Mind-Munitions

22
Propaganda in the Ancient World
armies; but once the land had recovered, the stelae served as a
reminder of the defender’s power – and of his ruthlessness.
By the middle of the fourteenth century BC, however, when the
Assyrians were challenging the Babylonians for supremacy, they
brought with them heroic military poems and hymns. The Assyrian
Empire provides a much richer source of war propaganda than the
Babylonian. One of the earliest, though fragmentary, epic poems
was composed by King Adad-nirari I (1307-1275 BC) to celebrate
his wars with the Kassites. Dating from half a century later, the
700-line Assyrian epic of King Tukulti-Ninurta I (1250-1210 BC)
glorifies the king’s military accomplishments and magnanimity
towards the Kassites. It would appear that the events depicted in
the poem were largely fictitious, that it was designed for public
consumption and intended for oral recitation before large and
illiterate crowds. This type of story-telling was also (and remains) a
principal means of communication in Africa. Such stories were
translated visually onto palace walls, as in the case of King Tukulti-
Ninurta’s friezes, which depicted the king amidst his soldiers in
actual campaigns. Composed after the event, often long
afterwards, epic royal poems and stories can be regarded as an
example of celebratory war propaganda, being designed to praise
and glorify the achievements or memory of a particular ruler.
But what about prior to battle? Cautionary tales warning of the
dangers of a possible course of action were largely inspired by the
priesthoods of ancient Sumeria who began to compete with kings
for public loyalty. Omens, prophecies, and oracles were also forms
of social persuasion and initially it was from religion that
propaganda concerning the future outcome of wars most
commonly derived. Invoking the gods was of course an ideal way to
sustain the power and position of the priesthood in a superstitious
society; but it was also a means of boosting morale prior to a fight
if priests and king were of the same mind. But it was the king who
instigated war and it was his partnership with the gods that
legitimized his actions. War was undertaken in the name of religion
rather than for booty or land – at least ostensibly. The Assyrians,
for instance, maintained that they waged war against the enemies
of the god Assur to demonstrate the glory of their deity, and they
did so with such ferocity that many potential enemies conceded
without a fight. Indeed, war was considered to be the very reason
for a king’s existence, and the Assyrians waged it ceaselessly.