Šuppiluliuma I

Powerful Hittite King who expanded Hittite authority over Syria and Mesopotamia.

Chronology: -1375 – -1335

Origins & Early Life

Šuppiluliuma I (died c. 1322 BC), also Suppiluliuma () or Suppiluliumas (), was an ancient Hittite king (r. c. 1350–1322 BC).

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Even before assuming the throne, Šuppiluliuma distinguished himself as a military commander by protecting and reclaiming Hittite territories after a period of foreign attacks. Once becoming king he continued his program of consolidation and expansion, both in Anatolia and Syria, with a great deal of success. Victories over a major rival, the Upper-Mesopotamian kingdom of Mittani, led to the extension of Hittite authority over a bevy of petty kingdoms in northern Syria, the installation of the Hittite king's younger sons as local viceroys at Aleppo and Carchemish, and the rump of the Mittanian state becoming, effectively, a dependency of the Hittite Kingdom. Relations with Egypt vacillated between friendship and hostility, eventually culminating in the Zannanza Affair in which Šuppiluliuma was persuaded to send one of his sons to marry the widowed queen of Egypt and assume its throne. However, the murder of this Hittite prince resulted in a long period of Hittite-Egyptian hostility, and captives that Šuppiluliuma had taken caused an outbreak of plague which ravaged...

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The historical impact and works continue to influence the modern world.

Source: Wikipedia