Egyptian tourism

SAFARI

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Egypt has areas of desert and mountainous offers fun and adventure fortourists who love safari, whick makes safari tourism spreading in St.Catherine Mount , Moses Mount , and the oases of El Dakhla and El Kharga which is rich by monuments, and water springs and wells, and

Al Ain El Sukhna, where tourists interested in monitoring animals in the desert, and migratory birds from one place to another.

The desert has a large area in Egypt, where the Western desert has an area of about 680 thousand kilometers by 68% of Egypt's area, it is a wide plateau on West side Nile to the Libyan border with Egypt, it has many dry valleys, and oases, like Sewa, El Farafra, El Kharga, El Dakhla, nad some lows like El Qattara east of Siwa. In addition to the Eastern Desert and it is a wide plateau interspersed with mountains Companies provide to tourist tents and equipment necessary for the nomadic life in St Catherine and Mount Moses and the oases of El Dakhla and El Kharga, so tourists can live with this life, which combines the simplicity and harshness of the mountainous desert, and also see what kinds of wild animals and birds and rare within the reserves areas located in these places

Alexandria

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There are more than 55 cities in the world bearing the name of Alexandria - was built by Alexander the Great in 333 BC. After the end of the era of Alexander, Alexandria became the capital of Egypt during the reign of Ptolemies, the University of Alexandria is one of the oldest and largest universities in the world ..

Planning
planning the new city was Not creative, but was planning like cities of ancient Greek, where it takes the form of chess, which is a two main streets intersecting at right angles, the two streets are "Kanopk" and "Soma" and the width of each of them is14 meters, and two forks side streets parallel to 7 meters wide The Street "Kanopk" (Fouad street now) connects the Gate of the Moon from the west portal and the sun Gate from the east, and extends eastward to link the city Kanobs (Abu Qir), and the cross street Soma (Street of the Prophet Daniel now) intersects with street Kanopk and extends from north to south, and the intersection was the center of City of Alexandria

Alexandria Divided into six administrative districts (El Montazah district, East District, Central District, west district,El Gomrok district , Amiriya district), containing 16 sections and 129 Xiahe in addition to major cities such as the city of Borg El-Arab City, New Borg El Arab.

Climate
Alexandria is characterized by a mild climate, it has the Mediterranean climate which is characterized by warm dry summer and wet and mild and rainy winter. the winter months in Alexandria are , December, January and February, and exposed through Alexandria this chapter to the many severe thunderstorms, and heavy rain. The summer in the Alexandria, runs through June, July, and August, while the spring and autumn Viatbran the best time to visit the city,

Airports serve Alexandria :
Nozha Airport: The international airport away from the center of town about 6 km in the south-easterly direction
Borg El Arab Airport: The international airport away from Alexandria, about 49 km south-west in the direction

Alexandria has two sea ports are:
The port of Alexandria .
Dekheila Port.

Highways
Alexandria has a network of highways linking the rest of the governorates of Egypt,
- Cairo - Alexandria Desert Road
- Cairo - Alexandria agriculture.
- International Coastal Road.
- Axis reconstruction.
- Ring Road Alexandria

Alexandria tram
it is a Transportation network linking the vast majority of the city's districts, and it is the oldest tram lines established in Africa and the Middle East, it was established in 1860 and is divided into two parts:
El Raml tram ot Blue tram
City tram or yellow tram

Trains
City of Alexandria has a wide network of railway lines and trains, operated by the National Authority for Railways, and the main station located in the downtown station (Mhatet Masr), which are divided into two parts:
The first section, internal railway lines and called "Abu Qir line train", the length of the line about 22 km, and connects the line between the far east of Alexandria, and specifically at the Abu Qir area, to central city
The second section, external railway outside the city, which connects Alexandria to Matrouh and the provinces of the Delta and Cairo

This is in addition to taxi and private taxi capital

Taba

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Taba is located at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba between the mountains and the hills east of Taba on one hand, and the Gulf of Aqaba, on the other . And away from the city of Sharm el-Sheikh about 240 km to the north, and the area between Taba and Sharm el-Sheikh represent a major attractions and tourism development in South Sinai .
Area:
Does not exceed an area of one kilometer and approximately 508.8 acres. History:
Taba, has a big place in Egyptian history the most famous incident in Taba, in 1906, when there was disagreement between Egypt and the Ottoman Empire to set the border between Egypt and Palestine, also the Israelis try to move some of these signs to seize the Egyptian Taba, until the parties agreed on the principle of arbitration. by the arbitral tribunal, which was held in Geneva ruled in favor of the Egyptian in March 15, 1989

The most important tourist attractions

Taba is a border city the mountains packed its resorts, its coastline is the most beautiful on the level of the peninsula and consists of a number of bays, lakes ,one Strait and one island, the most beautiful scenery of this island is fortress of Salah El-Din, which was renovated by the Organization of Egyptian Antiquities, therefore, alarge number of tourists from allaround the world comes to it and there are about 10 hotels in the Egyptian city of Taba, Hilton Taba hotel which built by the Israelis in 1967 is one of the most prominent landmarks,it has been administered by the Sonesta Corporation until it was handed over to Egyptian authorities.

Taba characterized by the presence of archaeological sites dating up to about 5000 years old and rare wildlife in addition to the traditional heritage of the Bedouins and residents in the area also includes some eyes around it which consists of natural botanical gardens which is home to the Bedouin

The "Taba Heights" is a tourism area which have special nature and specifically designed to be one of the most scenic spots well-being in the Middle East and North Africa, especially its view on the Red Sea, Taba hights located near the international airport and the port among the mountains of Sinai, which limit the three neighboring countries

Taba reserve
Taba reserve located in south-western region of the city of Taba, where an area of about 3590 km . Taba reserve Includes geological formations, caves and mountain paths and multi-network vallyes some of the most important valleys: the Waterre valleys- Zljp - Sawwanah palm.
Taba reserve is characterized by diversity-rich animals and rare plants , as there are about 25 species of mammals and about 50 species of rare birds resident in addition to 24 species of reptiles, but for plants, there are about 480 species of extinct species.

Colored Groove
it is one of the most important tourist attractions in Taba, it is avalley every itme we go deeper it gradually narrows so that in some places become too narrow to passers-by, where the width is not more than one meter between sandstone and about 50 meters high from the bottom of the valley and the phenomenon of sandstone famous with different colors from white to yellow with some red color in the gradient

Museum Taba:
For amateur knowledge the Museum of Taba includesthree rooms containing more than 700 artifacts tell the story of the lives of the people of South Sinai over the centuries of Pharaonic to the modern era

Marsa Alam

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Marsa Alam is located at a distance of 274 kilometers south of Hurghada is a service center for mining missions, and now has become one of the largest tourist cities, this due to its pure beauty of its beaches and coral reefs and rare fishes.

And contains the villages of Marsa Alam Riseaton:

Village of Bernice: a small town about 178 kilometers south of the short term. , One of the best places for medical tourism.

The village of Abu al-Hasan al-Shazly: and the Islamic center is known.

And attract the city of Marsa Alam on the Red Sea scuba diving enthusiasts and researchers from the rest and quiet, where the sun meets the water and with the magic of nature scenery, and the tourist finds pleasure that aspires to in any season of the year. Marsa Alam is a promising area for expansion of tourism and urban development.

The recent construction of the largest hotel on the Red Sea with an area of 300 thousand square meters and consists of three hotels connected with 1000 rooms with five stars, with a space constructed by the hotels 100 thousand square meters, about 30% of the land area, along with parks, restaurants and entertainment venues and swimming pools and sports stadiums.

The hotels in the face of an international conference center can accommodate more than 300 people, and the cost of the resort of Marsa Alam $ 200 million.

Also recently been the construction of the yacht harbor by a specialized international offices can about 1000 yachts with lengths up to 150 feet. The marina is equipped with all services of Aelloukot tanks and water lines, electricity, phone and fax.

The hotel contains a port for diving is located on the right side of the marina in Port Ghalib so that enthusiasts can dive boats diving linking their completely opposite the hotel. The hotel consists of 200 rooms equipped with all the amenities necessary for the exercise hobby diving, and the extension of the Centre for a global training provider with the latest hardware and will allow location of the hotel on the marina easily visit months diving areas in the Red Sea like The peridot and two brothers, and others that enjoy the waters of marine life is scarce. It also established the city's international airport for international flights Astfbal by the movement of tourists from around the world.

There is this small town the Egyptian Shooting Club also has several rest houses and chalets, located on about 135 kilometers south of the short term. Marsa Alam has gained fame from the nature of the big tourist beaches and rich marine waters in front of the associated private sport fishing and associated Marsa Alam city of Edfu temple path length of 280 km

red sea

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Red Sea Cities located on the red sea coast, when the mountains reach the beaches, plus it has a various marine life like coral reefs, rare fishes, and marine creatures, plus the mountains and the valleys have a lot of animal, birds and planets, which makes it a special place for Diving and Safari

Red Sea Islands

Islands of Red Sea can split to island with oceans islands characteristics which created from lava accumulation. the other type is coast islands which located near the coast like Safaga, El Gaftoun, and Shedwan, and a group of islands near the bottleneck of the mountains near the south side of Suez bay

Tourism

Red Sea has a great weather and factors for a various Tourism activities such as

Marines Sport : like the coast tourism, Diving, Sailing, and fishing and there are over 150 Diving center in Hurghada and Safaga

Curative Tourism:Red Sea weather is dry and the is rising all year and the curative potential which gave by god, like the black sand, worm water and the sunlight especially in Safaga
leisure tourism: there are some islands like El Gaftoun, Shedwan, Abo Monqar, Safaga, Yotoubia, Om El Garsan, El Zabrgad and El Akhawen
Historical Tourism: Red Sea is exist since Pharaoh Age like Om El Fawakher area in the valley of the lavatories (in Edfo Marasa Alam Road) and some Roman monuments in Abo Dokhan, and Also Islamic age like an old citadel.

Religious Tourism : in the Christian Age the east desert was a sanctuary for the Monks like Anba Antonius monastery and anba Poula monastery, also it has an Islamic monuments like Abo Elhaan El Shazly Tomb in Hamethra Valley

Safary and Adventure Tourism: this type of tourism is vary is very popular in Red Sea because it has a lot of mountains groups for mountaineering Sport and a lot of valleys for camels and horses riding, and some road for car and bick race like Pharaoh Race

Egypt

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Egypt the land of peace and the place of heavenly religions and the cradle of multiple civilizations which contributed in riching the history of mankind, its strategic location is a forum for the continents of the ancient world Asia, Africa and Europe, as well as a rich Taibogravic nature gather fertile land on both sides of the River Nile, to the great coasts of the Red Sea east and the Mediterranean in the north, eastern and western deserts with a mountain formations, the unique extended valleys, and its charming Oasis.
Egypt throughout the ages was famous by customs and traditions of authentic and beautiful, especially in the religious events, and the people of Egypt have gained many of the customs and traditions since ancient times, as it is different customs and traditions of the Bedouins of Egypt, to the residents of the north, to the residents of the south, although they characterized by the long history of love and tolerance, friendliness and generosity.
Egypt had a lot of historical eras contributed in the cultural heritage of Egypt, also it had difficult times, but this contributed to increase the strength, power of its people.
And with a quick review of the historical stages experienced by Egypt at various ages:

Starting from the Pharaonic era in 3100 BC. - 332 BC.
Greek era of 332 BC. - 30 BC.
The Roman era of 30 AC. - 638 AC
Coptic period from 65
Phase of the Arab conquest and the entry of Islam in Egypt from 640 -1517
Then phase of Ottoman rule 1517-1882
French campaign on Egypt
Modern times
Stage Revolution July 23, 1952

"Egypt is a country has succeeded in creating the present and the future of the least creative and the richness of its history"

photos

north of Sinai

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north of Sinai is located in the north east of the Arab Republic of Egypt between longitudes 32.34 E and latitudes 29.31 N, and bounded to the north the Mediterranean Sea along the 220 km, while the south line is running from the south corridor for example, even the head of the Negev and is bordered to the east to reduce the political to Egypt with occupied Palestine, the West represents a line extending from the Mitla Pass south to north Baloza.

The area of the province, about 27 thousand km 2 and the estimated population of 384 304 thousand people in 2010

Terrain:

Divided into geographic features in northern Sinai into two distinct first and coastal environment, which includes the Northern Plains, which borders the Mediterranean Sea depth 20-40 km is covered with sand dunes undulating and flat, while the second type of geographical features is a desert environment, which prevails the north-central Sinai, which lies mostly in the Hauts Plateaux which is characterized by the existence of a group of high mountains and separate permeate this group from the highlands group of valleys such as the Valley of El Arish, which is the largest of all the valleys where it invades the province from south to north

Climate:

Enjoy the northern Sinai climate unique, it begins in the north, the climate of the Mediterranean and then ranging to be up to the climate close to the atmosphere of the desert areas and semi-desert, it is high temperature in summer slash the warmth of winter, with temperatures ranging in between 10 degrees winter to 24 in summer, and for rates rainfall is low in the south, west and increases as we head north and increase rate more in the northern part of the East, where up to 200-300 mm near Sheikh Zuwaid

Administrative division: -

Joined the Sinai to the local administration for the first time by Presidential Decree No. 811 of 1974 Decree No. 84 of 1979, the division of the Sinai Peninsula to the North and South Sinai, which includes the northern Sinai: 6 administrative centers are El Arish - Rafah - Sheikh Zuwaid - Bir al-Abed - good - and enters the palm trees in its 82 villages and 458 continued

What distinguishes the most conservative

The field of excellence in general: -

- North Sinai province Bakr free of any manifestation of pollution and it has a key supportive of investment incentives and guarantees distinct from the rest of the provinces of the valley.

- Also has to maintain agricultural production distinct from vegetation and fruits and enjoy the benefits of a competitive export-oriented high.

- Production of luxury fish (seabream - tar y - Family Boer) an annual average of about 4 thousand Tunmn cold Lake Lowell.

- Natural resources of mineral raw materials as well as features unique to each economic ore reserves.

Site - a unique geographical reach of the Levant, where markets and the Maghreb and the excellent location on the Mediterranean Sea and the possibilities of communication land, sea and air to neighboring countries through the paved roads and bridges and the port of El-Arish and airports in El Arish and Taba and land ports in Rafah and Awja. .

- Geographical features, climatic variable.

- Long beaches and beautiful and an extended and flat, clean, covered with palm trees suitable for Siahat diving and water sports and a swathe of desert tourism and migratory birds (protected Zaranik) and many other ingredients.

Axes of development: -

  Site north of Sinai and the nature of its soil, climate and local water resources identified development corridors and the prevailing economic activities.

     Adopt conservative mainly on agricultural development in the northern coast, especially in the area east of El Arish, where increasing rainfall as we head east, where the quality of soil and groundwater, and the experience of farmers has citizens farming about 300 thousand acres own efforts, including (197) thousand acres on the water sources, stable, and the rest depends mainly on irrigation water from the rains and floods.

    Also extended to the shores of the province on the Mediterranean Sea and Lake Lowell cold-free from any source of pollution has helped to produce the quality of the fish with national and international reputation more than 4500 tons per year.

    And varied attractions of the province to include the elements of nature - and historic - tourist transit - natural oases - bird watching - yacht tourism has been identified types of tourism as follows: (Tourism beach - Tourism pensioners - Tourism Conference - Medical Tourism - Tourism historical - religious tourism - Eco-tourism - Tourism desert - oasis tourism - Tourism yachts and water sports - Tourism Transit).

    Maintain many of the rich mineral resources and reserves, has helped to build a large system of industrial areas to invest in the capacity of this region.

  And it has been determined to maintain philosophy of urban development to be supported primarily on agricultural development and tourism in the northern coast and the industrial development at the central axis of transit trade and service on the southern axis of the province.

Reserve

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Reserve is a natural area of land or coastal waters or inland characterized by the presence of living organisms or plant or animal or fish or natural phenomena of cultural, scientific, tourism or aesthetic value.
Reserves aimed the maintenance of natural living and resources, and preserve the health of ecological processes in the ecosystem and biodiversity conservation in the genetic groups of organisms that interact within the framework of the ecosystem.

Natural reserves in Egypt
Egypt announced these reserves within the framework of Law 102 of 1983 on Protected Areas and Law No. 4 of 1994 on the protection of the environment in Egypt. These reserves are announced through national Stratigic biodiversity conservation which aims of strategy to the Declaration of 40 natural reserves in Egypt, it is also working to establish a network of nature reserves and to support conservation programs. These reserves are designed to preserve the natural resources, also contribute the preservation of cultural heritage and civilization of many important areas.

The environment in these areas is featuring of the capabilities and special talents beyond the limits of beauty of the sea, the mountains and desert.

Cruises and Diving

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Egypt is characterized by a general climate of mild summers and winters, where the visitor spend interesting times in the summer in the beaches which stretching for a distance of 1181 kilometers along the coasts of Mediterranean from Salloum to Rafah from the northern , and from Suez in the east to the far southern border of East on the Red Sea for a distance of 1085 km. this region particularly has a beautiful coral reefs and marine organisms colorful and diverse. Alexandria is located in the north, it the bride of the Mediterranean and Matrouh

The beaches tourism and leisure tourism are two of the main types of tourism activities that are found in Egypt which attract number of tourists from various countries around the world

Diving
Discover the wonders of the underwater marine life and enjoy the Red Sea and its clear water and colorful coral, and rare fishes and diverse mountains has some valleys and beaches suitable for camping and tourism resorts.

Beaches Tourism

Egypt has a unique position overlooking the coast of the Red Sea and the Mediterranean stretches for adistance of more than 2500 km, giving a large number and variety of beaches that make your vacation on the coast have the coolest, in addition to the diversity of marine activities and various Leasure ways to you and your family.

Nile cruises
"Egypt is the gift of the Nile" as the Greek historian Herodotus said, where he was and remains a source of fertility and prosperity on the land of Egypt, also the Nile used as one of the most important means of transportation in Egypt, and now is the most romantic and fun to discover the land of the Nile and the cradle of civilizations that grew on either side of the Nile, you should not miss to enjoy sailing on the Nile.

Sound and shed light
It Is a view that displayed for tourists on front of pyramids, at night when the darkness covering everything. Begins to shed a laser beam on the pyramids and the Sphinx, and then describe each pyramid separately in all languages.

Ras Sedr

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Ras Sedr, the first city in sinai, most of the treasures did not discovered yet, and its unique potentials made it unique from the rest of Egypt

Located on the Gulf of Suez, away from the Suez Canal about 60 km, and it is the first city in South Sinai,if you are coming from Cairo, the Valley or Delta has thus it has together the most important features of the General tourist areas which is the ease of access to the area through El Shahid Ahmed Hamdy tunnel.
Land is not only a dreamy soft sand, but it is the cross of Civilizations and the heavenly messages, it is the land which Moses peace be upon him crossed when he escaped from Pharaoh and his soldiers.

Tourism in Egypt

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Egypt was known throughout history as a destination for tourists and travelers since it was visited by "Herodotus" in ancient history got surprised because of the vast difference between his country Greece and Egypt remained so throughout the middle and modern history, and then added the discovery of the effects of the Pharaohs since the beginning of the last century a special charm to Egypt, besides its the effects of unique religious and cultural challenges of time in the loftiness and grandeur, this side of the fullness of their geographical location and a moderate climate in summer and winter, and coasts of easy stretching, and the beaches of the treasures of coral reefs, unique, all this is one of the comparative advantages that provide for competition to be the superiority hoped components and guarantees.Comes on top of the comparative advantages enjoyed by Egypt as a tourist destination diversity of fields of tourism, the most important tourism and cultural sites as one of the oldest types of tourism in Egypt, where ancient civilizations similar to the eye, and speaks to what it was the United constructed these civilizations since the dawn of history, no matter how many types of tourism and possession of Egypt to the elements of many of them .. Remains of cultural tourism is denominated tourism is repeated or entirely clear or payable to compete because it owns Egypt, which has to a third of known effects in the whole world next to the presence of many important museums, and there are also recreational tourism, beaches, tourism, religious tourism, therapeutic tourism, eco-tourism sports festivals and competitions, and finally safari tourism tourism conferences and exhibitions.

THE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN HISTORY - SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD

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SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD

SECOND INTERMEDIATE PERIOD: 1782-1570 BC; Dynasties XIII-XVII

A period about which not a lot is known and rulers did not last very long. Invaders (known as the Hyksos) came from Asia and moved into the Delta. They introduced the Egyptians to the horse-drawn chariot, the composite bow and bronze weapons.

This period of instability lasted two centuries and was brought to an end by a Theban family, one of whom (Ahmose) finally expelled the Hyksos

THE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN HISTORY - MIDDLE KINGDOM

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MIDDLE KINGDOM

MIDDLE KINGDOM: 2040-1782 BC; Dynasties XI/XII

Reunification of Egypt occurred in the 11th Dynasty under the rule of Mentuhotep I, fourth king of that dynasty, whose family was based in Thebes (modern Luxor). After a series of battles with northern rulers, Mentuhotep I controlled the whole of Egypt by the 39th year of his reign. The administrative centre of the country became a place called Itj-tawy which is believed to have been located near the Faiyum Oasis.

The 12th Dynasty began, it seems, when king Mentuhotep III was overthrown by Amenemhet I (probably the former's vizier) who ruled for about 29 years. It was under him that the Theban god Amun began his rise to prominence. Amenemhet began to share his rule with his son Senusret I for the last 10 years of his reign until the
former's murder

Later in the Dynasty, Senusret III pushed beyond Egypt's boundaries, including campaigns into Nubia to the south. The move was to protect the southern border and safeguard access to trade routes and Nubia's abundant gold resources.

The Middle Kingdom is well known for being the highpoint in Egyptian literature and it also saw a revival in the quality of art

Presentation Of The Ramesseum Temple

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Presentation Of The Ramesseum Temple

The Mortuary Temple of Ramesses II /Ramasseum

The Ramesseum is the memorial temple (or mortuary temple) of Pharaoh Ramesses II ("Ramesses the Great", also spelled "Ramses" and "Rameses"). It is located in the Theban necropolis in Upper Egypt, across the River Nile from the modern city of Luxor
.

The name – or at least its French form, Rhamesséion – was coined by Jean-François Champollion, who visited the ruins of the site in 1829 and first identified the hieroglyphs making up Ramesses's names and titles on the walls. It was originally called the House of millions of years of Usermaatra-setepenra that unites with Thebes-the-city in the domain of Amon.

ROMAN PERIOD

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ROMAN PERIOD

ROMAN PERIOD: 30 BC .AD 450

Egypt came under Roman influence and was ruled by a prefect for Octavian, who became Augustus, the first Roman Emperor in 27 BC. The country was considered a "breadbasket" for centuries under successive emperors

In AD 384, Theodosius ordered the closing of Egypt's pagan temples and adherence to Christianity (although the temple dedicated to the goddess Isis at Philae in the country's far south continued to function until AD 536).

In AD 395, the Roman empire split into West and East with Egypt becoming part of the Byzantine Empire. This lasted until the arrival of Islam in AD 641

MACEDONIAN/PTOLEMAIC PERIOD

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MACEDONIAN/PTOLEMAIC PERIOD

MACEDONIAN/PTOLEMAIC PERIOD: 332-30 BC

In 332 BC, the Macedonian empire expanded into Egypt with the arrival of Alexander the Great. The Egyptians welcomed Alexander after all the troubles of the Persian occupations. He ordered the restoration of temples sacked by the Persians in 343 BC. On the western side of the Delta, construction began on the city of Alexandria.

When Alexander died suddenly in Babylon in 323 BC, control of Egypt fell into the hands of his half-brother Philip Arrhidaeus and posthumous son Alexander IV. By 305 BC, the Macedonian general Ptolemy I became the first in a long line of Ptolemaic rulers

During the 3rd century BC, Alexandria began to flourish as the jewel of the Ancient World. The city became famous for its Great Library and the lighthouse which was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Ptolemaic rule was stable and a number of major temples were constructed in Upper Egypt. The Ptolemaic line lasted until the reign of Cleopatra VII, the daughter of Ptolemy XII. Cleopatra later became the mistress of Julius Caesar from Rome and bore him a child. After Caesar's assassination, Cleopatra sided with Mark Antony against

Caesar's heir, Octavian. Following the sea battle of Actium in 31 BC where Cleopatra's ships fled home followed by Antony, Octavian went to Alexandria but was denied the capture of the two when both suicided in 30 BC

THE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN HISTORY - LATE DYNASTIC PERIOD

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LATE DYNASTIC PERIOD

LATE DYNASTIC PERIOD: 525-332 BC Dynasties XXVII-XXXI

Peace for Egypt ended when it was invaded by the Persian king Cambyses II in 525 BC. When the Greeks defeated the Persians at Marathon in 490 BC, the Egyptians took advantage of the distraction and in 486 BC they revolted

However, Egypt was repeatedly having to deal with Persian invasions over nearly two centuries. The last Persian invasion took place in 343 BC during the reign of the Nectanebo II, the last Egyptian pharaoh. Egypt would not see another Egyptian as ruler until AD 1952

THE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN HISTORY - THIRD INTERMEDIATE PERIOD

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THIRD INTERMEDIATE PERIOD

THIRD INTERMEDIATE PERIOD: 1070-525 BC; Dynasties XXI-XXVI

After the end of the New Kingdom, Egypt was virtually bankrupt. Despite this some of the pharaohs of the 21st Dynasty were buried in the Delta with considerable wealth which came to light in 1939-40 - the discovery did not receive much publicity because of World War II

Smendes, the first king of the 21st Dynasty, ruled from Tanis in the Delta, while the high priest of the god Amun, Pinudjem, ruled from Thebes in the south despite intermarrying between the two lines to smooth relations. By the 22nd Dynasty, pharaohs of Libyan descent came to power in the Delta while the Theban rulers weakened and some unity was re-established for a short time.

By the 8th century BC, the influence of Nubia on Egypt's southern border was being felt. Nubia had been strongly influenced by the cult of Amun which had been introduced to them during the New Kingdom. Now the Nubians saw an opportunity to re-establish the old order of Amun in Thebes, which they did by becoming rulers of Egypt in the 25th Dynasty

In the early 7th century BC, the country was ruled by Taharqa who began to have problems with the Assyrians and their expansionist policies. Finally, in 671 BC, the Assyrians, under Esarhaddon, pushed into Egypt and captured the capital Memphis and most of the royal family. Taharqa fled south to Thebes. Two years later Taharqa regained control, but Esarhaddon's son Ashurbanipal attacked and recaptured Memphis.

Taharqa's successor, Tanutamun, managed to regain control of the country, but eventually Ashurbanipal returned with a vengeance and moved to Thebes where the temples were raided of their treasures. Nubia would never again rule Egypt.

Psamtik (Psammetichus) was recognised by the Assyrians as the king of Egypt from 664 BC and the country began to enjoy peace for about the next 140 years. The old crafts reached a very high standard again and many of the styles of the Old Kingdom were copied. Assyria began to have internal problems and by 653 BC, Psamtik asserted independence for Egypt which was once again becoming a power in the region

THE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN HISTORY - NEW KINGDOM

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NEW KINGDOM

NEW KINGDOM: 1570-1070 BC Dynasties XVIII-XX

The New Kingdom's first king was Ahmose who reunified Upper and Lower Egypt. This was another Golden Age for Egypt as it expanded its empire. Memphis was the administrative capital again. The term pharaoh began being applied to the king

Queen Hatshepsut became pharaoh by default while acting as regent for a young Tuthmosis III

Tuthmosis III eventually came to power and became the "Napoleon" of ancient Egypt. The empire spread far to the south into ancient Nubia (south of modern Aswan and into northern Sudan), while in the north the territory under control was expanded well into the Near East

Tuthmosis III fought with considerable nerve and cunning. On one campaign, he marched to Gaza in ten days and from Yehem, planned the battle to take take Megiddo which was held by a rebellious prince named Kadesh. There were three possible approaches to Megiddo, two of which were fairly open, straightforward routes while the third was through a narrow pass that soldiers would only be able to march through in single file

It was in the New Kingdom that most of the pharaohs' tombs were located in the Valley of the Kings and their mortuary temples were separately located.

Egypt became incredibly wealthy through trade and foreign conquests. The country's religious orders also benefited - particularly that of the state god Amun-Re with its powerful clergy and vast temples and estates

The existing religious orders were deposed for a while during the 14th century B.C

when the heretic king Akhenaten established a new religious order - that of the sun god Aten. The old temples were abandoned and a new capital, Akhetaten, was established to the north. Attention to international affairs waned.

Soon after the death of Akhenaten, his probable son - Tutankhaten - became pharaoh at about the age of nine. His was a short reign, but the old religious orders rose again and Akhenaten's city was destroyed. Tutankhaten's name was changed to Tutankhamun, but his reign was only about nine years. He was followed as pharaoh by the elderly Ay

Several years later, a general by the name of Horemheb came to power and started a campaign to eliminate evidence of his immediate predecessors for whom he had served. His successor was Ramesses I who was the first in a long line of Ramesside kings in the 19th and 20th Dynasties. (Note that some Egyptologists list Horemheb as

the first king of the 19th Dynasty.) Ramesses I's grandson, Ramesses II, is often referred to as Ramesses the Great. He became one of Egypt's greatest builders and signed the first recorded peace treaty in history.

By the 20th Dynasty the power of the pharaohs had waned and there were battles with invaders called the Sea Peoples under Ramesses III, the last significant pharaoh of the New Kingdom. Egypt would never rule again with the same power. Ramesses XI was the last of the rulers of the New Kingdom.

The Theban priesthood virtually controlled Upper Egypt by the end of the New Kingdom, while the pharaoh had ruled from the Delta

THE ANCIENT EGYPTIAN HISTORY -FIRST INTERMEDIATE PERIOD

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FIRST INTERMEDIATE PERIOD

FIRST INTERMEDIATE PERIOD: 2181-2040 BC; Dynasties VII-X

This period saw a breakdown of central government. Provinces were governed by local governors who would not answer to any king. Major building projects are not found from this time, indicating the weakness of the kings. Dozens of kings are listed for the period, meaning that perhaps they had either very short or overlapping reigns.

Famine affected the country as a result of a number of poor annual inundations of the Nile

Some scenes on tomb walls depict people suffering from malnutrition .Memphis may have remained the principal administrative centre for much of the First Intermediate Period, although by the 9th Dynasty the town of Herakleopolis Magna was producing rulers. They came into conflict with a family line from Thebes in the early part of the 11th Dynasty which Egyptologists often include in this period