
At Sargon’s death, Merodach-baladan II once again seized the kingdom of Babylon, seeking allies in the West (cf. Is. 39). But Sennacherib (q.v.) or *Sîn-ahhê-erība* (705–681) subdued Elam and Babylon (702) and in 701 turned against Palestine. He captured Sidon, subdued other states, and punished Ekron. Defeating the Egyptians at *Altaqu* (Heb. *’Elteqêh*, Is. 19:44; 21:23), he devastated Judah’s territory, shutting King Hezekiah (*Hizqîyāhû*) in Jerusalem like a bird in a cage. Sennacherib claims that Hezekiah submitted, sending him 30 talents of gold and 800 of silver, along with many precious objects and slaves; and he returned to Nineveh. The details recounted in 2 Kings 18:13–19:37 (cf. Is. 36–37) are attributed by many to a later campaign, between 690 and 681, but most consider them correctly placed here.
In 689, Sennacherib destroyed Babylon, which Esarhaddon would later rebuild. After Sennacherib was killed by his two eldest sons, who fled northern Mesopotamia, Esarhaddon took the throne (680–669). Among his tributaries, he lists "Manasseh, king of Judah," who adopted the cultic practices of the conquerors (2 Kings 21:3).
After Esarhaddon conquered Egypt (671), his son and successor Ashurbanipal (668–625) returned there victoriously in 667 and 663, sacking Thebes (*Nō’ ’Āmôn*) in the latter year (cf. Nah. 3:8ff.).
The fall of Nineveh in 612, at the hands of the Medes and Chaldeans, marked the end of the Assyrian state (q.V. BABYLONIANS).
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BIBL.:
P. Dhomme, Les pays bibliques et l'Assyrie, Paris 1911;
B. Meissner, Babylonien und Assyrien, 2 vols., Heidelberg 1920-25;
S. Smith, Early History of Assyria to 1000 B. C., London 1928;
J. Plessis, Babylonien et la Bible, in DBs. I, cols. 783-95;
G. Furlani, La civiltà babilonese e assira, Rome 1929;
id., Riti babilonesi ed assiri (L'Oriente, 2), Udine 1940;
A. Pohl, Historia orientis antiqui, Rome 1932;
id., Historia post-puli Israel, a divisione regni usque ad exilium, 1913;
J. Lewy, Les textes paléo-assyriens et l'A. T., in Revue d'hist. des Religions, 10 (1934), pp. 495-51;
A. Goetze, Heilkurie, Hurrier und Assyrer, Oslo 1936;
G. Contenau, La civilisation d'Assur et de Babylone, Paris 1937;
I. J. Gelb, Hurrians and Suba-reans, Chicago 1942;
A. Poebel, The Assyrian King List from Khorsabad, ibid. 1942-43.