The city of Gat was founded by the Canaanites but reached its peak under Philistine rule in the 10th to 9th centuries BCE and was the largest of the Philistine cities. The Philistines, who settled in the city at the end of the 12th century BCE, lived close to the Israelites and the conflicts between them are recorded in the Bible. Philistine rule ended when the city was conquered in 830 BCE by Hazael, King of Judah.