The Kassites and their political relations

Our study titled "The Kassite State and Its Political Relations," prepared as a master's thesis, covers the southern part of Mesopotamia geographically. In this study, the political history of the Kassite State, which has been overshadowed and neglected in Mesopotamia, is examined along with its relations with contemporary states. The Kassites, who migrated to southern Mesopotamia and established their rule for over half a millennium, have not yet found their rightful place in studies on Mesopotamia. The study covers the early period of the Kassites, who arrived in Mesopotamia in the 18th century BC, until the Elamite king Shutruk-Nahunte entered Babylon and ended Kassite rule, followed by his son Kudur -Nahhunte, who captured the last Kassite ruler, Enlil-nādin-aḫi, in 1155 BC and took him to Elam. Due to the lack of written Kassite sources, their political history has been reconstructed using their relations with other states and material cultural elements that have survived from the Kassites. Also within this study, sources such as historical texts, archaeological finds, and written documents were used to examine in detail the relations of the Kassite State with the Hittite, Middle Assyrian, Egyptian, and Elamite states. The Kassites, who adopted a balancing approach in foreign policy, sought to maintain the regional power balance of the Late Bronze Age through methods such as military alliances, diplomatic marriages, commercial relations, and cultural interactions with these states, and played an active role among the great states of the period. This study highlights the complexity and multifaceted nature of international relations during the Late Bronze Age, while offering a new perspective on the diplomatic understanding of the period, emphasizing the importance of effective policy over military conflict.