After Kadesh – a Nineteenth Dynasty Timeline

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    • Zireael

    sety_kadesh_4.jpg
    sety_kadesh_4.jpg


    "That vile town of Kadesh." Detail from the War scenes. On the ramparts of the citadel, the citizens despair in the face of defeat.
    - Source: The Karnak Great Hypostyle Hall Project​


    1284 BC

    Year 4 King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Menmatre. 3rd month of the second season, day 4.

    Lo, his majesty was in Djahi[1] on his third victorious campaign. His majesty proceeded northward, and he then arrived at the highland of Kadesh. Then his majesty crossed over the channel of the Orontes.

    When his majesty reached the city, behold, the wretched, vanquished chief of Kheta had come, having gathered together all countries from the ends of the sea to the land of Kheta, which came entire: the Naharin likewise, and Arvad, Mesa, Keshkesh, Kelekesh, Luka, Kezweden, Carchemish, Ekereth, Kode, the entire land of Nuges, Mesheneth, and Kadesh. He left not a country which was not brought together with their chiefs who were with him, every man bringing his chariotry, an exceeding great multitude, without its like. They covered the mountains and the valleys; they were like grasshoppers with their multitudes. He left not silver nor gold in his land but he plundered it of all its possessions and gave to every country, in order to bring them with him to battle.

    Behold, the wretched, vanquished chief of Kheta, together with numerous allied countries, were stationed in battle array, concealed on the northwest of the city of Kadesh.

    Behold, the wretched vanquished chief of Kheta was stationed in the midst of the infantry which was with him, and he came not out to fight, for fear of his majesty.

    In the land of Kadesh, land of Amor his majesty marched against them like a fierce-eyed lion, making them carcasses in their valleys, overturned in their blood like those that exist not. Everyone that escapes his fingers says: 'His might toward distant countries is the might of his father Amun, who hath assigned to him a victorious valor in the countries'.

    He causes to retreat the princes of Kheta, he returns with the choicest items their country has to offer.

    [1] Djahi – Canaan, modern Palestine

    ***
    I ascribe to the theory that Seti I ruled for nine years, as evidenced by the urns in his grave. Since we know Ramesses II’s ascension took place in 1279 BC, this means Seti I ascended in 1288 BC and not 1290 BC.

    This is the POD. The little-known battle of Kadesh during Seti I’s rule is a decisive victory for the Egyptians. Obviously, the better known battle under Ramesses II is butterflied away.
     
    Last edited:
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    • dontfearme22

    dontfearme22

    Wow, the writing style so far does a very good job of paralleling Bronze Age conventions, kudos to that!

    I very much look forward to this timeline developing

    Given the decisive defeat of the Hittite army, this would seriously set back their forces in Canaan, unless Egypt fills that power vacuum, we might see a much more powerful Amurru than OTL. Assyria might even see a opportunity to expand west
     

    Zireael

    dontfearme22 said:
    Wow, the writing style so far does a very good job of paralleling Bronze Age conventions, kudos to that!
    Click to expand...

    That's because I found the translated inscriptions of Seti I and Ramesses II and then hodge-podged them.

    Don't expect such style for every update, though.

    Given the decisive defeat of the Hittite army, this would seriously set back their forces in Canaan, unless Egypt fills that power vacuum, we might see a much more powerful Amurru than OTL. Assyria might even see a opportunity to expand west
    Click to expand...

    Need to read up (that is, google up) more on Amurru and Assyria to decide what happens in Canaan.
     
    dontfearme22

    dontfearme22

    Zireael said:
    That's because I found the translated inscriptions of Seti I and Ramesses II and then hodge-podged them.

    Don't expect such style for every update, though.



    Need to read up (that is, google up) more on Amurru and Assyria to decide what happens in Canaan.
    Click to expand...

    shame, I would also suggest the Amarna letters for good clues on writing conventions if you plan to do at least a little bit more of that style.

    That region in the LBA was very complicated, I really think given the strength of your first entry you have lots of potential to do it real justice however.
     
    Egypt and Hittite Empire maps before and after POD
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    • Zireael

    270px-Hittite_Empire.png

    Hittite Empire pre-POD, circa 1290​

    In contrast to Seti I’s victory stele at Kadesh or the inscriptions on the Karnak walls, Mutawalli II did not take the beating lying down. Within a few months, he launched an assault which however failed to retake the city. The event prompted pharaoh Seti I to order the establishment of two strong military garrisons – one in Kadesh itself and one in nearby city of Sumur in the land of Amor (Amurru). There were no repeats, however, as the Hittite empire had come under pressure from the south-east. The warlike Assyrian king Adad-nirari I reached as far as Charchemish, forcing the Hittites to retreat to the land of Kizzuwatna (Kezweden).


    post-pod.png

    Hittite Empire circa 1282 BC, post-Kadesh

    Territory lost to Egypt in green, territory lost to Assyria in blue​
     
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    • dontfearme22

    dontfearme22

    vandevere said:
    Or maybe Ramesses II's victory stele will be all about how he defeated the Assyrians... ;)
    Click to expand...

    If Assyria can reach the coast and take Ugarit they can use that as a sea port and launch maritime assaults all along the Canaanite or Anatolian coast.

    I do think Assyria if it has further ambitions in that area will head north to Kizzuwatna. If you can secure the mines in that area, you have a major source of revenue to buy the client kings of that entire border region, including Amurru. And if Amurru falls, the strongest client state of the Hittite empire in that region is gone and their southern border is totally defenseless.

    Egypt on the other hand, should be careful to secure their new territories before expanding north. All out war with Assyria is inevitable if Egypt wants to expand anywhere in Canaan.
     

    Zireael

    dontfearme22 said:
    If Assyria can reach the coast and take Ugarit they can use that as a sea port and launch maritime assaults all along the Canaanite or Anatolian coast.

    I do think Assyria if it has further ambitions in that area will head north to Kizzuwatna. If you can secure the mines in that area, you have a major source of revenue to buy the client kings of that entire border region, including Amurru. And if Amurru falls, the strongest client state of the Hittite empire in that region is gone and their southern border is totally defenseless.

    Egypt on the other hand, should be careful to secure their new territories before expanding north. All out war with Assyria is inevitable if Egypt wants to expand anywhere in Canaan.
    Click to expand...

    Ugarit is under Egyptian control ITTL: compare this map with the post-POD one. Ugarit is on that "jag" above Qadesh and below Alalah. (I'll try to edit the post-POD pic and add Ugarit - I completely missed the fact it's not marked on the map I used as base)

    350px-Hitt_Egypt_Perseus.png


    EDIT: And Sumur/Simir/Zemar/Tell Kazel should be within Egypt's borders judging by this map: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Towns_of_aram.jpg (see the cut-in part of the coast?)
     
    dontfearme22

    dontfearme22

    Zireael said:
    Ugarit is under Egyptian control ITTL: compare this map with the post-POD one. Ugarit is on that "jag" above Qadesh and below Alalah. (I'll try to edit the post-POD pic and add Ugarit - I completely missed the fact it's not marked on the map I used as base)

    350px-Hitt_Egypt_Perseus.png


    EDIT: And Sumur/Simir/Zemar/Tell Kazel should be within Egypt's borders judging by this map: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Towns_of_aram.jpg (see the cut-in part of the coast?)
    Click to expand...


    One of the reasons war with Egypt is inevitable. If Assyria wants a good sea port, they have to take either Ugarit or go farther north into Kizzuwatna and Hittite territory. If they want more land in Canaan they will rapidly absorb independent states until they reach the Egyptian border. The only way to avoid war is to not expand in that area, and hope Egypt doesnt want to either.
     

    Zireael

    An updated map, showing the locations of Ugarit and Sumur:

    post-pod1.png


    I wish I had a copy in svg format, editing a png pixel by pixel is doable (I do pixel art) but really painstaking.
     
    Habiru
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    • Zireael

    And a proper update for today:

    A short fragment of an article from TTL encyclopedia (or a Wikipedia equivalent).

    Habiru
    Egyptian: ˁpr.w (Apiru/Habiru)
    Akkadian: Habiru
    Semitic: Hibrim העברים

    The Semitic name means ‘those who traveled, those who passed over’. Semantically related to Egyptian š3sw (Shasu) – ‘those who move on foot’. However, the name Shasu refers to another people of Canaan (see also: Djahi). It may have originally meant ‘people from the other bank of the river [Euphrates]’.

    A Semitic tribe originally dwelling in the area of Ur, south of Euphrates. An Elamite invasion under Kudur-Nankhundi in 2285 BC[1], whose booty included a holy statue of Nanna, the city’s patron goddess[2], drove them out. They seem to have traveled westwards, as evidenced by later sources placing them in the land of Canaan (also known as Djahi). They seem to have retained their nomadic character and are referred to as outlaws, mercenaries and slaves.

    In the Eleventh Dynasty, mention of Habiru is made in the tomb of Intef. There they are presented as workers pressing wine. This suggests they have been living in the lands controlled by Egypt for over 500 years before the times of Seti I.

    The next known mention of the Habiru dates to the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, to the reign of Thutmose III (1479 BC-1425 BC). His Majesty’s general Djehuti wrote about the taking of Joppa after 1456 BC (that is, after year 23 of Thutmose) and in this context, “a passing Habir’ is mentioned. This is also one of the few occasions where the word Habiru/’Apiru is used in the singular.

    Even though Amenhotep II boasted of making 3600 Habiru prisoners in his Canaan campaign, the Amarna letters of the later Eighteenth Dynasty are full of complaints about their attacks and plundering.

    As a Canaanite overlord Abdi-Heba has written during the time of Amenhotep III: This is the deed of Milkilu and the deed of the sons of Lab'ayu, who have given the land of the king to the Habiru. He also later writes: shall we do as Lab’ayu, who gave the land of Shechem to the Habiru?

    In the times of the Nineteenth Dynasty, the Habiru seem to have mostly left Egypt and settled in Canaan. Their first leader was known as Moses (Egyptian ms ‘son’ or msy ‘to be born’). It is generally assumed his full name should have included the name of one of the Egyptian gods (cf. Iahmose, Ramose, Thutmose). His story is described in the Book of Moses – Hebrew: Megilath Moses מֹשֶׁה מגילת
    [3]
    Since then, the Habiru are often called Banu Moses מֹשֶׁה בני
    [4] - that is, "children of Moses", similar to how other Shasu (Bedouin) tribes call themselves after their founder figure.

    The language of the Habiru seems related to that of the Canaanites. Both belong to the Semitic language family. The Habiru script in its present form owes its square shape to the Assyrian influence. The Habiru worshipped the Canaanite pantheon.

    [1] BC dates given for reader’s familiarity
    [2] OTL: https://books.google.pl/books?id=7f...sCh2n2giu#v=onepage&q=Kudur-nankhundi&f=false
    [3] TTL equivalent of the Exodus
    [4] TTL equivalent of “the sons of Israel”. And no, “Banu” is not a mistake – it’s deliberate.

    ***
    F*ck the support for RTL languages in MS Word. I had to redo that last part three times for it to stop messing with the Hebrew words.
    And no, I don't know any Hebrew, but I know a bit of Arabic.
     
    Last edited:
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    • dontfearme22

    dontfearme22

    Zireael said:
    And a proper update for today:

    A short fragment of an article from TTL encyclopedia (or a Wikipedia equivalent).

    Habiru
    Egyptian: ˁpr.w (Apiru/Habiru)
    Akkadian: Habiru
    Semitic: Hibrim העברים

    The Semitic name means ‘those who traveled, those who passed over’. Semantically related to Egyptian š3sw (Shasu) – ‘those who move on foot’. However, the name Shasu refers to another people of Canaan (see also: Djahi). It may have originally meant ‘people from the other bank of the river [Euphrates]’.

    A Semitic tribe originally dwelling in the area of Ur, south of Euphrates. An Elamite invasion under Kudur-Nankhundi in 2285 BC[1], whose booty included a holy statue of Nanna, the city’s patron goddess[2], drove them out. They seem to have traveled westwards, as evidenced by later sources placing them in the land of Canaan (also known as Djahi). They seem to have retained their nomadic character and are referred to as outlaws, mercenaries and slaves.

    In the Eleventh Dynasty, mention of Habiru is made in the tomb of Intef. There they are presented as workers pressing wine. This suggests they have been living in the lands controlled by Egypt for over 500 years before the times of Seti I.

    The next known mention of the Habiru dates to the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt, to the reign of Thutmose III (1479 BC-1425 BC). His Majesty’s general Djehuti wrote about the taking of Joppa after 1456 BC (that is, after year 23 of Thutmose) and in this context, “a passing Habir’ is mentioned. This is also one of the few occasions where the word Habiru/’Apiru is used in the singular.

    Even though Amenhotep II boasted of making 3600 Habiru prisoners in his Canaan campaign, the Amarna letters of the later Eighteenth Dynasty are full of complaints about their attacks and plundering.

    As a Canaanite overlord Abdi-Heba has written during the time of Amenhotep III: This is the deed of Milkilu and the deed of the sons of Lab'ayu, who have given the land of the king to the Habiru. He also later writes: shall we do as Lab’ayu, who gave the land of Shechem to the Habiru?

    In the times of the Nineteenth Dynasty, the Habiru seem to have mostly left Egypt and settled in Canaan. Their first leader was known as Moses (Egyptian ms ‘son’ or msy ‘to be born’). It is generally assumed his full name should have included the name of one of the Egyptian gods (cf. Iahmose, Ramose, Thutmose). His story is described in the Book of Moses – Hebrew: Megilath Moses מֹשֶׁה מגילת
    [3]
    Since then, the Habiru are often called Banu Moses מֹשֶׁה בני
    [4] - that is, "children of Moses", similar to how other Shasu (Bedouin) tribes call themselves after their founder figure.

    The language of the Habiru seems related to that of the Canaanites. Both belong to the Semitic language family. The Habiru script in its present form owes its square shape to the Assyrian influence. The Habiru worshipped the Canaanite pantheon.

    [1] BC dates given for reader’s familiarity
    [2] OTL: https://books.google.pl/books?id=7f...sCh2n2giu#v=onepage&q=Kudur-nankhundi&f=false
    [3] TTL equivalent of the Exodus
    [4] TTL equivalent of “the sons of Israel”. And no, “Banu” is not a mistake – it’s deliberate.

    ***
    F*ck the support for RTL languages in MS Word. I had to redo that last part three times for it to stop messing with the Hebrew words.
    And no, I don't know any Hebrew, but I know a bit of Arabic.
    Click to expand...

    What evidence are you using to conflate Habiru with Hebrew? From a lot of evidence ive seen Habiru is more related to a term for bandits than any single ethnic group.
     
    Linguistic explanation of 'Habiru'
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    • Zireael

    dontfearme22 said:
    What evidence are you using to conflate Habiru with Hebrew? From a lot of evidence ive seen Habiru is more related to a term for bandits than any single ethnic group.
    Click to expand...

    Linguistic evidence, mostly. If you have
    H-b/p-r-w* (Egyptian)
    H-b-r-u* (Akkadian)
    (h)-b-r-m* (Hebrew) -> The (h) is not in OTL, but I kept it in TTL to highlight the connection

    and the last segment is consistently a plural marker... and all three terms refer to roughly the same area (Canaan) and the same time (Late Bronze Age)... Ockham's razor says they refer to the same people.

    Just google 'Hebrew Habiru' if you want to see some more complex explanations. Even some scholars have equated the two before coming to the conclusion that it's about the bandits. However, I'm more inclined to regard 'Habiru' as an ethnonym rather than a general term.
    If 'Habiru' means 'bandit', there is no reason for OTL Hebrew people to be named so (the connection would be obvious for any Assyrians/Egyptians, why be called something that sounds like 'bandits'?). And I don't think Israel can just spring up from nothingness with no evidence of being anywhere before the Merneptah Stele in 1203 BC. To have a country, you need a pretty big group, which should have left a mark of some sort on the region.
     
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