King Esarhaddon (r. 681 to 669 BC): Son of King Sennacherib and Queen Naqiya-Zakutu
King Esarhaddon (r. 681 to 669 BC) was the son of Assyrian Queen Naqiya-Zakutu and King Sennacherib (r. 705–681 BC).
Given the age at which she gave birth to Esarhaddon, Queen Zakutu could not have been born later than c. 728 BC. Her marriage to King Sennacherib, when he was still crown prince under his father Sargon II, whom he succeeded (c. 705 BC), likely took place by the late 8th century due to the birth of Esarhaddon c. 713.
It's probable that Queen Zakutu was also the mother of Sennacherib's only daughter known by name, Shadditu, since she retained a prominent position under Esarhaddon.
Queen Zakutu’s authority grew in the reign of King Esarhaddon. Early on she built a palace for him in Nineveh, the Assyrian capital, and made an inscription commemorating the construction.
Though letters to Queen Zakutu were mostly about religious affairs, some concern politics. It is possible that she partook in Esarhaddon's rebuilding project of Babylon.
His father, King Sennacherib, is most notably remembered for his campaigns against Babylon and Judah.
Sennacherib was murdered by two of his sons c. 681 BC and the murder is regularly attributed to his destroying the city of Babylon, but it is equally probable they killed him simply to gain the throne and disenfranchise their younger brother, Esarhaddon.
Esarhaddon was then recalled from exile, probably by Queen Zakutu. He defeated his brothers in a six-week civil war, and took the throne; afterwards, he had his brothers’ families and associates executed.
The wife of Esarhaddon, Ešarra-ḫammat (Aššur-hammat), bore him twin sons, Ashurbanipal and Šamaš-šuma-ukin, whom he had designated respectively crown princes of Assyria and of Babylonia (c. 672 BC).
Šērūʾa-ēṭirat was the eldest daughter of Esarhaddon and the older sister of his twin sons Ashurbanipal and Šamaš-šuma-ukin. She's the only one of Esarhaddon's daughters to be known by name. Her mother may have been Ešarra-ḫammat.
She may have married Scynthian King Bartatua, though the marriage itself is not recorded in the Assyrian texts.
If Šērūʾa-ēṭirat's married Bartatua she was likely the mother of his successor Madyes, who brought Scythian power in Western Asia to its peak.
Esarhaddon built a new palace at Kar-Esar-haddon near Ashur and in southeast Calah. Temples were restored also at Nineveh, Nippur, Babylon, and other cities.
King Esarhaddon related how, in his attempt to subdue the Arabs, his father, King Sennacherib struck against their capital, Adummatu, which he called the stronghold of the Arabs. Sennacherib captured their king, Hazael. Hazael is referred to in one inscription of Ashurbanipal as King of the Kedarites.
Kedar is named second of Ishmael’s sons and an Ishmaelite tribe from which the prophet Mohammed traces his descent.
King Esarhaddon’s granddaughter, Queen Adad-Guppi, was born in 649 BC in Babylonia, the daughter of his son and successor King Ashurbanipal and Queen Ashursharrat l of Assyria.
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About the Author: Lawrence Jean-Louis is the founder of eBrand Me, a digital marketing agency offering marketing & consultative services to CPAs and tax professionals. She aspires to start a money management firm by 2030.
