The New Kingdom Of Egypt 

The empire, which the Pharaohs expanded through diplomacy, trade and war, brought Egypt centuries of political stability and prosperity. Money flooded into Egypt from its foreign lands, particularly Nubia, home to the richest gold mines in the ancient world. Much of this wealth was used by the pharaohs to construct magnificent temples, statues and obelisks in attempt to show off to visitors about their immense wealth and power. Stone carvings also became a median of propaganda.

We as a group have decided to focus on two specific pharaohs that have contributed greatly to the prosperity of ancient Egypt: Ahmose I and Ramesses II. Through these two particular pharaohs, we seek to provide an in-depth report on what these leaders did for Egypt. The reason for our choice of pharaohs is basically because they have something in common; it was through their victories in countless number of wars that brought prosperity to the kingdom. Therefore, the main 'C' we have chosen would be Conflict. Although Conflict was the prime contributor to the success of Egypt during that period in time, the other 3 'C's (Community, Commerce and Culture) that the Pharaohs implemented helped shape Egypt and its people during their reign.

Famous Pharaohs

Ahmose I

Overview

Ahmose I, which the name implies 'the moon is born', was born in 1560 BC. He ruled the 18th Dynasty from 1550-1526 B.C. He also established the era of the New Kingdom (1550-1070 B.C). During his reign, Ahmose I, motivated to avenge his father and brother's death, he successfully expulsed the Hyksos [1] and restored Theban rule over Egypt. Following his many victories over rival countries, he worked on uniting Egypt as a whole and eventually, Egyptian power reached its peak.

Childhood Life

Ahmose I was born in Thebes, a country located 800 kilometers south of the Mediterranean. His country was sandwiched between two rival countries. One of them was known as the 'land of pyramids', which was occupied by the Hyksos people. The other being the home of the ferocious warlike Nubians. Seqenenre Tao II [2] and Kahmose [3] had died at the hands of the Hyksos people when he was only ten-years-old. At that point in time, although Ahmose was declared as the pharaoh of Thebes, he was still too young to be ruling Egypt. As a result, his mother, Ahhotep, replaced him for the time being and spent years educating Ahmose, ensuring that he had gained sufficient knowledge and experience before he took over the throne. Ten years later, at the age of twenty, Ahmose I took leadership and seeked revenge over his brother and father's death.

Elimination of the Hyksos

The Hyksos were not Egyptians. They were identified as 'Asiatics's' and thus the tribe believed they were empowered to create their own communities and live by their way of life.

They challenged the Egyptian power and eventually, Egypt fell into disarray.

Ahmose I pledged to avenge his family. The conquest began in the 11th year of Khamudi's [4] reign. Determined, he quickly garnered the support of many Egyptians and after the size of his army increased drastically, Ahmose I began to plan the attack on the Hyksos. With his intelligence and the assistance of advisors and his generals, they managed to develop a plan to eliminate the Hyksos. Not only had he gained the trust and conviction from his army, but he also managed to form allies with neighbouring countries also under the rule of the Hyksos.

In the battle with the Hyksos, Ahmose was tactical in his actions. He copied the Hyksos' tactics and weapons, and the use of Nubian troops. His army was equipped with bronze daggers and shields, the composite bow and the war chariot. His chariot was large enough to allow for a charioteer to control the horses, leaving the archer free to use his weapons while on the move. Ahmose also established the 'warrior-pharaoh' ideology. This concept was the catalyst for an expansionist foreign policy: "the taste of warfare... developed into an appetite for imperial adventure." (Cyril Aldred). This policy was also designed to protect the Egyptian people and their country

The battle finally began in 1500 B.C. Along with his armoured men and allies, Ahmose I continued to persevere throughout the battle and successfully drove back the Hyksos back to Avaris, their capital. The Hyksos were eliminated from Lower Egypt that they were occupying previously. Once all the Hyksos people have retreated to Avaris, Ahmose I laid siege to the city. He defeated the Hyksos and retrieved the land that once belonged to his family, thus restoring peace and power to Egypt.

Due to certain troubles with his kingdom back in Thebes, his military commanders had full control over the siege of Avaris. However, several negotiations were made and the Hyksos were given permission to leave Egypt unharmed if they were to surrender the city. When Ahmose I returned, he decided that he was not going to let the Hyksos escape unscathed. He ordered the Egyptian army to pursue the Hyksos people to have them killed.

Foreign Campaigns

After the victory over Hyksos, Ahmose I began to campaign in Nubia, the home of the Nubian Bowmen. These Bowmen were allies of Hyksos who assisted them during the over-throwing of the Egyptian empire. From Avaris, he sailed south to Nubia for the sole purpose of slaughtering all of the bowmen. The king rejoiced in valour and victory as he defeated the Nubian tribe easily. As a result, not only has he conquered the northern part of Egypt but now, the southern part too.

Post War

Securing almost half of Egypt, King Ahmose I returned home as a hero. He emphasized his rule by dominating as far as the Euphrates [5] . He established a democratic government that allowed local governors to continue with their current jobs. He did not understand the need of imposing central authority. He also re-organized the system for accessing and collecting taxes, rebuilding canals, dikes and irrigation systems. With such a well organized and efficient society, the New Kingdom of Egypt gradually grew stronger and stronger.

In order to maintain friendly terms with his people, he commended those who played a role in helping him regain control of Egypt. Ahmose's reign over Egypt not only allowed him to expand his territory to areas once home to many rebellious tribes but he also laid a strong foundation for the New Kingdom era. As a result of his leadership, he brought Egypt's power to its peak, surpassing the works of both his father and brother.

Trade and Culture

Ahmose reestablished the economy of the New kingdom by encouraging trade with other nations. To increase the supply of building materials, Ahmose encouraged trade with Crete, Byblos, and Nubia.

After Ahmose led the country out of its bad economy, he placed much emphasis on the arts and building monuments to please the gods. One god that Ahmose had lavished on was the King of the Gods, Amun-re. He had dedicated many of his triumphs and spent much on gifts for his temple too. This monument (on the right) was built after the great pharaoh, Ahmose I. The pyramid consists of a temple and also an unfinished rock cut tomb. This large structure measure 115 by 130 feet and it has been inferred that this magnificent monument may have been a production centre for a cult that Ahmose developed. Scholars have learnt that the temple played an irreplaceable role in Egypt's economy and social organization of the community. Drawing of the proposed pyramid complex of Ahmose

Ramesses II (Ramesses the Great)

Introduction

RamsesIIEgypt.jpg

Ramesses the Great was the third Egyptian pharaoh who reigned from 1279 BC to 1213 BC during the Nineteenth dynasty, New kingdom. Ramesses II was often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated and powerful pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire. He was a great builder and a famed warrior. He tried to recover the territories in modern Israel/Palestine, Lebanon and Syria that had been held in the Eighteenth Dynasty. This led to the Battle of Qadesh, where he led the Egyptian armies to fight against the army of the Hittite king Muwatalli II. The Egyptians called him the "Great Ancestor." Being one of Egypt's most prolific rulers, he ruled the Egyptian Empire for 67 years, lived over 90 years old, had many wives and had somewhere between 100 and 200 children.

Ramesses was known for his belief that war and expanding borders was a key part to the expansion of the Empire. Therefore, The main C that will be focused on is conflict. As one of the rulers of the Egyptian New Kingdom, he was heavily involved in reclaiming control of their state's borders. In his reign, he went through many wars: having 3 major campaigns in Syria and a few others, campaigns in Nubia and in Libya. As they were previously held territories, he embarked on numerous campaigns to return them back from Nubian and Hittite's hands and to expand the empire. Thus, he was responsible for handling some Nubian revolts and carrying out a campaign in Libya. Although the famous 'Battle of Kadesh' showed the main view of Ramesses II's military prowess and power, nevertheless he enjoyed many outright victories over the enemies of Egypt. With an army amassing an estimated amount of 100000 men, he had total control over his people and a formidable force that he used to strengthen Egyptian influence. He was also able to solve the problems that arose in his country, as seen from him suppressing the Nubian revolts with ease. This is related to the C, community.

Countering Shardana

Also related to community, he defended his territory when needed, as seen from him defeating the Shardana. The Shardana were attacking ships carrying cargo along Egypt's Mediterranean coast, while they were travelling the sea routes to Egypt. Ramesses II had troops and ships stationed at strategic points along the coast, and once the Shardana appeared, they were caught by surprise, and were captured at once. With that, the Shardana no longer terrorized the waters.

Of course, he had made Egypt rich from all the supplies and riches he had collected from defeating other empires. This was his legacy. He outlived many of his wives and children while also leaving many great memorials all over Egypt, especially to his beloved first queen Nefertari. After him, nine more pharaohs took the name Ramesses in the name of his honour, but none matched his greatness in ruling Egypt. Although he did become the legendary figure he desperately wanted to be, but all his work was not enough to protect Egypt. New enemies begin attacking the empire, which also suffered internal problems. In less than 150 years after Ramesses the Great died, the Egyptian empire and the New Kingdom fell.

Building Activity and Monuments

During his reign, many buildings were created. To a smaller extent, the C here is community. He rebuilds and completed a number of temple and buildings his father had started to build, but he also started his own project to build a whole bunch of new constructions. There only will be named a few of them here:http://www.egyptancient.net/images/piramses1.jpg

The Pi-Ramesses: Ramesses II moved the capital of his kingdom from Thebes in the Nile valley to a new area in the eastern Nile Delta. This was his main base. He wanted to be closer to his territories in Canaan and Syria. Soon, the city expanded till it finally had an area of 12 square miles (30 square kilometers). In this capital, he built factories to manufacture weapons, chariots, and shields. The people followed his orders and manufactured 1,000 weapons in a week, about 250 chariots in 2 weeks, and 1,000 shields in a week and a half.

Abu Simbel: It is the most famous of Ramesses II construction and it is located in Nubian. The temple of Abu Simbel consists of two massive temples, one of them was devoted to Ramesses's reign, and the smaller temple was devoted for Ramesses's first Queen Nefertari. The entrance of the temple is bordered by four giant statues of Ramesses, each of them about 20m high while the small temple has six colossal figures each about 10m high. The construction started around the year 1244 B.C. and ended in the year 1224 B.C. http://semperfidelis1775.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/abusimbeltemple.jpg?w=400&h=300

http://www.egyptholiday.com/egypt_2007_diary/images/ramesseum_02.jpg

Ramesseum: The Ramesseum is the memorial temple. It is located in the Theban necropolis in Upper Egypt, across the River Nile from the modern city of Luxor. It is a well-known shrine.

Battle Campaigns

He had 4 campaigns against Syrian. His first campaign took place in the fourth year of his reign. It was a very provocation move and it was an obvious challenge for the Hittite Empire to fight for the ascendancy over Syria. At the 12th of May 1274 B.C., it came to a decisive battle at the city of Kadesh. In the end, the campaign did not bring any advantages for both sides. It was a stalemate. Ramesses made a tactical error by dividing his forces and one of his divisions got sweep away. But also the Hittite did a couple of mistakes and it is very likely that nobody won the fight and Ramses had to retreat for logistic difficulties. Back in Egypt he let the battle announced as a huge victory and the course of the fight became documented in many of his temples and buildings.

Battle of Kadesh

The Battle of Qadesh was Ramesses' most famous fight. It began during the 5th year of his reign. His second campaign in Syria lead to the Battle of Kadesh. The Battle of Kadeshwas a war between the Egyptians and Hittite Empire, dating back to 1274 BC. Leading the Egytian side was Ramesses II, and he had approximately 20000 men with him. Leading the Hittite Empire was Muwatalli II, and he had more men than Ramesses II, with an estimated amount of 20000 - 50000 men. This war occurred near Kadesh, an area that was captured by Ramesses I but had slipped back into the control of the Hittite Empire. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f9/Battle_of_Kadesh_II.png/350px-Battle_of_Kadesh_II.pnghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c0/Battle_of_Kadesh_I.png/350px-Battle_of_Kadesh_I.png

After being misguided by 2 of Muwatalli II's men, he split his army into 4 divisions the Amun, Ra, Ptah and Set units, and charged forward, but arrived at the fake location given to him. At this location, he discovered and captured two of Muwatalli II's spies, and tortured them until they revealed Muwatalli II's real location. But, it was too late as Muwatalli II, seeing an opportunity, had sent his men to attack one of Ramesses II's divisions that was separated from the rest.http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/57/Battle_of_Kadesh_III.png/350px-Battle_of_Kadesh_III.png

At the same time, Muwatalli II had sent men to block possible escape routes. With one of Ramesses II's division attacked and having blocked of the Egyptians' escape route, Muwatalli II had his army attack the Egyptian camp.

With no possible way of escape, Ramesses II, accompanied with his bodyguard, personally led a counterattack. Due to the bulk of the Hittite Empire army busy looting the Egyptian camp, the counterattack was effective and part of Muwatalli II's army was driven back. Following this, a division of Ramesses II's army joined him and together drove the Hittite Empire army in the camp out.

With the tides turning against the Hittite Empire, Muwatalli II ordered a last-ditch effort and sent his chariot reserve to fight. Ramesses II advanced towards this army of chariots and they met at the Orontes River. Ramesses II had gained a strong position on the west bank, and managed to counter any advances from the Hittite Empire army. Meanwhile, the last division of Ramesses II's army arrived. Feeling threatened, Muwatalli II decided to fall back.

Due to a lack of supplies, Ramesses II had also decided to fall back. They both declared victory upon arrival back in their capitals. However, it was a failure for Ramesses II as he was unable to capture Kadesh, the objective of the war. Despite it being a failure, this war is considered to be the most momentous war for Ramessess II.

Many more conflicts occurred between the Egyptians and Hittite Empire for nearly a decade, before a peace treaty was signed between them.The document is the earliest known peace treaty in world history.

Although Ramesses's forces were caught in a Hittite ambush and outnumbered at Kadesh, the pharaoh fought the battle to a stalemate and returned home a hero. Ramesses II's forces suffered major losses particularly among the 'Ra' division which was routed by the initial charge of the Hittite chariots during the battle. Once back in Egypt, Ramesses proclaimed that he had won a great victory. He had amazed everybody by almost winning a lost battle. The Battle of Kadesh was a personal triumph for Ramesses, as after blundering into a devastating Hittite ambush, the young king courageously rallied his scattered troops to fight on the battlefield while escaping death or capture.

Other Campaigns

Ramses was not able to gain victory in this important battle but he was a military genius. During his military campaign he was able to make the boarders of Egypt secure from pirates invading and he also fought back invasion of Lybian people. He gained a lot of land back hat was lost under Pharaoh Akhenaten [6] and he sign a couple a peace treaties with neighboring countries. Even with the Hittite, he made a peace treaty because the Hittite had a new enemy, the Assyrians, and they could not effort to fight on two places at the same time. Ramses himself married three Hittite princesses to tightening the peace treaty, which should last for about 50 years before the Hittite Empire collaspe.

All in all, Ramesses was well known for expanding and carrying out campaigns to grow the Egyptian Empire during the New Kingdom. The main C that lead to growth in Egyptian civilisation was conflict with regards to Ramesses, although he was also a builder and added to the culture of Egpyt during the New kingdom. He mainly recovered cities which they previous held and also gain resources through war.

Conclusion

In conclusion, these various conflicts and wars during the periods discussed above have enabled the Egyptians to rapidly gain or reclaim land. This rapid expansion of the kingdom north into Asia and upriver into ancient Nubia (where the gold was found) had enabled the Egyptians to claim wealth and other resources such as manpower as slaves. Consequently, the slaves were ordered to construct the numerous majestic monuments that still stand today. Especially favoured were the god Amun and his great temple at Karnak, in the capital Thebes.

Therefore, without conflict with other nations, these valuable resources would not have been available to the Egyptian Empire. Conflict allows interaction between perhaps two greatly differing nations in terms of culture and resources and thus, this has allowed the Egyptian Empire to not only adopt certain ideas but also to gain certain resources that are sure to benefit the empire. Although commerce does play a part, we believe that conflict is indeed a major reason why the Egyptians were able to rise to such prominence and why they had superiority. Although they were superior, they had to come to a downfall. As The last king of the New Kingdom, Ramesses III, died, there was civil unrest among the people. The kingdom fragmented and a new dynasty had begun.