The Ramses-Hattusili Treaty (Treaty of Kadesh) Is Ratified

The Ramses-Hattusili Treaty or Treaty of Kadesh was signed and ratified during the 13th century BC (circa 1284-1283 BC) between Pharaoh Ramesses II of Egypt and King Hattusili III of the Hittites.

The purpose of the accord was to establish and maintain peaceful relations between both parties. It was the first diplomatic agreement from the Near East.

The Egyptian version of the peace treaty was preserved on a stele in the Temple of Amun at Karnak. Jean-François Champollion copied a portion of the accord in 1828 and published his findings in 1844. The Akkadian version of the peace treaty was published in 1916 by E.F. Weidner.

Two Akkadian versions of the treaty (on baked clay tablets) are at the Museum of the Ancient Orient, part of the Istanbul Archaeology Museums.