The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt Timeline | Egyptian Empire Facts, History Pharaonic Civilization, List of Pharaohs kings Dynasty 18, 19, 20, 21


The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt is that period of Egyptian history following the Second Intermediate Period. That was the era when kings lost control over the whole of Egypt.

The Second Intermediate period was the era when control over the Delta or the lower Egypt was almost lost. The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt was the era when the capital moved from north to south, from Itj-Tawy (Lisht) in lower Egypt to Luxor in Upper Egypt.

Before that era, groups of migrants called reached the Delta and settled in the north-eastern part. These foreigners called Hyksos had full control of the Delta and established a capital at Tell El Deba called Avaris. The Hyksos ruled Egypt for 108 years till a family from Luxor kicked them out.

Seqenenra Taa, his follower son Kamose started the revolt against the Hyksos rulers. They prepared to send an army to the Delta and fought against the Hyksos but seems they died in the battle.

Ahmose I, son of Seqenenra Taa and brother of Kamose expelled them from Egypt till Sharuḥen (Tell el-Fārʿah) in southern Palestine. Ahmose I started the new era known as The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt and he was the first king of the eighteenth dynasty. One of the results of the Hyksos invasion was that the Egyptian pharaohs realizes that the desert borders will not protect Egypt anymore. As a direct result, they started to protect Egypt outside of its borders.

That was not the only result of the Hyksos invasion, Hyksos invaded Egypt with three things never existed in Egypt before, Horses and chariots, curved swords, and bows. As a result, Egyptian Pharaohs had to modernize their Egyptian weapons. Also, they expanded their borders through diplomacy, trade, and war. That led to many years of political stability and prosperity.

The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt

The New kingdom Egypt is commonly known as the Egyptian Empire lasted between 1550-1070BC when Luxor was the capital of Egypt.

The new kingdom included 3 Dynasties 18th, 19th, and 20th dynasties. That was the time when Egypt again was united, and powerful and reached its apex of wealth, prosperity, and political influences.

The new kingdom witnessed the expel of Hyksos totally outside of Egypt, and kings became the head of the military campaigns.

The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt starts with Ahmose as we mentioned and lasts for about 500 years. More than 30 kings from three successive dynasties 18th,19th, and 20th dynasties rule through the golden age of the Pharaohs.

Most of the remarkable monuments we see today in Luxor date back to The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt. Modern Luxor, old Thebes was the political and religious center of the Kingdom.

Amun was the principal god and kings built many temples in his honor, particularly the Karnak temple. Karnak as the house of the god and symbolic power center seduced all kings of The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt to add something there. Right now, Karnak temple is the biggest temple in the world and it has the biggest Hypostyle Hall in the world, the highest standing Obelisk in Egypt besides the biggest sacred lake.

The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt Pharaohs makes the significant expansion of the empire till Upper Nubia now in Sudan, and as far as the Euphrates. Egyptian Pharaohs reached Syria and beyond. King Tuthmosis I, grabbed upper Nubia and started the first tomb in the Valley of the Kings on the west bank of the Nile River. The west bank was used since the middle Kingdom when Mentuhotep I built his mortuary temple at Deir El Bahari.

Here is a list of all The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt kings – Dynasty 18 (about 1550 – 1292 BC)

  • Ahmose (1550-1525 BC)
  • Amenhotep I (1525-1504 BC)
  • Thutmose I (1504-1492 BC)
  • Thutmose II (1492-1479 BC)
  • Hatshepsut (1479/1473-1458/57 BC)
  • Thutmose III (1479-1425 BC)
  • Amenhotep II (1428-1397 BC)
  • Thutmose IV (1397-1388 BC)
  • Amenhotep III (1388-1351/50 BC)
  • Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV) (1351-1334 BC)
  • Smenkhkare (1337-1334 BC)
  • Tutankhamun (1333-1323 BC)
  • Ay (1323-1319 BC)
  • Horemheb (1319-1292 BC)

Dynasty 19 (about 1292-1185 BC)

  1. Ramesses I (1292-1290 BC)
  2. Seti I (1290-1279/8 BC)
  3. Ramesses II (1279-1213 BC)
  4. Merenptah (1213-1203 BC)
  5. Seti II (1200/1199-1194/93 BC)
  6. Amenmesse (1203-1200/1199 BC)
  7. Siptah (1194/93-1186/85 BC)
  8. Tausret (1194/93-1186/85 BC)

Dynasty 20 (about 1186-1069 BC)

  1. Setnakht (1186/85-1183/82 BC)
  2. Ramesses III (1183/82-1152/51 BC)
  3. Ramesses IV (1152/51-1145/44 BC)
  4. Ramesses V (1145/4-1142/40 BC)
  5. Ramesses VI (1142/40-1134/32 BC)
  6. Ramesses VII (1134/32-1126/23 BC)
  7. Ramesses VIII (1126/23-1125/21 BC)
  8. Ramesses IX (1125/21-1107/03 BC)
  9. Ramesses X (1107/03-1103/1099 BC)
  10. Ramesses XI (1103/1099-1070/1069 BC)

Eighteenth Dynasty 1550 – 1295 BC Important Kings

during the 18th Dynasty “a succession of extraordinarily able kings and queens laid the foundations of a strong Egypt and bequeathed a prosperous economy to the kings of the nineteenth dynasty.

Ahmose I

Ruled for about 26 years and he was the first king of the 18th dynasty. Ahmose was the one who expelled the Hyksos and the builder of the last royal Pyramid. He may be buried in Dra Abu el-Naga in the Theban necropolis. Overall, he was the son of Aahotep, the holder of the Golden Flies” awarded as a great military leader.

Tuthmosis I

The third king of the 18th dynasty and the first king who crossed the Euphrates River in the north and conquered upper Nubian in the south. The first king had his tomb in the valley of the kings, the father of the female pharaoh Hatshepsut. Tuthmosis was the king who started the city of the workers Deir El Madina and the builders of a very famous 4 twin Obelisks at Karnak temple.

Hatshepsut Foremost of the Nobel ladies

Hatshepsut was the daughter of Tuthmosis I and one of Egypt’s female rulers. She ruled for 23 years in total and she has a spectacular temple on the west bank beside Mentuhotep I temple Al Deir Al Bahari. The temple was dedicated to the god Amun but also there were shrines for the goddess Hathor, and the god Anubis.

Queen Hatshepsut erected two Obelisks at Karnak temple and her reign is noted for her trading expeditions to Punt country. Hatshepsut sent expeditions to the turquoise mines of Sinai and she dug a tomb for herself in the Valley of the kings KV 20. Hatshepsut Mummy has never been identified.

Tuthmosis III

Tuthmosis was Hatshepsut’s nephew and he is the sixth pharaoh of the eighteenth dynasty. one of the greatest military leaders and for historians, he is Napoleon of Egypt. He was a brilliant military strategist, and he never lost any of his 17 battles outside of Egypt. Tuthmosis III brought Egypt to a level of prosperity and prestige. Tuthmosis III was so open-minded and he loved everything new outside of Egypt like plants and flowers, he created the Botanical Garden at Karnak temple decorated with flora and fauna from all countries he saw. Tuthmosis tomb KV 34 in the Valley of the Kings is one of the most beautiful tombs.

Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV)

Akhenaten was the son of Amenhotep III with his wife Tiy. His father’s campaigns into Syria, Nubia, and Libya gave Egypt long years of prosperity and stability.

Amenhotep III enjoyed diplomatic marriages to strengthen the alliance between Egypt and Mitanni in Syria and other countries. Egypt in his time was at peace, flourished with the economy, had happy people, good reputation as never before. But all that will change during his son Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV).

Akhenaton closed the Amun temple, changed the Capital from Luxor to Akhetaten, and he elevated the cult of the sun disk Aten or Aton god.

Akhenaten married a normal lady of non-royal blood Nefertiti, daughter of the vizier Ay. Egyptian Empire started to have some cracks at the end of Amenhotep III and became more evident in the Akhenaten era. Akhenaten will not leave his new capital Akhetaten; he will not invite people to his new monotheistic cult and he will leave his diplomats and state government to his generals Horemheb and Ay.

Tutankhamun

Historians are still a bit confused about the boy king Tutankhamun, who was he? Who ascended the throne? Who was his dad? His mom? Where he was born? Where Tutankhamun was crowned, Memphis or Luxor?

Anyhow Tutankhamun ruled Egypt after king Akhenaten for about 7 or 8 years. Tutankhamun was most probably the son of Akhenaten from his secondary wife Kiya and he was married to Akhenaten’s third daughter, Ankhesenpaaton.

Tutankhamun’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings is the smallest one and it was not originally for him. The tomb was discovered by Howard Carter in November 1922 for his patron Lord Carnarvon.

Since Tutankhamun’s tomb was discovered and Lord Carnarvon and his daughter and some of the workers died, the world started to talk about the curse. Anyhow till now most scholars wondering if the death was suspicious death or just a coincidence?

Above all, Tutankhamun’s tomb was the only tomb from The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt tomb found intact. The tomb gave an excellent idea of how the royal tomb was full of a collection of royal artifacts. The sarcophagi, golden mast, throne, food, drinks, beds, clothes, and crafts were among the most beautiful pieces found in Egyptian history.

Still one huge problem concerning the death of the young king Tutankhamun. Whether he died because of the malaria parasite, assassination, or Birth defects are also known as congenital abnormalities, congenital disorders, or congenital malformations. The conclusion is the tomb of Tutankhamun is still one of the most beautiful finds in Egypt and the king himself still one of the unsolved problems like building the Pyramids or erecting the Obelisks.

Nineteenth Dynasty 1292-1185 BC Important Kings

Seti I

Seti was the second pharaoh of the 19th dynasty and the son of the founder Ramesses I. Seti I ruled for about 30 years and his reign was a rebirth for Egypt in art and culture. Seti I in his first year launched campaigns against Syria, Libya, and Lebanon to restore Egypt’s status after the Amarna period.

We should remember his great hypostyle hall at the Karnak temple, and his amazing temple at Abydos for Osiris. One of the most spectacular buildings is his tomb in the Valley of the Kings KV17, discovered by Giovanni Belzoni in October 1817. His mummy is one of the best-preserved mummies in Egypt and we found it in the royal cache at Deir El Bahari in 1881. Seti’s mummy is now in the Egyptian Museum of Civilization.

Ramesses II

It is not easy to talk about Ramesses II in brief as he was one of the greatest Egyptian pharaohs. Ramesses II ruled Egypt after the death of his father Seti I, and he ruled for 67 years. The king’s long years on the throne allowed him to erect temples, Obelisks, and statues everywhere in Egypt. the Great Ramesses is famous as Ramesses the great and he had many sons and daughters over one hundred of them.

Ramesses added part to the Hypostyle Hall at Karnak, and to Luxor temple. The King finished his father’s temple Abydos temple, and he built one for himself in the same area in Abydos. Nefertari was his chief wife until her death in year 24 of his reign.

The king built her the most beautiful tomb in the whole of Egypt in the Valley of the Queens known as the Nefertari tomb. Istnofret was his second important wife after Nefertari and she was the chief wife for 10 years.

Istnofret had two very important sons, one bore the name Ramesses and the second Khaemwaset the great magician. Ramesses was a great military man and had many great battles, especially the Qadesh battle against the Hittites in Syria.

Ramesses most important buildings

  • Karnak complex
  • Luxor temple
  • Ramesseum
  • Abydos
  • Beit El Wali
  • Gert Hussein
  • Wadi El Sebua
  • Derr
  • Abu Simbel
  • KV 7 at Valley of the Kings

Ramesses died around 100 years old and we found his mummy in the royal cache at Deir El Bahari in 1881 and is now in the Egyptian Museum of Civilization.

Merenptah

Merenptah was the 13th son of Ramesses II and he ruled for only 10 years. He has to face some unrest on the western borders with Libya, Nubia, and western Oases. Merenptah built a mortuary temple at Thebes and his tomb in the Valley of the Kings KV8 is a very deep and nice one. We found his mummy in the royal cache at Deir El Bahari in 1881 and is now in the Egyptian Museum of Civilization.

Tausret

The second female character of The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt ruled Egypt for a very short time. Tausret (Twosert) was the stepmother of the ex-king Siptah. She has a tomb in the Valley of the Kings KV 14 and she built her mortuary temple south of the Ramesseum. Her mummy is still not identified but some suggest that maybe the “unknown woman D” in KV 35 is her mummy.

Twentieth Dynasty 1186-1069 BC Important Kings – The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt

Ramesses III

Ramesses III was the son of the first king of the 20th dynasty Setnakhte by his wife Tiya-Merenese. His father was a great king who ruled for only 3 years and he reopened the temples and put down the Asiatic rebellions.

One of the generals ruled Egypt and was the last great pharaoh and military leader. After his time, Egypt will gain disunity and the outsiders will attack her. He added a beautiful temple at Karnak and his temple on the west bank is an amazing Medinet Habu temple.

Ramesses III enjoyed 4 years of peace then he started his wars against Libyans, Hittites, and the Sea peoples. He defeated all and stabilized the country. The last few years of his reign witnessed the increasing power and wealth of the priesthood of Amun. One of the highlights of his reign is The Harem Conspiracy.

One of the minor wives of the king Tiya hoped to see her son Pentewere king. She plotted to murder the king but they discovered her plan and arrested her. Ramesses has a very large tomb in the Valley of the Kings KV 11.

The end of The New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt

After Ramesses III Egypt was ruled by kings who adopted the name Ramesses and ruled for a very short time. They lived in the Delta but they have their tombs in the valley of the Kings. Because of the long distance between them and Thebes, was easy for some of Kush’s leaders to seize Luxor and make it part of Nubia.