UNESCO Ancient Civilizations of Africa (Editor G. Mokhtar)

Pharaonic
Egypt
Joppa by General Djehuty who concealed his men in sacks and smuggled
them into the beleaguered city, much as in the tale of Ali Baba and the
forty thieves.
Thutmose III was followed by two able and energetic Pharaohs, Amenhotep
II and Thutmose IV, the latter being closely connected with the
kingdom of Mittani for he married the daughter of the royal house. It was
this lady, under her Egyptian name of Mut-em-Wa, who appears on
the monuments as the Pharaoh's chief queen and the mother of Amenhotep
III.
When Amenhotep III succeeded his father he was probably already
married to his principal queen, Teye. The young king's accession to the
throne came at a time when, thanks to some two centuries of unparalleled
achievement both at home and abroad, the country was at the peak of its
political power, and was economically prosperous and culturally developed.
Moreover, the world was at peace and both the Pharaoh and his people
could enjoy the many pleasures and luxuries which life now had to offer
them. It seems that Amenhotep III was little interested in maintaining his
power abroad, though he did endeavour to retain his northern vassal states
and allies by means of liberal gifts of Nubian gold. Towards the end of his
reign, as is evident from the Tell-el-Amarna letters, 33 the absence of a show
of military force encouraged energetic men to scheme for independent
power and to revolt against Egyptian authority. Amenhotep III, however,
seems not to have been unduly concerned. It was as a builder and patron
of the arts that he earned his reputation for magnificence. To him we owe
the Luxor temple, which is considered the most beautiful of all the
constructions of the New Kingdom, other large buildings at Karnak, and
many others both in Egypt and elsewhere such as at Soleb in Nubia.
Though the cult of Aton began under Amenhotep III, its growth seems
to have had little effect on the worship of the other gods until later in his
reign, possibly not until the thirtieth year of the reign, the probable date
when his son Amenhotep IV (later known as Akhenaton) became co-regent.
Physically weak, with a frail, effeminate body, the new king had in him the
makings of neither soldier nor statesman. He was mostly concerned with
matters of the mind and spirit or, rather, his own mind and spirit.
Exulting in the epithet He-who-lives-on-Truth, he sought an ever closer
and more harmonious relationship with nature and in religion a more direct
and rational relationship with his deity. 34
In his youthful fanaticism, Amenhotep IV instituted a radical change of
33. Three hundred and seventy-seven cuneiform tablets found in the ruins of the Record
Offices at the capital and consisting chiefly of correspondence between Amenhotep III and
Akhenaton, and the kings of Hatti, Arzawam, Mittania, Assyria, Babylonia, Cyprus and the
city rulers of Palestine and Syria. On these texts, see W . F. Albright, 1973.
34. Amenhotep IV - Akhenaton - and his period have recently been covered in numerous
publications, including C. Aldred, 1968.
IOI