In 1550 BC, Ahmose I expelled the Hyksos and reunited Egypt once again. It marked the beginning of the New Kingdom: an age of empire and glory, in which the pharaoh's power transcended borders. Ahmose I integrated royal women, such as his wife Ahmose-Nefertari, into pharaonic and religious institutions. Hatshepsut came to power alongside her stepson, and her connection to the priesthood provided her with legitimacy. The royal artisan village at Deir el-Medina teems with workers, engineers, and scribes engaged in the construction of pharaonic tombs in the Valley of the Kings. Their lives reflect the everyday experience of ordinary people. However, as the power of the priesthood challenges the pharaoh, that struggle will shake Egyptian society to its foundations.
Amenhotep IV ascended the throne in 1350 BC and challenged ancient traditions. He changed his name to Akhenaten and established an obscure solar deity as the sole god, angering the priesthood of Amun. The pharaoh resorted to force to suppress the old religious institutions and moved the capital to Amarna. His decisions had social, economic, and political consequences. A simultaneous revival of art and depictions of the pharaoh revealed a kingdom at odds with its old ways. Akhenaten perished under mysterious circumstances, and when Nefertiti intervened to guide the young king Tutankhaten, he changed his name, signaling a return to the old order. His legacy, and that of his father, was nearly erased as power returned to the status quo.
A general ascends to pharaoh after the death of Horemheb, ushering in the 19th Dynasty, known for its insatiable power. It erases the previous legacy, centralizes power, and reforms the administration. Ramses II goes to war against the Hittite Empire. The battle is inconclusive, but he turns it into a glorious victory for a massive propaganda campaign. Temples depict him as the undefeated warrior king. Upon his death, contenders for the throne unleash a civil war. The Egypt of Ramses III is plagued by hardship: drought, food shortages, the first known labor strike, an assassination attempt, and invasions by a mysterious people known as the Sea Peoples. How will the pharaohs wield power in a kingdom beset by conflict?
At the end of the Bronze Age, Egypt faced numerous threats. Following the Persian conquest in 525 BC, another foreign power seized the throne in 332 BC, although Alexander the Great allowed the Egyptians to maintain their customs. After his death, the Ptolemies revitalized the kingdom and turned Alexandria into a major cultural center. The Ptolemaic dynasty reigned for nearly 300 years, but the specter of Rome loomed, and Egypt ended up under its control as an agricultural center. Cleopatra VII forged strategic alliances with Roman rulers and liaised with Isis and Hathor to legitimize her reign. More than 3,000 years of pharaonic rule came to an end when one life was suddenly snuffed out, but Egypt and its pharaohs continued to fascinate the world more than 2,000 years later.