The Yamhad dynasty was an ancient

Amorite The Amorites (; sux, 𒈥𒌅, MAR.TU; Akkadian: 𒀀𒈬𒊒𒌝 or 𒋾𒀉𒉡𒌝/𒊎 ; he, אֱמוֹרִי, 'Ĕmōrī; grc, Ἀμορραῖοι) were an ancient Northwest Semitic-speaking people from the Levant who also occupied lar ...

royal family founded in c. 1810 BC by

Sumu-Epuh Sumu-Epuh (reigned Middle chronology) is the first attested king of Yamhad (Halab). He founded the Yamhad dynasty which controlled northern Syria throughout the 17th and 18th centuries BC. Reign Although Sumu-Epuh's early life or the way he asc ...

Yamhad Yamhad was an ancient Semitic people, Semitic kingdom centered on Aleppo, Ḥalab (Aleppo), Syria. The kingdom emerged at the end of the 19th century BC, and was ruled by the Yamhad dynasty, Yamhadite dynasty kings, who counted on both military ...

who had his capital in the city of

Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...

. Started as a local dynasty, the family expanded its influence through the actions of its energetic ruler Yarim-Lim I who turned it into the most influential family in the

Levant The Levant () is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia. In its narrowest sense, which is in use today in archaeology and other cultural contexts, it is ...

through both diplomatic and military tools. At its height the dynasty controlled most of northern Syria and the modern Turkish province of

Hatay Hatay Province ( tr, Hatay ili, ) is the southernmost province of Turkey. It is situated almost entirely outside Anatolia, along the eastern coast of the Levantine Sea. The province borders Syria to its south and east, the Turkish province ...

with a cadet branch ruling in the city of

Alalakh Alalakh (''Tell Atchana''; Hittite: Alalaḫ) is an ancient archaeological site approximately northeast of Antakya (historic Antioch) in what is now Turkey's Hatay Province. It flourished, as an urban settlement, in the Middle and Late Bronze Ag ...

(Land of Mukish). The dynasty was ousted during a short Hittite occupation of Aleppo in the beginning of the 16th century BC but was restored and expanded the kingdom again before being driven out of Aleppo by the

Mitannians Mitanni (; Hittite cuneiform ; ''Mittani'' '), c. 1550–1260 BC, earlier called Ḫabigalbat in old Babylonian texts, c. 1600 BC; Hanigalbat or Hani-Rabbat (''Hanikalbat'', ''Khanigalbat'', cuneiform ') in Assyrian records, or '' Naharin'' i ...

in c. 1524.

Idrimi Idrimi was the king of Alalakh c. 1490–1465 BC, or around 1450 BC. He is known, mainly, from an inscription on his statue found at Alalakh by Leonard Woolley in 1939.Longman III, Tremper, (1991)Fictional Akkadian Autobiography: A Generic and Co ...

, a member of the dynasty, was able to conquer Alalakh leaving his descendants to rule until the last of them was dethroned by the Hittite king Suppiluliuma I in c. 1344 BC.

History

In all likelihoods Yamhad was a tribal name. The dynasty entered the historic records when the founder Sumu-Epuh was mentioned as an enemy in the inscriptions of

Yahdun-Lim Yahdunlim (or ''Yakhdunlim, Yahdun-Lim'') was the king of Mari probably in 1820—1796 BC. He was of Amorite origin, and became king after the death of his father Iagitlim. Yahdunlim built Mari up to become one of the major powers of the region. ...

of Mari. Sumu-Epuh faced dangerous enemies most important of them was

Shamshi-Adad I Shamshi-Adad ( akk, Šamši-Adad; Amorite: ''Shamshi-Addu''), ruled 1808–1776 BC, was an Amorite warlord and conqueror who had conquered lands across much of Syria, Anatolia, and Upper Mesopotamia.Some of the Mari letters addressed to Shamsi ...

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 ...

and was killed in one of the battles. His successor Yarim-Lim I was able to defeat all his enemies becoming a

Great King Great king, and the equivalent in many languages, refers to historical titles of certain monarchs, suggesting an elevated status among the host of kings and princes. This title is most usually associated with the '' shahanshah'' (shah of shahs ...

, his reign saw an alliance with

Hammurabi Hammurabi (Akkadian: ; ) was the sixth Amorite king of the Old Babylonian Empire, reigning from to BC. He was preceded by his father, Sin-Muballit, who abdicated due to failing health. During his reign, he conquered Elam and the city-states ...

Babylon ''Bābili(m)'' * sux, 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠 * arc, 𐡁𐡁𐡋 ''Bāḇel'' * syc, ܒܒܠ ''Bāḇel'' * grc-gre, Βαβυλών ''Babylṓn'' * he, בָּבֶל ''Bāvel'' * peo, 𐎲𐎠𐎲𐎡𐎽𐎢 ''Bābiru'' * elx, 𒀸𒁀𒉿𒇷 ''Babi ...

, and the dynasty became the most influential family in the Levant with the armies of Yamhad campaigning as far away as

Diniktum Diniktum, inscribed ''Di-ni-ik-tum''KI, was a middle bronze-age town located somewhere in the Diyala Governorate of Iraq. On the Tigris river downstream from Upi and close to the northern border of Elam. It is possibly at or in the vicinity of T ...

in southern

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

next to

Elam Elam (; Linear Elamite: ''hatamti''; Cuneiform Elamite: ; Sumerian: ; Akkadian: ; he, עֵילָם ''ʿēlām''; peo, 𐎢𐎺𐎩 ''hūja'') was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretc ...

borders. Dynastic marriages played a part in the dynasty policy and included royal members of many kingdoms such as

Ebla Ebla ( Sumerian: ''eb₂-la'', ar, إبلا, modern: , Tell Mardikh) was one of the earliest kingdoms in Syria. Its remains constitute a tell located about southwest of Aleppo near the village of Mardikh. Ebla was an important center t ...

and Mari, whose King Zimri-Lim was married to

Shibtu Shibtu (reigned 1775 BC – 1761 BC) was the wife of Zimrilim and queen consort of the ancient city-state of Mari in modern-day Syria. Historian Abraham Malamat described her as "the most prominent of the Mari ladies." Life Shib ...

the daughter of Yarim-Lim I. Hammurabi I (re. c. 1764 BC) son of Yarim-Lim I ruled a prosperous Kingdom, The dynasty hegemony remained unchallenged and he was able to add

Carchemish Carchemish ( Turkish: ''Karkamış''; or ), also spelled Karkemish ( hit, ; Hieroglyphic Luwian: , /; Akkadian: ; Egyptian: ; Hebrew: ) was an important ancient capital in the northern part of the region of Syria. At times during i ...

to his vassals, his successor

Abba-El I Abba-El I (reigned - Middle chronology ) was the king of Yamhad ( Halab), succeeding his father Hammurabi I. Reign Hammurabi I left Yamhad a prosperous country, and Abba-El's reign was relatively peaceful. He maintained good commercial relation ...

installed his younger brother Yarim-Lim on the throne of Alalakh in c. 1735 BC, thus creating a cadet branch of the dynasty under the hegemony of the great king in

Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...

In Aleppo

Cuneiform legal tablet in case from Aleppo

The line of great kings in aleppo continued to hold hegemony over other Syrian kingdoms, Abba-El I was succeeded by his son Yarim-Lim II whose reign isn't well attested, his successors Niqmi-Epuh and Irkabtum fought with the

Hurrian The Hurrians (; cuneiform: ; transliteration: ''Ḫu-ur-ri''; also called Hari, Khurrites, Hourri, Churri, Hurri or Hurriter) were a people of the Bronze Age Near East. They spoke a Hurrian language and lived in Anatolia, Syria and Norther ...

principalities and guaranteed the kingdom dominance in the north. The short reign of Hammurabi II was followed by Yarim-Lim III who defeated the dynasty old rival

Qatna Qatna (modern: ar, تل المشرفة, Tell al-Mishrifeh) (also Tell Misrife or Tell Mishrifeh) was an ancient city located in Homs Governorate, Syria. Its remains constitute a tell situated about northeast of Homs near the village of al ...

, but the danger came from the north as the Hittite king

Hattusili I Ḫattušili (''Ḫattušiliš'' in the inflected nominative case) was the regnal name of three Hittite kings: * Ḫattušili I (Labarna II) * Ḫattušili II * Ḫattušili III It was also the name of two Neo-Hittite kings: * Ḫattušili I (Laba ...

launched a series of destructive campaigns against the allies of the kingdom starting with Alalakh which fell in c. 1650 BC. The war continued for many years and ended with the sacking of Aleppo and the capture of Hammurabi III in c. 1600 BC by

Mursili I Mursili I (also known as Mursilis; sometimes transcribed as Murshili) was a king of the Hittites 1620-1590 BC, as per the middle chronology, the most accepted chronology in our times, (or alternatively c. 1556–1526 BC, short chronology), and wa ...

the successor of Hattusili. After the assassination of Mursili, Sarra-El a prince and a possible son of Yarim-Lim III regained aleppo and ruled a much smaller kingdom that again included Alalakh. He was succeeded by his son Abba-El II, then his grandson Ilim-Ilimma I who was the last member of the dynasty to rule Aleppo as its king, he was killed in c. 1524 BC which put an end to the kingdom of Yamhad.

In Alalakh

Two cadet branches ruled Alalakh, the first was founded by Yarim-Lim son of Hammurabi I in c. 1735, he had an exceptional long reign so did his successor

Ammitakum Ammitakum II was the last king of the ancient Mesopotamian city Alalakh. Archaeologists unearthed a large number of tablets detailing Ammitakum's reign. These documents showed that many citizens of Alalakh were indebted to him. Ammitakum purchased ...

who started to reign at the beginning of Niqmi-Epuh term and died shortly before the sack of Alalakh. Ammitakum asserted his autonomy from Yamhad without declaring an independent kingdom, he declared his son prince

as his heir in the presence of Yarim-Lim III who had no part in making that decision, those acts probably played a part in Aleppo decision not to send reinforcements to protect Alalakh from the Hittites who sacked it ending the first branch rule in c. 1650 BC. The second branch was established by

the son of Ilim-Ilimma I who managed to conquer Alalakh seven years after his escape from aleppo which fell to the hands of the Mitannian king

Parshatatar Barattarna, Parattarna, Paršatar, or Parshatatar was the name of a Hurrian king of Mitanni and is considered to have reigned, as per middle chronology between c. 1510 and 1490 BC by J. A. Belmonte-Marin quoting H. Klengel. Very few records of hi ...

. Idrimi ruled Alalakh and its area which was called the Kingdom of Mukish as a vassal to Mitanni and was attested campaigning against the Hittites, he was succeeded by his son Addu-nirari, then his second son Niqmepa who controlled aleppo as a vassal to Mitanni, he was succeeded by Ilim-Ilimma II, who left his son Itur-Addu as the last king of the dynasty, Itur-Addu allied with

Nuhašše Nuhašše, also Nuhašša, was a region in northwestern Syria that flourished in the 2nd millennium BC. It was a federacy ruled by different kings who collaborated and probably had a high king. Nuhašše changed hands between different powers in th ...

and Niya to face the armies of the Hittite king Suppiluliuma I, who defeated Itur-Addu and annexed both Aleppo and Alalakh in c. 1344 BC.

Members

Bold text : Great king.

Kings in Aleppo

c. 1810-1780 BC * Yarim-Lim I c. 1780-1764 BC * Hammurabi I c. 1764-1750 BC *

c. 1750-1720 BC * Yarim-Lim II c. 1720-1700 BC * Niqmi-Epuh c. 1700-1675 BC * Irkabtum c. 1675 - Middle 17th century BC * Hammurabi II Middle 17th century BC * Yarim-Lim III Middle 17th century BC - c. 1625 BC * Hammurabi III c. 1625-1600 BC * Sarra-El Early 16th century BC * Abba-El II Middle 16th century BC * Ilim-Ilimma I Middle 16th century BC - c. 1524 BC

Kings in Alalakh

* Yarim-Lim c. 1735- Early 17th century BC *

17th century BC *

c. 1517-1480 BC * Addu-nirari 15th century BC * Niqmepa Middle 15th century BC * Ilim-Ilimma II * Itur-Addu c. ? -1344 BC

Other members

* Sumunna-Abi: Queen of Sumu-Epuh and Yarim-Lim I mother. * Gashera: Queen of Yarim-Lim I and Hammurabi I mother. *

: daughter of Yarim-Lim I and queen consort of Zimri-Lim of Mari. * Tatteya: daughter of Hammurabi I. * Nakkusse: son of Hammurabi I, held high position in the court of his brother Yarim-Lim of Alalakh. *

son of Ammitakum of Alalakh, his succession to the throne is dubious. * Abba-El: son of Niqmi-Epuh. * Bintikidiya: a princess mentioned in a tablet from Alalakh, filiation unknown.