Rulers From Asia Essay, Research Paper

Rulers From Asia

After the fall of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt a group of nomadic people from Asia invaded and captured Lower Egypt. These people were called the Hyksos. Egypt lacked a standing army and their weapons were far inferior to that of the invaders. The weak rulers of the Thirteenth Dynasty led to an internal struggle within the government, thus ripping the empire into many small factions and leaving it open to attack. During this time a group of peoples from Asia immigrated to Egypt and slowly began to take-over the now divided government. This led to the separation of Upper and Lower Egypt. Though the Egyptians learned many new technologies, they still did not want the Hyksos in their lands. The Egyptian Pharaohs vowed to lead their armies to regain control of their lands, and expand their empire. Egypt, having a series of weak rulers, led to internal fighting which weakened the country. Egypt also had no standing army and its protective borders no longer a threat to invaders, a group of people from Asia the Hyksos, immigrated to Egypt, using their superior weaponry they took power and ruled Egypt for about one-hundred and fifty years.

The Pre-Dynastic period, pre 3150 BCE was a period of time when the nomads of Egypt started to settle, become farmers and build towns. Around 3150 BCE, Egypt was joined together under the rule of one pharaoh, Narmer, who for the first time in Egypts history ruled both upper and lower Egypt as one. Between the years 2700-2190 BCE, referred to as the Old Kingdom or as the Pyramid Age, was a time in which strong ruling families or dynasties were in power and ruled the land jointly. This was a time when the construction of the Great Pyramids on the Giza Plateau took place, including the Step Pyramid for King Zoser and the three large pyramids for the Kings Menkaure, Khafre, and Khufu. With the fall of the Old Kingdom around 2190 BCE, began a series of five dynasties that were mostly weak rulers. This is called the First Intermediate Period

Then in 1991 BCE, the Twelfth dynasty brought order to the turmoil and founded what is now called the Middle Kingdom. During this time Egypt took over Nubia and began trade with Palestine and Syria in southwest Asia. Also, this was time where arts and literature were promoted and flourished. But in the year 1786 BCE, the Middle Kingdom ended, leaving the kings of the next dynasties weak and without a standing army. This allowed for settlers from Asia to take gradual control over Egypt with their new and stronger weapons.

The Egyptians had no feasible way of stopping the Hyksos from taking control, of the country. Lower Egypt was unable to defend themselves because of the fighting between nobles and there was no army available to stop the invaders. In no time, the Hyksos had taken over all of the delta region, which shrank the portion of free Egypt into a small area up towards Nubia; Egypt?s long time enemy. As well as taking Egypt, they gave a large part of Egyptian land to Nubia. The major gold producing region of Egypt was now in the hands of their enemy. The Hyksos were not bad rulers though, taking care not to disturb the daily lives of the Egyptian people. The Hyksos did not force their religion upon the people of Egypt; in fact they began the practice of worshiping the Egyptian gods. Set became their primary deity. Along with these things the Hyksos, if unintentionally, brought many new technologies to Egypt. The wheel, chariot, composite bow, and very importantly, bronze (a copper and tin alloy) were introduced.

Regardless of all of the beneficial things from this occupation, the people of Egypt were not happy with the rule of a foreign power. The remaining people that lived in free Egypt began to develop feelings of unrest towards the Hyksos. After a time the indignities set upon the Egyptians began to pile up, and the city of Thebes went began to revolt. The Pharaoh Seqenenre was the first in a line of warrior kings that would lead the revolt against the Hyksos.

The campaign was short lived however. In 1576 BCE; Seqenenre was killed by a Hyksos battle-axe while in combat. Though Seqenenre had been killed, the revolt would continue with his son Kamose. Kamose was a spirited leader and vowed to his men ?I will grapple with him and rip open his belly, for my desire is to deliver Egypt and to smite the Asiatics?(Dersin p.108). The Asiatics he refers to are the Hyksos, and the one he wishes to ?grapple? with is their king. Kamose then sailed down river and regained Middle Egypt from the Hyksos. It is believed that Kamose was killed during the battle in retaking Middle Egypt, but scholars are unsure of what really happened. Ahhotep, Kamose?s now widowed mother ruled in her late son?s place until Ahmose, the younger brother, could take the throne. Then in 1560 BCE, Ahmose I waged a final campaign against the Hyksos. Finally the Hyksos had been forced out of the lands of Egypt and now Ahmose could sail up river to reclaim the lands lost to the Nubians.

Ahmose I brought about the New Kingdom in the year 1554 BCE. This was almost 150 years after the Hyksos invasion. This was also a time when Egypt was known to be the world?s greatest power. With the start of the eighteenth dynasty, a standing army was created, that used many of the weapons and innovations borrowed from the Hyksos. These armies would eventually march into and conquer most of southwest Asia. Egypt reached the height of its power around 1400 BCE, but continued to lead campaigns into Asia and gain control of their neighboring civilization Nubia. The country of Nubia was valuable in resources as well as slaves and other important commodities Egypt needed. Because of these many conquests Egypt became the strongest and richest civilization in the Mediterranean area. In1367 BCE, the pharaoh Amenhotep IV came to power. He worshiped a sun god called Aton, who was also the only god he worshiped. This made many Egyptians unhappy with his rule and monotheistic ideals. This sparked the Armarna revolution which ended his rule. It took his successor to put down the rebellion. This man would become the most widely known ruler in Egypt, King Tutankhamen. The next dynasties would see few problems. They erected many of the temples to the many different gods all over the face of Egypt, making sure to destroy all remnants of Amenhotep?s reign. Egypt began its last major decline by the Twentieth dynasty. This decline was rapid, and would soon be the end of the Egyptians ruling themselves because the priests and nobles would struggle for power and would once again break Egypt into small states. This would invite foreign invaders. The next 700 years of Egypt?s existence was ruled mainly by alien powers. In 332 BCE, Alexander the Great conquered the Two Lands, which ended the self-rule of Egypt by any Egyptian.

The downfall of the Middle Kingdom came about from the blundering of the weak rulers. The Egyptians held no standing army and found themselves vulnerable to the Hyksos superiority of weaponry and military tactics. The lands of Kemet would be plagued by the invaders for about one-hundred and fifty years until the Egyptian Pharaoh Ahmose I would expel the Shepard Kings back into Asia.

Outline

Introduction: After the fall of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt a group of nomadic people from Asia invaded and captured Lower Egypt. These people were called the Hyksos. Egypt lacked a standing army and their weapons were far inferior to that of the invaders. The weak rulers of the Thirteenth Dynasty led to an internal struggle within the government, thus ripping the empire into many small factions and leaving it open to attack. During this time a group of peoples from Asia immigrated to Egypt and slowly began to take-over the now divided government. This led to the separation of Upper and Lower Egypt. Though the Egyptians learned many new technologies, they still did not want the Hyksos in their lands. The Egyptian Pharaohs vowed to lead their armies to regain control of their lands, and expand their empire. Egypt, having a series of weak rulers, led to internal fighting which weakened the country. Egypt also had no standing army and its protective borders no longer a threat to invaders, a group of people from Asia the Hyksos, immigrated to Egypt, using their superior weaponry they took power and ruled Egypt for about one-hundred and fifty years.

I. Egypt

A. Pre-dynastic ? pre 3150 BCE

B. Archaic ? early dynastic 3150-2700 BCE

C. Old Kingdom ? 2700-2190 BCE

D. First Intermediate ? 2190-2040 BCE

E. Middle Kingdom ? 2040-1674 BCE

F. Second Intermediate ? 1674-1552 BCE

G. New Kingdom ? 1552-1069 BCE

II. Fall of Middle Kingdom

A. Reasons

1. Series of weak rulers

2. Interior fighting

3. Lack of standing army

4. Desert no longer an effective border

B. Weapons

1. Superior-Hyksos

a. Horses

b. Chariots

c. Composite Bow

d. Armour

e. Bronze

2. Inferior-Egypt

a. Simple Bow

1. Acacia wood

2. Range = 200m

b. Spear

c. Ax

d. Lack of armour

III. Second Intermediate Period

C 1674-1552 BCE Hyksos King- Sharek

A. Established capital of Avaris

B. Left Egyptian culture to flourish on its own

C. Alliance with Nubia

D. Gathered tribute from Thebian nobles

IV. New Kingdom

A. Ahmose I

1. Drove out Hyksos

2. Regained Nubian Territories

B. Started eighteenth dynasty

Conclusion: The downfall of the Middle Kingdom came about from the blundering of the weak rulers. The Egyptians held no standing army and found themselves vulnerable to the Hyksos superiority of weaponry and military tactics. The lands of Kemet would be plagued by the invaders for about one-hundred and fifty years until the Egyptian Pharaoh Ahmose I would expel the Shepard Kings back into Asia.

Dersin, Denise, ed. What Life Was Like on the Banks of the Nile. Richmond: Time Life, inc; 1997.

Hyksos. [online] Available http://www.arab.net/egypt/history/et_2ndintermediate.html

Hyksos. [online] Available http://www.textfiles.com/occult/set.occ

Hyksos. [online] Available http://sun.kent.wednet.edu/curriculum/soc_studies/Egypt/mid_king.html

Newby, P.H. Warrior Pharaohs: The Rise and Fall of the Egyptian Empire. Boston: Faber and Faber ltd, 1980.

Stokstad, Marilyn. Art History New Jersey: Prentice Hall, Inc, 1995.