HISTORICAL LITERATURE
The historical period of Egyptian history, that is to say, the period
during which Egypt was ruled by kings, each one calling himself
NESU-BATI, or "King of the South, King of the North," covers about 4400
years according to some Egyptologists, and 3300 years according to
others. Of the kings of All Egypt who reigned during the period we know
the names of about two hundred, but only about one hundred and fifty
have left behind them monuments that enable us to judge of their power
and greatness. There is no evidence to show that the Egyptians ever
wrote history in our sense of the word, and there is not in existence
any native work that can be regarded as a history of Egypt. The only
known attempt in ancient times to write a history of Egypt was that made
by Manetho, a skilled scribe and learned man, who, in the reign of
Ptolemy II Philadelphus (289-246 B.C.), undertook to write a history of
the country, which was to be placed in the Great Library at Alexandria.
The only portion of this History that has come down to us is the List of
Kings, which formed a section of it; this List, in a form more or less
accurate, is extant in the works of Africanus and Eusebius. According to
the former 553 or 554 kings ruled over Egypt in 5380 years, and
according to the latter 421 or 423 kings ruled over Egypt in 4547 or
4939 years. It is quite certain that the principal acts and wars of each
king were recorded by the court scribes, or official "remembrancer" or
"recorder" of the day, and there is no doubt that such records were
preserved in the "House of Books," or Library, of the local temple for
reference if necessary. If this were not so it would have been
impossible for the scribes of the eighteenth and nineteenth dynasties to
compile the lists of kings found on the Palermo Stone, and in the Turin
Papyrus, and on the Tablets set up by Seti I and Rameses II at Abydos,
and on the Tablet of Ancestors at Karnak. These Lists, however, seem to
show that the learned scribes of the later period were not always sure
of the true sequence of the names, and that when they were dealing with
the names of the kings of the first two dynasties they were not always
certain even about the correct spelling and reading of their names. The
reason why the Egyptians did not write the history of their country from
a general point of view is easily explained. Each king wished to be
thought as great as possible, and each king's courtiers lost no
opportunity of showing that they believed him to be the greatest king
who had sat on the throne of Egypt. To magnify the deeds of his
ancestors was neither politic nor safe, nor did it lead to favours or
promotion. In no inscription of their descendants do we find the mighty
deeds and great conquests of Amenemhāt III, or of Usertsen III, or of
Thothmes III, praised or described, and no court scribe ever dared to
draft a text stating that these were truly three of the greatest kings
of Egypt. When a local chief succeeded in making himself king of All
Egypt he did not concern himself with preserving records of the great
deeds of the king whose throne he had seized. When foreign foes invaded
Egypt and conquered it their followers raided the towns, burnt and
destroyed all that could be got rid of, and smashed the monuments
recording the prowess of the king they had overthrown. The net result of
all this is that the history of Egypt can only be partially constructed,
and that the sources of our information are a series of texts that were
written to glorify individual kings, and not to describe the history of
a dynasty, or the general development of the country, or the working out
of a policy. In attempting to draw up a connected account of a reign or
period the funerary inscriptions of high officials are often more useful
than the royal inscriptions. In the following pages are given extracts
from annals, building inscriptions, narratives of conquests, and
"triumph inscriptions" of an official character; specimens of the
funerary inscriptions that describe military expeditions, and supply
valuable information about the general history of events, will be given
in the chapter on Biographical Inscriptions.
The earliest known annals are found on a stone which is preserved in the
Museum at Palermo, and which for this reason is called "The Palermo
Stone"; the Egyptian text was first published by Signor A. Pellegrini in
1896. How the principal events of certain years of the reigns of kings
from the Predynastic Period to the middle of the fifth dynasty are noted
is shown by the following:
[Reign of] SENEFERU. Year ...
The building of Tuataua ships of _mer_ wood of a hundred capacity,
and 60 royal boats of sixteen capacity.
Raid in the Land of the Blacks (_i.e._ the Sūdān), and the bringing
in of seven thousand prisoners, men and women, and twenty thousand
cattle, sheep, and goats.
Building of the Wall of the South and North [called] House of
Seneferu.
The bringing of forty ships of cedar wood (or perhaps "laden with
cedar wood").
[Height of the Nile.] Two cubits, two fingers.
[Reign of Seneferu.] Year ...
The making of thirty-five ... 122 cattle
The construction of one Tuataua ship of cedar wood of a hundred
capacity, and two ships of _mer_ wood of a hundred capacity.
The numbering for the seventh time.
[Height of the Nile.] Five cubits, one hand, one finger.
The royal historical inscriptions of the first eleven dynasties are very
few, and their contents are meagre and unimportant. As specimens of
historical documents of the twelfth dynasty the following may be quoted:
EDICT AGAINST THE BLACKS
This short inscription is dated in the eighth year of the reign of
Usertsen III. "The southern frontier in the eighth year under the
Majesty of the King of the South and North, Khākaurā (Usertsen III),
endowed with life for ever. No Black whatsoever shall be permitted to
pass [this stone] going down stream, whether travelling by land or
sailing in a boat, with cattle, asses, goats, &c., belonging to the
Blacks, with the exception of such as cometh to do business in the
country of Aqen[1] or on an embassy. Such, however, shall be well
entreated in every way. No boats belonging to the Blacks shall in future
be permitted to pass down the river by the region of Heh."[2]
[Footnote 1: This district has not been identified.]
[Footnote 2: The district of Semnah and Kummah, about 40 miles south of
Wādī Halfah.]
The methods of Usertsen III and his opinions of the Sūdānī folk are
illustrated by the following inscription which he set up at Semnah, a
fort built by him at the foot of the Second Cataract.
"In the third month[1] of the season Pert His Majesty fixed the boundary
of Egypt on the south at Heh (Semnah). I made my boundary and went
further up the river than my fathers. I added greatly to it. I give
commands [therein]. I am the king, and what is said by me is done. What
my heart conceiveth my hand bringeth to pass. I am [like] the crocodile
which seizeth, carrieth off, and destroyeth without mercy. Words (or
matters) do not remain dormant in my heart. To the coward soft talk
suggesteth longsuffering; this I give not to my enemies. Him who
attacketh me I attack. I am silent in the matter that is for silence; I
answer as the matter demandeth. Silence after an attack maketh the heart
of the enemy bold. The attack must be sudden like that of a crocodile.
The man who hesitateth is a coward, and a wretched creature is he who is
defeated on his own territory and turned into a slave. The Black
understandeth talk only. Speak to him and he falleth prostrate. He
fleeth before a pursuer, and he pursueth only him that fleeth. The
Blacks are not bold men; on the contrary, they are timid and weak, and
their hearts are cowed. My Majesty hath seen them, and [what I say] is
no lie.
[Footnote 1: = January-February.]
"I seized their women, I carried off their workers in the fields, I came
to their wells, I slew their bulls, I cut their corn and I burnt it.
This I swear by the life of my father. I speak the truth; there is no
doubt about the matter, and that which cometh forth from my mouth cannot
be gainsaid. Furthermore, every son of mine who shall keep intact this
boundary which My Majesty hath made, is indeed my son; he is the son who
protecteth his father, if he keep intact the boundary of him that begot
him. He who shall allow this boundary to be removed, and shall not fight
for it, is not my son, and he hath not been begotten by me. Moreover, My
Majesty hath caused to be made a statue of My Majesty on this my
boundary, not only with the desire that ye should prosper thereby, but
that ye should do battle for it."
CAMPAIGN OF THOTHMES II IN THE SŪDĀN
The following extract illustrates the inscriptions in which the king
describes an expedition into a hostile country which he has conducted
with success. It is taken from an inscription of Thothmes II, which is
cut in hieroglyphs on a rock by the side of the old road leading from
Elephantine to Philæ, and is dated in the first year of the king's
reign. The opening lines enumerate the names and titles of the king, and
proclaim his sovereignty over the Haunebu, or the dwellers in the
northern Delta and on the sea coast, Upper and Lower Egypt, Nubia and
the Eastern Desert, including Sinai, Syria, the lands of the Fenkhu, and
the countries that lie to the south of the modern town of Khartum. The
next section states: "A messenger came in and saluted His Majesty and
said: The vile people of Kash (_i.e._ Cush, Northern Nubia) are in
revolt. The subjects of the Lord of the Two Lands (_i.e._ the King of
Egypt) have become hostile to him, and they have begun to fight. The
Egyptians [in Nubia] are driving down their cattle from the shelter of
the stronghold which thy father Thothmes [I] built to keep back the
tribes of the South and the tribes of the Eastern Desert." The last part
of the envoy's message seems to contain a statement that some of the
Egyptians who had settled in Nubia had thrown in their lot with the
Sūdānī folk who were in revolt. The text continues: "When His Majesty
heard these words he became furious like a panther (or leopard), and he
said: I swear by Rā, who loveth me, and by my father Amen, king of the
gods, lord of the thrones of the Two Lands, that I will not leave any
male alive among them. Then His Majesty sent a multitude of soldiers
into Nubia, now this was his first war, to effect the overthrow of all
those who had rebelled against the Lord of the Two Lands, and of all
those who were disaffected towards His Majesty. And the soldiers of His
Majesty arrived in the miserable land of Kash, and overthrew these
savages, and according to the command of His Majesty they left no male
alive, except one of the sons of the miserable Prince of Kash, who was
carried away alive with some of their servants to the place where His
Majesty was. His Majesty took his seat on his throne, and when the
prisoners whom his soldiers had captured were brought to him they were
placed under the feet of the good god. Their land was reduced to its
former state of subjection, and the people rejoiced and their chiefs
were glad. They ascribed praise to the Lord of the Two Lands, and they
glorified the god for his divine beneficence. This took place because of
the bravery of His Majesty, whom his father Amen loved more than any
other king of Egypt from the very beginning, the King of the South and
North, Āakheperenrā, the son of Rā, Thothmes (II), whose crowns are
glorious, endowed with life, stability, and serenity, like Rā for ever."
CAPTURE OF MEGIDDO BY THOTHMES III
The following is the official account of the Battle of Megiddo in Syria,
which was won by Thothmes III in the twenty-third year of his reign. The
narrative is taken from the Annals of Thothmes III. The king set out
from Thebes and marched into Syria, and received the submission of
several small towns, and having made his way with difficulty through the
hilly region to the south of the city of Megiddo, he camped there to
prepare for the battle. "Then the tents of His Majesty were pitched, and
orders were sent out to the whole army, saying, Arm yourselves, get your
weapons ready, for we shall set out to do battle with the miserable
enemy at daybreak. The king sat in his tent, the officers made their
preparations, and the rations of the servants were provided. The
military sentries went about crying, Be firm of heart. Be firm of heart.
Keep watch, keep watch. Keep watch over the life of the king in his
tent. And a report was brought to His Majesty that the country was
quiet, and that the foot soldiers of the south and north were ready. On
the twenty-first day of the first month of the season Shemu
(March-April) of the twenty-third year of the reign of His Majesty, and
the day of the festival of the new moon, which was also the anniversary
of the king's coronation, at dawn, behold, the order was given to set
the whole army in motion. His Majesty set out in his chariot of
silver-gold, and he had girded on himself the weapons of battle, like
Horus the Slayer, the lord of might, and he was like unto Menthu [the
War-god] of Thebes, and Amen his father gave strength to his arms. The
southern half of the army was stationed on a hill to the south of the
stream Kīnā, and the northern half lay to the south-west of Megiddo; His
Majesty was between them, and Amen was protecting him and giving
strength to his body. His Majesty at the head of his army attacked his
enemies, and broke their line, and when they saw that he was
overwhelming them they broke and fled to Megiddo in a panic, leaving
their horses and their gold and silver chariots on the field. [The
fugitives] were pulled up by the people over the walls into the city;
now they let down their clothes by which to pull them up. If the
soldiers of His Majesty had not devoted themselves to securing loot of
the enemy, they would have been able to capture the city of Megiddo at
the moment when the vile foes from Kadesh and the vile foes from this
city were being dragged up hurriedly over the walls into this city; for
the terror of His Majesty had entered into them, and their arms dropped
helplessly, and the serpent on his crown overthrew them. Their horses
and their chariots [which were decorated] with gold and silver were
seized as spoil, and their mighty men of war lay stretched out dead upon
the ground like fishes, and the conquering soldiers of His Majesty went
about counting their shares. And behold, the tent of the vile chief of
the enemy, wherein was his son, was also captured. Then all the soldiers
rejoiced greatly, and they glorified Amen, because he had made his son
(_i.e._ the king) victorious on that day, and they praised His Majesty
greatly, and acclaimed his triumph. And they collected the loot which
they had taken, viz. hands [cut off the dead], prisoners, horses,
chariots [decorated with] gold and silver," etc.
In spite of the joy of the army Thothmes was angry with his troops for
having failed to capture the city. Every rebel chief was in Megiddo, and
its capture would have been worth more than the capture of a thousand
other cities, for he could have slain all the rebel chiefs, and the
revolt would have collapsed completely. Thothmes then laid siege to the
city, and he threw up a strong wall round about it, through which none
might pass, and the daily progress of the siege was recorded on a
leather roll, which was subsequently preserved in the temple of Amen at
Thebes. After a time the chiefs in Megiddo left their city and advanced
to the gate in the siege-wall and reported that they had come to tender
their submission to His Majesty, and it was accepted. They brought to
him rich gifts of gold, silver, lapis-lazuli, turquoise, wheat, wine,
cattle, sheep, goats, &c., and he reappointed many of the penitent
chiefs to their former towns as vassals of Egypt. Among the gifts were
340 prisoners, 83 hands, 2041 mares, 191 foals, 6 stallions, a royal
chariot with a golden pole, a second royal chariot, 892 chariots, total
924 chariots; 2 royal coats of mail, 200 ordinary coats of mail, 502
bows, 7 tent poles inlaid with gold, 1929 cattle, 2000 goats, and 20,500
sheep.
THE CONQUESTS OF THOTHMES III SUMMARISED BY
AMEN-RĀ, KING OF THE GODS
The conquests of Thothmes III were indeed splendid achievements, and the
scribes of his time summarised them very skilfully in a fine text which
they had cut in hieroglyphs on a large stele at Karnak. The treatment
is, of course, somewhat poetical, but there are enough historical facts
underlying the statements to justify a rendering of it being given in
this chapter. The text is supposed to be a speech of Amen-Rā, the lord
of the thrones of the Two Lands, to the king. He says:
"Thou hast come to me, thou hast rejoiced in beholding my beneficence, O
my son, my advocate, Menkheperrā, living for ever! I rise upon thee
through my love for thee. My heart rejoiceth at thy auspicious comings
to my temple. My hands knit together thy limbs with the fluid of life;
sweet unto me are thy gracious acts towards my person. I have stablished
thee in my sanctuary. I have made thee to be a source of wonder [to
men]. I have given unto thee strength and conquests over all lands. I
have set thy Souls and the fear of thee in all lands. The terror of thee
hath penetrated to the four pillars of the sky. I have made great the
awe of thee in all bodies. I have set the roar of Thy Majesty everywhere
[in the lands of] the Nine Bows (_i.e._ Nubia). The Chiefs of all lands
are grouped in a bunch within thy fist. I put out my two hands; I tied
them in a bundle for thee. I collected the Antiu of Ta-sti[1] in tens of
thousands and thousands, and I made captives by the hundred thousand of
the Northern Nations. I have cast down thy foes under thy sandals, thou
hast trampled upon the hateful and vile-hearted foes even as I commanded
thee. The length and breadth of the earth are thine, and those who dwell
in the East and the West are vassals unto thee. Thou hast trodden upon
all countries, thy heart is expanded (_i.e._ glad). No one dareth to
approach Thy Majesty with hostility, because I am thy guide to conduct
thee to them. Thou didst sail over the Great Circuit of water (the
Euphrates) of Nehren (Aram Naharayim, or Mesopotamia) with strength and
power. I have commanded for thee that they should hear thy roarings, and
run away into holes in the ground. I stopped up their nostrils [shutting
out] the breath of life. I have set the victories of Thy Majesty in
their minds. The fiery serpent Khut which is on thy forehead burnt them
up. It made thee to grasp as an easy prey the Ketu peoples, it burnt up
the dwellers in their marshes with its fire. The Princes of the Āamu
(Asiatics) have been slaughtered, not one of them remains, and the sons
of the mighty men have fallen. I have made thy mighty deeds to go
throughout all lands, the serpent on my crown hath illumined thy
territory, nothing that is an abomination unto thee existeth in all the
wide heaven, and the people come bearing offerings upon their backs,
bowing to the ground before Thy Majesty, in accordance with my decree. I
made impotent those who dared to attack thee, their hearts melted and
their limbs quaked.
[Footnote 1: The natives of the Eastern Desert of Nubia.]
[Illustration: Stele on which is cut the Speech of Amen-Rā, summarising
the Conquests of Thothmes III.]
"I have come, making thee to trample under foot the Chief of Tchah
(Syria), I have cast them down under thy feet in all the lands, I have
made them to behold Thy Majesty as the 'lord of beams' (_i.e._ the
Sun-god), thou hast shone on their faces as the image of me.
"I have come, making thee to trample under foot the people of Asia, thou
hast led away captive the Chiefs of the Āamu of Retenu, I have made them
to behold Thy Majesty arrayed in thy decorations, grasping the weapons
for battle, [mounted] on thy chariot.
"I have come, making thee to trample under foot the land of the East,
thou hast trodden upon those who dwell in the districts of the Land of
the God, I have made them to see thee as the brilliant star that
shooteth out light and fire and scattereth its dew.
"I have come, making thee to trample under foot the land of the West,
Kefti (Phœnicia) and Asi (Cyprus) are in awe of thee. I have made them
to see Thy Majesty as a young bull, steady-hearted, with horns ready to
strike, invincible.
"I have come, making thee to trample under foot those who are in their
marshes, the Lands of Methen (Mitani) quake through their fear of thee.
I have made them to see Thy Majesty as the crocodile, the lord of terror
in the water, unassailable.
"I have come, making thee to trample under foot those who dwell in the
Islands, those who live in the Great Green (Mediterranean) hear thy
roarings, I have made them to see Thy Majesty as the slayer when he
mounteth on the back of his sacrificial animal.
"I have come, making thee to trample under foot the Thehenu (Libyans),
the Islands of the Uthentiu [have submitted to] the power of thy Souls.
I have made them to see Thy Majesty as a savage lion, which hath
scattered the dead bodies of the people throughout their valleys.
"I have come, making thee to trample under foot the uttermost ends of
the earth, the Circuit of the Great Circuit is in thy grasp, I have made
them to see Thy Majesty as the hawk, which seizeth what it seeth when it
pleaseth.
"I have come, making thee to trample upon those who are on their
frontiers(?), thou hast smitten 'those on their sand' (_i.e._ the desert
dwellers), making them living captives. I have made them to see Thy
Majesty as a jackal of the south, moving fleetly and stealthily, and
traversing the Two Lands.
"I have come, making thee to trample under foot the Antiu of Ta-sti, as
far as ... they are in thy grasp. I have made them to see Thy Majesty as
the Two Brothers (Set and Horus), I have gathered together their arms
about thee with [strength].
"I have placed thy Two Sisters (Isis and Nephthys) near thee as
protectresses for thee, the arms of Thy Majesty are [lifted] upwards to
drive away evil. I have made thee strong and glorious, O my beloved Son,
thou Mighty Bull, crowned in Thebes, begotten by me ..., Thothmes, the
everliving, who hast performed for me all that my Ka wished. Thou hast
set up my sanctuary with work that shall endure for ever, thou hast
lengthened it and broadened it more than ever was done before. The great
pylon ... Thou hast celebrated the festival of the beauties of Amen-Rā,
thy monuments are greater than those of any king who hath existed, I
commanded thee to do it. I am satisfied with it. I have stablished thee
upon the throne of Horus for hundreds of thousands of years. Thou shalt
guide life ..."
[Illustration: A Page of the Hieratic Text, from the Great Harris
Papyrus in the British Museum, describing the great Works carried out by
Rameses III about 1200 B.C.]
SUMMARY OF THE REIGN OF RAMESES III
The reign of Rameses III is remarkable in the annals of the New Empire,
and the great works which this king carried out, and his princely
benefactions to the temples of Egypt, are described at great length in
his famous papyrus in the British Museum (Harris, No. 1, No. 9999). The
last section of the papyrus contains an excellent historical summary of
the reign of Rameses III, and as it is one of the finest examples of
this class of literature a translation of it is here given. The text is
written in the hieratic character and reads:
King Usermaātrā-meri-Amen (Rameses III), life, strength, health [be to
him!] the great god, said unto the princes, and the chiefs of the land,
and the soldiers, and the charioteers, and the Shartanau soldiers, and
the multitudes of the bowmen, and all those who lived in the land of
Ta-mera (Egypt), Hearken ye, and I will cause you to know the splendid
deeds which I did when I was king of men. The land of Kamt was laid open
to the foreigner, every man [was ejected] from his rightful holding,
there was no "chief mouth" (_i.e._ ruler) for many years in olden times
until the new period [came]. The land of Egypt [was divided among]
chiefs and governors of towns, each one slew his neighbour. ... Another
period followed with years of nothingness (famine?). Arsu, a certain
Syrian, was with them as governor, he made the whole land to be one
holding before him. He collected his vassals, and mulcted them of their
possessions heavily. They treated the gods as if they were men, and they
offered up no propitiatory offerings in their temples. Now when the gods
turned themselves back to peace, and to the restoration of what was
right in the land, according to its accustomed and proper form, they
established their son who proceeded from their body to be Governor,
life, strength, health [be to him!], of every land, upon their great
throne, namely, Userkhārā-setep-en-Amen-meri-Amen, life strength, health
[be to him!], the son of Rā, Set-nekht-merr-Rā-meri-Amen, life,
strength, health [be to him!]. He was like Khepra-Set when he is wroth.
He quieted the whole country which had been in rebellion. He slew the
evil-hearted ones who were in Ta-mera (Egypt). He purified the great
throne of Egypt. He was the Governor, life, strength, health [be to
him!], of the Two Lands, on the throne of Amen. He made to appear the
faces that had withdrawn themselves. Of those who had been behind walls
every man recognised his fellow. He endowed the temples with offerings
to offer as was right to the Nine Gods, according to use and wont. He
made me by a decree to be the Hereditary Chief in the seat of Keb. I
became the "Great High Mouth" of the lands of Egypt, I directed the
affairs of the whole land, which had been made one. He set on his double
horizon (_i.e._ he died) like the Nine Gods. There was performed for him
what was performed for Osiris; sailing in his royal boat on the river,
and resting [finally] in his house of eternity (_i.e._ the tomb) in
Western Thebes.
My father Amen, the lord of the gods, Rā, Tem, and Ptah of the Beautiful
Face made me to be crowned lord of the Two Lands in the place of my
begetter. I received the rank of my father with cries of joy. The land
had peace, being fed with offerings, and men rejoiced in seeing me,
Governor, life, strength, health [be to him!], of the Two Lands, like
Horus when he was made to be Governor of the Two Lands on the throne of
Osiris. I was crowned with the Atef crown with the serpents, I bound on
the crown with plumes, like Tatenn. I sat on the throne of Heru-Khuti
(Harmakhis). I was arrayed in the ornaments [of sovereignty] like Tem. I
made Ta-mera to possess many [different] kinds of men, the officers of
the palace, the great chiefs, large numbers of horse and chariot
soldiers, hundreds of thousands of them, the Shartanau and the Qehequ,
who were numberless, soldiers of the bodyguard in tens of thousands, and
the peasants belonging to Ta-mera.
I enlarged all the frontiers of Egypt, I conquered those who crossed
over them in their [own] lands. I slaughtered the Tanauna in their
islands; the Thakra and the Purastau were made into a holocaust. The
Shartanau and the Uasheshu of the sea were made non-existent; they were
seized [by me] at one time, and were brought as captives to Egypt, like
the sand in the furrows. I provided fortresses for them to dwell in, and
they were kept in check by my name. Their companies were very numerous,
like hundreds of thousands. I assessed every one of them for taxes
yearly, in apparel and wheat from the stores and granaries. I crushed
the Sāara and the tribes of the Shasu (nomad shepherds). I carried off
their tents from their men, and the equipment thereof, and their flocks
and herds likewise, which were without number. They were put in fetters
and brought along as captives, as offerings to Egypt, and I gave them to
the Nine Gods as slaves for their temples.
Behold, I will also make you to know concerning the other schemes that
have been carried out in Ta-mera during my reign. The Labu (Libyans) and
the Mashuashau had made their dwelling in Egypt, for they had captured
the towns on the west bank of the Nile from Hetkaptah (Memphis) to
Qarabana. They had occupied also both banks of the "Great River," and
they had been in possession of the towns (or villages) of Kutut[1] for
very, very many years whilst they were [lords] over Egypt. Behold, I
crushed them and slaughtered them at one time (_i.e._ in one
engagement). I overthrew the Mashuashau, the Libyans, the Asbatau, the
Qaiqashau, the Shaiu, the Hasau, and the Baqanau. [I] slaughtered them
in their blood, and they became piles of dead bodies. [Thus] I drove
them away from marching over the border of Egypt. The rest of them I
carried away, a vast multitude of prisoners, trussed like geese in front
of my horses, their women and their children in tens of thousands, and
their flocks and herds in hundreds of thousands. I allotted to their
chiefs fortresses, and they lived there under my name. I made them
officers of the bowmen, and captains of the tribes; they were branded
with my name and became my slaves; their wives and their children were
likewise turned into slaves. Their flocks and herds I brought into the
House of Amen, and they became his live-stock for ever.
[Footnote 1: Perhaps the district of Canopus.]
I made a very large well in the desert of Āina. It had a girdle wall
like a mountain of basalt(?), with twenty buttresses(?) in the
foundation [on] the ground, and its height was thirty cubits, and it had
bastions. The frame-work and the doors were cut out of cedar, and the
bolts thereof and their sockets were of copper. I cut out large
sea-going boats, with smaller boats before them, and they were manned
with large crews, and large numbers of serving-men. With them were the
officers of the bowmen of the boats, and there were trained captains and
mates to inspect them. They were loaded with the products of Egypt which
were without number, and they were in very large numbers, like tens of
thousands. These were despatched to the Great Sea of the water of Qett
(_i.e._ the Red Sea), they arrived at the lands of Punt, no disaster
followed them, and they were in an effective state and were
awe-inspiring. Both the large boats and the little boats were laden with
the products of the Land of the God, and with all kinds of wonderful and
mysterious things which are produced in those lands, and with vast
quantities of the _ānti_ (myrrh) of Punt, which was loaded on to them by
tens of thousands [of measures] that were without number. The sons of
the chief of the Land of the God went in front of their offerings, their
faces towards Egypt. They arrived and were sound and well at the
mountain of Qebtit (Coptos),[1] they moored their boats in peace, with
the things which they had brought as offerings. To cross the desert they
were loaded upon asses and on [the backs of] men, and they were
[re]loaded into river-barges at the quay of Coptos. They were despatched
down the river, they arrived during a festival, and some of the most
wonderful of the offerings were carried into the presence of [My
Majesty]. The children of their chiefs adored my face, they smelt the
earth before my face, and rolled on the ground. I gave them to all the
gods of this land to propitiate the two gods in front of me every
morning.
[Footnote 1: _i.e._ the part at the Red Sea end of the Valley of
Hammāmāt.]
I despatched my envoys to the desert of Āataka to the great copper
workings that are in this place. Their sea-going boats were laden with
[some of] them, whilst those who went through the desert rode on asses.
Such a thing as this was never heard of before, from the time when kings
began to reign. Their copper workings were found, and they were full of
copper, and the metal was loaded by ten thousands [of measures] into
their sea-going boats. They were despatched with their faces towards
Egypt, and they arrived safely. The metal was lifted out and piled up
under the veranda in the form of blocks (or ingots) of copper, vast
numbers of them, as it were tens of thousands. They were in colour like
gold of three refinings. I allowed everybody to see them, as they were
wonderful things.
I despatched inspectors and overseers to the turquoise desert (_i.e._
Sinai) of my mother, the goddess Hathor, the lady of the turquoise.
[They] carried to her silver, gold, byssus, fine (?) linen, and many
things as numerous as the sand-grains, and laid them before her. And
there were brought unto me most wonderfully fine turquoises, real
stones, in large numbers of bags, and laid out before me. The like had
never been seen before--since kings began to reign.
I caused the whole country to be planted with groves of trees and with
flowering shrubs, and I made the people to sit under the shade thereof.
I made it possible for an Egyptian woman to walk with a bold step to the
place whither she wished to go; no strange man attacked her, and no one
on the road. I made the foot-soldiers and the charioteers sit down in my
time, and the Shartanau and the Qehequ were in their towns lying at full
length on their backs; they were unafraid, for there was no fighting man
[to come] from Kash (Nubia), [and no] enemy from Syria. Their bows and
their weapons of war lay idle in their barracks, and they ate their
fill and drank their fill with shouts of joy. Their wives were with
them, [their] children were by their side; there was no need to keep
their eyes looking about them, their hearts were bold, for I was with
them as strength and protection for their bodies. I kept alive (_i.e._
fed) the whole country, aliens, artisans, gentle and simple, men and
women. I delivered a man from his foe and I gave him air. I rescued him
from the strong man, him who was more honourable than the strong man. I
made all men to have their rightful positions in their towns. Some I
made to live [taking them] in the very chamber of the Tuat.[1] Where the
land was bare I covered it over again; the land was well filled during
my reign. I performed deeds of beneficence towards the gods as well as
towards men; I had no property that belonged to the people. I served my
office of king upon earth, as Governor of the Two Lands, and ye were
slaves under my feet without [complaint ?]. Ye were satisfactory to my
heart, as were your good actions, and ye performed my decrees and my
words.
[Footnote 1: The sick and needy who were at death's door.]
Behold, I have set in Akert (the Other World) like my father Rā. I am
among the Great Companies of the gods of heaven, earth, and the Tuat.
Amen-Rā hath stablished my son upon my throne, he hath received my rank
in peace, as Governor of the Two Lands, and he is sitting upon the
throne of Horus as Lord of the Two Nile-banks. He hath put on himself
the Atef crown like Ta-Tenn, Usermaātrā-setep-en-Amen, life, strength,
health [be to him!], the eldest-born son of Rā, the self-begotten,
Rameses (IV)-heqmaāt-meri-Amen, life, strength, health [be to him!], the
divine child, the son of Amen, who came forth from his body, rising as
the Lord of the Two Lands, like Ta-Tenn. He is like a real son, favoured
for his father's sake. Tie ye yourselves to his sandals. Smell the earth
before him. Do homage to him. Follow him at every moment. Praise him.
Worship him. Magnify his beneficent actions as ye do those of Rā every
morning. Present ye before him your offerings [in] his Great House
(_i.e._ palace), which is holy. Carry ye to him the "blessings" (?) of
the [tilled] lands and the deserts. Be strong to fulfil his words and
the decrees that are uttered among you. Follow (?) his utterances, and
ye shall be safe under his Souls. Work all together for him in every
work. Haul monuments for him, excavate canals for him, work for him in
the work of your hands, and there will accrue unto you his favour as
well as his food daily. Amen hath decreed for him his sovereignty upon
earth, he hath made this period of his life twice as long as that of any
other king, the King of the South and North, the Lord of the Two Lands,
Usermaātrā-setep-en-Amen, life, strength, health [be to him!], the son
of Rā, the lord of crowns, Rameses (IV)-heqmaāt-meri-Amen, life,
strength, health [be to him!], who is endowed with life for ever.
THE INVASION AND CONQUEST OF EGYPT
BY PIĀNKHI, KING OF NUBIA
The text describing the invasion and conquest of Egypt by Piānkhi, King
of Nubia, is cut in hieroglyphs upon a massive stone stele which was
found among the ruins of Piānkhi's temple at Gebel Barkal, near the foot
of the Fourth Cataract, and which is now preserved in the Egyptian
Museum, Cairo. Although this composition does not belong to the best
period of Egyptian Literature, it is a very fine work. The narrative is
vivid, and the aim of the writer was rather to state the facts of this
splendid expedition than to heap up empty compliments on the king; both
the subject-matter and the dress in which it appears are well worthy of
reproduction in an English form. The inscription is dated in the
twenty-first year of Piānkhi's reign, and the king says:
"Hearken ye to [the account of] what I have done more than my ancestors.
I am a king, the emanation of the god, the living offspring of the god
Tem, who at birth was ordained the Governor whom princes were to fear."
His mother knew before his birth that he was to be the Governor, he the
beneficent god, the beloved of the gods, the son of Rā who was made by
his (the god's) hands, Piānkhi-meri-Amen. One came and reported to His
Majesty that the great prince Tafnekht had taken possession of all the
country on the west bank of the Nile in the Delta, from the swamps even
to Athi-taui[1], that he had sailed up the river with a large force,
that all the people on both sides of the river had attached themselves
to him, and that all the princes and governors and heads of temple-towns
had flocked to him, and that they were "about his feet like dogs." No
city had shut its gates before him, on the contrary, Mer-Tem,
Per-sekhem-kheper-Rā, Het-neter-Sebek, Per-Metchet, Thekansh, and all
the towns in the west had opened their gates to him. In the east
Het-benu, Taiutchait, Het-suten, and Pernebtepahet had opened to him,
and he had besieged Hensu (Herakleopolis) and closely invested it. He
had enclosed it like a serpent with its tail in its mouth. "Those who
would come out he will not allow to come out, and those who would go in
he will not allow to go in, by reason of the fighting that taketh place
every day. He hath thrown soldiers round about it everywhere." Piānkhi
listened to the report undismayed, and he smiled, for his heart was
glad. Presently further reports of the uprising came, and the king
learned that Nemart, another great prince, had joined his forces to
those of Tafnekht. Nemart had thrown down the fortifications of Nefrus,
he had laid waste his own town, and had thrown off his allegiance to
Piānkhi completely.
[Footnote 1: A fortress a few miles south of Memphis.]
Then Piānkhi sent orders to Puarma and Las(?)-mer-sekni, the Nubian
generals stationed in Egypt, and told them to assemble the troops, to
seize the territory of Hermopolis, to besiege the city itself, to seize
all the people, and cattle, and the boats on the river, and to stop all
the agricultural operations that were going on; these orders were
obeyed. At the same time he despatched a body of troops to Egypt, with
careful instructions as to the way in which they were to fight, and he
bade them remember that they were fighting under the protection of Amen.
He added, "When ye arrive at Thebes, opposite the Apts,[1] go into the
waters of the river and wash yourselves, then array yourselves in your
finest apparel, unstring your bows, and lay down your spears. Let no
chief imagine that he is as strong as the Lord of strength (_i.e._
Amen), for without him there is no strength. The weak of arm he maketh
strong of arm. Though the enemy be many they shall turn their backs in
flight before the weak man, and one shall take captive a thousand. Wet
yourselves with the water of his altars, smell the earth before him, and
say: O make a way for us! Let us fight under the shadow of thy sword,
for a child, if he be but sent forth by thee, shall vanquish multitudes
when he attacketh." Then the soldiers threw themselves flat on their
faces before His Majesty, saying, "Behold, thy name breedeth strength in
us. Thy counsel guideth thy soldiers into port (_i.e._ to success). Thy
bread is in our bodies on every road, thy beer quencheth our thirst.
Behold, thy bravery hath given us strength, and at the mere mention of
thy name there shall be victory. The soldiers who are led by a coward
cannot stand firm. Who is like unto thee? Thou art the mighty king who
workest with thy hands, thou art a master of the operations of war."
[Footnote 1: _i.e._ the temples of Karnak and Luxor.]
"Then the soldiers set out on their journey, and they sailed down the
river and arrived at Thebes, and they did everything according to His
Majesty's commands. And again they set out, and they sailed down the
river, and they met many large boats sailing up the river, and they were
full of soldiers and sailors, and mighty captains from the North land,
every one fully armed to fight, and the soldiers of His Majesty
inflicted a great defeat on them; they killed a very large but unknown
number, they captured the boats, made the soldiers prisoners, whom they
brought alive to the place where His Majesty was." This done they
proceeded on their way to the region opposite Herakleopolis, to continue
the battle. Again the soldiers of Piānkhi attacked the troops of the
allies, and defeated and routed them utterly, and captured their boats
on the river. A large number of the enemy succeeded in escaping, and
landed on the west bank of the river at Per-pek. At dawn these were
attacked by Piānkhi's troops, who slew large numbers of them, and
[captured] many horses; the remainder, utterly terror-stricken, fled
northwards, carrying with them the news of the worst defeat which they
had ever experienced.
Nemart, one of the rebel princes, fled up the river in a boat, and
landed near the town of Un (Hermopolis), wherein he took refuge. The
Nubians promptly beleaguered the town with such rigour that no one could
go out of it or come in. Then they reported their action to Piānkhi, and
when he had read their report, he growled like a panther, and said, "Is
it possible that they have permitted any of the Northmen to live and
escape to tell the tale of his flight, and have not killed them to the
very last man? I swear by my life, and by my love for Rā, and by the
grace which Father Amen hath bestowed upon me, that I will myself sail
down the river, and destroy what the enemy hath done, and I will make
him to retreat from the fight for ever." Piānkhi also declared his
intention of stopping at Thebes on his way down the river, so that he
might assist at the Festival of the New Year, and might look upon the
face of the god Amen in his shrine at Karnak and, said he, "After that I
will make the Lands of the North to taste my fingers." When the soldiers
in Egypt heard of their lord's wrath, they attacked Per-Metchet
(Oxyrrhynchus), and they "overran it like a water-flood"; a report of
the success was sent to Piānkhi, but he was not satisfied. Then they
attacked Ta-tehen (Tehnah?), which was filled with northern soldiers.
The Nubians built a tower with a battering ram and breached the walls,
and they poured into the town and slew every one they found. Among the
dead was the son of the rebel prince Tafnekht. This success was also
reported to Piānkhi, but still he was not satisfied. Het-Benu was also
captured, and still he was not satisfied.
In the middle of the summer Piānkhi left Napata (Gebel Barkal) and
sailed down to Thebes, where he celebrated the New Year Festival. From
there he went down the river to Un (Hermopolis), where he landed and
mounted his war chariot; he was furiously angry because his troops had
not destroyed the enemy utterly, and he growled at them like a panther.
Having pitched his camp to the south-west of the city, he began to
besiege it. He threw up a mound round about the city, he built wooden
stages on it which he filled with archers and slingers, and these
succeeded in killing the people of the city daily. After three days "the
city stank," and envoys came bearing rich gifts to sue for peace. With
the envoys came the wife of Nemart and her ladies, who cast themselves
flat on their faces before the ladies of Piānkhi's palace, saying, "We
come to you, O ye royal wives, ye royal daughters, and royal sisters.
Pacify ye for us Horus (_i.e._ the King), the Lord of the Palace, whose
Souls are mighty, and whose word of truth is great." A break of fifteen
lines occurs in the text here, and the words that immediately follow the
break indicate that Piānkhi is upbraiding Nemart for his folly and
wickedness in destroying his country, wherein "not a full-grown son is
seen with his father, all the districts round about being filled with
children." Nemart acknowledged his folly, and then swore fealty to
Piānkhi, promising to give him more gifts than any other prince in the
country. Gold, silver, lapis-lazuli, turquoise, copper, and precious
stones of all kinds were then presented, and Nemart himself led a horse
with his right hand, and held a sistrum made of gold and lapis-lazuli in
his left.
Piānkhi then arose and went into the temple of Thoth, and offered up
oxen, and calves, and geese to the god, and to the Eight Gods of the
city. After this he went through Nemart's palace, and then visited the
stables "where the horses were, and the stalls of the young horses, and
he perceived that they had been suffering from hunger. And he said, 'I
swear by my own life, and by the love which I have for Rā, who reneweth
the breath of life in my nostrils, that, in my opinion, to have allowed
my horses to suffer hunger is the worst of all the evil things which
thou hast done in the perversity of thy heart.'" A list was made of the
goods that were handed over to Piānkhi, and a portion of them was
reserved for the temple of Amen at Thebes.
The next prince to submit was the Governor of Herakleopolis, and when
he had laid before Piānkhi his gifts he said: "Homage to thee, Horus,
mighty king, Bull, conqueror of bulls. I was in a pit in hell. I was
sunk deep in the depths of darkness, but now light shineth on me. I had
no friend in the evil day, and none to support me in the day of battle.
Thou only, O mighty king, who hast rolled away the darkness that was on
me [art my friend]. Henceforward I am thy servant, and all my
possessions are thine. The city of Hensu shall pay tribute to thee. Thou
art the image of Rā, and art the master of the imperishable stars. He
was a king, and thou art a king; he perished not, and thou shalt not
perish." From Hensu Piānkhi went down to the canal leading to the Fayyūm
and to Illahūn and found the town gates shut in his face. The
inhabitants, however, speedily changed their minds, and opened the gates
to Piānkhi, who entered with his troops, and received tribute, and slew
no one. Town after town submitted as Piānkhi advanced northwards, and
none barred his progress until he reached Memphis, the gates of which
were shut fast. When Piānkhi saw this he sent a message to the
Memphites, saying: "Shut not your gates, and fight not in the city that
hath belonged to Shu[1] for ever. He who wisheth to enter may do so, he
who wisheth to come out may do so, and he who wisheth to travel about
may do so. I will make an offering to Ptah and the gods of White Wall
(Memphis). I will perform the ceremonies of Seker in the Hidden Shrine.
I will look upon the god of his South Wall (_i.e._ Ptah), and I will
sail down the river in peace. No man of Memphis shall be harmed, not a
child shall cry out in distress. Look at the homes of the South! None
hath been slain except those who blasphemed the face of the god, and
only the rebels have suffered at the block." These pacific words of
Piānkhi were not believed, and the people of Memphis not only kept their
gates shut, but manned the city walls with soldiers, and they were
foolish enough to slay a small company of Nubian artisans and boatmen
whom they found on the quay of Memphis. Tafnekht, the rebel prince of
Saīs, entered Memphis by night, and addressed eight thousand of his
troops who were there, and encouraged them to resist Piānkhi. He said to
them: "Memphis is filled with the bravest men of war in all the
Northland, and its granaries are filled with wheat, barley, and grain of
all kinds. The arsenal is full of weapons. A wall goeth round the city,
and the great fort is as strong as the mason could make it. The river
floweth along the east side, and no attack can be made there. The byres
are full of cattle, and the treasury is well filled with gold, silver,
copper, apparel, incense, honey, and unguents.... Defend ye the city
till I return." Tafnekht mounted a horse and rode away to the north.
[Footnote 1: The son of Khepera, or Tem, or Nebertcher.]
At daybreak Piānkhi went forth to reconnoitre, and he found that the
waters of the Nile were lapping the city walls on the north side of the
city, where the sailing craft were tied up. He also saw that the city
was extremely well fortified, and that there was no means whereby he
could effect an entrance into the city through the walls. Some of his
officers advised him to throw up a mound of earth about the city, but
this counsel was rejected angrily by Piānkhi, for he had thought out a
simpler plan. He ordered all his boats and barges to be taken to the
quay of Memphis, with their bows towards the city wall; as the water
lapped the foot of the wall, the boats were able to come quite close to
it, and their bows were nearly on a level with the top of the wall. Then
Piānkhi's men crowded into the boats, and, when the word of command was
given, they jumped from the bows of the boats on to the wall, entered
the houses built near it, and then poured into the city. They rushed
through the city like a waterflood, and large numbers of the natives
were slain, and large numbers taken prisoners. Next morning Piānkhi set
guards over the temples to protect the property of the gods, then he
went into the great temple of Ptah and reinstated the priests, and they
purified the holy place with natron and incense, and offered up many
offerings. When the report of the capture of Memphis spread abroad,
numerous local chiefs came to Piānkhi, and did homage, and gave him
tribute.
From Memphis he passed over to the east bank of the Nile to make an
offering to Temu of Heliopolis. He bathed his face in the water of the
famous "Fountain of the Sun," he offered white bulls to Rā at
Shaiqaem-Anu, and he went into the great temple of the Sun-god. The
chief priest welcomed him and blessed him; "he performed the ceremonies
of the Tuat chamber, he girded on the _seteb_ garment, he censed
himself, he was sprinkled with holy water, and he offered (?) flowers in
the chamber in which the stone, wherein the spirit of the Sun-god abode
at certain times, was preserved. He went up the step leading to the
shrine to look upon Rā, and stood there. He broke the seal, unbolted and
opened the doors of the shrine, and looked upon Father Rā in Het-benben.
He paid adoration to the two Boats of Rā. (Mātet and Sektet), and then
closed the doors of the shrine and sealed them with his own seal."
Piānkhi returned to the west bank of the Nile, and pitched his camp at
Kaheni, whither came a number of princes to tender their submission and
offer gifts to him. After a time it was reported to Piānkhi that
Tafnekht, the head of the rebellion, had laid waste his town, burnt his
treasury and his boats, and had entrenched himself at Mest with the
remainder of his army. Thereupon Piānkhi sent troops to Mest, and they
slew all its inhabitants. Then Tafnekht sent an envoy to Piānkhi asking
for peace, and he said, "Be at peace [with me]. I have not seen thy face
during the days of shame. I cannot resist thy fire, the terror of thee
hath conquered me. Behold, thou art Nubti,[1] the Governor of the South,
and Menth,[2] the Bull with strong arms. Thou didst not find thy servant
in any town towards which thou hast turned thy face. I went as far as
the swamps of the Great Green (_i.e._ the Mediterranean), because I was
afraid of thy Souls, and because thy word is a fire that worketh evil
for me. Is not the heart of Thy Majesty cooled by reason of what thou
hast done unto me? Behold, I am indeed a most wretched man. Punish me
not according to my abominable deeds, weigh them not in a balance as
against weights; thy punishment of me is already threefold. Leave the
seed, and thou shalt find it again in due season. Dig not up the young
root which is about to put forth shoots. Thy Ka and the terror of thee
are in my body, and the fear of thee is in my bones. I have not sat in
the house of drinking beer, and no one hath brought to me the harp. I
have only eaten the bread which hunger demanded, and I have only drunk
the water needed [to slake] my thirst. From the day in which thou didst
hear my name misery hath been in my bones, and my head hath lost its
hair. My apparel shall be rags until Neith[3] is at peace with me. Thou
hast brought on me the full weight of misery; O turn thou thy face
towards me, for, behold, this year hath separated my Ka from me. Purge
thy servant of his rebellion. Let my goods be received into thy
treasury, gold, precious stones of all kinds, and the finest of my
horses, and let these be my indemnity to thee for everything. I beseech
thee to send an envoy to me quickly, so that he may make an end of the
fear that is in my heart. Verily I will go into the temple, and in his
presence I will purge myself, and swear an oath of allegiance to thee by
the God." And Piānkhi sent to him General Puarma and General
Petamennebnesttaui, and Tafnekht loaded them with gold, and silver, and
raiment, and precious stones, and he went into the temple and took an
oath by the God that he would never again disobey the king, or make war
on a neighbour, or invade his territory without Piānkhi's knowledge. So
Piānkhi was satisfied and forgave him. After this the town of
Crocodilopolis tendered its submission, and Piānkhi was master of all
Egypt. Then two Governors of the South and two Governors of the North
came and smelt the ground before Piānkhi, and these were followed by all
the kings and princes of the North, "and their legs were [weak] like
those of women." As they were uncircumcised and were eaters of fish they
could not enter the king's palace; only one, Nemart, who was
ceremonially pure, entered the palace. Piānkhi was now tired of
conquests, and he had all the loot which he had collected loaded on his
barges, together with goods from Syria and the Land of the God, and he
sailed up the river towards Nubia. The people on both banks rejoiced at
the sight of His Majesty, and they sang hymns of praise to him as he
journeyed southwards, and acclaimed him as the Conqueror of Egypt. They
also invoked blessings on his father and mother, and wished him long
life. When he returned to Gebel Barkal (Napata) he had the account of
his invasion and conquest of Egypt cut upon a large grey granite stele
about 6 feet high and 4 feet 8 inches wide, and set up in his temple,
among the ruins of which it was discovered accidentally by an Egyptian
officer who was serving in the Egyptian Sūdān in 1862.
[Footnote 1: The war-god of Ombos in Upper Egypt.]
[Footnote 2: The war-god of Hermonthis in Upper Epypt.]
[Footnote 3: The chief goddess of Saïs, the city of Tafnekht.]