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History of Egypt

The ancient Egyptian civilization lasted for more than 3000 years, longer than any other civilisation in human history. Although we

are talking about a period that began more than 5000 years ago, we know a great deal about ancient Egypt.

The River Nile

Ancient Egypt depended on the waters of the River Nile, which flows through harsh and arid desert. Only the land on the banks of the

Nile could be cultivated to support life. The rest of Egypt was, and is, desert.

Every year rain further south in Africa and melting snow in the highlands of Ethiopia caused the Nile in Egypt to flood. When the

floods went down, the rich soil which the water had brought down from the mountainsides was left on the fields and caused them to

be extremely fertile. The Nile gave the civilization of Egypt its life.

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Our knowledge of ancient Egypt

How can we know about people who lived so long ago?

Writing

First, and most important, the ancient Egyptians were among the first people to develop a system of writing. They believed it was

important to write down what was happening.

The best-known of the systems of Egyptian writing (there were

more than three) is the system using hieroglyphs, a mixture of pictures and ‘glyphs’ or symbols. The sentence above, written in

ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs means, “The crocodile eats the King.”

Wall paintings and objects from tombs

Secondly, Egyptians

believed that there was a life after death and

that a dead person’s body should be

preserved and buried in a tomb with everything

he would need in the life after death. From

the objects found in

these tombs and from the wall-paintings on

their walls, we learn much about Egyptian

daily life.

In this painting we see a man guiding a plough pulled by two animals, probably meant to be oxen. You can see that he has a

whip to make the oxen move. Behind him his wife is carrying a basket of grain which she is sowing on the newly-ploughed ground.

Records in temples of important events

Thirdly, Egyptians were ruled by kings, and queens, who were believed to be Gods. Many of them built temples to commemorate

the important events of their reigns. Much of the history we have is

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carved in the stone on the walls of these temples, or found on large

stone blocks inside. For example, Queen Hatshepsut recorded the expedition which she sent by sea to the land of Punt on a great wall

relief in her temple.

Here we can see the Egyptian ships being loaded with the wealth they brought back from Punt; note the hieroglyphic writing which is

telling the story of what is happening.

The history of ancient Egypt

As you can see we have plenty of sources for ancient Egyptian

history (without sources it is not really possible to write about history). Now let us take a look at what we can learn from these

sources.

The history of ancient Egypt lasted until the country became a Roman province in the 1st century B.C.

Egypt was ruled before then by thirty dynasties, or families, of kings and queens, often called the pharaohs. This is known as Egypt’s

dynastic period.

The civilization of Ancient Egypt lasted for more than 3000 years, longer than any other civilization known to us. From 3500 B.C.

(more than 5500 years ago) there were two kingdoms in Egypt:

Lower Egypt in the north and Upper Egypt in the south.

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Lower Egypt in the north was the richer kingdom. The lands closer

to the Mediterranean Sea were richer and more fertile. Lower Egypt could trade with the lands of the Mediterranean. The wood to build

ships was brought from Lebanon.

Upper Egypt in the south had only a very narrow strip of land which could be cultivated. The rest of the land was dry desert. Upper

Egypt, however, was closer to the land of Nubia. The kings of Egypt sometimes traded and sometimes made war with Nubia. Nubia was

a source of rare wild animals, of gold, of animal skins, and of slaves.

We can divide the history of Egypt into periods to make it easier to understand and remember. When writing of ancient history we

often say a date is, for example c.3100 B.C.; that little c. stands for the Latin word ‘circa’ which means ‘about’. We use it when we do

not know the exact date.

The Early Dynastic period from c.3100 to c.2680 B.C. The two

kingdoms, of Upper and Lower Egypt, were united under King Narmer. This is really the first king whose name we definitely know,

so he and his successors are referred to as the First Dynasty (dynasty means a family who hold power). From that time on the

pharaohs are shown in paintings wearing a double crown, white for Lower Egypt and red for Upper Egypt.

Old Kingdom, from c. 2680 to c. 2180 (3rd to 6th dynasties) This

period is best known for the building of great pyramids, including the huge pyramid of Giza which is the oldest of the Seven Wonders

of the Ancient World (do you know what the other six are?) The

pyramid remained the tallest man-made structure in the world for over 3,800 years, until the 160-metre-tall (520 ft) spire of Lincoln

Cathedral was completed c. 1300 AD.

First Intermediate period, from c.2180 to c. 2055 (7th to 11th dynasties). This was a time when several different kings ruled

different parts of Egypt. At the end of this period Mentuhotep II, a king of the 11th dynasty, regained control over the whole of Egypt.

Middle Kingdom. 2055 – 1650 B.C. (12th – 14 dynasties). This was a golden age. The country was ruled by a number of strong

kings who controlled not only all of Egypt but much of Nubia (the modern Sudan). The Faiyum, a large fertile area around a lake

which is fed from the Nile, was developed as a centre of agriculture. The building of the great Temple at Karnak was begun.

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Second

Intermediate Period from 1650

– 1550 15th & 16th dynasties.

This was a period when the Hyksos, a

tribe from outside Egypt conquered

much of Lower Egypt.

New Kingdom c. 1550 – 1069 B.C.

(17th to 20th dynasties) The

Hyksos were driven out and the

pharaoh regained power over Lower

and Upper Egypt. During this period

Egypt developed a very powerful civil

service of royal officials.

Late Period c. 1000 – 32 AD

(21st to 30th dynasties). Egypt

again was divided into two kingdoms.

From around 700 B.C. Egypt was

frequently invaded, by the Nubians,

who formed a new

dynasty, by the Assyrians, by the

Persians, by the Greeks under

Alexander the Great’s general

Ptolemy and finally by the Romans.

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1. The ancient Egyptian civilization lasted for more than

__________________ years.

2. Ancient Egypt was a harsh and arid _____________________.

3. Melting snow from the highlands of _________________ caused

the Nile to flood.

4. The only land that could be cultivated to support life was on

________________________________.

5. The best known system of Egyptian writing uses

_________________________________.

6. Hieroglyphs use a mixture of symbols and _________________.

7. Bodies of dead Egyptians were ___________________ before

they were buried.

8. Egyptians believed there was _______________ after death.

9. Ancient Egyptians were buried in _______________.

10. The Egyptians believed their kings and queens were ________________________.

11. Many kings and queens had ___________________ built to

commemorate important events during their reigns.

12. ____________________ Egypt in the north was the richer

kingdom.

13. Upper Egypt was closer to the land of __________________

which was a source of rare wild animals and gold.

14. ________________ is the first king of Ancient Egypt whose

name we definitely know.

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15. __________________________ period is best known for the

building of great pyramids, including the huge pyramid of Giza

16. The Great Pyramid of Giza was the tallest building in the world

for more than _______________ years.

17. ___________________ is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

18. ____________________, a king of the 11th dynasty, regained

control over the whole of Egypt at the end of the First Intermediate

period.

19. _________________________ is the period known as the

golden age because Ancient Egypt was ruled by a number of strong

kings who controlled all of Egypt and most of Nubia.

20. The building of the great Temple of Karnk began during ________________________.

21. ___________________________ is the last period in Ancient

Egypt when it was frequently invaded by the Nubians, the

Assyrians, the Persians, the Greeks and finally by the Romans.

22. Egypt became a ________________ province in the 1st century

B.C., which ended the history of ancient Egypt.

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The Rosetta Stone

When people outside of Egypt discovered the large amount of

picture writing called ‘hieroglyphs’, they spent years trying to figure out what the ancient Egyptians were saying. Many professionals

devoted almost their entire lives to making an attempt at translation. Try as they might, they just couldn’t decipher it. It

wasn’t until the Rosetta Stone was found, that they had a way to hear the messages of the ancient Egyptians.

The Rosetta Stone was actually found by one of the soldiers in Napoleon’s army in 1799. Napoleon was fascinated with ancient

Egypt and spent a lot of time there with plans to rebuild a fort. While they were digging around in some of the foundations at a

town called Rosetta, they found the stone which has two different languages: hieroglyphic and Greek and using three different types

of script. The third script was demotic, which was commonly used in Egypt. When the British defeated Napoleon, the stone became the

property of the British and was taken to England and then to the British Museum.

An English physicist named Thomas Young figured out that some of the hieroglyphs sounded like a royal name. It wasn’t until a French

Scholar, by the name of Jean-Francois Champollion took interest that he realized this was the same message in two languages.

The stone is a piece of black granite that was used to announce a

new divine cult that was established by one of the pharaohs and includes a list of all of the good things the pharaoh had done for

Egypt. Since the stone was in Greek, with matching hieroglyphs,

they translated the date to be March 27, 196 BC. The problem with the stone is that it was just a fragment of the original and much of

the hieroglyphic portion had been lost and the ‘sentences’ cut off on both the right and the left sides. There were enough Greek words,

but they had to try to match each language and it was a bit difficult.

Jean-Francois knew both Greek and Coptic writings, and spent a long time trying to match the pieces together so that they would

make sense. He translated seven of the Coptic signs and then traced these back to the demotic and then hieroglyphic signs. Using

this kind of backtracking method he announced in 1822 that he had

translated some of the Rosetta Stone and began working on making educated guesses for the rest. He had managed to translate two of

the names of the pharaohs: Ramesses and Thutmose.

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The discovery of some of the translations were shared with many

professionals as they began to work on translating other Egyptian hieroglyphs. Copies of the stone’s message were shared with

specialists all over the world. The problem that many had with the stone is that it was written by the Egyptian temple priests and

included religious meanings that they were not familiar with.

Once scholars had translated more of the writing on the stone, they used it as a basis to work on other Egyptian hieroglyphs. The

Rosetta Stone became the ‘key’ to unlocking the door to the messages and writings found in so many areas of Egypt. From that

point on, everyone began understanding the hieroglyphs and

realized how incredibly smart the ancient Egyptians were.

The Rosetta Stone has become one of the most visited exhibits in the British Museum and is considered to be one of the most

important objects.

Questions

Historians were not able to read hieroglyphs until they found

_______________________ in the year____________by soldiers

of the ____________________________ army in a place

called ______________________________.

How did Rosetta Stone became a property of the British Museum?

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

How did Rosetta Stone help us to understand hieroglyphics?

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

What is the most visited exhibit in the British Museum?

_____________________________________________________

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Ramesses II

• Reign: 1279 BC to 1213 BC (66 years) • Best known for: The greatest pharaoh of Ancient Egypt

Biography:

Early Life

Ramesses II was born around 1303 BC in Ancient Egypt. His father

was the Pharaoh Sethi I and his mother Queen Tuya. He was named after his grandfather Ramesses I.

Ramesses grew up in the royal court of Egypt. He was educated and

brought up to be a leader in Egypt. His father became Pharaoh

when Ramesses was around 5 years old. At that time, Ramesses had an older brother who was prince of Egypt and in line to become

the next Pharaoh. However, his older brother died when Ramesses was around 14 years old. Now Ramesses II was in line to become

Pharaoh of Egypt.

Prince of Egypt

At the age of fifteen, Ramesses was the Prince of Egypt. He also got married to wife Nefertari. Nefertari would rule along side Ramesses

and would become powerful in her own right.

As prince, Ramesses joined his father in his military campaigns. By the age of 22 he was leading battles by himself.

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Becoming Pharaoh

When Ramesses was 25 years old his father died. Ramesses II was

crowned the pharaoh of Egypt in 1279 BC. He was the third pharaoh of the Nineteenth dynasty.

Military Leader

During his reign as pharaoh, Ramesses II led the Egyptian army

against several enemies including the Hittites, Syrians, Libyans, and Nubians. He expanded the Egyptian empire and secured its borders

against attackers.

Perhaps the most famous battle during Ramesses' rule was the Battle of Kadesh. This battle is the oldest recorded battle in history.

In the battle Ramesses fought the Hittites near the city of Kadesh.

Ramesses led his smaller force of 20,000 men against the larger Hittite army of 50,000 men. Although the battle was indecisive (no

one really won), Ramesses returned home a military hero.

Later, Ramesses would establish one of the first major peace treaties in history with the Hittites. This helped to establish a

peaceful northern border throughout the rest of Ramesses' rule.

Buildings

Ramesses II is also known as a great builder. He rebuilt many of the existing temples in Egypt and built many new structures of his

own. Some of his most famous building achievements are described below.

• Ramesseum - The Ramesseum is a large temple complex that was located on the west bank of the Nile near the city of

Thebes. It was the Mortuary Temple of Ramesses II. The temple is famous for its giant statue of Ramesses.

• Abu Simbel - Ramesses had the temples of Abu Simbel built in the Nubian region of southern Egypt. At the entrance to the

larger temple there are four huge statues of Ramesses sitting down. They are each about 66 feet tall!

• Pi-Ramesses - Ramesses also built a new capital city of Egypt called Pi-Ramesses. It became a large and powerful city under

Ramesses rule, but was later abandoned.

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Four statues of Ramesses outside Abu Simbel

Death and Tomb

Ramesses II died around the age of 90. He was buried in the Valley

of the Kings, but his mummy was later moved to keep it hidden from thieves. Today the mummy is in the Egyptian Museum in

Cairo.

Interesting Facts about Ramesses II

• Other names for Ramesses include Ramesses II, Ramesses the Great, and Ozymandias.

• It is estimated that around 5,000 chariots were used in the

Battle of Kadesh. • Some historians think that Ramesses was the pharaoh from

the Bible who Moses demanded that he free the Israelites. • His son Merneptah became pharaoh after he died. Merneptah

was his thirteenth son and was around 60 years old when he took the throne.

Questions

1. Ramesses II ruled Egypt between __________ and __________.

2. Who is considered as the the greatest pharaoh of Ancient Egypt?

_________________________________

3. Ramesses II was the __________ pharaoh of the __________

dynasty.

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4. Ramesses II parents were the _________________and

___________________

5. _____________________ is the oldest recorded battle in history

when ______________fought the Hittites near the city of

_________________.

6. Name and describe three famous building built during the reign

of Ramesses II

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

Where was Ramesses II buried when he died and where do you find

his mummy now?

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________