Archaeologists excavating in the ancient Hittite capital of Hattusha have uncovered a fragment of the world's oldest peace treaty, signed around 1269 B.C.

96 points•gmays•3 days ago•11 comments•

11 comments

pfdietz3 days ago
Egypt and the Hittites were now concerned with the rise of Assyria.

All would suffer in the late Bronze Age (LBA) collapse, with the Hittite empire collapsing soon after a string of three drought years about half a century after the treaty. Egypt and Assyria, at least, would persist in truncated form, with the latter rising to new heights of power in the Iron Age.

doebler3 days ago
> The country of Egypt and the country of Hatti [Hittite Empire] will be forever in a state of peace.

Wonder how long it lasted?

Edit: turns out it lasted until the Hittite empire collapsed 80 years later, so in a sense indeed "forever".

wahern3 days ago
FWIW, the longest peace treaty lasted approximately 700 years, from the 7th to 14th centuries: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baqt
domh3 days ago
The longest alliance still in force is the Anglo-Portuguese alliance which was signed in 1386!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Portuguese_Alliance

Razengan3 days ago
Somewhat in the similar vein: Irving Finkel reads the Pharaoh's private mail (from the -14th century) :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MZq_ZQDhJA

cloudbonsai3 days ago
Full text of the treaty: https://corum.ktb.gov.tr/EN-61494/kadesh-war-and-peace-treat...

It reads more like a military alliance agreement between kings:

1. Reamasesa-Mai-amana (King of Egypt) and Hattusili (King of Hatti) are best friends forever.

2. If a foreign country invaded one of us, the other one must send his troops.

3. Ditto with civil wars. We help each other.

4. If a high-profile person flees from Egypt or Hatti, send the bastard back.

5. If people flee from Hatti to Egypt, order them back. Do not retaliate against returnees, though. No pulling eyes/tongues. No cutting feet/ears. No destroying wives/houses/kids. Please.

pedrosbmartins3 days ago
Number 4 is particularly interesting. Before Hattusili, the Hittite empire was ruled by his nephew, Mursili III. He was deposed by his uncle and exiled, first to Syria then to Egypt. He posed a great threat to Hattusili's rule, so of course the treaty had to include an extradition clause.
JoeAltmaier3 days ago
Note the Treaty of Ebla and Abarsal, from about 2350 BCE, exists in scores of clauses on a tablet.

Read the full thread on Hacker News →

Related stories