September 3, 2025 • 43 mins
Dive into the captivating history of Egypt, exploring its journey from ancient times to the moment of Alexander the Greats conquest. This engaging overview delves into the remarkable development of Egyptian civilization, touching on science, religion, art, language, and literature. Written for curious minds without any prior knowledge of Egypt, this book uses clear and relatable language to make the rich tapestry of Egypts past accessible to everyone. (Summary by Beth Thomas)
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Chapter three of History of Egypt. This is a LibriVox recording.
All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more
information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Recording
(00:21):
by Rick Vina. History of Egypt by F. C. H. Wendel.
Chapter three From the Seventh Dynasty to the close of
the twelfth the Transition period and the Middle Empire about
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twenty four hundred through nineteen thirty BC. Section one The
Transition Period dynasties seven through eleven. This was a period
of frequent revolutions. King after king ascended the throne, but
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it was a long time before a king arose who
succeeded in securing a firm hold on the reigns of state.
It is next to impossible to give even a chronological
list of the kings who ruled in this period, which
must have covered some two hundred years and perhaps more.
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It is owing to this gap, and one that we
shall meet with later, that the chronology of the earlier
periods of Egypt is so very uncertain. From conditions existing
in the times of the Twelfth Dynasty, it would seem
that the great hereditary princes of the realm, the nomarchoi
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succeeded in winning some considerable independence during this period. It
is but natural that in a time when the kings
felt anything but secure on the throne, they should seek
to enlist the support of the nobility, and be ready
to purchase that support by according them greater privileges than
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they had hitherto enjoyed. These nobles were a very shrewd lot,
and no doubt made the best of the bargain by
selling their support to the highest bidder. It was in
all probability this inordinate strengthening of the nobility that finally
led to the rise of the Theban princes and to
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their accession to the throne under the founder of the
Eleventh dynasty. This was significant for the entire future of Egypt,
as Thebes controlled the destinies of the kingdom for over
a thousand years. Manetho gives only a list of dynasties
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for this period as follows. Seventh Dynasty Memphidic seventy kings
in seventy days. According to Eusebius, five kings in seventy
five years. Eighth Dynasty Memphidic twenty seven kings in one
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hundred forty six years, Ninth dynasty from Herakleopolis twenty seven
kings in four hundred nine years, Sinchellis four kings in
one hundred years. Tenth Dynasty from Heracleopolis seventeen kings in
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one hundred eighty five years. Of the names, Manetho gives
only the that of King Akthos, the founder of the Ninth dynasty,
of whom he relates that he was the most barbarous
and inhuman king that had hitherto ruled in Egypt. He
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committed many crimes and was finally stricken with insanity and
killed by a crocodile. It is a probable conjecture that
Manetho wishes to convey the impression that this king was
a foreign invader. In all probability, the am Muhriyusha, whom
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Una had so effectually crushed, had been left alone by
mary Ra's immediate successors, and had again gathered sufficient strength
to renew their attacks on Egypt. If this is so,
the attack must not have come until after nephrikha Ra's
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long reign. It seems that this time the barbarians had
it all their own way and had finally succeeded in
conquering the country. This hypothesis receives some confirmation, however, slight
from the fact that a semi legendary papyrus mentions combats
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with the Hariyusha under kings Cheruti and Ameno. Judging from
the names, Ameno was probably one of the kings of
the Eleventh dynasty, and these battles were then fought in
delivering Egypt from the foreign invader. Section two. The Middle
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Empire dynasties eleven and twelve. The eleventh dynasty, with the
founder of this dynasty, the Theban Princes, ascended the throne
of Egypt. These kings seem to have delivered Egypt from
the yoke of the foreign invader, the war possibly being
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begun by Cheruti and Amenno, though we nowhere find any
mention of this fact. The first of these princes mentioned
in the lists of kings is the Erpiti, that is,
hereditary Prince Antefh. The three succeeding kings are designated as
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whore and the fourth successor of Antefh is the first
one to bear the full titulature of Egyptian kings. From
this fact, the conclusion has been drawn that the first
anteph was merely Prince of Thebes, that his next successors
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had gradually enlarged their sway until they ruled over all
of Upper Eas Egypt, and had assumed the title Whore,
signifying ruler of Upper Egypt, And that finally, the fourth
successor of Antef had succeeded in conquering all of Egypt
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and had consequently assumed the full titulature of the Egyptian kings.
This conjecture is entirely unwarranted. It is probable that these
rulers delivered Egypt from the yoke of the foreign invader,
but any attempt to read the history of the war
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from the titles of these kings is futile. The founder
of the dynasty, Prince Antef, in all probability, was the
man with whom the national movement began, though he possibly
died before other princes had recognized his authority, and owes
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his place in the list of kings to the fact
that his dynasty based their claim to the throne on him.
To translate the title of Horror as ruler of Upper
Egypt or as duke is not admissible. Horr was one
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of the titles of the Egyptian kings. The word signifies Horus,
and this title was given the king because he was
looked upon as the Horus on earth. The order of
succession of these kings is not certain, and we therefore
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deem it advisable to group them according to their names.
This will give us two groups, one of kings whose
names were all the same anteph and another of kings
whose names were all the same meant to Hotep. Any
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other arrangement would be equally arbitrary. While lacking the clearness
of this the antef kings anteph Aea, that is, the
great with the throne name Ra Sechem up Mat, is
the only king of this line of whose family relations
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we have any knowledge. A note on his sarcophagus informs
us that his younger brother and successor, Anon teph Ra
Sechem her her Mat, had the sarcophagus made. This sarcophagus
is in the museum of the Louver. It is of
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gilt wood and is ornamented with wings folded protectingly about
the deceased. An inscription found in Abudos mentions buildings erected
by him in this city. A Pyramideon mentioning the name
of his wife Mentu Hotep was discovered at Kurna. The
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record of a criminal procedure against theban tomb robbers informs
us that he was buried in the necropolis of Thebes.
The guilt wood sarcophagus of Onnontef is in the British Museum.
His silver gilt diadem is in the Museum of Leiden.
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Nube cheper Ra. Onnontef is mentioned on a statue as
the conqueror of Asiatics and Nubians, but the texts do
not give any detailed accounts of his campaigns. His tomb
at dra Abulnega, opposite Thebes, was discovered by Mariette in
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eighteen sixty to eighteen sixty one. The stelle found in
the funereal chapel dates from his fiftieth year, so that
we know he reigned fifty years and consequently must have
lived at a time when the country was tranquil. At
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the same place, fragments of two obelisks erected by this
pharaoh were found on Aia the Great is one of
the kings whose tombs are mentioned in the criminal procedure above.
Alluded to one of the hieratic copies of the Book
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of the Dead, alleges that the one hundred and thirtieth
chapter was discovered. In his reign, the Mentu Hotep kings
belonged to the same family with the Antef kings. Nebhotep.
Mentu Hotep is known only from a stelle found at Kanasso,
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on which he is depicted as adoring the local divinities
of that region, who throw all peoples under his feet,
that is, give him power over them. From this we
must infer that Neb Hotep carried on wars in Nubia
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of Ra Neb Tawi Mentu ho Tep. We know only
that he sent an expedition to the quarries of the
Wadi Hamamat to quarry a sarcophagus for him. On this
occasion he caused a great reservoir to be cut in
the rock so that the men might not die of thirst.
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Ran eb Chepru Mentu ho Tep reigned over forty six years,
as is proved by the tombstone of a certain Meru,
who died in the forty sixth year of this reign.
We know of him only that he quarried stone in Assuwan.
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This pharaoh must have been a ruler of some consequence,
for his name is mentioned in all of the lists
of kings, and in several lists, his is the only
name of a king ruling before the Hixos invasion that
is mentioned. Seyanch Kharrah was the last king of this dynasty.
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A very interesting inscription graven on the rock in the
Wadi Hamamat relates the story of one of his expeditions.
In the eighth year of his reign, three thousand men
under command of Henu started from Kebti at the mouth
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of the Vattle. The expedition had a twofold object, first
to quarry stone for the monarch's tomb and sarcophagus, and
second to visit the shores of Powind that is, the
southwest coast of Arabia and the Somali coast on the
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African side of the Red Sea on a trading expedition.
Henu accomplished both objects successfully. To facilitate the provisioning of
so large a detachment, a number of stations was established
and wells sunk along the line of march. Arrived at
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the quarries, one detachment of the expedition settled down to work,
while the other continued its march to the sea, which
it reached at about the place where Cosser now stands.
From here, Henu sent out a fleet. No mention is
made of the building of ships to the shores of Powin,
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awaiting their return at Kosser. The fleet brought back all
the products of this country, consisting of incense, precious stones,
and other valuables. Meanwhile, the stone cutters had done their work,
and the expedition returned to Egypt. This expedition is memorable,
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and that it proves that this pharaoh was firmly determined
to establish a regular trade with Powin. The undertaking was,
in a certain sense a pioneer expedition, the duty of
which was to survey the road from Kebti to the
Red Sea, and, by the establishment of watering stations, to
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make it practicable. The first king of whom we know
that he followed in seyanch Karra's footsteps was Amenemhat the
second the twelfth dynasty twenty one thirty through nineteen thirty BC.
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The eleventh dynasty had been a period of strife in it.
Egypt had been delivered from the domination of the foreign invader.
The kingdom had been reunified, and the work of reorganizing
the government had been begun. So well had the last
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rulers of this dynasty done their work, that seanch Karrah
could undertake the work of opening a road through the
Wadi Hammamat from Kebti to the Red Sea, and of
laying the first foundations of a direct commercial intercourse with
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the coast of southwestern Arabia and the Somali coast. To
what extent the work of reorganization was completed when amenem
Hat the First ascended the throne, we do not know,
as but few monuments of the kings immediately preceding him
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have come down to us of the times embraced by
the Twelfth dynasty. We have, however, a fair knowledge. Though
the buildings erected by the kings of this dynasty have disappeared,
yet the numerous inscriptions that have been preserved in all
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parts of Egypt contain records of their doings. Much of
our knowledge of this period we owe to the tombs
discovered at many Hasan and Bersha. But even here it
is not yet possible to give details or to fully
understand all the conditions that led to the rise and
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the fall of this house. Sehotep a brah A, menem
Hat twenty one thirty through twenty one hundred BC. Reader's note.
A map of Ethiopia is shown. End note. About the
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year twenty one thirty, King Amenemhat the First ascended the
throne of Egypt. What claim he had to the crown
we are not told, but in all probability he was
related to the last king of the preceding dynasty. The
change of dynasty was not accomplished without severe internal dissensions.
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Several inscriptions allude to these disturbances, but give no details.
The new pharaoh was equal to the occasion. He defeated
the rebels and then set to work to reorganize his kingdom.
One of his first measures was to curb the power
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of the nobles, who had become semi independent. The principle
of heredity he dared not abolish, but he regulated the succession.
When an old nomarchoss died, the king chose his successor
from his heirs at law, and thus bound the new
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prince to his person. He also personally superintended a new
survey of the whole country. It would seem that during
the periods of anarchy, foreign domination and restoration following on
the decline of the old Empire. The Egyptian kings had
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not possessed the leisure or the power to adjust. Disputes
concerning boundaries which had arisen among the nobles. The stronger
had preyed upon the weaker, and many a prince had
seized the occasion of enlarging his domain. A Menemhat made
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a tour of inspection through the country, personally hearing complaints
and readjusting the boundaries. He thus succeeded in reorganizing his
kingdom in a very short time, and when order was
once restored, he was the man to keep it with
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an iron hand. This policy enabled him, early in his
reign to turn his attention to foreign affairs. He marched
against the Libyan tribe of the Matieu and conquered them.
He also ward on the Asiatic frontier against the Bedouins
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of the Syrian Desert. In the twenty ninth year of
his reign, he led his forces into Nubia and entirely
subdued the o Aua, a tribe that had begun to
give trouble. Like all of the Pharaohs, he was a
great builder. Traces of his work have been found at
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Tannis Abydos, Memphis, and Karnak. The relics of his work
found at Karnak are of great importance, as they prove
that the great Temple of Ammon was founded by this ruler.
The stone needed for these buildings was quarried in the
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limestone quarries of Tura roau Au opposite Memphis, in the
Dire the right quarries of the Wadi Hammamat, and in
the granite quarries of Assuan. In the sixteenth Upper Egyptian Gnome,
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he built a city called hot Sehotep ab rah As
also a fort called amenem Hat Dead Taui. This pharaoh
had in later times the reputation of being a great sage.
A papyrus written about one thousand years after his time
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said to be a series of precepts addressed to his
son user Tessen. The first tells the story of his
accession to the throne and relates some other events of
his reign. This interesting papyrus, which is said to have
been composed by the king himself, is preserved in the
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British Museum. In the twenty first year of his reign,
a Menemhat in all probability, with the purpose of avoiding
a civil war over the succession appointed his son User
Tessen co regent. This practice was imitated by most of
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his successors. The pharaoh died in the thirtieth year of
his reign, and the events related in illusions made in
the memoirs of a prince of this time force on
us the suspicion that he was murdered cheper Ka rah
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Usir Tessen twenty ninety nine through twenty sixty five b C.
When Usir Tessen the First ascended the throne about twenty
ninety nine b C, he succeeded to a mighty empire,
firmly united in its various parts and presenting a bold
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front to its hostile neighbors. Already as co regent, User
Tessen had distinguished himself in the field, and his warlike
ardor did not abate. When he sat on the throne
as sole ruler, he was compelled to take the field
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against the Libyan Bedouines, whom he subdued. In the forty
third year of his reign. He invaded Nubia and penetrated
as far as the Second Cataract. Here he set up
a stell on which he enumerates the names of eleven
conquered Nubian tribes. Of these names, nine are preserved one who,
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two Ks three destroyed, four Shamik, five Chassah, six Shayat,
seven Asheri Kin eight o wah Owah, nine Chammer, ten destroyed,
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eleven Amau. It is very unfortunate that we have no
detailed accounts of these wars. We know only where the
king ward and read the names of the conquered nations,
But here our knowledge ends. This pharaoh opened the copper
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and malakite mines of the set Mefkat Malakite land, as
the Egyptians called the Sinai Peninsula. He also quarried stone
in the Wadi Hammamat. The most important of the buildings
erected by this pharaoh were, of course, at Thebes. He
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built the priest's quarters at Karnak, which were restored in
the reign of Rameses the ninth, and had his statue
placed in the temple yard. A very fine colossal statue
of this king, which was found at Tennis, is now
in the Museum of Berlin. In the third year of
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his reign. According to the text written on a roll
of leather preserved in the same museum, the pharaoh began
work on the temple of raw At Heliopolis, as his
father was then still living and he was merely co regent.
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A menem Hat the First appears as the directing spirit,
while User Tessen seems to have exercised executive functions. The
temple was called het chah Seho tepab Ra, that is,
the Shining Temple of Amenemhat the First, while a portion
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of it was named after User Tessen. The only trace
left of this temple are two obelisks erected by User Tessen,
one of which is still standing while the other is
fallen and in fragments. A peculiarly shaped obelisk, rounded at
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the apex and showing undoubted traces of the fact that
it was once capped with metal, was found broken in
two at Bagig in the Fayoun. Owing to the fact
that the Felaheen of the region look upon it as sacred,
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it could not be removed. The king also built in Abydos.
In his forty second year, User Tessen appointed his son
a Menemhat co regent two years after he died, having
ruled in all forty four years, of which he shared
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ten with his father, and two with his son and
ruled thirty two alone. Nub Ka Rah A Menemhat twenty
sixty four through twenty thirty one b C. Ascended the
throne as sole king about twenty sixty four b C.
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He was a ruler of no special prominence, but he
was well able to keep together the great kingdom left
him by his father. In the twenty eighth year of
his reign, this king sent an expedition under command of
Chent schah Oer to Arabia and the Somali coast Pewent.
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The expedition was a success. This is the first time
since the reign of Seyanch Karrah that we hear of
a government expedition sent to this country. Like his father,
he worked at the Sinai copper mines and built at
sarbut El Chadem a temple to Hathor, who was the
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Tutelar deity of this region. He also operated the quarries
of the Wadi Hammamat. In the thirty second year of
his reign, he appointed his son User Tessen co regent
and died three years later, having ruled in all thirty
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five years, two years as co regent of his father
thirty years alone and three years together with his son
chah chepper ra User Tessen twenty thirty through twenty fourteen
b C. Of Usir Tessen the second, who came to
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the throne about twenty thirty b c. We know but little.
Almost all our knowledge of his reign is confined to
the great inscriptions in the tombs at Beni Hassan and
Bersha tell us of the social conditions of the time.
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In the first year of his reign, he sent an
expedition to the wah D Gasus, a branch of the
wah D Hamamat, which runs in a slanting northeast direction
to the Red Sea. This expedition most probably went to Powitt.
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In the fifth year of his reign, he sent an
expedition under Mentuhotep to Assouan, and it would seem from
his inscription that the tribes dwelling about the quarries had
given trouble and had been subdued. This pharaoh built at
Memphis and Tannis, at which latter place a statue of
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his wife ne Effort was found. In the times of
the twelfth dynasty, it was a customary thing for Syrian
Bedouins to cross the Egyptian border and seek permission to
pasture their herds on Egyptian soil. A migration of this character,
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which took place in the sixth year of this reign,
is represented on a celebrated painting found in the tomb
of Kenem Hautep, the nomarchous of the sixteenth Upper Egyptian Gnome.
This painting represents the arrival of thirty seven Asiatics who
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came before that noble bearing costly presents, among which was
especially valuable I Salve, seeking his protection and asking permission
to settle on his territory. The painting has become widely
known through the attempted identification of the people here depicted
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with Abraham and his party. This attempt, however, is futile.
The Bible relates that Abraham came to Egypt on a
similar errand, and that his stay in this country was
advantageous to him. The account of the Bible shows a
good knowledge of the conditions under which such migrations were made,
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and is certainly based on old recollections of the race,
some parts of which no doubt, did dwell in Egypt
under these conditions while they were yet in the nomadic state.
Manetho calls this king Sesostris and attributes to him the
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conquest of the world, but as yet no monuments have
been discovered that bear out this statement. As Sesostris is
the usual designation of Rameses second with the classical writers.
It is, however, just possible that the copyists of Manetho
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got things slightly mixed. The king died after a reign
of nineteen years, three of which he shared with his father.
Shah kah Rah User Tessen twenty thirteen through nineteen eighty
seven b C, who succeeded his about twenty thirteen b C.
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Is one of the greatest figures of Egyptian history. He
it was that finally subdued Ethiopia. The victories of Usir
Tessen the first had placed the southern boundary of the
realm at the Second Cataract. Usir Tessen the third immediately
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proceeded to strengthen this frontier and make it the basis
of his operations. Having defeated the hostile tribes of the region,
he built two forts on opposite sides of the Nile,
one at Semna and one at Cumna on this cataract,
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and in the eighth year of his reign, erected a
boundary stone warning all negroes from coming down the river
on their boats unless they were bringing cattle or merchant
dies to mark it at he Semna or akhen Kumna.
In the sixteenth year of his reign, the Pharaoh set
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out on his second campaign against the Nubians. He completely
devastated the country, destroyed the crops, drove off the cattle,
and took numerous prisoners. Despite this great victory, the Nubians
were not yet completely subdued. In the nineteenth year of
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his reign, the king was again compelled to take the
field against them, and again he completely defeated them, taking
large numbers of prisoners and devastating the country. After this,
the tribes seemed to have submitted and remained tranquil for
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during the rest of this epoch we hear of no
new outbreaks. The king was an active builder. We have
already mentioned two of his great works. He also built
in Thebes, in Heracleopolis, Magna, in Abydos, in Tannis, and
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in Amada. He was moreover the first founder of the
temples on the island of Elephantine, where he erected a
temple to satt and Anuquet, two of the local deities
of the region. Near the island, he founded a new city,
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which he called Haru Chah Karah. It is interesting to
note how posterity honored this great monarch. Almost six hundred
years after the king's death, Tutmosis the Third erected a
temple to him at Semna and seems to have attempted
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to make him a local divinity of this region. He
also appears as a god in the temple of Cumna
and that of Dosha, and at other places in Nubia.
User Tessen died after a reign of twenty six years.
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Mat en Ra Amenemht nineteen eighty six through nineteen forty
two b C. About nineteen eighty six b C, Amenemht
the Third, one of Egypt's greatest pharaohs, ascended the throne.
This king was not a great warrior and conqueror, but
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he was the projector and builder of an important work
that was of far greater value to Egypt than would
have been the conquest of a dozen or more of
the border tribes. His fame rests on the immense reservoir
he built in the western part of the twenty first
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Upper Egyptian gnome. This reservoir, according to all appearances, was
built and not dug. A vast dam was erected, enclosing
a large area in this part of the country. The
exact extent of the reservoir we have no means of ascertaining,
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nor do we know exactly what part of the district
known today as the Faiume was enclosed in its dams,
some remains of which have been discovered. The object of
this vast reservoir was to regulate the inundation of the
nile it received and stored up for future use vast
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quantities of water. Just how this was accomplished, or where
the floodgates were, or what canals led to and from
the reservoir, we do not know. The great work is
now in ruins, and we have no description of it
as it was in the days of its builder. As
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stated on a previous page, this work gave to the
district in which it was erected the name of Tashe
lake Land, the modern name of the region Fayum, being
derived through the Coptic pai Yum from the ancient word
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pa yum. The sea in this reservoir, a Menemhat erected
two pyramids at Illehun, on the northern outlet of the reservoir,
a city, in all probability founded by the Pharaoh. He
built a pyramid in which he was buried on the
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northeastern bank, to the great building known as the Labyrinth,
about which the Greeks tell so many stories, and which
was originally a temple dedicated either entire or in part
to the crocodile headed god Sebach, the head of the
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local pantheon of this region. The city of Crocodilopolis, the
Egyptian name of which seems to have been shedet lying
on the west bank of the reservoir, was the capital
of Tasche, and was no doubt also founded by this ruler.
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The Greek name of the work lake Maurus, was most
probably derived from the Egyptian word marie lake. Despite the
fact that the building of the reservoir and the cities
lying about it must have taken up a great part
of his time, a Menemhat still was able to erect
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buildings elsewhere. He certainly did not forget Thebes, and we
hear that he built in Abydos and Memphis several expeditions,
one of which the king led in person were sent
to the diorite quarries of the Wadi Hammamat. He also
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continued the working of the copper and malachite mines of
the Sinai, and had a grotto cut into the rock
at sarbut El Chadem. Of interest are the notes regarding
the rise of the Nile found on the rocks at
Semna in Cumna, which prove that the Nile rose twenty
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seven feet three inches higher at these places during this
time than and it rises to day. Toward the close
of his reign of forty four years, he appointed his
son a Menemhat co regent ra ma Cheru a Menemhat
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nineteen forty one through nineteen thirty two b C. This pharaoh,
the fourth of his name, who ascended the throne about
nineteen forty one b C, was apparently a weak king.
All we know of him is that he worked the
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copper mines of the Sinai, and had, like all kings
of his line, the rise of the Nile carefully recorded
at Semna and Cumna. He married his sister Sebach nephru Ra,
whom he appointed co regent. Together they ruled about nine years.
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The close of the dynasty is shrouded in darkness. End
of chapter three,
Chapter three of History of Egypt. This is a LibriVox recording.
All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more
information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Recording
(00:21):
by Rick Vina. History of Egypt by F. C. H. Wendel.
Chapter three From the Seventh Dynasty to the close of
the twelfth the Transition period and the Middle Empire about
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twenty four hundred through nineteen thirty BC. Section one The
Transition Period dynasties seven through eleven. This was a period
of frequent revolutions. King after king ascended the throne, but
(01:05):
it was a long time before a king arose who
succeeded in securing a firm hold on the reigns of state.
It is next to impossible to give even a chronological
list of the kings who ruled in this period, which
must have covered some two hundred years and perhaps more.
(01:29):
It is owing to this gap, and one that we
shall meet with later, that the chronology of the earlier
periods of Egypt is so very uncertain. From conditions existing
in the times of the Twelfth Dynasty, it would seem
that the great hereditary princes of the realm, the nomarchoi
(01:52):
succeeded in winning some considerable independence during this period. It
is but natural that in a time when the kings
felt anything but secure on the throne, they should seek
to enlist the support of the nobility, and be ready
to purchase that support by according them greater privileges than
(02:16):
they had hitherto enjoyed. These nobles were a very shrewd lot,
and no doubt made the best of the bargain by
selling their support to the highest bidder. It was in
all probability this inordinate strengthening of the nobility that finally
led to the rise of the Theban princes and to
(02:40):
their accession to the throne under the founder of the
Eleventh dynasty. This was significant for the entire future of Egypt,
as Thebes controlled the destinies of the kingdom for over
a thousand years. Manetho gives only a list of dynasties
(03:02):
for this period as follows. Seventh Dynasty Memphidic seventy kings
in seventy days. According to Eusebius, five kings in seventy
five years. Eighth Dynasty Memphidic twenty seven kings in one
(03:26):
hundred forty six years, Ninth dynasty from Herakleopolis twenty seven
kings in four hundred nine years, Sinchellis four kings in
one hundred years. Tenth Dynasty from Heracleopolis seventeen kings in
(03:52):
one hundred eighty five years. Of the names, Manetho gives
only the that of King Akthos, the founder of the Ninth dynasty,
of whom he relates that he was the most barbarous
and inhuman king that had hitherto ruled in Egypt. He
(04:14):
committed many crimes and was finally stricken with insanity and
killed by a crocodile. It is a probable conjecture that
Manetho wishes to convey the impression that this king was
a foreign invader. In all probability, the am Muhriyusha, whom
(04:36):
Una had so effectually crushed, had been left alone by
mary Ra's immediate successors, and had again gathered sufficient strength
to renew their attacks on Egypt. If this is so,
the attack must not have come until after nephrikha Ra's
(04:58):
long reign. It seems that this time the barbarians had
it all their own way and had finally succeeded in
conquering the country. This hypothesis receives some confirmation, however, slight
from the fact that a semi legendary papyrus mentions combats
(05:21):
with the Hariyusha under kings Cheruti and Ameno. Judging from
the names, Ameno was probably one of the kings of
the Eleventh dynasty, and these battles were then fought in
delivering Egypt from the foreign invader. Section two. The Middle
(05:45):
Empire dynasties eleven and twelve. The eleventh dynasty, with the
founder of this dynasty, the Theban Princes, ascended the throne
of Egypt. These kings seem to have delivered Egypt from
the yoke of the foreign invader, the war possibly being
(06:09):
begun by Cheruti and Amenno, though we nowhere find any
mention of this fact. The first of these princes mentioned
in the lists of kings is the Erpiti, that is,
hereditary Prince Antefh. The three succeeding kings are designated as
(06:32):
whore and the fourth successor of Antefh is the first
one to bear the full titulature of Egyptian kings. From
this fact, the conclusion has been drawn that the first
anteph was merely Prince of Thebes, that his next successors
(06:54):
had gradually enlarged their sway until they ruled over all
of Upper Eas Egypt, and had assumed the title Whore,
signifying ruler of Upper Egypt, And that finally, the fourth
successor of Antef had succeeded in conquering all of Egypt
(07:15):
and had consequently assumed the full titulature of the Egyptian kings.
This conjecture is entirely unwarranted. It is probable that these
rulers delivered Egypt from the yoke of the foreign invader,
but any attempt to read the history of the war
(07:36):
from the titles of these kings is futile. The founder
of the dynasty, Prince Antef, in all probability, was the
man with whom the national movement began, though he possibly
died before other princes had recognized his authority, and owes
(07:58):
his place in the list of kings to the fact
that his dynasty based their claim to the throne on him.
To translate the title of Horror as ruler of Upper
Egypt or as duke is not admissible. Horr was one
(08:19):
of the titles of the Egyptian kings. The word signifies Horus,
and this title was given the king because he was
looked upon as the Horus on earth. The order of
succession of these kings is not certain, and we therefore
(08:39):
deem it advisable to group them according to their names.
This will give us two groups, one of kings whose
names were all the same anteph and another of kings
whose names were all the same meant to Hotep. Any
(09:00):
other arrangement would be equally arbitrary. While lacking the clearness
of this the antef kings anteph Aea, that is, the
great with the throne name Ra Sechem up Mat, is
the only king of this line of whose family relations
(09:23):
we have any knowledge. A note on his sarcophagus informs
us that his younger brother and successor, Anon teph Ra
Sechem her her Mat, had the sarcophagus made. This sarcophagus
is in the museum of the Louver. It is of
(09:43):
gilt wood and is ornamented with wings folded protectingly about
the deceased. An inscription found in Abudos mentions buildings erected
by him in this city. A Pyramideon mentioning the name
of his wife Mentu Hotep was discovered at Kurna. The
(10:09):
record of a criminal procedure against theban tomb robbers informs
us that he was buried in the necropolis of Thebes.
The guilt wood sarcophagus of Onnontef is in the British Museum.
His silver gilt diadem is in the Museum of Leiden.
(10:31):
Nube cheper Ra. Onnontef is mentioned on a statue as
the conqueror of Asiatics and Nubians, but the texts do
not give any detailed accounts of his campaigns. His tomb
at dra Abulnega, opposite Thebes, was discovered by Mariette in
(10:56):
eighteen sixty to eighteen sixty one. The stelle found in
the funereal chapel dates from his fiftieth year, so that
we know he reigned fifty years and consequently must have
lived at a time when the country was tranquil. At
(11:17):
the same place, fragments of two obelisks erected by this
pharaoh were found on Aia the Great is one of
the kings whose tombs are mentioned in the criminal procedure above.
Alluded to one of the hieratic copies of the Book
(11:39):
of the Dead, alleges that the one hundred and thirtieth
chapter was discovered. In his reign, the Mentu Hotep kings
belonged to the same family with the Antef kings. Nebhotep.
Mentu Hotep is known only from a stelle found at Kanasso,
(12:03):
on which he is depicted as adoring the local divinities
of that region, who throw all peoples under his feet,
that is, give him power over them. From this we
must infer that Neb Hotep carried on wars in Nubia
(12:26):
of Ra Neb Tawi Mentu ho Tep. We know only
that he sent an expedition to the quarries of the
Wadi Hamamat to quarry a sarcophagus for him. On this
occasion he caused a great reservoir to be cut in
the rock so that the men might not die of thirst.
(12:50):
Ran eb Chepru Mentu ho Tep reigned over forty six years,
as is proved by the tombstone of a certain Meru,
who died in the forty sixth year of this reign.
We know of him only that he quarried stone in Assuwan.
(13:13):
This pharaoh must have been a ruler of some consequence,
for his name is mentioned in all of the lists
of kings, and in several lists, his is the only
name of a king ruling before the Hixos invasion that
is mentioned. Seyanch Kharrah was the last king of this dynasty.
(13:38):
A very interesting inscription graven on the rock in the
Wadi Hamamat relates the story of one of his expeditions.
In the eighth year of his reign, three thousand men
under command of Henu started from Kebti at the mouth
(13:59):
of the Vattle. The expedition had a twofold object, first
to quarry stone for the monarch's tomb and sarcophagus, and
second to visit the shores of Powind that is, the
southwest coast of Arabia and the Somali coast on the
(14:21):
African side of the Red Sea on a trading expedition.
Henu accomplished both objects successfully. To facilitate the provisioning of
so large a detachment, a number of stations was established
and wells sunk along the line of march. Arrived at
(14:44):
the quarries, one detachment of the expedition settled down to work,
while the other continued its march to the sea, which
it reached at about the place where Cosser now stands.
From here, Henu sent out a fleet. No mention is
made of the building of ships to the shores of Powin,
(15:09):
awaiting their return at Kosser. The fleet brought back all
the products of this country, consisting of incense, precious stones,
and other valuables. Meanwhile, the stone cutters had done their work,
and the expedition returned to Egypt. This expedition is memorable,
(15:32):
and that it proves that this pharaoh was firmly determined
to establish a regular trade with Powin. The undertaking was,
in a certain sense a pioneer expedition, the duty of
which was to survey the road from Kebti to the
Red Sea, and, by the establishment of watering stations, to
(15:56):
make it practicable. The first king of whom we know
that he followed in seyanch Karra's footsteps was Amenemhat the
second the twelfth dynasty twenty one thirty through nineteen thirty BC.
(16:19):
The eleventh dynasty had been a period of strife in it.
Egypt had been delivered from the domination of the foreign invader.
The kingdom had been reunified, and the work of reorganizing
the government had been begun. So well had the last
(16:40):
rulers of this dynasty done their work, that seanch Karrah
could undertake the work of opening a road through the
Wadi Hammamat from Kebti to the Red Sea, and of
laying the first foundations of a direct commercial intercourse with
(17:00):
the coast of southwestern Arabia and the Somali coast. To
what extent the work of reorganization was completed when amenem
Hat the First ascended the throne, we do not know,
as but few monuments of the kings immediately preceding him
(17:21):
have come down to us of the times embraced by
the Twelfth dynasty. We have, however, a fair knowledge. Though
the buildings erected by the kings of this dynasty have disappeared,
yet the numerous inscriptions that have been preserved in all
(17:42):
parts of Egypt contain records of their doings. Much of
our knowledge of this period we owe to the tombs
discovered at many Hasan and Bersha. But even here it
is not yet possible to give details or to fully
understand all the conditions that led to the rise and
(18:05):
the fall of this house. Sehotep a brah A, menem
Hat twenty one thirty through twenty one hundred BC. Reader's note.
A map of Ethiopia is shown. End note. About the
(18:28):
year twenty one thirty, King Amenemhat the First ascended the
throne of Egypt. What claim he had to the crown
we are not told, but in all probability he was
related to the last king of the preceding dynasty. The
change of dynasty was not accomplished without severe internal dissensions.
(18:55):
Several inscriptions allude to these disturbances, but give no details.
The new pharaoh was equal to the occasion. He defeated
the rebels and then set to work to reorganize his kingdom.
One of his first measures was to curb the power
(19:15):
of the nobles, who had become semi independent. The principle
of heredity he dared not abolish, but he regulated the succession.
When an old nomarchoss died, the king chose his successor
from his heirs at law, and thus bound the new
(19:38):
prince to his person. He also personally superintended a new
survey of the whole country. It would seem that during
the periods of anarchy, foreign domination and restoration following on
the decline of the old Empire. The Egyptian kings had
(20:01):
not possessed the leisure or the power to adjust. Disputes
concerning boundaries which had arisen among the nobles. The stronger
had preyed upon the weaker, and many a prince had
seized the occasion of enlarging his domain. A Menemhat made
(20:23):
a tour of inspection through the country, personally hearing complaints
and readjusting the boundaries. He thus succeeded in reorganizing his
kingdom in a very short time, and when order was
once restored, he was the man to keep it with
(20:44):
an iron hand. This policy enabled him, early in his
reign to turn his attention to foreign affairs. He marched
against the Libyan tribe of the Matieu and conquered them.
He also ward on the Asiatic frontier against the Bedouins
(21:05):
of the Syrian Desert. In the twenty ninth year of
his reign, he led his forces into Nubia and entirely
subdued the o Aua, a tribe that had begun to
give trouble. Like all of the Pharaohs, he was a
great builder. Traces of his work have been found at
(21:30):
Tannis Abydos, Memphis, and Karnak. The relics of his work
found at Karnak are of great importance, as they prove
that the great Temple of Ammon was founded by this ruler.
The stone needed for these buildings was quarried in the
(21:51):
limestone quarries of Tura roau Au opposite Memphis, in the
Dire the right quarries of the Wadi Hammamat, and in
the granite quarries of Assuan. In the sixteenth Upper Egyptian Gnome,
(22:12):
he built a city called hot Sehotep ab rah As
also a fort called amenem Hat Dead Taui. This pharaoh
had in later times the reputation of being a great sage.
A papyrus written about one thousand years after his time
(22:35):
said to be a series of precepts addressed to his
son user Tessen. The first tells the story of his
accession to the throne and relates some other events of
his reign. This interesting papyrus, which is said to have
been composed by the king himself, is preserved in the
(22:58):
British Museum. In the twenty first year of his reign,
a Menemhat in all probability, with the purpose of avoiding
a civil war over the succession appointed his son User
Tessen co regent. This practice was imitated by most of
(23:20):
his successors. The pharaoh died in the thirtieth year of
his reign, and the events related in illusions made in
the memoirs of a prince of this time force on
us the suspicion that he was murdered cheper Ka rah
(23:40):
Usir Tessen twenty ninety nine through twenty sixty five b C.
When Usir Tessen the First ascended the throne about twenty
ninety nine b C, he succeeded to a mighty empire,
firmly united in its various parts and presenting a bold
(24:03):
front to its hostile neighbors. Already as co regent, User
Tessen had distinguished himself in the field, and his warlike
ardor did not abate. When he sat on the throne
as sole ruler, he was compelled to take the field
(24:25):
against the Libyan Bedouines, whom he subdued. In the forty
third year of his reign. He invaded Nubia and penetrated
as far as the Second Cataract. Here he set up
a stell on which he enumerates the names of eleven
conquered Nubian tribes. Of these names, nine are preserved one who,
(24:54):
two Ks three destroyed, four Shamik, five Chassah, six Shayat,
seven Asheri Kin eight o wah Owah, nine Chammer, ten destroyed,
(25:21):
eleven Amau. It is very unfortunate that we have no
detailed accounts of these wars. We know only where the
king ward and read the names of the conquered nations,
But here our knowledge ends. This pharaoh opened the copper
(25:42):
and malakite mines of the set Mefkat Malakite land, as
the Egyptians called the Sinai Peninsula. He also quarried stone
in the Wadi Hammamat. The most important of the buildings
erected by this pharaoh were, of course, at Thebes. He
(26:06):
built the priest's quarters at Karnak, which were restored in
the reign of Rameses the ninth, and had his statue
placed in the temple yard. A very fine colossal statue
of this king, which was found at Tennis, is now
in the Museum of Berlin. In the third year of
(26:29):
his reign. According to the text written on a roll
of leather preserved in the same museum, the pharaoh began
work on the temple of raw At Heliopolis, as his
father was then still living and he was merely co regent.
(26:50):
A menem Hat the First appears as the directing spirit,
while User Tessen seems to have exercised executive functions. The
temple was called het chah Seho tepab Ra, that is,
the Shining Temple of Amenemhat the First, while a portion
(27:12):
of it was named after User Tessen. The only trace
left of this temple are two obelisks erected by User Tessen,
one of which is still standing while the other is
fallen and in fragments. A peculiarly shaped obelisk, rounded at
(27:35):
the apex and showing undoubted traces of the fact that
it was once capped with metal, was found broken in
two at Bagig in the Fayoun. Owing to the fact
that the Felaheen of the region look upon it as sacred,
(27:55):
it could not be removed. The king also built in Abydos.
In his forty second year, User Tessen appointed his son
a Menemhat co regent two years after he died, having
ruled in all forty four years, of which he shared
(28:16):
ten with his father, and two with his son and
ruled thirty two alone. Nub Ka Rah A Menemhat twenty
sixty four through twenty thirty one b C. Ascended the
throne as sole king about twenty sixty four b C.
(28:40):
He was a ruler of no special prominence, but he
was well able to keep together the great kingdom left
him by his father. In the twenty eighth year of
his reign, this king sent an expedition under command of
Chent schah Oer to Arabia and the Somali coast Pewent.
(29:05):
The expedition was a success. This is the first time
since the reign of Seyanch Karrah that we hear of
a government expedition sent to this country. Like his father,
he worked at the Sinai copper mines and built at
sarbut El Chadem a temple to Hathor, who was the
(29:30):
Tutelar deity of this region. He also operated the quarries
of the Wadi Hammamat. In the thirty second year of
his reign, he appointed his son User Tessen co regent
and died three years later, having ruled in all thirty
(29:51):
five years, two years as co regent of his father
thirty years alone and three years together with his son
chah chepper ra User Tessen twenty thirty through twenty fourteen
b C. Of Usir Tessen the second, who came to
(30:14):
the throne about twenty thirty b c. We know but little.
Almost all our knowledge of his reign is confined to
the great inscriptions in the tombs at Beni Hassan and
Bersha tell us of the social conditions of the time.
(30:34):
In the first year of his reign, he sent an
expedition to the wah D Gasus, a branch of the
wah D Hamamat, which runs in a slanting northeast direction
to the Red Sea. This expedition most probably went to Powitt.
(30:57):
In the fifth year of his reign, he sent an
expedition under Mentuhotep to Assouan, and it would seem from
his inscription that the tribes dwelling about the quarries had
given trouble and had been subdued. This pharaoh built at
Memphis and Tannis, at which latter place a statue of
(31:20):
his wife ne Effort was found. In the times of
the twelfth dynasty, it was a customary thing for Syrian
Bedouins to cross the Egyptian border and seek permission to
pasture their herds on Egyptian soil. A migration of this character,
(31:42):
which took place in the sixth year of this reign,
is represented on a celebrated painting found in the tomb
of Kenem Hautep, the nomarchous of the sixteenth Upper Egyptian Gnome.
This painting represents the arrival of thirty seven Asiatics who
(32:04):
came before that noble bearing costly presents, among which was
especially valuable I Salve, seeking his protection and asking permission
to settle on his territory. The painting has become widely
known through the attempted identification of the people here depicted
(32:29):
with Abraham and his party. This attempt, however, is futile.
The Bible relates that Abraham came to Egypt on a
similar errand, and that his stay in this country was
advantageous to him. The account of the Bible shows a
good knowledge of the conditions under which such migrations were made,
(32:53):
and is certainly based on old recollections of the race,
some parts of which no doubt, did dwell in Egypt
under these conditions while they were yet in the nomadic state.
Manetho calls this king Sesostris and attributes to him the
(33:15):
conquest of the world, but as yet no monuments have
been discovered that bear out this statement. As Sesostris is
the usual designation of Rameses second with the classical writers.
It is, however, just possible that the copyists of Manetho
(33:37):
got things slightly mixed. The king died after a reign
of nineteen years, three of which he shared with his father.
Shah kah Rah User Tessen twenty thirteen through nineteen eighty
seven b C, who succeeded his about twenty thirteen b C.
(34:04):
Is one of the greatest figures of Egyptian history. He
it was that finally subdued Ethiopia. The victories of Usir
Tessen the first had placed the southern boundary of the
realm at the Second Cataract. Usir Tessen the third immediately
(34:25):
proceeded to strengthen this frontier and make it the basis
of his operations. Having defeated the hostile tribes of the region,
he built two forts on opposite sides of the Nile,
one at Semna and one at Cumna on this cataract,
(34:47):
and in the eighth year of his reign, erected a
boundary stone warning all negroes from coming down the river
on their boats unless they were bringing cattle or merchant
dies to mark it at he Semna or akhen Kumna.
In the sixteenth year of his reign, the Pharaoh set
(35:11):
out on his second campaign against the Nubians. He completely
devastated the country, destroyed the crops, drove off the cattle,
and took numerous prisoners. Despite this great victory, the Nubians
were not yet completely subdued. In the nineteenth year of
(35:34):
his reign, the king was again compelled to take the
field against them, and again he completely defeated them, taking
large numbers of prisoners and devastating the country. After this,
the tribes seemed to have submitted and remained tranquil for
(35:55):
during the rest of this epoch we hear of no
new outbreaks. The king was an active builder. We have
already mentioned two of his great works. He also built
in Thebes, in Heracleopolis, Magna, in Abydos, in Tannis, and
(36:15):
in Amada. He was moreover the first founder of the
temples on the island of Elephantine, where he erected a
temple to satt and Anuquet, two of the local deities
of the region. Near the island, he founded a new city,
(36:35):
which he called Haru Chah Karah. It is interesting to
note how posterity honored this great monarch. Almost six hundred
years after the king's death, Tutmosis the Third erected a
temple to him at Semna and seems to have attempted
(36:56):
to make him a local divinity of this region. He
also appears as a god in the temple of Cumna
and that of Dosha, and at other places in Nubia.
User Tessen died after a reign of twenty six years.
(37:17):
Mat en Ra Amenemht nineteen eighty six through nineteen forty
two b C. About nineteen eighty six b C, Amenemht
the Third, one of Egypt's greatest pharaohs, ascended the throne.
This king was not a great warrior and conqueror, but
(37:41):
he was the projector and builder of an important work
that was of far greater value to Egypt than would
have been the conquest of a dozen or more of
the border tribes. His fame rests on the immense reservoir
he built in the western part of the twenty first
(38:03):
Upper Egyptian gnome. This reservoir, according to all appearances, was
built and not dug. A vast dam was erected, enclosing
a large area in this part of the country. The
exact extent of the reservoir we have no means of ascertaining,
(38:25):
nor do we know exactly what part of the district
known today as the Faiume was enclosed in its dams,
some remains of which have been discovered. The object of
this vast reservoir was to regulate the inundation of the
nile it received and stored up for future use vast
(38:51):
quantities of water. Just how this was accomplished, or where
the floodgates were, or what canals led to and from
the reservoir, we do not know. The great work is
now in ruins, and we have no description of it
as it was in the days of its builder. As
(39:14):
stated on a previous page, this work gave to the
district in which it was erected the name of Tashe
lake Land, the modern name of the region Fayum, being
derived through the Coptic pai Yum from the ancient word
(39:36):
pa yum. The sea in this reservoir, a Menemhat erected
two pyramids at Illehun, on the northern outlet of the reservoir,
a city, in all probability founded by the Pharaoh. He
built a pyramid in which he was buried on the
(39:57):
northeastern bank, to the great building known as the Labyrinth,
about which the Greeks tell so many stories, and which
was originally a temple dedicated either entire or in part
to the crocodile headed god Sebach, the head of the
(40:18):
local pantheon of this region. The city of Crocodilopolis, the
Egyptian name of which seems to have been shedet lying
on the west bank of the reservoir, was the capital
of Tasche, and was no doubt also founded by this ruler.
(40:41):
The Greek name of the work lake Maurus, was most
probably derived from the Egyptian word marie lake. Despite the
fact that the building of the reservoir and the cities
lying about it must have taken up a great part
of his time, a Menemhat still was able to erect
(41:04):
buildings elsewhere. He certainly did not forget Thebes, and we
hear that he built in Abydos and Memphis several expeditions,
one of which the king led in person were sent
to the diorite quarries of the Wadi Hammamat. He also
(41:27):
continued the working of the copper and malachite mines of
the Sinai, and had a grotto cut into the rock
at sarbut El Chadem. Of interest are the notes regarding
the rise of the Nile found on the rocks at
Semna in Cumna, which prove that the Nile rose twenty
(41:52):
seven feet three inches higher at these places during this
time than and it rises to day. Toward the close
of his reign of forty four years, he appointed his
son a Menemhat co regent ra ma Cheru a Menemhat
(42:17):
nineteen forty one through nineteen thirty two b C. This pharaoh,
the fourth of his name, who ascended the throne about
nineteen forty one b C, was apparently a weak king.
All we know of him is that he worked the
(42:38):
copper mines of the Sinai, and had, like all kings
of his line, the rise of the Nile carefully recorded
at Semna and Cumna. He married his sister Sebach nephru Ra,
whom he appointed co regent. Together they ruled about nine years.
(43:02):
The close of the dynasty is shrouded in darkness. End
of chapter three,
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