Samsi
Samsi (also Shamsi) was an Arab queen who reigned in the 8th century BCE. As an ally of Rakhianu of Damascus, she fought the Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser III in 732 BCE.[1] According to the Assyrian records, Samsi took part in a rebellion, however "Tiglath-Pileser defeated Samsi in the neighbourhood of Mount Sa-qu-ur-ri, killed many of her men, and took a great deal of booty."[2] Israel Eph'al notes the Assyrian records claim she "fled for her life 'like a wild she-ass' to the desert. At this point she apparently decided to surrender to Tiglath-Pileser, and paid tribute."[2] "Samsi remained queen after surrendering to Tiglath Pileser, but a qēpu was appointed over her by the king of Assyria."[3] Samsi's predecessor was Zabibe, and her successor Yatie.
References
Bibliography
- Ephʻal, Israel (1982). The Ancient Arabs: Nomads on the Borders of the Fertile Crescent 9th-5th Centuries B.C. Brill. ISBN 978-965-223-400-1.
- Leick, Gwendolyn (2001). Who's Who in the Ancient Near East (Illustrated ed.). Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-13231-2.