and sophisticated siege equipment. And whereas the Egyptians still used chariots, the Assyrians now preferred cavalry. King Taharka, wounded by five arrows in the fighting, abandoned his family and fled south, leaving the Assyrians to seize control of Lower Egypt. Esarhaddon swiftly installed new government officials – some Egyptian and some Assyrian – and imposed an annual tribute on his newly won cities, some of which were assigned Assyrian names. Most of the ‘mini-kings’ of the Delta were allowed to remain on their
‘thrones.’
The Assyrians deported Egyptians and Kushites to far-flung parts of the empire. Certain people, particularly those with useful skills, such as artisans, were taken to Assyria. Taharka’s queen, the Crown Prince Ushanhuru, and the king’s other sons, daughters, and secondary wives were likewise all sent to Assyria. The Kushite crown prince is depicted on one of Esarhaddon’s stelae, a rope piercing his lips as he kneels in the presence of the king. An inscription from Karnak Temple, inscribed under Taharka after his defeat, describes his distress at the loss of his family. Addressing the god, the king says, ‘Oh Amun, [… … m]y wives, let my children live. Keep death away
from them for me.’2
In the years that followed his defeat, Taharka continued to oppose
Assyrian rule from southern Egypt. In the north, effective power now rested in the hands of Necho I of Sais (installed by the Assyrians, and probably a descendant of the 24th Dynasty kings Tefnakht and Bakenrenef of Sais),
who controlled the western Delta and part of its centre, and a man identified as Sarru-lu-dari, who oversaw the eastern Delta. Beneath them in the hierarchy, the established ‘mini-kings’ continued to exert their influence, just as they’d done throughout the Third Intermediate Period. Occasional visits by the turtanu and rab-shaqeh – the highest level Assyrian officials below the king – and the chief eunuch, kept everything in check. But Assyrian control was shaky (Esarhaddon even asked the oracle whether his chief eunuch would be safe in Egypt), and Taharka eventually returned north to retake his throne. His actions prompted Esarhaddon to march back to Egypt with his army in 669 BCE; but the Assyrian king died en route, causing the campaign to be postponed.
This left the task of reinstating Assyrian control over Egypt to
Ashurbanipal, Esarhaddon’s successor. He arrived in 667 BCE, and fought a pitched battle against Taharka. The Kushite king was once again defeated, War and Trade with the Pharaohs.indd 157
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and fled south, chased by his enemies. But it wasn’t all bad news: according to a fragmentary stele from Karnak Temple, Taharka’s army prevailed over the pursuing Assyrians at Thebes. During this doomed attempt to
reassert Kushite control, Necho of Sais, Sarru-lu-dari, and a ruler from the east Delta named Paqrur had joined the rebellion against the Assyrians.
Retribution was swift: Necho and Sarru-lu-dari were taken as prisoners to Nineveh, and there were mass executions at Sais, Mendes, and Se’nu, their city walls hung with flayed skin. Unexpectedly, Paqrur, for whatever reason, was let off. And in a further unexpected twist, Ashurbanipal showed mercy to Necho too. Not only did the Assyrian spare Necho’s life, but he sent him back to Egypt to rule over Sais, and perhaps also over the even more powerful city of Memphis, previously directly controlled by the Assyrians. Sarru-lu-dari, on the other hand, was executed. Meanwhile, Taharka continued
to rule as king of Upper Egypt and Nubia, having successfully stopped the Assyrians from seizing the south. Upon his death in 664 BCE, he was buried beneath a pyramid at Nuri near Gebel Barkal in Nubia. The Assyrians bluntly recorded, ‘The sacred weapon of the god Assur and the might of
Ashurbanipal overwhelmed him and he died.’3
Taharka was succeeded by his nephew Tanutamun. Like his predeces-
sor, the new pharaoh sought to reassert Kushite control over the Delta, his campaign inspired by a dream, in which he held two snakes, representing Egypt and Kush. Eager to fight, after his coronation, Tanutamun sailed to Memphis to face a coalition of Egyptians loyal to the Assyrians, Necho I among them. A fierce battle raged at the ancient city, and in the end, Necho lay among the dead. Tanutamun had succeeded where Taharka had failed:
Memphis, the administrative heart of Egypt, was back under Kushite con-
trol. Afterwards, the king crisscrossed the Delta, challenging the region’s
‘mini-kings’ to face him in battle. According to the pharaoh, they fled and hid behind their walls, like rats into holes. None would come out to fight.
Tanutamun had shown his bravery on the battlefield, but to really consolidate his control over the Delta, he’d need to show some diplomacy too. So, back at court in Memphis, Tanutamun received the various Delta kinglets, and in return for their submission to his rule, allowed them to return to their cities.
As might be expected, Tanutamun’s actions enraged Ashurbanipal. The
Assyrian king immediately despatched his army to Egypt, where a battle was fought. The Kushites were defeated and Tanutamun, like Taharka before
him, was chased south. But unlike under Taharka, this time, Thebes did not escape the Assyrians’ wrath. The invaders seized and sacked the sacred city, War and Trade with the Pharaohs.indd 158
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Libyan Pharaohs, the Kingdom of Kush, and the Assyrian Invasion 159
or as Ashurbanipal says: ‘They (his army) conquered this city completely, smashed (it as if by) a floodstorm.’4 Gold and silver, the royal treasures, horses, male and female servants, and even monkeys were all taken back to Nineveh as booty. Ashurbanipal also mentions that his army brought away two heavy obelisks. Archaeologists have found an Assyrian helmet and iron tools during excavations on the west bank of Thebes, no doubt left from this time. The Assyrian king commemorated the event on the walls of his palace at Nineveh: fortresses are captured, gates set on fire, and Nubians are marched away, to be relocated elsewhere in the empire.
Tanutamun never returned to Egypt – he was laid to rest in 653 BCE
at el-Kurru – but his successors continued to rule over their homeland in Kush. Ashurbanipal, meanwhile, satisfied that Egypt was once again sub-jugated, got on with the task of managing his empire. And in Egypt, with Necho of Sais dead, his son, Psamtik – a man known to the Assyrians as
Nabusezibanni, who had probably grown up at the Assyrian court – received a promotion: previously ruler of Athribis, Psamtik was now appointed overseer of all Assyria’s interests in the Delta, with his power base at Sais. In retrospect, this was a very bad move.
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Chapter 11
Vive La Resistance
(664–332 BCE)
It’s hard to figure out what was going through Psamtik’s head. This is a man who’d probably been brought up at the Assyrian court, had been
installed by the Assyrians as king of Sais, and now, decided to fight to regain Egypt’s independence. Did he hate the Assyrians all along? Was it a long game of deception? Or did he actually have a soft spot for his old masters? After all, for the rest of his long reign, he never engaged with them in direct battle, and it’s possible that Assyria had simply acknowledged that Egypt was just too far away and too much trouble to bother
ruling directly. For them, Psamtik – even if he got away with calling himself King Psamtik I – was a good plan B: someone talented enough to
ensure order in Egypt, but perhaps capable of being manipulated when
the situation demanded it.
It’s also worth remembering that it wasn’t the Assyrians that were
Psamtik’s main challengers for the throne, and not even the Kushites, but the Delta ‘mini-kings,’ ever ready to – perhaps literally – stab each other in the back. Given the lack of evidence, it isn’t clear how Psamtik managed to get these famously unruly rulers to submit to his kingship, but it was probably a combi
nation of approaches. Certain Delta rulers disappear under Psamtik, replaced by men loyal to the new king. Others accepted his rule, and went on to advise him as members of a high-level council of nobles –
sometimes it’s smart to be diplomatic.
Meanwhile, in the south, the Temple of Amun continued to hold con-
siderable power. By Psamtik’s reign, the most influential man in the region was Montuemhat, fourth priest of Amun, mayor of Thebes, and overseer
of southern Egypt. But again – somehow – seemingly without a single
drop of blood being spilled, Psamtik managed to convince Montuemhat
to ally himself with the north. To formalize the south’s acceptance of
his rule, Psamtik had his daughter Nitocris adopted as successor to the God’s Wife of Amun Shepenwepet II, a daughter of King Piye, transferring authority at the temple from the Kushites to the Saites (people from Sais). And so, with Psamtik ruling Egypt from Sais, a new line of kings War and Trade with the Pharaohs.indd 160
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Vive La Resistance 161
was founded – the 26th Dynasty – and the Late Period (664–332 BCE)
began.
Although there’s no evidence for conflict between Psamtik I and the Delta rulers, according to classical writers, Psamtik backed his diplomacy with a powerful hired army: Carian and Ionian mercenaries – from south-western Anatolia and central coastal Anatolia respectively – sent to Egypt by Gyges of Lydia, a region in south-western Anatolia. Whether Gyges sent these
mercenaries as support against the Assyrians, or purely to help Psamtik
‘influence’ the Delta rulers and Thebans cannot be known. Indeed, we can also question whether the classical accounts should be trusted: only a single statuette ascribed to Psamtik’s reign suggests the presence of foreign mercenaries in Egypt at the time. Belonging to Pedon, son of Amphinneos, this traditional Egyptian block-statue (so-named because they’re shaped like blocks), found near Priene in Turkey, and perhaps once placed in an Ionian temple, bears a Greek inscription saying that it had been brought from
Egypt, and that Psamtik had given Pedon a golden bracelet in reward for his valour. If Greek mercenaries did arrive in Egypt at this time, however, they would have stepped from their boats wearing gleaming bronze armour and
versed in modern military tactics, exactly what Psamtik needed to aid his Egyptian (and perhaps Asiatic) troops.
The Oases and Libya in the Late Period
After neglecting the region for centuries, the Egyptians developed an
interest in the western oases during the Third Intermediate Period: notably, Shoshenk I made a register of the wells and orchards of Dakhla and Kharga, and also restored order at Dakhla Oasis in his fifth year as king.
This newfound interest developed further in the Late Period. Kings
Psamtik I, Necho II, Psamtik II, and Ahmose II each left their mark on
temples at Kharga and Dakhla, and from the reign of Apries onwards, there was an Egyptian presence at Bahariya Oasis too. Bahariya now received
its own governor and temples, and began to flourish as a centre for trade.
Further north, the famous temple of Amun at Siwa Oasis was built under
Ahmose II (or possibly a little earlier). Siwa had previously been ruled by Libyans, who now became subject to the Egyptians. Herodotus talks of a
king of Siwa called Etearchus, and relates a story in which the Persian king Cambyses sent 50,000 men to the oasis; these vanished in the desert, sometime after leaving Kharga Oasis.
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Foreign Affairs Under King Psamtik I
After consolidating his power in Egypt, Psamtik I turned his attention to the world beyond his borders. In Nubia, since Tanutamun’s departure from Egypt, a phase known as the Napatan Period had begun – named after the
Kushite capital city of Napata, beside Gebel Barkal. Despite having lost Egypt, Kushite territory was still extensive, stretching from Lower Nubia down to Sennar on the Blue Nile, 300 km beyond modern Khartoum. Nuri,
near Napata, was now the royal burial ground, replacing el-Kurru, and
Gebel Barkal remained the main religious capital, centred on its Temple of Amun. Meroe, a city between the Fifth and Sixth Cataracts of the Nile, probably held political importance too.
The Kushites continued to prosper thanks to their key position in the
African trade network: luxury goods – gold, ivory, ebony – as well as slaves, travelled from central Africa to the Mediterranean, probably as a state run enterprise. Egyptian goods entered Nubia (some are even found in Kushite royal graves, perhaps sent as diplomatic gifts), and Kushite goods entered Egypt. Few of the Napatan kings are known beyond their names, but
Psamtik’s Kushite counterpart in the later years of his reign was Anlamani (623–593 BCE), who erected various statues, and, at Kawa, mentions a
small-scale campaign against nomads called the Bulahau. Herodotus – the famous Greek historian, writing in the fifth century BCE – relates that Psamtik I’s Elephantine garrison revolted and moved south; perhaps they joined Anlamani’s forces?
In his tenth or eleventh year as king, when Libyan groups were attempt-
ing to enter Egypt, Psamtik campaigned in Libya, raising troops from
across Egypt to face the threat. Psamtik also expanded eastwards into the Levant, entering territory traditionally held by his royal predecessors, and more recently had been controlled by the Assyrians. A stele, dated to 613
BCE – Psamtik’s fifty-second year on the throne – mentions a coffin of
Lebanese wood, and says that the chiefs of the Lebanese people were overseen by an Egyptian administrator and taxed as if Egyptians. This inscription shows that parts of the Levant were directly under Egyptian control by the later years of Psamtik’s reign. Statuary, probably made under Psamtik, has also been found in the region, as have other items of Egyptian origin, particularly at Ashkelon and Ekron on the Levantine coast (although these may have ended up there through trade). Adding to the evidence
for an Egyptian presence, Herodotus says that Psamtik I bribed invading Scythians (a nomadic people) in the Levant, saying that the king met them War and Trade with the Pharaohs.indd 162
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Vive La Resistance 163
in Palestine and offered them gifts and prayers to stop them from moving closer to Egypt.
One of the reasons for Assyria’s sudden weakness in the east was the
rise of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, founded by Nabopolassar in 626 BCE.
Rebellion had spread across the Assyrian Empire after Ashurbanipal’s death in 627 BCE, and Nabopolassar had used the opportunity to announce himself king of Assyria’s Chaldean region. From there, he had expanded his influence.
Faced with this political reality, in around 620 BCE, when Nabopolassar seized Babylon, the Assyrians – now led by Sinsharishkun, a son of Ashurbanipal –
made an alliance with the Egyptians. (You have to wonder what Psamtik’s first reaction was to this plea for assistance.) By 616 BCE, Psamtik’s fighting force was at Gablini in the Middle Euphrates, attempting to aid their new Assyrian allies and block the Babylonian advance. It didn’t work. Four years later, Nineveh fell to the Babylonians, supported by other rebellious groups, forcing the Assyrian elite to retreat from their home territory to Harran, 370
km further west, where they established their new capital. This was only a short distance east of Carchemish, where the Egyptians had installed a garrison in 616 BCE, meant to protect Egypt’s Levantine territory from invasion.
Carian Mercenaries and Egyptianization
Among the foreign peoples entering Egypt to fight for the pharaohs in the 26th Dynasty were the Carians. These were from south-west Anatolia and
are little known, except for their fame as warriors �
� in fact, there’s more evidence for them in Egypt than in their Anatolian homeland. Many Carians settled in Egypt during the Late Period, rather than returning home after their campaigns, and their inscriptions (still being deciphered) are found across the country, from Buhen and Abu Simbel in Nubia, to Sais in the
north. Herodotus says that during the festival of Bubastis, the Carians cut their own foreheads to show everyone present that they weren’t Egyptian – a rather dramatic way of emphasizing their separate ethnic identity. But this reported need to highlight their foreign origin is at odds with what is found in the archaeological record: notably, at Saqqara, Carians adopted the use of Egyptian funerary stelae for their burials. One stele even displays Egyptian, Greek, and Carian iconography (with one mourner even shown cutting his
forehead). Although present at Bubastis for a time, Egypt’s Carian mercenaries moved to Memphis under King Ahmose II; it was no doubt these
individuals that were buried at nearby Saqqara.
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The Reign of King Necho II
Psamtik I died in the Levant in 610 BCE – during a lunar eclipse appar-
ently – and was brought back to Egypt for burial. When Necho II, his son, came to power, he inherited a united Egypt and the Levantine territory
taken by his father, but also the problems posed by the expansion of the Babylonian Empire. Only six months after ascending the throne, Necho
II marched against the Babylonians in support of Assyria, the Assyrians’
increasingly diminishing empire now ruled by King Ashuruballit II. But
Harran, Assyria’s temporary capital, was lost, and with the city abandoned, the Babylonians looted its temple. The following year, in 609 BCE, Necho returned to the northern Levant (killing Josiah of Judah at Megiddo along the way, perhaps due to the vassal’s non-payment of taxes – harsh). Arriving at Harran, the Egyptians and Assyrians tried to retake the city. But again the campaign was a failure. Necho II returned to Egypt and Ashuruballit vanished from history.
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