Hantili I was a king of the

Hittites The Hittites () were an Anatolian people who played an important role in establishing first a kingdom in Kussara (before 1750 BC), then the Kanesh or Nesha kingdom (c. 1750–1650 BC), and next an empire centered on Hattusa in north-centra ...

during the Hittite Old Kingdom. His reign lasted for 30 years, from c. 1590 to c. 1560 BC (

middle chronology The chronology of the ancient Near East is a framework of dates for various events, rulers and dynasties. Historical inscriptions and texts customarily record events in terms of a succession of officials or rulers: "in the year X of king Y". Com ...

Biography

Rise to power

According to the

Telepinu Proclamation Telipinu (or Telepinu) Proclamation is a Hittite edict, written during the reign of King Telipinu, c. 1525-1500 BCE. The text is classified as CTH 19 in the Catalogue of Hittite Texts. The edict is significant because it made possible to reconst ...

, Hantili was the royal

cup-bearer A cup-bearer was historically an officer of high rank in royal courts, whose duty was to pour and serve the drinks at the royal table. On account of the constant fear of plots and intrigues (such as poisoning), a person must have been regarded as ...

Mursili I Mursili I (also known as Mursilis; sometimes transcribed as Murshili) was a king of the Hittites 1620-1590 BC, as per the middle chronology, the most accepted chronology in our times, (or alternatively c. 1556–1526 BC, short chronology), and w ...

, king of the Hittites. Hantili was married to Ḫarapšili, Mursili's sister. Around the year 1590 B.C., Hantili, with the help of Zidanta, his son-in-law, assassinated Mursili. Afterwards, Hantili succeeded him as king of the Hittites.

Reign

There are only a few scattered sources left that describe the

reign A reign is the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation (e.g., Saudi Arabia, List of Belgian monarchs, Belgium, Co-prince of Andorra, Andorra), of a people (e.g., List of Frankish kings, the Franks, List of ...

of Hantili. During his reign, he continued the

militaristic Militarism is the belief or the desire of a government or a people that a state should maintain a strong military capability and to use it aggressively to expand national interests and/or values. It may also imply the glorification of the mili ...

traditions of the kings before him. One of Hantili's main concerns was maintaining Hittite control in Syria. He journeyed to the city of

Carchemish Carchemish ( Turkish: ''Karkamış''; or ), also spelled Karkemish ( hit, ; Hieroglyphic Luwian: , /; Akkadian: ; Egyptian: ; Hebrew: ) was an important ancient capital in the northern part of the region of Syria. At times during it ...

to conduct a military campaign, most likely against the Hurrians, longtime enemies of the Hittites. The success of this campaign is unknown. After the conclusion of this campaign, he made his return journey to

Hattusa Hattusa (also Ḫattuša or Hattusas ; Hittite: URU''Ḫa-at-tu-ša'', Turkish: Hattuşaş , Hattic: Hattush) was the capital of the Hittite Empire in the late Bronze Age. Its ruins lie near modern Boğazkale, Turkey, within the great loop of ...

, the Hittite capital. While on this journey, he reached the city of

Tegarama Tegarama (Old Assyria: Tergarma; Hittite: Takarama, Luwian: Lakarma/Lukarma) was a city in Anatolia during the Bronze Age. It is often identified with Gürün and biblical Togarmah. A fortified city in Kammanu (on the border of Tabal) mentioned i ...

, which is possibly the modern-day Turkish city of

Gürün Gürün is a town and a district of Sivas Province of Turkey. The mayor is Nami Çiftçi ( MHP). History Toponymy The current name Gürün is most probably a corruption of the ancient name Tegarama, a city in Anatolia during the Bronze Age. ...

. At this point, the ''Telepinu Proclamation'' states that Hantili started to regret that he had killed Mursili, saying to himself, "What is this (that) I have done? hydid I listen to he words ofZidanta, my on-in-law As soon as] he reigned

s king S, or s, is the nineteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ess'' (pronounced ), plural ''esses''. Histor ...

the

gods A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greater ...

sought (

justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

for) the

blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in the cir ...

of Muršili."''Telepinu Proclamation'', §13

Family

Hantili's parents are not known. His wife was Queen Ḫarapšili, and they had at least one daughter. Hantili's grandson was Ammuna, who killed Zidanta.

Notes

External links