New Kingdom
Egypt, 1550–1069 BCE.
Egypt's imperial age. After expelling the Hyksos, warrior pharaohs built an empire from Nubia to Syria and poured its wealth into the temples of Thebes.
Seat of power: Thebes
Rulers
Hatshepsut
Pharaoh, 18th Dynasty, 1479–1458 BCE
First ruled as regent for her young stepson Thutmose III, then took the full titles of a king. She governed through trusted officials such as Senenmut, favoured trade over war, and sent a celebrated expedition to the land of Punt.
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Akhenaten
Pharaoh, 18th Dynasty, 1353–1336 BCE
Ruled as the only link between the people and the sun disc Aten. He cut funding to the old temples, built a new capital at Amarna and centred religion on the royal family. His revolution was undone soon after his death.
Portrait of Akhenaten: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.5, file
Ramesses II
Pharaoh, 19th Dynasty, 1279–1213 BCE
Ruled for 66 years as a warrior king and master builder. He fought the Hittites at Kadesh, then made peace with them, moved the royal residence to Pi-Ramesses in the Delta and covered Egypt with monuments bearing his name.
Portrait of Ramesses II: Pbuergler, CC BY-SA 3.0, file
Culture
- The Valley of the Kings becomes the royal burial ground, including the tomb of Tutankhamun, found almost intact in 1922.
- Akhenaten briefly replaces the old gods with worship of the sun disc, the Aten, and art turns strikingly naturalistic.
- The peace treaty of about 1259 BCE between Ramesses II and the Hittites is one of the earliest known.
Picture
The temple of Ramesses II at Abu Simbel, moved block by block in the 1960s to escape the waters of Lake Nasser.
Image: youssef_alam, CC BY 3.0, file
