A history documentary on the the police of Ancient Egypt, from Medjay to Centurion! Get your free trial of MagellanTV here: https://try.magellantv.com/invicta. MagellanTV is a new kind of streaming service run by filmmakers with 3,000+ documentaries! Check out our personal recommendation and MagellanTV’s exclusive playlists: https://www.magellantv.com/explore/history

In this episode, we explore how the ancient civilization of Egypt kept the peace. This involves millennia spent developing one of the most sophisticated police systems of the ancient world which at its height employed around 3% of the entire population. Even the famed Nubian Medjay warriors joined their ranks!

We begin the history documentary in the Old Kingdom of Egypt where the first police got their start as the private guard of the elite. By the Middle Kingdom of Egypt, the establishment of a swelling army brought greater numbers and organization to the police force which grew to unprecedented heights by the time of the New Kingdom period. We talk about the intricacies of this system and how it would be adapted by new conquerors like Macedon and Rome throughout antiquity. Particular attention is paid to the systems of Ptolemaic Egypt and Roman Egypt due to the higher amount of records available.

Bibliography and Suggested Reading
Army & Society in Ptolemaic Egypt by Christelle Fischer-Bovet
Hellenistic Egypt: Monarchy, Society, Economy & Culture by Jean Bingen
Law & Enforcement in Ptolemaic Egypt by John Bauschatz
The Strong Arm of the Law? Police Corruption in Ptolemaic Egypt by John Bauschatz
Egypt in the Age of Cleopatra by Michel Chaveau
Army and Police in Roman Upper Egypt by Roger S. Bagnall

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