In his position as King of Babylonia, Hammurabi managed to organize the world's first code of laws and establish Babylon as the dominant and successful Amorite city of its time. "Records written on clay tablets show that Hammurabi was a very capable administrator and a successful warrior. When he became king in 1792, he was still young, but had already become entrusted with many official duties in his administration"(Grolier). His rule spanned from 1792 B.C. to 1750 B.C. During the forty-three years he ruled he united all of Mesopotamia.
             In the early years of his reign, Hammurabi mostly participated in traditional activities, such as repairing buildings, digging canals, and fighting wars. Yet later in his rule, Hammurabi organized a unique code of laws, the first of its kind, therefore making himself one of the world's most influential leaders. Hammurabi was primarily influential to the world because of his code of laws. This code consisted of 282 provisions, systematically arranged under a variety of subjects. This code of laws reflected the social structure of Babylon and set examples for many future civilizations.
             He sorted his laws into groups such as family, labor, personal property, real estate, trade, and business. This was the first time in history that any laws had been categorized into various sections. This format of organization was emulated by civilizations of the future. For example, Semitic cultures succeeding Hammurabi's rule used some of the same laws that were included in Hammurabi's code. Arabian laws also seemed to be derived from Hammurabi's code. Hammurabi's method of thought is evident in present day societies which are influenced by his code. Modern governments currently create specific laws, which are placed into their appropriate family of similar laws.
             Hammurabi had his laws recorded upon an eight foot high black stone monument which was clearly inten
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