Hello There: “Let’s worship some cats…”

It was 5th May 525 BC and the Egyptians were heading into war with the Persians.

This remarkable battle is referred to as the battle of Pelusium.

King Cambyses II of Persia had already gathered his army when he learnt something that would put him ahead in the battle.

He learnt that the Egyptians had massive respect for cats. In fact, they worshiped the goddess: Bastet.

This goddess was said to have a cat-like head with a woman’s body.

So strong was the love the Egyptians had for cats that if you killed a cat, you would be stabbed to death.

As if that wasn’t enough, most dead cats were given “befitting burials”. The dead cats were even said to be mummified with some expensive jewelry.

Thus, when King Cambyses II of Persia learnt this secret, he simply put it to use.

MARCHING TO WAR:

According to records of Polyaeunus and partial accounts of Herodotus, the Persian king placed a lot of cats and other animals in front of his army.

As they marched forward, the Egyptians could not fire a single arrow because they were concerned about hitting the cats.

Of course the Persians emerged victorious in this battle and in a matter of weeks or months, they were able to rule over the entire lands of Egypt.

The battle of Pelusium marked the shift of power from Pharoah Psametik III to Cambyses II of Persia.

The ancient Egyptians would rather lose an empire than disrespect their goddess.