The history of Egypt

For millennia, the grand pyramids of Egypt have towered over the desert sands, shrouding the great ancient civilization that once inhabited the lands in mystery. However, on July 19, 1799, during Napoleon Bonaparte's Egyptian Expedition, a French soldier discovered a large stone about 35 miles east of Alexandria, unearthing a written language that had been dead for thousands of years. The translations of this language would prove to be the key to unlocking the secrets of an entire civilization.

Egypt, as Herodotus, the father of History, once said, is the gift of the Nile. The Nile, being the lifeline of Egypt, provided the necessary water for the cultivation of crops, which led to the burgeoning of civilization all along the length of the Nile Valley. The river strip that divided the Egyptian territory into two parts provided a favorable environment for the rise of civilization. When the Nile Valley began in the Miocene times, cutting it into its current shape, the various geographical resources effectively contributed to the state's foundation. As a result of the annual floods that spread the fertile soil to the east and west, over the centuries, mud deposits built up. When the water recedes and flows along its banks, the agricultural year begins, making Egypt one of the first agricultural communities that ever existed in human history.

At the end of the Paleolithic Era, there was a widespread production of arrows, harpoons, corns, sewed skins, bone works, and pottery. Carbon 14 tests, on the other hand, were used by researchers to demonstrate that corn was harvested in a Neolithic Silo on the edge of Thiam between 4,600 and 4,250 BC. Later, people built shacks and huts out of reeds in solid mud and sowed corn on the muddy soil of the Nile marshes.

Ancient Egypt was divided into two territories: Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt. Lower Egypt lay to the north, where the Nile extended out with its several branches to form the Nile Delta. Upper Egypt, which stretched to Aswan, was to the south. The two kingdoms were united around 3000 BC by King N.

This video has been produced by Captivating History. The Ancient Egyptians have long been a subject of fascination for historians, archaeologists, and the general public for over two centuries. This is due to the unique and intriguing aspects of their culture, such as their hieroglyphic writing, the Sphinx, mummies, and the Great Pyramid. The enigmatic nature of Ancient Egypt attracted Ancient Roman leaders and their militaries to the Egyptian seaports, and British Egyptologists to its dusty temples and tombs. The Ancient Egyptians left behind a wealth of texts, treasures, monuments, and myths that offer tantalizing clues about their exotic and wondrous culture, contributing significantly to our understanding of ancient civilizations.

Egypt is an ancient land with civilizations dating back to around 5500 BCE. Historians divide Ancient Egyptian history into thirds, known as the Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom, and New Kingdom. In ancient times, the people of Egypt used the reigns of certain rulers as date markers, making it challenging for modern-day archaeologists to accurately date structures and monuments. However, scholars were able to decipher the writing system of the Ancient Egyptians, which allowed them to interpret the records of their kings, or pharaohs.

The Nile River has been and continues to be the lifeblood of Egypt. It is a life-sustaining body of water that flows from South to North, cutting through the inhospitable desert sands of the Sahara. The Nile is prone to seasonal flooding, which makes the land on either side of its shores rich and fertile, ideal for agriculture. However, this delicate balance can be disrupted if the Nile floods too much, destroying farm fields and settlements, or if it doesn't flood enough, causing crops to wither and die, leading to famine and starvation. The rich land along the Nile first led nomadic people to settle permanently in Ancient Egypt, and as these settlements grew, trade and commerce began, class structures arose, and artists and craftsmen flourished.