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Egypt
Learning Targets
• I can describe the relationship between the
Nile and the growth of Egypt.
• I can describe the reasons for the unification
of Egypt.
• I can explain the religious beliefs of the
Egyptian people, and the importance of the
afterlife.
• I can locate key physical features of Africa on a
map.
Middle and the New Kingdoms
• At the end of the Old Kingdom, the wealth
and power of the pharaohs declined.
• Building and maintaining pyramids cost a lot
of money.
• Pharaohs could not collect enough taxes to
keep up with their expenses.
• Nobles began to use their government
positions to take power from pharaohs.
The Middle Kingdom
• By about 2200 BCE the Old Kingdom had fallen.
• For the next 160 years, local nobles ruled much of
Egypt. (There was no Central Ruler)
• Around 2050 BC, a powerful pharaoh defeated
his rivals, and once again all of Egypt was united.
• This marked the beginning of the Middle
Kingdom, which was a period of order and
stability that lasted to about 1750 BCE.
Fall of the Middle Kingdom
• Around 1750 BCE, a group from Southwest
Asia called Hyksos invaded.
• The Hyksos used horses, chariots, and
advanced weapons to conquer Lower Egypt.
• For the next 200 years the Hyksos ruled the
region as pharaohs.
The New Kingdom
• The Egyptians eventually fought back, in the mid1500’s BCE, Ahmose of Thebes declared himself
King.
• He then drove the Hyksos out of Egypt, Ahmose
then ruled all of Egypt.
• The rise of Ahmose to power marked the start of
Egypt’s 18th dynasty, and more importantly the
start of the New Kingdom.
• New Kingdom- the period during which Egypt
reached the height of its power and glory.
The New Kingdom-Building and Empire
• After being ruled by Hyksos, the Egyptian
leaders feared future invasions.
• To prevent future invasions, they decided to
take control of all possible invasion routes
around Egypt.
• Because they were trying to protect their
interests Egypt turned itself into an Empire.
Building and Empire
• Egypt first invaded and took over the homeland
of the Hyksos.
• After taking over that area, the Egyptians
continued north and conquered Syria.
• Egypt continued to try and protect itself and took
over the entire eastern shore of the
Mediterranean Sea.
• These military conquests made the Egyptians
both rich and powerful, as the kingdoms that
they conquered sent them gifts and treasures.
Growth and Effects of Trade
• As the empire expanded so did trade.
• The Sinai Peninsula is one example of valuable
resources that were controlled by the
Egyptians.
• The Sinai Peninsula had valuable supplies of
turquoise and copper.
• Profitable trade routes, or paths followed by
the traders, developed from Egypt to these
lands.
Trade
• One of Egypt’s rulers who worked to increase
trade was Queen Hatshepsut.
• She sent Egyptians traders to parts of Greece
to trade with the people of Greece.
• Hatshepsut and later pharaohs used the
money they gained from trade to support the
arts and architecture.
Invasions of Egypt
• Despite its military might, Egypt still faced
threats to its power.
• In the 1200’s BCE the Pharaoh Ramses II, or
Ramses the Great, fought the Hittites, from
Asia Minor.
• The two powers fought fiercely for years, but
neither one could defeat the other.
Invasions of Egypt
• Egypt faced threats from other parts of its empire
as well.
• To the West, a people known as the Tehenu
invaded the Nile Delta.
• Ramses fought them off and built a series of forts
to strengthen the Western Frontier.
• Soon after Ramses the Great died, invaders called
the Sea Peoples sailed into Southwest Asia.
• Only after 50 years of fighting were the Egyptians
able to turn them back.
Fall of Egypt
• Egypt survived, but its empire in Asia was
gone.
• Shortly after the invasions of the Hittites and
the Sea Peoples, the New Kingdom came to an
end.
• Ancient Egypt fell into a period of violence and
disorder.
• Egypt would never regain its power
Work and Daily Life
• Tomorrow we will discuss Work and Daily Life.
• And then we will talk about Egyptian
Achievements.