Servant to the Pharaoh

A nomarch was a governor in Ancient Egypt, today modern Egypt is still divided into nomarchs.

This is long after the Sea People invasion, and nothing changed with their arrival.

The difference between this timeline and OTL, is that Ancient Egypt in OTL entered the Third Intermediate Period after the death of Ramses XI. After his death Egypt was divided between the former nomarch, Smendes ruler of Lower Egypt, and Herihor the Priestly King of Thebes. This division would remain for centuries until the Nubian dynasty took over Egypt, after that the Assyrians drove the Nubians, and the cycle of Egypt being invaded by foreign powers began.

The POD in this timeline is Herihor(or really his heir, Pinedjem) was able to reunite Egypt under one pharaoh, and later expand back into the Canaan. Basically the Third Intermediate Period was just postponed for a while.
 
The Unification of the Syro-Hittite States


Tiglath-Pileser I was an ambitious king, desiring to turn his kingdom of Assyria into an empire. He prepared a large invasion of the Hittite city-states, remnants of the once large and proud Hittite empire. But in this timeline his plans would not come to be, instead he shall be remembered as the last king of Assyria.

1125 B.C. in Babylon, a native led a rebellion against the ruling Elamite dynasty. Nebuchadnezzar I wanted the Elamite invaders out of his homeland, so he took up the sword against the foreigners, but his rebellion failed.

He was able to regain control over most of Babylonia, but instead of solidifying rule over the country he marched his armies to the home of the Elamites. There his army was massacred, and Nebuchadnezzar fled to another nation - Assyria. Believing they would give him refuge, Assyria was always at odds with the Elamite empire but the Hittite states were seen as a bigger threat than Elam.

The then king of Assyria, Ashur-resh-ishi I, offered Nebuchadnezzar refuge but it was a trap. Ashur planned to kill Nebuchadnezzar, and give his head to the Elamites as tribute. But he was unaware that his son Tiglath-Pileser became friends with Nebuchadnezzar, and was sympathetic to the Babylonian rebellion. Tiglath warned Nebuchadnezzar of his father’s plan, and the two decided to make their own plan.

As ambitious princes and exiled kings stirred up trouble in Assyria, the Hittite kingdom of Quwe, centered around the city of Adana, started expanding its influence over the other Hittite city-states. The kings of Quwe dreamed of recreating the former Hittite empire. Expansion first started in the east and southeast, with Quwe annexing the Aramaean-Hittite states.

The city-states to the south were recently taken over by a group of foreigners known as the Aramaeans. Attacking these cities made the rulers of Quwe be seen as liberators. The annexation of the Aramaean-Hittite states officially ended in the year 1092 B.C. The 30 years campaign was not the end of the Aramaean states, many still lived along the fringes of the Assyrian kingdom and Elamite Babylon, there was also the Aramaean-Damascus kingdom under Egyptian protection.

syrohittitestate.png


Also at the end of the Aramaean campaign, Assyria had greatly changed. The prince Tiglath rebelled against his father with assistance of Nebuchadnezzar and several displeased nobles. His army took over the palace and forced his father to give up power. His father would then spend the rest of his life as a prisoner, while his son would bring destruction to the kingdom of Assur.

Tiglath-Pileser I was, unfortunately, an awful king. The spoiled prince was an easily influenced idiot. Luckily his advisors were able to take care of domestic policies, but the military was still under his control. Tiglath was set on helping Nebuchadnezzar regain his Babylonian kingdom. He declared war on the Elamites sometime around 1100 B.C., a war that would last over a decade. The king of the Assyrians used all the troops his father had prepared for the invasion of the Hittites, a massive army but not trained to fight in the Mesopotamia. Not only was the army ill-trained, but Tiglath was also an amateur at war. Nebuchadnezzar was much more experienced and gifted, so while Tiglath officially led the army it was actually Nebuchadnezzar that gave the commands.

Nebuchadnezzar was, sadly, not immortal, and he died during the siege of Babylon. After that fate turned against Assyria, the Elamites fought them back into Assyrian territory. Tiglath was forced to accept a humiliating peace treaty in 1087 B.C. At the same time, the Hittite kingdom Quwe had finally taken control over the last of the Hittite cities in the Tabal region. The next king of Quwe took the throne as Suppiluliuma III to show the restoration of the Hittite empire.

Suppiluliuma III took advantage of the crumbling Assyria and declared war. Their iron weapons gave Quwe an advantage, and the years of war before the Hittite invasion ruined any hope of an Assyrian defense. Suppiluliuma was not interested in gaining more land, instead he wanted the world to know that the Hittites were now a great power in the world.

The city of Assur was razed and burned in the year 1077 B.C., treasury looted and women captured. Some of the former Assyrian lands was annexed by the Hittites, but razed the rest of the land. The Elamites seeking to gain more rule in Mesopotamia annexed and rebuilt it. Urartu eventually became a Hittite vassal state.

syrohittitestate2.png








Differences between Our Timeline and Servant to the Pharaoh-
  • Nebuchadnezzar's rebellion was successful in OTL, while in this one it wasn't.
  • Assyria in OTL conquered the Hittite city-states instead of fighting a war with the Elamites.
  • The Hittite states never united, but were instead conquered and assimilated into other cultures.
 
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Interesting. So Assyria is essentially stillborn and it looks like the Hittites and Egyptians will be squaring off again.

Thanks for throwing in the OTL differences at the bottom. :)
 
A map of the Middle East and other nations about 1000 B.C. (Vassals are not shown as independent)
MiddlEastBlanksmall.png


From west to east-

  • Thracians
  • Mysians
  • Troy
  • Ionia
  • Lycia
  • Phyrgians
  • Kaskians
  • Quwe-Hittite
  • Colchis
  • Egypt
  • Nubia
  • Aramaeans
  • Elam
  • Mannaeans
  • Cadusii
Because Egypt is more stable in this timeline, the empire has had better trade with Greece and other nations of the Aegan. Unfortunately this has brought a plague to Greece devastating the Greek city-states. The kingdom of Lycia through history of trade with the Middle East is more resistant to the plague. The Lycians were able to conquer the Carian people, and a few Ionia cities. Troy has avoided the plague, and has taken advantage of the weakening Greek Civilization to expand once again.

Currently tension is high between the three strongest nations in the Middle East: Egypt, Quwe-Hittite, and Elam. War has not been declared yet, but the Hittites are building their armies.
 
Interesting no reunified Neo-Hitties. I hope in this one the old religion has a better chance of survival :D
 
The Fall of the 21st Dynasty


Anubis_attending_the_mummy_of_Sennedjem.jpg

Anubis preparing the tomb of Ramses XIII

978 B.C.

Arnuwanda IV, Emperor of one the strongest nations in the world has declared war on Ramses XIII of Egypt. Arnuwanda is furious at Egypt for providing protection to a group of Aramaeans that were seen raiding Hittite land. The emperor mustered an army of over 50,000 men and chased the Aramaeans to the city of Damascus. Arnuwanda captured the city in 978 B.C., and the war between the Hittites and the Egyptians had officially started.

In Egypt, Ramses XIII was mustering up his own army, one of a similar size but he also had the advantage of using Aramaean mercenaries. The Egyptian and Hittite armies each had their own strengths and weaknesses. The Egyptians were experts in the bow and arrow. The composite bow was the prize of the Egyptian army, but because the composite bow required more care than a simple bow it wasn’t used by most of the army. The main weakness of the Egyptian army was the cavalry, just decades ago they were using chariots but now the soldiers ride on the horses back into war. The transition was not a smooth one, and morale was low among the cavalry troops. The Hittites on the other hand were experts in horse breeding, and had made the transition from chariots to mounting horses long ago. The main weakness of the Hittites is their infantry is not as well trained as the Egyptian infantry.

By the time Ramses XIII had created an army, and marched it into the Levant, Arnuwanda had already taken Damascus, Phoenicia, and was in the process of liberating the Israelites. The Israelites have always been displeased with the Egyptian rulers, when an army of Hittites came, the Israelites joined their side against Egypt. The Egyptian forces garrisoned in the region were unable to defend it against the Hittites, a large number of the soldiers deserted their post.

The first battle between the Hittites and the Egyptians was near a city called Lachish, in Israel. Only local Israelites guarded the city, but the Hittite army was heading towards Lachish. Egyptians quickly took the city in a few days. Within a week the Hittite army had arrived to Lachish, and the first battle took place a few miles from the city. The Egyptian formation broke early, an ambush from Hittite cavalry had caused panic among the Egyptian infantry. Ramses XIII eventually regained control over the confused army, but by then he was aware the Egyptians had no chance of a victory. Ramses XIII ordered a retreat of the Egyptian forces, the Hittites seized control of Lachish and sacked the Egyptian camp.

The army of Ramses XIII fled west to the Philistine city, Ashdod. In the Philistines the Egyptians were more popular and had local support. Here the army of Egypt was better supplied, but the lost at Lachish brought morale down. The Hittite army attacked the city only weeks after the lost at Lachish. Ramses XIII was more prepared for this battle, than the battle at Lachish. He had carefully positioned his archers and infantry to better defend against cavalry charges. Ramses’ tactics were successful, and the Egyptians defeated the Hittites at Ashdod. Although casualties for the Hittites were not as large as Egyptian casualties at Lachish, they were large enough to stop any plans of taking Ashdod.

Encouraged by the victory at Ashdod, Ramses XIII prepared to attack the Hittite army. His scouts informed him that the Hittites built a camp a few miles north of Ashdod. The Egyptian army left Ashdod and marched north to the Hittite camp. Arnuwanda IV had been informed of the Egyptian army by his scouts, and prepared his army for the battle. The battle started, and would continue for hours with no signs of anyone winning or losing. Eventually Hittite infantry was able push against the Egyptian army. Unable to sustain the large casualties, what remained of the Egyptian army fled with the Pharaoh south, to another Philistine city, Ashkelon.

Most of the forces Ramses controlled, were Aramaean mercenaries. With the bulk of the mercenaries being cavalry, and there iron weapons were superior to Egyptian, they survived the battles of the Hittite-Egyptian war. As it became clear that the Pharaoh was losing the war, and could not pay them the promised loot from sacked Hittite lands, the Aramaeans began to question why they remained. Just after a few days in Ashkelon, the Aramaeans turned on the Pharaoh and killed him. Ramses’ murder was actually well planned, the vizier of Egypt, Sesostris, had offered the Aramaeans wealth and Delta lands in return for murdering the Pharaoh. The Aramaeans arrived in Egypt on New Years, where Sesostris gave them their promised rewards.

Sesostris declared himself Pharaoh, and used the Aramaeans (now permanent residents of Egypt after the Hittites conquered their lands) to enforce his rule. Sesostris gave Arnuwanda IV tribute in exchange for peace, and the Hittites would rule unchallenged in the Canaan. The Hittites gave a special status to the Israelites, they now ruled many of the southern Levant kingdoms in the name of the Hittites.

After Sesostris gave tribute to the Hittites, many of the nomarchs considered him a weak man. In 974 B.C. the nomarchs of Lower Egypt rebelled against Sesostris, while the Aramaeans fought them to keep their new homes, sometimes making deals with the nomarchs instead of with Sesostris. The cities south of the Delta, including the capital remained under Sesostris’ control or his new 22nd Dynasty, while most of Upper Egypt was divided into priestly kings distantly related to the 21st Dynasty, some even declared themselves as the right Pharaoh. With the death of Ramses XIII, Egypt had entered another age of brothers fighting against brothers. The Third Intermediate period had begun.




A short summary of what's going on in Egypt now-
  • Egypt has entered the Third Intermediate Period about a century later. Only instead of a nomarch king in Lower Egypt, and a priestly-king in Lower Egypt, Egypt is much more divided.
  • Lower Egypt or the delta is under the rule of nomarchs that rebelled against Sesostris. Also numerous Aramaean states exist in the Delta each with different affiliations. (Some with Sesostris, others with the rebel nomarchs)
  • The 22nd dynasty (Founded by Sesostris) controls the Nile from Memphis to Khnum, which will now be called Middle Egypt. There is also a local king at the Faiyum Oasis who is allied with the 22nd dynasty but rules independently.
  • Upper Egypt is ruled by several independent priestly-kings, some of which are related to members of the 21st Dynasty. To the south of Upper Egypt is the Viceory of Kush, who now rules independent of the Pharoah of Egypt.
I also apologize for how late this chapter was. I couldn't decide exactly on whether the first battle between the Egyptians and Hittites should be fought in the Northern or Southern Canaan.
 
good stuff.. please continue. I am expecting that their will be a large backlash against the Arameans after all Sesitrios brought them in and now they are playing dynastic politics. Also Egypt is more divided than OTL correct? So I think the Hittites will stick around longer. Any word on the Medes/Persians? don't they show up on the Iranian plateau right about now?
 
Very good. It's a shame that there are so few TLs on ancient Egypt but it's good to see one, especially one so well written and researched. I've considered during a TL set during this time period, but I've always had problems with sources, especially with names. If you can help with that in any way I'd really appreciate it, because this is a well researched piece.

Keep up the good work.
 
Thanks for the comments, and I'm going to try to update faster than one update per month. :)

good stuff.. please continue. I am expecting that their will be a large backlash against the Arameans after all Sesitrios brought them in and now they are playing dynastic politics. Also Egypt is more divided than OTL correct? So I think the Hittites will stick around longer. Any word on the Medes/Persians? don't they show up on the Iranian plateau right about now?

An Old Persian-speaking group of tribes have settled in the Iranian Plateau, and currently overwhelming the Mannaean kingdoms. But they are not united yet, they have small alliances but have not formed a kingdom.

Very good. It's a shame that there are so few TLs on ancient Egypt but it's good to see one, especially one so well written and researched. I've considered during a TL set during this time period, but I've always had problems with sources, especially with names. If you can help with that in any way I'd really appreciate it, because this is a well researched piece.

Keep up the good work.

I do wish there were more Ancient Egyptian TLs, (or anything involving Hittites and Elamites). I agree that names are really difficult, but reading this and using this glossary helped me out a lot. When exactly does your timeline diverge from OTL? I'd be happy to help.
 
Thanks for the comments, and I'm going to try to update faster than one update per month. :)



An Old Persian-speaking group of tribes have settled in the Iranian Plateau, and currently overwhelming the Mannaean kingdoms. But they are not united yet, they have small alliances but have not formed a kingdom.



I do wish there were more Ancient Egyptian TLs, (or anything involving Hittites and Elamites). I agree that names are really difficult, but reading this and using this glossary helped me out a lot. When exactly does your timeline diverge from OTL? I'd be happy to help.

Thanks for the resources, I've made note of them. As for my own thoughts for a TL. I've got nothing planned as of yet, but I was thinkging of something revolving around Akhenaten. Maybe his successor is a bit more competent, manages Egypt better, keeps most of his changes alive. I was thinking that he could break up Temple lands adn give them to the aristocracy to curry their favour. With the priests weakenend he'd be in a better position to rule the country and create a bureaucracy and a centralised state.
I'd appreciate any help you could offer if I ever do something with it.
 
Thanks for the resources, I've made note of them. As for my own thoughts for a TL. I've got nothing planned as of yet, but I was thinkging of something revolving around Akhenaten. Maybe his successor is a bit more competent, manages Egypt better, keeps most of his changes alive. I was thinking that he could break up Temple lands adn give them to the aristocracy to curry their favour. With the priests weakenend he'd be in a better position to rule the country and create a bureaucracy and a centralised state.
I'd appreciate any help you could offer if I ever do something with it.

The Amarna is a fascinating period, and the Priests of Amun were a big part of why Atenism and Akhenaten new laws never lasted. Outside of the new capital Amarna, most of Egypt wasn't Atenist, which is why when Amarna is abandoned the High Priests of Amun were able to regain the power they once held. I'd imagine Atenism would have spread much if Amarna wasn't abandoned. The city was abandoned because so many people died (mostly teenagers and younger people).

If Akhenaten and his successors could convert more of the aristocrats to Atenism, and somehow make conditions better in the city (maybe get rid of the plague that was devastating the country at the time) then Akhenatens new religion and laws have a chance of surviving.
 
The Amarna is a fascinating period, and the Priests of Amun were a big part of why Atenism and Akhenaten new laws never lasted. Outside of the new capital Amarna, most of Egypt wasn't Atenist, which is why when Amarna is abandoned the High Priests of Amun were able to regain the power they once held. I'd imagine Atenism would have spread much if Amarna wasn't abandoned. The city was abandoned because so many people died (mostly teenagers and younger people).

If Akhenaten and his successors could convert more of the aristocrats to Atenism, and somehow make conditions better in the city (maybe get rid of the plague that was devastating the country at the time) then Akhenatens new religion and laws have a chance of surviving.

Yeah. Maybe if Neffertiti could restrain her husband a bit more into either keeping the capital in one place or at least moving it to somewhere on the Nile. His open belligerence with the priesthood and the nobility pretty much sealed his and his reforms' fate. If he'd cosid up to the nobility then he would have stood a chance.
 
Oh, thanks for pointing that out. I had it in my head that regardless of where a river flows north=up and south=down.
 
I would have thought that the Hittite infantry would be far more effective than you have them. IIRC, the Hittite monopoly on iron is failing at this point [OTL, did you change that?], but they still have far more iron weapons, and far better experience using them. No? or am I a 100 years off.
The Fall of the 21st Dynasty


Anubis_attending_the_mummy_of_Sennedjem.jpg

Anubis preparing the tomb of Ramses XIII

978 B.C.

Arnuwanda IV, Emperor of one the strongest nations in the world has declared war on Ramses XIII of Egypt. Arnuwanda is furious at Egypt for providing protection to a group of Aramaeans that were seen raiding Hittite land. The emperor mustered an army of over 50,000 men and chased the Aramaeans to the city of Damascus. Arnuwanda captured the city in 978 B.C., and the war between the Hittites and the Egyptians had officially started.

In Egypt, Ramses XIII was mustering up his own army, one of a similar size but he also had the advantage of using Aramaean mercenaries. The Egyptian and Hittite armies each had their own strengths and weaknesses. The Egyptians were experts in the bow and arrow. The composite bow was the prize of the Egyptian army, but because the composite bow required more care than a simple bow it wasn’t used by most of the army. The main weakness of the Egyptian army was the cavalry, just decades ago they were using chariots but now the soldiers ride on the horses back into war. The transition was not a smooth one, and morale was low among the cavalry troops. The Hittites on the other hand were experts in horse breeding, and had made the transition from chariots to mounting horses long ago. The main weakness of the Hittites is their infantry is not as well trained as the Egyptian infantry.

By the time Ramses XIII had created an army, and marched it into the Levant, Arnuwanda had already taken Damascus, Phoenicia, and was in the process of liberating the Israelites. The Israelites have always been displeased with the Egyptian rulers, when an army of Hittites came, the Israelites joined their side against Egypt. The Egyptian forces garrisoned in the region were unable to defend it against the Hittites, a large number of the soldiers deserted their post.

The first battle between the Hittites and the Egyptians was near a city called Lachish, in Israel. Only local Israelites guarded the city, but the Hittite army was heading towards Lachish. Egyptians quickly took the city in a few days. Within a week the Hittite army had arrived to Lachish, and the first battle took place a few miles from the city. The Egyptian formation broke early, an ambush from Hittite cavalry had caused panic among the Egyptian infantry. Ramses XIII eventually regained control over the confused army, but by then he was aware the Egyptians had no chance of a victory. Ramses XIII ordered a retreat of the Egyptian forces, the Hittites seized control of Lachish and sacked the Egyptian camp.

The army of Ramses XIII fled west to the Philistine city, Ashdod. In the Philistines the Egyptians were more popular and had local support. Here the army of Egypt was better supplied, but the lost at Lachish brought morale down. The Hittite army attacked the city only weeks after the lost at Lachish. Ramses XIII was more prepared for this battle, than the battle at Lachish. He had carefully positioned his archers and infantry to better defend against cavalry charges. Ramses’ tactics were successful, and the Egyptians defeated the Hittites at Ashdod. Although casualties for the Hittites were not as large as Egyptian casualties at Lachish, they were large enough to stop any plans of taking Ashdod.

Encouraged by the victory at Ashdod, Ramses XIII prepared to attack the Hittite army. His scouts informed him that the Hittites built a camp a few miles north of Ashdod. The Egyptian army left Ashdod and marched north to the Hittite camp. Arnuwanda IV had been informed of the Egyptian army by his scouts, and prepared his army for the battle. The battle started, and would continue for hours with no signs of anyone winning or losing. Eventually Hittite infantry was able push against the Egyptian army. Unable to sustain the large casualties, what remained of the Egyptian army fled with the Pharaoh south, to another Philistine city, Ashkelon.

Most of the forces Ramses controlled, were Aramaean mercenaries. With the bulk of the mercenaries being cavalry, and there iron weapons were superior to Egyptian, they survived the battles of the Hittite-Egyptian war. As it became clear that the Pharaoh was losing the war, and could not pay them the promised loot from sacked Hittite lands, the Aramaeans began to question why they remained. Just after a few days in Ashkelon, the Aramaeans turned on the Pharaoh and killed him. Ramses’ murder was actually well planned, the vizier of Egypt, Sesostris, had offered the Aramaeans wealth and Delta lands in return for murdering the Pharaoh. The Aramaeans arrived in Egypt on New Years, where Sesostris gave them their promised rewards.

Sesostris declared himself Pharaoh, and used the Aramaeans (now permanent residents of Egypt after the Hittites conquered their lands) to enforce his rule. Sesostris gave Arnuwanda IV tribute in exchange for peace, and the Hittites would rule unchallenged in the Canaan. The Hittites gave a special status to the Israelites, they now ruled many of the southern Levant kingdoms in the name of the Hittites.

After Sesostris gave tribute to the Hittites, many of the nomarchs considered him a weak man. In 974 B.C. the nomarchs of Lower Egypt rebelled against Sesostris, while the Aramaeans fought them to keep their new homes, sometimes making deals with the nomarchs instead of with Sesostris. The cities south of the Delta, including the capital remained under Sesostris’ control or his new 22nd Dynasty, while most of Upper Egypt was divided into priestly kings distantly related to the 21st Dynasty, some even declared themselves as the right Pharaoh. With the death of Ramses XIII, Egypt had entered another age of brothers fighting against brothers. The Third Intermediate period had begun.




A short summary of what's going on in Egypt now-
  • Egypt has entered the Third Intermediate Period about a century later. Only instead of a nomarch king in Lower Egypt, and a priestly-king in Lower Egypt, Egypt is much more divided.
  • Lower Egypt or the delta is under the rule of nomarchs that rebelled against Sesostris. Also numerous Aramaean states exist in the Delta each with different affiliations. (Some with Sesostris, others with the rebel nomarchs)
  • The 22nd dynasty (Founded by Sesostris) controls the Nile from Memphis to Khnum, which will now be called Middle Egypt. There is also a local king at the Faiyum Oasis who is allied with the 22nd dynasty but rules independently.
  • Upper Egypt is ruled by several independent priestly-kings, some of which are related to members of the 21st Dynasty. To the south of Upper Egypt is the Viceory of Kush, who now rules independent of the Pharoah of Egypt.
I also apologize for how late this chapter was. I couldn't decide exactly on whether the first battle between the Egyptians and Hittites should be fought in the Northern or Southern Canaan.
 
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