Naguib Mahfouz - Three Novels of Ancient Egypt

The army made good progress in its march and began to draw close to Immortal Memphis of the glorious memories, whose lofty white walls now started to appear. Ahmose thought that the Herdsmen would defend the capital of their kingdom to the death. However, he was wrong, and the vanguard entered the city in peace. He found out that Apophis had withdrawn with his army toward the northeast. Ahmose thus entered the Thebes of the north in a festival the likes of which none had seen before,

the people welcoming him — with enthusiasm and reverence, prostrating themselves to him and calling him “Son of Merenptah.” The king stayed in Memphis a number of days, during which he visited its quarters and inspected its markets and manufacturing areas. He made a circuit of the three pyramids and prayed in the temple of the Sphinx, making offerings. Their joy at the conquest of Memphis was unrivaled by anything but the retaking of Thebes. Ahmose marveled at how the Herdsmen could fail to defend Memphis but Commander Mheb said to him, “They will never expose themselves to the onslaught of our chariots after what they experienced in Hierakonpolis and Aphroditopolis.

Chamberlain Hur said confidently, “Ships come to us constantly, laden with chariots and horses from the districts of the south, while all Apophis has to worry about are the walls of Avaris.”

They consulted together on the direction to take, spreading out the map of the invasion in front of them. Commander Mheb said, “There is no doubt that the enemy has withdrawn from the north altogether and congregated in the east, behind the walls of Avaris. We must go there with all our forces.”

But Ahmose was extremely cautious. He sent a small army to the west via Lenopolis, dispatched another to the north in the direction of Athribis, and went himself with his main forces and his great fleet eastward on the road to On. The days passed as they covered the miles, driven by enthusiasm and the hope that they would deliver the final blow and crown their long struggle with a decisive victory. They entered On, the immortal city of Ra. Then they came to Phakussa, followedby Pharbaithos, where they turned onto the road leading to Avaris. News of Apophis kept coming to them and thus they discovered that the Herdsmen had withdrawn from all other districts to go to Avaris, driving before them thousands of poor wretches. This news caused the king great sadness and his heart went out to those despised captives who had fallen into the Herdsmen's cruel clutches.

Finally, the terrible walls of Avaris appeared on the horizon like a rocky mountain range and Ahmose cried out, “The last fortress of the Herdsmen in Egypt!”

Hur said to him, as he looked at the fortress — with his weak eyes, “Smash its gates, my lord, and the lovely face of Egypt will be yours alone.”

Avaris was located to the east of the branch of the Nile and its wall extended eastward farther than the eye could see. Many of the local inhabitants knew the fortified city and some of them had — worked inside it or on its — walls. They told their sovereign, “Four circular, massively thick walls surround the city, beyond which is an encircling ditch through which the water of the Nile runs. Within the city are broad fields that provide for the needs of its entire people, most of whom are soldiers, the Egyptian farmers being the exception. The city is watered by channels that draw from branches of the Nile, under the western wall, and are protected by it. From there, they go east toward the city.” Ahmose and his men stood on the south side of the terrible fortress, turning their faces this way and that in amazement at the enormous towering walls, in whose lee the soldiers appeared no larger than dwarfs. The army pitched its tents, the rows of troops extending parallel to the southern wall. The fleet went forward on the river on the western side of the western wall, out of range of its arrows, in order to watch and lay siege. Ahmose listened to the words of the inhabitants concerning the fortress and examined the land around it and the river running to its west, his mind never resting. While thus occupied, he dispatched mounted and infantry forces to the villages around the city, taking possession of them without trouble and quickly completing his blockade of the fortress. However, he and his men knew that the siege would produce nothing, for the city could provide for itself from its own resources, and that the blockade could last for years without having any effect on it, while he and his army would suffer the frustration of waiting without hope amidst the horrors of the weather and its changes. On one of his circuits around the fortress, an idea came to him and he summoned his men to his tent to consult them. He said to them, “Advise me. It seems to me that the siege is a waste of our time and a dissipation of our strength. Likewise, it seems to me that an attack is futile and obvious suicide and it may be that the enemy wants us to assault him so that he can pick off our brave men or drive them into his ditches. So what is your advice?”

Commander Deeb said, “My advice, my lord, is to besiege the fortress with a part of our forces and consider the war over. Then you can announce the independence of the valley and take up your duties as pharaoh of a united Egypt.”

Hur, however, objected to the idea, and said, “How can we leave Apophis safe to train his men and build new chariots so that he can assault us later on?”

Commander Mheb said enthusiastically, “We paid a high price for Thebes and struggle is by its nature effort and sacrifice. Why then do we not pay the price for Avaris and attack as we attacked the forts of Thebes?”

Commander Deeb said, “We do not begrudge ourselves, but an attack on four massive walls separated by ditches full of water is a sure destruction for our troops for no gain.”

The king was silent, plunged in thought. Then he said, pointing to the river running beneath the western wall of the city, “Avaris is well-defended. It cannot be taken and it cannot be starved. However, it can be made to feel thirst.”

The men looked at the river and astonishment appeared on their faces. Hur said in alarm, “How made to feel thirst, my lord?”

Ahmose said quietly, “By diverting from it the waters of the Nile.”

The men looked again at the Nile, unable to believe that it would be possible to divert that mighty river from its course. Hur asked, “Can such an enormous task be undertaken?”

Ahmose said, “We have no lack of engineers and laborers.”

“How long will it take, my lord?”

“A year, or two, or three. The time is not important, since that is the only way. The Nile will have to be diverted north of Pharbaithos into a new channel that goes west toward Mendes, so that Apophis is forced to choose between death by hunger and thirst and coming out to fight us. My people will forgive me for exposing the Egyptians in Avaris to danger and deathjust as they forgave me for doing the same to some of the women of Thebes.”

Ahmose prepared for the great work. He summoned the famous engineers of Thebes and proposed his idea to them. They studied it with diligence and passion, then told the king that his idea was feasible, provided that he gave them enough time and a thousand laborers. Ahmose learned that his project could not be realized in less than two years but did not give up in despair. Instead he sent messengers to the cities to call for volunteers for the great work on which the liberation of the country and the expulsion of its enemy depended. The workers came in bands from all parts and soon there were enough of them to start with. The king inaugurated the great work, taking a mattock and striking the ground with it to announce the beginning. Behind him followed the brawny arms that labor to the rhythm of hymns and songs.