Like the Mesopotamian nation, ancient Egypt uses the authority and religion of the king to unite the group. Rather, as I mentioned earlier, the unified nation by the king is faster than Mesopotamia.
By the way, Egypt has been believed to have a religion centered on the sun god Ra. This time, I would like to take a look at the dynasty that emerged in ancient Egypt.
Let's take a look at the first country to emerge in Egypt
The Egyptian king was called the Pharaoh and practiced theocracy to worship the king as a living god. The king owns the land and operates the country in such a way as to give it to a small number of priests and officials, but most of the other inhabitants were tax-controlled and unpaid. yes.
The pyramid was built by those who were exclusively gathered from among those with such status. Famous as the tomb of King Khufu, the construction of this pyramid means that "the king had tremendous power."
It seems that the situation was not forced by slaves as was said before, and it is said that even in the Kofun period in Japan, making tumuli was a part of the work making during the off-farm period in Egypt, just as it was a public project. ..
The first prosperous Old Kingdom in Egypt
Pyramid And Sphinx It was Old Kingdom that had the kingship enough to make such a building. .. Memphis It prospered mainly in the city called.
Old Kingdom Has built a unified dynasty for a very long time, nearly 500 years, and as it approaches the end of the period, the bureaucracy becomes bloated and puts pressure on public finances. In addition, the pyramids, which were elaborately made at the beginning, will begin to deteriorate and collapse at the end of the period.
It's just an imagination, but
As a result of trying to improve work efficiency, the number of officials increased and it became financially difficult ...
- Public works tended to be cut off
- I tried to hire as few dedicated people as possible with skills
Etc. may have happened. At the same time
Although it also played a role as a public project during the off-season, if the number of employees is reduced or the number of businesses is reduced, the number of people who get out of work will increase and security will deteriorate. Tax revenue will also be worse.
In addition, it is thought that "I want something to swear" when security deteriorates or the country loses control. In fact, in addition to the belief in the sun god Ra, the belief in the underworld and the resurrected god Osiris seems to have spread to the general public at the end of the Old Kingdom.
- Osiris' faith has become full-fledged
- Revival of public works
Seems to be one of the causes of building a building, and it is thought that quarrying, copper quarrying, stone materials, etc. were required more than before.
Already Mesopotamia And Syria Akkadian Since a unified nation was established by Akkad, it would have been necessary to negotiate with Akkad and the Sinai Peninsula / Palestine in front of Akkad to acquire the materials used to make the building. The higher the demand, the harder it would be to negotiate because the other party would want a higher priced item, and it could well lead to a military expedition.
In fact, not only trade negotiations with the Sinai Peninsula and Palestine, but also traces of repeated military expeditions remain in modern times, and these expeditions also spurred financial deterioration.
Due to the above circumstances, Old Kingdom The political system has lost power and lacked control, and the state and officials of each region have come to power.
What is the Middle Kingdom that prospered next to the Old Kingdom? ??
Old Kingdom lost leadership Memphis in the center of Egypt due to the decline of From Thebes in Upper Egypt (upstream of the Nile) Move on to.
Akkad, which already governs the entire Mesopotamia, is Middle Kingdom Although it was destroyed in the middle of the era, Third Dynasty of Ur And Assyrian Kingdom A powerful kingdom that inherits advanced technologies such as these exists in Mesopotamia. Old Kingdom We also conducted a military expedition against Mesopotamia, but Middle Kingdom Is Mesopotamia Syria with a close relationship with It seems that he intends to coexist with and exchanges centered on trade. On the other hand, Nubia in southern Egypt came to be dominated without forgetting to expand its territory.
Also, Syria Expanded the waterway from the Nile to Lake Qarun (now the remnant of which remains as Lake Karoon) that existed in ancient Egypt during the time when it was trading with Egypt, and the area around it is one of Egypt's leading We cultivated the area of Qarun and increased its national power.
Egyptian literature was born in the Middle Kingdom It is said that it is the age of. However, such a Middle Kingdom So that the shadow gradually begins to appear even in the heyday of.
When confusion occurs due to the succession of the throne inside, the kingship is weakened at once. Meanwhile, Anatolia Then Hittite But Mesopotamia Most of the Babylonian dynasty But further east Iran So Kassites Will grow in power.
Perhaps such a powerful country lost its place due to the turmoil and the ongoing war. Hyksos Nomads called nomads invaded Egypt and lost part of their territory.
The birth of a new kingdom that banished Hyksos
New Kingdom that emerged in the 16th century BC Is Middle Kingdom Nomadic Hyksos Not only exiled, but also extended territory to Palestine and Syria Succeeded in. Build the most prosperous civilization in ancient Egypt. Glittering works of art (Amarna art) such as the golden mask of Tutankhamen and the bust of Nefertiti were also created during this period.
New Kingdom Egypt Anatolia a little away from Based in Hittite Is Syria Advance in the direction. New Kingdom of Egypt Also Syria As a matter of course, the two countries will collide with each other because they have advanced to. Battle of Kadesh in 1286 BC Is the first military record in history, a battle that will remain in posterity after codifying a peace treaty. Egypt once acquired the territory, but eventually it was once again acquired by the Hittites.
Nomadic Hebrews in Egypt at a similar time (Called himself an Israeli) escaped Egypt to withstand the oppression of the Pharaoh ( Exodus ) And lay the foundation for building a country in southern Palestine. Furthermore, at the same time as the Hebrews, Arameans , Phoenicians Is also creating a city-state, New Kingdom of Egypt Was dominated by Palestine And Syria Will leave that hand.
Meanwhile, " Sea People Suddenly appears and destroys the Hittites. The details of where the people of this sea came from are not well understood, but the people of this sea also invaded Egypt. The New Kingdom of Egypt has repelled the people of this sea, but the invasion by Libyan people from the west also greatly reduced the territory, and around 1070 BC New Kingdom Has come to an end.
After the prosperity period ...
New Kingdom After the decline, military inferiority to other countries will continue. Southern Nubia dominated by Egypt On the contrary, it came to dominate the whole of Egypt, and Assyrian Kingdom which covered a wide range from Mesopotamia to Palestine. After many twists and turns, the ancient Egyptian dynasty can survive even after the fall of the New Kingdom.
Then, around the 7th century BC, the Persian Achaemenid Empire destroyed the media in northern Iran and gradually approached the west. Is dominated by. Once repelled, but re-dominated, 11 years later the ancient Greeks built the Macedonian Kingdom . Alexander the Great To be dominated by.
Alexander the Great seems to have been favorably accepted as a pharaoh (compared to Persia), as Egypt's rule by Persia had not yet taken root.
However, after Alexander the Great died, a dispute between his successors broke out. One of them opens a new dynasty as an Egyptian pharaoh, but declines due to the conflict over Syria and the growing influence of the Roman Republic. Eventually, it was defeated by Rome, the champion of the Mediterranean Sea at that time, and the independence dynasty of ancient Egypt in 30 BC ended.