The cats and the Battle of Pelusio
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What was called the Battle of Pelusium was the Battle waged in 525 BC. C. in Pelusio. This was an ancient city of Lower Egypt and was one of the most important cities. There they faced the Persian King Cambyses II and the pharaoh Psamtic III. This battle was decisive.
The historical texts narrate that Psamético III was proclaimed pharaoh once his father Amasis II passed away. Psamético III was young and inexperienced both in the arts of government and military leader for what he could not with the intentions of Cambyses to conquer all of Egypt, this was the only place that remained independent and therefore Cambyses III wanted to annex it to its vast territory.
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Cambyses III seeing weakness in his enemy, marched through the desert, after he joined forces with the other Arab chiefs to provide their hosts with water.
This king, Cambyses III, guided his troops, but was achieved with a resistance in Pelusio. The confrontation between the two armies was bloody. Both were fierce and bloodthirsty. Although the Egyptians were in command of an inexperienced youth, it was not easy for the Persians to take over Egypt.
The Persian troops were faster and fiercer so they razed the Egyptian hosts. These were disturbed, because the Persian legion had printed on their shields the image of the local goddess Bastet.
According to the Egyptian divine pantheon this goddess represents harmony, protection, happiness, usually this goddess is represented with the head of a cat and with a sistrum.
Seeing that the shield had the goddess Bastet, the Egyptians felt demoralized and began to flee, as they felt unprotected. In the city of Pelusio the cat was a sacred animal, as well as in all of Egypt.
In addition, from the previous Cambyses III, seeing that his troops were decreasing and seeing the resistance of the young pharaoh and the inhabitants of the city, he thought of a strategy. He said that cats were sacred animals, that Bastet was the revered goddess, and asked his army to look for all possible cats and put them in the catapults, they started throwing some and when the inhabitants saw that the kittens were starting to die and there were many in danger, they surrendered.
This is how Cambyses III finished seizing a nation.