The monarchy was as yet in a very rudimentary state, without either the pomp or accessories usually associated with royalty in the ancient kingdoms of the East. Saul, as King of Israel, led much the same sort of life as when he was merely a Benjamite chief. He preferred to reside at Gibeah, in the house of his forefathers, with no further resources than those yielded by the domain inherited from his ancestors, together with the spoil taken in battle.*** * The part taken by Samuel in the narrative of Saul’s war against the Amalekites (1 Sam. xv.) is thought by some critics to have been introduced with a view of exalting the prophet’s office at the expense of the king and the monarchy. They regard 1 Sam. xiv. 48 as being the sole historic ground of the narrative. ** 1 Sam. xiv. 47. We may admit his successful skirmishes with Moab, but some writers maintain that the defeat of the Edomites and Aramaeans is a mere anticipation, and consider that the passage is only a reflection of 2 Sam. viii. 8, and reproduces the list of the wars of David, with the exception of the expedition against Damascus. *** Gibeah is nowhere expressly mentioned as being the capital of Saul, but the name Gibeah of Saul which it bore shows that it must have been the royal residence; the names of the towns mentioned in the account of Saul’s pursuit of David--Naioth, Eamah, and Nob--are all near to Gibeah. It was also at Gibeah that the Gibeonites slew seven of the sons and grandsons of Saul (2 Sam. xxi. 6-9), no doubt to bring ignominy on the family of the first king in the very place in which they had governed. All that he had, in addition to his former surroundings, were a priesthood attached to the court, and a small army entirely at his own disposal. Ahijah, a descendant of Eli, sacrificed for the king when the latter did not himself officiate; he fulfilled the office of chaplain to him in time of war, and was the mouthpiece of the divine oracles when these were consulted as to the propitious moment for attacking the enemy. [Illustration: 319.jpg A PHOENICIAN SOLDIER] Drawn by Faucher-Gudin, from the bronze original in the Louvre. The army consisted of a nucleus of Benjamites, recruited from the king’s clan, with the addition of any adventurers, whether Israelites or strangers, who were attracted to enlist under a popular military chief.* It comprised archers, slingers, and bands of heavily armed infantry, after the fashion of the Phoenician, bearing pikes. We can gam some idea of their appearance and equipment from the bronze statuettes of an almost contemporary period, which show us the Phoenician foot-soldiers or the barbarian mercenaries in the pay of the Phoenician cities: they wear the horizontally striped loin-cloth of the Syrians, leaving the arms and legs entirely bare, and the head is protected by a pointed or conical helmet.