1. Who were the Hittites and where did they originate?
The Hittites were a group of Indo-Europeans who created an empire in Anatolia. They originated around 1700Bc when they conquered the city of Kanesh and other city-states in Anatolia at the time. Scholars and Archaeologists have debated over where the Hittites originated. Some used they came from west of the Dead Sea, but archaeological evidence shows that their writing form was indo-euro, suggesting that they came from some where in Europe. When Hattusshili I came to power they officially named Hattussha the capital of the Hittites. The two main periods of the Hittites were the Old Kingdom and the New Kingdom.
The Old Kingdom (1700- 1500 BC) started with King Labarnas. Not much is known about the king. The Next leader was King Hattusshili I. This is when the empire was just starting out and fortifying their cities. These defense systems were the best of their time and no one worried about attacks because they were isolated and located in the mountains. Feeling protected, they decided to lead their armies south toward Syria. When Hattusshili was about to die, he adopted Murshili I who continued his attacks on Aleppo and Babylon. On his return though, he was assassinated. As a result, the Hittites became weaker and had a long period of inactivity.
The New Kingdom (1400-1180 BC) started with Suppiluliumas I because he dominated the Middle East. He spent a few years fixing and restring Hittite defense systems. He then tried to settle with Mitanni, the main enemy of previous years. He then started conquering all through the South. Oe other important thing about the New Kingdom is the changing of the law system. These laws were far more lenient because the Hittites were less concerned about maintaining a strict authority. the Monarch also changed and women began to play an important role.
The Hittites fell in 1193 BC and the final cause depends on different people. It is up for debate because some think it was internecine warfare, while other believe it was migrations, including the sea people, that contributed to their fall. When they fell, all of the Middle East was shaken and the Middle East ended up with great havoc and upheaval.
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/htit/hd_htit.htm
Manual pg 108-113
Elizabeth Awad
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