King Ramses Courage Patched -

In 1974, his mummy was flown to Paris for preservation. Incredibly, he was issued a valid Egyptian passport (occupation: "King (deceased)"). The French gave him full military honors upon arrival.

Not the absence of fear, but the creation of a legend so dense, so massive, that 3,000 years later, you still have to salute him when he passes through customs. king ramses courage

Ramses marches north with four divisions of troops. But there is a fatal flaw: his intelligence is wrong. His scouts, either bribed or incompetent, report that the Hittite army is far away near Aleppo. Relaxed, Ramses pushes ahead with his personal division, the Amun , and sets up camp. In 1974, his mummy was flown to Paris for preservation

Technically, Kadesh was a draw. Egypt lost. But Ramses returned home and carved the victory into every temple wall. He refused to admit defeat, because in his mind, the fact that he survived the encirclement was the victory. The Courage of the Body: Living with a Broken King Most people don’t know that Ramses the Great was in agony for half his reign. Not the absence of fear, but the creation

Critics call this narcissism. But look closer.

Consider the courage required to wake up every morning for forty years when your bones feel like they are grinding to dust. To smile at your courtiers when your jaw throbs with infection. To stand in a chariot (even if just for show) when your spine is fusing itself into a rigid curve.

Modern CT scans of his mummy reveal severe dental abscesses, ankylosing spondylitis (a painful fusion of the spine), and advanced arthritis. By the time he was 60, he was stooped, his hips were riddled with bone spurs, and his arteries were clogged.