10 Famous Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt

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Ancient Egypt stands for pharaohs, pyramids, mummies, and a thousand hidden mysteries in the hot sands of the desert. The rulers of Egypt at that time were called pharaohs. They were generally regarded as rulers and representatives of the people as the kings of Egypt. By descent and succession, the royal crown was transferred to the child after the death of the guardian. Flowing like a torrent through the reigns of countless pharaohs, Egypt has gone down in history as one of the world's greatest ancient civilizations.

The colossal statues of the pharaohs at Abu Simbel in Egypt; Image Source: Pixabay.

Narmer

Narmer is said to be the first pharaoh of Egypt. But according to some, Menes deserves the credit of being the first pharaoh of Egypt. But that exists only in folklore. Researchers have not found any archaeological evidence that 'Menes was the first pharaoh'. Rather, all the archaeological evidence leans towards Narmer.

Pharaoh Narmer in Artist's Tully; Image Source: Sara Mansour.

Predynastic King Ka's successor Narmar ascended the throne of Egypt around 3150 BC. He was the founder of the first dynasty of ancient Egypt, which united the upper and lower lands of Egypt. Many people claim that the achievement of uniting the two lands is not entirely Narmer's. Because the plan to unite the two lands had already started before 3150 BC. But Narmar completed this task.

In 1898, British archaeologists Quibell and Greene recovered an inscription called the Narmer Palette from the temple of the god Horus. It is from there that we first get an idea of Narmar's identity.

Hatshefut

Among the 170 pharaohs who ruled the kingdom on the throne of ancient Egypt for about 3,000 thousand years, the number of women was only 7. But this is only the opinion of historians. Because, from the pages of history, attempts have been made to erase the letters of women's rule. Hatshepsut's name will definitely come up first in this discussion. She was referred to as the 'Chief of Noble Women'. As the fifth ruler of Egypt's 18th Dynasty, Hatshepsut ruled the kingdom from 1478 BC to 1458 BC. Having royal blood in his body, he got all the qualities of royalty. She was the daughter of Pharaoh Thutmose I and his chief wife Queen Ahmose.

Handcrafted by the artist; Image Source: Francisco Segovia.

It is believed that Thutmose I wanted his daughter to take the throne. Hatshepsut ascended the throne after her husband's death. He has taken care of the state for 21 consecutive years. The development of the kingdom during his reign was something that many male pharaohs failed to achieve. Foreign communication, exports, various construction works were carried out as well as the people lived happily and peacefully during his rule.

Handcrafted by the artist; Image Source: Zsolt ekho Farkas.

Hatshepsut's name has not been erased from the history of ancient Egypt because of her incredible foresight. Thinking that his name will be erased from history, he has built numerous royal architectures, tombs, temples. Ancient Egypt's famous Karnak Temple and Ma'at Temple were built under his direction. That's why Hatshepsut's name is indelible in the pages of history despite being a female ruler.

Thutmose III

Thutmose III, son of Hatshepsut and Pharaoh Thutmose II, was a pharaoh of the 18th dynasty. When Thutmose II passed away, Thutmose III was barely 2 years old. Although he was supposed to sit on the throne as an only child, his mother Hatshepsut ascended the throne due to age. After Hatshepsut's death in 1481 BC, Thutmose III took over. During his long reign of 54 years, he gave a lot to the Egyptian civilization. He had a fair share of both expansion and conquest. He brought victory to Egypt by showing skillful tactics in many battles during his lifetime. Defeated the external enemies with great glory. Like his mother, he also built many political buildings, temples and structures. Notable among his works are the Festival Hall, the Seven-Pyron of Karnak, and the Temples of Deir-el-Bahri.

Thutmose III; Image Source: Wu Tao.

Ramesses II

Ramesses II, the third pharaoh of the 19th Dynasty, and ruler of the New Kingdom, is considered one of Egypt's greatest pharaohs. Egyptians also love to call him 'The Great Ancestor'. An illustrious life of victories, many successful military campaigns and invasions against the formidable Hittites, Syrians and Nubians made him unique. It is believed that there is no other pharaoh who can match him in architecture. An abundance of architecture built during his time still stands, forming part of the ancient heritage of present-day Egypt. He died at the age of 90 and was buried in the Valley of the Kings.

Face of the aged Ramesses II created with face reconstruction technology; Image Source: Curtis Durane.

Interestingly, Rameses has an official passport even though he died a thousand years ago. His mummy had to be sent to France for research. That's why Egyptian archeology authorities created a passport for Pharaoh Ramesses II's air travel. His name and identity are all kept there, and the occupation is given as 'King'. He was accorded full military honors at the airport.

Passport of Ramesses II; Image Source: Heritage Daily.

Amenhotep III

The reign of Amenhotep III is a chapter of success and prosperity in history. He was the ninth pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty, whose reign spanned from 1391 BC to 1353 BC. Egypt's economy flourished during his reign. He especially focused on business. Many statues, monuments, minarets built by him still survive. This peaceful pharaoh appreciated art and culture. During his 37-year reign, he married many princesses of neighboring kingdoms just to avoid wars and maintain peace. The best example of his architecture is Luxor Temple in Thebes. The popularity of this temple in Egypt is sky high. Amenhotep built about a hundred statues of himself. No other pharaoh in Egyptian history built so many statues of himself.

Amenhotep III; Image Source: British Museum

Akhenaten

Pharaoh Akhenaten is also known as Amenhotep IV. This pharaoh of the 18th dynasty, who ruled from 1353 BC to 1336 BC, broke the traditional shell and made many changes in ancient Egyptian religion. Polytheism was prevalent in prehistoric Egypt. Akhenaten's previous pharaohs followed exactly the same path. But Akhenaten went against the tide.

According to Akhenaten, there is only one God, Aten or the sun-god. He spread his doctrine throughout Egypt. He asked everyone to keep the concept of monotheism in their hearts by excluding the worship of many gods. At the same time the sun god ordered to worship Aten. This process of breaking old traditions against local people and priests was not easy at all. Yet he was steadfast in his new ideology. Pharaoh Amenhotep IV changed his name to Akhenaten. The word Akhenaten means son of the sun-god. But with his death, everyone returned to their ancient religion and smashed all the statues of Akhenaten. Out of anger and hatred he was also removed from the list of kings.

Akhenaten; Image Source: Shane Greer.

Tutankhamen

The golden mask of Tutankhamen is probably the most used image after the pyramids in the context of ancient Egypt. But not as a warrior or ruler, Tutankhamen is popular in Egyptian history because of his famous curse incident. Pharaoh Tutankhamen was a king of the 18th dynasty of Egyptian pharaohs. He was born in the house of his father Akhenaten around 1341 BC. After the death of his father, he was placed on the throne at the age of eight, shouldering the responsibility of running the country. But his reign was very short (1333 BC – 1323 BC). Only ten years as a year. He died at the age of eighteen. Being king at such a young age, he is also known as 'Kishor King'. A 2010 study found that the king's blood was deficient in red blood cells. A virtual autopsy of Tut in 2014 revealed a bone disease in his left leg.

There was no less water-stirring about his mummy. In the 1920s, there was a worldwide debate whether Tutankhamen's mummy was cursed. All those who were involved in the recovery of the mummies lost their lives in one or the other accident within a few days. Is it really so?

Artist's portrait of Pharaoh Tutankhamun; Image Source: Art Station.

Joser

The sun of the Third Dynasty had not yet risen in the sky of ancient Egypt. Even then, the main raw materials for building a building, building, tomb were clay bricks, wood or reeds. The current chain was broken by the first pharaoh of the third dynasty, Joser. This pharaoh of the ninth dynasty of the ancient empire reigned in Egypt from 2630 BC to 2611 BC.

During his reign, the Step-Pyramid at Saqqara is claimed to be the first building in the world, made entirely of stone. Prior to this, the use of stone in building construction in ancient Egypt was limited to the construction of doors or main burial chambers. About 4,700 years ago, this step-pyramid was designed by the ancient Egyptian architect Imhotep.

Pharaoh Joser Step Pyramid; Image Source: Pixabay.

The magnificent architecture of the Step-Pyramid and its complex greatly attracted and pleased Joser. He was very proud of this pyramid. That's why he gave unique respect to its architect Imhotep. The step-pyramid of the ancient world is still a mystery to architects, followed by many later Egyptian architects.

Pharaoh Joser ;Image Source: Pixabay

Khufu

The second pharaoh 'Khufu' of the fourth dynasty of the ancient empire reigned from 2589 to 2566 BC. Although Khufu may not have gifted Egypt much during his reign, he is most famous in history for building the Great Pyramid of Giza. According to legend, there is a huge secret chamber about 455 feet hidden somewhere inside this pyramid. And that room is full of precious gems. Pharaoh Khufu or the Great Pyramid of Giza is the tallest and largest of all the pyramids in Egypt. The architects of that time built the Great Pyramid using the full magic of their hands to show how advanced they were in knowledge and science even in ancient times.

The Pyramids of Giza; Image Source: Pixabay.

Cleopatra VII

From the ancient history of the world to the present day, the name of Cleopatra, the beauty queen of Egypt, will be at the top. Not only in beauty, but also in the race of intelligence, she was quite ahead.

Cleopatra VII or Cleopatra Philopator was the last pharaoh of ancient Egypt. There were six Cleopatras before her birth, but unfortunately none were as historically-famous as her. Before his father, Ptolemy XII, died, power was divided between his children Ptolemy XIII and Cleopatra VII. Since sibling marriage was the custom of ancient Egyptian dynasties, Cleopatra and Ptolemy XIII were married and ruled Egypt together.

Cleopatra VII; Image Source: Art Station.

Attracted by Queen Cleopatra's beauty and intelligence, Emperor Julius Caesar fell in love with her. During that time Cleopatra gave birth to a son by her lover, Julius Caesar, although Caesar never publicly recognized him as a boy. He proved himself as a worthy ruler by ruling Egypt from 51 BC to 30 BC. Cleopatra advanced Egypt economically. He maintained good relations with the outside world, both personally and politically. The export system also made great progress during that time.

From Shakespeare's literature to movies, series, dramas, stories are still written about him. But this beautiful and intelligent queen took captivity and became a slave in her last life. It is believed that he committed suicide at that time. With the death of Cleopatra VII, the sun of the reign of the Egyptian pharaohs set forever.