Ancient Egypt

Egypt is one of the cradles of civilization in the Middle East. Traces of early man were found in Egypt dating back as early as 700,000 years ago.

Until the conversion to Christianity, Egyptian polytheistic religion centered around the after life. Pharaohs and rich Egyptians built elaborate tombs in caves or in Pyramids, decorated with elaborate art on the interior and containing jewelry and objects that would be needed in the after-life, and in some cases servants and slaves who were interred with their master. The walls of pyramids were decorated with elaborate stylized frescos, in which noble persons were shown as larger than slaves, and subjects were drawn in profile. The king or noble person had his or her body embalmed, wrapped in linen, and enclosed in an elaborate carved coffin as a mummy.

Egypt is the gift of the Nile, and it was founded and developed around that river, for there is no rain in Egypt. The Ancient Egyptians developed an elaborate irrigation system to distribute the waters of the Nile, and convert their arid land into the breadbasket of the Near East.

Egyptian history to the time of the Arab conquest is organized into several dynasties and periods. The ancient periods are dated differently by different authors, and the numbering of dynasties is somewhat controversial.

Predynastic Period - 3400 BC, includes Naqada and other sites excavated by Flinders Petrie and others, who found objects indicative of a highly developed civilization.

The Archaic or Early Dynastic Period 3100 BC - First and Second Dynasty - Unification of the Lower Kingdom by Menes (Hor'aha).

The Old Kingdom 2600 BC - 3d - 6th dynasty. This was the period of great pyramid building, beginning with the Pharaoh Djoser, who built the step pyramid. The pyramid tombs rapidly envolved into much more sophisticated structures built by Senefru Khufu (Cheops), Menkaure and others and visible today at Giza and elsewhere.

The First Intermediate Period 2200 BC - 7th- 10th dynasty. A period of great confusion when numerous Pharaohs reigned in succession.

The Middle Kingdom - 2100 BC - 11th and 12 dynasty - The 11th dynasty ruled from Thebes. Mentuohotep I succeeded in reuniting the kingdom. The Pharoahs of the 12th dynasty all built pyramids, evidence of relative prosperity.

The Second Intermediate Period 1800 BC - 13th - 17th dynasty - A second period when the kingdom was fragmented. One Pharoah of this period was called Yakobaam or Yakbim, possibly a Semitic variant of Ya'akov (Jacob).

The New Kingdom 1570 BC - 18th - 20th Dynasty - The New Kingdom represents the high tide of Egyptian history and empire, and the historical record is fairly complete, including wonderfully preserved mummies of most of the rulers.

The Third Intermediate Period - 1069 - 21-25th Dynasty was very long period that featured a mostly divided Egypt ruled by Nubian and Libyan kings. The Pharoah Sheshonq was one of the most important rulers of this period.

The Late Period - This period includes the Persian invasion. Alexander conquered Egypt in the autumn of 332 BC. He founded Alexandria in 331 BC and it became a major center of civilization and trade in the Hellenistic ancient world with a famous library and intellectual life.

The Moslem Conquest - Between 639 and 642, Egypt was conquered by the Arabs under 'Amr ibn-al-Asi in the reign of the Caliph Umar.

The Mamelukes - The last Ayubbid ruler died in battle against the Crusaders in 1248. The Mamelukes, a slave caste imported into Egypt, took the opportunity to seize power and ruled in Egypt, Palestine and Syria for several hundred years, fighting and defeating the Mongols and preventing them from entering the Middle East.

Ottoman Rule - The Ottoman Turks conquered Egypt in 1517, and inaugurated a long but mostly undistinguished period in Egyptian history. Copts and Jews found a place in Egypt as merchants and intellectuals, clerks and civil servants.

Napoleon - The arrival of Napoleon Bonaparte to Egypt on July 2nd 1798, initiated a new phase in Egypt's history and in the history of the Middle East, shocking the Egyptians and the Ottoman Turks out of their complacency.

Mohamed Ali - After the French were defeated by the British, Mohamad Ali, who was an officer in the Ottoman Army, rose to power with the support of the Egyptian people. His rule extended from 1805 to 1849 was an eventful period in Egypt's modern history. He is regarded as the father of modern Egypt who set the country on the march towards modernization.

Khedive Ismail, a member of Mohamad Ali's dynasty, rose to power in 1863. If Mohamad Ali had started the process of modernization, it was Ismail who completed it. He had boundless ambitions to bring Egypt up to the same level of culture, civilization and development which was enjoyed by most nations of Europe. It was during his reign, in 1869, that the modern Suez Canal was inaugurated. The Canal was built by a British and French company, and was vital to the maintenance of the British Empire in India, as well as to Western trade.

The Mahdi and the British Occupation - A very gifted renegade and religious fanatic, Mohammed Ahmed-Ibn-el-Sayed, proclaimed himself to be the Mahdi, or 12th Caliph (Muslim equivalent of Messiah in some beliefs) and routed Egyptian and British forces sent to put down his rebellion.

Egypt became a British protectorate until 1922, with British troops guarding the Suez canal and other vital British interest.

World War II - British reoccupied Egypt during WW II, and used it as a base to fight Rommel's Afrika Corps.

Nasser - On the 23rd of July 1952, the Free Officer Movement led by Gamal Abd El-Nasser seized power in a bloodless revolution which allowed King Farouk to leave the country with a full royal salute. On the 18th of June 1953, the monarchy ended. Egypt was declared a Republic and Mohamad Naguib was named as the first President. However, in 1954, Nasser arrested Naguib and assumed control as the second president. Nasser inaugurated the policy of pan-Arabism, attempting to unite all of the Arabs under Egypt. He was a very dynamic figure and his portrait adorned almost every cafe in the Arab Middle East. During Nasser's presidency, extensive agricultural and industrial development projects were carried out including agrarian reform and other socialist projects.

Sadat - Anwar El-Sadat assumed office following the death of Nasser. The Sadat period witnessed changes in the political, social and economic domains, and at the same time, the private sector was given a greater share in the country's economy through the implementation of the "Open Door Policy." In October 1981, Sadat was assassinated by Muslim Brotherhood Islamist fanatics as he was reviewing a parade commemorating the Egyptian victory in the October war.