2: The Failure of the Hittite Empire: Plague, Poor Leadership, and Destruction AUTHOR NAME: Eric Cline BOOK TITLE: After 1177 BC, The Survival of Civilizations; 1177 BC, the year civilization collapsed The Hittite Empire failed due to internal decay, includi
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John Batchelor
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🗓️ 12 October 2025
⏱️ 12 minutes
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Summary
The Failure of the Hittite Empire: Plague, Poor Leadership, and Destruction
BOOK TITLE: After 1177 BC, The Survival of Civilizations; 1177 BC, the year civilization collapsed
The Hittite Empire failed due to internal decay, including a plague that ravaged the royal family and subsequent poor leadership. Their capital, Hattusa, was attacked and burned, possibly by the Kashka. Although the main empire vanished, rump states like Carchemish in North Syria survived as Neo-Hittites. These resilient trading centers, however, were continuously forced to pay tribute to aggressive Neo-Assyrian kings like Shalmaneser III after battles such as Qarqar in 853 BC.
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| 0:18.0 | Visit sumup.co.uk to learn more. This is CBS Eye on the World. Here's John Batchelor. |
| 0:29.6 | This is CBSI on the World. I'm John Batchelor. |
| 0:34.6 | Continuing my conversation with Professor Eric Klein, |
| 0:38.7 | his new book, After 1177 BC, The Survival of Civilizations, |
| 0:44.4 | a sequel to his original idea, 1177 BC, the year civilization |
| 0:50.8 | collapsed, which is now revised and updated |
| 0:53.5 | for everyone to read both books together. |
| 0:55.0 | It's important to note that the Bronze Age was globalization. |
| 1:00.0 | Trade of seven or eight empires intermixed in the Eastern Mediterranean. |
| 1:05.0 | Trade routes established, making bronze tin from Afghanistan, |
| 1:10.0 | copper from Cyprus and other mines in the Mediterranean basin, |
| 1:14.6 | the same for clothing, the same for spices, the same for gold, coming from all over. |
| 1:21.6 | Adam Smith would approve of the 13, the Bronze Age. |
| 1:25.6 | However, it then crashed suddenly with a combination that the professor |
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