What is the History of Ancient Egypt?
Early Dynastic Period
The Early Dynastic Period was the first 500 years of Egypt about 3,000 - 2,575 BCE that formed the culture of Ancient Egypt. The Early Dynastic period is where urbanization peaked is due to many reasons, the need for protection, changes in the environment, need for agriculture due to the evolving society, and the growth of the population. The first king believed to oversee during the early dynastic period was King Menes. King Menes is credited to the unification of Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt. Whether King Menes actually unified Upper and Lower Egypt is still debated due to the lack of information of the 1st Dynastic Period. Horus Hotepsekhemw is generally believed to been the first king of the 2nd Dynastic Period. Horus's last name Hotepsekhemw translates to “the two powerful ones are at peace”, suggesting that Horus reunified Egypt after turmoil that had divided Egypt at the end of the 1st Dynastic period. During the end of the 2nd Dynastic Period, tensions increased between Upper and Lower Egypt which eventually led into a war between the two. Like the 1st Dynastic Period, their is barely any information dealing with the 2nd Dynastic period from legitimate sources. The 3rd Dynastic Period was the period of architectural evolution. The creation of the step pyramid and buried pyramid showed the leap forward from wood to stone in architecture. The 3rd Dynasty is usually included with the Old Kingdom, but recently Egyptologists have been placing the 3rd Dynasty in the Early Dynastic Period due to its similarities with the first two dynasties.
The Early Dynastic Period was the first 500 years of Egypt about 3,000 - 2,575 BCE that formed the culture of Ancient Egypt. The Early Dynastic period is where urbanization peaked is due to many reasons, the need for protection, changes in the environment, need for agriculture due to the evolving society, and the growth of the population. The first king believed to oversee during the early dynastic period was King Menes. King Menes is credited to the unification of Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt. Whether King Menes actually unified Upper and Lower Egypt is still debated due to the lack of information of the 1st Dynastic Period. Horus Hotepsekhemw is generally believed to been the first king of the 2nd Dynastic Period. Horus's last name Hotepsekhemw translates to “the two powerful ones are at peace”, suggesting that Horus reunified Egypt after turmoil that had divided Egypt at the end of the 1st Dynastic period. During the end of the 2nd Dynastic Period, tensions increased between Upper and Lower Egypt which eventually led into a war between the two. Like the 1st Dynastic Period, their is barely any information dealing with the 2nd Dynastic period from legitimate sources. The 3rd Dynastic Period was the period of architectural evolution. The creation of the step pyramid and buried pyramid showed the leap forward from wood to stone in architecture. The 3rd Dynasty is usually included with the Old Kingdom, but recently Egyptologists have been placing the 3rd Dynasty in the Early Dynastic Period due to its similarities with the first two dynasties.
Old Kingdom
The Old Kingdom is a continuation from the Early Dynastic period, but is set apart due to its several changes. The Old Kingdom lasted about 400 years from 2,575 - 2,150 BCE. The 4th Dynasty is mainly known for its huge building projects. King Snofru, the first king of the 4th Dynasty, is credited for converting the step pyramid into the first full-scale Egyptian pyramid. The 4th Dynasty had the largest pyramids compared to the other dynasties because of its flourishing economy and strong government. The 5th Dynasty marked the creation of the first solar temple due to the rise in the solar cult. All the kings in the 5th Dynasty made solar temples except the last 2 because of the shifting views of religion at the end of the dynasty. High officials were no longer only limited to the royal family reforming the government and administration. More documents were recorded due to the increase of high officials giving researchers more information on the 5th Dynasty than any other dynasty before it. The 6th Dynasty started the creation of provinces called nomes each overseen by a governor. The fall of the Old Kingdom was due to the decrease of inundation (flooding) of the Nile, and new reforms implemented into the Egyptian government.
The Old Kingdom is a continuation from the Early Dynastic period, but is set apart due to its several changes. The Old Kingdom lasted about 400 years from 2,575 - 2,150 BCE. The 4th Dynasty is mainly known for its huge building projects. King Snofru, the first king of the 4th Dynasty, is credited for converting the step pyramid into the first full-scale Egyptian pyramid. The 4th Dynasty had the largest pyramids compared to the other dynasties because of its flourishing economy and strong government. The 5th Dynasty marked the creation of the first solar temple due to the rise in the solar cult. All the kings in the 5th Dynasty made solar temples except the last 2 because of the shifting views of religion at the end of the dynasty. High officials were no longer only limited to the royal family reforming the government and administration. More documents were recorded due to the increase of high officials giving researchers more information on the 5th Dynasty than any other dynasty before it. The 6th Dynasty started the creation of provinces called nomes each overseen by a governor. The fall of the Old Kingdom was due to the decrease of inundation (flooding) of the Nile, and new reforms implemented into the Egyptian government.
Middle Kingdom
The Middle Kingdom starts 100 years after the Old Kingdom from 2040 - 1783 BCE. The king Mentuhotep II over threw Heracleopolitan kings of the 9/10 Dynasty, and united upper and lower Egypt after a century of war. He and his successors launched a building campaign throughout the country and turned Egypt back into a prosperous nation. Mentuhotep built a mortuary complex at Dayr al-Bahri, which was later used as a refrence for a temple built 500 years later. Under the rule of Amenemhet I, the first king of the 12th Dynasty, the capital of Egypt was moved back to Memphis. Amenemhet's son came into rule and separated Egypt into 4 sections the northern and southern halves of the nile river, and the eastern and western halves of the delta. Queen Sobeknerfu, the first female monarch marked the end of the Middle Kingdom.
The Middle Kingdom starts 100 years after the Old Kingdom from 2040 - 1783 BCE. The king Mentuhotep II over threw Heracleopolitan kings of the 9/10 Dynasty, and united upper and lower Egypt after a century of war. He and his successors launched a building campaign throughout the country and turned Egypt back into a prosperous nation. Mentuhotep built a mortuary complex at Dayr al-Bahri, which was later used as a refrence for a temple built 500 years later. Under the rule of Amenemhet I, the first king of the 12th Dynasty, the capital of Egypt was moved back to Memphis. Amenemhet's son came into rule and separated Egypt into 4 sections the northern and southern halves of the nile river, and the eastern and western halves of the delta. Queen Sobeknerfu, the first female monarch marked the end of the Middle Kingdom.
The New Kingdom
The New Kingdom starts 200 years after the Middle Kingdom from 1540 - 1070 BCE, and is the age of conquest that brings Egypt its peace and prosperity. At the start of the New Kingdom, the Theban King Ahmose exiled Hyksos from Egypt making sure that a foreign ruler would never rule Egypt again. Ahmose started expanding the Egyptian Kingdom and strengthening the military. After Ahmose's reign over Egypt, Amenhotep I took control and started building temples all over Egypt. After many kings, Amenhotep III, the pharaoh, became one of the greatest builders of all time, and started the artistic revolution. The son/ successor of Amenhotep III, Amenhotem IV, turned the polytheistic religion of Egypt into a monotheistic religion through the idea of the sun god being the only god. Amenhotem IV changed his name to Akhenatem, closed down all of the temples that wasn't dedicated to this new god, and moved the capital to an area in Middle Egypt. After Akhenaten's reign, King Tutankhaten, famously known as King Tut, abandoned Akhenatem's cult and capital restoring Egypt's past religion. Seti soon came into power and wanted restore the power Egypt had before Akhenatem became a Pharaoh. Seti recovered many parts of Egypt that had been lost due to Akhenaten's lack of interest in international affairs with the Hittites. Ramesses II took over after Seti and and started a war with the Hittites. A treaty formed between the two kingdoms in order to face a common enemy, the Assyrian Empire.
The New Kingdom starts 200 years after the Middle Kingdom from 1540 - 1070 BCE, and is the age of conquest that brings Egypt its peace and prosperity. At the start of the New Kingdom, the Theban King Ahmose exiled Hyksos from Egypt making sure that a foreign ruler would never rule Egypt again. Ahmose started expanding the Egyptian Kingdom and strengthening the military. After Ahmose's reign over Egypt, Amenhotep I took control and started building temples all over Egypt. After many kings, Amenhotep III, the pharaoh, became one of the greatest builders of all time, and started the artistic revolution. The son/ successor of Amenhotep III, Amenhotem IV, turned the polytheistic religion of Egypt into a monotheistic religion through the idea of the sun god being the only god. Amenhotem IV changed his name to Akhenatem, closed down all of the temples that wasn't dedicated to this new god, and moved the capital to an area in Middle Egypt. After Akhenaten's reign, King Tutankhaten, famously known as King Tut, abandoned Akhenatem's cult and capital restoring Egypt's past religion. Seti soon came into power and wanted restore the power Egypt had before Akhenatem became a Pharaoh. Seti recovered many parts of Egypt that had been lost due to Akhenaten's lack of interest in international affairs with the Hittites. Ramesses II took over after Seti and and started a war with the Hittites. A treaty formed between the two kingdoms in order to face a common enemy, the Assyrian Empire.