Synopsis: Faced with a series of disloyal vassals, Sargon conquers the remaining Neo-Hittite kingdoms and absorbs them into his empire. The Cimmerian invasion of Anatolia leads to the deaths of two powerful kings. In their absence, the preservation of peace and stability falls to local rulers such as Azatiwadas of Quwe. “I am Azatiwadas, the Sun God’s man, servant of Tarhunzas, whom Awariku, king of Adanawa, made great. Tarhunzas made me mother and father to Adanawa, and I caused Adanawa to prosper. I extended the plain of Adanawa on the one hand towards the west and on the other hand toward the east, and in my days Adanawa had all good things, plentiness, and luxury. I filled the Paharean granaries, and I made horse upon horse, and I made army upon army, and I made shield upon shield, all with the help of Tarhunzas and the gods.” – Bilingual (Luwian/Phoenician) inscription of Azatiwadas, late 8th/early 7th century BC, recovered from the stone gates of his fortress at Azatiwadaya (Karatape-Aslantas, Turkiye).  Information on the Neo-Hittite fortress of Azatiwadaya (Karatepe-Aslantas, Turkiye): https://www.hittitemonuments.com/karatepe/ Map of the Iron Age Near East: https://audio.ancientworldpodcast.com/Map_Near_East.jpg Map of Iron Age Anatolia: https://audio.ancientworldpodcast.com/Map_Anatolia.jpg Map of Iron Age Northern Syria: https://audio.ancientworldpodcast.com/Map_Syria.jpg Map of Iron Age Southern Syria and Canaan: https://audio.ancientworldpodcast.com/Map_Canaan.jpg List of Regional Kings: https://audio.ancientworldpodcast.com/C30_Kings_List.pdf Episode Images: https://audio.ancientworldpodcast.com/C30_Images.pdf References and Further Reading: https://audio.ancientworldpodcast.com/C30_References.pdf Please contact advertising@airwavemedia.com if you would like to advertise on this podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices