The Greeks before the Persian war had little cavalry, the country of Attica and the Peloponnesus being ill suited for the employment of that arm; and it was not till they were called upon to cope with an enemy like the Persians, that they became aware of its utility. The same argument may be urged in the case of the Egyptians; and their distant expeditions into Asia, and the frequent encounters with troops which served on horseback, would necessarily teach them the expediency of employing cavalry, even if they had not done so previously.* Egypt was in fact famous for its breed of horses, which were not less excellent than numerous, and we find they were even exported to other countries.t At Jacob's funeral a great number of chariots and horsemen are said to have accompanied Joseph+; horsemen as well as chariots§ pursued the Israelites on their leaving Egypt ||; the song of Moses mentions in Pharaoh's army the "horse and his rider¶;" Herodotus also** represents Amasis "on horse * All nations noted for great progress in the art of war have made the main force of their army consist of infantry; others, less skilful in military tactics, have depended upon cavalry. This has always been the case in the East; and even in Europe, till the later wars in Spain against the Moors, foot soldiers were in no repute as an effective corps: and the name of infantry records their Spanish origin, and is derived from the infantas or princes of that country. Light infantry has only been in use in modern Europe since 1656. According to Robertson (in his Charles V. p. 105.), modern infantry originated in Switzerland; and during the wars of the Swiss against the Austrians the utility and force of these troops were so fully shown, that they were afterwards introduced into Germany and Spain, in which latter country great improvements were suggested. Their example was afterwards followed in Italy and France. † 2 Chron. i. 17. Gen. 1. 9. $ Conf. 2 Kings, xviii. 24. “Put thy trust in Egypt for chariots and for horsemen." || Gen. xiv. 9. 28. ¶ Gen. xv. 21. ** Herod. ii. 162. back" in his interview with the messenger of Apries; and Diodorus speaks of 24,000 horse in the army of Sesostris, besides 27,000 war chariots. Shishak, the Egyptian Sheshonk, had with him 60,000 horsemen when he went to fight against Jerusalem *; and mention is made of the Egyptian cavalry in other parts of sacred and profane history; nor are the hieroglyphics silent on the subject; and we learn from them that the "command of the cavalry" was a very honourable and important post, and generally held by the most distinguished of the king's sons. The Egyptian infantry was divided into regiments, very similar, as Plutarch observes, to the λοχοι and ταξεις of the Greeks; and these were formed and distinguished according to the arms they bore. They consisted of bowmen, spearmen, swordsmen, clubmen, slingers, and other corps, disciplined according to the rules of regular tactics t; and the regiments being probably divided into battalions and companies, each officer had his peculiar rank and command, like the chiliarchs, hecatontarchs, decarchs, and others among the Greeks, or the captains over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, among the Jews.‡ Masses of heavy infantry, armed with spears and shields, and a falchion, or other weapon, moved sometimes in close array in the form of an impregnable phalanx§; sometimes they deployed, and formed into long columns or small distinct bodies; and the bowmen 2 Chron. xii. 3. Vide also Isaiah, xxxvi. 9. + See wood-cut preceding page. * See wood-cut next page. Deut. i. 15. |