Šuppiluliuma II is the last King of the Hittites. As every end marks a beginning, Suppiluliuma II is also credited with the first naval battle in history, against the Cypriots of the Mediterranean c.1210 BCE.
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The Battles of Alashiya (Cyprus) are two maritime wars and one joint land and naval event. They take place under various rulers between 1275 - 1205 BCE. In 1274 BCE Hittites also fight Egyptians for Kadesh, leading to the world's first peace treaty in 1258 BCE.
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In 1210 BC, a fleet under command of Suppiluliuma defeats the Greek Cypriots with a decisive victory at sea. It's considered the first true naval battle in history. Victory is sweet but it won't last long.
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The Hittite-Cypriot battle of 1210 BCE is recorded in inscriptions of the Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses III. The writings are considered the earliest references to a true sea battle. The Egyptians follow it up with an epic maritime battle of their own in 1175 BCE.
Suppiluliuma II ascends to Kingship 1207 - 1178 BCE. He's not a bad king. He inherits a disaster. The once-glorious Kingdom of the Hittites crumbles. Assyrians are sniffing at the back door. Mountain raiders decimate the north and set their eyes on the capital, Hattusa.
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In the Bronze Age, seagoing ships are typically powered by rowers and a single maneuverable sail. The sail might be of hemp or linen. Cedar wood is coveted by ship builders due to its lightness, versatility and resistance to insects and rot.
The Great Cedar Forests of Lebanon supply the wood for ships. They're said to be guarded by ferocious flying dragons and the dread giant Humbaba. Ugarit and Byblos are among the centers of ship building and trade in the Levant. Mortise and tenon construction is popular.
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Strife on the Mediterranean forces the Hittites to focus on maritime tactics to quell rebellions and conquer seaports. The Hittite Empire dominates the Kingdom of Alashiya since the 14th century BCE, having seized it for control of copper and trade.
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In the early 13th century BCE seafaring people of the Lukka Lands and Kizzuwatna (later Lycia and Cilicia) attack Hittite fleets. Attacks provoke the Hittites into sending an invasive force against Alashiya three times between c. 1275 - 1205 BCE.
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Under the command of Great King Suppiluliuma the Hittite Army engages Alashiyan land forces on the beach. The Hittite Navy battles the Alashiyan fleet off the coast of Cyprus. According to some historians, victories against the Cypriots are won using Ugaritic ships.
Ugarit is a major sea and land trade hub in Northern Syria. Not depending on goodwill alone, the city-state also has a strong navy and army. As vassal to the Hittite Empire, Ugarit fights with the Hittites against Ramesses II at the legendary Battle of Kadesh (1274 BCE).
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Ugarit is also a major Hittite military port. Hittites control trade, ships and ship-building. They use Ugarit as a strategic site for military campaigns. When Suppiluliuma II wins the battle of 1210 BCE against the Cypriot forces, he doesn't know it's the beginning of the end.
Suppiluliuma II is well recorded in Luwian inscriptions. At one time Luwian is the most commonly spoken language in Hittite Anatolia.
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Luwian hieroglyphs are favored by many Hittite and neo-Hittite regions for monumental inscriptions. The inscriptions are often bi- or tri-lingual inscriptions with Aramaic, Phoenician or Akkadian versions.
The reliefs describe major political instability plaguing the Land of Hatti (Hittite Kingdom) during the reign of Suppiluliuma II. Inscriptions record the wars of Šuppiluliuma II against former Anatolian vassal Tarhuntassa, and against Alashiya.
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Šuppiluliuma II sacks Tarhuntassa, a Hittite holding and briefly the Empire's political capital under the reign of Muwatalli II. Hieroglyphic Luwian inscriptions from the late 13th century BCE mention Great King Hartapu as ruling Tarhuntassa.
Son of Great King Mursili III, Hartapu rebels against Šuppiluliuma II, whom he sees as an usurper as a descendent of an usurper (Hattusili III). The fighting ends with the usurper victorious.
Uprisings of coastal Mediterranean conquests of the Hittite Empire are backed by warlike Lukka and Ahhiyawā powers. They severely tax the resources of King Suppiluliuma II. The Hittite Kingdom is thinly spread and has a lot of enemies.
Small groups form alliances, conquered people complain about taxes and suddenly balance of power shifts. In the mountains groups such as the Kashka, Tumanna and Pala fight to keep the Hittites from the Black Sea Coast, and succeed. Later, the Kashka sack Hattusa.
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The Sea Peoples have already decimated the Aegean by c 1200 BCE. Their warring spree carries them to Canaan. On the way they capture Hittite-dominated Cilicia (Kazziwatna) and Cyprus. At Canaan they pause to found the state of Philistia.
Based on records in Ugarit, the threat from the Sea Peoples originates in the west. The Hittite king calls urgently for assistance from Ugarit ...
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The enemy [advances] against us and there is no number ... . Our number is pure(?) ... Whatever is available, look for it and send it to me.
... which explains why Ammurapi, the last King of Ugarit, goes down in flames.
The end of Suppiluliuma II is unknown. Either he abandons the city, or killed in the Kashka-driven sack of Hattusa in 1190 BCE. He disappears from record. The last King's history are in the inscriptions he works on until the last minute. Hattusa is fully abandoned by 1187 BCE.
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