TREATY
OF KADESH
Preamble
The regulations which the Great Prince of Hatti, Hattusilis, the
powerful, the son of Mursilis, the Great Prince of Hatti, the powerful,
the son of the son of Suppiluliumas, the Great Prince of Hatti, the
powerful, made upon a tablet of silver for User-maat-Re, the great
ruler of Egypt, the powerful, the son of Men-maat-Re, the great ruler
of Egypt, the powerful, the son of Men-pehti-Re, the great ruler of
Egypt, the powerful; the good regulations of peace and of brotherhood,
giving peace . . . forever.
Former Relations
Now from the beginning of the limits of eternity, as for the situation
of the great ruler of Egypt with the Great Prince of Hatti, the god did
not permit hostility to occur between them, through a regulation. But
in the time of Muwatallis, the Great Prince of Hatti, my brother, he
fought with Ramses Meri-Amon, the great ruler of Egypt. But hereafter,
from this day, behold Hattusilis, the Great Prince of Hatti, is under a
regulation for making permanent the situation which the Re and Seth
made for the land of Egypt with the land of Hatti, in order not to
permit hostility to occur between them forever.
The Present Treaty
Behold, Hattusilis, the Great Prince of Hatti, has set himself in a
regulation with User-maat-Re Setep-en-Re, the great ruler of Egypt,
beginning from this day, to cause that good peace and brotherhood occur
between us forever, while he is in brotherhood with me and he is at
peace with me, and I am in brotherhood with him and I am at peace with
him forever. Now since Muwatallis, the Great Prince of Hatti, my
brother, went in pursuit of his fate, and Hattusilis sat as Great
Prince of Hatti upon the throne of his father, behold, I have come to
be with Ramses Meri-Amon, the great ruler of Egypt, for we are together
in our peace and our brotherhood. It is better than the peace or the
brotherhood which was formerly in the land. Behold, I, as the Great
Prince of Hatti, am with Ramses Meri-Amon, in good peace and in good
brotherhood. The children of the children of the Great Prince of Hatti
are in brotherhood and peace with the children of the children of
Ramses Meri-Amon, the great ruler of Egypt, for they are in our
situation of brotherhood and our situation of peace. The land of Egypt,
with the land of Hatti, shall be at peace and in brotherhood like unto
us forever. Hostilities shall not occur between them forever.
Mutual Renunciation of Invasion
The Great Prince of Hatti shall not trespass against the land of Egypt
forever, to take anything from it. And User-maat-Re Setep-en-Re, the
great ruler of Egypt, shall not trespass against the land of Hatti, to
take from it forever.
Reaffirmation of Former Treaties
As to the traditional regulation which had been here in the time of
Suppiluliumas, the Great Prince of Hatti, as well as the traditional
regulation which had been in the time of Muwatallis,the Great Prince of
Hatti, my father, I seize hold of it. Behold, Ramses Meri-Amon, the
great ruler of Egypt, seizes hold of the regulation which he makes
together with us, beginning from this day. We seize hold of it, and we
act in this traditional situation.
A Defensive Alliance--for Egypt
If another enemy come against the lands of User- maat-Re, the great
ruler of Egypt, and he send to the Great Prince of Hatti, saying: "Come
with me as reinforcement against him," the Great Prince of Hatti shall
come to him and the Great Prince of Hatti shall slay his enemy.
However, if it is not the desire of the Great Prince of Hatti to go
(himself), he shall send his infantry and his chariotry, and he shall
slay his enemy. Or, if Ramses Meri-Amon the great ruler of Egypt, is
enraged Against servants belonging to him, and they commit another
offence against him, and he go to slay them, the Great Prince of Hatti
shall act with him to slay everyone against whom they shall be enraged.
A Defensive Alliance--for Hatti
But if another enemy come against the Great Prince of Hatti,
User-maat-Re Setep-en-Re, the great ruler of Egypt, shall] come to him
as reinforcement to slay his enemy. If it is (not) the desire of Ramses
Meri-Amon, the great ruler of Egypt, to come, he shall . . . Hatti,
land he shall send his infantry and his chariotry, besides returning
answer to the land of Hatti. Now if the servants of the Great Prince of
Hatti trespass against him, and Ramses Meri-Amon. . . .
The Contingency of Death?
. . . the land of Hatti and the land of Egypt . . . the life. Should it
be that I shall go in pursuit of my fate, then Ramses Meri-Amon, the
great ruler of Egypt, living forever, shall go and come to the land of
Hatti, . . . to cause . . . , to make him lord for them, to make
User-maat-Re Setep-en-Re, the great ruler of Egypt, silent with his
mouth forever. Now after he . . . the land of Hatti, and he returns .
the Great Prince of Hatti, as well as the. . . .
Extradition of Refugees to Egypt
If a great man flee from the land of Egypt and come to the Great Prince
of Hatti, or a town belonging to the lands of Ramses Meri-Amon, the
great ruler of Egypt, and they come to the Great Prince of Hatti, the
Great Prince of Hatti shall not receive them. The Great Prince of Hatti
shall cause them to be brought to User-maat-Re Setep-en-Re, the great
ruler of Egypt, their lord, because of it. Or if a man or two men--no
matter who--flee, and they come to the land of Hatti to be servants of
someone else, they shall not be left in the land of Hatti; they shall
be brought to Ramses Meri-Amon, the great ruler of Egypt.
Extradition of Refugees to Hatti
Or if a great man flee from the land of Hatti and come to User-maat-Re
Setep-en-Re, the great ruler of Egypt, or a town or a district or a . .
. belonging to the land of Hatti, and they come to Ramses Meri-Amon,
the great ruler of Egypt, (then) User-maat-Re Setep-en-Re, the great
ruler of Egypt, shall not receive them. Ramses Meri-Amon, the great
ruler of Egypt, shall cause them to be brought to the Prince [of
Hatti]. They shall not be left. Similarly, if a man or two men--no
matter who14--flee, and they come to the land of Egypt to be servants
of other people, User-maat-Re Setep-en-Re, the great ruler of Egypt,
shall not leave them. He shall cause them to be brought to the Great
Prince of Hatti.
The Divine Witnesses to the
Treaty
As for these words of the regulation which the Great Prince of Hatti
made with Ramses Meri-Amon, the great ruler of Egypt, in writing upon
this tablet of silver-as for these words, a thousand gods of the male
gods and of the female gods of them of the land of Hatti, together with
a thousand gods of the male gods and of the female gods of them of the
land of Egypt, are with me as witnesses hearing these words: the Re,
the lord of the sky; the Re of the town of Arinna; Seth, the lord of
the sky; Seth of Hatti; Seth of the town of Arinna; Seth of the town of
Zippalanda; Seth of the town of Pe(tt)iyarik; Seth of the town of
Hissas(ha)pa; Seth of the town of Sarissa; Seth of the town of Aleppo;
Seth of the town of Lihzina; Seth of the town . . .; . . .; Seth of the
town of Sahpin; Antaret16 of the land of Hatti; the god of Zithari(as);
the god of Karzis; the god of Hapantaliyas; the goddess of the town of
Karahna; the goddess of . . . . . . . . .; the Queen of the
Sky; the gods, the lords of oaths; this goddess, the Lady of the
Ground; the Lady of the Oath, Ishara; the Lady (of the) mountains and
the rivers of the land of Hatti; the gods of the land of Kizuwadna;
Amon; the Re; Seth; the male gods; the female gods; the mountains; and
the rivers of the land of Egypt; the sky; the earth; the great sea; the
winds; and the clouds.
Curses and Blessings for this Treaty
As for these words which are on this tablet of silver of the land of
Hatti and of the land of Egypt--as for him who shall not keep them, a
thousand gods of the land of Hatti, together with a thousand gods of
the land of Egypt, shall destroy his house, his land, and his servants.
But, as for him who shall keep these words which are this tablet of
silver, whether they are Hatti or whether they are Egyptians, and they
are not neglectful of them, a thousand gods of the land of Hatti,
together with a thousand gods of the land of Egypt, shall cause that he
be well, shall cause that he live, together with his houses and his
(land) and his servants.
Extradition of Egyptians from Hatti
If a man flee from the land of Egypt--or two or three-- and they come
to the Great Prince of Hatti, the Great Prince of Hatti shall lay hold
of them, and he shall cause that they be brought back to User-maat-Re
Setep-en-Re, the great ruler of Egypt. But, as for the man who shall be
brought to Ramses Meri-Amon, the great ruler off Egypt, do not cause
that his crime be raised against him; do not cause that his house or
his wives or his children be destroyed; do not cause that he be slain;
do not cause that injury be done to his eyes, to his ears, to his
mouth, or to his legs; do not let any crime be raised against him.
Extradition of Hittites from Egypt
Similarly, if men flee from the land of Hatti--whether he be one or two
or three--and they come to User-maat- Re Setep-en-Re, the great ruler
of Egypt, let Ramses Meri-Amon, the great ruler of Egypt, lay hold of
them and cause that they be brought to the Great Prince of Hatti, and
the Great Prince of Hatti shall not raise their crime against them, and
they shall not destroy his house or his wives or his children, and they
shall not slay him, and they shall not do injury to his ears, to his
eyes, to his mouth, or to his legs, and they shall not raise any crime
against him.
Source: J.B. Pritchard. Ancient Near Eastern Texts Related to the
Old Testament, 3rd ed., p. 199-201.