Small-scale Canaanite infiltration into the Eastern Delta is attested during the troubled times of the decentralized First Intermediate Period (the transition between the Old and Middle Kingdoms). The Middle Kingdom response was to fortify the northeastern frontier, and a few punitive raids were launched into Canaan and possibly Syria (Cohen 2002: 33-50). However, the crisis of the Second Intermediate Period (the transition between the Middle and New Kingdoms) - when rulers of foreign descent controlled most of Egypt - had a dramatic impact on the Egyptian mentality, resulting in a major shift in foreign policy. After forcing the Hyksos kings and their Kushite allies to withdraw from the land at the beginning of Dynasty 18, the Egyptians set about trying to convert Syro-Palestine into a defensive barrier, modeled after the buffer zone which had long existed in Lower Nubia, thus in fact establishing an empire in Western Asia. The kings’ obligations were no longer limited to defending the frontiers, but were now redefined to emphasize their expansion. The Egyptians rapidly extended their control toward the north and east, taking possession of numerous prosperous city-states and encountering previously unknown territorial states. Very different from Egypt, but equally powerful, these claimed prior rights in the areas where Egypt was now operating. Confronted with such new conditions and challenges, the Egyptians were forced to develop a professional army that is amply attested to in the proliferation of military ranks and titles borne by many individuals during the New Kingdom (Schulman 1964,1995; Yoyotte and Lopez 1969). The same circumstances, however, also prompted the emergence of Egyptian diplomacy.
World History
