The Battle of Kadesh was a major military conflict in the early 13th century BC, between the attacking Ramesses II of the Egyptian Empire and defending Muwatalli II of the Hittite Empire. In the previous year, Ramesses II had invaded the neighboring province of Amurru. At the Orontes River, the armies engaged each other just upstream of Lake Homs and near the stronghold of Kadesh, along what is today the Lebanon–Syria border.