Abstract:

When examining the political history of states, divisions are made according to important events. Also Hittite political history is divided according to data obtained from ancient ruins and written documents. The Hittite empire comprises periods such as the Hittite Kingdom, the Old Hittite period, the New Hittite period and the Late Hittite city-states period etc. Within these sections, further distinctions are made to include shorter periods. Examples of these eras are periods that are called as the 'Amarna Age', 'The Age of Usurper Kings' or the 'Dark Age of Anatolia'. The lack of sufficient written documents makes it difficult for researchers to examine the historical processes of ancient states. Also in the Hittite history, there were periods in which not enough documents could be found (which means documents could not be found enough). Historians call this the dark age. The inadequacy of excavations, the negative effects of natural disasters and conditions, the intensity of destruction as a result of wars and internal turmoils, and so on lead to the fact that there were no revealing documents, causing the period to be called the dark age. One of these dark ages, which is distinguished in the Hittite history, is the period that is called 'The Age of Usurper Kings'. This study will provide the enlightening information about this period in which the successive kings of the Hittite state took the lead (ascended the throne) massacring their predecessors.

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