New Kingdom of Egypt

The New Kingdom, often called the Egyptian Empire, spanned roughly the 16th to 11th centuries BC and included the Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth dynasties. Radiocarbon dating places its start between 1570 and 1544 BC. It came after the Second Intermediate Period and ended with the Third Intermediate Period. This era was ancient Egypt’s wealthiest and most powerful.

The term “New Kingdom” was introduced in 1845 by German scholar Christian Charles Josias von Bunsen as one of three “golden ages,” though its meaning changed over the 19th and 20th centuries. The later part, under the Nineteenth (1295–1189 BC) and Twentieth (1189–1069 BC) dynasties, is called the Ramesside period, named for eleven pharaohs called Ramesses, starting with Ramesses I and including his grandson Ramesses II, the longest-reigning king of that line.

Perhaps because of Hyksos rule during the Second Intermediate Period, the New Kingdom expanded into the Levant, reaching its greatest territorial size. Likewise, Kushite raids in the earlier period pushed New Kingdom rulers to extend deep into Nubia and hold more land in the Near East, especially along the Levantine frontier.

**Rise**

The Eighteenth Dynasty featured famous kings like Ahmose I, Hatshepsut, Thutmose III, Amenhotep III, Akhenaten, and Tutankhamun. Ahmose I is seen as the dynasty’s founder. He carried on his father Seqenenre Tao and brother Kamose’s campaigns against the Hyksos, reuniting Egypt, then fought in the Levant to stop future invasions.

Amenhotep I followed, campaigning in Nubia, then Thutmose I, who reached the Euphrates—the first pharaoh to cross it. Syrian princes swore loyalty during his campaign but stopped tribute and fortified after he left.

Hatshepsut, daughter of Thutmose I and wife of Thutmose II, ruled jointly with her stepson Thutmose III (who became king as a toddler) and later in her own right. She built extensively at Karnak and across Egypt, restored trade networks disrupted by the Hyksos, and funded a mission to the Land of Punt. After her death, Thutmose III, experienced from leading her military, took power.

Thutmose III expanded the army and used it to consolidate the empire, leading to a peak in power and wealth under Amenhotep III. During Thutmose III’s reign (c. 1479–1425 BC), the term “pharaoh,” originally the king’s palace, became a title for the king himself. Seen as a military genius, he conducted at least 16 campaigns in 20 years, capturing 350 cities and conquering from the Euphrates to Nubia. He was the first pharaoh since Thutmose I to cross the Euphrates, surprising the Mitannian king.

Amenhotep III, the wealthiest king of the dynasty, built the Luxor Temple, the Precinct of Monthu at Karnak, his massive Mortuary Temple, and the Malkata palace, the largest in Egypt.

Amenhotep IV changed his name to Akhenaten to honor the Aten, a form of the god Ra. His worship of the Aten is often seen as history’s first monotheism. His wife Nefertiti played a major role, even performing rituals to the Aten. Akhenaten’s religious fervor is why he and Nefertiti were later erased from Egyptian records. Under him, in the 14th century BC, art flourished in a distinctive new style (the Amarna Period).

By the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty, Egypt’s position had shifted. With Akhenaten’s apparent neglect of foreign affairs, the Hittites gained influence in the Levant, becoming a major power that Seti I and Ramesses II would later confront.

The last two rulers of the dynasty, Ay and Horemheb, came from court official ranks, though Ay may have been Akhenaten’s maternal uncle and a descendant of Yuya and Tjuyu. Ay likely married Tutankhamun’s widowed half-sister and Great Royal Wife, Ankhesenamun, to gain power; she died soon after. He then married Tey, who had been Nefertiti’s wet-nurse.