Battle of Kadesh

Battle of Kadesh, major battle in 1275 bce between the Egyptians under Ramses II and the Hittites under Muwatallis, in Syria, southwest of Ḥimṣ, on the Orontes River. In one of the world’s largest chariot battles, fought beside the Orontes River, Pharaoh Ramses II sought to wrest Canaan and Syria from the Hittites and recapture the Hittite-held city of Kadesh. There was a day of carnage as some 5,000 chariots charged into the fray, but no outright victor. The battle led to the world’s first recorded peace treaty.

Resolved to pursue the expansionist policy introduced by his father, Seti I, Ramses invaded Hittite territories in Palestine and pushed on into Canaan. Near the Orontes River, his soldiers captured two men who said they were deserters from the Hittite force, which now lay some way off, outside Aleppo. This was reassuring, since the impetuous pharaoh had pushed well ahead of his main army with an advance guard of 20,000 infantry and 2,000 chariots. Unfortunately, the supposed deserters were loyal agents of his enemy. Led by their king, Muwatallis, the Hittites were at hand—with 40,000 foot soldiers and 3,000 chariots—and swiftly attacked. Their heavy, three-horse chariots smashed into the Egyptian vanguard, scattering its lighter chariots and the ranks behind. An easy victory seemed assured, and the Hittites dropped their guard and set about plundering their fallen enemy. Calm and determined, Ramses quickly regrouped his men and launched a counterattack.

With their shock advantage gone, the Hittite chariots seemed slow and ungainly; the lighter Egyptian vehicles outmaneuvered them with ease. Ramses, bold and decisive, managed to pluck from the jaws of defeat if not victory, then at least an honorable draw; even so, he was unable to retake Kadesh. Both sides claimed the battle as a triumph, and Ramses had his temples festooned with celebratory reliefs. In truth, the outcome was inconclusive, so much so that 15 years later, after the death of Muwatallis, the two sides returned to Kadesh to agree to a nonaggression pact—the first known example in history. A copy of the treaty is on display at the United Nations in New York.

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The Egyptian version of the battle was recorded on numerous temples by Ramses, while an account excavated in the archives at the Hittite capital of Boğazköy has afforded historians a more balanced assessment of the battle.

Losses: Unknown.