Ramses II is the great Pharaoh, the architect of his own glory. History of ancient Egypt. Pharaoh Ramses the Great, Ancient Egypt: reign, biography Queen Victoria and her cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Most recently (No. 2/98) in the essay “Life and Death in the Valley of the Kings,” our correspondent V. Lebedev talked about visiting the tomb of the wife of Pharaoh Ramses II Nefertari, discovered in 1995. Today we have the opportunity to talk about the discovery of the tomb of Ramses II by American archaeologists.
A nondescript crypt in the Valley of the Kings hid a sensation: American archaeologist Kent Weeks discovered the family mausoleum of Pharaoh Ramses II. In a huge tomb, the ancient Egyptians apparently buried 52 sons of Ramses, heirs to the throne, many of whom were survived by their own father.
“This was the tenth, last and most terrible plague of Egypt, which the God of the people of Israel sent - all the firstborn in Egypt must die, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt will die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne to the firstborn of the bondwoman who is at the millstones.” (Exodus 11.5).
The wrath of a foreign god apparently befell Egypt just when the powerful Ramses ruled it. The son for whom he had to mourn was probably called Amonherkhopeshef. This name, engraved on the wall of the tomb, was read by the American archaeologist, whose discovery was called by his colleagues the find of the century.
Unlike the pharaohs Old Kingdom, who found peace in the tombs near the pyramids, the rulers of the New Kingdom built their necropolis on the slope of Mount Kurn - carved into the rocks, with well-hidden entrances and false passages inside.
In the darkness, behind an imperceptible stone threshold, thousand-year-old tombs with luxurious ornaments, statues, sarcophagi and treasures of Tutankhamun were waiting for their explorer. And when Howard Carter opened the tomb of the young pharaoh Tutankhamun in 1922, archaeologists decided that the last secret of the Valley of the Kings had been solved. Indeed, until recent years, researchers no longer came across sensations.
Kent Weeks thought so too when, without much hope, he began exploring Crypt K5. Before that, he was lucky enough to discover traces of the trial that was held over the tomb raider 3145 years ago. A papyrus scroll, which is kept today in Turin, states that the accused plundered the tomb of Ramses II and ... “the tomb opposite.”
This message surprised Weeks. What tomb was meant? Maybe the long-forgotten Crypt K5, in which back in 1820 an English traveler found nothing but two empty, unremarkable-looking chambers? What did the ancient Egyptian thief hope to find there?
At first the search did not promise success. There are no inscriptions at the entrance, no ornament: only clay, rubble and sand, which was blown by the wind through the low entrance to the tomb. However, after four weeks, another entrance was discovered, lower, which led to a still unknown burial chamber.
“Then we started going deeper,” recalls Ibrahim Sadiq, Weeks’ employee. And then it became clear to everyone: K5 is no longer an unknown, unremarkable crypt, but the largest tomb of the ancient Egyptians ever found.
While in all other royal tombs a long shaft leads directly to the burial chamber, in Crypt K5 Weeks discovered a whole labyrinth. T-shaped passages branched off from the main gallery in both directions to niches for sarcophagi and to huge halls with an area of 400 square meters. m.
The enormous dimensions of the network of tunnels have yet to be fully determined. “If you compare Tutankhamun's tomb to a matchbox,” says Weeks, “the largest tomb here would be a telephone directory. Open for now! “The catacomb system seems like a whole desk.”
Weeks has already opened 67 halls. But, according to his assumption, there could be more than a hundred of them: stairs and a descending corridor led to a more spacious and deeper burial place.
Excavations at the new site and deciphering the inscriptions will take many more years. But Weeks had already managed to identify the names of the four sons of Ramses from the hieroglyphs on the limestone wall. And he is convinced that somewhere in the tomb the names of all his other sons are listed. Here, apparently, all the offspring of the pharaoh, who during their lifetime suffered from their powerful, imperious and tenacious father and all the time quarreled with each other over his inheritance, were finally united in death.
Of all the heroic deeds of Ramses II, the most famous is the Battle of Kadesh, when he stopped the invasion of the Hittites, who created their own power, equal in strength to the Egyptian one. The warlike pharaoh also went down in history as a great peacemaker.
When he was tired of skirmishes on the border with the Hittites, he concluded the first peace treaty known in the history of mankind: by an alliance with another power, he established peace for 50 years.
Researchers hope that the deciphered hieroglyphic inscriptions in the recently discovered family tomb will provide new information about the family life of the great rulers, in which much remains unclear. It is clear, however, that Ramses, despite his many royal duties, found time for his wives. And there were at least six main ones and a dozen just spouses and concubines, who brought him about a hundred children.
As a teenager, Ramses received a whole harem as a gift from his father. Pharaoh himself remembers this with gratitude. “He made sure my harem was as beautiful as his own.”
And my father’s choice turned out to be good. Obviously, of these first consorts, one turned out to be special - for 25 years Nefertari remained the embodiment of charm, friendliness and love and, as the pharaoh himself swore, his most confidant. She participated along with him in sacred processions around the country and was nearby during government hardships. And it was she who gave birth to the first son of Amonherkhopeshef, whose hot blood appeared at the age of five, during a military campaign.
But in addition, Nefertari had to share her husband with her rivals, to whom the pharaoh often bestowed his favor while fulfilling his diplomatic duty. One account details the caravan that arrived in 1257 BC. e. from the country of the Hittites: the cargo consisted of precious stones, gold, silver and exquisite fabrics, as well as horses, sheep and cows.
And all this, as well as a detachment of selected slaves, was the dowry of Princess Maat-Hor-Neferure, the new wife of Ramses, who a little later was left to quietly vegetate in the remote harem of Mi-Ver.
The loving Ramses shared his bed with his closest relatives. At least one of his sisters and two daughters were legally married to him. And the daughter Meritamun, apparently, after the death of her mother Nefertari, took her place as the Great Queen.
Ramses II was probably over 90 when he died in the 67th year of his reign. X-rays of the mummy convincingly show that his body was affected by arthritis and that the elderly pharaoh lived for a long time in severe insanity.
The absence of indications in the documents about the end of his reign may mean that long before his death he left the political arena. But I still didn’t want to die.
Ramses outlived twelve heirs. The thirteenth son, Merenptah, at the time of his father's death was already 60 years old, the eldest, but still living son. As the new pharaoh, Merenptah led a procession that headed to the tomb that had long been prepared for his father in the Valley of the Kings...
Based on materials from Spigel magazine, prepared by Nikolay Nikolaev
The revival of the country's military power, victories in bloody battles, the construction of majestic architectural monuments... These events mark the Ramessid era, which is considered the brightest page in its chronological framework - the XIII-XI centuries. BC e. During this era, there were 18 pharaohs on the Egyptian throne. The most powerful ruler was Ramses the Great. He made a significant contribution to the history of the state.
Ancestors of the great pharaoh
The Ramesside era begins with the accession of Ramesses I to the Egyptian throne. This event occurred around 1292 BC. e. The pharaoh did not leave a bright mark on history. This is due to the fact that the period of his reign was very short. Power was in the hands of the pharaoh for only a few years.
Around 1290 BC. e. The son of Ramesses I, Seti I, ascended the Egyptian throne. His rise to power marked the beginning of a period of revival of the country after a temporary decline. The pharaoh managed to create the preconditions for the future prosperity of the state. Seti I ruled Egypt for about 11 years. Around 1279 BC. e. power passed into the hands of Ramses II. He was the son of Seti I.
New ruler
Ramses, whose biography contains a lot interesting facts, was very young at the time of his accession to the throne. It is impossible to name specific individual qualities that he possessed. In Egypt, all pharaohs were considered messengers of the gods, therefore in all sources they, like Ramses II, were described according to a standard model. However, the actions of the new ruler indicate that he was an ambitious, strong and determined person.
Pharaoh Ramses II, having ascended the throne, immediately ordered his subjects to cover up the names of their predecessors on the monuments. The ruler wanted the Egyptian people to remember only him. Ramses II also ordered everyone to call himself the chosen one of Amon, the benefactor of the Egyptian state and the invincible hero.
First trip to Asia
The Hittites were considered the main enemies of Egypt. For several decades, the pharaohs waged a stubborn struggle against these people who lived in Ramses II, having ascended the throne, he continued the work of his predecessors. In the 4th year of his reign, the young pharaoh decided to fight the Hittites.
The first campaign was successful. The Egyptians defeated their opponents and captured the city of Berith. The Egyptian pharaoh did not want to stop there. Ramses II decided to make a second campaign against the Hittites a year later and put an end to the old enemies once and for all.
Pharaoh Trap
Ramses the Great made his second trip to Asia in the 5th year of his reign. Having gathered an army of twenty thousand, the young pharaoh set out from Memphis. The main goal of the campaign was to capture Kadesh, which was at that time the main city of the Hittites, and annex other enemy possessions to Egypt.
Ramses II is a legendary man. The reign of the pharaoh lasted more than 60 years. Over the years, he has done a lot for the prosperity and strengthening of the power of the Egyptian state. No subsequent ruler could surpass Pharaoh Ramses II.
He writes: “Almost all the pharaohs married their sisters. This was done to preserve the purity of the blood and the inadmissibility of family ties with non-reigning families.”
Further, Natalya, refuting herself, says that " marrying close relatives is associated with inheritance and property issues", but does not develop this topic. But in vain. The reasons for consanguineous marriages are really related to inheritance. The fact is that in Ancient Egypt, the so-called “maternal right” has been preserved since ancient matriarchal times. According to this right, inheritance of property occurred exclusively through the maternal line - from mother to daughter. Compared to chess, the pharaoh was the “king” and his wife was the “queen” (queen). As you know, the “queen” is the strongest piece on the chessboard, and the “king”, in comparison with it, is a weak piece. If the “king” is left without a “queen”, this is an almost one hundred percent guarantee of his death. To be saved, it is necessary to move the “pawn” to the “queens”. This “pawn” was the pharaoh’s sister. If the pharaoh did not have a sister, then the poor fellow is forced was to marry his daughter in order to gain access through her to the riches of Upper and Lower Egypt.
Of course, these forced marriages were formal, just like fictitious marriages in the USSR in order to get a new apartment or maintain living space. It is stupid and completely inappropriate to accuse the pharaohs of incest or pedophilia. As the Romans said: Dura lex, sed lex. Lawlessness or “law of the jungle” is incomparably worse than “mother’s right”.
L Eila Al-Farah writes almost the same thing, only in different words: " ... The ruler's property was inherited by daughters, not sons. This is due to the fact that the ancient Egyptians traced their ancestry through the maternal line, believing that the origin of a child can only be reliably proven from the side of the mother who gave birth to him. As for the father, one can only make assumptions with varying degrees of probability. By the way, this custom lived for a long time in various African tribes, for example, among the Tuaregs, the title of leader of which is inherited not by the son of the leader, but by the son of his sister.
In other words, today’s Tuaregs and ancient Egyptians had more confidence that the sister of the deceased belonged to the family of leaders than that the son of the ruler himself belonged to this family. Adolf Erman cites the genealogy of one of the descendants of Pharaoh Snorfu as confirmation:
Pharaoh Snorfu
His great legitimate daughter Nefretkau
Her son Nefermaat
In this pedigree, the key word is legal. Apparently, the ancient pharaohs did not indulge their sons with such a title.
Therefore, in the era of the Ancient and Middle Kingdoms, both nomes and the country itself were often inherited by daughters, and representatives of the aristocracy had to fight not only for the hand of princesses, but also for the crown of the ruler. "
At all times, society has condemned men and women who decided to form closely related unions. In some cultures, incest was even considered a crime. Meanwhile, such marriages happened all the time, because lovers could not imagine their lives without each other. This review presents well-known historical figures, whose chosen ones were their close relatives.
Edgar Allan Poe and Virginia Klemm
American writer Edgar Allan Poe became famous not only for his detective stories, but also for his scandalous personal life. At the age of 26, in the heat of resentment, he moved from his parents to live with his aunt Mrs. Klemm. The writer was inflamed with passion for her 12-year-old daughter, his cousin Virginia.
Seeing her nephew's mental turmoil, the aunt allowed them to get married, but on the condition that Edgar Allan Poe would not touch his wife until she reached puberty. A few years later, family happiness came to an end: Virginia died of tuberculosis. Two years later, the inconsolable writer followed his beloved to the next world.
Igor Stravinsky and Ekaterina Nosenko
Igor Stravinsky called one of the most talented composers of the twentieth century. He was friends with his cousin Ekaterina Nosenko from early childhood. Then the friendship grew into a deeper feeling. Stravinsky wanted to marry his beloved, but Orthodox Church forbade it. In the end, the composer managed to persuade a priest, and in 1906 the couple got married.
Franklin Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt
American President Franklin Roosevelt put on a par with Abraham Lincoln and George Washington. Under his leadership, the country emerged from the Great Depression and set a course for rapid economic development.
Franklin Roosevelt married his relative Eleanor Roosevelt, who was the niece of another American President Theodore Roosevelt. Franklin's mother reacted extremely negatively to such a union, but the lovers did not care. As time has shown, they have formed an excellent tandem not only within the family circle, but also in the political arena. Eleanor took an active part in governing the country, thereby realizing her own ambitions.
Charles Darwin and Emma Wedgwood
Famous natural scientist and founder of the theory of evolution Charles Darwin married his cousin Emma Wedgwood. Ironically, the scientist experienced the principle of “survival of the fittest” first-hand when he watched three of his ten children die. The remaining offspring grew up very sickly. Darwin understood that the main reason for this was incest, and even wrote several scientific papers on this topic.Christopher Milne and Leslie de Selincourt
Writer Alan Milne made his son the prototype of the fairy-tale boy Christopher Robin in children's stories about the adventures of Winnie the Pooh bear and his friends. IN real life The relationship between father and son was not very successful. The boy was offended that the writer constantly did not have enough time for him. Over time, the situation became even worse because Christopher Milne decided to marry his cousin Leslie de Selincourt. His parents did not forgive their son for this, and his mother did not even speak to him for 15 years.
In 1956, Christopher Milne and his wife finally had a long-awaited daughter. Unfortunately, the girl was diagnosed with cerebral palsy.
Queen Victoria and her cousin Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
For representatives of royal blood, inbreeding (incest) was considered commonplace. Marriage with relatives was considered part of political games. British Queen Victoria married her cousin Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. This union was one of the few in which love and mutual understanding reigned. Victoria and Albert had nine children. When the queen's husband died, she mourned him for the rest of her life.
Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip
The now living Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip have been married for almost 70 years. They are also related to each other, albeit distant, but still relatives. The British Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh are fourth cousins.
Be that as it may, descendants usually suffer because of incest.
Ramses II was one of the greatest pharaohs of Ancient Egypt who ruled during the 19th Dynasty. He was hailed as "Ramses the Great" for his successful and long reign over the state. His reign spanned a period of more than 90 years. His achievements surpassed in scale all the results of previous generations and those who inherited power.
Pharaoh of ancient Egypt Ramses II
He became famous in the history of ancient Egypt as a great warrior, builder, family man and deeply religious man. He succeeded in everything he did. Pharaoh Ramses II became famous thanks to the writings on the walls of massive temples that have survived to this day. Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs are engraved on their walls, telling about the life and political events of this time.
Most recently, the mummy of a pharaoh was discovered, as a result of which scientists were able to learn more information about the period from 1279 BC. to 1213 BC
They gave us an idea of the tsar, the state structure and his military merits.
The architectural monuments of ancient Egypt, erected under the orders of Ramses II, testify to the greatness of this man and his ability to withstand economic instability and territorial disputes.
In addition to his royal regalia, it can be added that he was the father of more than 100 children and had about 300 wives. He was survived by his 12 sons, countless wives and grandchildren.
In modern literature telling about the history of existence ancient civilization, the name of the pharaoh is mentioned as Ramses or Ramesses. He is the only pharaoh who occupies a key place in the biblical parable of Moses. This fact gives special importance to his historical figure.
Family of Ramses II
Ramses II's father, Seti I, handed over power to him when the young man was just 14 years old. After the death of the pharaoh, the great ruler began to rule as the pharaoh of ancient Egypt.
The reign of Ramses II is believed to begin in 1279 BC. and ends 1213 BC. and is a total of 66 years old.
During his reign, the pharaoh held 14 sed festivals, each marking the end of a 30-year reign, and every 3 years thereafter. They were carried out with the aim of further successful reign and were supposed to give strength and rejuvenate the pharaoh.
The wife of Seti I and the mother of Ramses the Great was Queen Tuya. The main wife of the pharaoh was Nefertari. She was followed by Isetnofret and Maatornefere. After the death of the king, he was succeeded by his thirteen-year-old son Merenptah. The reign lasted approximately ten years.
Mummy of Ramses II
Thanks to the recent discovery of the mummified remains of Ramses II, Egyptology has brought together scattered information about the life of this pharaoh of ancient Egypt. So, when analyzing DNA, scientists found that he had red hair. Since this hair color was not typical for the ancient Egyptians of that time, it is worth assuming that he was significantly different in appearance from his compatriots.
According to the religious beliefs of that time, it was believed that this shade indicated the followers of the sun cult of Set. As for other characteristics of the mummy of Ramses II, studies showed that he had a “hooked” nose and was distinguished by a heavy lower jaw. It was also determined that he suffered from arthritis.
Hieroglyphic inscriptions on the linen covering the pharaoh's mummy contain detailed information about how the priests defended the king’s tomb from marauders. Records indicate that Ramses II was originally buried in tomb KV7 in the Valley of the Kings. But then his mummy was replaced and moved to a room next to the tomb of Queen Inhapi. The body was then taken to the tomb of the chief priest Pinujem II. Today, the mummy of the pharaoh of Ancient Egypt is kept in the National Museum in Cairo.
Some of the most beautiful architectural monuments in Egypt, created by the Pharaoh of Egypt Ramses II, were dedicated to Queen Nefertari.
It is a known fact that after his death at least ten pharaohs took his name and continued the dynastic line. The most famous of them was Ramses III.
Video Ancient Egypt Pharaoh Ramses II
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