The Nile Valley Chapter 2:id The New Kingdom B.C. “The Land of the Pharaohs.”

New Kingdom

It was actually during the 18th dynasty of the New Kingdom that the rulers of Egypt first began using the title pharaoh.* *pharaoh (pe-ro) means “great house” [Image source:

Cartouches of great pharaohs:

Hatshepsut ruled with her husband regent for stepson Thutmose III finally made herself pharaoh

Queen Hatshepsut assumed all of the trappings of royal power, including the false beard traditionally worn by Egyptian kings. [Image source:

Hatshepsut carried out an extensive building program.

Thutmose III ruled after Hatshepsut’s death and marched a large Egyptian army northeast to conquer Syria.

Thutmose III captured the important town of Megiddo which controlled the trade routes. [Image source:

Thutmose III soon conquered an empire that brought great wealth to Egypt. [Image source:

Egyptians benefited from cultural diffusion when their empire brought them into contact with other cultures.

Amenhotep IV broke with tradition and promoted monotheism when he encouraged Egyptians to worship of one god - Aton. [Image source:

Akhenaton moved the capital of Egypt from Thebes to Amarna. [Image source:

Amenhotep IV changed his name to Akhenaton to honour the sun-disk god Aton. [Image source:

We know about this brief period in history due to a cache of letters unearthed by archaeologists and known as the Amarna Letters. Source: Biblical Archaeology Review, May/June 1998, p. 39.

After Akhenaton’s death, the priests restored the old religion and put Tutankhamen on the throne. [Image source:

The priests made Pharaoh Tutankhamen to move the capital back to Thebes. [Image source:

Tutankhamen’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings [Image source:

General Ramses, commander of the Egyptian army, overthrew the 18th dynasty and established a new dynasty. [Image source:

[Image source: Pharaoh Ramses II worked to restore Egypt’s prestige during the 1200s B.C.

He was known as “Ramses the Great” because of his military prowess. [Image source:

The Egyptians fought the Hittites of southwest Asia for control of Syria.

Ramses II ruled for 67 years and died at the age of 90. [Image source:

Egypt was weakened by attacks from the Sea Peoples and entered a period of decline.

By 945 B.C., Egypt came under foreign rule - among them the Libyans from the west and the Kushites from the south.