battle, major, ancient
Battle of Raphia
Battle of Raphia was a battle fought on 22 June 217 BC at Rafah, in what is now Egypt. It was part of the Fourth Syrian War, which ran from 219 BC to 217 BC. The recorded result: Ptolemaic Egyptian victory. Recorded strength: 75,000: 70,000 infantry,; 5,000 cavalry,; 73 elephants against 68,000: 62,000 infantry,; 6,000 cavalry,; 102 elephants.
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Record
| Date | 22 June 217 BC | |
|---|---|---|
| Place | Rafah, Egypt 31.289N, 34.252E | |
| Part of | Fourth Syrian War (219 BC to 217 BC) | |
| Kind | Battle, ancient | |
| Result | Ptolemaic Egyptian victory | |
| Belligerents | Ptolemaic Egypt | Seleucid Empire |
| Commanders | Ptolemy IV | Antiochus III |
| Strength | 75,000: 70,000 infantry,; 5,000 cavalry,; 73 elephants | 68,000: 62,000 infantry,; 6,000 cavalry,; 102 elephants |
| Casualties and losses | 2,200:1,500 infantry killed; 700 cavalry killed; 16 elephants killed; Almost 26 elephants captured | 14,300:10,000 infantry killed; 300 cavalry killed; 5 elephants killed; 4,000 infantry captured |
Nearest engagements
- Battle of Rafa 1917, 3.1 km
- Battle of Rafah 1949, 7.7 km
- Battle of Nirim 1948, 9.9 km
- Battle of Hill 86 1948, 15 km
- Battle of Yaunis Khan 1516, 21 km
Elsewhere in 217 BC
- Battle of Lake Trasimene Italy
- Battle of Ebro River Spain
- Battle of Geronium Italy
- Battle of Ager Falernus Italy
- Battle of Leontion Greece
Battle of Raphia is one of 127 engagements of the 3rd century BC in the atlas and one of 76 in present-day Egypt.
Sources
Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q630781, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Raphia, revision 1370587161, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.