In the legendary period, there were eight god kings who ruled over Egypt. The Palermo, Turin and Manetho king lists, have different names for the eight god kings.
Reunified Egypt after a period of troubles ca. 2690 BC
17–18 years
Old Kingdom
The Old Kingdom was a peak of civilisation and achievement. This was the first of three so-called "Kingdom" periods which mark the high points of civilization in the Nile Valley. It began when Egypt was ruled by the Third Dynasty through the Sixth Dynasty (2686–2181 BC). Many Egyptologists also include the Memphite Seventh and Eighth Dynasties in the Old Kingdom. The Old Kingdom was followed by a period of disunity called the First Intermediate Period, or as the Egyptians called it, the "first illness."
The royal capital of Egypt during the Old Kingdom was at Memphis. This is where Djoser set up his court. The Old Kingdom is known for the large number of pyramids. These were built as tombs for the pharoahs. The Old Kingdom is called "the Age of the Pyramids".
Built the Meidum Pyramid and the Bent Pyramid (341 ft/103m from the base to the tip). The Bent Pyramid has normal angles at the bottom but changes at the top. He also built the first "true" pyramid, the Red Pyramid. Some say that he was buried in the Red Pyramid, while others say that he was buried in the Bent Pyramid. Bones have been found at the Red Pyramid, but there is no evidence that this is Sneferu's body.
Greek form: Cheops. Built the great pyramid of Giza. In some early sources, Khufu is listed as the "third" of his family to rule, but there is no known record of a pharaoh between Sneferu and Khufu. It is possible that there might have been a short reign of some elder brother of Khufu, whose inscriptions, names, and monuments have gone for one reason or another.
Believed to have created the Great Sphinx of Giza as a monument to his father. He also created a pyramid at Abu Rawash. The stones from this pyramid were reused by the Romans. The pyramid may have been the highest ever built, about 20 meters taller than the Great Pyramid of Giza, because of its elevated location rather than the size from base to tip.
Identical with Netjerkare. This male king gave rise to the legendary queen Nitocris of Herodotus and Manetho.[27] Sometimes listed as the first king of the combined 7th/8th Dynasties.
The Old Kingdom rapidly collapsed after the death of Pepi II. He had reigned for 94 years, longer than any monarch in history, and died aged 100. The latter years of his reign were marked by inefficiency because of his advanced age.
The Union of the Two Kingdoms fell apart and regional leaders had to cope with the resulting famine.
Around 2160 BC, a new line of pharaohs tried to reunite Lower Egypt from their capital in Herakleopolis Magna. Another line of pharaohs at Thebes was reuniting Upper Egypt and a clash between the two rival dynasties was inevitable.
Around 2055 BC, Mentuhotep II, the son and successor of pharaoh Intef III defeated the Herakleopolitan pharaohs and reunited the Two Lands. This was the start of the Middle Kingdom.
He could be horus Demedjibtawy, where his name is found in the temple of Min.
2161–2160 BC
Ninth Dynasty
The Ninth Dynasty[30] ruled from 2160 to 2130 BC. The Turin King List has 18 kings in the Ninth and Tenth Dynasties. Of these, twelve names are missing and four are not complete.[30]
The Eleventh Dynasty was a local group from Upper Egypt that ruled from 2134 to 1991 BC. The 11th dynasty came from a group of Theban nomarchs who served the kings of the 8th, 9th or 10th dynasty.
The Thirteenth Dynasty was much weaker than the Twelfth Dynasty, and was unable to hold onto the two lands of Egypt. Either at the start of the dynasty, c. 1805 BC or toward the middle of it in c. 1710 BC, the ruling family in Xois, located in the marshes of the eastern Delta, broke away from the central authority to form the Canaanite Fourteenth Dynasty.
The Hyksos made their first appearance during the reign of Sobekhotep IV. About 1720 BC they took control of the town of Avaris (the modern Tell el-Dab'a/Khata'na), conquering the kingdom of the 14th dynasty. About 1650 BC the Hyksos, perhaps led by Salitis the founder of the Fifteenth Dynasty, conquered Memphis, which ended the 13th dynasty. When the 13th dynasty collapsed, the 16th dynasty to declared its independence in Thebes. It was soon taken over by the Hyksos kings..
When the Hyksos left Upper Egypt, the Egyptian ruling house in Thebes set itself up as the Seventeenth Dynasty. This dynasty under Seqenenre Tao, Kamose and Ahmose, first pharaoh of the New Kingdom, forced the Hyksos out of Egypt and back into Asia
Thirteenth Dynasty
The Thirteenth Dynasty (following the Turin King List) ruled from 1802 to around 1649 BC. Manetho said it lasted for about 154 years.
The Fourteenth Dynasty was a local group from the eastern Delta, based at Avaris.[47] They ruled from either from 1805 BC or c. 1710 BC until around 1650 BC. The dynasty had many rulers with West Semitic names and is believed to have been Canaanite in origin.
The Turin King List has extra names, but no other evidence has been found.
Fifteenth Dynasty
The Fifteenth Dynasty was started by the Hyksos people who emerged from the Fertile Crescent. They ruled over much of the Nile region, from 1674 to 1535 BC.
The Second Intermediate Period may include an independent dynasty reigning over Abydos from c. 1650 BC until 1600 BC.[49][50][51] There are four known kings in the Abydos Dynasty, the order in which they ruled is unknown:
Tomb discovered in 2014. He maybe Woser[...]re of the Turin list.
Sixteenth Dynasty
The Sixteenth Dynasty was a native Theban dynasty. It began during the collapse of the Memphis-based 13th dynasty c. 1650 BC and finally conquered by the Hyksos 15th dynasty c. 1580 BC. The 16th dynasty only ruled over Upper-Egypt.
Name
Image
Comments
Dates
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Name of the first king is lost here in the Turin King List, and cannot be recovered
During the New Kingdom, Egypt's armies were able to capture nearby countries. Egypt controlled Nubia in the south, and held territories in the Near East. Egyptian armies fought with Hittite armies for control of modern-day Syria. During the New Kingdom, Egypt controlled more territory than at any other time in its history.
Two of the best known pharaohs of the New Kingdom are Akhenaten and Ramesses II. Akhenaten, also known as Amenhotep IV, worshipped the god Aten. This is seen as the first monotheistic religion. Ramesses II was a powerful military ruler. He tried to recapture the territories in what is now modern Israel/Palestine, Lebanon and Syria that had been held in the Eighteenth Dynasty. At the Battle of Qadesh he led the Egyptian armies in battle against the Hittite king Muwatalli II.
The second known female ruler. There may have been five other female rulers, but the evidence is uncertain. Recent evidence suggests Hatshepsut died of bone cancer.[59]
Often called the "Napoleon of Egypt." In his early years, he was controlled by his stepmother, Hatshepsut. After she died, he began expanding Egyptian rule into the Levant.
Ruled Egypt at the peak of its power. He had more monuments and statues built than any other pharaoh. His mortuary temple, the largest ever built, was destroyed by Rameses II. Recent DNA testing proved he was the grandfather of Tutankhamun.
Co-regent and successor of Akhenaten. The identity and sex of this individual is uncertain. Smenkhkare may be a son or son-in-law of Akhenaten, or wife of Akhenaten, Nefertiti. Some historians believe there were two rulers between Akhenaten and Tutankhamun. One is Smenkhkare, who is then seen as male, and a female ruler, Akhenaten's eldest daughter Meritaten
Commonly believed to be the son of Akhenaten. He probably brought back the old religion, and his name shows the change from Aten to Amun. He is also known as the boy king.
The Third Intermediate Period (1077–732 BC) marked the end of the New Kingdom. After the collapse of the Egyptian empire, some dynasties of Libyan origin ruled Egypt. This is also known as the Libyan Period.
Twenty-First Dynasty
The Twenty-First Dynasty was based at Tanis and was a relatively weak group. They were rulers of all Egypt, but in practice their influence was limited to Lower Egypt. They ruled from 1069 to 943 BC
Nubians invaded Lower Egypt and took the throne of Egypt under Piye although they already controlled Thebes and Upper Egypt in the early years of Piye's reign. Piye's conquest of Lower Egypt established the Twenty-fifth Dynasty which ruled until 656 BC.
The second Hellenistic dynasty, the Ptolemies, ruled Egypt from 305 BC until Egypt became a province of Rome in 30 BC. If two dates overlap, that means there was a co-regency. The most famous member of this dynasty was Cleopatra VII. In modern times she is known simply as Cleopatra. She was the consort of Julius Caesar and after Caesar's death, of Mark Antony, and had children with both of them. Cleopatra tried to create a dynastic and political union between Egypt and Rome. This failed with the assassination of Caesar and the defeat of Mark Antony. Caesarion (Ptolemy XV Philopator Philometor Caesar) was the last king of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt. He reigned jointly with his mother Cleopatra VII of Egypt, from September 2, 47 BC. He was the eldest son of Cleopatra VII, and possibly the only son of Julius Caesar, after whom he was named. Between Cleopatra's death on August 12, 30 BC, up to his own death on August 23, 30 BC, he was the sole pharaoh. It is tradition that he was hunted down and killed on the orders of Octavian, who would become the Roman emperorAugustus, but there is no evidence.
Infant son of Cleopatra VII; aged 3 when proclaimed co-ruler with Cleopatra. Last known ruler of ancient Egypt when Rome took over.
44–30 BC
Rome
Cleopatra VII had affairs with the Roman Dictator Julius Caesar and Roman General Marc Antony. She killed herself when Antony was defeated by Octavian (later be Emperor Augustus). Egypt then became a province of Rome in 30 BC. Roman Emperors were given the title of Pharaoh, although exclusively while in Egypt. One Egyptian king-list lists the Roman Emperors as Pharaohs up to and including Decius. See the list of Roman Emperors.
Notes
↑ 1.01.1Clayton 1995, p. 217. "Although paying lip-service to the old ideas and religion, in varying degrees, pharaonic Egypt had in effect died with the last native pharaoh, Nectanebo II in 343 BC"
↑Jochem Kahl: Ra is my Lord: Searching for the Rise of the Sun God at the Dawn of Egyptian History. Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 2007, ISBN3-447-05540-5, page 12–14 & 74.
↑ 16.016.1Darell D. Baker: The Encyclopedia of the Pharaohs: Volume I – Predynastic to the Twentieth Dynasty 3300–1069 BC, Stacey International, ISBN978-1-905299-37-9, 2008
↑Miroslav Verner (2000): Who was Shepseskara, and when did he reign?, in: Miroslav Bárta, Jaromír Krejčí (editors): Abusir and Saqqara in the Year 2000, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Oriental Institute, Prague, ISBN80-85425-39-4, p. 581–602, available onlineArchived 2011-02-01 at the Wayback Machine.
↑Labib Habachi: King Nebhepetre Menthuhotep: his monuments, place in history, deification and unusual representations in form of gods, in: Annales du Service des Antiquités de l'Égypte 19 (1963), pp. 16–52
↑Josef Wegner, The Nature and Chronology of the Senwosret III–Amenemhat III Regnal Succession: Some Considerations based on new evidence from the Mortuary Temple of Senwosret III at Abydos, JNES 55, Vol.4, (1996), pp.251
↑Detlef Franke: Zur Chronologie des Mittleren Reiches. Teil II: Die sogenannte Zweite Zwischenzeit Altägyptens, In Orientalia 57 (1988), p. 259
↑Ryholt, K.S.B. (1997). The Political Situation in Egypt During the Second Intermediate Period, C. 1800-1550 B.C. Museum Tusculanum Press. p. 164. ISBN8772894210.
↑ 52.052.1Marcel Marée: A sculpture workshop at Abydos from the late Sixteenth or early Seventeenth Dynasty, in: Marcel Marée (editor): The Second Intermediate period (Thirteenth-Seventeenth Dynasties), Current Research, Future Prospects, Leuven, Paris, Walpole, MA. 2010 ISBN978-90-429-2228-0. p. 247, 268
↑ 53.053.1Jürgen von Beckerath: Untersuchungen zur politischen Geschichte der Zweiten Zwischenzeit in Ägypten, Glückstadt, 1964
↑ 54.054.154.254.3Jürgen von Beckerath: Chronologie des pharaonischen Ägyptens, Münchner Ägyptologische Studien 46. Mainz am Rhein, 1997
↑Jürgen von Beckerath: Handbuch der ägyptischen Königsnamen, Münchner ägyptologische Studien 49, Mainz 1999.
↑Wolfgang Helck, Eberhard Otto, Wolfhart Westendorf, Stele - Zypresse: Volume 6 of Lexikon der Ägyptologie, Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, 1986, Page 1383
↑"Nakhthorhebyt". Digital Egypt for Universities. Retrieved March 1, 2011.
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