6 – Ancient History’s Most Influential Mercenary
Phanes of Halicarnassus (flourished 6th century BC) was a Greek mercenary general who served Egyptian Pharaoh Amasis II (570 – 524 BC). During a war between Egypt and Persia, Phanes switched sides and joined the army of King Cambyses II of Persia, and played an instrumental role in helping the Persians defeat his former employers and paymasters.
The war was supposedly instigated by the intrigues of a disgruntled Egyptian eye doctor, who had been sent to the Persian court by Pharaoh Amasis when Persia’s king Cambyses asked for a physician to treat his sight. Angry at the Pharaoh for separating him from his family and sending him all the way to Persia, the physician got his revenge by advising the Persian king to ask for Amasis’ favorite daughter. He knew that the request would put Amasis in a bind: accept and grow wretched at the loss of his daughter, or refuse, and offend Cambyses.
The Pharaoh did not want to send his beloved daughter to Persia, especially because he knew that Cambyses did not want her as a wife, but as a mere concubine. However, he was also intimidated by Persia’s power. So he fudged, and sent the daughter of a former Pharaoh. It backfired: soon as she reached Persia, the former princess told Cambyses that Amasis had tried to fob him off with somebody else’s daughter. Cambyses, who had been itching for an excuse to conquer Egypt, declared war.
Amasis chose that precarious time to offend Phanes, and the disgruntled Greek general set out to join the Persians. Amasis sent assassins to kill or capture Phanes before he reached Cambyses, but after harrowing adventures, including an escape from captivity by getting his guards drunk, Phanes reached the Persians. He promptly advised Cambyses about the best invasion route into Egypt, through Arab tribal lands, bribing their chieftains into granting him safe passage with generous gifts.
By then, Amasis had died, and he was succeeded by his son, Psamtik III. Enraged at Phanes, Psamtik tricked the Greek general’s sons into meeting him, took them captive, and had them executed. He then had their blood drained and mixed with wine, which he quaffed down along with his subordinates. Phanes got his revenge by leading the Persian army into Egypt, acting as Cambyses’ guide and military advisor. With the mercenary general’s assistance, the Persians defeated and captured Psamtik. Phanes then engineered the execution of his sons’ murderer by uncovering and informing Cambyses of a plot by the captive pharaoh to stir up a revolt.