Queens of Egypt

"Behind every great man is a great woman." Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not? Can you think of some historical or modern day "great" men who are backed by "great" women? Give some examples of ways that "great" women support "great" men without interfering in their business, leadership, etc.

A Change in the New Kingdom Unlike other Egyptians, pharaohs were polygamous - they had more than one wife, but just one principal queen. She was the wife whose male children were acknowledged as the pharaoh's heirs. Although Egyptian queens previously enjoyed very little power, the situation changed dramatically during the New Kingdom period. Instead of just bearing children, the principal queen became an essential part of her husband's reign. Any attempt to rule without a consort became an offence against Maat, the divine order of the universe.

Wifely Duties Like any dutiful wife, an Egyptian queen was expected to support her husband. She had a variety of religious and political duties that reinforced the position of the royal family. Click on the image for a gallery view For example, Queen Tiy, wife to Amenhotep III, may have been born a commoner but was soon corresponding with foreign princes as an equal. Similarly, Queen Nefertiti was a full participant in religious ceremonies honoring Aten, the sun god.

Independent Woman Queens were also given estates, which provided them with financial independence. This enabled them to commission their own monuments and even develop their own religious symbols. These were designed to remind the people that their queen was close to being a god: a crown of tall feathers, for example, indicated links with the gods Min, Amen and Re. Some pharaohs made the link more obvious. Amenhotep III and Ramesses the Great each built temples for their principal queens, Tiy and Nefertari. The temples were dedicated to them, so the two pharaohs and their consorts were worshipped as gods - a lasting tribute to loving partners.

Nefertiti The most powerful woman in Egypt since the Pharaoh Hatshepsut 100 years earlier, Queen Nefertiti was as influential as she was beautiful, a partner in power with her king, Akenhaten. During her marriage to Akenhaten, Queen Nefertiti stood with him at the head of the new regime. Carved images on ancient temples show her killing Egypt's enemies - previously only a role given to the pharaoh. he was a full participant in important religious ceremonies: when Akenhaten appeared in public to make religious offerings to Aten, the sun god, Nefertiti performed them with him. And when Akenhaten ordered colossal statues of himself, he would order statues of equal size for his 'Great Wife'. Nefertiti was seen as second only to the pharaoh himself.

It wasn’t typical for a Pharaoh to be in love with his wife, but there are images of Nefertiti and Akenhaten kissing and holding hands in the twelfth year of Akenhaten's reign and at the height of Nefertiti's powers, she vanished from history altogether. Until 1822, when scholars learned how to read hieroglyphics, she simply ceased to exist.