The Middle Kingdom
The reunification of Egypt under one dynasty, the 11th, marks the beginning of the Middle Kingdom, 2040-1785 B.C. The new rulers attempted to reestablish the legitimacy of royal rule while accepting changes that had occurred. The nobles were willing to accept a more moderate royal leadership as a defense against civil war and foreign invasion, and the kings did not attempt to completely destroy the power of the nobles. This brought into being a type of feudalism. The monarchs maintained great authority over their nomes and villages, but the king benefitted from a more efficient collection of royal taxes and by the oversight of royal officials who enforced royal law throughout Egypt to enforce his laws and monitored local conditions. Royal courts were established in the monarchs and appeals from royal decisions were heard at the royal court.
Pharaoh - Middle Kingdom
During the Middle Kingdom, Egypt reclaimed much of its former power and prosperity. Kings of the 12th dynasty launched public works projects to beautify the cities of Thebes and Lisht and took initiatives to support economic life. Nubia was conquered and annexed. Policed by a series of fortresses, Nubians were not allowed to immigrate into Egypt except for the purpose of trade. Foreign commerce was expanded throughout the Near East, including Syria, Cyprus and Crete, increasing revenues for the royal treasury. Mining concerns were launched in the Sinai and Nubia. The increased wealth of the kingdom allowed the king to establish a large standing army.
A large reclamation project was initiated that added thousands of acres of arable land in an oasis just west of the Nile and south of Memphis. This area is known as the Fayum (Fi yoom’). The Nile flooded into the Fayum each year, but then receded quickly. A system of dams and irrigation canals were built to capture this overflow for irrigation. The Fayum became a popular and fertile area, and a great temple was built there, which the Greeks called the Labyrinth because of its large colonnades and halls.
Other cities grew rapidly at this time and construction of pyramids, on a lesser scale, was renewed. The tombs of the nobles were no longer clustered around that of the Pharaoh, but instead were cut into the cliffs along the Nile creating a necropolis.
The Middle Kingdom also saw new developments in religion. The 12th dynasty elevated its own god, Amon (Amun), the ram-headed god of Thebes, as a national god and united him with Re. The chief god of the state was now called Amon-Re. These developments are treated below in a separate essay on Egyptian religion.
The most significant change in religion was its new ethical emphasis and democratization. Egyptian religion had always encouraged justice and honesty, but now, following the experience of the First Intermediate Period, these themes were stressed. Entitlement to an afterlife was no longer based simply on observing the proper rituals; individuals must also have lived an ethically correct life.
| Section 10 | Section 12 |