CHAPTER 7

Building an Empire

W

e’ve noted that in thefifteenth century, the warrior-
pharaoh Tuthmosis III had sought to establish
permanent Egyptian control over large parts of
Syria and Palestine. But ultimately his campaigns failed to achieve
this. Egypt’s withdrawal from the region after his death led to the
resurgence of Mittanian power there, under the Mittanian king
Saushtatar, and the imminent threat of further Mittanian
expansion into the territories of the kingdom of Hatti. This was
one of the major challenges facing the Hittite king Tudhaliya when
he mounted the Hittite throne around 1400 (or a bit earlier).
Mustering the forces at his disposal for an invasion of Syria and the
conquest of Mittani’s territories in the region would be one of the
new Hittite king’s top priorities.

DIPLOMACY INSTEAD OF BRUTE FORCE

Before attempting such a massive undertaking, Tudhaliya hadfirst
to sort out another problem closer to home. Some time during the
upheavals which preceded Telipinu’s reign, a new independent
state emerged in Anatolia’s southeastern corner. The territory it
covered probably once subject to the kingdom of Hatti, the new
state was called Kizzuwatna. Because it lay astride the routes
through the Taurus mountains from Anatolia into Syria, its
location was clearly of great strategic importance to the Hittites.
But Telipinu had to tread warily. Other territories lost to Hatti
during his predecessors’reigns he had regained by military action.