Battle of Qadesh (Of Kings and Gods)

The Battle of Qadesh, also known as the Battle of Kadesh or the War for Canaan, was essentially the first battle in history recorded in full. Not only have Egyptian records been found, but Canaanite and Hittite writings abound, allowing for a relatively unbiased view of the battle. The battle is generally dated to 1274 BC, though there is some uncertainty to this (generally plus or minus 10 years). Another interesting part of the battle was the sheer amount of chariots - as many as 5,000, unprecedented by any other battle before or for hundreds of year afterward.

Coincidentally, while Qadesh is the first well recorded battle, it was also an incredibly important battle for the time. To start with, it greatly weakened Egypt, first leading the the failed twentieth dynasty before finally recovering with twenty first dynasty. However, Egyptian influence in Canaan would still be obliterated, and would be for hundreds of years. Meanwhile, the Hittites would greatly benefit from their victory. Not only would Canaan become far more aligned with them, but they would increase their influence over Anatolia, and eventually even fend off the Assyrians, leading to their overtaking of Egypt on most levels over the following century.

Background
After expelling the  around 1550 BC, the native  } rulers became more aggressive in reclaiming control of their state's borders, mostly in Canaan and Syria. , and his son and coregent  fought is multiple battles north to the Orontes River (Near Qadesh), trying to assert Egyptian control over the  in the region.

Many of the Egyptian campaign accounts between 1400 and 1300 BC reflect the general destabilization of the region of Southern Canaan. The reigns of and  were undistinguished, except that Egypt continued to lose territory and influence to the Hittites in northern Syria.

During the late, the continue to tell the story of the decline of Egyptian influence in the region. The Egyptians showed moderate interest here until almost the end of the dynasty. , the last ruler of this dynasty, campaigned in this region, finally beginning to turn Egyptian interest back to this region, weakening the Hittites in the process.

This process continued in the. Like his father, was a military commander and set out to restore Egypt's empire to the days of the Tuthmosis kings almost a century before, particularly interesting himself in Canaan and Syria. Inscriptions on temple walls record the details of the campaigns, including battles with the Hittites, though details are sketchy at best.

Seti took 20,000 men and reoccupied abandoned Egyptian posts and garrisoned cities. He made an informal peace with the Hittites, took control of coastal areas along the, and continued to campaign in Canaan. A second campaign led to his capture of Qadesh and. His son and heir Ramesses II campaigned with him. There are historical records that record a large weapons order by Ramesses II in the year prior to the expedition he led to Qadesh in his fifth regnal year.

However, soon after this both regions lapsed back into Hittite control, and immediately afterwards Ramesses threatened the Hittites in Qadesh with the. In the fourth year of his reign, he marched north into Syria, either to recapture Amurru or, as a probing effort, to confirm his vassal's' loyalty and explore the terrain of possible battles. The recovery of Amurru was Muwatalli's stated motivation for marching south to confront the Egyptians. Ramesses marched north in the fifth year of his reign and encountered the Hittites at Qadesh.

Contending Forces
After fighting briefly in Canaan, Ramesses had a powerful and battle tested army of around 20,000 troops. These troops were split into four divisions - Amun, Ra, Nearin, and Ptah, with the Amun being the central division Ramesses himself commanded. There are also some records of a fifth division, Suteh, though it is not mentioned in Hittite accounts, and only sparingly in Egyptian ones, suggesting it was either smaller than the others, or more likely, simply an extension of the Amun division. It is likely Khaemweset, the future Pharaoh of Egypt, was in command of the Nearin division, while his brothers Paser and Ramesses (the younger) commanded Ra and Ptah. Assuming Suteh was important enough for a separate commander, it likely would have been Amunherkhepeshef or Pareherwenemef, though there is little evidence to back this up.

While the Egyptian army was well laid out, the Hittites were more of a patchwork. Records show the presence of at least 14 and as many as 19 major groups present in the Hittite army, from the westernmost regions of Anatolia to Syria, and possibly even Canaan. Not only is this a testament to the unparalleled reach of the Hittites and give them a huge numerical advantage, but it also showcased how comparatively weak the Egyptians were in that area. Unfortunate for the Hittites, the testament to their influence wasn't nearly as cohesive as the Egyptians army. At least 20 major commanders reared for influence over the group of 40,000 soldiers, and it was a miracle Muwatalli II was even able to control his army for the duration of the battle, and even then, it was more or less disbanded within a week after the battles conclusion.

However despite their disunity and infighting, it's hardly fair to say they were at an overall disadvantage. For one, they had at least twice the amount of soldiers the Egyptians did, and regardless of the disunification, this would be a huge advantage. Even with Ramesses commanding the Egyptians, they would be facing an uphill battle, and would probably need to out wit the Hittite army multiple times to win the battle. Furthermore, Qadesh was for more loyal to the Hittites than the Egyptians, and could thus be used by the Hittites for defense if needed, plus the usual advantage of defending rather than attacking. To be fair, the Egyptians were still the more cohesive army, and it's ultimately probably fair to say the Hittites had the overall advantage, but it would be wrong to completely write off the Egyptians, assuming they had a little bit of luck.

Chariots
On of the most interesting features of the battle of Qadesh was the massive chariot presence on both sides. The Hittites are known to have had at least 2,500 chariots, with estimates going up to around 3,200. Meanwhile, the Egyptians had significantly less, with at least 2,000, but possibly a few hundred more. Up to that point in history, no battle had even half that many chariots, and it wouldn't be until around 500 BC that a battle would even compare to the amount of chariots this one had. In addition, the central tactical role the chariots played was also revolutionary. Early in the battle, they were used to scatter and destroy the Egyptian Ra division, and the Hittites chariot advantage would essentially carry the battle for them, without even engaging all of their infantry, While the Egyptian infantry would struggle to outmaneuver and fight the onslaught.

Another fascinating dynamic in the battle was between the two man Egyptian Chariots and the three man Hittite chariots. While the Egyptian chariots were likely newer, and could be maneuvered faster, the heavier Hittite chariots were more effective against infantry. Retrospectively, the battle, along with later fighting in Canaan, would be the litmus test of the Egyptian chariots verses the Hittite chariots. According to all known records, the Egyptian chariots could generally beat the Hittite chariots without infantry available, crushing them multiple times. However, the Hittite chariots regularly cut down Egyptian infantry, while the Egyptian chariots often lost against Hittite infantry, and couldn't defend their own. This dynamic would continue for over a century, though over time, both sides would slowly adopt some of the others tactics.

Hittite Allies
Every account of the battle mentions a whole slew of Hittite allies, from across Anatolia, Syria, and even Canaan. These allies and vassals likely made up a substantial portion of the Hittite army (estimates range from 30 to 60 percent), which contributed to their numerical superiority over Egypt. Every known record lists at least 8 and as many as 24 potential allies, with 28 distinct possible supporters listed across all records. However, many of these claimed allies have been deemed wildly implausible or completely fictitious (including a case where no evidence existed for the supposed ally outside the one record), so a tentative list of 19 possible allies was developed, with carrying levels of probability. * Ranked in descending order of how likely it is considered that the ally fought in significant numbers at Qadesh, based on the number and substance of their mentions in records of the battle

Battle
After Ramesses' campaigns in Syria and Canaan, he set his sights on the valuable city of Qadesh. Not only was the city well populated and economically productive, but it lay in the borderland between Egypt and the Hittites. While the Hittites had certainly held more influence in the region as of late, it would be fair to say to border was undefined enough that Egypt could still assert its own claim. Wanting to do just that, Ramesses marched north, thinking the city to be only lightly defended. Upon his arrival, he found the situation to be far worse than he had thought. Not only were as many as 5,000 Hittite soldiers garrisoned in the city itself, but 35,000 more were camped out to the northeast. After a brief skirmish around Qadesh reveled it to be exceptianlly defended, Ramesses and his army moved northwards, camping out across the Orontes river from the Hittites.

As soon as the Amun division settled down across from the Hittites, the remaining division spread out. The Nearin division (Apparently accompanied by the Suteh division) proceeded northwards. Some units of the Nearin division apparently skirmished with the outer regions of the Hittite camp, constituting the only significant fighting of the night.