However, Shamshi-Adad I did not inherit the Assyrian throne from his father but was instead a conqueror.
16 Facts About Shamshi-Adad I
2.
Shamshi-Adad I asserted that the king of the Upper Land had paid tribute to him and that he had built the temple of Enlil.
3.
Shamshi-Adad I outlined the market prices of that time as being one shekel of silver being worth two kors of barley, fifteen minas of wool, or two seahs of oil.
4.
Shamshi-Adad I took over the long-abandoned town of Shekhna, converted it into the capital city of the Kingdom of Upper Mesopotamia, and then renamed it Subat-Enlil c 1808 BC.
5.
Shamshi-Adad I seized the opportunity and occupied Mari c 1796 BC.
6.
Shamshi-Adad I placed his sons in key geographical locations and gave them responsibility to look over those areas.
7.
Shamshi-Adad I put his eldest son on the throne of Ekallatum, while Shamshi-Adad I remained in Subat-Enlil.
8.
Shamshi-Adad I put his second son, Yasmah-Adad, on the throne in Mari.
9.
Shamshi-Adad I's campaigns were meticulously planned, and his army knew all the classic methods of siegecraft, such as encircling ramparts and battering rams.
10.
Shamshi-Adad I clearly kept a firm control on the actions of his sons, as shown in his many letters to them.
11.
Shamshi-Adad I did not approve and forced his son to keep Beltum in the palace in a leading position.
12.
Shamshi-Adad I sent a letter on a tablet to Ishi-Addu in which he discussed their alliance, the attacks of their enemies, and the successful marriage between their children.
13.
Shamshi-Adad I was a great organizer and he kept firm controls on all matters of state, from high policy down to the appointing of officials and the dispatching of provisions.
14.
Shamshi-Adad I allowed conquered territories to maintain some of their earlier practices.
15.
Shamshi-Adad I continued to strengthen his kingdom throughout his life, but as he got older, the state became more vulnerable and the neighboring great powers Yamkhad and Eshnunna began attacking.
16.
Naturally, Shamshi-Adad I's rise to glory earned him the envy of neighboring kings and tribes, and throughout his reign, he and his sons faced several threats to their control.