Battle of Megiddo (15th century BC)

Battle of Megiddo
Aerial view of Tel Megiddo
Date April 16, 1457 BC Location Megiddo, Canaan Result Egyptian victory
Belligerents
Egyptian Empire	Canaanites Kadesh Megiddo Mitanni
Commanders and leaders
Thutmose III	King of Kadesh
Strength
10,000-20,000	10,000-15,000
Casualties and losses
4,000 killed, 1,000 wounded	8,300 killed, 3,400 captured

The Battle of Megiddo (15th century BC) was fought between Egyptian forces under the command of Pharaoh Thutmose III and a large rebellious coalition of Canaanite vassal states led by the king of Kadesh. It is the first battle to have been recorded in what is accepted as relatively reliable detail. Megiddo is also the first recorded use of the composite bow and the first body count. All details of the battle come from Egyptian sources—primarily the hieroglyphic writings on the Hall of Annals in the Temple of Amun-Re at Karnak, Thebes (now Luxor), by the military scribe Tjaneni.

The ancient Egyptian account gives the date of the battle as the 21st day of the first month of the third season, of Year 23 of the reign of Thutmose III. It has been claimed that this was April 16, 1457 BC according to the Middle Chronology, although other publications place the battle in 1482 BC or 1479 BC. The Battle of Megiddo was an Egyptian victory and resulted in a rout of the Canaanite forces, which fled to safety in the city of Megiddo. Their action resulted in the subsequent lengthy Siege of Megiddo.

By reestablishing Egyptian dominance in the Levant, Thutmose III began a reign in which the Egyptian Empire reached its greatest expanse.

During Thutmose III's first campaign in the Levant, his personal scribe, Tjaneni, kept a daily journal on parchment. In approximately his 42nd regnal year, many years after his campaigns in the Levant had ended, Thutmose III instructed his artisans to inscribe his military exploits into the walls of Amun-Re's temple at Karnak. The annals describe in lavish detail 14 campaigns led by Thutmose III in the Levant, the booty gained through his campaigning, tribute received from conquered regions, and, lastly, offerings to Amun-Re. The sequence of depictions indicate the New Kingdom's belief on the interactions of the gods with warfare: praise and offerings to the deities in exchange for their divine help in war.

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