The Hittites of Asia Minor had gone through a period of weakness as a small empire, losing the very important area of northern Syria to the Hurrians. When the Hittites became more powerful under an aggressive king, the Hurrians ran to Egypt for an alliance. Suddenly, upon coming to the throne in 1380 B.C., the Hittite king Subbiluliumas sent his forces into Syria (Macqueen 46). The king of Egypt was unwilling to commit military to defend northern Syria. Now Ugarit at the northern end of the Syrian coast was the farthest- reaching influence Egypt had, protected by Mount Cassius. However, it was not long before Subbiluliumas convinced the prince of Ugarit to desert his Egyptian allies not with arms, but with words (Hitti 155). After a campaign of several battles, the Hittites succeeded in pushing the Egyptian influence south past the city of Kadesh. This time Egypt was less concerned with holding its land-holdings that Tuthmosis III had gained, and more concerned with religious reform. The tribes of Canaan were next to fall away, as they declared their own freedom from the Egyptian Empire. After the death of the young Tut-ankh-amon, the Egyptian prince's widow sent messengers to Subbiluliumas asking for one of the Hittite king's sons for marriage (Die Agyptisch-Hethitische Korrepspondenz). It appears that Subbiluliumas sent one of his sons out to Egypt, only for him to meet assassination, probably by men of Ay who would be the next pharaoh.
By the end of Dynasty XVIII, Egypt was experiencing bitter internal disputes which were reflected by the aggressive nature of the kings later during Dynasty XIX. From the time of the pharaoh Akhenaten, small city-states under Egypt had been attacking each other, each claiming loyalty to the Pharaoh and accusing neighbors of disloyalty. Egyptian representatives were maintained in these crumbling city-states that were the powerful legacy of the military strategist Tuthmosis III. Commander-and-chief of the army of Egypt Horemheb seized the throne and began reorganizing the pieces of an empire that was falling apart under his predecessors that were preoccupied with religious reformation. In his tomb at Saqqara, there is a scene that shows the king of Egypt honoring him as he leads long lines of shackled Asiatics. However, when Horemheb took the throne, he himself wrote, that if Egyptian armies were sent to "widen the frontiers of Egypt, it met with no success at all" (Smith 341). This is testimony to the preoccupation of heroism with a small interest in actual facts, as will be important in deciphering the Egyptian side of the Battle of Kadesh. There is also a scene in which Horemheb converses with a group of foreign chiefs and issues instructions to Egyptian officials, probably from foreign city-states begging for protection from Egypt. The scenes in Horemheb's tomb are not very well preserved, but they depict many animated ethnic types, reflecting the interest in the extent of the Egyptian empire, and also ethnic movements from the Near East.
Ramesses I, once a vizier to Horemheb, completed the transition into the Nineteenth Dynasty, also called the Ramesside Period, and ruled as an elderly man for six years. He held the military title of Chief of Archers, passed down to his son Sety I. Upon coming to power, Sety I adopted an aggressive campaign to recover Egypt's dominance in the northernmost areas. He successfully drove out desert tribes in Palestine, securing the area under Egyptian influence as a prelude to his final act. Sety I knew that the key to regaining control of Amurru in Syria was in an area called the Eleutheros Valley. This area north of the Lebanon range was a vitally important line of communication between northeast Syria and the entire Mediterranean coast. When Egypt utilized this area, which nominally sided with them prior to the Hittite invasion, Egyptian armies could move easily from the coast inland without having to march through rough terrain. It also allowed more possibility to expand westward. This area was indeed a strategic gold mine, and within this gold mine was the city of Kadesh on the Orontes River. Sety I first fought the Hittites directly in Kadesh. A depiction of Sety I attacking Kadesh is on the exterior of Hypostyle Hall in Karnak. Sety I approaches the heavy fortification in a chariot, while small Hittites are hit by a barrage of arrows. On a basalt stella found in Tell Nebi Mandu, near Kadesh, Sety I stands before a row of four deities dressed in Syrian garb. The craftsmanship of the stella is poor, as if it was made immediately after the capture of Kadesh, as a dedication before he hastily departed (Brand 120). Kadesh and Amurru both returned to the Hittite fold shortly after Sety’s invasion. Although he showed much ambition to regaining control of Syria, he failed in his commitment. The apparently hasty departure of the Egyptian armies from Amurru and Kadesh were an invitation for the Hittites. Sety I finally agreed that Egypt would not expand influence into Kadesh and Amurru; the Hittites agreed that Egypt could keep Canaan and the city of Upi (Shaw 52). The story of the border disputes between the two empires could have ended there, if not for Sety’s successor. Sety I ruled for ten years before giving his throne up to his son, one of the most famous pharaohs in the history of Egypt.
Ramesses II ruled for sixty-seven years, and proved to be the most industrious builder and most ambitious pharaoh that ever ruled Egypt. Great new constructions were raised in Memphis, Thebes, Hermopolis, and Nubia. Many complexes from the days of religious reformer Akhenaten were reconstructed in the name of Ramesses II (Aldred 190). Because most complexes were temples, Ramesses II had his name superimposed over the names on the cartouches of former kings. He also found many unfinished statues of Amenhotep III in the temple of Luxor and had them completed in his image (Aldred 191). One large temple is found in Abu Simbel on the eastern bank of the Nile. It is recognized for its four large seated king statues on its facade, over sixty-five feet high. The sunken reliefs of the interior of the temple are topographical details of the Battle of Kadesh, which present half of the whole story of the battle. Ramesses may have introduced some coarse and hasty work, thought to be the effect of the Pharaoh's ambitions outrunning his resources. Could this fault have manifested in his dreams of conquest as well?
The Hittite king Muwatallish came into power in 1308 B.C. He was more concerned with simply defending the lands of the Hittite Empire than expanding his borders. He administered a quick western campaign to settle down the trouble on the western side of the empire (Macqueen 48). This assured loyalty of the neighboring vassal states, and warranted that they would serve under the Hittites in the inevitable clash against the Egyptian armies. In the greatest time of need, all Hittite forces could concentrate on the southern end of the empire as Egypt began to advance.
Ramesses began to take initiative in the fourth year of his reign. He moved north through the mountains and attacked Amurru, destroying the agreement that his father had made. He re-established the Egyptian influence there rather easily by forcing Prince Benteshina to sign a vassal treaty. When it became appartent that Ramesses II was set on war, Muwatallish arranged a massive army, calling in men from some sixteen provinces of the Hittite Empire. These include men from: Nahrin, Arzawa, Keshkesh, Masa, Pidasa, Arwen, Karkisha, Luka, Kizzuwanda, Carchemish, Ugarit, Kedy, the entire land of Nukhashshe, Mushanet, Kadesh, and Dardany (Poem, 40 - 53). And yes, the "Drdny" mentioned in the Poem are probably the same Dardanians mentioned in Homer's Iliad, the sons of Dardanus, who Aeneas commands (Iliad Book 20).
In year four of his reign, (c. 1275 B.C.) Ramesses II led an expedition into Asia to achieve what his father had failed to do. He divided the powerful Egyptian army up into four forces: the Amun Division, which Ramesses II himself led, the Re Division, the Ptah Division, and the Sutekh Division. It is thought that the Ptah or Sutekh Division was ordered to mobilize Egypt's local and foreign allies and then join them at Kadesh. Included among the Egyptian armies were Nubians, Libyans, and Canaanites (Shaw 28). Both these regiments remained followed at a distance away from the Amun and Re Corps. Ramesses II probably did not know the position of the Hittite army, but he knew that taking control of Kadesh would be the best chance to stage an invasion into the northern territories taken by the Hittites.
The armies of these two empires were both powerful and massive. Ramesses II stood in command of all Egyptian forces, and beneath him were two chief deputy corp commanders. Under them were the generals who commanded divisions, each consisting of 5,000 men. This would have placed the Egyptian force at Kadesh at 20,000 (Shaw 27). The Egyptian army consisted of volunteers who were highly motivated to fight. Each charioteer paid for his own chariot and weapons, and so the chariotry consisted of the richest members of society. Poorer citizens served as foot soldiers, if not to simply participate in battles, then to gain social rewards which were offered to all those who served. Egyptian soldiers earned more prestige than priests and scholars. Archaeological evidence shows that the primary Egyptian weapons were the composite bows and khopesh swords. Ramesses II, like his father before him, was an excellent archer, and is shown with his bow in a chariot in almost all depictions of him in battle. Egyptian soldiers used the composite bows because they were so easy to carry and very accurate in the right hands, for up to three-hundred yards. The khopesh sword was slashing weapon wielded only by skilled warriors for use in close combat, and from which the Greeks probably derived their kopis that are so prominently depicted on 5th century Greek pottery (Oakeshott 49). A relief from the temple of Ramesses II at Abydos illustrates these soldiers along with charioteers.
Knowledge of the Hittite army of this period is greatly indebted to Egyptian reliefs. The driving force behind the Hittite army was the heavy chariot force. Consisting of a wooden frame covered with leather mounted on a wide axle with wooden six-spoked wheels, the Hittite chariot structure was similar to those of the Egyptians (Macqeen 59). The procedure for an Hittite assualt involved putting the massive chariot force at the front of the attack force, then sending the infantry in to clean up what was left of the scattered enemies. During the time of Sety I, reliefs depict Hittite chariots with two men, one wielding a bow, the other a figure-eight shaped shield, presumably driving. Between the time of Sety I and Ramesses II a third man was added to the chariot (Beal 148). In the Abydos temple of Ramesses II, there are reliefs of these Hittite chariots heading into battle. In the relief, the third warrior has a large lance, seven to eight feet long. All three soldiers have a helmet that leaves the front of the scalp bare. Hittite chariot personnel also are shown wearing a garment reaching down to their elbows and ankles. This has been presumed to be scale armor (Beal 150). The skirt is either wrapped or has a large slit for mobility. Iron weapons also gave the Hittites a great advantage over the bronze weapons of Egypt, having developed the iron-smelting technique. Unfortunately, not many iron weapons have been recovered, due to the inefficiency of their technique. Though the Hittites had a large infantry, their use was secondary to the first offense of chariots, with great destructive potential. At the time of Kadesh, Muwatallish was said to possess a force of 2,500 heavy chariots for this battle, and two divisions of 18,000 and 19,000 men.
Thus the storm begins.
