There was forced labor in Egypt but it was mostly agricultural. It was like corvee labor to build irrigation canals and dams and stuff, and it was how people paid their taxes basically
Edit 2: Supposedly the state corvee in Uzbekistan ended March 2022 but I feel like people probably are still picking cotton a lot, they’re probably just getting paid now.
thoses workers were well paid , right! So are historians
There was forced labor in Egypt but it was mostly agricultural. It was like corvee labor to build irrigation canals and dams and stuff, and it was how people paid their taxes basically
Edit: and just like in places with forced corvee labor today like Uzbekistan, you could pay your way out of it if you were wealthy enough https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/in-ancient-egypt-people-paid-to-become-temple-servants-674595/
Edit 2: Supposedly the state corvee in Uzbekistan ended March 2022 but I feel like people probably are still picking cotton a lot, they’re probably just getting paid now.