“Return as victor, Horemheb, son of the falcon. Return as victor, and the goddess will descend to you, living, and embrace you with her nakedness.”
But Horemheb did not allow the leaping and outcry of the priests to ruffle his composure, and he performed the appointed rites with cool dignity and left the temple. While he was making the sacrifice, an immense crowd, summoned by the sounds of horns, had gathered to the temple’s forecourt and on to the square outside the temple. Having stepped out of the temple, Horemheb raised his bloodstained hands and spoke to the waiting people and said:
“Listen to me, all people in the land of Kem, listen to me, for I am Horemheb, the son of the falcon, and in my hands I bear victory and immortal glory for all those who will follow me into a holy war. At this hour the chariots of the Hittites thunder over the Sinai desert and their vanguard lays waste the Lower Kingdom, and the land of Kem has never yet been threatened by so great a peril — for compared with the Hittites, the ancient rule of Hyksos would be gentle and merciful. The Hittites are coming, their numbers are beyond reckoning and their cruelty is an abomination to all men. They will lay waste your homes, put out your eyes, rape your wives and carry off your children into slavery to push stone mills. Wheat will not grow after their chariots pass, and the hoofs of their horses turn land into a desert. Therefore the war I declare on them is a holy war for it is a war for your lives and for the gods of the land of Kem and for your children and for your houses — and if all goes well, we will win back Syria when we have defeated the Hittites, and the prosperity of the land of Kem will return and every man will have his measure full again. Long enough strangers have desecrated the land of Kem — long enough have they mocked at our weakness and laughed at the shame of our arms. The hour has come, and I will restore to the land of Kem its military glory. Every man who wants to willingly follow me, I guarantee his share of corn, and I guarantee his share in the spoils, and the spoils will be great indeed so that those who return with me on the day of the victory, will return richer than they ever dreamed of. But if there is a man who does not
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follow me willingly, he will follow me against his will, and he needs to carry the loads of warriors so that his back bends, he gets mocked and shamed, and he gets no share of the loot. Therefore I believe and wish that every man in the land of Egypt who has the heart of a man and can raise a spear with his arm shall follow me willingly. Today, we have a shortage of everything, and hunger follows our footsteps, but days of abundance will follow the victory — and anyone who dies in the battle for the freedom of the land of Kem, will go straight to the fields of the blessed and he does not need to worry about the preservation of his body, for the gods of Egypt will look after him. Only by giving our everything, can we win everything. Therefore, women of Egypt, twist your hair into bowstrings and send out your husbands and your sons with rejoicing to the holy war. Men of Egypt, forge your ornaments into arrowheads and follow me, and I will give you a war the likes of which hasn’t been seen at any end of the world. The spirits of the great Pharaohs and all the gods of Egypt, and foremost amongst these the great Amun, fight at our side. We will drive the Hittites away from the Black Land like a flood throws dry reeds from its course. We will conquer back the wealth of Syria and wash Egypt’s shame with blood. Listen to me, all people. Horemheb, the son of the falcon, the victor, has spoken.”
He ceased and let his bloodstained hands fall to his sides, and his large chest panted from the effort, for he had shouted with a tremendous voice. As he had finished, the horns sounded, and the soldiers smote their shields with their spear shafts and stamped their feet, and here and there a shout rose from the crowd, until the shout swelled to a storm of voices, and all the people cried exultantly together, raising their arms — and blood went to their heads, and they shouted ever louder, though I doubt many knew why they shouted. Horemheb smiled and stepped up back into his chariot. The soldiers cleared a way for him, and the crowd, frenzied from joy, greeted him on both sides of the Avenue of Rams. Then I understood that the greatest joy of people is to shout together, and it does not really matter what they shout for, but shouting together makes everyone feel strong, and whatever they shout for becomes the truth. But Horemheb was content now and raised his arms in an ostentatious manner to greet the people.
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