Shabaka

Confronting Sennacherib

Shabaka succeeded Shabataka and soon found himself drawn into a direct military conflict with the Assyrian Empire. When the Assyrian king Sennacherib invaded the Levant in 701 BCE to crush a rebellion led by King Hezekiah of Judah, Shabaka dispatched an Egyptian-Kushite army to intervene. The forces clashed at the Battle of Eltekeh. While Assyrian records claim a decisive victory over the Kushite charioteers, archaeological evidence—including a seal impression of Shabaka found in Nineveh—suggests a diplomatic settlement or tribute arrangement was eventually reached between the two empires.