by H A CULLEY
He had a different fate in mind for the men. He regretted the fact that Gurzu had died during the attack, according to the boy. Not that it mattered much as he had all the remaining men pegged out to die slowly of thirst and heat exhaustion. As this was the way that they had treated Ashlatum and Samuditana, it satisfied the dictum in Hammurabi’s Code of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. They might get released from their agony before that though, judging by the number of carrion birds circling above and waiting for the chance to begin their feast.
Detaching the horsemen to escort the slaves to Mari, Dadanum set off with the rest of his men to take the good news to Hammurabi in Babylon.
~#~
The king was worried. He had hoped that Adiar would quickly forgive him for sending their eldest son on the mission that led to his death, but she treated him with a cold politeness when they had to meet and avoided him at other times. She mourned the loss of her son publicly in the temple of Marduk every day, which drove the knife further into Hammurabi’s soul.
Whilst he grieved over the death of his mother, he was honest enough with himself to realise that his feeling of loss over his eldest son was tempered by the knowledge that Samsu-Iluna showed all the signs of being everything that his elder brother had not been. He was now eleven and would soon be twelve. He was mature for his age and showed none of the arrogance that had been such a feature of Samuditana’s character. Instead, he cared for people without being soft. He was intelligent and eager to earn his father’s approval. He didn’t have such a good relationship with his mother, though. They rubbed each other up the wrong way and, on the rare occasions that the boy lost his temper, it was always with Adiar.
Hammurabi began to teach Samsu-Iluna about politics and strategy and was delighted when the boy proved to be a quick learner. In the past he had relied on Adiar as a sounding board for his ideas; now that avenue was closed to him he began to discuss things with his son and found that, although some things were beyond his comprehension at such a young age, he did have some good ideas and could analyse problems and find solutions sensibly.
Of course, Adiar was all too well aware of the growing relationship between Samsu-Iluna and Hammurabi and was jealous. She realised too late that she had driven her husband into the arms of his heir and wanted desperately now to rekindle the closeness that they had once enjoyed. But she didn’t know how to do it. Slowly her regret turned to bitterness. She turned to their youngest son Mutu-Namhama and, subconsciously, began to regard him as a possible contender for the throne of Babylon. If Hammurabi and Samsu-Iluna were to die, then Mutu-Namhama could succeed with his mother as regent. She tried really hard to put the idea out of her mind but it kept creeping back in. The more she allowed herself to think about it, the more the idea appealed.
Chapter Fourteen – A Dangerous Game – 1772 BCE
Hammurabi was worried. He would have been a fool not to have noticed how close his estranged wife had become to her youngest son and he was anything but a fool. The boy was now ten and he decided that the time had come to try and heal the rift. He was surrounded by potential foes and the last thing he needed now was an enemy within. So he went to see Adiar.
‘What do you want?’ The queen was playing a strategy board game with her son, who glanced up at his father and then went back to studying the board.
‘For a start, I expect my son to show me some respect and stand up in the presence of his king.’ It wasn’t how he wanted to start the discussion but he couldn’t let his son’s rudeness go unchecked.
Slowly, and with a hint of insolence, the boy stood up and then bowed briefly towards the king. ‘My lord king.’ His voice hadn’t yet broken and the clear treble reminded his father how young the boy was. Perhaps he could still rescue him. If not, well, he couldn’t risk the boy becoming an enemy and gathering a following.
Hammurabi had intended to talk privately to Adiar, but he decided that the meeting might go better if the boy stayed. He motioned for his son to resume his seat.
‘Adiar, we have drifted apart over the past two years. I have grown closer to Samsu-Iluna whilst you have concentrated all your affection on Mutu-Namaha. We are no longer a family and that grieves me more than I can say, even more than the loss of my mother and our eldest son. But, more importantly, we are the leaders of Babylon and, by being disunited, we are failing the people. It leaves us open to attack from Sumeria, Elam and even Assyria. It has already driven your brother and Eshnunna into the arms of Elam, perhaps our most serious adversary.’ He held her eyes in his.
‘You and I used to rule together; you were my most trusted councillor and shared my dreams, hopes and fears. I am lost without you and I miss having you in my bed more than I can say.’
The boy had stopped looking wary as his father spoke and started to look thoughtful but, at this last declaration, his expression changed to one of revulsion and he muttered something under his breath.
Adiar looked at her son in surprise and smiled. ‘Where did you think that you and your brothers came from if it wasn’t from your father’s seed in my womb?’
‘Mother, stop. That’s disgusting.’
Both Hammurabi and Adiar laughed and caught each other’s eyes. It was enough. The ice had been broken.
She moved forward and embraced her husband.
‘I agree that we have been apart for too long. I found it difficult to forgive you for sending Samuditana to his death and, by the time I had calmed down and admitted to myself that it wasn’t your fault, it was too late. My pride wouldn’t let me apologise to you. I knew that you thought Samsu-Iluna would make a better king and knowing that just fuelled my resentment of the two of you. Deep down I knew that I was being stupid but, you know me, I’m stubborn to the end. It will take me time to rid myself of all the venom that has festered inside me, and which I have nurtured in Mutu-Namaha, but today we have made a start.’
‘I’m so happy to hear you say that, my love. Only Marduk knows how hard I have prayed for you to return to me.’
They embraced and kissed, holding each other for a long time. Their son watched, his mind working overtime. He was not an evil child but he was clever and he was ambitious. Nevertheless, the major emotion coursing through him at the moment was relief that his whole family was united once more. He had missed Samsu-Iluna, to whom he had been close when they were small, and he wanted to be friends with him again. He acknowledged to himself that a small part of him had been excited at the prospect of becoming king, but now that dream seemed to have receded into the far distance and he would just have to get used to it, it seemed. However, he couldn’t resist the temptation to try and clarify his position whilst his father was in such a good mood.
‘Where does that leave me, father?’ he asked when his parents eventually broke apart.
‘Ah yes; your future. I need to discuss that with your mother but would you be interested in a military life?’
‘You mean join the army?’ The boy’s eyes lit up at the prospect. ‘Yes; there is little I would like more. But I’m only ten.’
Hammurabi took Adiar’s arm and they walked over to the window to confer in private. He couldn’t hear what was being said but the discussion got a little animated at one point, to judge from his mother’s gesticulations. Eventually she nodded resignedly and they came back to join him.
‘We think it might be a good idea if you became your uncle’s aide so that you could learn the art of warfare from him. He has served me well, more than well, as my army commander and I have it in mind that you could eventually do the same for your brother. What do you think?’
The boy’s eyes positively gleamed. ‘You mean it? There’s nothing I would like better.’ He saw his mother’s face fall. ‘Not that I want to leave you, mother, but this is just what I wanted.’
‘It’s not that I mind you going to live with Arishaka to be his protégé, I’m just worried about you getting killed, like poor Samuditana.’
‘Don’t worry mother, I’m sure th
at Arishaka will take care of me. And, after all, Samuditana was on a diplomatic mission when he got killed, not riding out to war.’
~#~
That night in bed Hammurabi and Adiar completed their reconciliation, not once but several times, until both were exhausted. They slept soundly and when he awoke he studied his wife’s face for a long time thinking how much he loved her. He wasn’t going to risk losing her again, and that meant taking her fully into his confidence, not just consulting her when it suited him.
Later that morning, he led her to a secluded arbour in the palace gardens and briefed her on the current situation. It wasn’t just what he thought she needed to know, but everything he himself was privy to. He started in the north.
‘What do you know about the situation in Assyria and Yamhad.’
Adiar marshalled her thoughts for a moment. ‘Ishme-Dagan faced a revolt in Assur last year, which he managed to put down. He is neither a popular nor a strong king; a pale shadow of his father. He is facing an incursion by the Hittites, who would like to capture Nineveh. He can’t afford to lose the city, which controls the main route along the Tigris into Mesopotamia, or his kingdom will fall apart. He also has problems with the Kassites, who seem to have recovered from the beating that the late Shamshi-Adad gave them a decade or so ago. How am I doing so far?’
‘You know the answer to that and you just want me to say something so you can accuse me of being patronising.’ He grinned at her.
‘You know me too well. So I must have got that right. Good.’
‘What about the Hittites? Apart from wanting Nineveh, what else do you know about them?’
‘They were also interested in Urshu in northern Syria.’
‘More than interested; they have invaded and have reached the borders of Yamhad. Yarim-Lim has formally annexed Qatna to the south east and mobilised the armies of both to repel the Hittites if they advance into Syria. Mari has sent part of its army to help and Zimri-Lim has asked me to do the same.’
‘Have you?’ She was sure that he hadn’t because she would have heard.
‘No, it’s outside my area of interest; but I have sent a message of support and promised to help if Mari is invaded.’
‘And will you?’
‘I might have to, but I suspect not. It is probably too far south to concern them. The Hittites have a large standing army which has to be paid. The rich ports along the Mediterranean Sea are of more interest to them. I might be more alarmed if I were the ruler of Egypt though. I’ve heard it is a very rich country.’
‘So much for the north. What about the east?’
‘Eshnunna and Elam?’ He nodded.
‘Well Elam has made a good job of bringing my little brother under its wing, though he still hasn’t signed up to a military alliance, as far as I know.’
‘Yes, he has been very clever at playing both sides off against each other but I suspect that time is running out, along with Elam’s patience.’
‘You know something for definite?’
He sighed. ‘I fear that Elam will invade soon. They are negotiating with me and with Rim-Sim of Sumeria; trying to forge an alliance with me against him and with him against me. No doubt their aim is to force Sumer and Babylon into a war so that they can invade Eshnunna without interference.’
‘Have you told Rim-Sim?’
‘No, I’m sure he knows. I have rejected the Elamite overtures in any case.’
‘And where do you stand in all this? What is your vision for the future?’
‘What it has always been: peace and prosperity for the people. My efforts over the past twenty years have been directed to that end, though it hasn’t seemed like it at times. I have constructed irrigation canals, made our farms more productive, built new cities and improved and expanded those we have, introduced a proper code of laws, made the people more prosperous and built up an efficient army to protect us. At the same time I have used deceit, cunning and false promises to advance the power of Babylon.’
‘That’s all in the past. I asked about the future, my love. Where are you taking us?’
‘Honestly? I can’t see us ever conquering Elam, but I want to make Mesopotamia strong enough so that Elam, and the Hittites in the north, see us as too powerful to attack.’
‘And does that mean that you need to conquer Eshnunna and Sumeria to do that?’
‘And Mari. Or at least bring them firmly into a strong confederation led by Babylon.’
‘You are playing a dangerous game, Hammurabi.’
‘Yes, but the prize will be worth it.’
TO BE CONTINUED IN BABYLON – THE DAWN OF EMPIRE