Ancient Egypt
Egypt’s Powerful Kings and Queens
Egypt’s God-Kings
The rulers of Egypt held
the respected title of
pharaoh (FAIR oh). The
pharaohs were allpowerful. Whatever the
pharaoh decided became
law. The pharaoh decided
which fields should be
planted, and was also the
religious leader of Egypt.
The people of Egypt
believed that the gift of the
Nile, the yearly floods,
was provided by the
pharaoh.
From Dynasty to Dynasty
Ancient Egypt
has a history of
dynasties. A
dynasty is a
family of rulers.
Egypt had 31
dynasties before
it was conquered
by the Greeks in
332 B.C.
Historians separate Egyptian history into
three main time periods, which they call
kingdoms. The time periods are called
the Old Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom,
and the New Kingdom.
Old Kingdom*
2575 BC - 2150 BC
Middle Kingdom
2040 BC - 1640 BC
New Kingdom
1540 BC - 1070 BC
* The dates in this table are not exact.
The Intermediate Periods
The times between
the kingdoms were
called the
intermediate periods.
These were troubled
times for Egypt. They
were marked by weak
rulers and invasion.
These in-between periods
were rare, however, as
most of ancient Egypt’s
history is characterized by
stable rule.
The First Dynasty
Ancient Egyptian tradition states
that the first king was a man
named Menes. Though there is
not a lot of archaeological
evidence to support his existence,
he is credited with many
achievements. Menes was the
founding king of the 1st Dynasty,
and he unified Upper Egypt and
Lower Egypt into one kingdom.
He also founded the capital city at
Memphis. Memphis was built on
an island in the Nile River, so that
it would be easy to defend.
Menes was also referred to as Aha and King
Scorpion, or, the Scorpion King. Menes sent
ambassadors to Canaan and Byblos in
Phoenicia and established peaceful trade
with them. He also attacked Nubia, and held
influence as far south as the first cataract.
It is said that Menes ruled for 62 years, and that he was killed by either a
hippopotamus or by crocodiles.
The Old Kingdom
Egypt became rich and powerful due to irrigation and trade. This
allowed several projects to be funded, such as the pyramids. All
of the pyramids were built during the Old Kingdom.
This step-pyramid was built by
the pharaoh Djoser, during the
3rd Dynasty.
Here is the Great Pyramid of Giza.
It was built by Khufu (a.k.a.
Cheops) during the 4th Dynasty.
The Sphinx
The Sphinx is believed
to have been built by the
pharaoh Khafre,
sometime in the 4th
Dynasty. There are
scholars who think that
the Sphinx may have
been built earlier than
that, though. The issue
is still being debated.
The Middle Kingdom
After almost a century of
chaos and civil war, which
happened during the first
intermediate period, Egypt
was finally reunited under
the rule of the pharaoh
Menuhotep II.
During the Middle Kingdom, the
Egyptians also conquered Lower
Nubia.
There was an increase in art and
literature during this time. The
Shipwrecked Sailor is a famous
story that was written at this
time.
The New Kingdom
This time is
known as the
“Age of Empire,”
as Egypt expands
it’s control over
Nubia and the
Near East.
The Valley of the Kings was built during the
New Kingdom. This burial ground houses
the tombs of many of the great New
Kingdom pharaohs, including King
Tutankhamun and Ramses II.
Hatshepsut
Hatshepsut was the
stepmother of a child
named Thutmose III.
Thutmose III became
pharaoh around 1500
BC. Since he was
very young, his
stepmother was
appointed regent. A
regent is someone
who rules in place of
a child until the child
is old enough to rule.
Hatshepsut decided to
declare herself
pharaoh. She ruled
for 22 years, and
during her time as
pharaoh, she found
new trading partners.
Egypt enjoyed peace
and great wealth
during her time as
pharaoh. She built
monuments as well
during her time as
pharaoh.
Hatshepsut refused to
give up power when
Thutmose III was old
enough to rule.
When she died, he
had all of her statues
destroyed.
Akhenhaten and Nefertiti
Another pharaoh of the New
Kingdom, Akenhaten (a.k.a.
Amenhotep IV), tried to end
polytheism in Egypt. Though he
still mentioned other gods,
Akenhaten elevated the sun-god
Aten as the one true god. His
wife, Nefertiti, supported this
belief. They closed the temples of
other gods, and promoted
monotheism 100 years before the
time of Moses and the Israelites.
Akenhaten claimed, however, that
to worship the one god Aten, one
had to give gifts to the pharaoh
(which was him!)
The change in religion was not
popular with the Egyptians, and
when the next pharaoh,
Tutankhamun, began his rule,
he restored the old religion.
King Tutankhamun
King Tutankhamun
(or, King Tut) is
one of the most
famous Egyptian
pharaohs. He
became a boy-king
at about the age of
9. He died about 9
years later, possibly
from a wound to
his head.
King Tut’s tomb was
discovered in 1922.
Many treasures were also
found in his tomb. His
innermost sarcophagus,
or coffin, was made of
beaten gold.
King Ramses II
Ramses II was also known
as Ramses the Great. He
regained many lands that
Egypt had previously lost.
He also built a great deal
of temples and
monuments. Ramses II
ruled for 67 years and
lived to be over 90 years
old.
Ramses’ rule was
characterized by war and
conquest. He is given wide
praise for the peace treaty
that he created with his
primary enemies, the
Hittites.
Was Ramses II the king
who enslaved the
Israelites? Historians
and scholars disagree
about this. Some think
that Ramses’ father
enslaved the Israelites,
and that Ramses may
have been the pharaoh
during the exodus that
followed. Many others
believe that the pharaoh
of the exodus was either
Amenhotep II, or
Thutmose III.
The End of the Egyptian
Dynasties
Eventually, the Nubians
conquer the Egyptians and
take over. Then, Egypt is
briefly conquered by the
Assyrians. Later, the
Persians conquered Egypt.
Egypt became independent
again around 404 BC. Then,
a Macedonian named
Alexander the Great
conquered Egypt, and he
made one of his generals,
Ptolemy, the king.
Ptolemy created a dynasty of his
own, though he was a Macedonian
and not an Egyptians. His
descendents ruled for 300 years,
and Egypt became a learning
center. The Great Library of
Alexandria was built (incidentally,
the city of Alexandria was named
after Alexander the Great).
Cleopatra VII - The Last Pharaoh
Cleopatra was part of
the Ptolemy dynasty,
but her dynasty’s
power was declining.
Meanwhile, power in
Rome was growing,
and they resented her
for being treated as a
pharaoh. The Romans
wanted to be viewed
as the governors of
Egypt.
Rome declared war
on Egypt, and the
Romans defeated
Cleopatra’s armies,
thus ending the rule
of pharaohs in
Egypt. This marked
the beginning of
Roman rule.