that the king thus honoured his mercenary troops. Wiedemann
thinks this is an erroneous inference drawn from the passage
of Herodotus, in which he explains the meaning of the word
Asmakh.

They reaped thus the double advantage of the glory, which they greatly
prized, and of the higher pay attached to the title of body-guard, but
the troops who had hitherto enjoyed these advantages were naturally
indignant at losing them, and began to murmur. One particularly galling
circumstance at last caused their discontent to break out. The eastern
and southern frontiers of Egypt were conterminous with those of two
conquering empires, Assyria and Ethiopia, and on the west the Libyan
tribes along the shores of the Mediterranean were powerful enough
to demand constant vigilance on the part of the border garrisons.
Psammetichus, among other reforms, had reorganised the ancient system
of defence. While placing outposts at the entrance to the passes leading
from the desert into the Nile valley, he had concentrated considerable
masses of troops at the three most vulnerable points--the outlets of
the road to Syria, the country surrounding Lake Mareotis, and the first
cataract; he had fortified Daphnse, near the old town of Zalu, as a
defence against the Assyrians, Marea against the Libyan Bedawin, and
Elephantine against the Ethiopians. These advanced posts had been
garrisoned with native troops who were quartered there for a year at a
time. To be condemned to such an exile for so long a period raised
in them a sense of profound indignation, but when the king apparently
forgot them and left them there three years without sending other troops
to relieve them, their anger knew no bounds. They resolved to put an end
to such treatment, and as the hope of a successful rebellion seemed but
small, they decided to leave the country. Two hundred and forty thousand
of them assembled on a given day with their arms and baggage, and
marched in good order towards Ethiopia. Psammetichus, warned of their
intentions when ifc was too late, hastened after them with a handful of
followers, and coming up with them, besought them not to desert their
national gods, their wives, and their children. He had nearly prevailed
on them to return, when one soldier, with a significant gesture,
intimated that while manhood lasted they had power to create new
families wherever they might chance to dwell. The details of this story
betray the popular legend,