Ancient Egypt's army was a force that terrorized its less developed neighbors for several millennia. Although from modern times it seems that Egypt remained unchanged for a long time, each period of its history deserves special attention. As one of the basic institutions of the state, the Egyptian army has changed as other structures have changed.
The importance of the army in the ancient state
Throughout Egyptian history, it was the army that determined the power of this ancient civilization. Historians identify four major time periods in the statehood of the country, called the Kingdoms: Early, Ancient, Middle and New. Each of these periods also corresponds to a special way of organizing the army of Egypt.
A distinctive feature of Egypt at all times of its existence was its centralized structure. However, this strong and unified state was surrounded by a hostileSahara, inhabited by nomadic tribes, from time to time attacked their highly organized neighbor.
Such a neighborhood and constant pressure from other civilized states forced the ancient country to constantly maintain regular troops to protect the borders and new conquests.
How Egypt defended
The natural border separating the state from the surrounding chaos of unorganized tribes was the arid desert lands of Africa. In the later periods of the kingdoms, the Sahara protected the country even from the well-organized armies of the Middle East.
The natural conditions on the borders of Egypt were such that even a relatively small garrison of the watch fortress, which were built to the west and east of the mouth of the Nile, could hold the enemy for a long time until reinforcements arrived.
However, only the border settlements had fortifications, while the cities of the central part of the country, including its capital, were deprived of fortress walls and other defensive structures.
Geographic location also had an impact on how the Egyptian army expanded. However, technology was also of great importance for the military success of the ancient Egyptian state.
Main Threats
It is believed that the history of the state in 2686-2181 BC belongs to the Old Kingdom. e. This time was a period of we alth and cultural prosperity. An important role in the matter of state building was assigned to the army of Egypt.
The country's government managed to create at that time a stable and combat-ready armed forces, whichcould effectively protect the state border for five hundred years and even expand the territories under their control. However, there were also enough external threats.
The main threat came from the inhabitants of the gradually drying up Sahara, the ancient Libyans. The Nubians threatened the country from the south, and Semitic tribes regularly invaded Egypt from the Arabian Peninsula. Separate mention deserves intrastate conflicts between the rulers of different nomes, separatism took place. However, the list of threats was not exhausted by this, since any people not controlled by the pharaoh was considered as a source of threat.
Army of Egypt in the Old Kingdom
The defense of Egypt during this period was based on the construction of fortresses in the Nile Valley, and the main enemy was the Nubian country, located south of the Egyptian borders. Fortresses were built even outside the controlled lands. However, it was not possible to verify the effectiveness of these fortifications, since no one attacked them.
At that time, the army in Ancient Egypt consisted of peasants. A characteristic feature of the country's military organization was the absence of professional armed forces. Despite the centralized nature of the state, each ruler of the nome independently collected an army. At that time, service in the armed forces was not very prestigious and did not give special career and social prospects, so they were replenished mainly at the expense of the least protected segments of the population.
From the militia gathered in the nomes, as a result,army, the command of which was transferred to the pharaoh. The soldiers were armed with primitive weapons: bows, shields, clubs and buzdygans (a special kind of mace with metal plates).
Middle Kingdom. Empire Ideology
In 2055 BC, Egyptian statehood enters a new phase. A distinctive feature of this period was the model according to which economic prosperity became a matter of the use of military force. The armament of the army of Ancient Egypt during this period is undergoing significant changes.
If in the previous period fortresses were built exclusively for defensive purposes, then at the new stage military force is already used in the interests of expanding borders and constant expansion. What kind of army Egypt was at that time, we know not only from internal sources, but also from its neighbors, with whom the country fought.
Pharaohs sought to replenish their treasury through control over trade routes and mediation. In addition, captives were an important part of the international trade of that time.
Transition period
The reign of Pharaoh Mernofer Aib was the last in the XIII dynasty, and immediately after his flight from the country, a protracted transition period began, during which the country was ruled by the West Semitic Hyksos tribe.
The army of Egypt was powerless in front of the swift detachments of well-trained warriors. The invaders destroyed Memphis, while destroying a significant part of its population. The surviving Egyptians fled to Thebes, which became a hotbed of resistance to foreigners. At the same time withsouth began to advance the Nubians.
However, despite the catastrophic consequences of the Hyksos invasion, it also had positive consequences. The clash with these people prompted the Egyptians to radically change their military tactics and strategy. It was the Hyksos who brought war chariots to the Egyptian army.
New military equipment, including composite, allowed the Egyptians to oust the invaders, significantly updating both military affairs and public administration.
New Kingdom
Another historical period, which lasted almost five hundred years, became a true golden age of Egyptian culture. It was at this time that the three greatest dynasties of pharaohs ruled: XVIII, XIX, XX.
However, there were also serious shocks, the largest of which was the invasion of the "peoples of the sea". Egypt turned out to be perhaps the only power in the Mediterranean that proved able to withstand the "catastrophe of the Bronze Age." This was made possible largely thanks to military technology borrowed from the Hyksos.
Unlike the Hittites, who used war chariots in large numbers, the Egyptians relied on infantry of varying degrees of armament, which allowed them to significantly increase the size of the army.
Evolution of the army and weapons
The period of the New Kingdom became the frontier, beyond which strong changes took place in the structure of the army of Ancient Egypt. In the old days, the army was recruited on an involuntary basis from the peasants. However, in the army of the pharaoh of Ancient Egypt inDuring the period of the New Kingdom, a stratum of the military appeared, who entered the service voluntarily and for significant privileges.
In the earliest period of the existence of the state, the army used wooden shields sheathed in leather, spears with copper tips and maces with stone tops. After the war with the Hyksos, intricately designed bows, war chariots and bronze battle axes appeared in the armament of the army of Ancient Egypt.
A central place in the military strategy of the Egyptians was occupied by a massive attack of archers, which preceded hand-to-hand combat. In this case, the tips were made of silicon or copper. Apart from weak shields, the infantry had no other protection, since the Egyptians did not use armor until the beginning of the second millennium BC.
The role of the chariot in the Egyptian army
As a heritage, the Hyksos left the most important technical innovation - the chariot, which the Egyptians significantly improved. The chariot has become lighter and faster than those used in the Middle East.
To maintain the Egyptian chariot, two people were needed: a driver who controlled the reins and a warrior, usually armed with a composite bow and protected by scaly armor. In the images that have survived to this day, you can often see the pharaoh on a chariot leading his army into battle. Pharaohs were much better protected than normal warriors thanks to the use of precious stones in their robes, which made their armor harder.
During the XIX Dynasty they receivemore widespread armor, which becomes available to almost all warriors, and the widespread use of the khopesh sword, which can often be seen in the images of that period.
Technical innovation and social change
Following technical changes, innovations also followed in military strategy. With new weapons, Egypt was able to pursue a tougher expansionist policy, and the army became professional, which led to strong changes in society.
Going beyond the borders of their country, the Egyptians encountered other advanced civilizations of the ancient world. In total, the pharaohs led about twenty foreign campaigns against Babylonia, the Hittite Empire, Mitanni and Assyria.
An important part of the Egyptian army in ancient times were mercenaries from the barbarian tribes of Libya and Nubia, as well as Palestine. In sources relating to the second millennium BC. e., the Sherdan people are also mentioned, who traded in piracy along the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. Although the documents refer to them as mercenaries, scholars tend to consider them more like prisoners of war.
Late period
From 712 to 332 B. C. e. lasted the late period of Egyptian statehood, which became the final chord in the history of the country. It was during this period that the army began to use iron weapons and borrowed the phalanx from the Greek invaders. In the late period, the division of the armed forces into three parts was finally approved: infantry, charioteers and militaryfleet.
As a result of the long evolution of the armed forces, it was decided to divide the army into North and South, each of which was later also divided into two parts.
The system was arranged in such a way that the pharaoh recruited the highest command from the closest relatives, and they recruited lower officers from among the less successful princes. In addition, the level of education was an important factor in the selection of candidates, since senior officers often had to perform diplomatic functions.
What the army of Egypt was like, we know from detailed descriptions of the foreign campaigns of the pharaohs, as well as from the images on the walls of temples and tombs. An important source of information about weapons is also the contents of the burials, which often contained entire chariots, as well as armor and personal weapons of warriors.
We owe a lot of information about the ancient Egyptians to the invasion of Napoleon's army into Egypt, which was accompanied by numerous scientists who compiled inventories of burials. Numerous artifacts obtained by the French during the Egyptian expedition became the basis of European collections. It is thanks to the archaeological boom that followed the military campaign of the French that we know what the weapons of the Egyptian army consisted of.
