His popularity may have been due to a combination of the prosperity that Egypt enjoyed under his reign as well as his skill as a propagandist. One very famous example was in 1922 when archaeologist Howard Carter discovered the tomb of King Tutankhamen, a pharaoh who died when he was only nineteen. It seems like Ramses II was an admired pharaoh, both during and after his lifetime. Explorers and archaeologists have discovered these tombs and learned a great deal about ancient Egyptian society from them. Hatshepsut, in particular, was a successful ruler, but many inscriptions and monuments about her were destroyed after her death-perhaps to stop future women from becoming pharaohs.Īfter their deaths, many pharaohs were entombed and surrounded by riches they were meant to use in the afterlife. Pharaohs were typically male, although there were some noteworthy female leaders, like Hatshepsut and Cleopatra. Though there is some debate among experts, many believe he was the first ruler to unite upper and lower Egypt (this is why pharaohs hold the title of “lord of two lands”). Many scholars believe the first pharaoh was Narmer, also called Menes. As a statesman, the pharaoh made laws, waged war, collected taxes, and oversaw all the land in Egypt (which was owned by the pharaoh). Ramesses II is arguably one of the most influential and remembered pharaohs of ancient Egypt. Maintaining religious harmony and participating in ceremonies were part of the pharaoh’s role as head of the religion. The ostentatious pharaoh is best remembered for his exploits at the Battle of Kadesh, his architectural legacy, and for bringing Egypt into its golden age. While early Egyptian rulers were called “kings,” over time, the name “pharaoh” stuck.Īs the religious leader of the Egyptians, the pharaoh was considered the divine intermediary between the gods and Egyptians. 1279-1213 BC) was undoubtedly the greatest pharaoh of the 19th Dynasty and one of the most important leaders of ancient Egypt. The word “pharaoh” means “Great House,” a reference to the palace where the pharaoh resides. Ramesses II was well suited to this kind of role, and the gods gave him a reign of 67 years in which to perfect his act.As ancient Egyptian rulers, pharaohs were both the heads of state and the religious leaders of their people. These were the hard acts which it was Ramesses' destiny to follow, and one way of doing this would be to upstage the past by ostentation, thereby eclipsing it. Before this, however, lay the family of the Tuthmosids, a dynasty which was associated with prosperity, elegance, and the growth of empire.Īnother figure that loomed over the king was his father, Seti I, whose reign saw military success as well as achieving one of the high points of Egyptian art, marked by sensitivity, balance and restraint. When Ramesses II turned his attention to recent history, he would have seen the upheavals of the Amarna period, an episode which needed to be purged from the record. The man who became Ozymandias was the grandson of Ramesses I, a solid figure, but essentially a provincial bureaucrat who had had greatness thrust upon him. If kings of Egypt were great by definition, there could be nothing wrong in going out of one's way to be the greatest: this was simply the logic of Pharaonic kingship.Īnother mitigating factor is the humble origin of Ramesses' family. The twin temples of Abu Simbel in Nubia, though by no means understated, are masterpieces of land- and river-scaping, as well as being political propaganda skilfully translated into stone.Ī more abstract point in the king's defence is that modesty was never considered to be a Pharaonic virtue. The temple-building programme instigated by Ramesses may have been rushed, but it turned out to be the most extensive ever achieved by a single Pharaoh in all Ancient Egypt's 30 dynasties, and some of the king's monuments, such as the delicate temple built at Abydos next to the larger complex of his father, show refinement and even understatement. The treaty covers extradition, arbitration of disputes, and mutual economic aid, a clause which was later honoured by the Egyptians when their old enemies were afflicted with food shortage. The empty victory of Qadesh was followed by a greater achievement, an international peace treaty with the Hittites, a copy of which is now on the wall of the General Assembly building of the United Nations.
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