Gurgum was a Neo-Hittite state in Anatolia, known from the 10th to the 7th century BC. Its name is given as Gurgum in

Assyria Assyria ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , romanized: ''māt Aššur''; syc, ܐܬܘܪ, ʾāthor) was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization which existed as a city-state at times controlling regional territories in the indigenous lands of the A ...

n sources, while its native name seems to have been Kurkuma for the reason that the capital of Gurgum— Marqas in Assyrian sources (today Maraş)—was named "the Kurkumaean city" (''ku''+''ra/i-ku-ma-wa/i-ni-i-sà''(URBS)) in local Hieroglyphic Luwian inscriptions.

History

The first historical event in the history of Gurgum is known for the reign of Larama I . This Gurgumaean king undertook a program of reconstruction including the replanting of crops and vineyards. In 858 BC, during the first western campaign of the Assyrian king

Shalmaneser III Shalmaneser III (''Šulmānu-ašarēdu'', "the god Shulmanu is pre-eminent") was king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from the death of his father Ashurnasirpal II in 859 BC to his own death in 824 BC. His long reign was a constant series of campaig ...

, king Muwatalli II of Gurgum submitted to the Assyrians and paid them tribute. This tribute consisted of gold, silver, oxen, sheep, wine, and his own daughter with her dowry. Muwatalli II's son, King Halparuntiya II, undertook several military expeditions. He attacked the city (or land?) of Hirika (probably to be identified with the land of Hilakku or a Melidian border city named Hiliki) and captured the city Iluwasi. In 853 BC he paid tribute to the Assyrians as his father did before him. In 805 BC, Halparuntiya III invaded the neighbouring kingdom of Kummuh for territorial reasons. The king of Kummuh, Suppiluliuma (Assyrian Ušpilulume), appealed to the Assyrian king

Adad-nirari III Adad-nirari III (also Adad-narari) was a King of Assyria from 811 to 783 BC. Note that this assumes that the longer version of the Assyrian Eponym List, which has an additional eponym for Adad-nirari III, is the correct one. For the shorter eponym ...

for help, and the Assyrians fixed the border between Gurgum and Kummuh. Around 800 BC, Gurgum was part of a coalition of numerous Neo-Hittite and

Aramean The Arameans ( oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; syc, ܐܪ̈ܡܝܐ, Ārāmāyē) were an ancient Semitic-speaking people in the Near East, first recorded in historical sources from the late 12th century BCE. The Aramean ...

states hostile to the

Hama Hama ( ar, حَمَاة ', ; syr, ܚܡܬ, ħ(ə)mɑθ, lit=fortress; Biblical Hebrew: ''Ḥamāṯ'') is a city on the banks of the Orontes River in west-central Syria. It is located north of Damascus and north of Homs. It is the provincial ...

thite king

Zakkur Zakkur (or ''Zakir'') was the ancient king of Hamath and Luhuti (also known as Nuhašše) in Syria. He ruled around 785 BC. Most of the information about him comes from his basalt stele, known as the Stele of Zakkur. History Irhuleni and his son ...

. In the reign of Tarhulara in 743 BC, Gurgum also took part in an anti-Assyrian military alliance led by

Sarduri II Sarduri II (ruled: 764–735 BC) was a King of Urartu, succeeding his father Argishti I to the throne. The Urartian Kingdom was at its peak during his reign, campaigning successfully against several neighbouring powers, including Assyria. Th ...

Urartu Urartu (; Assyrian: ',Eberhard Schrader, ''The Cuneiform inscriptions and the Old Testament'' (1885), p. 65. Babylonian: ''Urashtu'', he, אֲרָרָט ''Ararat'') is a geographical region and Iron Age kingdom also known as the Kingdom of V ...

and Mati-Ilu of Arpad. The Assyrian king

Tiglath-pileser III Tiglath-Pileser III ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , meaning "my trust belongs to the son of Ešarra"), was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 745 BC to his death in 727. One of the most prominent and historically significant Assyrian kings, T ...

defeated the hostile alliance and also invaded Gurgum, destroying 100 Gurgumaean cities. Tarhulara submitted and beseeched the Assyrian king to spare the capital Marqas. Tarhulara was allowed to stay on the throne and henceforth was an Assyrian tributary, paying tribute to the Assyrian king in 738 and 732 BC. In 711 BC, Tarhulara was assassinated by his son Muwatalli III, who then seized the throne of Gurgum. The Assyrian king

Sargon II Sargon II ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , meaning "the faithful king" or "the legitimate king") was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 722 BC to his death in battle in 705. Probably the son of Tiglath-Pileser III (745–727), Sargon is gener ...

responded by deposing Muwatalli III and deporting him to Assyria. Gurgum was annexed to the Assyrian empire and renamed Marqas after the name of the capital city.

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Literature

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History

Rulers

References

Literature

See also