ANCIENT EGYPT

The fall of the Middle Kingdom

The fall of the Middle Kingdom

Introduction

Ancient Egypt is famous for its civilizations and dynasties that ruled the land. The Middle Kingdom is the era in Egypt's illustrious history that began with the advent of the 12th Dynasty and came to its end at the 14th Dynasty. The Middle Kingdom spread over a span of 405 years (2055 B.C. to 1650 B.C.) that saw various changes occur in Egypt. Some historians believe the 13th and 14th Dynasties were part of the 2nd Intermediate Period in ancient history of the country. During the Middle Kingdom era, Egypt saw the sect of funerary, Osiris, rise to dominate as the popular religion in Egypt.

This era consists of two major phases in which Thebes was the center of the 11th Dynasty and modern-day city of El-Lisht was the axis of the 12th Dynasty. Historians used to believe these dynasties as the years when the entire kingdom was one and ruled by one king. Only recently have historians began to include the 13th dynasty in the Middle Kingdom. Power and authority in the kingdom were centralized making the realm an autocratic state. The nomes or nomarchs accumulated substantial power during their rule. This also led to the concept of inheriting power. Those born in the royal family had the right to rule the land. In an attempt to strengthen the centralized form of power, nomarchs married nome women of bordering settlements. This move was responsible for creating a primitive kingdom.

Features of the Rule

With the advent of the 11th dynasty, Egypt saw centralized form of rule that was previously unheard of. The centralization of authority also brought an end to the Old Kingdom. The 11th dynasty was responsible for the unification of the scattered kingdom of the country. The 11th dynasty saw the center of power shift to Thebes. Thebes was the hub of commerce and trade during the dynasty. When the Eleventh Dynasty reunified Egypt, it had to create a centralized administration such as had not existed in Egypt since the downfall of the Old Kingdom government. The decentralized form of rule was replaced by the reviving governmental positions that were nullified during the 1st intermediate period. The concept of Vizier came forward that gave the incumbent authority over all the routine businesses of the kingdom. The Vizier was answerable to the King. Citing the extent of the empire, the position of vizier was split into vizier of north and south to ease the burden of responsibility. During the reign of Sensuret I, the position of vizier or chief minister was split into these two regions, though it is hard to predict its frequency and if this was the case during other reigns.

In a similar manner, positions such as the Overseer of Sealed Goods became treasurer; Overseer of the Estate became the King's primary advisor. The King's personal writer was the Scribe of the Royal Document, responsible for preparation of royal decrees and ...