The architecture of imperialism: An investigation into the role of fortresses and administrative headquarters in New Kingdom foreign policy

This study explores the subject of New Kingdom foreign policy via a comprehensive examination of the fortresses and administrative headquarters that the Egyptians erected on their borders and in foreign territory. The topic is approached through a gathering and synthesis of both textual and archaeological data as it exists for the early, middle, and late Eighteenth Dynasty, as well as for the Nineteenth and Twentieth Dynasties. Such a chronological division affords a clear insight into the evolution of Egypt\u27s imperial priorities and tactics. Further, the frontiers of Syria-Palestine, Nubia, and Libya are all considered within this work to compose a more comprehensive picture and to allow for an examination as to how the imperial policies practiced on one frontier influenced policies later enacted in another. From this study it can be seen that the Egyptians employed four major types of military base. (1) At the points at which the Nile Valley could be easily penetrated, they erected htm-fortresses. These entities served largely to monitor and regulate the passage of people and goods across Egypt\u27s border. (2) On the coastal road to Libya and in Nubia, the Egyptians constructed fortress-towns (mnnw or dmiw)—abiding by the philosophy that a potential enemy, like a crocodile, can snatch from a lonely road but cannot seize from a populous town. (3) The construction of modestly sized forts is limited to the highway along the Ways of Horus. These structures served to protect wells and foodstuffs, but were of little utility against a truly threatening foe. (4) In the Eastern Sinai and in Syria-Palestine, the Egyptians occupied administrative headquarters. These unfortified enclaves were generally commandeered from vassals in the Eighteenth Dynasty. It was only in the Nineteenth Dynasty, then, that the Egyptians began in earnest to sponsor the construction of permanent bases in Palestine. This policy shift, it is argued, stemmed from a post-Amarna administrative reform that affected both Egypt and its foreign territories equally