Until the day when he openly assumed an independent kingship as ptolemy i soter, on november 7, 305 bce, ptolemy used only the title satrap of egypt, but the great hieroglyphic satrap stela, which he had inscribed in 311 bce, indicates a. The road to kingship over egypt was not easy for ptolemy. Ptolemy, was one of alexander the greats generals and deputies. Introduction i treat here the internal economic history of the ptolemaic dynasty, the longestlived of the hellenistic successor states, leaving aside the ptolemaic empire relevant to the first half of the period, or roughly from 330168 bc, the role of. Alexander left egypt in the spring of 331 bce, having divided the military. The ptolemaic egypt is a major power of the mediterranean sea, occupying territory in north africa, middle east and cyprus. The skilful integration of material from a vast array of sources allows the reader to trace the political and religious development of one of the most. After alexanders death in 323 bc, the vast empire he had amassed began to crumble, and a long battle to take the throne ensued. The ptolemaic army under ptolemy vi philometor nick sekunda, angus mcbride, ed org on. Successor empire armies emphasize the differences between the successors as they settled in to their wars. Like most of the other armies of the diadochi, it was very much macedonian in style, with the use of the long pike in a deep phalanx formation. Though it deals with a broad period before and after the ptolemaic empire, it should give a decent overview and you should be able to find a great deal more specific material from the footnotes.
Fischerbovet army and society in ptolemaic egypt armies of the ancient world. However, he successfully established his authority in 305 bc. Army and society in ptolemaic egypt by christelle fischer. Oddly, while they ruled egypt, they never became egyptian.
In the 270s bc, ptolemy ii defeated the kingdom of kush in war, gaining the ptolemies free access to kushite. Greeks and macedonians serving in the ptolemaic army settled ther e and were. Its main naval bases were at alexandria, egypt and nea paphos or new paphos in cyprus. The ptolemaic dynasty controlled egypt for almost three centuries 305 30 bce, eventually falling to the romans. Social unrest and ethnic coexistence in ptolemaic egypt. Three great kingdoms arose from the ashes of alexanders empire. Throughout the 4th and early 3rd centuries bc, celtic mercenaries were employed in the meditarranean region from sparta to syracuse. Now available in paperback, this work, when originally published in hardcover 2014, was the first comprehensive study of the egyptian army in. His rule ushered in the beginning of the ptolemaic dynasty. The ptolemaic dynasty, also known as the lagids or lagidae, was a macedonian greek royal family who ruled over egypt. The rise and demise of the seleucid empire ancient origins. The ptolemaic kingdom was a hellenistic kingdom based in ancient egypt. Ptolemy, the son of alexanders general lagos, was first established as the governor of the satrapy of egypt, but officially became the first ptolemaic pharaoh of egypt in 305 bce.
You can also see the considerable variety of older and newer figures that jeff uses in his ptolemaic army, in his syrian wars campaign. It features a comprehensive bibliography, numerous sources in translation, several helpful maps, charts and. The ptolemaic kingdom in egypt was founded by ptolemy i soter, a prominent general in service of king alexanders army. Covers all aspects of greek influence on egypt as well as a military and politcal narrative. I will split my description into three parts based on soldiers cultural origins. Ptolemaic army during roman invasion history forum. This is the only substantial and uptodate reference work on the ptolemaic army. At the core of the ptolemaic army were two large blocks of phalangists. Ptolemaic dynasty amazing bible timeline with world history. It was ruled by the ptolemaic dynasty, which started with ptolemy i soters accession after the death of alexander the great in 323 bc and which ended with the death of cleopatra vii and the roman conquest in 30 bc. Like most of the other armies of the diadochi, it was.
They were using macedonian tactics and other stuff as rollingwave mentioned. This wellwritten, clearly argued study belongs in all university libraries. This compelling narrative provides the only comprehensive guide in english to the rise and decline of ptolemaic rule in. Still the best concise history of the ptolemaic empire on the market, especially refreshing in its relatively low number of those underlying and unreflected colonial attitudes that you still get so often in works by authors who come to ptolemaic history not from the egyptology side. Ptolemaic egypt romae delenda est map game alternative. Early successors including a number of variants listed below deal with the leaders who fought over alexanders former empire 323272 bc. Their rule lasted for 275 years, from 305 bc to 30 bc.
The ptolemaic navy was the naval force of the ptolemaic kingdom and later empire from 305 to 30 bc. Cambridge core ancient history army and society in ptolemaic egypt by christelle fischerbovet. Read army and society in ptolemaic egypt by christelle fischerbovet available from rakuten kobo. Seleucus gained control of the eastern provinces, and his empire was the largest among the successor states. This compelling narrative provides the only comprehensive guide in english to the rise and decline of ptolemaic rule in egypt over three centuries from the death of alexander in 323 bc to the tragic deaths of antony and cleopatra in 30 bc. To navigate the timeline, click and drag it with your mouse, or click on the timeline overview on the bottom. The development of the high priesthood during the prehasmonean period. After alexander the greats death cyrene becomes subject of the ptolemaic empire. While the ptolemaic army is best described as multiethnic, it did not lack. Army and society in ptolemaic egypt offers a wideranging analysis of ptolemaic military institutions, particularly as a social vehicle for stability and integrative activity.
Despite this, his family ruled egypt for almost 300 years with the famous cleopatra vii as the. Ptolemaic egypt 32330 bc was the enduring of the states that emerged from alexanders empire, and for much of its existence was a major military power. Chapter 3 is significant for laying out the first of the books two big arguments. Buy army and society in ptolemaic egypt armies of the ancient world reprint by christelle fischerbovet isbn. Organization and tactics in the great campaigns cambridge, 1976, esp. Removal of mercenary nubian archer from ptolemaic army. Few books have the potential to change the direction of scholarship. As an egyptian dynasty, they derived much of their real wealth and p. Ptolemaic dynasty simple english wikipedia, the free.
Ptolemy led a force which conquered egypt which was the richest empire they gained control of cyprus the costal lands of anatolia and levant. From the seleucid empire to the arrival of rome by cam rea. This essay discusses the recruitment and payment of soldiers, as well as the ethnic composition, organization, and training of the ptolemaic army, through the examination of papyri, of inscriptions, and of polybius account of the ptolemaic victory against the seleucids at raphia. Army and society in ptolemaic egypt by christelle fischerbovet.
An aid in the study of the ptolemaic macedonianbased greek, roman imperial grecoroman, and byzantine rulers of egypt based in alexandria, this site is intended for all classicists and students of hellenistic history. It was established by seleucus i nicator meaning victor or conqueror, one of the diadochi, or successors, of alexander the great. The finances and financial administration of the seleukid empire cambridge, 2004, 1907. Buy army and society in ptolemaic egypt armies of the ancient world first edition by christelle fischerbovet isbn. This compelling narrative provides the only comprehensive guide in english to the rise and decline of ptolemaic rule in egypt over three centuries from the. The house of ptolemy portal site concentrates on the ptolemies and their world, from 331 30 bce.
The ptolemaic army was the army of the ptolemaic macedonian kings that ruled egypt from 305 to 30 bc. Christelle fischerbovet, army and society in ptolemaic egypt. History, ideology, theology supplements to the journal for the study of judaism. They portrayed ptolemaic army as ancient egyptian army. As a macedonian dynasty, they derived much of their legitimacy from military activity. Army and society in ptolemaic egypt ebook by christelle. The seleucid empire became a major center of hellenistic culture it maintained the preeminence of greek customs where a greek political elite dominated, mostly in the urban areas. Instead, they isolated themselves in the capital city of alexandria, a city envisioned by alexander the great. It is one of the most complete combined arms armies in the successors book. Ptolemaic successor empire army list pergamene successor empire army list.
The greek population of the cities who formed the dominant elite were reinforced by immigration from greece. Alexander died in june 323 bce his empire was split into 3 smaller empires ptolemaic empire was centerd in egypt. Ptolemy i soter was able after many years to take control of egypt in 305 bc. This started the ptolemaic dynasty, which lasted until 204 bc according to the biblical timeline with world history. It describes the military reforms that took place between the 220s and 160s bce in response to external and. Next year, rome total war 2 is coming and developers of that game announced that game is going to have accurate units so.
They formed a large part of the carthaginian army in both the first and the second punic wars, marching through the alps with hannibal and. This is an interesting, and, at times, a rather fascinating book to read, although its title is a bit of a misnomer and a pretext. Ptolemaic rulers the egyptians, oppressed under the persian rule, welcomed alexander the great with open arms when he entered the country in 332 b. Ptolemaic definition, of or relating to ptolemy or his system of astronomy. The ptolemaic army was largely split into two parts. The seleucid empire was a hellenistic state that existed between the 4th and 1st centuries bc.
Macedonia on the greek mainland, the seleucid empire in syria and mesopotamia, and the ptolemies, including egypt and cyrenaica. Ptolemaic empire timeline ancient history encyclopedia. Essentially, the author comes up with a collection of sweeping, controversial and unsubstantiated statements that happen to run contrary to archaeological. Still the best concise history of the ptolemaic empire on the market, especially refreshing in its relatively low number of those underlying and unreflected colonial attitudes that you still get so often in works by authors who come to ptolemaic history not from the egyptology side, but from ancient history and classics. The lefthand block consisted of 25,000 macedonian and greek military settlers, with the righthand unit comprising 20,000 egyptian soldiers, hastily recruited and trained. Wab successors overview army lists and guidance for the successors.
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