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Chapter 3 Notes
NILE CIVILIZATIONS
Chapter 3 Notes
 Egyptian Civilization developed along the Nile , as
did other civilizations south of Egypt
 Egypt was one of the most stable and long-lasting
civilizations of the ancient world
3.1- Geography and Early Egypt
 The Geography of Egypt
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The Nile is the most important physical feature in Egypt
The Nile River is the longest in the world 4000+ miles
The Nile flooded every year, were predictable, and left rich silt
The Nile help prevent invasion because it flowed through a series of
cataracts (rocky currents)
The Sahara was on the opposite side of the Nile and its unlivable
waste land discouraged invaders
 Two Kingdoms
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Farming villages consolidated into two kingdoms
Lower Egypt – north towards the delta of the Nile
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Worshipped a cobra goddess
Upper Egypt – south
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Worshipped a vulture goddess
3.1- Geography and Early Egypt
 Unification
 Unification – the two kingdoms unified in 3100 BCE under the
leadership of Menes who was from upper Egypt and may have
conquered lower Egypt
 Menes combined the cultures of the two kingdoms – their
goddesses and symbols
 Menes founded Egypt’s first dynasty
 Historians organize Egyptian history by dynasties – 31 total
Knowledge Checkpoint
 How do historians organize Egyptian history?
 How did the Nile floods differ from those in
Mesopotamia?
 How might the Egypt’s natural defenses- The Sahara
and the Nile cataracts be viewed as a limitation.
3.1- Old Kingdom
 The Pyramids
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Beginning of the 3rd dynasty in 2650 BCE marked a period of
stability for 500 years during which many institutions were created
The Pyramids
Most famous symbols of ancient Egypt
 The largest are located near Giza
 Built as tombs for Egypt’s rulers who were buried in chambers deep
inside with many earthly treasures
 Pyramid design changed greatly over time – originally looked like
steps, smooth side came later
 Took a long time to plan and build – built from the inside out with
limestone
 Were built by peasants, not slaves
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3.1- Old Kingdom
 The Pharaohs
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Egyptian government took shape during the Old Kingdom
King headed the government – became known as pharaoh (great
house)
Pharaohs had absolute power, owned all the land, their word was
law, acted as judges, lead the army
Pharaoh had great power because people believed they were gods in
human form
Responsible for Egyptian prosperity and security, and ensuring the
sun would rise, the Nile floods, and crops would grow
Because the pharaoh is believed to be a god, government and religion
and intertwined – Theocracy – a state ruled by religious figures
3.1- Old Kingdom
 Egyptian Bureaucracy
 Egypt was too large for the pharaoh to rule alone
 Bureaucracy established to delegate responsibilities
 Government officials were powerful – most powerful was the
vizier (VUH-zir) who advised the pharaoh and carried out
commands
 Hundreds of officials served under the advisor to ensure
commands were implemented and made Egypt run smoothly
Knowledge Check Point
 Why were the Pyramids built?
 How did the first pyramids differ from the ones we
are familiar with today?
 Why- other than the pay- do you think the peasants
would have wanted to build the pyramid?
3.1 Middle Kingdom
 The Middle Kingdom
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Powerful local nobles asserted their power which rivaled the
pharaohs power, which caused order and stability to decline
Old Kingdom government collapsed in 2100 BCE leading to
economic problems, invasions, civil war, famine, disease, and chaos
Middle Kingdom begins in 2055 BCE with a new dynasty
New dynasty restored stability, order, and prosperity. Encouraged
trade and increased defense
Trade routes were not always safe pharaohs sent armies to protect
trade routes and built fortresses along the Nile
Middle Kingdom falls to Hyksos (HIK-sohs) invaders in 1650 BCE
Were people from Asia
They fell to the Hyksos because they had military advantages that the
Egyptians did not, such as, horse-drawn chariots, armor, and bows.
Knowledge Check Point
 Who were the Hyksos?
 Why would the Hyksos have had more advanced
military technology than the Egyptians?
3.1- New Kingdom
 Securing Egypt
 Hyksos ruled Egypt for 100 years until nobles from Thebes
drove them out of Egypt
 The nobles became the new leaders of Egypt which begins the
New Kingdom
 The Hyksos invasion taught Egyptians that geographic barriers
such as the desert and sea could not keep them secure and as a
result they built a stronger and first permanent military
 Decided to create an empire to make “buffer” zones to invading
armies
3.1- New Kingdom
 The Reign of Hatshepsut – 1500 BCE
 One of the few women to rule Egypt
 Took power when husband died, acted as regent until son
could take throne
 Declared herself Pharaoh
 Took on more masculine qualities to be associated with male
power – dress, title’s: son of the sun god, looks like a man in
statues
 Encouraged trade – and went on a huge trade expedition
bringing back gold, mrryh, perfumes, wild animals, and apes.
3.1- New Kingdom
 Monotheism in Egypt
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Akhenaten took power in 1350 BCE
He only worshiped one god, Aten the sun god, and banned the
worship of any god but Aten
Following Akhenaten, Tutankhamon (Tut) restored worship back to
traditional gods
 Ramses the Great
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During most of the New Kingdom Egypt continued to expand its
empire
During the rule of Ramses the Egyptians and Hittites fought over
territory – Ramses married a Hittite princess to form a truce
Built more temples and monuments than any other pharaoh
3.1- New Kingdom
 Egypt’s Decline
 The reign of Ramses marked the end of Egypt’s greatness
 Invasions by foreign powers weakened the empire
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By the Sea People
Egypt broke into smaller states as priests and noble attempted
to seize power leading to more invasions
Egypt was ruled by foreign invaders for 700 years, taking
power back once from the Persians, only to lose it to them
again
The Persians did not hold Egypt for long, as it would fall to
Greece under Alexander the Great
Greeks ruled Egypt for over 300 years before it fell to the
greatest power of the ancient world- Rome
Knowledge Check Point
 Who brought an end to Egypt’s history as an
independent kingdom?
 Why was Ramses II called Ramses the Great?
Assignment
 Turn to Focus on Themes on page 71.
 Read Belief Systems and answer the 3 questions, we
will discuss the answers shortly. (p. 71)
 Answer Section 1 Assessment questions (1-5, all
parts) and turn into Moodle