The Proclamation of Telipinu

CTH 19
Sturtevant, Edgar, and George Bechtel, A Hittite Chrestomathy, 1935, pp.175 - 200

Translation
1
[Thusly] Tabarna, Telipinu, Great King: Formerly Labarna1 was Great King. His [son]s, his
[brother]s, as well as his in-laws, his relatives, and his troops were united.

2
The land was small, but on whatever campaign he went, he held the enemy land in subjugation by
(his) might.

3
He destroyed the lands, one after another - he overwhelmed3 the lands and made them borders of
the sea. When he came back from campaign each (of) his sons went to some land.

4
(Namely) the city upina, the city Tuwanuwa, the city Nenaa, the city Landa, the city Zallara, the
city Paruanta, (and) the city Luna - they governed each of4 the lands and the great cities were
prosperous.

5
Afterwards attuili became king. And his sons, his brothers, his in-laws, his relatives, and his
troops were united, too. On whatever campaign he went, he too held the enemy land in subjugation
by (his) might.

6
He destroyed the lands, one after another - he overwhelmed the lands and made them borders of
the sea. When he came back from campaign each of his sons went to some land, and in his hand,
too, the great cities were prosperous.

7
But when subsequently the servants of the princes became corrupt and began to devour their
houses, they began to continually whisper against their lords and began to shed their 5 blood.

8
When Murili became king in attua, his sons, his brothers, his in-laws, his relatives, and his
troops were united, too. He held the enemy lands in subjugation by (his) might. He overwhelmed
the lands and he made them borders of the sea.

9
He went to alpa, he destroyed alpa, and he brought civilian captives of alpa and its goods to
attua. Later he went to Babylon, he destroyed Babylon, he repulsed the Hurrians, and he kept
the civilian captives of Babylon and its goods in attua.

10
antili was a cup-bearer and he had arapili, [sister] of Murili, as (his) wife.

11
Zidanta, [the . .6 had . .7], the daughter of antili, for (his) wife, and he joined up with antili and
they did an evil deed - they killed Murili, they shed blood!

12

And antili was afraid. "Will I be protected? The gods protected him. [. . . .] wherever he went, the
population [. . . .] the cities of Atata, [ukzi]ya, urpana, Kargami, [. . . troops] they began to give
and troops [. . .]

13
And [when] antili reached the city of Tegarama he began to say, "What is this (that) I have done?
[Why] did I listen to [the words of] Zidanta, my? [son-in-law? As soon as] he reigned [as king], the
gods sought (justice for) the blood of Murili.

14
[. . .] the Hurrian troops, chased (like) foxes in the bushes, they called. [When the Hurrian enemy ?]
came to atti, he [. . .]-ed [and . . .] in? the land he roamed?. [. . . .] they called and them [. . .]

15

(Almost completely lost)

16
[. . .] and the Queen of the city [ukziy]a [. . .] the queen was dying. [. . .] Ilaliuma secretly sent out
palace [attendent]s and [. . .]-ed, "May the Queen of ukziya die!" So [they seized] her and killed
(her) [together with her children.]

17
When antili inquired into (the case of) the queen of ukziya [and her children, saying, "Who [has]
killed them?", the Chief of the Palace Attendents brought word. They rounded up her family and
[drove] them to Tegarama. They chased them in the bushes and [they] d[ied?.]

18

When antili [becam]e an old man and was about to become a god8, Zidanta killed [Pieni], son of
antili, along with his children, [and] he killed his foremost servents.

19
And Zidanta became king. The gods sought (justice for) the blood of Pieni. The gods made
[Ammuna, his] begotten (son), into his enemy, and he killed Zidanta, his father.

20
And Ammuna became king. The gods sought (justice for) the blood9 of Zidanta, his father, and in
his hand [they did] not [make] him, or the grain, or [. . .], or the wine, or the cattle or sheep [prosper].

21
And the land became hostile to him. Wherever the troops went on campaign, (namely) the city [. .
.]agga, [the city Mat]ila, the city Galmiya, the land Adaniya, the land Arzawiya, the city allapa, the
city Parduwata, the city Aulaa, they kept returning unsuccessful. When Ammuna, too, became
a god, Zuru, Chief of the Royal Bodyguard, in those same days secretly sent one of his own family,
his son Taurwaili, the Man of the Gold Spear, and he killed the family of Tittiya along with his sons.

22
And he sent Taruu, a courier, and he killed antili along with his sons. And uzziya became king.
Telipinu had Itapariya, his foremost sister, (as his wife). uzziya would have killed them, but the
matter was exposed, and Telipinu chased them away.

23
Five were his brothers, and he built houses for them, (saying), "Let them go (and) live! Let them eat
(and) drink!" May no one take part in evil against them! I repeatedly declare, "They did evil to me. [I
will not do] evil to them!"

24

When I, Telipinu, sat upon the throne of my father, I went on campaign to the city auwa, and I
destroyed the city auwa. My troops were in the city Zizzilippa, too, and a reversal9 occurred in
the city Zizzilippa.

25
When I, the king, came to the city Lawazantiya, Mr. Laa was [hostile to me] and incited the city
Lawazantiya to rebel. [The gods] put him in my hand. Of the foremost ones (there) were many:
Commander of a Thousand, [. . .], Mr. Karruwa, Commander of the Chamberlains, Mr. Inara,
Commander of the Cupbearers, Mr. Killa [Commander of the ...], Mr. Tarumimma, Commander of
the Staffbearers, Mr. Zinwaeli, and Mr. Lelli. They sent secretly to Mr. Tanuwa, the Staffbearer.

26
I, the king, did not know! [He killed?] uzziya and his brothers. When I, the king, heard, they
brought Tanuwa, Tarurwaili, [and] Taruu, and the Council held them forth for death. But I, the
king, said, "Why do they die? They will hide (their) eyes about them!" I, the king, made them into
true farmers. I took the weapons from the shoulder and gave them a y[oke?.]

27
Blood(shed) of the whole royal family has become common! Itapariya, the queen, died. Later it
came to be that Ammuna, the prince, died. The Men of the Gods keep saying, "Blood(shed) has
now become common in attua!" I, Telipinu, called an assembly in attua. From this moment on
let no one in attua do evil to a son of the (royal) family and draw a dagger against him!

28
Let a prince - a son - of the first rank only be installed as king! If a prince of the first rank does not
exist, (then) let he who is a son of second rank become king. But if there is no prince, no male
issue, (then) let them take anantiyant-husband9 for she who is a first rank daughter, and let him
become king.