# Who was the egyption female leader that did perfidy and set the birds of peoples houses on fire? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 10, 2017, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960 "2017-07-10T23:24:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Barack\_Obama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dc4da7/32.png) [@Barack\_Obama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barack_Obama)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2017, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/1 "2017-07-10T23:24:55Z")
I been trying to find this persons name but I can’t. IIRC the story was some women leader in egypt told some village that she’d spare their lives if they brought her the birds that have nests on their houses. So they all brought her the birds from their homes and she then sets the birds on fire and they naturally go back to their nests where they end up burning the entire village. She killed the entire village without expending a single soldier. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2017, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/2 "2017-07-11T00:08:21Z")
I don’t know any Egyptians, but sounds like myths about [Olga of Kiev](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olga_of_Kiev). ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2017, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/3 "2017-07-11T04:08:49Z")
And in World War II, the US experimented with [bat bombs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bat_bomb), with a similar purpose. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2017, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/4 "2017-07-11T12:10:11Z")
Also Samson set some foxes on fire and used them to burn Philistine land. Never heard the “female Egyptian leader” version, though. ---
**Author:** ![Barack\_Obama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dc4da7/32.png) [@Barack\_Obama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barack_Obama)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/5 "2017-07-12T08:40:23Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Also Samson set some foxes on fire and used them to burn Philistine land. > > Never heard the “female Egyptian leader” version, though. Idk what she was called. I think she’s the women who fucked a bunch of foreign leaders, and most of them toook gifts/money from before murdering. I learned this a long time ago but I can’t remember the names, and as of recent I need to know the name of this person so I can make my example/story more credible. ---
**Author:** ![Rama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ccd318/32.png) [@Rama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rama)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/6 "2017-07-12T09:24:59Z")
That sounds an awful lot like Olga of Kiev. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/7 "2017-07-12T10:39:24Z")
Olga of Kiev is best known for bringing Christianity to Russia (Saint Olga Isapostolos) and for being, shall we say, less than merciful to her enemies, but not to my knowledge as a sexual predator. So please provide an account confirming this. It _might_ be a garbled version of one of the stories concerning Olga’s mythic rampage of vengeance after her husband was murdered, e.g. at one point pretending to capitulate to their demands that she marry the Drevlian prince and inviting prominent nobles over, then trapping them in a bathhouse and burning everyone alive. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/8 "2017-07-12T12:29:19Z")
It’s amazing what you can get away with and still be considered a saint. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/9 "2017-07-12T13:21:15Z")
> [@Gyrate](#): > > It’s amazing what you can get away with and still be considered a saint. But it’s okay if they are bad guys or heathens, don’t you know. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/10 "2017-07-12T19:37:00Z")
I recall reading how Castro also used the flaming animal trick during the revolution. Tied rags to cat’s tails, then set them loose to run through the sugarcane fields. The only female leaders who come to mind are of course Cleopatra and also Hashepsut, who sidelined the heir and ruled in his place. I don’t recall hearing or reading any such story of her; she was a relatively peaceful ruler. Her statues tended to be ambiguous so as to help her claim to rule, by not emphasizing that she was a woman. She is best known for her sending an expedition down the Red Sea to the “land of Punt” and for a fairly unique temple, which has been reconstructed. Her nephew destroyed it and tried to erase and trace of her when he finally got to the throne. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/11 "2017-07-12T20:13:54Z")
> [@Barack\_Obama](#): > > Idk what she was called. I think she’s the women who fucked a bunch of foreign leaders, and most of them toook gifts/money from before murdering. > > I learned this a long time ago but I can’t remember the names, and as of recent I need to know the name of this person so I can make my example/story more credible. What do you mean by Egyptian, by the way? The time of the Pharaohs? Roman era? After Islam? The female Pharaohs/consorts weren’t really known for sexual licentiousness except Cleopatra VII (the one you’ve heard of) who slept with both Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. > [@Gyrate](#): > > It’s amazing what you can get away with and still be considered a saint. The 10th century was a hell of a century. > [@md2000](#): > > I recall reading how Castro also used the flaming animal trick during the revolution. Tied rags to cat’s tails, then set them loose to run through the sugarcane fields. See also: [anti-tank dogs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-tank_dog). They didn’t work too well when trained using Russian tanks :smack: The only female leaders who come to mind are of course Cleopatra and also Hashepsut, who sidelined the heir and ruled in his place. [/QUOTE] There were several, though they were the best known. Nefertiti and Nefertari were well known too, though didn’t rule in their own right, thought there are rumors about the former, who may have taken the name Neferneferuaten. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/12 "2017-07-12T20:25:11Z")
I’m having a hard time believing that a bird which is on fire is going to be flying anywhere for very long, let alone navigate back to its nest. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/13 "2017-07-12T20:35:27Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > The only female leaders who come to mind are of course Cleopatra Nitpick: “Cleopatra” was the name taken by a series of [7 queens of Egypt.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleopatra_%28disambiguation%29) ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/14 "2017-07-12T20:43:03Z")
Also, I see that it is [definitely Olga](https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/9815/would-tying-sulphur-to-the-feet-of-birds-allow-you-to-burn-down-a-house) that has the story attached to her. [Also blamed on Genghis Kahn](http://the-scholars.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=15715). (I’ve read the Weatherford book, but didn’t remember that part.) ---
**Author:** ![Barack\_Obama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dc4da7/32.png) [@Barack\_Obama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barack_Obama)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/15 "2017-07-12T21:09:35Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Also, I see that it is [definitely Olga](https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/9815/would-tying-sulphur-to-the-feet-of-birds-allow-you-to-burn-down-a-house) that has the story attached to her. [Also blamed on Genghis Kahn](http://the-scholars.com/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=15715). (I’ve read the Weatherford book, but didn’t remember that part.) Yep that’s definitely it! That quote sounds the literal story I was told word by word. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/16 "2017-07-14T01:49:48Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Nitpick: “Cleopatra” was the name taken by a series of [7 queens of Egypt.](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleopatra_%28disambiguation%29) Yes. I was trying to remember if any of them (technically Greeks) were queens in their own right, rather than the spouse/sister/daughter (often all three) of a Pharaoh, other than the most famous one. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/17 "2017-07-14T01:54:25Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > … > > Nefertiti and Nefertari were well known too, though didn’t rule in their own right, thought there are rumors about the former, who may have taken the name Neferneferuaten. Yes, there’s some thought that Nefertiti actually ruled under a different name between the rule of her religiously radical husband Ankhaten and his son (by a different wife) Tut. With the revived state religious establishment trying to erase the memory of the former, there’s an interim pharaoh between the two whose detail is a little hazy. ---
**Author:** ![Weisshund](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ba8739/32.png) [@Weisshund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weisshund)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/18 "2017-07-14T02:03:39Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > Yes, there’s some thought that Nefertiti actually ruled under a different name between the rule of her religiously radical husband Ankhaten and his son (by a different wife) Tut. With the revived state religious establishment trying to erase the memory of the former, there’s an interim pharaoh between the two whose detail is a little hazy. Hatshepsut was definitely Pharaoh in her own right ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/19 "2017-07-14T02:19:57Z")
> [@Barack\_Obama](#): > > **Idk what she was called.** I think she’s the women who fucked a bunch of foreign leaders, and most of them toook gifts/money from before murdering. That may well be the one. Queen Idk, sometime-wife of Pharaoh [Ihnp IV](http://rae.tnir.org/archives/tag/ihnp4), was a real cut-up, she was. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-egyption-female-leader-that-did-perfidy-and-set-the-birds-of-peoples-houses-on-fire/790960/20 "2017-07-14T02:28:40Z")
Mongols tended to do this too. Not just birds, but cats and other pets.