Geography
Ancient Egyptians thought of Egypt divided as two different lands,
the "black" land and the "red" land.
The "black" land was fertile land across the Nile.
The Egyptians used this land for growing crops.
This was the only land they farmed on because a layer
of silt would be dropped after the Nile flooded.
The "red" land was and empty desert that protected Egypt.
They separated Egypt from neighboring countries and invading
armies. These deserts also provided metals and semi-precious stones.
About an inch of rain falls every year. Each summer the river rises
because it's at its source to the south of Ethiopia.
Fertile Land
This was the most important thing the Nile River provided for the Egyptians. Most of Egypt is desert but along the river the soil is rich and good for growing crops. Wheat, flax and papyrus were the three most important crops.
Wheat- This was the main staple food of Egypt. Wheat was used to make bread. Egyptians sold a lot of this throughout the Middle East to make themselves rich
Flax- This was used to make linen cloth for clothing. Flax was the main type of cloth used by Egyptians.
Papyrus- Papyrus was a plant grown along the shores of the Nile River. The Egyptians found uses for this plant including paper, baskets, rope, and sandals.
The Geography of Egypt
Like the Tigris and Euphrates, the Nile flooded every year. The floodwaters that poured over the riverbanks covered the land with a rich black silt. The richest and most fertile soils in all Egypt were found in the Nile Delta. A delta is at the mouth of a river, usually triangle-shaped, made up of silt deposits. Because the Nile is so long and carries so much silt, its delta is one of the largest in the world. The dark color of the Nile river silt gave rise to the Egyptians’ name for their country—the Black Land. They called the surrounding desert the Red Land. The Sahara was so difficult to cross that it discouraged peoples from invading.
The Nile itself also helped prevent invasions. South of Egypt, the Nile flowed through a series of cataracts, rocky stretches marked by swift currents and rapids. Because of these dangerous currents and falls, boats could not sail through the Nile’s cataracts. People from the areas south of Egypt could not use the Nile as an easy invasion route.
Lower and Upper Egypt
The first farming villages appeared as early as 5000 B.C. along the Nile. Overtime, these villages separated into two kingdoms. The people of these kingdoms spoke different dialects, or the same language but different versions and had different customs.
In the northern kingdom,Lower Egypt was located and the lower end of the Nile. It had most of the Nile delta, where the climate was milder. in Lower Egypt, the people worshipped a cobra goddess, and as a result was their symbol of their kingdom.
In the southern kingdom, Upper Egypt, that lay upon the rivers upper stretches. It stretched from the south of the delta to about the first cataract. The upper Egyptians prayed to a vulture goddess, so as a result a vulture became their symbol.
Old Kingdom
Rise of the Third Dynasty in about 2650 BC lasted about 500 years. Egyptians of the Old Kingdom created many institutions for which the civilization was best known.
Pyramids
Pyramids are the most famous symbols of Ancient Egypt. Most of the huge structures were built in the Old Kingdom. The most famous and largest pyramid was located near the town of.
These pyramids were built as tombs for Egypt's rulers. Each pyramid had a hollow chamber in which a dead king was buried inside or below. To protect the bodies and other treasures, Egyptians placed deadly traps in the pyramid.
The early pyramids did not have smooth sides, instead their sides looks like stairs. What we know now as the smooth-sided pyramids were built later.
Pyramids took a long time to build so their kings ordered them to be built right after he took throne. Workers then built the pyramids from the inside out, starting with limestone blocks being placed.
Pharaohs
The head of the government was the king, who later became known as the "pharaoh." The pharaohs had absolute power in Egypt. They owned all of the land in the country and their word was the law. Pharaohs acted as judges and as the leaders of Egypt's army.The reason for all of this power was the belief that he was a god. The ancient Egyptians believed he was a god in human form. The pharaoh had his priests perform elaborate rituals everyday to ensure that the sun will rise, crops will continue to grow and the Nile would flood. For this, people honored the pharaoh.
Since the pharaoh was thought to be a god, religion was very important as well as the government in the Old Kingdom, Egypt was a theocracy. Which means it is a state ruled by religious figures.
Middle Kingdom
Eventually, the Old Kingdom lost power. The government of the Old Kingdom collapsed around 2100 BC. Invasions, economic problems and civil wars racked Egypt. Famine and disease spread and added more issues. In about 2055 BC, a new dynasty grew called the Middle Kingdom. The power of this dynasty brought stability back but economic prosperity came along with it. The Middle Kingdom pharaohs encouraged sailors and merchants to import goods from surrounding lands.
Although trade routes were not always safe, hostile tribes and bandits attacked merchants. To protect them, pharaohs sent armies to secure this route. As part of this, they built fortresses all along the Nile. The Middle Kingdom fell to invaders around 1650 BC. The Hyksos invaded the Nile delta and conquered Lower Egypt. The Hyksos had technologies such as the horse-drawn chariot, armor and a strong bow.
New Kingdom
The Hyksos ruled Egypt for about 100 years. The Egyptians resented in being ruled by foreigners. Eventually, they rose up and drove the Hyksos out.
Years of Hyksos hard ruling, it taught the Egyptians a hard lesson. They could not depend on geographic barriers to protect them. The pharaohs then had to find a new way to secure Egypt's borders and keep the kingdom safe.
New Kingdom pharaohs decided the best way to protect Egypt was to build a powerful army.
They created the Egypt’s first permanent army. The Egyptian army included archers and charioteers with weapons adopted from the Hyksos. To prevent foreign people from taking over Egypt , pharaohs decided to create an empire of their own. As part of their empire building, the pharaohs headed south into Nubia, which they had lost during the period of Hyksos ruling. In Nubia, they conquered the kingdom of Kush and forced its rulers to pay tribute to Egypt.
Even as their armies were invading Nubia, the pharaohs led campaigns east into Asia. They attacked and took over almost the entire Sinai Peninsula and parts of Phoenicia and Syria. As the map to the left shows, the Egyptians formed an empire that reached from southern Nubia all the way to the Euphrates.
Hatsheput
Hatsheput was one of the few women to rule Egypt. She took power in 1500 BC when her husband died. She was ruling in the name of her young son. She proclaimed herself to be Egypt's pharaoh, the only women to do so.
Hatsheput wanted to be treated like all of the other pharaohs, so she acted like it. She dressed like a man,wearing the false beard that male pharaohs wore. She even referred to herself as the son-not the daughter-of the sun god and had statues made so she appeared as a man.
When Hatshepsut died, her nephew took over as pharaoh. His first act as a ruler was to destroy almost everything his aunt had created. He destroyed statues, removed her name from monuments, and tried to remove all record of her reign.
Monotheism
A new pharaoh took power in about 1353 BC, his name was Amenhotep IV but was more commonly known as Akhenaten. He worshipped only one god and that was the sun god and believed everyone should do the same. Part of the changes he introduced to Egypt was banned the worship of any gods but Aten. Out of respect for his god, he built a new capital called Akhenaten.
The worship of Aten did not survive Akhenaten’s death. The next pharaoh, Tutankhamon, or Tut, restored the worship of Egypt’s traditional gods and moved the kingdom’s capital back to Thebes.
Ramses the Great
The Egyptians continued to expand their empire during the New Kingdom. Bout 1250 BC, a new enemy threatened the empire. The Hittites from Mesopotamia invaded Egyptian-held Syria and began to take their territory.
Ramses the Great led his army out to confront the Hittites. The Hittite records show that the Egyptians lost the battle. But Egyptian records show a great victory for Ramses.
Ancient Egyptians thought of Egypt divided as two different lands,
the "black" land and the "red" land.
The "black" land was fertile land across the Nile.
The Egyptians used this land for growing crops.
This was the only land they farmed on because a layer
of silt would be dropped after the Nile flooded.
The "red" land was and empty desert that protected Egypt.
They separated Egypt from neighboring countries and invading
armies. These deserts also provided metals and semi-precious stones.
About an inch of rain falls every year. Each summer the river rises
because it's at its source to the south of Ethiopia.
Fertile Land
This was the most important thing the Nile River provided for the Egyptians. Most of Egypt is desert but along the river the soil is rich and good for growing crops. Wheat, flax and papyrus were the three most important crops.
Wheat- This was the main staple food of Egypt. Wheat was used to make bread. Egyptians sold a lot of this throughout the Middle East to make themselves rich
Flax- This was used to make linen cloth for clothing. Flax was the main type of cloth used by Egyptians.
Papyrus- Papyrus was a plant grown along the shores of the Nile River. The Egyptians found uses for this plant including paper, baskets, rope, and sandals.
The Geography of Egypt
Like the Tigris and Euphrates, the Nile flooded every year. The floodwaters that poured over the riverbanks covered the land with a rich black silt. The richest and most fertile soils in all Egypt were found in the Nile Delta. A delta is at the mouth of a river, usually triangle-shaped, made up of silt deposits. Because the Nile is so long and carries so much silt, its delta is one of the largest in the world. The dark color of the Nile river silt gave rise to the Egyptians’ name for their country—the Black Land. They called the surrounding desert the Red Land. The Sahara was so difficult to cross that it discouraged peoples from invading.
The Nile itself also helped prevent invasions. South of Egypt, the Nile flowed through a series of cataracts, rocky stretches marked by swift currents and rapids. Because of these dangerous currents and falls, boats could not sail through the Nile’s cataracts. People from the areas south of Egypt could not use the Nile as an easy invasion route.
Lower and Upper Egypt
The first farming villages appeared as early as 5000 B.C. along the Nile. Overtime, these villages separated into two kingdoms. The people of these kingdoms spoke different dialects, or the same language but different versions and had different customs.
In the northern kingdom,Lower Egypt was located and the lower end of the Nile. It had most of the Nile delta, where the climate was milder. in Lower Egypt, the people worshipped a cobra goddess, and as a result was their symbol of their kingdom.
In the southern kingdom, Upper Egypt, that lay upon the rivers upper stretches. It stretched from the south of the delta to about the first cataract. The upper Egyptians prayed to a vulture goddess, so as a result a vulture became their symbol.
Old Kingdom
Rise of the Third Dynasty in about 2650 BC lasted about 500 years. Egyptians of the Old Kingdom created many institutions for which the civilization was best known.
Pyramids
Pyramids are the most famous symbols of Ancient Egypt. Most of the huge structures were built in the Old Kingdom. The most famous and largest pyramid was located near the town of.
These pyramids were built as tombs for Egypt's rulers. Each pyramid had a hollow chamber in which a dead king was buried inside or below. To protect the bodies and other treasures, Egyptians placed deadly traps in the pyramid.
The early pyramids did not have smooth sides, instead their sides looks like stairs. What we know now as the smooth-sided pyramids were built later.
Pyramids took a long time to build so their kings ordered them to be built right after he took throne. Workers then built the pyramids from the inside out, starting with limestone blocks being placed.
Pharaohs
The head of the government was the king, who later became known as the "pharaoh." The pharaohs had absolute power in Egypt. They owned all of the land in the country and their word was the law. Pharaohs acted as judges and as the leaders of Egypt's army.The reason for all of this power was the belief that he was a god. The ancient Egyptians believed he was a god in human form. The pharaoh had his priests perform elaborate rituals everyday to ensure that the sun will rise, crops will continue to grow and the Nile would flood. For this, people honored the pharaoh.
Since the pharaoh was thought to be a god, religion was very important as well as the government in the Old Kingdom, Egypt was a theocracy. Which means it is a state ruled by religious figures.
Middle Kingdom
Eventually, the Old Kingdom lost power. The government of the Old Kingdom collapsed around 2100 BC. Invasions, economic problems and civil wars racked Egypt. Famine and disease spread and added more issues. In about 2055 BC, a new dynasty grew called the Middle Kingdom. The power of this dynasty brought stability back but economic prosperity came along with it. The Middle Kingdom pharaohs encouraged sailors and merchants to import goods from surrounding lands.
Although trade routes were not always safe, hostile tribes and bandits attacked merchants. To protect them, pharaohs sent armies to secure this route. As part of this, they built fortresses all along the Nile. The Middle Kingdom fell to invaders around 1650 BC. The Hyksos invaded the Nile delta and conquered Lower Egypt. The Hyksos had technologies such as the horse-drawn chariot, armor and a strong bow.
New Kingdom
The Hyksos ruled Egypt for about 100 years. The Egyptians resented in being ruled by foreigners. Eventually, they rose up and drove the Hyksos out.
Years of Hyksos hard ruling, it taught the Egyptians a hard lesson. They could not depend on geographic barriers to protect them. The pharaohs then had to find a new way to secure Egypt's borders and keep the kingdom safe.
New Kingdom pharaohs decided the best way to protect Egypt was to build a powerful army.
They created the Egypt’s first permanent army. The Egyptian army included archers and charioteers with weapons adopted from the Hyksos. To prevent foreign people from taking over Egypt , pharaohs decided to create an empire of their own. As part of their empire building, the pharaohs headed south into Nubia, which they had lost during the period of Hyksos ruling. In Nubia, they conquered the kingdom of Kush and forced its rulers to pay tribute to Egypt.
Even as their armies were invading Nubia, the pharaohs led campaigns east into Asia. They attacked and took over almost the entire Sinai Peninsula and parts of Phoenicia and Syria. As the map to the left shows, the Egyptians formed an empire that reached from southern Nubia all the way to the Euphrates.
Hatsheput
Hatsheput was one of the few women to rule Egypt. She took power in 1500 BC when her husband died. She was ruling in the name of her young son. She proclaimed herself to be Egypt's pharaoh, the only women to do so.
Hatsheput wanted to be treated like all of the other pharaohs, so she acted like it. She dressed like a man,wearing the false beard that male pharaohs wore. She even referred to herself as the son-not the daughter-of the sun god and had statues made so she appeared as a man.
When Hatshepsut died, her nephew took over as pharaoh. His first act as a ruler was to destroy almost everything his aunt had created. He destroyed statues, removed her name from monuments, and tried to remove all record of her reign.
Monotheism
A new pharaoh took power in about 1353 BC, his name was Amenhotep IV but was more commonly known as Akhenaten. He worshipped only one god and that was the sun god and believed everyone should do the same. Part of the changes he introduced to Egypt was banned the worship of any gods but Aten. Out of respect for his god, he built a new capital called Akhenaten.
The worship of Aten did not survive Akhenaten’s death. The next pharaoh, Tutankhamon, or Tut, restored the worship of Egypt’s traditional gods and moved the kingdom’s capital back to Thebes.
Ramses the Great
The Egyptians continued to expand their empire during the New Kingdom. Bout 1250 BC, a new enemy threatened the empire. The Hittites from Mesopotamia invaded Egyptian-held Syria and began to take their territory.
Ramses the Great led his army out to confront the Hittites. The Hittite records show that the Egyptians lost the battle. But Egyptian records show a great victory for Ramses.