Description
Offering fascinating insights into the people and politics of the ancient near Eastern kingdoms, Trevor Bryce uses the letters of the five Great Kings of Egypt, Babylon, Hatti, Mitanni and Assyria as the focus of a fresh look at this turbulent and volatile region in the late Bronze Age.
Numerous extracts from the letters are constantly interwoven into the fabric of narrative and discussion, and this lively approach allows us to witness history through the eyes of the people who lived it, revealing the personalities and reactions of kings, queens, princes, princesses and royal officials more than 3500 years ago to the current events of the day.
Table of Contents
Introduction; Part 1 Setting the Scene; Chapter 1 The Main Players; Chapter 2 The Interaction of the Players; Part 2 The Letters and Their Themes; Chapter 3 Letters and Messengers; Chapter 4 The Club of Royal Brothers; Chapter 5 Gift-Exchanges; Chapter 6 The Marriage Market; Chapter 7 Sending for the Doctor; Part 3 Historical Episodes; Chapter 8; Chapter 9; Chapter 10 Hittite Frontier Correspondence; Chapter 11 An Extraordinary Request; Chapter 12 Letter to a Mycenaean King; Chapter 13 The Elusive Urhi-Teshub; Chapter 14 Last Days;
