Download Great Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt Backgrounder 2558–1001 BCE

Great Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt Backgrounder
2558–1001 BCE
King Khafre, ruled 2558–2532 BCE, Fourth Dynasty
King Khafre’s is the face on the legendary Sphinx, carved out of the solid
rock of the plateau at Giza, near modern-day Cairo. He built one of the two
largest pyramids at Giza, second in scale only to the pyramid of Cheops. His
burial complex is most remarkable because of the many temples connected to
it, especially the Valley Temple, which still stands at the edge of the
floodplain. His son King Menkaure is also buried at Giza, but in a much
smaller monument that was completed under his son Shepseskaf.
Amenemhat III, ruled from 1860–c.1814 BCE, Twelfth Dynasty
Amenemhat III devoted his energies not to wars and conquests, as his
predecessors had, but to building and securing pyramids for his afterlife. The
first pyramid was constructed at Dahshur, but because of construction
problems that site was abandoned. Some 15 years into his reign, he built a
new pyramid, at Hawara, and used the abandoned pyramid at Dahshur as a
burial site for several royal women. The king's pyramid at Hawara boasts
some of the most complex security features of any of the pyramids in Egypt.
Queen Hatshepsut, Ruled from 1479–1458 BCE, Eighteenth Dynasty
Daughter of Thutmose I and Ahmose, his chief consort, Hatshepsut became
the wife of King Thutmose II. When Thutmose II died, his son by another,
minor wife was to take power. But, because Thutmose III was still a child at
the time, Hatshepsut was able to promote herself to full power and was
depicted as a pharaoh in art, which had traditionally been a male role. She had
a daughter and a famous architect acted as her consort. She ruled alongside
her stepson and had a prosperous reign. She assumed all of the regalia and
symbols of the office of the pharaoh, including the traditional false beard.
Hatshepsut died of cancer after 20 years on the throne.
Thutmose III, Ruled from 1479–1425 BCE, Eighteenth Dynasty
Regarded as the Napoleon of ancient Egypt for amassing the largest
empire Egypt had ever seen, Thutmose III conquered from northern
Syria to the Nile in Nubia. He became sole ruler after the death of his
stepmother and aunt, Hatshepsut. Near the beginning of his reign, he
defeated a coalition of Near Eastern princes at Megiddo with a strategy
of surprise and stealth that is still studied at military academies. To
further his control, he ordered that the children of the rulers of subject
states in Palestine and Syria be educated in his royal household.
Following his many campaigns, he brought back a variety of plants and animals, constructed
over 50 temples and commissioned the building of multiple tombs for nobles. He ruled until
around the age of 70, and was succeeded by his son, Amenhotep II.
Amenhotep III, ruled c. 1390–1350 BCE BCE, Eighteenth Dynasty
Amenhotep III, King Tut’s grandfather, ruled after the death of his
father, Thutmose IV. During his four-decade reign, Egypt enjoyed
prosperity and splendor, and reached the peak of artistic and military
power. Some 250 statues have been discovered and identified as
likenesses of Amenhotep III. Additionally, over 200 stone scarabs have
been found that describe his accomplishments. Of these, 123
commemorate the pharaoh’s killing of more than 100 lions during the
first ten years of his reign.
Amenhotep IV/Akhenaten, ruled c. 1353–1336 BCE, Eighteenth
Dynasty
On ascending to the throne, Amenhotep IV wiped away thousands of
years of Egypt’s traditional polytheism and declared a sole deity: Aten,
the sun god. He changed his name to Akhenaten in honor of his god and
he and his queen Nefertiti moved the religious capital from Thebes to
Amarna. They are widely considered to be the first monotheists in
history. But this new religion was not to endure. Immediately after his
death, traditional religious practices were restored by his successor and son (probably with a
minor queen), Tutankhamun.
Queen Nefertiti, ruled c. 1353–c. 1337 BCE, Eighteenth Dynasty
Queen Nefertiti, wife of King Tut’s father, Amenhotep IV/Akhenaten, is best
known for her extraordinary beauty. Her famous portrait bust, found
undisturbed after millennia in a sculptor’s workshop, is an icon of ancient
Egypt. She was responsible, along with her husband, for raising Aten as the
sole god, and some believe she acted as a co-regent. She disappeared from
historical records sometime around the 14th year of Akhenaten’s reign. Some
theories suggest her death, others that she may have been discredited in some
way.
King Tutankhamun, ruled c. 1333 - 1323 BCE, Eighteenth Dynasty
Tutankhamun was the son of Akhenaten and a minor wife. Despite being the
most legendary of any ancient Egyptian, very little is known about his life,
since records mentioning the sun god and his successors were destroyed by
officials once Akhenaten died and polytheistic beliefs were reinstated.
Tutankhamun ruled for about nine years, and when he died he was buried in a
tomb in the Valley of the Kings. He lay there undisturbed for some 3,300
years, until his tomb was discovered by British archeologist Howard Carter
in November 1922.
Ramesses II, ruled 1279–1213 BCE, Nineteenth Dynasty
Ramesses II was one of the signers of the world’s first recorded peace
treaties. He is known as Ramesses the Great, and is regarded as the most
powerful and celebrated of the great pharaohs. He built extensively over
Egypt and Nubia. During the great Battle of Kadesh, he saved his army
from defeat against the Hittites. The battle ended in a draw, and the
Egyptians and Hittites fought for the next 16 years until the treaty was
signed. Ramesses II had eight principal wives and fathered more than 100
children. He also built a new capital at Pi-Ramesses, modern-day Qantir.
Merneptah, ruled 1213–1203 BCE, Nineteenth Dynasty
Merneptah was an elderly man when he inherited the throne, since he had
to wait until after all 12 of his older brothers had died. He was the 13th son
of Ramesses II and was married to Queen Isetnofret, who may have been
his full sister. Merneptah was originally buried in the Valley of the Kings,
but for reasons unknown to scholars, his mummy was found along with 18
other mummies in the tomb of Amenhotep II.
Psusennes I, ruled 1047–1001 BCE, Twenty-first Dynasty
Psusennes I is one of the best known of all the 21st-dynasty kings because
of the discovery of his intact tomb during the excavation of Tanis, which
began in the 1920s and still continues today. Studies of the mummy of the
aged king revealed that his teeth were badly worn and full of cavities, and
that he suffered from extensive arthritis, which probably crippled him in
his final years. A second burial chamber for his sister and wife, Queen
Mutnodjme, was also discovered; it contained her mummy and funerary
objects.