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A Timeline of Ancient Egypt. Early Dynastic Period (3000-2575 BC). The Age of State Formation: Dynasties 1-3 Around 3000 BC, driven by technological innovations and the growing needs of an expanding population, Ancient Egyptian civilization slowly emerged.
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Early Dynastic Period (3000-2575 BC) • The Age of State Formation: Dynasties 1-3 • Around 3000 BC, driven by technological innovations and the growing needs of an expanding population, Ancient Egyptian civilization slowly emerged. • The Early Dynastic Period is the culmination and the continuation of this evolution, a time when all aspects of the civilization were being defined.
Old Kingdom (2575-2150 BC) • The Age of the Pyramids: Dynasties 4-6 • With the central government’s power well-established throughout the country, Egypt entered an era of peace and stability. This resulted in building projects, including pyramids. • Building pyramids was only possible through an efficient administration and technological advances. • Arts peaked to a high and the solar cult became the driving force behind religion.
1st Intermediate Period (2150-2040 BC) • Decline and Civil War: Dynasties 7/8-11 • Towards the end of the 6th dynasty, the central government started losing control over the local provinces. • Several factors, including climatic changes, had allowed local governors to strengthen their positions and rule their provinces as if they were kings. • Out of this chaos arose two rival houses that would plunge Egypt into a civil war for control over the entire country.
Middle Kingdom (2040-1640 BC) • The Classical Era: Dynasties 11-13 • The reunification of Egypt by the Theban ruler Mentuhotep II ended the century of civil war and made Thebes one of the country’s most important religious and political centers. • This was a time of restoration when arts, crafts, and Egypt’s political power would flourish again to a new high.
2nd Intermediate Period (1640-1540 BC) • The Age of the Hyksos: Dynasties 14-17 • The kings of the 13th Dynasty gradually lost control over the central government, allowing local rulers to seize power. • Among them was a group of people of Asian origin known as Hyksos who would impose their reign on almost the entire country. • When the local Theban princes stopped recognizing the Hyksos as Egypt’s legitimate rulers, the struggle for freedom would begin.
New Kingdom (1540-1070 BC) • The Age of Empire: Dynasties 18-20 • Through a series of conquests, the Egyptians grained control over Syria-Palestine and Nubia. • Bounties and diplomatic gifts provided Egypt with enormous wealth. • Building projects of an unprecedented scale honored both the gods and the kings who had given Egypt its greatness.
Late Dynastic Period (1070-332 BC) • Decline of Power: Dynasties 21-30 • Dynastic feuds and the increased power of the Theban priests left Egypt unable to deal with the changing political situation in the Near-East. • The prestige it had held during the New Kingdom was lost along with its possessions in Syria-Palestine and Nubia. • Weakened and internally divided, Egypt lay open to attacks from Nubians, Assyrians, and Persians who would impose their rule with varying success.
Greek-Roman Period (332 BC-396 AD) • The Great Temples – Macedoneans, Ptolemies, and Romans • When it was conquered by the Macedonian Alexander the Great, Egypt became part of the Hellentistic world. • Alexander’s successors, the Ptolemies, ruled Egypt as an independent country and again made it one of the most prestigious countries in the world. • The coming of Christianity started the final decline of this ancient culture.
Credits • The History of Ancient Egypthttp://www.ancient-egypt.org/history/index.html