Ancient Warfare Vol VII, Issue 1: Warriors of the Nile - Conflict in Ancient Egypt

Ancient Warfare Vol VII, Issue 1: Warriors of the Nile - Conflict in Ancient Egypt

Ancient Warfare Vol VII, Issue 1: Warriors of the Nile - Conflict in Ancient Egypt

The introduction has two main themes - the different enemies faced by Ancient Egypt over time and their impact on the main periods of Egyptian history. We then move on to a look at the sources for Egyptian military history, rather different to the more familiar Greek and Roman histories. Here artworks, archaeology and mummies combine with the official proclamations of Royal deeds to provide an overall picture of developments, although we largely lack the detailed narrative histories from other periods. This is demonstrated by the choice of the battle of Kadesh for an article, as we don't really have enough detail of many other Ancient Egyptian battles. There is also an article on the military equipment found in the tomb of Tutankhamen, an invaluable source for military history.

The Hyksos, an obscure group who ruled part of Egypt after the end of the Middle Kingdom, are given an article, looking at their rise, their military achievements and their eventual fall. Egypt's two fortified borders - in the south facing Nubia and in the north-east looking towards Palestine and Syria - are the subject of an interest article that compares and contrasts their purposes and what we know about the actual fortifications.

Two articles stray away from the main theme. The most interesting looks at a little known clash between a Han army sent west to get better horses for China and an outpost of Greek civilisation in central Asia left behind by Alexander the Great. In two campaigns both sides won once - the partly Macedonian army managed to inflict a heavy battlefield defeat on the Han (in the first campaign) before being defeated after a siege of their main city in the second.

Pictures, Objects and Words - Sources for ancient Egyptian warfare
The 'Rulers' of Foreign Lands - The Hyksos and their contributions to Egyptian warfare
From the 'Walls of the Ruler' to the 'Belly of Stones' - Egypt's strategic border defences
The Battle of Kadesh - Ramesses II faces the Hittites
A Pharaoh's Arsenal - The weapons of Tutankhamun
Conversions of the Great Kings - Letters to the royal court in Egypt
The Military Standards of the Roman Legions - Symbolic objects of ideology, veneration and belief
The War of the Heavenly Horses - Could the Han Chinese have defeated the Macedonian army?

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