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The pharaoh Mentuhotep II commanded military campaigns south as far as the Second Cataract in Nubia, which had gained its independence during the First Intermediate Period. He also restored Egyptian hegemony over the Sinai region, which had been lost to Egypt since the end of the Old Kingdom.
- The Development of Professional Warfare
- Armies & Weapons in The Old Kingdom
- Middle Kingdom Warfare
- The Contributions of The Hyksos
- The Army of The Empire
- The Egyptian Navy
- Decline of The Egyptian Military
Although modern-day scholars disagree on whether Narmer united Egypt through conquest, there is no doubt that a military force under a strong leader was necessary to hold the country together. Throughout the Early DynasticPeriod in Egypt, there is evidence of unrest, perhaps even a division of the country at one point, and civil wars between factio...
The weapons of the Predynastic and Early Dynastic Periods were primarily maces, daggers, and spears. By the time of the Old Kingdom the bow and arrow, among other weaponry, had been added as historian Margaret Bunson explains: The Egyptians used a simple single-arched bow which was hard to draw, had a short range, and unreliable accuracy. The soldi...
By the time of the Middle Kingdom the troops carried copper axes and swords. The long, bronzespear became standard as did body armor of leather over short kilts. The army was better organized with "a minister of war and a commander in chief of the army, or an official who worked in that capacity" (Bunson, 169). These professional troops were highly...
The kings of the 12th Dynasty, like Senusret III, were strong rulers who contributed a great deal to Egyptian stability but the 13th Dynasty was weaker and failed to maintain an effective central government. The Hyksos, a Semitic people who immigrated from Syria-Palestine, settled in Lower Egypt at Avaris and, in time, had amassed enough wealth to ...
The period of the New Kingdom is the best known by modern-day audiences with some of the most famous rulers (Hatshepsut, Thutmose III, Seti I, Ramesses II). It was the period when Egypt reached its height in prestige, power, and wealth. Van de Mieroop writes: The empire of the New Kingdom starts with Ahmose I's pursuit of the Hyksos out of Egypt, t...
Besides the army and the chariotry, there was a third branch of the military, the navy. As noted, in the Old Kingdom the navy was used primarily to transport infantry. Even as late as the Second Intermediate Period, Kamose was using the navy simply as transport to bring his troops down the Nilefor the sack of Avaris. In the New Kingdom, however, th...
Ramesses III was the last effective pharaoh of the New Kingdom and, after he died, great military successes became more and more a thing of the past. The pharaohs who followed him were not strong enough to hold the empire and it began to fall apart. A contributing factor to this decline was actually Ramesses II's decision to build Per-Ramesses and ...
- Joshua J. Mark
He was expected to personally command the Egyptian army and lead them into battle. If the pharaoh was victorious, he would return home as a hero, and his people would celebrate his achievements. The pharaoh was also responsible for maintaining Egypt's borders.
Organization and Structure: The Egyptian military was organized hierarchically, with the pharaoh serving as the supreme commander. Below the pharaoh were high-ranking officials and generals who oversaw various branches of the military, including the army, navy, and chariotry.
Jan 11, 2022 · During a real battle, the pharaoh made a strategic plan to dispatch his army by dividing them into two groups: the North and the South soldiers. They were again subdivided into four army soldiers named the Ra, Amen, Sutekh, and Ptah .
In the 12th dynasty (1991 - 1802 BC), pharaohs began maintaining standing armies. They were used for expeditions across the Sinai or up the Nile or to defend the realm from invaders. Senusret III (1878 - 1839 BC) led a series of campaigns in Nubia.
The pharaoh had the right to raise troops and would conscript one in 10 able-bodied men from each temple community to supplement the permanent army. These conscripts...
