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Over time, Egypt’s villages formed larger kingdoms. By around 3100 B.C., Egypt was united into a single, powerful kingdom.
The reign of King Menes began the first Egyptian dynasty. A dynasty is a series of rulers who are all from the same family. Throughout its history, Egypt had more than 30 dynasties. Some time between 1554 and 1304 B.C., Egyptians began to call their king “pharaoh,” a term that comes from words meaning “great house.” In the beginning, Egyptians thought of their rulers as living gods. Later, they saw them as the link between the gods and the people of Egypt.
◀ Almost every year for two decades during the 1400s B.C., King Thutmose III led his army into Asia. He was the stepson of Queen Hatshepsut. He was also a brilliant general and gifted leader. He brought Palestine, Syria, and the African kingdoms of Kush and Nubia under Egyptian control. These regions gave Egypt sources of slaves, copper, gold, ivory, and ebony.
Among ancient Egyptian queens, Hatshepsut, wife of King Thutmose II, stands out. She became a pharaoh, too. A powerful ruler in her own right, she built one of Egypt’s most spectacular temples, at Thebes. ▶
▲ Another important ruler was Akhenaten, who required Egyptians to worship only the Sun god Aten. His wife, Queen Nefertiti, helped him achieve this goal. Here is Nefertiti adoring the rays of Aten.
◀ Toward the end of the New Kingdom, Egypt began to decline. Weak rulers had trouble remaining in control. Egypt broke into small states and lost its territories abroad. Weakness attracted invaders, and by 1070 B.C., Egypt was ruled by foreigners. Alexander the Great added Egypt to the Greek empire in 332 B.C.
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One of Egypt’s most famous rulers is Cleopatra. When did she rule?
Cleopatra ruled Egypt from 51 B.C. to 30 B.C. In about 37 B.C., she married Mark Antony, who was a co-ruler of Rome. They combined their military forces and waged war against another co-ruler of Rome, Octavian. They lost the fight, and Octavian made Egypt a province of the Roman Empire.
Way Back When
First Intermediate Period
ca. 2130–1980 b.c.
Central government in Egypt collapses
Middle Kingdom
ca. 1980–1630 b.c.
High point of Egyptian literature
ca. 1800–1750 b.c. ▶
Law code of king Hammurabi of Babylon
Second Intermediate Period
ca. 1630–1523 b.c.
Asian nomads called Hyksos rule northern Egypt
New Kingdom ca. 1539–1075 B.C.
ca. 1478–1458 b.c.
Reign of Egyptian female pharaoh Hatshepsut
ca. 1458 b.c. ▶
Thutmose III extends Egypt’s empire to its greatest size
ca. 1279–1213 b.c. ▶
Reign of Egypt’s Ramses II, builder of more temples than any other pharaoh
◀ ca. 1332–1322 b.c.
Reign of Tutankhamen, Egypt
◀ ca. 1150–550 b.c.
Olmec civilization on Gulf Coast of Mexico
The Great Sphinx
The Great Sphinx is a human-headed lion that was carved out of natural bedrock. It is about as high as a six-story building and as long as a city block. Located in Giza, the Sphinx guards the front of the pharaoh Khafra’s pyramid.
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