These days, we are all following with concern and hope the battles taking place in the Gaza Strip, including American-made M16 rifles, tanks and fighter jets on the one hand, and Kalashnikov rifles, IEDs and locally manufactured missiles on the other. At this time, it is interesting to recall a very different battle fought in the same area 2,240 years ago – in 217 BC. Forefront and Perplexity tell us about the Battle of Rafah.
This battle, which would become the only one of its kind in history, was attended by two armies: on the one hand Ptolemy IV of Egypt, on the other Antiochus III of the Seleucid Empire. The clash between the two superpowers became legendary thanks to the strategic 'weapons' they brought: elephants. This is the only battle in known history in which each side used elephants of a different species.
Ptolemy had at his disposal 73 African war elephants, equipped with crews of two men. He divided them between the two wings of his army, with 40 on the left and 33 on the right. In contrast, Antiochus had no fewer than 102 Asian war elephants – although these were smaller elephants. His number of fighters was also lower – less than 70,000, compared to 75,000 in Ptolemy's army.
Of course, in the Elephant Collision, the larger Indian elephants overcame the relatively small African elephants – in fact, most African elephants simply retreated before the collision, and ran back, trampling Ptolemy's soldiers. Antiochus took advantage of these loopholes and advanced the elephants and cavalry, driving Ptolemy's warriors away—but Ptolemy himself was apparently preparing for this possibility, and as Antiochus moved away in pursuit of the left flank of his army, Ptolemy took command of the stronger right side of his army. Ptolemy's cavalry flanked Antiochus' elephants and defeated the Egyptian army, whose king was already far from the battlefield and therefore left without a commander.
However, the Egyptians did not let this victory rise to their heads, and shortly after the battle, a ceasefire agreement was signed between the sides.
The use of war elephants was a common practice in antiquity, and these giant animals played a critical role in several key battles. Usually, the role of the elephants was to charge at the enemy, trampling the soldiers and breaking their defense lines. However, the effectiveness of war elephants on the battlefield diminished as the enemy became more prepared and equipped to deal with them.
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