Urshu (Uršu, Warsuwa[1] or Urshum) was aHurrian-Amorite[2][3] city-state in southernTurkey, probably located on the west bank of the Euphrates,[4] and north ofCarchemish.[5]
According to Archi (2011), Uršum (Uršaum) lay north ofHassum (Hassuwan/Haššum), and now has been "placed betweenGaziantep and Birecik on the Euphrates, or at Gaziantep itself."[6]
Urshu was a commercial city governed by a Lord (EN). It was an ally ofEbla and appears in thetablets asUrsa'um.[7] Later it was mentioned in the inscriptions ofGudea (r. c.2144–2124 BC according to theMiddle chronology) as the city where wood resins were procured.[8]
An old Assyrian letter that dates to the 19th century BC mentions a temple of the godAshur in Urshu.[9]
In the beginning of the 18th century BC, Urshu allied withYamhad againstYahdun-Lim ofMari.[10] Relations withAssyria were also strained, and men of Urshu were summoned byYapah-Adad and hisHabiru to attack the lands ofShamshi-Adad I of Assyria.[11] The texts of Mari mentions a conflict between Urshu and Carchemish: the tribes of Upra-peans and Ra-beans attacked Urshu through the land of Carchemish, which caused Urshu to attack a contingent of Carchemishean troops and civilians that advanced along the bank of the Euphrates.[12]
Later, Urshu became an economic rival to Yamhad[13] and entered an alliance withQatna and Shamshi-Adad I to attackSumu-Epuh of Yamhad (r. c.1810-1780 BC).[14] The death of Shamshi-Adad and the rise ofYarim-Lim I of Yamhad brought an end to this rivalry, as Yamhad was elevated into aGreat Kingdom and imposed its direct authority over northern, western and easternSyria,[15] bringing Urshu under its sphere of influence without annexing it.[16] The Tablets of Mari mention a few kings of Urshu who date to this era, includingShennam[17] andAtru-Sipti, who visited Mari in the 12th year of its kingZimri-Lim.[12]
They broke the battering ram. The king was angry and his face was grim "They constantly bring me bad news, may the storm-god carry you away in a flood!.. but not idle! Make a battering-ram in the Hurrian manner and let it be brought into place. Hew a great battering-ram from the mountains ofHassu and let it be brought into place".
TheHittite kingHattusili I attacked Urshu in his second year, laying siege to the city for six months. The text Siege of Urshu (CTH 7) was found at Hattusa. The Hittite king had 80chariots[19] and conducted his operations from the city ofLawazantiya (located in modernElbistan district) in theTaurus foothills of easternCilicia.[20]
Despite receiving aid from Yamhad and Carchemish, Urshu was burned and destroyed; its lands were plundered and the booty taken to theHittite capitalHattusa.[21]
The history of Urshu after the conquest is ambiguous. In the 15th century BC it appears in the Tablets ofAlalakh as "Uris" or "Uressi".[4]
TheTreaty of HittiteTudhaliya I andSunassura ofKizzuwatna (CTH 41) mentions "Urussa" as part of Kizzuwatna.[22] The city again became part of the Hittite empire and was last mentioned in records dated to the final periods of that empire.[22]