 CHAPTER IX OF HISTORY OF EGYPT CHAPTER IX. THE EGYPTION RENOSANCE. DINESTY 26. 645-525 B.C. SECTION I. SEMTECH I. 645-610 B.C. We have seen in the preceding chapter how the House of Seus gradually rose in importance. The first Ati, as the Egyptians called the petty sovereigns of the preceding epic, of this line that succeeded in gaining supreme power, even though for a short time only, was Tefnaht, the contemporary of Usarken III, king of Bubastus, and the great opponent of Pionchi. How his attempt at unifying Egypt failed, we have already seen. A descendant of his was the Beckenrenth, who ruled at least in lower Egypt for six years, 734-728 B.C. The next prince we know is Nekau, the favorite of Asarhadon and Asur Bonapal. As predecessors of this Nekau, Manethau mentions Stefanites, ruled seven years, and Necepsos, ruled six years. The Egyptian names of which princes are unknown. This Nekau seems to have come to his death about the time Tanuat Amon invaded Egypt, 664 B.C. Nekau was succeeded by his son Samtek, the Sametikos of the Greeks, who was given the name of Nabu Ushasip Ani at Asur Bonapal's request. Samtek seems to have been a faithful ally of Assyria for quite some while, but he merely waited a chance to gain his independence. He entered into friendly relations with Tanuat Amon, marrying one of his relatives, the Ethiopian princess, Shep N. Apet, a daughter of Queen Amonerdas. As Amonerdas had been queen of Egypt, Samtek thus acquired a claim to the throne. At length the right moment came, about 645 B.C., aided by mercenaries sent him by King Geigees of Lydia, he succeeded in making himself independent from Assyria. It is evident that he succeeded in this only after he struggled, but we have no record of his combats with Assyria. His next enemies were in Egypt itself, though he was undoubtedly the rightful sovereign of the country, yet the many petty rulers that divided the country among themselves did not submit without a struggle. Samtek, however, succeeded in gaining the ascendancy and uniting Egypt under his scepter. Samtek made Seis his capital. This made Nayit, the great goddess of Seis, the official head of the national pantheon, and opposed Amon Ra, who had held this position, with some interruptions, for about 1500 years. Memphis, the oldest capital of Egypt and part of Samtek's original principality, was also highly favoured, and many of the government offices were located there. Thebes was falling into decay. The Assyrian wars had dealt the city a blow from which it never recovered. True, Samtek and some of his successors built here and repaired the great temple of Amon, but the city never again rose into prominence. Of the city of Seis, there remains today scarce a trace. The climate and soil of the Delta are not favourable to the preservation of ruins, and after the city had once fallen into decay, all traces of it rapidly disappeared. Mindful of the great debt he owed the Greek mercenaries, Samtek little by little increased them. By this action he incensed the native mercenaries, who had hitherto ruled supreme in Egypt. According to Herodotus, 240,000 men of the warriors who stood on the left of the king emigrated to Ethiopia in this reign because they had not been relieved in their garrisons for three years. This story is assuredly untrue, but it reflects the fact that the native troops were highly dissatisfied, and were no particular friends of Samtek's. The stories that the Greek authors tell us of his scientific experiments to ascertain which people was the oldest of the world, and those that were the oldest of the world were the ones who were the oldest of the world, and the ones that were the oldest of the world, and those that they relate of his efforts to find the source of the Nile are all alike untrue and legendary. The remark of Strabo that he was one of the greatest conquerors of the world is also false. The king was too much occupied with internal affairs to go in search of foreign conquest. The real fact of the matter is that Samtek was confined to Egypt proper. On the western frontier, he fortified Marea as a defense against Libya. On the Asiatic frontier, he erected the strong fortress of Daphne, near Pelusium, and on the Ethiopic frontier, the town of Suen. Asawan, Syen, was strongly fortified. The fact that the three frontiers were thus put in a state of defense proves that the king did not make any conquests. Herodotus relates that he conquered Asdad after a siege of twenty-nine years, but there is no reason to believe this. The policy of this king, and of all his successors, was to gain the friendship of the Greeks. He gave lands along the banks of the Pelusian branch of the Nile, near Bubastus, to the Ionians and Carians, and in order that they might come into communication with his subjects, he gave them Egyptian boys whom they should teach Greek and who were to serve as interpreters. The Melisians, soon after, entered the bulbitic arm of the Nile, and settled a fortified camp, which was called the Melisian Camp. Tyrion merchants settled possibly about the same time in Memphis, and gave their name to the Tyrion quarter of the city. The king died about 610 B.C., having been prince of Seas and Memphis from 664 B.C., and king from 645 B.C. on. Section 2 Nekau Greek Neko and Nekau 610-594 B.C. Nekau successfully continued the policy of his father. Herodotus relates that he began the construction of a canal, which was to connect the Nile with the Red Sea, and that after 120,000 laborers had perished, Nekau suddenly stopped the work, having been warned by an oracle that he was working for the barbarians. This story is very improbable. A canal connecting the Nile with the Red Sea existed already in the times of Seti I and Ramses II, about 700 years before this time. This canal was mentioned in the Assyrian inscriptions of the 8th century B.C., and it is scarcely possible that it could have disappeared entirely in less than a century. Nekau possibly cleared it of sand and widened it. The story of the enormous number of laborers who perished during the progress of the work and that of the oracle are both utterly false. Herodotus relates a story of a great maritime enterprise undertaken at this time, which seems quite credible. He states that Nekau sent out Phoenician ships from the Red Sea to circumnavigate Africa, and that in the third year of their journey they returned to the Mediterranean through the Straits of Gibraltar. The very fact that Herodotus questions, namely that in circumnavigating Libya, that is, Africa, they had the sun on their right hand, proves that they really did accomplish their task. The same historian relates that Nekau kept fleets of triremes in the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. Nekau felt himself strong enough to attempt the restoration of Egyptian supremacy in Asia. Great changes had meanwhile taken place on this continent. Asr Bonapal died the king of a great empire, but his successors were not able to hold their own. About 608 B.C., Nabo Palasar, whom Asr Bonapal had appointed Viceroy of Babylon, threw off the Assyrian yoke and founded an independent Babylonian kingdom. Intent on crushing out the Assyrian kingdom, he allied himself with King Chiaxerès of Medea, and together they attacked and completely annihilated the Assyrian kingdom. The Medes kept all the land east and north of the Tigris, the Babylonians, Mesopotamia, and Syria. Nekau thought the time had now come to intervene in Asia. Accordingly, in the spring of the year 608 B.C., he invaded the continent. He encountered no resistance until he reached Megiddo. Here, at the very spot where almost a thousand years before, Tutmosis III had defeated the Syrian coalition. King Josiah of Judah had drawn up his army ready to dispute Nekau's advance. The Pharaoh, not wishing to lose time in subduing the petty sovereigns of Syria and Palestine, haughtily ordered the Jewish king to give way. Josiah refused and was arranging his army for the coming battle when he was fatally wounded by an arrow. The king was brought back to Jerusalem, where he died, and was buried amid the wailings of his people over whom he had ruled for 39 years. Nekau continued his march to Riblah, near Hamath, where he went into camp. Meanwhile, the Jews had elected Joachis, the son of Josiah, king. But Nekau was dissatisfied with their choice, and deposed him, giving the kingdom to his older brother Joachim, and levying a heavy contribution on the land. Accepting Judea, Gaza was the only state that offered any resistance to the Egyptians. Up to the year 604 B.C., Nekau seems to have had his own way in Asia. But in that year, Nabu Polisar was ready to meet him. He himself was old and sick, so he sent his son, Nabu Kenezer, Babylonian Nabu Kuduri Uzur, against the Egyptians. At Kharkimish, on the banks of the Euphrates, the two armies met, and Nekau was utterly routed. His army must have been completely annihilated, for he left Syria to the victor, without daring to oppose him again. Nabu Kenezer probably had the intention of invading Egypt, but the death of his father compelled him to return to Babylon. Nekau did not dare to interfere in Asia again. Time and again the Jews begged him for assistance and their repeated revolts against the Babylonians. At last Jerusalem fell, about 596 B.C., and Nabu Kenezer was free to invade Egypt. But it seems that he was called to other parts of his kingdom, and a threatened invasion did not come until much later. Nekau died in 594 B.C., and was buried, like his father, in Seas. Section 3. Samtech II. 594-589 B.C. The only historical event of this short reign was an invasion of Ethiopia. Both Herodotus and Aristaeus mention it, and an Egyptian inscription confirms their report. Late in this reign General Neshor was sent against the Ethiopians, and the war was finally brought to a close early in the following reign. It may be that the trouble with Ethiopia had begun already in Nekau's time, and this would account for his otherwise incomprehensible policy with regard to the Jewish rebellions. The graffiti left on the colossi of Abu Simbel by the Phoenician and Greek mercenaries that marched with the Egyptian army on this campaign still further confirm the report of Samtech's war in this quarter. Despite his short reign of only six years, this pharaoh was an active builder, restoring and repairing temples in all parts of Egypt, from the Delta to Nubia. Section 4. Ohabre. Greek Aprius. 589-564 B.C. Early in this reign, Neshor brought to a successful conclusion the Ethiopian war begun in the reign of Samtech II. Ohabre thought matters in Asia favored an intervention on his part. In Judea, important changes had taken place in the times of his predecessors. Joachim, the king whom Nekau had appointed, was deposed in 597 B.C. after a reign of 11 years. In Joachim, his son, put in his place by Nebuchadnezzar. Soon after, he also was deposed and Zedekiah put in his place. Zedekiah 596-586 B.C. was not the man the Babylonian king had thought him. He determined, despite the warnings of the prophets, to win the independence of his kingdom. Ohabre now came to his aid and began a war with Tyre. Sidon was taken, and a Cypriot fleet that opposed him was utterly defeated. Although thus far successful, the Pharaoh withdrew soon after on the approach of the Babylonians. Meanwhile, Zedekiah had begun the war, but Jerusalem was soon invested, and, after a spirited resistance, was taken. July 587 B.C. While Ohabre did nothing to assist, his sorely beset ally. Zedekiah was deposed and blinded, and Gedalia was set on the throne. He was assassinated by a descendant of the family of Ishmael, who was soon after compelled to fly the country. He and his friends went to Egypt, where Ohahabre received them kindly. Soon after, Ohahabre began a war which promised better results. A war had broken out between the Greek city of Cyrene, which lay on the northern coast of Africa, west of Egypt, and the Libyans. The Libyan king, Adekram, placed himself under the protectorate of Egypt, and an Egyptian army was immediately sent out to aid him. At a town of Irsa, on the well of Thestis, a battle ensued, in which the Egyptian army was annihilated. This account, taken from Herodotus, is probably correct, but the rest of his account is certainly false. He relates that the Egyptians were furious over the defeat, and declared that Aprius had sent out the native troops in order to have them annihilated, so that his rule over the rest of the Egyptians might be the more secure. This is entirely unnatural. In Egypt, the Pharaoh was an absolute ruler. He was considered as the son of the God Ra and the incarnation of the God Horus, and it would not have been at all necessary for him to destroy the national troops in order to strengthen his rule. The troops, according to Herodotus, also murmured, and the king sent an officer named Amesis, Egyptian Achmes, to quiet them. While he was addressing them, a soldier, stepping behind him, placed a helmet on his head, and proclaimed him king. The rest of the army shouted their assent, and Amesis, gladly accepting the election, placed himself at their head and marched against the Pharaoh. A messenger sent by Aprius was sent back with a sarcastic reply. Aprius now prepared for battle, and collecting his Greek mercenaries to the number of 30,000 marched against his rival. At Moe Memphis, on the Canopic branch of the Nile, the armies met, and Aprius was, after a well-contested battle, defeated, captured, and brought to Memphis, where he was kept in prison for a while, but was finally delivered up to the angry populace and strangled. This story is utterly false, from beginning to end, as are also the many anecdotes the Greek writers tell of Amesis. We know, however, that Oha Habre, about six years before his death, appointed Achmes II co-regent. Achmes was wedded to Anchnes Nefer Abra, a daughter of Semtek II, and, to Nayit Akhurt, a sister of Oha Habre. These facts completely refute the Greek legends. Why Achmes was appointed co-regent, we cannot say. Possibly the king had no male issue, and wished to keep the succession in the family. In the time of their joint reign fell Nebuchadnezzar's invasion. This campaign was undertaken, according to the Babylonian inscriptions, in the 37th year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign, that is, in 567 B.C. The Babylonians found little or no resistance, and easily succeeded in overrunning and plundering the whole land as far as Aswan, and then retired either voluntarily or after having been defeated by Ness Hor. Be that as it may, the Babylonians never again entered Egypt. Oha Habre died in 564 B.C. after having ruled 25 years in all, 19 alone, and six in conjunction with his brother-in-law and successor. Section 5. Achmes II. Amesis, 564 through 526 B.C. This pharaoh came into still closer connection with the Greeks than any of his predecessors. The many anecdotes the Greek authors tell of his private life and family relations are all untrustworthy, as are also the reports that Pythagoras, Solon, and Thales visited Egypt in his reign. Solon is even said to have copied from Amesis's laws one of the laws he promulgated at Athens in 594 B.C., a statement that is, of course, absurd. Further, this king is said to have entered into friendly relations with Cleoblulis, Bias, and Pythagoras, and to have foreseen the downfall of Polycrates. All of these stories, which are by the by chronologically impossible, have a direct tendency, namely, to prove that all of the knowledge and philosophy of Greece was derived from Egypt. Amesis, being the king best known to the Greeks, they placed the Egyptian voyages of their sages in his reign. We have already alluded to these traditions in the introduction. More credible are the accounts the Greek writers give us of his wars. He fought against the Arabians, that is, the Asiatics, and in order to increase the valor of his troops, he had the statues of the chief divinities set up behind their ranks, so that the troops believed the gods themselves were observing them. He next sent out a fleet against Cyprus, that succeeded in subduing the Cypriot cities, which remained Egyptian dependencies for some time thereafter. This expedition was most probably undertaken as part of Egypt's work in the great coalition, which had been formed for the purpose of checking, if possible, the rise of the new Persian monarchy. This coalition was joined by Egypt, Lydia, Babylon, and Sparta. The object was to attack Persia from three sides at once, and had the allies acted in concert and not wasted valuable time over their preparations, they might have crushed Cyprus. As it was, Coasis, moved before the others were ready, and all the help he could get from his allies consisted in a detachment of troops sent him by Akhmes. In the spring of 546 BC, he entered Cappadocia, devastated the country, and captured the strong fortress of Teria. Now was the time for Akhmes and Nabu Naid, king of Babylon, to act, but it was impossible for them to concentrate their forces and to cooperate properly. Cyrus first moved against Coasis, and soon had conquered Lydia, taken its capital, and made the king a prisoner, fall of 546 BC. A Persian fleet sent against Cyprus easily succeeded in dislodging the Egyptian garrisons. Akhmes now, instead of coming to the aid of his ally, Nabu Naid, remained inactive while the Persians conquered Babylon, and took possession of Palestine and Syria as far as the Egyptian frontier. The pharaoh evidently hoped to pacify Cyrus by this inactivity, but he had gone just one step too far, and had incurred the determined enmity of the Persians. That the invasion of Egypt did not follow immediately on the occupation of Palestine was owing to complications that had arisen on the eastern frontier. In the wars fought here, Cyrus lost his life, but his successor, Cambyses, soon punished Egypt for its share in the coalition against Persia. Akhmes thought it to his advantage to interfere in Cyrene. Here, king Arcus Aelaus had been assassinated by Learchus, who had ascended the throne, and supported by Egyptian mercenaries, had instituted a most tyrannical rule. His misrule did not last long. He was assassinated at the instigation of Polyarchus and his sister, Erikso, who placed Bades, the son of Arcus Aelaus, on the throne. The Egyptian mercenaries now called on Akhmes for aid, and he determined to take advantage of these conditions to subdue the city. Before he started on the expedition, however, his mother died, and he was detained in Egypt by the preparations for her interment. Polyarchus, accompanied by his mother Crtola and his sister Erikso, now went to Egypt to propitiate the pharaoh. Akhmes received them kindly, and praising the energy they had shown, dismissed them, loaded with presence. He now abandoned the expedition against Cyrene, as he was evidently satisfied with the recognition of his sovereignty. The two nations hereafter remained at peace, until the downfall of Egypt. Akhmes was confined entirely to Egypt. His expedition against Cyprus, though at first successful, had proved in the end a failure. In Asia he dared not interfere. Ethiopia retained its independence, and his sovereignty over Cyrene was purely nominal. While the kingdom thus did not extend its boundaries under Akhmes, still his reign was an epic of great prosperity. Agriculture and commerce flourished, and it is stated that there were at this time twenty thousand inhabited places in Egypt. The Greeks were, of course, greatly favored, and costly presents were made to their temples, among them being a contribution of a thousand pounds of alum, one of the most important raw products of Egypt. To the fund the Amphic Tyons were collecting for rebuilding the Delphic Temple. Greek immigration was greatly encouraged. The Ionians and Carians, whom Semtec I had first settled on the Polyusic branch of the Nile, were removed to Memphis to serve as a bodyguard to the pharaoh. In place of the harbor, thus lost to the Greeks, the king gave them the city of Naucratus and its surroundings in the neighborhood of the present city of Alexandria. This new city stood outside of the pale of Egyptian jurisdiction and was allowed to make its own laws. The result was that the inhabitants clung to their own Greek customs and institutions with the greatest tenacity, and went their way entirely uninfluenced by their Egyptian neighbors. The city being originally intended for Ionians from Teos, its government was modeled after that of the latter city. This town became the center of Greek activity in Egypt. In it was erected the Great Sanctuary of the Greeks in Egypt. This was the Hellenion, which was built by several Greek cities conjointly. These cities were Chios, Teos, Posei, Clasomenae, Nidos, Helicarnassus, Faceles, and Mytelene. The reason why so many cities helped to build the Hellenion was that all of the cities that took part in this work had the privilege of sending to Naucratus a supervisor of trade, or as we would put it, appointing a member of the board of trade. Temples to Zeus, Hera, and Apollo were also built by other cities, who thus gained the same privilege as the builders of the Hellenion. Naucratus rose very rapidly, owing to certain laws that gave her a complete monopoly of the trade with Greece. The Greeks soon had colonies in all parts of Egypt, even in the southern portions of the country. The Malaysians had a trading post at Abidas, and Samian merchants even settled in the Great Oasis. Being engaged in no great wars, this pharaoh was enabled to devote considerable attention to the temples of the land. In all parts of Egypt, from the Delta to the island of Baigai, we find traces of his work. He died 526 BC, after having been co-regent of his brother-in-law for six years, and sole ruler for 38 years. Section 6 Semtec III and the Persian conquest of Egypt 526-525 BC When Semtec III ascended the throne of his fathers, the catastrophe that had so long threatened the land at length overwhelmed it. The account of this catastrophe has been preserved to us by Herodotus. The stories that, according to Greek traditions, impelled Cambyses to invade Egypt are all untrustworthy as they seek to bring Cambyses into a relationship with the Egyptian kings and to find the cause of the war in this relationship, while making Cambyses appear at the same time as the legitimate pharaoh. The war, far from having any such cause as the Greek historians would have us believe, had, in all probability, been determined on already by Cyrus, who was prevented from carrying out this part of his plan by other matters. Cambyses was free to attack Egypt, and he had ample cause for war in the fact that Egypt had been the ally of his father's worst enemies, King Croesus of Lydia and King Nabunaid of Babylon. Accordingly, Cambyses began making active preparations for the war, and everything indicated that he was going to have a hard time of it. The eastern frontier of Egypt was protected by the Syrian desert that skirted it, to cross, which was a task of no small difficulty. Recognizing this fact, Achmes had concentrated his forces at Pelusium, hoping to gain an easy victory over the Persian army, which no doubt would suffer terribly in the desert and reach the Egyptian border, sadly used up. Cambyses did not underrate the difficulty of the undertaking, and made the most extensive preparations. A great fleet was fitted out to attack Pelusium by sea, while the army attacked it by land. Just as he was about to start, he received unexpected and timely aid. In the Egyptian army, there was a Hala Karnashian officer, named Fanes, a bright and able leader, who had had some difficulty with Achmes. In consequence of this, he had fled to the Persian monarch. On the way, he was overtaken by the king's favorite eunuch, but managed to escape. Shortly after this event, Achmes had died, and Semtec III had succeeded him. Fanes not only betrayed the Persians all the secrets of the state, but he also showed them the means of crossing the desert without great loss. To accomplish this, envoys were sent to all the Bedouin sheiks of the desert, and treaties were concluded with them. They agreed to furnish the army with camels and water, and thus the Persian army was enabled to cross the desert and to reach Pelusium with but little loss. The battle that ensued was waged with great fury, but finally, after both sides had lost heavily, the Persians were victorious, and the Egyptians fled from the field. Pelusium surrendered soon after. A ship was now sent to Memphis, whether the Pharaoh had fled to demand the city's surrender. When it entered the harbor of Memphis, the garrison boarded it, killed the crew, and destroyed the vessel. This breach of international usage met with a severe but well-merited punishment. Memphis was besieged and taken. Ten days after the capture, the punishment came. Two thousand sons of the most respected citizens, among them the son of King Semtek, were executed to atone for the death of the two hundred men that had composed the crew of the ill-fated vessel. The daughter of the Pharaoh and the noblest virgins were sold into slavery, and the fortunes of the richest citizens and of the king's friends were confiscated, leaving their former owners beggars. The fate of Semtek was comparatively light. Kambises, even intending to make him governor of Egypt, but he became involved in a conspiracy against Kambises, and was compelled to take poison. Thus ended the last of the Semtek's. As a result of the capture of Memphis, the Libyans submitted voluntarily and paid tribute. Cyranae and Barcaea also sent tribute, but this the Persian monarch divided among his soldiers, as he hoped to gain far more by capturing these rich towns than he could ever get from them as voluntary tribute. CHAPTER X PART ONE OF HISTORY OF EGYPT This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. RECORDING BY RICK VINA HISTORY OF EGYPT BY F. C. H. Wendell CHAPTER X From the Persian conquest to the invasion of Alexander the Great, 525-331 B.C., Section 1, The 27th Dynasty, Persians, 525-414 B.C., Kambises, 525-522 B.C. The fall of Memphis seems to have sealed the fate of Egypt. The rest of the country, in all probability, submitted peaceably. The very fact that the Libyans, Barcaea, and Cyranae offered their submission and sent tribute right after the capture of Memphis, proves that from that time on, the Persian monarch was the undisputed ruler of Egypt. Kambises appointed Ariandis Saitrap of Egypt, but seems not to have changed any of the laws and institutions of the land. Shortly after Memphis surrendered, the king paid a visit to Seas, the then capital of Egypt. The stories that Herodotus relates, of outrages committed here by Kambises, are unhistorical, being utterly disproved by an inscription on the statue of the Hereditary Prince, Hor Ucha Sutannet, who had been keeper of the seal, chief scribe of the palace, admiral of the fleet, chief physician, etc., under Achmes II and Semtec III. This man relates that Kambut, Kambises, came to Egypt and ruled all the land, remaining as king of Egypt and taking the coronation name of Mesut Ra. Hor Ucha Sutannet was appointed by him chief physician and superintendent of the palace. He initiated the king into the mysteries of the goddess Nayit and described to him her temple. He now complained of the Persian soldiery that had taken quarters in the temple and begged that they be removed so that the temple might be clean again. The king ordered that the temple be cleansed, that all of her servants be restored to the goddess and that her festivals be celebrated as of yore. When the king came to Seas, he went to the temple of Nayit, worshiped her, and sacrificed to her in all the other gods of Seas. In short, conducted all the sacred ceremonies the same as every former king had done. He also ordered Hor Ucha Sutannet to prepare an inventory of all the temple utensils and to erect buildings for the goddess. We see that the Persian monarch strove to appear as the successor of the pharaohs, a policy he pursued until his understanding was clouded by insanity. Kambises now determined to conquer the rest of Africa. Three expeditions were planned, one against Carthage, another against the Oasis of Ammon, and a third against Ethiopia. The first of these expeditions was never undertaken, as the Phoenicians, who made up the greater part of the Persian fleet, refused to serve against Carthage. And Kambises, owing to the fact that they had joined him voluntarily, did not dare to force them. The expedition against the Oasis of Ammon proved a failure. An army of fifty thousand men started from Thebes and marched through the Sahara to the Greek town of Oasis. After they left the smaller Oasis, no news of them ever reached Egypt. In all probability, they perished in a sandstorm. The expedition against Ethiopia was in the main successful, although the Greek historians strove to give the impression that it was a failure. Besides the half legendary account of Herodotus, according to which provisions gave out on the march, and the men, after eating their beasts of burden, were compelled to resort to cannibalism, we have no full account of this campaign. But the fact that Ethiopian troops fought against the Greeks under Xerxes, and the mention by Ptolemy and Pliny of a town, Cambison Tamiya in Ethiopia, prove that the campaign was successful. Moreover, Strabo and others relate that Kambises captured the capital of Ethiopia and named it Meroa after his sister. As the army was returning, a sandstorm overtook it near the first cataract, and the greater part of the one hundred and fifty thousand men perished. Only a fragment of the great army returned to Egypt. Kambises had, however, fully accomplished his object. He had thoroughly subdued Egypt and secured it against foreign invasion. On his return from Ethiopia, a great change came over the spirit of his reign. From early youth he had been subject to epileptic fits, and now he became insane. His insanity seems to have first broken out in Memphis, at the festival of the enthroning of an Apis Steer. While the king was warring in Ethiopia, the old Apis Steer had died, and shortly before his return a new one had been found. As he entered Memphis, he found, according to Herodotus, the citizens celebrating a great festival. This naturally angered him, as he supposed they were rejoicing over the loss of his army. So he summoned the elders of the city before him and asked them why the Egyptians were celebrating a festival, now that he was returning after meeting with so severe a loss, and had celebrated no festival when he first came. They replied that a god had been born to the Egyptians, whose birth was always celebrated in this manner, and the king had them executed as liars. He then sent for the priests, and on questioning them received the same answer. Now he made further inquiries regarding the god, and finally ordered the sacred steer to be brought before him. When the animal was brought, the king drew his sword intending to kill it, but succeeded only in wounding it on the thigh. Then he scoffed at the priests, telling them their god was only flesh and blood after all. He now had the priests scourged, and had all persons who took part in the festival killed. The apis died of his wound soon afterward, and was secretly interred by the priests. While this account is certainly overdrawn, we have no reason to doubt that the killing of the apis is historical, for this does not seem to have been the only sacrilege the king was guilty of. He is accused of having made fun of the statues of Ta, which represent the god as a dwarf, and of having robbed temples and burned several statues of gods. These outrages were no doubt all committed after he had become insane, for the inscription of Hor Ucha Sutannet proves that in the early part of his reign this king had everywhere sought to imitate the pharaohs. The Greek historians were naturally prejudiced against him, and strove to make him appear as a wild remorseless tyrant, in glaring contrast to his father Cyrus, whom they depicted as an ideal ruler. The whole history of Cambyses was written by Herodotus from an unhistorical standpoint. His object was to make this reign a grand tragedy. The king was a wild, insane tyrant, and his violent death was a punishment for his many sins against the gods and men. This may be tragedy, but it certainly is not history. Persia itself suffered from the insanity of the king just as much as did Egypt. Cambyses' greatest crime was the murder of his brother, Barja, whom he had assassinated by prexaspis. He is also accused of having attempted to murder Croesus, the old friend of his father, and of having killed the son of prexaspis while drunk. At last the end came. Cambyses had, for unknown reasons, gone to Syria. Here news of a revolt in Persia reached him. He had, before leaving Persia, appointed Patazethes, a magian, superintendent of the palace. This man knew of the murder of Barja and determined to make use of his knowledge. He had a brother named Gaumara, who closely resembled the murdered prince. This brother he placed on the throne and proclaimed through all the land that Barja had ascended the throne of Persia. Cambyses easily convinced himself that this so-called Barja was a swindler and determined to suppress the revolt. As he was about to start out on this expedition, he accidentally wounded himself. Tradition asserts in the thigh, the same place where he wounded the apis, and of this wound he died. Before his death, however, he assembled his nobles about his bed, confessed the murder of Barja, and urged them to punish the Median usurper. Darius I, Egyptian Antliush, 521-485 BC For a while the Persian nobles remained inactive, fearing to divulge the murder of Barja. But finally, in 521 BC, Darius, the son of Hastaspis, who was the next heir to the throne, Cambyses having died childless, with six companions succeeded in slaying the usurper. As Hastaspis declined the crown, Darius now became king of Persia. The new king was compelled to combat with several usurpers in Persia, but Egypt remained loyal. Ariandes, the satrep appointed by Cambyses, had been left in office by Darius. He felt sufficiently strong to attempt the extension of the Persian power in Africa. A fine opportunity to do this soon offered itself. When Cambyses invaded Egypt, Serene had voluntarily submitted and paid tribute. King Arcus Aelaus III made about this time a tripped Barcia, after having appointed his mother, Faratime, regent. Here he was murdered by some Cyrenaic refugees. As soon as Faratime heard of this, she went to Egypt and asked Ariandes to aid her in punishing the murderers of her son. Ariandes gladly assented and sent an army under the Egyptian Achmas and a fleet under the Persian Badres against Barcia. Faratime herself accompanied the army. The combined forces reached the city without loss, and the extradition of Arcus Aelaus's murderers was demanded, but refused. The city was hereupon beleaguered, but held out for nine months, and was then captured only by stratagem. Faratime's revenge was terrible. Her son's murderers were crucified, and their wives were cruelly mutilated. Part of the prisoners taken were handed over to Faratime. Part were sent to Persia, and settled in Bactria by Darius. The army now advanced to Uesperides, but soon began the retreat. A wrangle between the commanders had led to this retreat, and soon after they started a messenger came from Ariandes, ordering them home. On the retreat the Libyans are said to have attacked and cut to pieces the rearguard. Ariandes had a definite object in recalling the army. He had planned the foundation of an independent Egyptian empire. The details of his plan are unknown, but he seems to have become dangerous, for he was executed at the command of Darius. Late in the year 517 BC Darius himself came to Egypt. Shortly before his arrival, the Apis steer, which had been enthroned in the reign of Cambyses, died, and Darius offered a reward of one hundred talents to whomsoever would find the new Apis. Darius thus returned to the policy inaugurated by Cambyses when he first came to Egypt. Early in his reign he ordered Hor Ucha Sutannet to fill the complement of temple scribes. This noble accordingly established schools for the scribes, and fitted them out with everything that was needful, for Darius well knew that this was the best way of preserving the names of the gods, their temples and incomes for ever. He repaired the temple of Memphis, and made valuable presence to the temple of Edphu, but his chief work was the building of the temple in the oasis, El Cargay. We see, thus, that Darius posed everywhere as a pharaoh, and so successfully that he carry out this policy, that he completely won the hearts of his Egyptian subjects in a very short while. Like Nika'u, Darius determined to re-establish the connection between the Nile and the Red Sea that had existed in the times of Sadi I and Ramses II. A stele bearing on one side, an inscription in hieroglyphics, and on the other side, a translation of this in Median, Persian, and Babylonian, recounts this fact. This inscription reads, quote, I am a Persian. With the aid of Persia I conquered Egypt. I gave orders to dig this canal from the River Nile, which flows in Egypt, to the sea which is connected with Persia. Then this canal was dug, as I had ordered. But I said, now go and destroy half this canal from the city of Bira to the sea, because such is my will, end quote. Why this last order was given, he does not say. Deodorus and Strabo, however, relate that his engineers represented to him that if the canal were completed, the Red Sea, which lay higher than Egypt, would flood the country. It is a curious fact that Herodotus regarded the canal as completed, for he says it was four days journey long and wide enough to allow two triremes to pass in line. It is further noteworthy that Cambyses had already founded a city named Cambyson, after him, near the route of the canal. Probably he had intended to undertake the work, but had died before it was begun. The most important act of his reign was that he erected Egypt, together with Libya, Barsia, and Cyrene into the sixth satropy. This satropy had to pay an annual tax of seven hundred talents, or eight hundred and twenty six thousand dollars. The fisheries of Lake Moeris were declared to be the property of the crown. The Egyptians had to furnish the Persian garrison of the citadel of Memphis, one hundred and twenty thousand bushels of grain annually. Further, they had to furnish salt and nile water for the royal table. The income of the city of Antilla was given the Queen of Persia, according to some accounts for her shoes, according to others for her belts, or, as we would say, for pin money. Late in this reign, four years after the Battle of Marathon, the Egyptians made an effort to regain their independence. They made a man named Chabash, king. But before Darius could march against the rebels, he died, 485 BC, in the 36th year of his reign. Xerxes Egyptian Cheshiresh, 485 through 472 BC When Xerxes came to the throne of Persia, Chabash had firmly established himself in Egypt. He assumed the coronation name of Senentanen Satep Enta, and was exercising all the functions of a legitimate pharaoh. In the second year of his reign, he interred an apis, probably the one that wasn't thrown in the 31st year of Darius's reign. Several temples, among them that of Buto, were given large tracts of land. The Egyptian king did not neglect to prepare to meet an attack from Persia, which could be expected every day. The mouths of denial were strongly fortified, and everything was put in readiness to repel the expected attack. The rebel king could not, however, hold out against Xerxes. The country was again subdued, and Akimines, the king's brother, was appointed Satep, with orders to institute a very strict regime. Akimines kept his position all his life, and it was probably his harsh rule that led to the revolt of Inaros. In the war with Greece, the Egyptians had to fit out and man two hundred vessels, the crews of which were afterward transferred to the land army, and took part in the battle of Plataea, Arta-Xerxes, Egyptian Artaxheshes, and the revolt of Inaros, 464-448 BC. After the assassination of Xerxes, the country was for a while plunged into anarchy, and divided by wars for the succession, which were finally brought to a close in 464 BC by the accession of Arta-Xerxes. During these wars, the Persians lost control over several provinces, among which was Egypt. As they had taken advantage of the temporary weakness of the Persians after their defeat at Marathon, the Egyptians now took advantage of the anarchy existing in Persia to make another fight for liberty. Serene had, during the past reign, gradually regained its independence, and the Libyans seem to have been left pretty much to themselves since the revolt of Chabash. In fact, it would seem that this rebel was a Libyan, or of Libyan descent. His name certainly is not Egyptian. At the time Arta-Xerxes came to the throne, a sovereign named Inaros, the son of Semtec, ruled over the Libyan tribes that dwelt on the Egyptian border. This chief determined to free Egypt from the Persian yoke, and easily succeeded in inciting the greater part of the country to revolt. The people chose him king, drove out the Persian tax collectors, and raised an army. The first object of the new pharaoh was to secure allies against Persia. He easily succeeding in getting aid from Serene. He next turned to Athens, and the Athenians concluded a treaty with him, and ordered their fleet of 200 sail, which lay at Cyprus to proceed to Egypt. This fleet forced its way up the Nile as far as Memphis, two-thirds of which city had already fallen into the hands of the Egyptians. The citadel, however, was still held by the Persians, and such Egyptians as had remained loyal to Persia. This citadel, the combined forces of the Egyptians and Greeks beleaguered, but all attempts to reduce it failed. Meanwhile, Artaxerxes, hearing of the revolt, had confirmed his uncle Achaemenes as satrap of Egypt, and sent him an army of 300,000 men to put down the rebellion. This army entered the delta without encountering any opposition. At Papramis, they were met by the combined forces of the Egyptians and Athenians, and utterly routed. They fled from the field, and the Egyptians pursuing a terrible massacre ensued. Only a mere fragment of the vast army succeeded in getting safely behind the walls of Memphis. 462 BC Achaemenes himself was mortally wounded, and died soon after the battle. His body was sent to Artaxerxes. The Persian king now began intriguing for the withdrawal of the Athenian troops, offering the Spartans large subsidies if they would attack Athens. Failing in this, he at last fitted out a new army, and placed it under command of Artabanos and Megabizos, two brave generals. In 461 BC, this new army of 300,000 men marched into Silicia. Here a halt was made, and the Silicians and Phoenicians were ordered to equip a fleet. 300 triremes having been fitted out, they were manned with the best troops in the army. The land forces were put through a careful course of training. Meanwhile the war had come to a standstill in Egypt. The combined forces of the Egyptians and Athenians still lay before the citadel of Memphis, but could not compel its surrender. At length, in 460 BC, the Persian army began to move, marching along the coast so as to keep in constant communication with the fleet. The army, at length, entered Egypt without having encountered any opposition. The allies seemed to have been utterly blind to the threatening danger, deeming it improbable that the Persians should again attack them after their terrible defeat at Papremis two years before. They were, however, pretty rudely awakened when they suddenly found themselves face to face with the Persian army. They accepted the preferred battle and were utterly routed. Memphis was relieved, and the Athenians withdrew with their ships to the island of Prosopitus in the Nile. A year and a half they held out here until the Persians damned the Nile, and thus beached the Athenian ships. The Athenians, burning their vessels, entrenched themselves and prepared to sell their lives dearly. But the object of the Persians was not to destroy them, but to render them useless as allies of Inaros and to drive them from Egypt. They therefore concluded a treaty with the Athenians, guaranteeing them a safe retreat. In this manner part of the Athenian army succeeded in reaching Athens by way of Libya and Cyrene. Inaros was not so fortunate. Wounded and captured in an engagement, he was sent to Persia, his life being spared. Here, at the instigation of Queen Amestris, who desired to avenge Achaemenes, he was crucified and his companions were beheaded. The war was not, however, ended yet. The Athenians had sent a fleet of fifty sail to reinforce their fleet before Memphis. It entered the Mendesian branch of the Nile, where it was surprised by the Phoenicians, and almost completely destroyed, only a few vessels escaping. For several years, Amerteus, Egyptian Amenrut, succeeded in holding his own in the Delta. Like his friend and ally, Inaros, he sent to Athens for aid, and sixty ships were ordered by Simon to proceed to Egypt from Cyprus. But these vessels were of no avail, for they returned to Athens on hearing of Simon's death, for forty-nine B.C. In four forty-five B.C., a certain Samtech, Greek Sametikos, seems to have held an independent position in Egypt, for he sent thirty thousand bushels of grain to Athens. After the rebellion had been suppressed, Artebanos and Megabisos returned home, and Larsemes was appointed Saitrap. Thanires, the son of Inaros, and Paus Cyrus, the son of Amerteus, were given their hereditary principalities, the former probably Libya, probably the latter, the western part of the Delta. How long these princes reigned, and in what relation they stood to Persia, we cannot say. Herodotus, who visited Egypt shortly after the suppression of the revolt of Inaros, found Egypt tranquil under Persian rule. There was then no trace of an independent Egyptian kingdom, and the only traces of the late troubles were the bleaching bones on the old battlefields. Egypt was again prosperous and happy, celebrating its old festivals in the old manner, a striking proof of the elasticity of the people. The reigns of Xerxes II, Sagdianus, and Darius II had but little import for Egypt. 448-414 BC. Except that in the latter part of Darius's reign, the Egyptians again revolted, and this time succeeded in gaining their independence under the leadership of Amenrut. Section II, the 28th Dynasty. 414-408 BC. Amenrut, Greek Amerteus. Late in the year 415 BC, Amenrut of Seas succeeded, with the aid of Greek mercenaries in delivering Egypt from the Persian rule. No details of this successful revolt are known, but it would seem that it stood in some connection with the revolt of Pisuthnes and Lydia, which occurred at about the same time, while that of Amorgas in Caria, 413-412 BC, kept the Persian kings busy at home, so that Amenrut was enabled to establish himself firmly on the Egyptian throne. The whole of Egypt soon came under his control, and it would even seem that he was able to take the offensive against Persia. A remark of Thucydides appears to point to the fact that he was allied with Athens in 412 and 411 BC. In 410 BC, according to Deodorus, he, together with the king of Arabia, threatened the Phoenician seaboard, and the Persian king sent a fleet of 300 sail against them. Despite these successes, he could not hold himself on the throne, but was deposed by the mercenaries. His son was excluded from the succession, and Naif Akrut elevated to the throne 408 BC, section 3, the 29th dynasty, 408-386 BC, Naif Akrut I, Neferides, 408-402 BC. The first act of the new king was to appoint his son Nekt Horheb, Nectanebus, co-regent. But this act did not please the people, and Prince Nekt Horheb was banished to his city, from which he returned 21 years later as king. All that we know of this king is that an apes steer was buried in the second year of his reign. Some blocks, bearing his name, found at Thebes prove that he built there. Pasamut, Greek Samuthus, 402-401 BC. According to the Demotic Chronicles, this pharaoh had not served the gods well, and consequently had not been generally recognized. This assertion is not well founded, as the inscriptions prove. Numerous blocks of stone, bearing his name, Ra-o-essur setep en ra-pasamut, found at Thebes, prove that he built at the temple of Ammon. Haker, Greek Acorus, 400-386 BC. Ruled thirteen years. He had been, like his predecessor, placed on the throne by the mercenaries, and as he was just and looked after the decaying temples, he was retained as king as long as he lived. He was busy repairing temples in all parts of Egypt. Deodorus relates that Haker became involved in the wars between Greece and Persia. At this time, Sparta was at war with the common enemy, and Agisileos sent envoys to Egypt asking for aid. Haker sent him timber for one hundred triremes and five hundred thousand bushels of grain. These stores were forwarded to Rhodos, which city had meanwhile deserted Sparta and joined Persia, so that the present intended for that state came to be used against it. We hear also, through Theopompus, of a treaty of alliance which this came concluded with the Pisidians, but we know not what came of this alliance. Possibly it stood in some connection with a war between Egypt and Persia that lasted from 390 through 387 BC, and in which Isocrates says the three greatest Persian generals, Abracomas, Tathranis, and Pharnobesos had fought against Egypt for three years without accomplishing anything. Just before the beginning of the Cypriot War, this war broke out in 386 BC. King Euagorus of Cyprus, revolting against Persia, and calling on Haker for aid. The pharaoh sent him troops, but before the war was well begun, he died, 386 BC. Naif Akrut II. Greek Nefarities. 386 BC. The son of Haker succeeded his father on the throne with the aid of the troops, but the people did not support him, and consequently the soldiers deserted him and killed his son. They hereupon restored the right, that is, they placed on the throne Nekt Horheb, the son of Naif Akrut I, who had been banished and deprived of his right to the succession. And Chapter 1, Part 1