1. Ancient Egypt & Kush
Chapter 4

2. Bell Ringer September 8, 2015
What bodies of water can you see on the map? ( Page 91)
Where is the Nile Delta?
Where are Upper & Lower Egypt?
What is the land east & west of the Nile Valley like?
Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Nile (White, Blue)
In the North (Lower Egypt)
Upper Egypt in the south; Lower Egypt in the north
Desert

3. Geography and Ancient Egypt
Like Mesopotamia, the Nile River in Egypt also provided fertile land that drew people to live there.
The culture that developed in Egypt was more stable and long-lasting than those in Mesopotamia
Because the Nile River
brought life to Egypt, the
Greek historian – Herodotus
called Egypt:
“The gift of the Nile.”

4. The Nile River
The Nile is the longest river in the world. It begins in central Africa and runs 4000 miles north to the Mediterranean Sea.
Egyptian civilization developed along a 750-mile stretch of the Nile in northern Africa.

5. Two Kingdoms
Ancient Egypt included two regions, a southern region and a northern region.
The southern region was called Upper Egypt because it was located up river
Lower Egypt in the North was located downriver.
On either side of the Nile lay hundreds of miles
of bleak desert

6. Geography of the Nile
The Nile rushed through rocky, hilly land south of Egypt causing strong rapids called cataracts.
These rapids made sailing that portion of the Nile
very difficult
In Lower Egypt, the Nile divided into several branches
that fanned out and flowed into the Mediterranean Sea,
forming the delta.
2/3 of Egypt’s farmland was located in the Nile Delta.

7. Floods of the Nile
Because it received so little rain, most of Egypt was desert.
Each year, rainfall far to the south of Egypt in the highlands of east Africa caused the Nile to flood

8. Civilization Develops Along the Nile
As in Mesopotamia, Farmers in Egypt developed an irrigation system with basins and canals.
The Egyptians grew various foods. The Nile provided fish. They hunted wild geese and ducks.

9. Natural Barriers
The Nile Valley had natural barriers that made Egypt hard to invade.
The desert to the west was too big to cross.
To the North, the Mediterranean Sea kept enemies
away
The Red Sea provided protection
Cataracts in the Nile made it difficult for outsiders
to sail in from the South.
Protected from invaders, Egypt grew into
two Kingdoms

10. Egypt Unifies The King of Lower Egypt wore a red crown
The King of Upper Egypt wore a cone-shaped white crown.
Around 3100 BC a leader named Menes rose to power in Upper Egypt.
Menes finished what the Scorpion King started – uniting the two kingdoms by conquering Lower Egypt.
He combined the two crowns
Menes was Egypt’s first Pharaoh
He founded Egypt’s first dynasty
Made Memphis the political & cultural
center of Egypt.

11. Geography & Ancient Egypt Chapter 4 Section 1 Notes
Two Regions: Upper Egypt -> South
Lower Egypt -> North
Nile Delta: best farmland
Cataracts: Not good for travel, but protected Egypt from invaders
Foods: Egyptian grew food, fished, hunted for a variety
Nile: supplied life-giving water and silt for the soil
The desert :protected Egypt from invaders
Menes: was the first Pharaoh
Pharaohs: wore a double crown to represent power over the two lands

12. Essential Question What attracted early settlers to the Nile Valley?
Who joined Upper & Lower Egypt together?

13. The Nile from Space

14. Bell Ringer September 9, 2012
Complete a Venn Diagram. List the differences and similarities between the Nile civilization in Egypt & the Tigris and Euphrates civilization in Mesopotamia.

15. Nile: Flooded predictably Flowed North Fertile Land Irrigation-canals
Natural barriers -Stability
Surrounded by Desert
Advanced society
Trade
Religion – polytheistic
Centered on afterlife

16. Early Egyptian Society
As in other ancient cultures, Egyptian society was based on a strict order of social classes
A small group of royalty, nobles, and priests ruled Egypt
Rest of the population supplied foods, crafts, and labor.
Few people questioned this arrangement.
Many of the priests and officials were
nobles
Lower class made up about 80% of
population – farmers
When not farming – they worked on
Pharaoh’s building projects.

17. Rule by Pharaohs
Ancient Egyptians believed that Egypt belonged to the gods and pharaoh had come to earth to manage Egypt for the gods
The pharaoh had absolute power, but much responsibility: prevent war, provide trade, good crops

18. The Old Kingdom Around 2700 BC, the Third Dynasty rose to power.
Its rule began the Old Kingdom which lasted for about 500 years.
Duties of the pharaohs grew and pharaohs hired government officials, mostly from his family
The most famous pharaoh of the Old Kingdom was Khufu.
Egyptian legend says that he was cruel, but records show that the people were well fed.
He is best known for the monuments that were built to him.

19. Trade During the Old Kingdom, Egypt began trading with its neighbors.
Gold, ivory, slaves, stone, incense & myrrh (perfume & medicine)
Trade with Syria provided Egypt with wood.

20. Religion Egyptians were polytheistic.
Religious customs focused on the afterlife: ideal world where the Ka left the body and became a spirit, but remained linked to the body.
The ka had all the same needs as a living person.
Tombs were filled with objects for the after life.

21. Burial Practices
Egyptians believed that a body had to be prepared for the afterlife.
The body had to be preserved.
It could not decay or its spirit would not recognize it. That would break the link between the body and the Ka
To keep the Ka from suffering, the Egyptians developed a method called embalming to preserve the bodies
This resulted in mummies – preserved bodies wrapped in cloth
Only royalty and Egypt’s elite could afford to have mummies made.
The poor buried their dead in shallow graves near the desert – they were preserved by the sand and lack of moisture.

22. Essential Question
How was society structured in the Old Kingdom & who was at the base of it?
Pharaohs-> Nobles->soldiers->scribes- >merchants->craft->farmers-> servants->slaves

23. Challenge
Which strata of the social class was the most important in Egyptian Society?
Which is most important today?

24. Chapter 4 Vocabulary Cataracts: strong rapids
Delta: triangle-shaped area of land made of soil deposited by a river
Pharaoh: title used by the rulers of Egypt
Dynasty: series of rulers from the same family
Old Kingdom: period in Egyptian history that lasted from about 2700BC to 2200 BC.
Nobles: people from rich and powerful families
Afterlife: life after death
Mummies: specially treated bodies wrapped in cloth
Elite: people of wealth and power.

25. GOVERNMENT & RELIGION IN ANCIENT EGYPT
Bell Ringer September 10, 2015
Using your notes, complete a graphic organizer with 3 statements about the relationship between government & religion in the Old Kingdom of Egypt.
GOVERNMENT & RELIGION IN ANCIENT EGYPT 1. 2. 3.
Pharaoh ruled as a God
Priests ruled in Religion and Government
Government worker made Tombs for the Afterlife

26. The Pyramids
The Egyptians began to build Pyramids during the Old Kingdom.
The largest is the Great Pyramid of Khufu near the town of Giza.
It covers 13 acres at its base and stands 481 feet high.
It took more than 2 million limestone blocks to build.
Scientists are still not sure exactly how the Pyramids were built.
Building a great pyramid for a pharaoh ensured a happy afterlife for all Egyptians

28. The Decline of the Old Kingdom
Rulers and Dynasties changed in Egypt as years passed.
Egypt changed with them.
By 2200 BC – the Old Kingdom had declined. Building the Pyramids and keeping up the costs of government was expensive.
Nobles took over power. Trade diminished. Farming declined.
Possibly there was drought and famine. kingdom-died years-ago-following-mega-drought-caused- climate-change.html

29. The Middle Kingdom
Mentuhotep II – Powerful Pharaoh united all of Egypt and began the Middle Kingdom – 2050 to 1750 BC.
Toward the end of the Middle Kingdom, due to internal disorder, Egypt again declined and was invaded by the Hyksos from Southwest Asia.
The Hyksos ruled Egypt for 200 years.
They introduced the horse & chariot
and the composite bow

30. End of the Middle Kingdom
Eventually – the people of Egypt rose up and fought the Hyksos.
Ahmose drove them out of Egypt and declared himself king.
It was the beginning of the New Kingdom, the period during
which Egypt reached the height of its power and glory.

31. The New Kingdom
During the New Kingdom 1550 – 1050 BC, conquest and trade brought tremendous wealth to the pharaohs.
To prevent further invasions, Egypt took control over invasion routes.
This turned Egypt into an Empire.
They conquered the Hyksos, Syria, and the
eastern shore of the Mediterranean.
It also defeated Kush, south of Egypt.

32. Essential Question
Fill in the pyramid below with information about political and military factors that led to the rise and fall of the Old Kingdom & Middle Kingdom.

33. Egyptian Time-Line

34. Bell Ringer September 11, 2015
How did the desert on both sides of the Nile help ancient Egypt?
What does the building of the Pyramids tell us about Egyptian society?
Provided protection against invasion
Proves that Ancient Egypt was very advanced to be capable of the complex organization required

35. Building an Empire
By the 1400s BC, Egypt was the leading military power in the region.
Its empire extended from the Euphrates River to southern Nubia

36. Conquest & Trade Conquests and trade made Egypt rich.
The Kingdoms it conquered regularly sent treasure to their Egyptian conquerors.
Others sent treasures to Egypt to maintain good relations hoping to avoid be conquered by them .

37. Queen Hatshepsut and Trade Routes
Queen Hatshepsut worked to increase Egyptian trade.
She opened trade from the Kingdom of Punt along the Red Sea to the people of Asia Minor and Greece.
She supported arts and architecture with the wealth.
She is especially remembered for the many impressive monuments and temples built during her reign.

38. Ramses the Great Ramses the Great 1200s BC.
One of the longest reigns in Egyptian history.
Fought the Hittites – neither could win – finally signed a treaty
Built forts along the western frontier to protect from invasions which proved useful even 100 years later.
Even though there were Pharaohs after him – he is considered the last great Egyptian Pharaoh.

39. The Decline of the Egyptian Empire
Soon after Ramses the Great died, invaders called the Sea Peoples sailed into southwest Asia.
Historians are not even sure who they were, except that they were strong warriors who crushed the Hittites and destroyed cities in Southwest Asia.
It took 50 years of fighting for the Egyptians to turn them back.
Egypt survived but its empire was lost, turning Egypt into another period of disorder.
It never regained its power.

40. Essential Question
Fill in Pyramid with the Rise and Fall of the New Kingdom.