WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.680 --> 00:00:07.000 Chapter seven of History of Egypt. This is a LibriVox recording. 2 00:00:07.759 --> 00:00:12.279 All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more 3 00:00:12.320 --> 00:00:20.800 information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. History 4 00:00:21.120 --> 00:00:28.640 of Egypt by F. C. H. Wendel. Chapter seven The 5 00:00:28.760 --> 00:00:33.240 Close of the New Empire and the Period of Decline 6 00:00:33.840 --> 00:00:41.200 Dynasties twenty twenty one and twenty two about eleven eighty 7 00:00:41.560 --> 00:00:48.240 to eight hundred b C. Section one the Twentieth Dynasty 8 00:00:48.920 --> 00:00:54.439 and Close of the New Empire eleven eighty to ten 9 00:00:54.679 --> 00:01:00.600 fifty BC. With this dynasty closes the period called the 10 00:01:00.719 --> 00:01:06.319 New Empire and begins the period of Decline. The epoch 11 00:01:06.760 --> 00:01:12.120 known as the New Empire had begun auspiciously, and for 12 00:01:12.200 --> 00:01:17.719 several centuries the pharans of the eighteenth and nineteenth dynasties 13 00:01:18.319 --> 00:01:23.599 had succeeded in making and keeping Egypt the first power 14 00:01:24.000 --> 00:01:29.239 of the then known world. At the close of each dynasty, 15 00:01:30.079 --> 00:01:35.480 there had occurred periods of anarchy, which were, however, of 16 00:01:35.599 --> 00:01:42.879 short duration and entailed no serious consequences. The kings had 17 00:01:43.000 --> 00:01:48.680 nevertheless made a number of serious blunders, and the effects 18 00:01:48.719 --> 00:01:53.079 of these blunders began to show themselves in this period. 19 00:01:53.959 --> 00:01:57.640 The first of these was the great power which had 20 00:01:57.680 --> 00:02:01.400 been given to the priests of amon Ra after the 21 00:02:01.480 --> 00:02:06.079 suppression of the reform movement. We have seen how the 22 00:02:06.120 --> 00:02:10.599 bootsy won in the Asiatic Wars poured chiefly into the 23 00:02:10.680 --> 00:02:15.520 coffers of amun Rah. The money is paid into his treasury, 24 00:02:15.960 --> 00:02:20.800 where managed by the priesthood, a fact that is very significant. 25 00:02:21.759 --> 00:02:28.400 This priesthood was responsible apparently only to itself, and consequently 26 00:02:28.800 --> 00:02:33.759 vastly enriched itself. Add to the power of great wealth, 27 00:02:34.039 --> 00:02:39.919 the control of vass estates and consequently an immense patronage, 28 00:02:40.240 --> 00:02:45.479 and the enormous influence the priesthood generally has over the masses, 29 00:02:46.080 --> 00:02:51.080 and you can readily see that sooner or later this 30 00:02:51.280 --> 00:02:57.240 priesthood must become very dangerous to the state. In this dynasty. 31 00:02:57.759 --> 00:03:02.439 There must be added yet another factor, the vast influence 32 00:03:02.680 --> 00:03:07.120 the clergy gained over the weak and incompetent kings that 33 00:03:07.479 --> 00:03:12.199 ruled after Ramses the third. It is no wonder then 34 00:03:13.039 --> 00:03:17.879 that they should finally succeed in snatching the scepter from 35 00:03:17.919 --> 00:03:22.719 the weak hands of the lost Rmses. The second Sirgus 36 00:03:22.719 --> 00:03:28.719 plunder was their Libyan policy, which we have outlined in 37 00:03:28.840 --> 00:03:34.879 Chapter six section three. Sat Nagt ruled only a very 38 00:03:34.919 --> 00:03:40.000 short while, but he appointed his son Ramses Co regent 39 00:03:40.400 --> 00:03:45.759 shortly before he died. Ramses the third eleven eighty to 40 00:03:46.120 --> 00:03:51.039 eleven forty eight b C. The Rhumsges of the classical 41 00:03:51.159 --> 00:03:56.479 authors ascended the throne about eleven eighty b C. This 42 00:03:56.800 --> 00:04:03.159 pharaoh anxiously imitated roma Um their second, even giving his 43 00:04:03.319 --> 00:04:07.599 sons the same names as those borne by the sons 44 00:04:07.599 --> 00:04:12.240 of his great predecessor, and appointing them to the same 45 00:04:12.360 --> 00:04:17.519 offices the latter had held. He was, not, however, the 46 00:04:17.600 --> 00:04:22.199 equal of Roums's the Second in war, though he almost 47 00:04:22.319 --> 00:04:28.360 excelled him in Paradostiu. The lists of conquered lands are 48 00:04:28.639 --> 00:04:33.839 just as untrustworthy as those of Rumses the Second, and 49 00:04:34.000 --> 00:04:38.439 must be entirely disregarded in writing the history of this period. 50 00:04:39.199 --> 00:04:43.800 The only authentic sources are the accounts of specific campaigns, 51 00:04:44.279 --> 00:04:47.639 and on these alone is based the following account of 52 00:04:47.720 --> 00:04:52.839 his wars. The early part of this reign seems to 53 00:04:52.920 --> 00:04:58.519 have been taken up by cares of state the land had, 54 00:04:58.800 --> 00:05:02.959 it is true, been pacified by a sad nact, but 55 00:05:03.199 --> 00:05:07.519 still the reorganization of the state was by no means 56 00:05:07.600 --> 00:05:11.959 compelled when Romses came to the throne. In one of 57 00:05:12.040 --> 00:05:17.879 his edicts, this pharaoh gives orders to cleanse the temples 58 00:05:17.920 --> 00:05:22.160 of Upper Egypt of all that the God's hate, to 59 00:05:22.240 --> 00:05:27.600 restore the truth that is Orthodox faith, and to destroy 60 00:05:28.000 --> 00:05:33.160 the lie that is Orthodoxy. It was owing to this 61 00:05:33.399 --> 00:05:37.639 unsettled state of the country that he could not undertake 62 00:05:37.759 --> 00:05:43.439 his first campaign, which was an extremely important and absolutely 63 00:05:43.519 --> 00:05:50.160 necessary one, before his fifth year. Meanwhile, matters looked bad 64 00:05:50.360 --> 00:05:56.439 in the Delta. Libyan hordes under their princess Dedi, Mashakin 65 00:05:56.800 --> 00:06:02.240 Tamar and Jadmar had and the Delta, possibly during the 66 00:06:02.319 --> 00:06:07.480 period of Anarchi which followed on the death of Setti 67 00:06:07.680 --> 00:06:12.240 the second, and had penetrated to the main stream of 68 00:06:12.360 --> 00:06:17.000 the Nile. Here they occupied the banks of the river 69 00:06:17.199 --> 00:06:22.160 from Carbana to Memphis. In the fifth year of his reign, 70 00:06:22.480 --> 00:06:26.959 Roms's at laws had sufficiently settled the eternal affairs of 71 00:06:27.079 --> 00:06:31.079 his kingdom to allow of his turning his attention to 72 00:06:31.199 --> 00:06:36.639 foreign affairs, and he accordingly marched against the Libyans. After 73 00:06:36.800 --> 00:06:40.839 some hard fighting, he succeeded in driving them out of 74 00:06:40.879 --> 00:06:45.800 the country. Some three years later, the pharaoh was involved 75 00:06:46.519 --> 00:06:50.800 in a more serious war the peoples of the sea, 76 00:06:51.439 --> 00:06:56.720 the Shardana, to RuSHA and Shakarusha, who in all probability 77 00:06:57.519 --> 00:07:01.800 dwelt on the north coast of Africa and seem to 78 00:07:01.879 --> 00:07:08.199 have been great pirates. United with there Zakari, Prousta, Danauna 79 00:07:08.360 --> 00:07:14.120 and Washiwash four other seafaring peoples in a grand raid 80 00:07:14.319 --> 00:07:18.879 on the Asiatic coast. They advanced down the coast by 81 00:07:18.959 --> 00:07:23.399 land and water, bringing with them their women and children 82 00:07:23.639 --> 00:07:28.519 and all their possessions on courts drawn by Oxen. All 83 00:07:28.600 --> 00:07:35.000 the Syrian people, the Sheeta, the Kidi, Karamish, Arradus, and Aresa, 84 00:07:35.519 --> 00:07:41.000 were subdued, and then the mighty stream poured into Palestine, 85 00:07:41.639 --> 00:07:47.639 which was mercilessly devastated. Up to this time, Rams's had 86 00:07:47.680 --> 00:07:53.920 been looking on an unconcerned spectator, rather rejoiced than otherwise 87 00:07:54.120 --> 00:07:58.639 at the downfall of Egypt's old enemies. But as soon 88 00:07:58.720 --> 00:08:04.920 as Palestine was invaded, matters assumed a different aspect. Palestine 89 00:08:05.240 --> 00:08:10.480 was an Egyptian province and could not be sacrificed accordingly. 90 00:08:10.759 --> 00:08:15.040 In the eighth year of his reign, Ramses proceeded against 91 00:08:15.120 --> 00:08:18.439 the pirates with a large army and a great fleet. 92 00:08:19.160 --> 00:08:22.800 The decisive battle was fought on the coast of Syria, 93 00:08:23.439 --> 00:08:27.079 both on land and on sea, and the enemy was 94 00:08:27.199 --> 00:08:33.840 utterly routed and almost annihilated. Vast numbers of prisoners were taken. 95 00:08:34.639 --> 00:08:39.720 The people concerned in this attack were all seafaring The 96 00:08:39.879 --> 00:08:45.320 Shardana to Russia and Shaikarusha we have met before as 97 00:08:45.600 --> 00:08:50.200 allies of the Libyan tribes that attacked Egypt in the 98 00:08:50.279 --> 00:08:54.879 times of Marine Petah. They dwelt most probably on the 99 00:08:54.919 --> 00:09:00.000 north coast of Africa. That these tribes here appeared together 100 00:09:00.240 --> 00:09:05.279 with tribes coming most probably from Greece and Asia Minor 101 00:09:05.559 --> 00:09:10.440 is no argument against this, for these tribes were bold pirates, 102 00:09:10.639 --> 00:09:15.519 ready to join in any enterprise that promised booty. Though 103 00:09:15.559 --> 00:09:19.840 we can state with a considerable degree of certainty that 104 00:09:19.879 --> 00:09:24.240 the other four tribes came from Greece and Asia Minor, 105 00:09:24.840 --> 00:09:29.399 we cannot assign to each one its proper home. That 106 00:09:29.559 --> 00:09:34.039 Greek tribes took part in this expedition is made extremely 107 00:09:34.120 --> 00:09:38.480 probable when we remember that the Odyssey mentions raids of 108 00:09:38.600 --> 00:09:42.799 this character made by Greek pirates on the Egyptian coast. 109 00:09:43.399 --> 00:09:48.440 The threatened invasion was thus happily averted, and the Egyptian 110 00:09:48.519 --> 00:09:55.559 domination over Palestine, Phoenician and Southern Syria considerably strengthened. In 111 00:09:55.679 --> 00:09:59.720 these countries, the kings of the preceding dynasty had a 112 00:09:59.759 --> 00:10:04.720 req and garrisoned forts in order to keep the inhabitants 113 00:10:04.840 --> 00:10:09.600 under control. Ramses the third went one step further. He 114 00:10:09.759 --> 00:10:13.919 tried to force the Egyptian religion, or rather the religion 115 00:10:14.000 --> 00:10:19.200 of Almunrah on the Asiatics. A great temple was erected 116 00:10:19.440 --> 00:10:23.559 in this region to Almunrah, to which, in the language 117 00:10:23.600 --> 00:10:28.200 of the official record, all the peoples of shel Syria 118 00:10:28.720 --> 00:10:34.399 bring their tribute. Incidentally, an expedition against the shehzou pduins 119 00:10:34.399 --> 00:10:39.879 of sir Adom is mentioned. Three years after the great 120 00:10:40.080 --> 00:10:43.720 victory over the Pirates, the king was again compelled to 121 00:10:43.840 --> 00:10:50.759 march against the Libyans. The Mashawasha, under their chief Mahshah Shar, 122 00:10:51.519 --> 00:10:56.360 united with the Tamhu and Libu and invaded the western Delta. 123 00:10:56.960 --> 00:11:00.519 The Pharaoh easily defeated them in a great battle fought 124 00:11:00.600 --> 00:11:04.720 on the frontier. Large numbers of the enemy were killed, 125 00:11:05.000 --> 00:11:10.440 numerous prisoners were taken, and which booty was one. These 126 00:11:10.639 --> 00:11:14.279 four wars seemed to have been all that Romss was 127 00:11:14.440 --> 00:11:19.120 engaged in. We see that they were all defensive wars, 128 00:11:19.159 --> 00:11:23.120 and this is quite a change from the aggressive policy 129 00:11:23.159 --> 00:11:27.559 pursued by the kings of dynasties twenty eight and nineteen. 130 00:11:28.159 --> 00:11:31.720 After the close of the Second Libyan War, the kingdom 131 00:11:32.000 --> 00:11:36.159 was at peace with the world, and Thebia and Nubia 132 00:11:36.440 --> 00:11:41.519 remained tranquil. The trade with Peawnd was reopened, and a 133 00:11:41.600 --> 00:11:45.919 fleet scent there returned, laden with the products of its 134 00:11:46.039 --> 00:11:51.519 tropical coasts, and brought back with it ambassadors from the 135 00:11:51.639 --> 00:11:57.240 various rulers of the region. The copper and malachite mines 136 00:11:57.279 --> 00:12:01.679 of the Sinai were operated. The land seemed to have 137 00:12:01.879 --> 00:12:07.200 arrived at the highest point of tranquility and prosperity. Thus, 138 00:12:07.320 --> 00:12:12.399 at least the official inscriptions and Papyrus Harris the First 139 00:12:12.879 --> 00:12:16.919 the official record of this reign, would have us believe. 140 00:12:18.120 --> 00:12:22.759 In reality, matters were not so pleasant. In the immediate 141 00:12:22.960 --> 00:12:27.399 vicinity of the Faires capital, in the necropolis of Thebes, 142 00:12:27.759 --> 00:12:32.519 there was almost constant trouble with the laborers. These men 143 00:12:32.799 --> 00:12:37.480 were in the government service and where to receive regular 144 00:12:37.720 --> 00:12:42.240 monthly rations, but the payment was far from regular, and 145 00:12:42.600 --> 00:12:45.960 very often they had to strike for them. Thus we 146 00:12:46.120 --> 00:12:49.679 know of one gang of laborers that struck for their 147 00:12:49.759 --> 00:12:54.159 pay three times inside of half a year in the 148 00:12:54.279 --> 00:12:59.480 twenty ninth year of this reign. On these occasions, they 149 00:12:59.480 --> 00:13:03.000 would lead the necropolis in a body with their wives 150 00:13:03.000 --> 00:13:07.440 and children, and would not return until their demands had 151 00:13:07.480 --> 00:13:12.039 been ascended to. The first strike lasted five days, and 152 00:13:12.200 --> 00:13:17.120 at one stage of the proceedings matters assumed so serious 153 00:13:17.159 --> 00:13:20.759 an aspect that the military had to be called out. 154 00:13:21.320 --> 00:13:25.279 The men finally received their dues and returned to work. 155 00:13:26.039 --> 00:13:30.519 On the second strike, which occurred a month later, the 156 00:13:30.600 --> 00:13:33.840 men marched to the gates of the city, where the 157 00:13:33.919 --> 00:13:38.919 governor of thebes met them and, after some discussion, paid 158 00:13:39.000 --> 00:13:43.960 them half of their dues, whereupon they returned to the necropolis. 159 00:13:44.600 --> 00:13:49.240 Two months later they struck again, but were soon pacified. 160 00:13:49.960 --> 00:13:54.360 This record, which no doubt represents the experience of these 161 00:13:54.480 --> 00:13:58.919 unfortunates not only during this half a year but during 162 00:13:58.960 --> 00:14:03.600 the entire reign, stands in strange contrast to the accounts 163 00:14:03.639 --> 00:14:08.519 given by the official documents. From another source, too, we 164 00:14:08.679 --> 00:14:12.720 learned something more of the real condition of affairs. This 165 00:14:12.960 --> 00:14:16.639 is a papyrus giving the minutes of a criminal procedure 166 00:14:17.159 --> 00:14:21.360 against several members of the royal family, and several high 167 00:14:21.440 --> 00:14:27.399 civil and military officers for high treason. Several ladies belonging 168 00:14:27.440 --> 00:14:31.799 to the Royal Harim, headed by Queen Tay, who had 169 00:14:31.879 --> 00:14:36.120 a son called Pentower, as the minutes hint he wore 170 00:14:36.200 --> 00:14:39.600 another name, probably he was a son of the king, 171 00:14:40.399 --> 00:14:44.639 formed a conspiracy against the Pharaoh. In all probability, the 172 00:14:44.720 --> 00:14:49.399 conspiracy had for ultimate object the placing of disprince on 173 00:14:49.519 --> 00:14:53.360 the throne after his father had been murdered. Most of 174 00:14:53.399 --> 00:14:58.559 the Harem officials were implicated. The head overseer of the Harem, 175 00:14:58.960 --> 00:15:03.240 even conducting the the correspondence for Tay, the commander of 176 00:15:03.320 --> 00:15:08.120 the troops stationed in Ethiopia, whose sister was in the 177 00:15:08.200 --> 00:15:12.639 Royal Harem, was won over an order to revolt against 178 00:15:12.679 --> 00:15:17.720 the Pharaoh and invade Egypt. Many other officials and army 179 00:15:17.759 --> 00:15:23.399 officers were implicated. The conspiracy was, however, betrayed, and the 180 00:15:23.440 --> 00:15:29.240 conspirators were arrested. A special commission of eleven, vested with 181 00:15:29.559 --> 00:15:34.600 extraordinary powers and even permitted to pause sentence of death, 182 00:15:35.440 --> 00:15:39.919 was appointed to try this conspiracy case. The commission began 183 00:15:40.039 --> 00:15:44.120 its labors, but soon it was found that three of 184 00:15:44.159 --> 00:15:48.799 its members had been corrupted, having attended a banquet given 185 00:15:48.879 --> 00:15:52.759 them by some of the accused ladies. They were tried, 186 00:15:53.120 --> 00:15:57.600 found guilty, and sentenced to have their ears and noses 187 00:15:57.679 --> 00:16:03.360 cut off. After this unas pleasant interlude, the commission succeeded 188 00:16:03.840 --> 00:16:09.360 in accomplishing its labors without further interruption. The conspirators were 189 00:16:09.440 --> 00:16:13.960 found guilty and sentenced to death, the nobles being permitted 190 00:16:14.000 --> 00:16:19.200 to commit suicide and the others being executed. In this reign, 191 00:16:19.440 --> 00:16:23.840 the power of the priesthood greatly increased. We have already 192 00:16:24.000 --> 00:16:27.519 touched on the causes of this, But there was no 193 00:16:27.720 --> 00:16:31.039 pharaoh who did more for the priests and their temples 194 00:16:31.480 --> 00:16:35.799 than did Romsus the Third. The larger part of the 195 00:16:35.840 --> 00:16:40.279 great Papyrus Harris the first is taken up with lists 196 00:16:40.320 --> 00:16:45.240 of presents given the various temples. The temples of Amundrah, 197 00:16:45.360 --> 00:16:49.360 of course, received the line's share of these rich gifts, 198 00:16:49.399 --> 00:16:54.440 and attained to an unheard of wealth proportionately with the 199 00:16:54.480 --> 00:16:58.360 wealth of their temple. The wealth and influence of the 200 00:16:58.399 --> 00:17:02.759 priests increased. This was the great mistake of this reign. 201 00:17:03.440 --> 00:17:07.759 But we must say in palliation that Ramses was but 202 00:17:08.000 --> 00:17:12.640 carrying out the policy of his forefathers. Ramses was a 203 00:17:12.680 --> 00:17:16.400 great builder. In all parts of Egypt we find his 204 00:17:16.559 --> 00:17:21.279 name connected with the temples and other monuments. His chief 205 00:17:21.359 --> 00:17:27.000 attention was directed to Thieves and the Delta. At Thieves, 206 00:17:27.039 --> 00:17:31.160 he made additions to the great temple of Almundra and 207 00:17:31.359 --> 00:17:35.440 restored some of the temples of the Necropolis. Following the 208 00:17:35.519 --> 00:17:40.519 example of his great namesake, Ramses the Second, he built 209 00:17:40.640 --> 00:17:45.680 in the Necropolis a temple dedicated to Almundra and commemorative 210 00:17:45.920 --> 00:17:51.000 of his victories. Behind this temple where the Vosse treasury vaults, 211 00:17:51.039 --> 00:17:55.400 in which were stored up the great masses of gold, silver, 212 00:17:55.839 --> 00:18:01.599 precious stones, copper, et cetera, dedicated to Amundra, and on 213 00:18:01.680 --> 00:18:06.880 the walls are inscribed records of the immense wealth here deposited. 214 00:18:07.599 --> 00:18:12.640 It is probable that these treasures represent the state treasury 215 00:18:13.200 --> 00:18:16.799 placed under the protection of the God, rather than the 216 00:18:16.880 --> 00:18:21.160 presence made him. Before the gates of the temple stood 217 00:18:21.240 --> 00:18:25.200 a two story house, probably destined to be the residence 218 00:18:25.279 --> 00:18:29.279 of the Pharaoh and his attendants on his visits to 219 00:18:29.400 --> 00:18:33.920 this city of the dead. At Talulihuda in the Delta, 220 00:18:34.319 --> 00:18:39.599 he built a temple of limestone, albast and granite. Many 221 00:18:39.720 --> 00:18:43.119 of the other temples were repaired by him, and it 222 00:18:43.200 --> 00:18:47.000 seems to have required no small amount of labor to 223 00:18:47.119 --> 00:18:51.359 keep the temples of Kemet in constant repair. The king 224 00:18:51.519 --> 00:18:55.480 died in the thirty second year of his reign, shortly 225 00:18:55.599 --> 00:19:01.440 after having proclaimed his son Ramses the four regent. The 226 00:19:01.680 --> 00:19:08.160 successors of Ramses the Third eleven forty eight ten fifty pc. 227 00:19:09.039 --> 00:19:12.559 The late king had managed to keep Egypt on much 228 00:19:12.640 --> 00:19:16.720 the same level as it had occupied under Ramses the Second, 229 00:19:17.440 --> 00:19:21.079 but under his successors the prestige of the once all 230 00:19:21.279 --> 00:19:25.880 but a mighty ruler of the world rapidly declined. The 231 00:19:25.960 --> 00:19:30.559 following pharaohs were all weaklings who could scarcely hold their 232 00:19:30.599 --> 00:19:34.119 own at home and dared not to interfere in the 233 00:19:34.200 --> 00:19:38.640 foreign affairs. Under them, the priesthood that had been greatly 234 00:19:38.680 --> 00:19:43.599 favored by Ramses the Third rose to a commanding position, 235 00:19:43.920 --> 00:19:47.759 and the lost kings of this line were mere puppets 236 00:19:47.799 --> 00:19:52.720 in the hands of the Theepan high priests. These rulers cover 237 00:19:53.000 --> 00:19:56.759 about a century, but all this time we have but 238 00:19:56.880 --> 00:20:00.519 few monuments of historic value, and to two of the 239 00:20:00.559 --> 00:20:04.839 most important documents we possess of this time show it 240 00:20:05.119 --> 00:20:10.039 in no pleasant light. Ramses the Fourth the sixth the 241 00:20:10.119 --> 00:20:15.519 seventh and the eighth, where brothers Ramses the fifth was 242 00:20:15.599 --> 00:20:19.759 a usurper. The very fact that a usurper could ascend 243 00:20:19.920 --> 00:20:23.920 the throne after the son of Ramses the third shows 244 00:20:24.039 --> 00:20:28.680 that there was something wrong somewhere. It is true that 245 00:20:28.720 --> 00:20:32.799 we possess a steely on which Ramses the fourth eleven 246 00:20:32.920 --> 00:20:37.880 forty eight to eleven thirty seven BC mentions the fact 247 00:20:38.000 --> 00:20:41.839 that the Syrian rn to broad tribute, but this is 248 00:20:41.920 --> 00:20:46.279 not significant, for Southern Syria had been for some time 249 00:20:46.400 --> 00:20:50.799 an intergo part of the kingdom. Ramses the fourth sent 250 00:20:51.039 --> 00:20:56.000 a great expedition to the Wadi Hammamed quarries in the 251 00:20:56.039 --> 00:20:59.920 third year of his reign, to quarries to one for temple. 252 00:21:00.680 --> 00:21:05.200 He also worked the Sinai copper mines of his buildings, 253 00:21:05.400 --> 00:21:09.079 but little remains. He seems to have been a man 254 00:21:09.119 --> 00:21:14.160 of promise, but like most men of his character, he 255 00:21:14.359 --> 00:21:19.000 did not keep his promises, and appears as one of 256 00:21:19.039 --> 00:21:23.359 the weakest monarchs of his line. He died or was 257 00:21:23.480 --> 00:21:28.359 disthroned after a reign of only eleven years. Ramses the 258 00:21:28.400 --> 00:21:35.519 fifth eleven thirty six two eleven thirty two BC, though 259 00:21:35.559 --> 00:21:39.519 strong enough to wrest the crown from its legitimate holder 260 00:21:40.319 --> 00:21:43.359 was not able long to retain the position he owned 261 00:21:43.440 --> 00:21:48.319 to himself alone, for he reigned but four years in 262 00:21:48.400 --> 00:21:54.720 about eleven thirty one b. C. Ramses the sixth, one 263 00:21:54.759 --> 00:21:59.279 of the legitiment heirs of Ramses the third, succeeded in 264 00:21:59.440 --> 00:22:04.680 outset the usurper, but he was otherwise of little account. 265 00:22:05.119 --> 00:22:08.920 We do not even know how long he reigned. Ramses 266 00:22:09.200 --> 00:22:14.759 the seventh and the eighth, where alike unimportant. Of the latter, 267 00:22:15.039 --> 00:22:18.759 We know only that he reigned about seven years. Of 268 00:22:18.799 --> 00:22:23.279 the former we know nothing. Romses the ninth holds a 269 00:22:23.359 --> 00:22:30.640 rather unenviable prominence among these rulers. To Papyrae have come 270 00:22:30.720 --> 00:22:35.279 down to us that show how utterly weak and corrupt 271 00:22:35.440 --> 00:22:39.759 the government of Egypt was in those days. The first 272 00:22:39.799 --> 00:22:44.119 of these contains the minutes of a criminal procedure against 273 00:22:44.200 --> 00:22:50.279 a desperate band of robberers that invested the Necropolis of thieves, 274 00:22:50.359 --> 00:22:54.839 dated from the nineteenth year of this reign. Some knowledge 275 00:22:54.960 --> 00:22:58.000 of the robberies in the Necropolis having come to the 276 00:22:58.039 --> 00:23:03.119 ears of the governor of things, he immediately with a 277 00:23:03.240 --> 00:23:07.759 view to injuring his enemy. The governor of the Necropolis 278 00:23:07.880 --> 00:23:12.559 reported the case to the vizier. This official appointed a 279 00:23:12.559 --> 00:23:17.920 commission to investigate the charges. This commission made an investigation 280 00:23:18.240 --> 00:23:22.920 and reported that of ten royal pyramids examined, only one 281 00:23:23.079 --> 00:23:26.559 had been entered and robbed, while all the private tombs 282 00:23:26.759 --> 00:23:30.200 had been broken into and stripped of everything that had 283 00:23:30.359 --> 00:23:35.440 any value. During the investigation, one of the witnesses, a 284 00:23:35.519 --> 00:23:39.559 fellow that poor a desperate character, confessed that he had 285 00:23:39.759 --> 00:23:42.920 robbed the tomb of one of the wives of Ramses 286 00:23:43.240 --> 00:23:47.759 the second, and the investigation proved the truth of his story. 287 00:23:48.400 --> 00:23:52.880 Eight robbers were tried and found guilty. Great was the 288 00:23:53.000 --> 00:23:57.559 joy of the commissioners, who immediately made public the results 289 00:23:57.599 --> 00:24:02.599 of their investigation. The governor of the city, however, whose 290 00:24:02.759 --> 00:24:08.759 vague charges had in no way been substantiated, was not satisfied, 291 00:24:09.039 --> 00:24:14.440 but openly declared the entire investigation of fraud and threatened 292 00:24:14.599 --> 00:24:18.640 to bring the matter before the Pharaoh. After as judicial hearing, 293 00:24:18.920 --> 00:24:23.119 the matter was hushed, both sides evidently fearing an official 294 00:24:23.200 --> 00:24:28.200 investigation into the conduct of their offices. There was evidently 295 00:24:28.440 --> 00:24:32.960 a good deal of crookedness. The governor of the necropolis 296 00:24:33.200 --> 00:24:38.119 was undoubtedly guilty at least of criminal negligence, and the 297 00:24:38.160 --> 00:24:43.559 commission did their work pretty carelessly, evidently not caring to 298 00:24:43.640 --> 00:24:47.640 expose their friend too much. The second of the above 299 00:24:47.759 --> 00:24:52.039 mentioned papyri is the journal of a gang of laborers 300 00:24:52.359 --> 00:24:57.519 employed in the Theepan necropolis. We learn from this document 301 00:24:57.759 --> 00:25:04.000 that these men were paid in wais of fish, pulse, grain, beer, fat, 302 00:25:04.079 --> 00:25:09.599 and fuel, but these provisions were rarely issued on time 303 00:25:10.039 --> 00:25:14.480 and sometimes were not paid at all. In the latter case, 304 00:25:14.799 --> 00:25:18.720 the men struck, or as the Egyptian phrase goes, lay 305 00:25:18.799 --> 00:25:22.960 at home. The journal of this party contains the record 306 00:25:23.079 --> 00:25:27.680 of two strikes. The first was peaceable. On the second 307 00:25:28.000 --> 00:25:31.559 they marched two theebs in a body and laid their 308 00:25:31.599 --> 00:25:36.680 complaints before the authorities. Their request for pay was granted, 309 00:25:36.799 --> 00:25:41.119 and they returned to work. These strikes give proof of 310 00:25:41.160 --> 00:25:44.880 the corruption that was rife in the government. The men's 311 00:25:45.079 --> 00:25:49.599 rations were withheld not because the state could not pay, 312 00:25:49.920 --> 00:25:54.160 but because the officials charged with the distribution chose to 313 00:25:54.240 --> 00:25:58.119 let the rations disappear. The pharaoh died after a reign 314 00:25:58.279 --> 00:26:01.680 of a little more than its seen in years, shortly 315 00:26:01.799 --> 00:26:06.640 after proclaiming his son Ramses, the tenth co regent. The 316 00:26:06.759 --> 00:26:11.640 last three kings of this line are very unimportant in 317 00:26:11.759 --> 00:26:14.960 the early part of the reign of Ramses the Tenth 318 00:26:15.400 --> 00:26:20.839 sixty thieves, among them a number of minor government officials 319 00:26:20.880 --> 00:26:25.559 and priests of lower grades were arrested and punished for 320 00:26:26.039 --> 00:26:31.640 disigrations and depredations committed in the Necropolis. But even the 321 00:26:31.680 --> 00:26:36.359 most stringent measures proved of no avail. The great symmetry 322 00:26:37.000 --> 00:26:40.960 had grown so enormously that the proper policing of this 323 00:26:41.200 --> 00:26:45.519 district was out of the question. And besides, it would 324 00:26:45.599 --> 00:26:48.799 seem that the governor of the Necropolis and the chief 325 00:26:48.880 --> 00:26:52.480 of this police had a finger in the pie and 326 00:26:52.680 --> 00:26:57.440 were not over vigilant. Ramses the Tenth ruled eight years 327 00:26:57.519 --> 00:27:01.519 and was succeeded by Ramses the Eleventh, of whom we 328 00:27:01.680 --> 00:27:07.079 know nothing. Ramses their twelves was the last king of 329 00:27:07.160 --> 00:27:10.519 this house. Of him we know little more than that 330 00:27:10.759 --> 00:27:15.160 he ruled about twenty seven years. In his reign there 331 00:27:15.240 --> 00:27:19.559 lived a high Priest of Ammon and general of the army, 332 00:27:20.160 --> 00:27:24.920 hera Ho, who became the successor of Ramses. The king 333 00:27:25.240 --> 00:27:27.720 was a mere puppet in the hands of the al 334 00:27:27.920 --> 00:27:31.599 mighty High Priest, and it is not to be wondered 335 00:27:31.839 --> 00:27:36.039 at that herah Ho finally seized the crown. One of 336 00:27:36.079 --> 00:27:39.720 these kings, which one we do not know, was the 337 00:27:39.799 --> 00:27:45.559 contemporary of the mighty Assyrian king Tiglath Pieser the first 338 00:27:46.279 --> 00:27:51.279 and sent him tribute about eleven ten BC. A fact 339 00:27:51.440 --> 00:27:55.759 that it is characteristic of the weakness of these kings. 340 00:27:58.119 --> 00:28:04.519 The twenty first Dynash the priest Kings ten fifty two 341 00:28:05.039 --> 00:28:10.079 nine hundred and fifty BC. We have here again a 342 00:28:10.079 --> 00:28:15.279 period that is very obscure. There is some disagreement among 343 00:28:15.319 --> 00:28:20.640 the historians about the order of succession of the priest kings, 344 00:28:20.680 --> 00:28:25.960 and the fact that Manethou states that the dynasty originated 345 00:28:26.079 --> 00:28:31.200 from Tennis has induced some scholars to assume that a 346 00:28:31.400 --> 00:28:36.559 Tenetic king had opposed Harraho, the founder of the dynasty. 347 00:28:37.359 --> 00:28:42.720 Such an assumption we consider utterly unwarranted, as it is 348 00:28:42.759 --> 00:28:46.519 not constant with the facts of the case. As represented 349 00:28:46.640 --> 00:28:52.039 on the monuments, Harraho and all his descendants were high 350 00:28:52.079 --> 00:28:56.359 priests of al Mundrah in Thebes, and a long line 351 00:28:56.440 --> 00:29:02.039 of Haraho's ancestors occupied the same position. We can trace 352 00:29:02.119 --> 00:29:05.400 on the monuments the gradual rise of the high priests 353 00:29:05.519 --> 00:29:11.359 of Amundra. We find the high priests Rua, Amnana and 354 00:29:11.759 --> 00:29:16.240 Rams's net mentioned, together with the kings on the walls 355 00:29:16.279 --> 00:29:20.440 of the Temple of Karnak, a distinction enjoyed in the 356 00:29:20.519 --> 00:29:25.599 older times only by the co regent. Under Ramses the ninth, 357 00:29:26.039 --> 00:29:31.480 the power of these priests seems to have been still greater. Evidently, 358 00:29:31.559 --> 00:29:34.400 the king was a mere puppet in the hands of 359 00:29:34.599 --> 00:29:40.920 Rams's nexts son and successor, the high priest Amenhautop. This 360 00:29:41.119 --> 00:29:45.119 dignitary no longer inscribed his name was the name of 361 00:29:45.200 --> 00:29:49.920 the Pharaoh, but declares in the inscriptions that he erected 362 00:29:50.039 --> 00:29:53.680 this or that building in the name of the Pharaoh. 363 00:29:54.200 --> 00:29:57.000 He rose to the high position of manager of the 364 00:29:57.039 --> 00:30:01.279 temple states, thus holding in his hand all the wealth 365 00:30:01.480 --> 00:30:06.200 and influence of the great temples of Amunrah sah ahman 366 00:30:06.440 --> 00:30:11.519 Herahom ten fifty two ten thirty four b C. Took 367 00:30:11.559 --> 00:30:15.839 the deciding step about ten fifty b C. He had 368 00:30:16.000 --> 00:30:20.279 held high offices of trust and honor under Rams's the 369 00:30:20.359 --> 00:30:25.880 twelfth being to mention only his most exalted offices high 370 00:30:25.880 --> 00:30:30.960 priests of Amundra, chief architect to the Pharaoh, general of 371 00:30:31.000 --> 00:30:34.640 the army, and head of Upper and Lower Egypt. We 372 00:30:34.720 --> 00:30:38.880 see this man thus combined the highest religious, military, and 373 00:30:39.000 --> 00:30:43.640 civil offices of the land, and was virtually the ruler. 374 00:30:44.279 --> 00:30:48.319 No wonder then, that, on Rams's death he pushed aside 375 00:30:48.640 --> 00:30:53.400 that king's legitimate heir and placed the double crown on 376 00:30:53.559 --> 00:30:58.200 his own head. It would seem, however, that Egypt gained 377 00:30:58.359 --> 00:31:03.079 but little by the change rulers. The new king could 378 00:31:03.079 --> 00:31:07.599 do no more than preserve the then boundaries of his kingdom. 379 00:31:08.200 --> 00:31:12.519 And when we read in his inscriptions that he repulsed 380 00:31:12.720 --> 00:31:16.240 the enemies, we must take this to refer to minor 381 00:31:16.319 --> 00:31:22.599 compacts with Perouins, who were connstly prowling about the borders. 382 00:31:22.640 --> 00:31:28.319 This pharaoh built chiefly in Karnak, restoring the temple of Chensu, 383 00:31:28.839 --> 00:31:33.160 the son of Ahmunrah, and decorating its walls with long 384 00:31:33.200 --> 00:31:38.839 religious inscriptions. In one of these inscriptions, he had depicted 385 00:31:38.960 --> 00:31:44.559 his entire family, consisting of his wife, Queen Nejimate, his 386 00:31:44.839 --> 00:31:52.200 nineteen sons and grandsons, and five daughters. The government seems 387 00:31:52.240 --> 00:31:55.720 to have remained quite as weak and corrupt as it 388 00:31:55.839 --> 00:32:00.599 had been under the lost Rameses sides, and no wonder, 389 00:32:00.680 --> 00:32:05.599 for Haraho was a descendant of the high priest who 390 00:32:05.759 --> 00:32:09.359 so long had governed the land. In fact, and he 391 00:32:09.480 --> 00:32:13.839 himself had actually ruled the country long before he seized 392 00:32:13.839 --> 00:32:17.319 the scepter, so that it was but natural that the 393 00:32:17.359 --> 00:32:22.319 old state of affairs continued. Thus the old debridations in 394 00:32:22.400 --> 00:32:26.759 the necropolis, and instead of seizing or becoming less, became 395 00:32:26.880 --> 00:32:31.319 worse and more desperate than ever. The police of the necropolis, 396 00:32:31.359 --> 00:32:36.079 where it is true not quite efficient, but might have 397 00:32:36.319 --> 00:32:41.759 kept the desparatus in some check, have bade themselves not 398 00:32:41.920 --> 00:32:47.400 been implicated. Accordingly, Heraho bethought himself of some means of 399 00:32:47.480 --> 00:32:51.759 protecting the mummies of his predecessors. The mummis of King 400 00:32:52.240 --> 00:32:56.640 razakyunin Ahmus, the first a Manhatov, the first to Hotmust, 401 00:32:56.680 --> 00:32:59.920