Hattusa

Hattusa was the capital of the Hittite Empire in the late Bronze Age during two distinct periods. Its ruins lie near modern Boğazkale, Turkey, within the great loop of the Kızılırmak River. The earliest traces of settlement are from the 6th millennium BC during the Chalcolithic period. Toward the end of the 3rd millennium BC the Hattian people established a settlement there. In the 19th and 18th centuries BC merchants from Assyria set up a trading post in their own quarter of the lower city.

A carbonized layer attests to the burning of the city around 1700 BC, apparently by King Anitta from Kussara, who erected an inscribed curse against anyone who resettled it. The city was rebuilt, and around 1650 BC the Hittite king Labarna moved the capital there and took the name Hattusili. The capital later moved away twice, and in the mid-13th century BC Mursili III returned the seat to Hattusa, where it remained until the end of the Hittite kingdom in the 12th century BC.

At its peak the city covered 1.8 km2 (440 acres), in an inner and an outer portion surrounded by a massive and still visible course of walls erected during the reign of Suppiluliuma I c. 1344–1322 BC. The inner city covered some 0.8 km2 (200 acres) and held a citadel with large administrative buildings and temples; the royal residence stood on the high ridge of Büyükkale. The city displayed over 6 km (3.7 mi) of walls. The outer city to the south, of about 1 km2 (250 acres), had gateways decorated with reliefs of warriors, lions and sphinxes, and four temples. Population is estimated at around 10,000, and only stone-built walls of temples and palaces survive.

The city was destroyed together with the Hittite state around 1190 BC, as part of the Late Bronze Age collapse. It appears to have been gradually abandoned over several decades, and a regional drought has been suggested. Signs of final destruction by fire probably date from after the royal family and elites had left.

Charles Texier brought attention to the ruins after his visit in 1834, and systematic excavations by the German Oriental Society and the German Archaeological Institute began in the early 20th century and continue today. Hattusa was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Site list in 1986. Among the most important finds is the royal archive of clay tablets, with the 30,000 or so tablets forming the main corpus of Hittite literature. One records a peace settlement with the Egyptians under Ramesses II, in 1259 or 1258 BC.

The earliest traces of settlement on the site are from the 6th millennium BC during the Chalcolithic period. Toward the end of the 3rd millennium BC the Hattian people established a settlement on locations that had been occupied even earlier and referred to the site as Hattush. In the 19th and 18th centuries BC, merchants from Assyria, centered at Kanesh (Neša) (modern Kültepe) established a trading post there, setting up in their own separate quarter of the lower city.

A carbonized layer apparent in excavations attests to the burning and ruin of the city of Hattusa around 1700 BC. The responsible party appears to have been King Anitta from Kussara, who took credit for the act and erected an inscribed curse for good measure:

Whoever after me becomes king resettles Hattusas, let the Stormgod of the Sky strike him!

Nevertheless the city was rebuilt, possibly by a son of Anitta.

Around 1650 BC, the Hittite king Labarna moved the capital from Neša to Hattusa and took the name of Hattusili, the "one/man from Hattusa". After the Kaskians arrived to the kingdom's north, they twice attacked the city and under king Tudhaliya I, the Hittites moved the capital north to Sapinuwa. Under Muwatalli II, they moved south to Tarhuntassa but the king assigned his younger brother, the future Hattusili III as governor over Hattusa. In the mid-13th century BC Hittite ruler Mursili III returned the seat to Hattusa, where the capital remained until the end of the Hittite kingdom in the 12th century BC (KBo 21.15 i 11–12).

At its peak, the city covered 1.8 km2 (440 acres) and comprised an inner and outer portion, both surrounded by a massive and still visible course of walls erected during the reign of Suppiluliuma I c. 1344–1322 BC. The inner city covered an area of some 0.8 km2 (200 acres) and was occupied by a citadel with large administrative buildings and temples. The royal residence, or acropolis, was built on a high ridge now known as Büyükkale (Great Fortress). The city displayed over 6 km (3.7 mi) of walls, with inner and outer layers around 3 m (9.8 ft) thick and 2 m (6 ft 7 in) of space between, totalling 8 m (26 ft).

To the south lay an outer city of about 1 km2 (250 acres), with elaborate gateways decorated with reliefs showing warriors, lions, and sphinxes. Four temples were located here, each set around a porticoed courtyard, together with secular buildings and residential structures. Outside the walls are cemeteries, most of which contain cremation burials. Modern estimates put the population of the city around 10,000; in the early period, the inner city housed a third of that number. The dwelling houses that were built with timber and mud bricks have vanished from the site, leaving only the stone-built walls of temples and palaces.

The city was destroyed, together with the Hittite state itself, around 1190 BC, as part of the Late Bronze Age collapse. Excavations suggest that Hattusa was gradually abandoned over a period of several decades as the Hittite empire disintegrated. It has been suggested that a regional drought occurred at that time. Signs of final destruction by fire have been noted, but this destruction probably occurred after the city had already been abandoned by the Hittite royal family, elites, and state apparatus. Agricultural communities with a material culture distinct from the Hittites settled in the remains of Hattusa as early as the 12th Century BC.