Egypt was ruled for over 3,000 years by 31 dynasties of pharaohs. Pharaohs were considered divine kings and Egypt was governed as a theocracy. Some key periods included the Old Kingdom characterized by pyramid building, the Middle Kingdom which saw power shift to nobles, and the New Kingdom when Egypt expanded its empire after repelling Hyksos invaders. Egypt was later conquered by Alexander the Great and ruled successively by the Ptolemies, Rome, and Muslim caliphates.

1. Egypt:
Historical Overview

2. Timeline Breakdown
 6 main historical eras ruled almost
continuously for 3,000 years by a group of
hereditary kings divided into 31 dynasties
with approximately 400 Pharaohs

3. Egyptian Hierarchy
 Kings known as “pharaohs”
 Biblical Hebrew rendering of the
Egyptian “per-aa”
 Means “Great House” – royal
palace (master of the world)
 Pharaohs considered divine
 They were gods, thus their rule was
autocratic and religious
 A theocracy

4. Egyptian Royalty
 Within the royal family, it
was possible for a brother to
marry a sister, since only
marriage to another divine
person could produce a
dynasty

5. Archaic or Thinite Period
3100-2700 BCE
 Population is 3200
 2 kings: one in Upper Egypt and one
in Lower Egypt
 In 3100, Narmer (aka Menes), king of
Upper Egypt defeats king of Lower
Egypt and unifies civilization
 Capital is Memphis
 Major developments: irrigation, rise
of urbanism, hieroglyphic writing

6. Old Kingdom or Age of Pyramids
2700-2200 BCE
 Characterized by central government =
stability and order
 Landed nobility shared power with Pharaoh
 Bureaucracy formed with positions created
 Vizier (chief of staff)
 Chief Architect
 Chief Judge or High Priest

7.  Land divided into political
units known as “Nomes”
and were ruled by
“Nomarchs” (i.e. monarch)
 Pyramids began as flat
tombs called “Mastabas”
 First pyramid was the
“step” pyramid of Saqqara
built by King Djoser in
2650 BCE

8. Pyramid Construction – 4th Dynasty
 In 4th Dynasty, true
pyramid construction was
begun, reaching its zenith
with pyramids in Giza,
including the Great
Pyramid of Khufu, smaller
one to his son, Khafra, and
the third, about half the
size of the larger two, to
Menkaura, whose reign
was short

9. First Intermediate Period
2200-2060 BCE
 Characterized by a period of decline in the
power of the Pharaohs
 Egypt once again split into two kingdoms

10. The Middle Kingdom
2060-1785 BCE
 Egypt again unified under
Mentuhotep II (2040 BCE);
capital moved to Thebes
 Rising middle class (i.e.
lesser gov’t officials,
merchants/traders, small
indep. farmers) challenged
landed nobility for power

11. Second Intermediate Period
1785-1575 BCE
 Semetic people, known as Hyksos (i.e.
highland rulers) from Syria/Palestine/Canaan
invaded Lower Egypt in 1785 BCE

12. Hyksos’ Contributions
 Iron weapons
 Horse-drawn chariots
 Compound bow, and
cimitar (curved sword)
 Spinning and weaving
(on upright looms)
 New musical
instruments (lyres,
lutes)

13. Impact of Hyksos Invasion
 Hyksos invasion achieved opposite of
intended effect:
 revitalized Egyptian cultural spirit and led to
eventual recapturing of Egyptian throne from
invaders

14. The New Kingdom: The Age of Empire
1575-332 BCE
 Pharaoh Ahmose (18th Dynasty) drove out
Hyksos invaders in 1550 BCE and reunited
Egypt

15. Reaction to Hyksos’ Invasion
 More militaristic
 sought power/security by building organized
army
 Imperialistic
 sought empire through military expansion
 Autocratic
 leaders ruled with iron fist

16. Alexander’s Conquest
 1223-332 BCE, several important dynasties
ruled Egypt continuously until conquest by
Alexander the Great
 Crowned Pharaoh of Egypt when he was 24
 Alexandria made new capital

17. Greek Period
 Egypt ruled by Ptolemy family from
Alexander’s death in 323 until Queen
Cleopatra VII committed suicide in 30 BCE
 Ptolemy I was one of Alexander’s generals

18. Roman Period
 A province of Rome from 30 BCE to 641 AD

19. Muslim Period
 642 AD, Muslims from Arabia conquered Egypt
 Introduced Islam and Arabic language
 Local military caste seized control from Muslims in 1250 AD
and ruled until conquest of Ottoman Turks in 1517 AD