The archeological record tells us that, during the Early and Middle Bronze Age, Qadesh had been a successful trading city located along one of southern Syria’s main trade routes. Located near the Orontes River, the city of Qadesh enjoyed control over the Levant’s southernmost acreage of alluvial soil, and received more rainfall than other cities to the north and south due to its proximity to coastal mountain ranges. More so than its temperate climate and rich farmland, the location of Qadesh on the primary North/South trade routes made it a prize for military conquest.
Qadesh and Egyptian Imperial Expansion
By the mid 15th century B.C.E., the Hurrian Kingdom of Mittani had gained control over the region, and Qadesh had become a key vassal state. Kadesh first enters the historical record in the Egyptian accounts of the Battle of Megiddo, ca. 1447 B.C.E. This famous battle was carved by Tuthmoses III (ca. 1479-1425 B.C.E.) on the walls of the Temple at Karnak and recounts how this warrior Pharaoh soundly defeated forces allied under the Prince of Qadesh at Megiddo. This decisive battle resulted in the opening of Syria for Egyptian imperial expansion.
Subsequent invasions, lead by Tuthmoses III and his successors, eventually led to a diplomatic marriage alliance between Egypt and the Kingdom of Mittani. The newly established peace on the frontier placed Qadesh under Egyptian control, and the city became a gateway for the interactions between the Egyptian and Mittani Kingdoms. Over the coming decades, Syrian luxury and military goods became highly prized in Egypt, and trade flourished in Qadesh.
A Battlefront In The War Between The Hittites And The Egyptians
During the mid 14th century B.C.E., Qadesh became a frontline city once again as the Hittites invaded Syria, pushing southward from their Anatolian homeland. The trove of diplomatic correspondence known as the Amarna Letters, found in the ruins of Egypt’s short lived capital of Akhetaten, combined with Hittite records found in the ruins of Hattusha, explain how Qadesh was drawn into the conflict between these two great Empires.
The King of the Hittite Empire, King Suppililiuma the Great, (ca 1352-1322 B.C.E.) is known to have captured Qadesh’s King Shuttarna and Prince Aittakama, then turned the city into a vassal to the Hittite Empire. After Prince Aittakama swore allegiance to Suppililiuma, he was allowed to return to Qadesh as its ruler. Aittakama carefully continued to play the tense political situation in his favor, until he was assassinated by his own son for plotting against the Hittites.
For nearly two generations, Egypt’s Pharaohs would struggle vainly to retake this vital city. Finally, during the reign of the Pharaoh Seti I (ca. 1290-1279 B.C.E.), a successful Egyptian campaign saw Qadesh briefly recaptured by Egypt. Seti erected a stela at Qadesh, commemorating his conquest of the city. However, within a short time, the city was again under Hittite control. A few years later mention of Qadesh can be found in the Hittite records from Hattusha, listed among the loyal vassals who sent troops to fight against the Pharaoh, Ramses II.
Ramses II And The Battle Of Qadesh
One of histories most famous battles, The Battle of Qadesh, which occurred around 1275 B.C.E., took place near the city itself. This battle, was fought between Pharaoh Ramses II (ca. 1279-1213 B.C.E.) of Egypt, and King Muwatalli (ca. 1295-1272 B.C.E.) of the Hittites. Inscriptions left by Ramses in Egypt tell of how the Hittites surrounded the city with an army of tens of thousands, and were able to stop the Egyptian advance into Syria. Although Ramses II would attempt to portray this battle as a heroic victory, the actual outcome was a strategic loss for Egypt, which would never again gain firm control over its lost Syrian possessions.
A century later, as the Empire of the Hittites was crumbling, Qadesh itself would be destroyed. Sometime during the early years of the 12th century B.C.E., the city would be razed to the ground when a group known as the Sea Peoples invaded central Syria. Today, the ruins of Bronze Age Qadesh, known now as Tell Nebi Mend, await further exploration by archeologists who seek to unravel its ancient mysteries.
Sources
Bryce, Trevor, Kingdom of the Hittites, (Oxford, Oxford University Press, 2005)
Klengel, Horst. Syria: 3000 to 300 B.C. (Akademie Verlag.)
Moran, William, The Amarna Letters, (Baltimore, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1992)
Pritchard, James B. “The Ancient Near East, vol. 1.” (Princeton University Press, 1958)
Roaf, Michael, Cultural Atlas of Mesopotamia, (Andromeda, Oxfordshire, 2004.)
Shaw, Ian. “The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt” (Oxford University Press, 2000)
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