![]() ![]() After Tutankhamen, a series of three military leaders and government officials in turn assumed the throne. Akhenaton moved the capital out into a new desert city that was abandoned after the traditional religion and government were restored. Tutankhamen’s reign marked the end of what is known as the Amarna Interlude, a sixteen-year period of revolution in Ancient Egypt when the religious fanatic Akhenaton mandated that his “personal god,” Aton, be the only one worshipped. Ramses came to power approximately 46 years after the death of Tutankhamen. The pharaohs of the New Kingdom were kings of a massive nation, and many of their tremendous works, temples and fortresses are still extant today as testament. When the young Ramses came to power, 1300 years had already passed since the time of the Fourth Dynasty, the dynasty that is traditionally associated with the famous pyramids and Sphinx of the Giza plateau (although much evidence suggests that they were constructed many years before even the first historical dynasty). He was a pharaoh of the Nineteenth Dynasty, during the New Kingdom. Ramses II ruled for 67 years during the 13th Century BC. The system of dynasties dates back to the third century BC, when the High Priest of Heliopolis, Manetho, defined the basic Egyptian chronology still in use today. In an effort to handle the 3,000 years of Egyptian history which includes 170 or so pharaohs, Egyptologists have divided Ancient Egypt into Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom and New Kingdom, with intermediate periods in between. Ramses’ place in Ancient Egyptian History Finally, the astute history student will know that Ramses II, popularly known as “Ramses the Great,” built more temples, statues and obelisks than any other pharaoh of Ancient Egypt. A series of best selling novels has recently been written based on the life of Ramses II. Many may remember him from Shelly’s famous, if historically inaccurate, poem, “Ozymandias.” Some associate him with “Pharaoh” from the Biblical story of the Exodus. ![]() Even if little importance is currently placed on knowledge of ancient history, legends of this great ruler still live on. Returning to our “name that pharaoh” question, if the average person were to be able to name a second pharaoh, it would almost surely be Ramses II. Outside of the contents of his tomb, little is known of his reign, and he is not considered to be a pharaoh of major importance. If, today, at the end of the twentieth century, one were to ask the average person to name an Egyptian pharaoh, the reply would probably be, “Tutankhamen.” This, of course, is due to the highly unusual discovery by Howard Carter in 1922 of the child-king’s small but almost intact tomb.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |