quote:In a book that brings new insights into both military history and the history of ancient Egyptian civilisations, Bridget McDermott surveys three thousand years of continuous development of arms and armour, beginning with the early predynastic culture and ending in the totalitarian supremacy of the New Kingdom. She offers a clear account of the origins of Egyptian military structures, their relationship to other ancient and modern African societies and the fascinating divergences between the 'official' images and records of war and the experience of the Egyptian landsoldier. Warfare in Ancient Egypt takes the reader from the manufacture and use of flint hand-axes, wooden staves and stone bludgeons, through the origins of organised fighting groups under the command of a leader, and into the sophisticated and even elegant military culture that saw the composite bow, the khepesh, the sword, the javelin and above all the chariot. This aspect of Egyptian history has been almost entirely overlooked and, in this lavishly illustrated book, Bridget McDermott is able to present a vivid picture of what battle, training and military life was like for the non-elite members of the Egyptian armies.
Anyone want to check it out?
Posts: 7082 | From: Fallbrook, CA | Registered: Mar 2004
| IP: Logged |
posted
^ I've read it years ago. It's a good book and I recommend it to anyone interested in Egyptian or military history in general. I especially like how she acknowledges Egypt's African identity and makes comparisons to the warfare practices of other African cultures.
Posts: 26267 | From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA | Registered: Feb 2005
| IP: Logged |
quote:Originally posted by Djehuti: ^ I've read it years ago. It's a good book and I recommend it to anyone interested in Egyptian or military history in general. I especially like how she acknowledges Egypt's African identity and makes comparisons to the warfare practices of other African cultures.
Anything particularly intriguing you want to share with us?
Posts: 7082 | From: Fallbrook, CA | Registered: Mar 2004
| IP: Logged |
posted
^ Not much really. One thing the book points out is how Egyptians were really no different when it came to weapons and tactics than their African neighbors, but were eventually forced to advance and adapt when confronted with Asian foes weilding more advanced weapon technology. The author also speaks of wartime propaganda being very ritualistic like other African societies in which the enemies were depicted as being trampled and slaughtered no matter what the actual reality of the war was. And I believe she even brought up the fact that Egyptian warriors would take the hands of their foes as trophies which is something that occurs in other African societies even to this day (sadly including innocent civilians).
Posts: 26267 | From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA | Registered: Feb 2005
| IP: Logged |
posted
You might want to research Megiddo. One of the Ramses, I think, fought there against the Hittites and militarist studies make a big deal of it with all kinds of charts and whatnot.
UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!
Printer-friendly view of this topic