Leadership and communication in ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt

Interpersonal Skill of Mesopotamia

The study of interpersonal skills among ancient civilizations like Mesopotamia consists mostly of major innovations and advances in society, technology and human development. Sargon is typically credited with being the first person to unify a world empire in the 24th century B.C. Most of what is known of Sargon comes from the Chronicles of Early Kings, a series of tablets forming one of the first known historiographies and written from the 8th century B.C. To the 3rd Century A.D. Sargon, as the world's first known leader is believed to have inspired future Kings and rulers for centuries to come with his ability to build, maintain and administer his empire (Snell 32).

Hammurabi ruled Babylon in the 18th century B.C. He is most singularly known for the Hammurabi Code, one of the first written collection of laws in world history. The study of Hammurabi predominantly focuses on the legacy of his Code, which includes a form of presumption of innocence and other rights very similar to some of the protections found in the American Bill of Rights.

Mesopotamian writing was pictographic. It is believed to be one of the first, if not the first written communication. Pictures were inscribed on stone tablets to relay messages. The messages had heavy emphasis on matters of city administration, such as a list of city employees and salaries etc.… The exact spoken language in early Mesopotamia (2500 BC) is unknown but assumed to be Sumerian. The numerology is more precisely understood than the early language. Later languages included Akkadian, Amorite (Semitic) and Hurrian. It is believed that earlier writings were on a perishable medium (Saggs 63).

Mesopotamia is known as the cradle of civilization. This ancient civilization saw the emergence of cities and city states. Societal motivations included seeking the protection of more populated and more organized cities. As a result, cities grew larger, more bureaucratic and more sanitary. A traditional medium for gauging the change in ancient society is a change in pottery. Since this is noticeably absent in middle Mesopotamian society, historians assume it was a period of relative continuity.

Interpersonal Skill of Ancient Egypt

The great leaders of Ancient Egypt were the Kings, Queens and pharaohs. Some historians believe while that there are a many rulers who are not popular today who made significant contributions to Egyptian society (Ruiz 177). Historians favor Egyptian leaders renowned for military skills. The pharaohs and ancient Egyptian civilization in general are discussed at some length in the Old Testament, which provides historians with a reference point for historical analysis and hypothesis. Priests were also among the most valued and revered leaders. Religion was the cornerstone of society, so the priesthood was a very exclusive profession, which garnered great prestige, even from the Pharaohs.

Egyptian is an ancient language, some historians feel it is the world's oldest or second oldest in the world. The written language was hieroglyphics, a more 'modern form of pictography.' Many hieroglyphics still survive today and serve as the basis for modern Egyptian historiography. The Egyptians are believed to be the first civilization to use paper (papyrus). They later used a parchment form of paper. Both of these were attempts to preserve their communications and ideas.

Ancient Egyptians are primarily motivated by an earnest love of life and by adequate preparation for death and the afterlife. The institutions of marriage and family were held to be sacrosanct. They possessed a polytheistic belief of a great pantheon of deities which either protected or threatened every aspect of life. They had tremendous reverence for animals and saw godly qualities in them (Ruiz 129). The Sphinx, the tombs of the Pharaohs and other such artifacts provide the basis for historical study in these areas.

Interpersonal Skill of Ancient Greece

Leadership in Ancient Greece belonged to the emperors, the local leaders of the city-states and the great philosophers. Historians consider Alexander the Great to be one of the greatest military leaders in all history. He conquered much of the free world. Pericles was a military leader who also advocated reform and social improvements for the Greek citizens.

The Greeks are the first society to consistently demonstrate leadership beyond its military and political leaders. Socrates, a philosopher, was perhaps to analyze the relative similarities between public leadership (military and political) and private management. Socrates also is the first figure to document the importance of delegating authority and work. Socrates works inspired Plato and Aristotle to further develop the theory to include specialization of work and a division of labor (Wren 19). These are the conclusions of Daniel Wren, one of, if not the most definitive authority on the evolution of leadership skills over the course of history.

The Greek historian Thucydides is often called the father of modern history. His history of the Peloponnesian War serves a one of the first true treatises on leadership. His thesis that leadership was necessary for democracy but also very dangerous to democracy provided the spark for intense debate that survived into the 20th century (Warner 620).

Greek's were the first Europeans to read and write with an alphabet. Thus their contributions to communication are easier for historians to measure. The Greek's most important contributions to communication are literature and theater, especially the Greek tragedy and comedy. Historians believe that both were designed to spread Greek culture and values and promote a common identity among Greeks everywhere, and thus they have immense value as historical tools of communications. Another significant Greek contribution to communication is the art of military histories through epics and story-telling.

Historians examine Ancient Greek motivation through its culture. Greek philosophy was motivated by reason and inquiry. The foundations of Greek philosophy are still quite evident in our world today. Greek foundations in mathematics, science medicine and architecture are still the anchors of modern practice. The Greek mythology and religion has received a large share of attention by historians (and students of other disciplines for millennia).

Interpersonal Skill of Roman Empire

The study of the Roman Empire leadership skills begins with Julius Caesar. He has of course, been the consistent subject of a massive amount of study since his death. Unlike earlier world leaders, a great deal is known about him due primarily to his own extensive writings and the fact that many biographies and histories were written about him starting from during his life and shortly after his death. His contributions to Leadership were many. He is hailed as a master political maneuver who built alliances that served him well and helped significantly in his rise to the top of the Roman Empire. His reforms helped develop a system of public administration which is the basis for our modern day, western style of central government.

The Roman Empire also introduced the world to a new form of public leadership, the Senate. The Senate in Rome was designed to be a separate body of government from the Emperor (Abbott 385). It is thought to be the world's first legislative body. It is important to note that the society of the Roman Empire laid the groundwork for the leadership structure of aristocracy in Britain.

Roman communication skills focused on education, literature and music. Greek and Latin were both heavily studied, thus making Rome a forerunner to the European tradition of studying the classic languages of Greek and Latin. Also, most children were schooled at age six. Oratory skills were highly stressed by the Roman educators. Roman roads allowed for the expansion of a Roman ideals and values and in a very significant way, aided their communication.

Nationalism and leisure were two concepts that historians trace back to the early days of the Roman Empire. Their public projects and institutions have stood the test of time. Roman built roads are still in use throughout Europe. The concrete based aqueducts and coliseums still stand today. The Romans appear to have grasped the religious practices of the Greeks and modified the many deities to fit their language and culture.

Interpersonal Skill of Byzantine Empire

The first ruler of the Byzantine Empire, Heraclius, is credited with combating political corruption. He had been credited with instituting the Thematic System of administration, but here the historiography is changing as two recent writers, Warren Treagold, from Oxford, and John Haldon (208), from Cambridge have both recently determined that the Thematic system was instituted in the 660's, after his death.

Communication in the Byzantine Empire was essentially religious in nature. Art and literature took on the form of ecclesiastical and theological doctrine. Much of the Byzantine art would serve as motivation for Italian renaissance painters.

The Byzantine Empire was motivated mostly by austere rigid religious beliefs. They were the instigators of the crusades, so it can be said that they laid the motivation for most of the world's affairs for the next 800 years. Historians from the West have typically vilified the Byzantines as being overly bureaucratic and anti-Western. Modern historians have tended to see the Empire more as an extension of the Roman Empire.

Interpersonal Skill of Islamic Golden Age

A prime instance of Islamic leadership skills includes their medical services. The hospital and its peer review, were both innovations that enabled the Islamic culture to lead the West (and East) in to a better world. Arab philosophers also introduced the ancient teachings from India and China to the West. It also believed by some historians that Islamic legal tradition has laid the groundwork for the Western legal tradition.

Islamic communication included the introduction of paper, the library, universities, research institutes and diplomas into the West. Another significant contribution is the Islamic globalization of its economy, probably a function of the fact that it lies between the East and West and relatively easy access to and friendly markets in both.

The Golden Age of Islam appears to have been an eclectic and dominant era, wherein the Muslim world of the Middle East excelled in all areas of life. They pursued and in many cases achieved a high level of proficiency in economy, agriculture, industry, labor, technology, urbanization, astronomy, chemistry, mathematics, medicine, architecture, arts, literature, music, and philosophy.

Interpersonal Skill of The Crusades

The crusades represent period in history which perhaps has the most variance in its historiography. This is not so because there is a factual discrepancy, but the nature of the Crusades has traditionally made them popular and heroic in the West and shameful and barbaric to the East. Recent historians have tended to view the Crusades as bloody and deadly acts of aggression (Tyerman). In the last decade or so, historians, male and female, have begun to highlight the leadership role of women in the Crusades.

There were substantial communication effects from the Crusades. The contact of Islam culture spread the wealth of material advancements developed by the Islam world. The advances in trade and naval armament led to a revival in Europe which served to hearken an end to the Dark Ages.

The motivation behind the Crusades will vary significantly depending on who is asked. Certainly, the Christians of Western Europe felt threatened by a strong and sometimes outright hostile presence of Muslims in Jerusalem. The Crusades continued for over four hundred years but did not recapture the same zeal and fervor which gripped the West after the first crusade.

Interpersonal Skill of Renaissance of the 12th century

The 12th century Renaissance, also known as the High Middle Ages, has a clearly defined Historiography dating to 1927, when saw the transition from the stagnant Dark Ages into a mini-age of enlightenment with a great many demonstrations of interpersonal skills. The leadership in this Renaissance was provided by innovators in science and technology. As stated above, the Crusades allowed the West exposure to the skilled techniques and advances of the Islam world. After translating the works of the ancient Greeks and Romans, and building the West's first universities, the Renaissance of the 12th century saw the formation of the scientific method.

Another leadership entry in the continual march towards globalization was the Hanseatic League. This league of cities first started as trading alliance, but most historians today agree that it developed a significant political force by the 14th century.

Besides the emergence of the universities, the biggest advent in communication came from Marco Polo. His exploits into the Far East, which he memorialized with his writings, led to widespread interest and missionary activity in the Orient. Scholastism is also a communication advent of the 12th Century Renaissance. The advent of universities with the re-discovery of Greek and Roman philosophers and scientists led the religious leaders to search for empirical truths and reconcile them, when necessary, with theological dogma.

The motivation of this period would survive in Europe for the next 500 years. Many historians feel that only the Black Plague stopped short this renaissance. The desire to understand, to improve and to apply yesterday's teachings with today's discoveries would come to dominate the continent.

Interpersonal Skill of Gothic Period

Historians tend to ignore the large amount of secular works that came out of the Gothic period. Nearly all of the historical record from this period details the religious paintings, architecture and music. Many historians feel that the painters and sculptists of the day were the contemporary leaders. The Gothic period saw the emergence of trade guilds, which most Gothic artists were required to join. This has led to lists of members and therefore, more recognition of Gothic artists than previous artists.

The musical contribution to communication in this period is known as Gregorian Chant, a slow, monotone, song-like chanting of monks. Here we see an early form of marketing and branding in communication. Many historians believe that its namesake, Pope Gregory, was far removed from the tradition and that the name was given only to impress upon all the sanctity of the chanting.

The art and architecture of this period is considered to be steeped in emotion. The size and elegance of these structures, usually churches, has led historians to conclude that in the 13th 14th, and 15th centuries, religion was the dominant force in the lives of most Europeans.

Interpersonal Skill of Scientific Revolution of the 17th Century

As with all areas of historical study, there is not a unanimous verdict as to what, or if, the Scientific Revolution was. Most historians recognize the Scientific Revolution as the period in the 16th and 17th centuries when humans began in earnest to seek answers to questions that for centuries had been answered monolithically by the Roman Catholic Church. However, some do not acknowledge a scientific revolution at all. While no one disputes the high level and fast rate of learning during this period, some historians simply see this era as a continuation of the advances begun hundreds of years earlier during the middle ages and continued during the renaissance. Others see the Revolution as the result of the exposure in Europe to advances already made elsewhere in the world (Bala 5).

A list of scientific dignitaries will not necessarily identify the pioneers in leadership skills from the era. However any such list must start with Sir Isaac Newton. Isaac Newton removed the last vestige of belief in a geocentric world, advanced the study of mathematics and calculus far beyond what they had been and introduced the laws of gravity as a fundamental matter of academic study. Newton also studied light and refraction, mechanics and motion. His contributed groundbreaking theories and research in these and many other areas.

Sir Francis Bacon was a leader of intellectual thought. His contribution was to use an inductive form of reasoning. This means that when conducting research, start with a blank slate and observe. It is not helpful to use known facts to initiate scientific analysis (as per Aristotle's deductive reasoning). Bacon's approach was possible because of his willingness to challenge assumptions and Aristotle. This was part of the birth of empiricism, which demands thorough and vigorous research in the scientific process.

The most prominent motivation in this time frame was the need to question. Religious dogma, scientific knowledge, philosophy and other disciplines were placed under the microscope. Reason and knowledge became the two strongest tools in the search for truth. Because so much was now in doubt, mankind needed answers they could believe in.

Interpersonal Skill of Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution was also a leadership revolution. This is so because the Industrial Revolution was not only a revolution that saw trade blossom and factories emerge, it signaled the end of the feudal system and gave rise to the class system in England and Europe. By the very nature for this to happen, there needed to be plenty of leadership on display. In the Industrial Revolution, that came from England's middle class.

Historians, such as Harold Perkin, have done extensive study on the rise of the middle class during the Industrial Revolution. Perkin's results indicate that the middle class used new capital, from England's thriving trade markets, and a growing political power to create conditions conducive to explosion of industry. Most notably, the non-violent way they seized sizeable control differed greatly from the litany of revolutions and border wars being fought on the continent.

Leadership soon came from great industrialists and financiers who redefined wealth in Western society. By the end of the 19th century, these men were leading multi-million dollar businesses that were shipping goods world-wide. Around this time, two new types of leaders emerged. The labor leader fought for and (often times) received better working conditions. The suffragist fought for and (often times) received the right to vote.

Labor unions and organizations not only communicated for the benefit of its members, who were without parallel in world history, they spread new ideas concerning class, politics and economics which would have an enormous impact on the late 19th and 20th centuries. The suffragist not only campaigned for the right to vote, they became active in party politics, another theme that would dominate national politics in the West after the Industrial Revolution.

The industrial revolution led to a communication revolution. The type of ideas changed in this era. Abolitionists wanted to eradicate slavery. Suffragists wanted to expand the vote. Revivalists and non-conformists staked their claim to religious equality. The two leading nations, Britain and the U.S., resolved these issues quite differently. Britain responded with peaceful reform and the United States with civil war.

Publishing became a more widespread and affordable way to disseminate ideas leading to a rise in encyclopedias, periodicals and trade journals. Further communication advances include the turnpike, canals, railroads and steam engine. As a result of the improvements, goods, ideas and messages could be delivered and received much faster. Many countries relied on the open communication by the British to enjoy the rewards of becoming industrialized.

Motivation during the Industrial Revolution is usually a source of debate among historians. The scientific revolution made people more concerned with the now and less concerned with the hereafter. It is commonly held that the protestant values of hard work and strong faith, combined with technological advances was a significant factor in England's successful industrialization. Another motivation was the emerging middle class wanting many of the goods being produced. Demand came from outside the huge domestic market, though, as Britain could sell its goods to its colonies.

One thing that seems certain was that each individual saw their corner of the world growing and that they had a right to the various tangible benefits this brought. Another certainty are the motivations that have developed in response to the Industrial Revolution. The class system born from the Industrial Revolution that created even greater disparities between the wealthy and poor than already existed was the motivation for communism and socialism.