EGYPT

GENERAL INFORMATION

Egypt was an ancient civilization in the South-East corner of the Mediterranean Sea, just to the north of Nubia which by 3200 BC the villages were under rule by two separate kingdoms. The kingdoms were Upper and Lower Egypt, which were eventually united by Narmer by 3000 BC. Egypt went through 31 dynasties over 2600 years, and kings in Egypt are considered to be gods, unlike other civilizations. These kings were known as Pharaohs. Ancient Egypt was a theocracy, which means that the kings were gods. Pharaohs are responsible for the entire well-being of the country and people, as it was the leader who caused the sun to rise, river to flood, and crops to grow. S/He also had the duty of promoting truth and justice.

THE THREE KINGDOMS

In Egypt, there were three different kingdoms throughout their 31 dynasties. There was the Old Kingdom (2686 - 2134 BC), which was the age of pyramid building, where they were strong and wealthy, and had a powerful and wealthy central government. The second section of Egypt’s history is the Middle Kingdom (2080 - 1640 BC), which was responsible for an increase in trade due to a new canal they dug, and created thousands of acres of new land by drying up swamps. The Middle Kingdom was still a stable region of Egypt’s history. The final stage in egypts history was the New Kingdom (1570 - 1075 BC). Which had the strongest empire in the country’s history.

FAMOUS PHARAOHS

Some famous Egyptian Pharaohs were Ahhotep and Kamose, who completely drove out the Hyksos, which were barbarian tribes in Egypt that made life hard.This helped reduce thievery, and was a show of strength that kept attackers away. Another great pharaoh was Hatshepsut, who was a woman pharaoh that encouraged trade instead of war, and funded many expeditions. One such expeditions brought back gold , ivory, plants, animals, myrrh, frankincense, and ointments. This helps by opening trade routes, and opens egypt a bit. A third such pharaoh was Thutmose III (who possibly killed Hatshepsut)f, believed greatly in war. He led a number of successful invasions eastward and south, and took over Syria, Canaan, and Nubia. This claims territory, resources, land, and gains notoriety, and allows Egypt to support themselves. One of the last great pharaoh is Ramses II. Ramses made a treaty between Egypt and the Hittites which led to “peace and brotherhood forever.” This treaty is a less dangerous, deadly and intimidating way of warding off attack, and supporting Egypt’s economy.

RELIGION

The religion in ancient Egypt were based in getting good in the after life, with formal religious practices were most commonly led by pharaohs, who the egyptians thought to have a power similar to the gods, as the pharaoh represented the gods on Earth and they were thought to be almost equal to the gods in power. This would keep the pharaoh in power (for the most part) because no one really wants to go to hell. Early egyptian religion were polytheistic (most important Ra: sun, Osiris: god of the dead, Isis: represented the ideal mother/wife). Temples were built to worship/honor the major gods. Egyptians believed in an afterlife after death, and thought they’d be judged for their deeds when they died. This was (more or less) the law system that kept everyone in order. The god Anubis would weigh a persons heart. If it weighed less than a feather you were rewarded with eternal life. If the scale tipped, it was thought to be weighed down by sins and the Devourer of Souls would eat the heart. People built tombs hoping that they might help safely reach the Other World, and the bodies of mostly royals were preserved with mummification, and many people purchased scrolls that contained information guiding a soul in the afterlife (called the Book of the Dead). This would keep the economy supported, and shows how devoted the population is to the religion

RISE AND FALL

Egypt rose about 1570-1450 BC intthe New Kingdom, after the Hyksos (a group of people from Asia) were overthrown. The major successes were around 1450-1200 BC. The empire was wealthy, and not much conflict was seen other than with the Hittites (who a peace treaty was drawn up with) afterwards. Buildings and culture flourished. The decline started in 1200 BC. Other areas rose in power and sought to challenge Egypt and invasions occurred commonly throughout the Mediterranean by the “sea peoples” (they were not entirely sure of their actual roots) the desert barrier that they relied on for many years became a common area of attack and Canaan tribes rebelled after constant invasions/attacks, the empire broke into regions, and smaller kingdoms emerged and were taken over by neighboring countries. Libyans crossed the desert and conquered sections: they created dynasties and built cities, and Nubia also conquered shortly after.