Egypt 18th Dynasty (1549/1550 BC–1292 BC)

The period covering the Third to the Sixth Dynasty constitutes the "Old Kingdom," that of the Seventh to the Eleventh is the "First Intermediate Period," the Twelfth Dynasty is known as the "Middle Kingdom," while the period of the Thirteenth to the Seventeenth Dynasty is now usually described as the "Second Intermediate Period," and the era of the Eighteenth to the Twentieth is known as the "New Kingdom."

New Kingdom Egypt was born in warfare. It emerged from the struggle of the Theban rulers of Upper Egypt to rid themselves of Hyksos rule. The Hyksos kings, based at Avaris in the Nile Delta, had dominated Egypt for much of the Second Intermediate Period.

A notable feature of the early 18th Dynasty was the prominent role played by queens. From the beginning of Theban resistance to the Hyksos, queens were thrust into political and military roles. As regents for their husbands and sons, queens such as Tetisheri and Ahhotep played pivotal rolesin establishing the new dynasty.

Akhenaten (also known as Amenophis IV) was one of ancient Egypt’s most controversial pharaohs because of his devotion to Aten, the Sun-disc, as his one-and-only god; he has a strange appearance in images produced after the introduction of his radical new religion. Between years 8 and 12 of

Akhnaten’s reign, the worship of all other gods were officially forbidden. Akhnaten’s successor changed his name from Tutankhaten (which means “Living Image of Aten”) to Tutankhamun (which means “Living Image of Amun.”)

An important event of the early Eighteenth Dynasty was the resumption of commercial intercourse with the people of the wonderland of Punt on the Somali coast.
Egypt 18th Dynasty (1549/1550 BC–1292 BC)