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Chapter 10.1: The Assyrian Account of the Battle of Qarqar
The source of the original text was the Kurkh monoliths as inscribed by the scribes. The
stela monolith describes the Battle of Qarqar as inscribed in Shalmaneser III's annals, which is
recorded in his sixth year of the emperor's reign in 853 BCE. However, the source document was
translated by A Leo Oppenheim in 1955 (278-279), with the help of W. Stiebing, who provided
slight changes in spelling. The primary source describes the Battle of Qarqar as a significant
threat to Emperor Shalmaneser III after the coalition of northern and Southern Levant kingdoms.
The primary text source in Steibing's and Helft's "Ancient Near Eastern History and Culture" on
page 292.
Report
The Assyrian account of the Battle of Qarqar begins with the description of conquests
under Emperor Shalmaneser III's charge. The inscription is in the first person language as if
documenting the words of the emperor. The emperor boasts of earning stature several such
kingdoms came to pay tribute without resistance. The mentioned territories that did not resist the
emperor include six kings from northern Syria and Aleppo. There is evident pride in Emperor
Shalmaneser III's words, maybe because he was the leader to started extending the borders of
Assyria into an Empire. His father, Ashurnasirpal, set the foundation through raids that sought
only tribute and booty (Dewar, 79). However, Egypt was in a state of constant decline under the
leadership of foreigners and Libyans. One notable king that contributed to the fall was King

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Shishak (Broekman, 77). By the time of the attack on Qarqar, Egypt did not represent a
formidable threat to Western Asia's progress.
The inscription detail that Emperor Shalmaneser III had already burned down Qarqar by
the time its King Hamath called for allies to help. The battle of the allies against the Assyrian
conquest thus took place in an already defeated town. The strategy of seeking partners describes
a prevalent tactic of coalition warfare common in Palestine and Syria at the time. The method
involved creating a confederation of several armies to join their troops and fight against a
common enemy. The partnership could choose to disband after victory. However, such tactics
led to infrequent fighting among the allies after the common threat was defeated. The inscription
describes a confederation of twelve kings but only mentions eleven. The partners comprised the
big four and others based on their troops. Emperor Shalmaneser III's scribes document the big
four in the allied forces led by Ben-hada of Damascus, Irhuleni of Hamath, Ahab of Israel, and
the king of Irqanata. The other confederation forces included the kings of Arabia, Egypt, Cilicia,
Shian, Usanta, Arvad, and Ammon.
The scribes detail that Emperor Shalmaneser III won the Battle of Qarqar. The
inscriptions detail, "I fought with them with (the support of) the mighty forces of Ashur, which
Ashur, my lord, has given to me, and the strong weapons which Nergal, my leader, has presented
to me, (and) I did inflict a defeat upon them between the towns Karkara and Gilzau." The
inscription stands in contradiction of the facts primarily because the emperor did not follow
Damascus's pursuit after the mentioned victory. Records also indicate that Emperor Shalmaneser
III fought the same confederation three times after the Battle of Qarqar (Elat, 25). The
subsequent fights took place in the tenth, eleventh and fourteenth year of his reign. The emperor
only managed to defeat after the alliance broke up in the emperor's eighteenth year. The invading

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Last Name 1 Student’s Name Professor’s Name Course Details Date Chapter 10.1: The Assyrian Account of the Battle of Qarqar The source of the original text was the Kurkh monoliths as inscribed by the scribes. The stela monolith describes the Battle of Qarqar as inscribed in Shalmaneser III's annals, which is recorded in his sixth year of the emperor's reign in 853 BCE. However, the source document was translated by A Leo Oppenheim in 1955 (278-279), with the help of W. Stiebing, who provided slight changes in spelling. The primary source describes the Battle of Qarqar as a significant threat to Emperor Shalmaneser III after the coalition of northern and Southern Levant kingdoms. The primary text source in Steibing's and Helft's "Ancient Near Eastern History and Culture" on page 292. Report The Assyrian account of the Battle of Qarqar begins with the description of conquests under Emperor Shalmaneser III's charge. The inscription is in the first person language as if documenting the words of the emperor. The emperor boasts of earning stature several such kingdoms came to pay tribute without resistance. The mentioned territories that did not resist the emperor include six kings f ...
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