THEME: Ancient Anatolia THEME WAR, DIPLOMACY, AND TREASON
Western Anatolia in the Late Bronze Age was a patchwork of states, from regional powers to confederations of smaller states. Sandwiched between the hegemonic power of the Hittites to the east and the sea to the west, the rulers of these small states would have had to play a delicate political game to maintain their positions.
Madduwatta's Anatolia
The Hittite Old Kingdom had already tried to bring this part of Anatolia under its rule, and it seems that the task was a difficult one. The most important challenger to Hittite control appears to have been a federation of kingdoms called Assuwa. The Hittites finally managed to defeat Assuwa in 1400 BC and took their king and his son as prisoners. During the Hittites’ conflict with Assuwa in ca. 1430 BC, the Ahhiyawa first appear in the area, clashing with Madduwatta, then a Hittite vassal, and the Hittites themselves.
Due to the similarity of the name with the later Achaeans, as well as the presence of Mycenaean pottery in the region, the Ahhiyawa are now thought to be Greeks, although where they were centred is debated. The Ahhiyawa are first mentioned in the and continue to appear in various documents, mostly as enemies, although peaceful periods of trade and understanding occurred. The king of the Ahhiyawa is
