EGYPTIAN

Egyptians were initially tribal people rooted along the Nile River. King Menes unified the different cultures [i]. Egypt's kings led as monarchs, enforcing regional governors (nomarch) to pay tribute. The growing influence of nomarchs [ii] provided an avenue to seek control; therefore, ancient Egypt was embroidered with intermittent intermediate periods. The first intermediate period was generalized as a period of conflict between Thebes and Heracleopolis. There were also periods of foreign invasion. Egypt fell to Persian troops who, in turn, were defeated by Alexander the Great. The Romans toppled the Ptolemaic dynasty in 31 BCE, which spelt the last dynasty of ancient Egypt.

Egyptians likened all doings to god's work, therefore, regarding their kings as a god [iii] caused internal struggles for control of Egypt. Egyptians revered themselves and regarded foreigners as threats [iv]. Meanwhile, Egyptians denounced Nubians, but Nubian resources necessitated trading expeditions between the two states. Such was the case until Thutmose III initiated a truly imperial Egyptian rule. Even though Egyptians held foreigners at arm's length, foreign invasions happened. The New Kingdom [v] began in the 18th dynasty with the rise of Egypt as an international power. This was the case until the 27th dynasty, which heralds the rise and fall of Egypt’s native-ruling.

Ancient Egyptians were ingenious innovators. Their inventions in areas including survey, art, astrology, and mathematics [vi] are still in use. If the aforementioned seem a bit obscure, the 140-meter pyramid [vii] that still casts its shadow over the sands of Giza is surely the greatest legacy of ancient Egypt. For someone in a faraway land, the pyramid is far-reaching but rather close is their everyday communication through text. The Egyptians were the first to use symbols as a means of communication, called hieroglyphic writing [viii]. Writing didn't start and end on monuments for Egyptians, they went even further by creating a paper called papyrus.

Egyptians were ruled over 32 dynasties, divided according to common kingship. Ancient Egypt was a conglomerate of cultures. Therefore, the earliest King of Egypt led their kingdom as a monarchy [ix], subjecting regional governors to tribute-paying. At first, Egyptian kings didn't have their army and rounded the armies of different nomarchs for war. As the regional army increased, so did the influence of the nomarchs, endangering the ascension of the kings' children to the throne. Tactics were changed in the Middle Kingdom. Pharaohs started to train their soldiers as invasions increased. Later, Egypt metamorphosed into a bureaucratic system during the New Kingdom.

During the predynastic era [x], hunters settled in the Nile Valley for a stable agriculture economy. Gradually, two separate lands emerged. King Menes unified the two lands, paving the way for the Old Kingdom of Egypt. The Old Kingdom is regarded as the "age of the pyramid builder". During this period, Egypt attained its first peak of civilization. Internal disorder and drought caused the end of the Old Kingdom. Afterwards, Mentuhotep III [xi] reunited ancient Egypt in a period regarded as the Middle Kingdom. However, the second and third intermediate periods were laced with foreign invasions until ancient Egypt fell to Roman imperialism.

The achievements of Egyptians can't be quantified. They played a key role in engineering, mathematics, art, and agriculture. Although ancient Egypt was a nation of many achievements, the pyramid stands out among all others. Scientists and engineers alike still marvel at the ingenuity of Old Kingdom's kings. Before the construction of grand structures like the pyramid, Egyptians carved statues and built average-sized structures like temples. These architectural monuments were adorned with symbols called hieroglyphs, which were later offset into papyrus [xii]. This preserved Egyptian history and was the first known act of writing. Over the century, societies have modified ancient Egypt’s inventions.

From predynastic Egypt til Ptolemy [xiii], the country’s chief wealth came from agriculture. This is a result of the annual inundation of the Nile river that deposited alluvium in the surrounding areas. The deposited alluviums were fertilizer for good agricultural yield. Egyptians needed minerals such as timber and obsidian to maintain basic standards of living, which were imported from neighbouring countries. These necessities were usually obtained through barter. As the king ruled as a monarch, his presence prevailed in the nomes by the Shemsu Hor [xiv], who was tasked with levying individual wealth and being the king's face in all of ancient Egypt.