InfoHub - Ramses III and the Philistines

In the very late part of the 13th century B.C., a mass migration took place. A large number of people left Crete and embarked on campaigns of military conquest and colonization. These Minoan peoples were of a number of groups that included:

Peleset (Philistines)
Shardanas
Shekeleshas
Tjekker

The Sea Peoples who invaded much of the Near East were not exclusively from Crete. The Denyen and the Lukka came from Anatolia. It has been written that the Denyen came from the southern portion of that region. I have read accounts that say some of the Sea Peoples may have come from what is now Italy and Libya.
The Sea Peoples invaded the coasts of Palestine and Phoenicia, bringing about a considerable amount of destruction. They also went into Asia Minor and brought about the downfall of the Hittite empire. The Hittite capital of Hattusa fell to them, even though it was heavily fortified. This indicates that the Sea Peoples had some advanced tactics and weapons for besieging cities. The fall of Hattusa took place about 1193 B.C.
The next target was Egypt, but Pharaoh Ramses III was prepared for the invasion. The Philistines launched two attacks, one by land, and the other by sea. This is how the battle on water took place:
The Philistine ships sailed up the Nile Delta and the fleet of Ramses III was there to meet them. A certain factor was in favor of the Egyptians. Their vessels had both sails and oarsmen to row them. The Philistine ships only had sails. Thus the Egyptian ships could maneuver better.
The Egyptians used a tactic that the Philistines had not anticipated. Using lines attached to grappling hooks, the Egyptian crewmen caused many of the Philistine ships to turn over and capsize. Ramses's skillful bowmen shot many arrows and decimated the Philistine seamen and soldiers.
Ramses III was also able to win the land battle. It occurred on the Palestine-Egypt border. The Philistine army retreated and Egypt breathed a sigh of relief.

Neal Robbins

P.S. The Sea Peoples used weapons made of iron, which gave them an advantage over many of their opponents, who carried arms made of bronze or copper. Yet the Hittites also had iron and the Sea Peoples were able to defeat them. It should also be noted that the Hittites had many war chariots; the Sea Peoples had mostly infantry and only a few chariots and cavalry. The Sea Peoples were apparently able to defeat the Hittites by carrying the fight to hilly and uneven terrain where chariots could not maneuver well. I should point out that the Hittite empire was not at its prime; it had already declined by the time of the invasion of the Sea Peoples. But Hattusas the Hittite capital was heavily fortified; breaching the walls was a task thought to be impossible. The Sea Peoples breached the walls and sacked Hattusa.
Invading Phoenicia was not so formidable a task for the Philistines and other Sea Peoples. Phoenicia was not a unified country and did not have a strong central government. It was a collection of city states that included Tyre and Sidon.
In the land victory that Ramses won against the Philistines, the fighting was done on smooth and flat terrain. That enabled the Egyptian chariots to move fast and maneuver efficiently. The Egyptian army had many archers. Their arrows had more range than the Philistines' javelins. The Philistines had few (if any) bows and arrows. The spear, javelin, and sword were their main weapons. Philistine warriors carried round shields. The helmets were decorated with feathers, though some had horns. Ships used by the Sea Peoples had this feature; it was a prow ending in a duck's head.