Hittites

The Hittites were an ancient Anatolian civilization that established a major state and empire in north-central Anatolia during the late Bronze Age. By the 17th century BCE they developed a centralized government, a legal system, and a powerful military. The Hittite language, an Indo-European tongue, was written in a form of cuneiform and used in administration and diplomacy.

Centered at Hattusa in the region of Hatti, the core lands lay in present-day central Turkey, with an expanding reach into western Anatolia and parts of Syria. The empire was ruled by a succession of kings who exercised imperial authority through provincial governors and a network of fortified towns. Taxation, tribute, and military service sustained the state.

During the 14th–13th centuries BCE the Hittites achieved diplomatic and military prominence, engaging with Egyptian, Mesopotamian, and other Near Eastern powers. They fought Ramses II at the Battle of Kadesh (c. 1274 BCE), later negotiating one of the era's earliest known peace treaties. The Hittites developed legal and administrative practices, producing extensive royal records and correspondence.

From the late 13th century BCE, the empire declined amid the wider Bronze Age collapse and pressure from northern peoples. The interior regions fell under Phrygian and other control, and the capital at Hattusa was abandoned and destroyed around 1200 BCE. The Hittite state dissolved, but the language and cultural legacy influenced subsequent Anatolian polities.