Mamelukes were the Utter country's lords and masters. Consequently, there were no other forces in Egypt sufficient to withstand them.
Mamelukes were solely warriors by vocation and didn't waste their time on anything else. Horses, weapons and feats of arms interested them in the utmost.
The number of warriors sometimes exceeded 12,000 under the command of twenty-four Beys, each of whom had to equip and outfit 500-600 Mamelukes. Each warrior had two assistants on hand, one dealt with the horse, supplies and provisions, and the other was a carbine henchman.
Mamelukes were brilliant warriors, well-trained in equitation and swordsmanship.
Soldiers were equipped with a brace of pistols and a saber. Their armament and outfit were excessively decorated and some warriors had helmets and chain mail. To avoid the enemy's blows, Mamelukes mostly relied on their magnificent steeds, rather than on their delicate blades, which weren't meant for chopping and couldn't parry fierce enemy strikes.
Riders had not the slightest notion of discipline and were absolutely unable to perform close maneuvers. Bonaparte himself noted that two Mamelukes could perfectly easily withstand three French, but one French squadron could easily resist an equivalent number of Mamelukes, and three hundred French could usually overwhelm the same number of Egyptians, so a thousand French cavaliers in principle could overcome one and a half thousand Mamelukes.