The greater ancient Near East (including Egypt) offers some of the oldest evidence of the existence of international relations, since it was there that states first developed (the city-states and empires of Mesopotamia, the Levant, and Egypt) around the 4th millennium B.C.E. Almost 3000 years of the evolution of diplomatic relations are thus visible in sources from the ancient Near East. However, because only certain periods are well documented within that timespan, there remain many gaps in the modern study of diplomacy in this era.
Evolution of diplomatic relations The diplomatic relations of the ancient Near East are known only in a fragmented fashion. A limited number of texts allow us to understand relatively well the contemporary diplomatic practices of certain decades, spread out across more than two millennia and large geographical distances. Long periods with little or no documentation are broken up by brief periods of abundant documentation. However, this does not prevent us from understanding the broad threads and general trends in the evolution of international relations, for it follows the evolution of politics itself, which is known in general terms.
Ancient states period Diplomatic relations have existed for as long as human communities have been organized into political units, which precedes the period of this study. The first Near Eastern states formed during the 4th millennium B.C.E., but international relations during this era are unknown due to a lack of documentation.
The first surviving documents on the subject of international relations appear towards the end of the Early Dynastic period of ancient Mesopotamia (2600-2340 B.C.E.).J. Cooper, "International Law in the Third Millennium", in A History of Ancient Near Eastern Law, vol. 1, ed. R. Westbrook, Boston and Leiden, 2003, p. 241-251. They relate to the Sumerian city-state of Lagash. Among them is the oldest known treaty, concluded between the king of Lagash (En-metena) and the king of Uruk. However, the richest of the records concern the series of conflicts between Lagash and its neighbor Umma between 2600 and 2350 B.C.E.J. Cooper, The Lagash-Umma Border Conflict, Malibu, 1983. The documents about these wars are primarily about the military aspects of the war, with little about the diplomatic side. They display the constant rivalries between the cities of southern Mesopotamia. These also appear in the epic stories of the kings of Uruk (Lugalbanda, Enmerkar, and Gilgamesh), which may describe real events. They show the antagonisms pushing Lagash against its rivals, Kish and Aratta. The city of Kish seemed to assert a hegemonic position at certain points— its king, Mesalim, intervened around 2600 to arbitrate in the conflict between Lagash and Umma, and the title of "King of Kish" was also assumed by kings of other cities as a sign of superiority.
The site which offers the most important diplomatic archives from this period are those from Ebla, in Syria.(it) M. G. Biga, "I rapporti diplomatici nel Periodo Protosiriano " [Diplomatic relations from the Proto-Syrian Period], in ‘’Ebla, Alle origini della civiltà urbana’’ [Ebla, On the origins of urban society], ed. P. Matthiae, F. Pinnock and G. Scandone Matthiae, Milan, 1995, p. 140-147; (fr) M. G. Biga, "Au-delà des frontières: guerre et diplomatie à Ébla" [Beyond the Borders: War and Diplomacy in Ebla], in Orientalia 77, 2008, p. 289-334. The kings of Ebla had contacts with neighboring kings, notably the powerful sovereigns of Mari and Nagar, but also with the kings of more distant regions, like Kish in Mesopotamia and Hamazi in western Iran. Excavations at Ebla have uncovered the oldest example of a written peace treaty, the Treaty between Ebla and Abarsal, as well as proof of matrimonial alliances between the local kings and certain of their allies.
The first empires
Gradually, certain states in southern Mesopotamia were able to exercise hegemony over their neighbors for longer and longer, like Uruk under Enshakushana and above all Umma under Lugal-zagesi. This evolution was completed by Sargon of Akkad, who founded the first empire in 2340, comprising all of the Mesopotamian city-states, up to those of eastern Syria. The diplomatic relations of this period are not well known. There is a tablet which is inscribed with a peace treaty concluded between Naram-Sin of Akkad (Sargon's grandson) and the king of Awan, in southwest Iran, who was his vassal.(de) W. Hinz, "Elams Vertrag mit Naram-Sîn von Akkad" [Elam's Treaty with Naram-Sin of Akkad], in Zeitschrift für Assyriologie [Journal of Assyriology] 58, 1967, p. 66-96. This complete hegemony endured until the second half of the 22nd century B.C.E., when the Akkadian Empire collapsed. This vacuum was filled several decades later by the kings of the Third Dynasty of Ur, who founded in their turn the Neo-Sumerian Empire. These sovereigns were in communication with their neighboring kingdoms, and they regularly received embassies, and sent their own messengers.T. M. Sharlach, "Diplomacy and the Rituals of Politics at the Ur III Court", in Journal of Cuneiform Studies 57, 2005, 17-29. Their diplomatic service was controlled by a dignitary named SUKKAL.MAH. They combined their military expeditions onto the Iranian plateau with matrimonial politics, marrying their daughters to the kings of the regions (Anshan, Zabshali) in order to win their loyalty and solidify their own legitimacy. However, their empire ended in disintegration, and began a long period without a hegemonic empire, under the Amorite dynasties.
The second millennium: the balance of powers
The 2nd millennium was a period during which a relative power equilibrium was reached— no kingdom was able to exert power over its neighbors in a durable fashion. This allowed the gradual formation of more and more powerful and stable states, which dominated the international stage, and controlled a certain number of vassals, which tended to reduce over time. These vassals were the object of many rivalries between the dominant kingdoms, which sometimes resulted in overt conflict.
The first half of the millennium was the era of the Amorite Kingdoms (2004-1595 B.C.E.), which formed a kind of koiné of political practices, similar from the Mediterranean to the Zagros foothills.(fr) B. Lafont, "Relations internationales, alliances et diplomatie au temps des rois de Mari" [International Relations, Alliances, and Diplomacy in the time of the Kings of Mari], in J.-M. Durand and D. Charpin, ed., Amurru 2, Mari, Ébla et les Hourrites, Dix ans de travaux [Amurru 2, Mari, Ebla, and the Hurrians: Ten years of work] , Paris, 2001, 213-328;
J. Eidem, "International Law in the Second Millennium: Middle Bronze Age", in R. Westbrook ed., op. cit., p. 745-752 Mesopotamia and Syria were dominated successively by many kingdoms— first by Isin and Larsa, who took the succession of Ur, but finally by Babylon, which imposed its hegemony under Hammurabi (1792–1750) and his successors, just as Elam failed to impose its power over Mesopotamia. In Syria, the dominant kingdom was that of Yamkhad (Aleppo), which profited from the dissipation of its neighbors Mari and Qatna (its greatest rival) over the course of the 18th and 17th centuries. The diplomatic practices of this era were documented mainly by the exceptional royal archives of Mari, dating from the first half of the 18th century (diplomatic correspondence, political accords, historical records), but also supplemented by the more minor archives of Tell Leilan, Tell Rimah, Kültepe, and others.(fr) J.-M. Durand, Documents épistolaires du palais de Mari [Epistolary documents from the Mari palace], vol. I, Paris, 1997.
The end of the Amorite period was marked by the destruction of its two great kingdoms by the Hittites, who had reunited the kingdoms of eastern Anatolia in the last decades of the 17th century. At the same time, the Hurrians began to found increasingly powerful political entities, culminating in the formation of the kingdom of Mitanni. To these two were added Egypt. After the 18th dynasty had driven out the Hyksos, they invaded several decades later the Levant, expanding their empire their, bordering Mitanni. This marked a new era, with larger, more powerful, and more culturally diverse kingdoms.M. Liverani, Prestige and Interest, International Relations in the Near East, 1600-1100 B.C., Padua, 1990;
G. Beckman, "International Law in the Second Millennium: Late Bronze Age", in R. Westbrook (dir), op. cit., p. 753-774;
T. Bryce, Letters of the Great Kings of the Ancient Near East: The Royal Correspondence of the Late Bronze Age, New York and London, 2003. Most of the ancient Amorite kingdoms became vassals of the new rulers, with the exception of Babylon, which remained an important power under the Kassites (1595–1155). The sovereigns of these dominant kingdoms were considered as "great kings", equal among each other. Beginning in the 14th century, Assyria replaced Mitanni in this group. Elam could also be considered one of the great kingdoms of this period, at least in the 13th and 12th centuries. The diplomatic practices of this period are known thanks to several collections of exceptional importance: those of Hattusa, the Hittite capital (letters, diplomatic accords, historical chronicles), the letters of Amarna, in Egypt (international correspondence of the pharaohs Amenhotep III and Akhenaton), and the royal archives of Ugarit, a minor Syrian kingdom controlled first by Egypt and later by the Hittites.G. Beckman, Hittite Diplomatic Texts, Atlanta, 1996;
(fr) W. L. Moran, Les lettres d'El Amarna [The letters of El Amarna], Paris, 1987;
(it) M. Liverani, Le lettere di el-Amarna [The letters of El Amarna], 2 vol., Padua, 1998 & 1999;
R. Cohen and R. Westbrook, ed. Amarna Diplomacy: The Beginning of International Relations, Baltimore and London, 2000; (de) E. B. Pusch and S. Jakob, "Der Zipfel des diplomatischen Archivs Ramses II" [The Diplomatic Archives of Ramses II], in Ägypten und Levante XIII [Egypt and Levant XIII], 2003, 143-153;
(fr) S. Lackenbacher, Textes akkadians d'Ugarit [Akkadian texts of Ugarit], Paris, 2002. It is during this period that international relations are documented by the most abundant and geographically diverse sources.
The empires of the first millennium
The period of the "great kings" ended around 1200, with the arrival of great political changes, notably the successive migrations of the Sea Peoples and the Arameans, the collapse of the dominant kingdoms' power, and the creation of many smaller kingdoms in Syria, the Levant, and Anatolia, which were not under the control of any larger power. This transformation is known as the Late Bronze Age Collapse. The Books of the Prophets of the Hebrew Bible allow us to observe the relations of two of these states (Israel and Judea) with their neighbors.
Assyria was the only one of these great kingdoms to preserve its power and political stability enough to rebuild an empire starting at the end of the 10th century.S. Parpola, "International Law in the First Millennium," in R. Westbrook, ed., op. cit., 1047-1066. In a little more than two centuries, Assyria imposed its control over most of the Near Eastern kingdoms around it. Only Babylon, Urartu, Elam, and Egypt were able to resist their domination, but they were eventually conquered as well. This period marked the beginning of great hegemonic empires in the Middle East. Because of this, Assyria did not seek to develop very strong diplomatic relations, opting instead to dominate its neighbors. Its relations with other kingdoms were mostly unequal. The foreign relations of the Assyrians, above all those with their vassals, are known from the archives of the Assyrian capitals (mainly Nineveh), complemented by sources from outside the core of the empire (notably the Hebrew Bible).