Middle East Kingdoms

Early Palestine

In the mid-third millennium BC, city states began to appear in Syria, as the people there benefited from interaction with Sumer and improvements in irrigation. Within five hundred years, the same process was happening further south in the Levant, along the Mediterranean coast. The Canaanites occupied much of the area, creating a patchwork of city states of their own.

c.1740 BC

Abimelech

Canaanite king in Palestine region. Reigned for c.40 years.

c.1478 BC

Egypt expands rapidly northwards through Palestine, sometimes inflicting severe destruction on cities there and threatening Mitanni possessions in Syria.

c.1200 BC

General instability grips the Mediterranean coast and a dark age follows which doesn't fully fade until the tenth century BC. In Palestine, the urban culture that had previously characterised the region is gradually replaced by one of villages. New settlers arrive in the region while most of the territory is under Egyptian control. Other cities, such as Damascus in the near north, are settled by new arrivals, the Aramaean tribes, and eventually flourish.

Kings of the Philistines (Philistia)

The Philistines were one of the Sea Peoples who were the cause of so much destruction along the Mediterranean coast at the end of the twelfth century BC. There was general instability in the region; the Hittite Empire was being destroyed in Anatolia, and various Hittite vassal city states were being attacked in Syria. The Philistines themselves, settling on the southern coast of the Egyptian-controlled Levant up to the Egyptian border, are thought to be Mycenaean descendents who were probably displaced by the Dorian invasions of Greece. They adopted local Canaanite culture and language before they left any written texts, and established a capital which was probably at a place called Gerar. Their arrival at this time is confirmed by archaeological evidence.

c.1186 - 1168 BC

The Philistines briefly conquer and occupy much of Canaan, including the settlements of the Israelites.

c.1150 BC

Egypt loses overlordship of the region to Assyria. The Philistines take the opportunity to conquer the Israelites and establish vassal kings there until they are forced out in 1110 BC.

c.1005 BC

Achish

Ruled the eastern remains of kingdom along the coastline.

975 BC

According to the Old Testament, the Philistines are subdued by David of Israel. There is so far no archaeological evidence for this and, indeed, the available evidence points to the Philistines ruling the area until at least the ninth or eighth century.

905 BC

Nadab, king of Samaria, is killed by Philistines.

884 - 824 BC

Areas of Philistia are conquered by Assyria.

720 BC

Philistia, by now a coastal strip of land situated roughly in the same place as the modern Gaza Strip, is conquered by the Assyrian Empire. In 710 BC the Philistines support Mardukapaliddina II in his successful bid to usurp the Babylonian throne.

Thereafter, Palestine follows the same line of events as Israel, especially in Modern Israel & Palestine.