= Paper =
Cl. OBSOMER, "La bataille de Qadech de Ramsès II. Les "n‘arin, sekou tepy" et questions d'itinéraires", in Chr. KARLSHAUSEN and Cl. OBSOMER (ed.), "De la Nubie à Qadech. La guerre dans l'Égypte ancienne – From Nubia to Kadesh. War in Ancient Egypt", Brussels, 2016.
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The arrival of the N‘arin troop on the day of the battle of Kadesh allowed Ramesses II to turn to his advantage a situation compromised by the unforeseen attack of the Hittite chariots. This study examines the numerous opinions expressed for more than a century on the identity of this troop and the route which it followed to arrive at the opportune moment to the aid of the camp established by the division of Amon. It appears that this Egyptian troop coming from the coast of Amurru had been installed there at the end of the campaign of the year 4 of Ramesses II, in support of local king Benteshina, and that Ramses had decided to gather all his forces in the western plain of Kadesh before his offensive against the city. However the presence of the Hittites and their allies in Kadesh and Old Kadesh (Sefinet Nuh) disrupted his plans.
This study proposes a detailed analysis of the caption R 11, the lacunae of which are restored, as well as of the passage of the Poem mentioning the seku tepy (P 63-64), which clearly concerns the detachment of the (N‘arin) troop during the previous campaign. Routes of the Egyptian troops to and from Kadesh are clarified, by highlighting the mention of the wood of Rbwi in caption R 11, which clearly points to the region of Laboué about forty km to the South of Kadesh. As regards the cuneiform sources, the mention of Ramesses' three armies on tablet KBo I 15+19 (+) 22 is explained: they are (1) the N‘arin troop, (2) the divisions of Amon and Rê, (3) the divisions of Ptah and Seth. As regards the operations mentioned by the "Lettre du Général" from Ugarit, they do not concern the campaign of year 5, but that of year 4, when Ramesses II went to Amurru to free Benteshina from the temporary occupation of Ugarit on the plain of Akkar.
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