Unification of Egypt Full Notes PDF

Egypt: The Gift of the Nile Geography The Nile River dominates Egypt’s life and worldview The Nile flooded predictable every year – Regular cycle: flood, plant, harvest People settled along the river farming in the fertile soil produced by the Nile Both sides of the Nile...

Egypt: The Gift of the Nile Geography The Nile River dominates Egypt’s life and worldview The Nile flooded predictable every year – Regular cycle: flood, plant, harvest People settled along the river farming in the fertile soil produced by the Nile Both sides of the Nile are surrounded by desert with occasional oasis keeping Egypt safe from invasion The Nile was worshiped as a god – a benevolent giver of life Most of the events and development in Egypt’s history occurred in Lower Egypt around the Nile delta Upper Egypt developed later and would become important when the pharaohs of Thebes came to power Travel along the Nile river was consistent – Travelling north, Egyptians would ride the current toward the sea – Travelling south, Egyptians would sail with the winds off of the Mediterranean Geography created a unique society as Egypt developed in relative isolation First Egyptians Egypt is a mispronunciation/evolution of “hout-ak-Ptah” or “house of Ptah” Egyptians called themselves remet-en-kemet – “people of the black soil” The name tells us that farming was so important to them it was indivisible from their identity – they identified primarily as farmers, thus breaking all ties with their indigenous, nomadic, tribal past By the time people started developing the area we now refer to as “Lower Egypt” the ethnography of Egypt was multi-ethnic The ethnic group we tend to associate with Egypt were descendants of Asiatic (“Arabic”) nomads and African tribal groups The Asian ancestors arrived in the area after following herds of gazelle from the east, crossing the Sinai Peninsula and discovering a true paradise Soon thereafter, the Asian settlers started “mixing” with their neighbours to the south (Upper Egypt, Nubia) who were experimenting with farming The fertile land of Lower Egypt allowed the people there to accelerate beyond the Nubians, who were slowly expanding north By the time the two societies were ready to meet the farming kingdom of Lower Egypt had far surpassed Upper Egypt in population and technology Natural Protection The Delta makes it difficult for sea-bound enemies to launch offensives effectively Egyptians could defend against invaders from the Delta – ambush from islands Attackers coming from the Mediterranean would have to move against the current – this would be problematic The Western and Eastern desert on either side of the Nile protected the Egyptians Impractical and dangerous to risk losing an army by marching them through deserts where they could die of dehydration or exposure 1 Mac’s History  The Red Sea is a natural barrier No one would cross a desert to cross a large body of water only to have to cross another desert The corridor that leads into the Red Sea is narrow and could be easily defended by fortification and naval patrols Sinai Peninsula is too narrow and too well defended to move forces through securely Flat elevation allowed them to see an invasion force coming The fact that the river is relatively narrow is going to discourage invasions from the river itself The Nile is not as windy as the Tigris or Euphrates – invasion forces could be seen Fresh water source: low salinity = rich soil for agriculture low salinity = biodiversity for hunting and medicine Natural Resources Egyptians mined gold and copper around Mount Sinai – later the gold of Nubia would make Egypt rich Mud left behind by the Nile was used to make clay jars and pots Fish were plentiful both from the Nile and the Mediterranean Reeds called papyrus were used to make boats, baskets, sandals, and scrolls for writing Development of Egypt The length of the Nile meant that Egypt developed different political systems during the pre-dynastic period Villages grew into cities and populations became more concentrated Over time the cities formed into provinces called nomes – there were 20 in Lower Egypt and 22 in Upper Egypt Initially these nomes were ruled by warrior-nobles – in time Upper and Lower Egypt would each have its own king Sometime between 3200 and 2780 BCE the two Egypts would be united by an individual who remains shrouded in mystery Unification of Egypt Menes is the individual credited with uniting Upper and Lower Egypt according to ancient tradition – 3rd-century BCE Egyptian historian Manetho called him Menes – 5th-century BCE Greek historian Herodotus called him Min – Two native-king lists of the 19th dynasty call him Meni Menes means he who endures and may have been an epithet or title given to an individual whose real name remains a mystery According to Egyptian legend, Menes was the first human king of Egypt having been made king by the god Horus There is almost no other mention of Menes in the archaeological record Egyptologists are divided about who the real Menes might have been – if he existed at all There are three real Egyptian kings who may have been the legendary Menes – though as legends go Menes may have been a combination of several individuals These three Egyptian kings were Hor-Aha, Scorpion, and Narmer Narmer seems to be the most likely candidate and there is considerable archeological evidence about this Egyptian king The most substantial evidence is the Narmer palette, a 64 cm x 42 cm siltstone tablet that depicts the unification of Egypt 2 Mac’s History Narmer Palette Dated to about the 31st century BCE Contains some of the earliest hieroglyphic inscriptions ever found Depicts Narmer wearing the white crown of Upper Egypt on one side and wearing the red crown of Lower Egypt on the other After this, Narmer and the kings that followed wore the double crown of Upper and Lower Egypt Early Dynastic Period In reality, the unification of Egypt may have occurred over the course of several reigns of different kings After Egypt was unified a new capital was founded at Memphis near modern-day Cairo Narmer was the first king of the Early Dynastic Period which would last from c. 3150 BCE – 2686 BCE After this era came the Old Kingdom – the age of the pyramids 3 Mac’s History