It was not until B.C.525 that he entered Egypt at the head of his troops, and fought the great battle which decided the fate of the country.

The struggle was long and bloody.
Psammenitus, who had succeeded his father Amasis, had the services, not only of his Egyptian subjects, but a large body of mercenaries besides, Greeks and Carians.

These allies were zealous in his cause, and are said to have given him a horrible proof of their attachment.

One of their body had deserted to the Persians some little time before the expedition, and was believed to have given important advice to the invader.

He had left his children behind in Egypt; and these his former comrades now seized, and led out in front of their lines, where they slew them before their father's eyes, and, having so done, mixed their blood in a bowl with water and wine, and drank, one and all, of the mixture.