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Ancient Egypt
How did geography influence the development
of civilization in Ancient Egypt?
• “Egypt is wholly the gift of the Nile” – Greek
Historian Herodotus
• Egyptian civilization depended on the yearly
flooding of the Nile river, which brought rich,
fertile soil that allowed the people to farm and
grow food
• Nile floods
rich soil
farming
extra food
civilization
• People had to cooperate to control the floods,
which led to a need for organization and early
government to build dikes, ditches, and
reservoirs
Uniting Two Regions
• Ancient Egypt had 2 regions:
– Upper Egypt (in the South, where the Nile started)
– Lower Egypt (in the North, at the Nile Delta)
• 3100 BC: King Menes of Upper Egypt united the two
regions
– Founded the first capital at Memphis (near the Delta)
– One of the world’s first unified states (instead of just
city-states)
– Used the Nile as a highway
• For officials and armies
• For trade with Africa, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean
The History of Egypt
• Ancient Egyptian History is divided into 3 main periods:
– The Old Kingdom (2575 BC-2130 BC)
– The Middle Kingdom (1938 BC-1630 BC)
– The New Kingdom (1539 BC- 1075 BC)
• Power passed from one ruling family (dynasty) to another
• Land remained united
The Old Kingdom
• Egyptian kings (pharoahs) established a
strong, centralized state
• Pharaohs
– Had absolute power
– Were seen as gods but also as humans
– Were expected to behave morally
– Had a chief advisor (vizier) that supervised the
government
– Various departments were in charge of tax
collection, farming, irrigation organization, etc.
Social Structure in the Old Kingdom
Pharaoh
Vizier
Bureaucrats
Aristocrats (nobles)
merchants & scribes
Poor farmers (peasants)
The Great Pyramids
• During the Old Kingdom, many pharaohs built
necropolises (cemeteries) with giant pyramids
around Memphis
• The pyramids were homes for the dead for them to
live for eternity
– Dead pharaohs were provided with everything they
would need in the afterlife
– Their bodies were preserved– mummies!
– Pharaohs would begin to build their pyramids as soon
as they came to power
The Middle Kingdom
• The Old Kingdom collapsed:
– Power struggles
– Crop failures
– Expensive pyramid-building
• Finally, more than 100 years later, new pharaohs
reunited the land and the “Middle Kingdom” started
• Not as strong as the Old Kingdom
– Nile didn’t flood as regularly
– Corruption and rebellions were common
– 1700 BC: Hyksos people invaded and took over the
government for 100 years
• Egypt and Hyksos shared technology and ideas
The New Kingdom
• New Egyptian leaders took power again from the
Hyksos
• Egyptian Pharaohs created a large empire that
stretched all the way to Syria and the Euphrates River
• First female ruler during this time– Hatshepsut
• Later, Egypt went to war with the Hittites under Ramses
II. They eventually signed a peace treaty (the first
known one in history)
• After 1100 BC, Egyptian power declined as Assyrians
and Persians conquered the Nile region. Finally, the
Greeks took control…and then the Romans. The end.