Village

Small farming settlements were the backbone of ancient civilisations in the east, feeding the great cities such as Antioch and Seleucia. Situated to exploit good land, fishing, mining or quarrying, defence was often too expensive to be more than a secondary consideration. As the populations of the great cities increased, surplus food from these farming communities became essential. As small military garrisons were positioned to protect valuable resources and trade routes, there was a slow growth of many hamlets into towns, as people and trade passed.