Hattusas

(also Hattusa, Hattushash, or Khattusas; modern Boğazköy), the capital of the Hittite empire, located in what is now Turkey, 150 km from Ankara. Although the ruins were discovered in 1834, systematic excavations were only begun in 1906. Among the discoveries were the remains of fortress walls, a palace, temples, an aqueduct, dwellings, and other buildings. Also discovered was the Boğazköy Archive, containing a wealth of information.

The first mentions of Hattusas date to the second half of the third millennium B.C. In the 23rd century B.C., the city’s ruler Pamba joined a coalition against the Akkadian king Naram-sin. In the beginning of the second millennium B.C., Hattusas became one of the leading commercial centers of Anatolia. In the 18th century B.C., it was captured and destroyed by the Hittite king Anittas of the city of Kussara, but by the beginning of the 17th century B.C., it was rebuilt. The rivalry with Kussara ended in the transfer of the Hittite capital to Hattusas by the ruler Hattusilis I. During the reign of Hantilis I (late 16th century B.C.), a fortified wall was built around the city. In the 13th century B.C., Hattusas was plundered by Kaskan tribes, who inhabited the mountains of Pontus to the north and northeast of the Hittite empire, but during the rule of Hattusilis III, the city was again rebuilt. In the early 12th century B.C., Hattusas was attacked by the Peoples of the Sea, who destroyed the Hittite kingdom.