History of Iraq

Neo-Assyrian Empire, 911–609 BCE Draft, not yet reviewed

Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BCE, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew to dominate the ancient Near East and parts of the South Caucasus, North Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean throughout much of the 9th to 7th centuries BCE, becoming the largest empire in history up to that point. Under Ashurnasirpal II, Assyria once more became the dominant power of the Near East, ruling the north undisputed. At its height, the empire was the strongest military power in the world and ruled over all of Mesopotamia, the Levant and Egypt, as well as parts of Anatolia, Arabia and what is now Iran and Armenia. Despite being at the peak of its power, the empire experienced a swift and violent fall in the late 7th century BCE, destroyed by a Babylonian uprising and an invasion by the Medes.

Seat of power: Assur

Rulers

• Adad-nirari II, King of Assyria, 911–891 BCE
• Tukulti-Ninurta II, King of Assyria, 891–884 BCE
• Ashurnasirpal II, King of Assyria, 884–859 BCE
• Shalmaneser III, King of Assyria, 859–824 BCE
• Shamshi-Adad V, King of Assyria, 824–811 BCE
• Adad-nirari III, King of Assyria, 811–783 BCE
• Shalmaneser IV, King of Assyria, 783–773 BCE
• Ashur-dan III, King of Assyria, 773–755 BCE
• Ashur-nirari V, King of Assyria, 755–745 BCE
• Tiglath-Pileser III, King of Assyria, 745–727 BCE
• Sargon II, King of Assyria, 722–705 BCE
• Sennacherib, King of Assyria, 705–681 BCE
• Esarhaddon, King of Assyria, 681–669 BCE
• Ashurbanipal, King of Assyria, 669–631 BCE
• Sinsharishkun, King of Assyria, 627–612 BCE

Abbasid Caliphate, 750 CE–1258 Draft, not yet reviewed

The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire was the third Islamic caliphate, ruled by the Abbasid dynasty. The Abbasids rose to power in 750, when the Abbasid Revolution overthrew the preceding Umayyad Caliphate. In 762 the second caliph al-Mansur founded the city of Baghdad and made it the capital, and Baghdad became a center of science, culture, arts, and invention, ushering in what became known as the Golden Age of Islam. The caliphate effectively ended in 1258 with the sack of Baghdad by the Mongols under Hulagu Khan and the execution of Caliph al-Musta'sim.

Seat of power: Baghdad

Rulers

• Al-Mansur, Abbasid caliph, 754 CE–775 CE
• Harun al-Rashid, Abbasid caliph, 786 CE–809 CE
• al-Maʾmun, Abbasid caliph, 813 CE–833 CE
• Al-Mu'tamid, Abbasid caliph, 870 CE–892 CE
• Al-Muqtadir, Abbasid caliph, 908 CE–932 CE
• Al-Muti, Abbasid caliph, 946 CE–974 CE
• At-Ta'i, Abbasid caliph, 974 CE–991 CE
• Al-Qadir, Abbasid caliph, 991 CE–1031
• Al-Qa'im, Abbasid caliph, 1031–1075
• Al-Muqtadi, Abbasid caliph, 1075–1094
• Al-Mustazhir, Abbasid caliph, 1094–1118
• Al-Mustarshid, Abbasid caliph, 1118–1135
• Al-Muqtafi, Abbasid caliph, 1136–1160
• Al-Nasir, Abbasid caliph, 1180–1225
• Al-Mustansir, Abbasid caliph, 1226–1242

Ottoman Iraq, 1533–1920 Draft, not yet reviewed

Ottoman Iraq was the Ottoman name for the region of Iraq that was under their control. Historians often divide its history into five main periods. The first began with Sultan Süleyman I's conquest in 1534 and ended with the Safavid capture of Baghdad in 1623. The fifth and final phase ran from 1869 until 1917, when British forces occupied Baghdad during the First World War.

Seat of power: Baghdad

Kingdom of Iraq, 1921–1958 Draft, not yet reviewed

The Hashemite Kingdom of Iraq was the Iraqi state located in the Middle East from 1932 to 1958. Following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in the Mesopotamian campaign of the World War I, it was founded on 23 August 1921 as the Kingdom of Iraq. The role of the United Kingdom in the formal administration of the Kingdom of Iraq was ended in 1932, following the Anglo-Iraqi Treaty of 1930. The Arab Federation, formed on 14 February 1958, ended the same year with a military coup led by Abdul-Karim Qasim deposing the monarchy.

Seat of power: Baghdad

Rulers

• Faisal I of Iraq, King of Iraq, 1921–1933
• Ghazi of Iraq, King of Iraq, 1933–1939
• Faisal II of Iraq, King of Iraq, 1939–1958

Ba'athist Iraq, 1968–2003 Draft, not yet reviewed

Ba'athist Iraq was the Iraqi state between 1968 and 2003 under the one-party rule of the Iraqi regional branch of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party. The Ba'ath Party, led by Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr, came to power in Iraq through the bloodless 17 July 1968 Revolution, which overthrew president Abdul Rahman Arif and prime minister Tahir Yahya. In September 1980, Iraq invaded Iran, triggering the eight-year-long Iran-Iraq War that ended in a stalemate in 1988. On 20 March 2003, Iraq was invaded by a U.S.-led coalition, which overthrew Saddam and captured much of Iraq by May.

Seat of power: Baghdad

Rulers

• Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr, President of Iraq, 1968–1979
• Saddam Hussein, President of Iraq, 1979–2003

Republic of Iraq, 2003 to today Draft, not yet reviewed

In 2003, U.S.-led coalition forces invaded and occupied Iraq, overthrowing the government and triggering an insurgency and sectarian violence during the Iraq War, which ended in 2011. From 2013 to 2017, Iraq faced another major conflict with the rise and defeat of the Islamic State. A federal parliamentary republic, Iraq is considered an emerging middle power. At present, Iraq is in the process of reconstruction.

Seat of power: Baghdad

Rulers

• Ayad Allawi, Prime Minister of Iraq, 2003–2005
• Mohammad Bahr al-Ulloum, Prime Minister of Iraq, 2003–2004
• Ghazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer, President of Iraq, 2004–2005
• Jalal Talabani, President of Iraq, 2005–2014
• Fuad Masum, President of Iraq, 2014–2018
• Barham Salih, President of Iraq, 2018–2022
• Nizar Amidi, President of Iraq, 2022 to today
• Abdul Latif Rashid, President of Iraq, 2022–2026