The founder of
the 20th dynasty was Setnakhte (c. 1185 - 1182). His origins are unknown,
though, bearing in mind the number of children produced by Ramesses II, it cannot be ruled
out that he was in some way related to the previous dynasty). He originally intended to be
buried in KV11, but usurped KV14 (Twosret) when his own tomb intruded into KV10
(Amenmesses). His coffin was found in the tomb of Amenhotep II, and it's possible that his
mummy is the unwrapped one found lying on a boat in the same tomb.
Setnakhte was succeeded by Ramesses III (c. 1182 - 1151). The last of the
great pharaohs, his reign saw some of the most important developments in the history of
the Mediterranean, the Trojan War being only 1 of them.The first 4 years of his reign were quiet, but in year 5 he
was attacked from the west by an alliance of the Libyans, Meshwesh and Seped tribes.
Ramesses acted quickly and smashed the invasion.
In year 8 came his toughest test, for he
was attacked by the confederation of tribes that we know as the Sea Peoples. This was a
foe to be reckoned with, as they had previously destroyed the Hittite Empire, which had
battled with Ramesses II. The accounts of Ramesses III's battles with the Sea Peoples are
well preserved on the walls of his mortuary temple at Medinet Habu.
The Sea Peoples advanced on Egypt from
Syria, but Ramesses pushed their armies back from Egypt's borders. This tactic having
failed, they tried to invade from the sea, but this didn't work either - Ramesses placed
archers on the shore and on boats and ordered them to shoot into the enemy boats. The
spoils of these victories went, as was customary, to the priesthood of Amun, thereby
commencing the build-up of wealth in the priesthood that would cause future problems.
This period of activity was followed by 3
years of peace, until the Libyans (allied again with the Meshwesh and 5 other tribes)
attacked once again from the west. Once again, the invasion was repelled, with 2,000 enemy
soldiers killed (according to official figures). Other military campaigns are also
mentioned on the walls of Ramesses's temples.
Towards the end of Ramesses's reign, there
was a plot to kill him, an account of which survives in the "Harem Conspiracy
Papyrus". The chief defendant in the trial that followed, in which more than 40
people were implicated, was a minor Queen called Tiy, who wanted to place her son by the
king on the throne. In the papyrus that survives, the names of the defendants have been
changed to reflect the gravity of their crimes (e.g. "Medusre" - "Re hates
him").
There were 4 different prosecutions in the
trial, during which Ramesses seems to have died. In the first part, 28 people were
condemned to death, and the second tribunal sentenced an additional 6 people to commit
suicide there and then in the court. The 3rd prosecution saw 4 people condemned to commit
suicide in their cells, and the final prosecution was against some judges who had
entertained the defendants. 1 was found innocent, but the rest were mutilated.
Ramesses took KV11 over from his father. He
plastered up the hole that had emerged when the builders blundered into KV10, and had the
tomb reoriented. His mummy was found in excellent condition at Deir el-Bahari in 1881.
|
