Kingdom of Ur (Third Dynasty)

The Third Dynasty of Ur was founded by Ur-Nammu, who rose to power around 2112 BC after overthrowing the Gutian dynasty that had dominated Mesopotamia. Ur-Nammu is also credited with commissioning the Code of Ur-Nammu, the oldest known written law code in human history, predating Hammurabi's Code by roughly three centuries.

The Code of Ur-Nammu is the oldest surviving legal code, written in Sumerian on cuneiform tablets during the Third Dynasty of Ur around 2100 BC. It contains roughly 57 laws covering matters such as murder, theft, marriage, and false testimony, and notably relies on monetary fines rather than the principle of 'an eye for an eye' found in later codes like Hammurabi's.

The Third Dynasty of Ur fell around 2004 BC when the Elamites, advancing from the east (in what is now southwestern Iran), sacked the capital city of Ur and captured its last king, Ibbi-Sin. The dynasty's collapse was preceded by years of internal decline, grain shortages, and the loss of provincial control across Mesopotamia.

The capital was the city of Ur, located in southern Mesopotamia near the Euphrates River in what is now modern-day Iraq. Ur was one of the most important and wealthiest Sumerian city-states, home to the Great Ziggurat of Ur built under Ur-Nammu, which still stands today as one of the best-preserved ziggurats in the region.