Hittite navy

The Hittite Navy [1] was the main naval force of the Hittite Kingdom then later Hittite Empire from ca. 16th–12th century BC. The navy took part in three land and sea military campaigns of the Hittite Kingdom against the Kingdom of Alashiya between 1275 and 1205 BC.[2] It was also one of the main adversary's of the Egyptian Navy.[3]

Hittite Navy
Activeca. 16th–12th century BC
AllegianceHittite Kingdom
Hittite Empire
Garrison/HQUra, Anatolia, Hittite Empire
EngagementsBattles of Alashiya

History

The Hittites, were forced to take a serious interest in maritime affairs in the late 13th century BC, as a result of increased coastal raiding particularly by the Sea Peoples.[4] The Hittite Kingdom were concerned with threats to its southern Mediterranean coast and further afield.[5] The final monarch of the Hittite Empire was Suppiluliuma II, who is particularly known for commanding the Hittite fleet in the first recorded naval battle in history in 1210 BCE, against the Alashiyan Fleet, (Cypriots) leading to a resounding Hittite victory.[6] The battle was recorded in inscriptions of the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses III that is the earliest reference we have to a true sea battle.[7]

Battles

The navy was involved in a series of three military engagements known as the Battles of Alashiya,[8] that included action both at sea but also on land between the Hittite Navy and the Hittite Army against the Alashiyan Fleet and Army of the Kingdom of Alashiya (Cyprus).[9] The battles took place between 1275 and 1205 BC.[10]

Bases and ports
Byblos and Tarsa

The ancient port city of Byblos fell under Hittite control during the reign of King Suppiluliuma I (1344–1322 BC) following the expulsion of the Egyptians from the Levant. Between c. 1700 to 1200 BC the port city of Tarsus was both an important military base and trade centre of the Hittites.[11]

Ugarit and Ura

Ugarit was an ancient port city in northern Syria, on the outskirts of modern day Latakia. This port for a period served as important naval base of the Hittite Kingdom.[12] Ura was the major port of Anatolia to which grain and goods were brought from Egypt and Canaan via Ugarit for transshipment to the Hittite Empire.[13] This was the main naval base from which the Hittite Navy conducted sea operations against Alashiya.[14]

Footnotes
  1. Edwards, I. E. S.; Gadd, C. J.; Hammond, N. G. L.; Sollberger, E. (2000). The Cambridge Ancient History (6 ed.). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. p. 490. ISBN 9780521082303.
  2. Yasur-Landau, Assaf (2014). The Philistines and Aegean Migration at the End of the Late Bronze Age. Cambridge, England.: Cambridge University Press. p. 165. ISBN 9781139485876.
  3. The Cambridge ancient history:Volume 2, Part 1: The Middle East and the Aegean Region, c.1800-1380 BC (Third ed.). Cambridge, England: CUP. 1973. p. 490. ISBN 9780521082303.
  4. Emanuel, Jeff P. (September 2013). "War at Sea: The Advent of Naval Combat in the Late Bronze-Early Iron Age Eastern Mediterranean". academia.edu. Harvard, Massachusetts, United States: Harvard University. p. 4. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
  5. Emanuel. p.4.
  6. Emanuel. p.4.
  7. Emanuel. p.4.
  8. Ward, William A.; Joukowsky, Martha (1992). The Crisis years: the 12th century B.C. : from beyond the Danube to the Tigris. Dubuque, Iowa, United States.: Kendall/Hunt Pub. p. 48. ISBN 9780840371485.
  9. Lendering, Jona (1995–2019). "Enkomi - Livius". www.livius.org. Leiden, Netherlands.: Livius. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  10. Connolly, Peter; Gillingham, John; Lazenby, John (2016). The Hutchinson Dictionary of Ancient and Medieval Warfare. Cambridge, England: Routledge. p. 9. ISBN 9781135936747.
  11. Finegan, Jack (2015). Light from the Ancient Past, Vol. 1: The Archaeological Background of the Hebrew-Christian Religion. Princeton, New Jersey, United States.: Princeton University Press. p. 253. ISBN 9781400875153.
  12. Steiner, Margreet L.; Killebrew, Ann E. (2014). The Oxford Handbook of the Archaeology of the Levant: C. 8000-332 BCE. Oxford, England.: OUP Oxford. p. 94. ISBN 9780199212972.
  13. Bryce, Trevor. (2005). The Kingdom of Hittites, Oxford University Press. New York. .page 331. ISBN 9780199281329.
  14. Cotterell, Arthur (2006). Chariot: From Chariot to Tank, the Astounding Rise and Fall of the World's First War Machine. New York, New York, United States.: Overlook Press. p. 224. ISBN 9781585678051.

Bibliography
  • Bryce, Trevor. (2005). The Kingdom of Hittites, Oxford University Press. New York. ISBN 9780199281329.
  • Connolly, Peter; Gillingham, John; Lazenby, John (2016). The Hutchinson Dictionary of Ancient and Medieval Warfare. Cambridge, England: Routledge. ISBN 9781135936747.
  • Cotterell, Arthur (2006). Chariot: From Chariot to Tank, the Astounding Rise and Fall of the World's First War Machine. New York, New York, United States.: Overlook Press. ISBN 9781585678051.
  • Edwards, I. E. S.; Gadd, C. J.; Hammond, N. G. L.; Sollberger, E. (2000). The Cambridge Ancient History (6 ed.). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521082303.
  • Emanuel, Jeff P. (September 2013). "War at Sea: The Advent of Naval Combat in the Late Bronze-Early Iron Age Eastern Mediterranean". academia.edu. Harvard, Massachusetts, United States: Harvard University.
  • Finegan, Jack (2015). Light from the Ancient Past, Vol. 1: The Archaeological Background of the Hebrew-Christian Religion. Princeton, New Jersey, United States.: Princeton University Press. ISBN 9781400875153.
  • Lendering, Jona (1995–2019). "Enkomi - Livius". www.livius.org. Leiden, Netherlands.: Livius. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  • Steiner, Margreet L.; Killebrew, Ann E. (2014). The Oxford Handbook of the Archaeology of the Levant: C. 8000-332 BCE. Oxford, England.: OUP Oxford. ISBN 9780199212972.
  • Ward, William A.; Joukowsky, Martha (1992). The Crisis years: the 12th century B.C. : from beyond the Danube to the Tigris. Dubuque, Iowa, United States.: Kendall/Hunt Pub. ISBN 9780840371485.
  • Yasur-Landau, Assaf (2014). The Philistines and Aegean Migration at the End of the Late Bronze Age. Cambridge, England.: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781139485876.
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