Uriah the Hittite

Uriah the Hittite was a soldier in King David’s army and the husband of Bathsheba. David arranges Uriah’s death during the siege of Rabbah after Bathsheba becomes pregnant, making him central to a biblical account of royal abuse and moral accountability.

David then sends him back carrying orders that place him in the most dangerous part of the fighting and ensure his death. The prophet Nathan’s subsequent condemnation makes Uriah’s fate central to the biblical judgement on David’s abuse of royal power.

Angela Hunt’s Bathsheba gives Uriah a substantial presence as Bathsheba’s husband and a respected soldier in David’s army, making David’s desire for Bathsheba inseparable from the betrayal and arranged death of a loyal subordinate. Geraldine Brooks’ The Secret Chord retells the same episode within the wider life of David, using Uriah’s fate as one of the clearest examples of the violence and abuse of royal power hidden behind the king’s military and political achievements.