ABSTRACT
Egypt revolted from Persia three times in the fifth century, proving that these Greek and Jewish garrisons were needed. A revolt in 486 was put down straight away. The third and most successful revolt began in 404 and gave Egypt independence till the 340s (there was a brief fmal revolt in the 330s). In between fell the revolt of Inaros, a Libyan prince, 462-452, whose final defeat entailed the defeat of an Athenian force of 200 ships, sent to help Inaros during the First Peloponnesian War (seep. 42). Persia's vigorous actions to recover Egypt are in proportion to what was at stake. From the fifth-century period of Persian control between c.450 and 404 there survive leather documents (G. Driver (1957) Aramaic Documents of the Fifth Century BC) which show that much of the best land in Egypt was parcelled out among absentee Persian landlords. Here is an extract from a letter written by an indignant rentier to his bailiff (Driver, no.x):
(In regard to) that domain which has been given to me by my lord in Egypt - they are not bringing me anything thence . . . let a letter be sent ... to instruct one named Hatu-basti, my officer, that without fail he collect the rent on those domains and bring it to me ...
