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Ḫattušili III

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Hattusili III
Rock relief of Hattusili III
King of the Hittites
Reignc. 1275–1245 BC
PredecessorMursili III
SuccessorTudhaliya IV
ConsortPuduhepa
IssueTudhaliya IV
Maathorneferure
Kiluš-Ḫepa
FatherMursili II
MotherGassulawiya
ReligionHittite religion
Apology of Hattusili III

Hattusili III (Hittite: "from Hattusa") was king of the Hittite empire (New Kingdom) c. 1275–1245 BC (middle chronology)[1] or 1267–1237 BC (short chronology timeline).[2]

Early life and family

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Much of what is known about the childhood of Hattusili III is gathered from a biographical account, written on a stone tablet during his reign, referred to as the Apology.[3] Hattusili III was born the youngest of four children to the Hittite king Mursili II and queen Gassulawiya. According to Hattusili III himself, he was an ill and sickly child who was initially expected not to survive to adulthood.[4] Hattusili III credited the goddess Ishtar with saving his life during this period, and would remain an ardent patron of Ishtar indefinitely.[3][2] Due to his place as the youngest son, Hattusili III did not become king after the death of his father. Instead his older brother Muwattalli II ascended the throne.

Before becoming king, Hattusili III married Puduhepa, a priestess of Ishtar, who later became an important Hittite queen in her own right.[5][6] With Puduhepa, Hattusili III had three children, including his successor Tudhaliya IV.

Reign

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Rise to kingship

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See also: Hattusili's Civil War

Reign of Muwatalli II

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When his brother Muwattalli II became king, Hattusili III was appointed to govern over the northern lands of the Hittite empire. While this initially caused minor controversy among the locals and the ousted governor, Hattusili III was quick to quash dissidence with military force[7] and turned his eyes towards conquering new territories surrounding the northern Hittite lands. When the King made the decision to move the capital from Hattusa to Tarhuntassa, Hattusili III was left to quash the rebellions that arose due to this decision.[2] Subsequently, Hattusili III was made King of the northern territories by his brother Muwattalli II.[2]

Reign of Mursili III

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Upon the death of Muwattalli II, Hattusili III's nephew Urhi-Teshub became king. There was controversy with this appointment, because Urhi-Teshub was the son of Muwattalli's concubine, not his wife. Despite his origins as a "second-rank son",[2] Hattusili III initially supported Urhi-Teshub's kingship as it was the wish of Muwatalli II that Urhi-Teshub should rule. Urhi-Teshub ruled under the name Mursili III. Shortly after his accession to the throne, Mursili III had the capital moved from Tarhuntassa back to its original home of Hattussa. This effectively reduced much of Hattusili's power in the region and nullified his role as king of the northern territories.[2] Hattusili III was also stripped of all of his territories aside from Hapkis and Nerik. This strained the relationship greatly, and upon having Nerik stripped of him as well, Hattusili III sought to usurp the throne.

Great King of Hatti

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After deposing Mursili III as king, Hattusili III exiled him to Syria.[2][3] Hattusili III appointed Muwattalli II's other son Kurunta, whom he himself had raised, to govern Tarhuntassa in a similar capacity that Hattusili III himself had once held.[2]

As king, Hattusili III sought to keep a correspondence with many different kingships in the surrounding areas. After his ascension to the throne, Hattusili III began a correspondence with Egyptian Pharaoh Ramesses II[8] that culminated in the first ever recorded peace treaty, the Eternal Treaty (also known as the Treaty of Kadesh). This correspondence took place roughly fifteen years after the Battle of Kadesh.[2]

Hattusili's reign as king is notable for the large collection of letters and written accounts unearthed from this period. Over two-hundred letters were unearthed at the site of the royal palace in Hattusa. These primary sources, including The Apology, the Tawagalawa letter, and the Arzawa letters, are considered among the very few primary sources available from the Hittite empire of the time.

Hattusa Arhive

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He is known from a series of tablets.[9]

  • CTH 81 Apology of Ḫattušili III
  • CTH 82 Annals of Ḫattušili III
  • CTH 83 Report of Ḫattušili III on the campaigns of Šuppiluliuma I
  • CTH 84 Report of the deeds of Šuppiluliuma I and Muršili II
  • CTH 85 Conflict between Muršili III (Urḫi-Teššup) and Ḫattušili III
  • CTH 86 Edict of Ḫattušili III concerning the estate of Arma-Tarḫunta
  • CTH 87 Decree of Ḫattušili III in favor of the sons of Mittannamuwa
  • CTH 88 Decree of Ḫattušili III regarding the exemption of the ḫekur of Pirwa from taxation
  • CTH 89 Decree of Ḫattušili III concerning the people of Tiliura
  • CTH 90 Edict of Ḫattušili III regarding the Restoration of Nerik
  • CTH 91 Treaty of Ḫattušili III with Ramses II of Egypt
  • CTH 92 Treaty of Ḫattušili III with Bentešina of Amurru
  • CTH 93 Edict of Ḫattušili III concerning the merchants of Ura
  • CTH 94 Edict of Ḫattušili III concerning the fugitives from Ugarit
  • CTH 96 Declaration of Kurunta of Tarḫuntašša
  • CTH 99 Historical report
  • CTH 106 Treaties with the kings of Tarhuntassa
  • CTH 155 Letter from Ramses II to Ḫattušili III about Urḫi-Teššup
  • CTH 156 Letter from Ramses II to Ḫattušili III about Urḫi-Teššup
  • CTH 157 Marriage letters from Ramses II to Ḫattušili III
  • CTH 159 Marriage letters from Ramses II to Ḫattušili III and Puduḫepa
  • CTH 161 Letter from Ramses II to Ḫattušili III
  • CTH 162 Letters from Ramses II to Ḫattušili III and Puduḫepa
  • CTH 163 Letters from Ramses II to Ḫattušili III
  • CTH 168 Letter from the queen mother Tūya to Ḫattušili III
  • CTH 169 Letter from prince Šutaḫapšap, son of Ramses II, to Ḫattušili III
  • CTH 172 Letter from Ḫattušili III to Kadašman-Enlil II
  • CTH 173 Letter from Ḫattušili III to Adad-nīrāri I
  • CTH 174 Letter from Kadašman-Turgu to Ḫattušili III: Akkadian
  • CTH 181 Letter from a Hittite king to the king of Aḫḫiyawa (Tawagalawa Letter)
  • CTH 185 Letter of Ḫattušili III to Zuwa
  • CTH 191 Letter from Manapa-Tarḫunta to the Hittite king
  • CTH 193 Letter from Bentesina of Amurru to Ḫattušili III
  • CTH 196 Letter from Lupakki to the king of Karkamiš
  • CTH 223 unassigned
  • CTH 224 Land donation of Ḫattušili III to Ura-Tarḫunta
  • CTH 254 Military instructions of Ḫattušili III
  • CTH 383 Prayer of Ḫattušili III and Puduḫepa to the Sun-goddess of Arinna

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Kuhrt, Amélie (2020). The Ancient Near East: c.3000–330 BC, Volume One. Routledge. p. 230. ISBN 978-1-136-75548-4.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Bryce, Trevor (1998). The Kingdom of the Hittites. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-924010-4., pp.xiii-xiv
  3. ^ a b c Andrew., Knapp (2015). Royal apologetic in the ancient Near East. SBL Press. ISBN 978-0884140757. OCLC 932049464.
  4. ^ "British Museum - Bryce". www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk. Retrieved 2018-05-02.
  5. ^ Darga, Muhibbe. Women in the Historical Ages. In Women in Anatolia, 9000 Years of the History of the Anatolian Woman, Turkish Republic Ministry of Culture, Istanbul, 1993, page 30.
  6. ^ Letter from Ramses II of Egypt to Puduhepa, from Women in Anatolia, 9000 Years of the History of the Anatolian Woman, Turkish Republic Ministry of Culture, Istanbul, 1993.
  7. ^ Gurney, O. R. (December 1997). "The Annals of Hattusilis III". Anatolian Studies. 47: 127–139. doi:10.2307/3642903. ISSN 2048-0849. JSTOR 3642903.
  8. ^ A., Hoffner, Harry (2009). Letters from the Hittite Kingdom. Beckman, Gary M. Atlanta, GA: Society of Biblical Literature. ISBN 9781589834149. OCLC 587445921.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ https://www.hethport.uni-wuerzburg.de/CTH/index.php?l=%E1%B8%AAattu%C5%A1ili%20III.
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Regnal titles
Preceded by Hittite king
c. 1275–1245 BC 		Succeeded by
Hittite New Kingdom royal family tree according to Trevor Bryce
  • (1) = 1st spouse
  • (2) = 2nd spouse
  • Small caps indicates a Great King (LUGAL.GAL) of the Land of Hatti; italic small caps indicates a Great Queen or Tawananna.
  • Dashed lines indicate adoption.
  • Solid lines indicate marriage (if horizontal) or parentage (if vertical).
References:
  • Trevor Bryce (1997). The Kingdom of the Hittites. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press.
  • Trevor Bryce (2005). The Kingdom of the Hittites (new edition). Oxford, England: Clarendon Press.
  • Trevor Bryce (2012). The World of the Neo-Hittite Kingdoms. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press.
  • Jacques Freu (2007). Les débuts du nouvel empire hittite. Paris, France: L'Harmattan.
  • Volkert Haas (2006). Die hethitische Literatur. Berlin, Germany: de Gruyter.
Notes:
  1. ^ Scholars have suggested that Tudhaliya I/II was possibly a grandson of the Hittite king Huzziya II; the first Tudhaliya is now known to be the son of Kantuzzili (Bryce 1997, p. 131 suggested Himuili, but the new edition, Bryce 2005, p. 122, indicated Kantuzzili).
  2. ^ Bryce (1997) does not consider it clear whether Tudhaliya I/II was one king or two (p. 133); the link points to Tudhaliya II. Among those who identify distinct kings Tudhaliya I and Tudhaliya II, Freu (2007) has Kantuzzili—his son Tudhaliya I—his son Hattusili II—his son Tudhaliya II (p. 311).
  3. ^ a b c Bryce (1997), p. 139.
  4. ^ The existence of Hattusili II is doubted by many scholars (Bryce 1997, pp. 153–154; Bryce 2005, p. 141). Among those who accept the existence of Hattusili II, Freu (2007), p. 311, has Tudhaliya I—his son Hattusili II—his son Tudhaliya II.
  5. ^ Bryce (1997), p. 158.
  6. ^ Bryce (1997), p. 172.
  7. ^ a b c d Bryce (1997), p. 174.
  8. ^ a b Bryce (1997), p. 168.
  9. ^ Also known as Malnigal; daughter of Burnaburias II of Babylonia (Bryce 1997, p. 173).
  10. ^ ‘Great priest’ in Kizzuwadna and king (lugal) of Aleppo (Bryce 1997, p. 174).
  11. ^ a b c d King (lugal) of Carchemish.
  12. ^ Bryce (1997), pp. 174, 203–204.
  13. ^ Zannanza died on his way to Egypt to marry a pharaoh's widow, probably Ankhesenpaaten, the widow of Tutankhamun (Bryce 1997, pp. 196–198).
  14. ^ Bryce (1997), p. 227.
  15. ^ a b c Bryce (1997), p. 230.
  16. ^ Bryce (1997), p. 220.
  17. ^ Bryce (1997), p. 222.
  18. ^ Haas (2006), p. 91.
  19. ^ Massanauzzi married Masturi, king of the Seha River Land (Bryce 1997, p. 313).
  20. ^ Bryce (1997), p. 296.
  21. ^ Puduhepa was the daughter of the Kizzuwadnan priest Pentipsarri (Bryce 1997, p. 273).
  22. ^ Bryce (1997), pp. 346, 363.
  23. ^ King (lugal) of Tarhuntassa (Bryce 1997, p. 296); apparently later Great King of Hatti (Bryce 1997, p. 354).
  24. ^ Nerikkaili married a daughter of Bentesina, king of Amurru (Bryce 1997, p. 294).
  25. ^ Two daughters of Hattusili III were married to the pharaoh Ramesses II; one was given the Egyptian name Ma(hor)nefrure. Another, Gassuwaliya, married into the royal house of Amurru. Kilushepa was married to a king of Isuwa. A daughter married into the royal family of Babylon. A sister of Tudhaliya IV married Sausgamuwa, king of Amurru after his father Bentesina. From Bryce (1997), pp. 294 and 312.
  26. ^ Bryce (1997), p. 332.
  27. ^ Bryce (1997), p. 363. Tudhaliya IV probably married a Babylonian princess, known by her title of Great Princess (dumu.sal gal) (Bryce 1997, pp. 294, 331).
  28. ^ Bryce (1997), p. 363.
  29. ^ a b Bryce (1997), p. 361.
  30. ^ Last documented Great King of the Land of Hatti.
  31. ^ King and then Great King of Carchemish (Bryce 1997, pp. 384–385).
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