Home Articles Book Reviews Scrapbook Aegyptica Links
Ramses the Great
By
Susan Cottman
The
Battle of Kadesh. Abu Simbel. The Exodus. KV5.
Few
pharaohs are associated with so many events and monumental building projects
as User-maat-re Setepen-re Ramessu Meryamun, known to us today as Ramses the
Great, or Ramses II.
Few reigns are as well-documented as Ramses' 67-year stint on the throne. This tall, red-headed scion of a military family became pharaoh when he was 20 and died at about 86, a respected king and statesman who oversaw one of the most prosperous eras in ancient Egypt and was deified in his own lifetime.
Every pharaoh aspired to be known as a mighty warrior and protector of his country's interests, and Ramses was no exception. His family, originally from the Delta, had served in the Egyptian military for generations, and he had accompanied his father, Seti I, on campaigns since his childhood.
The
Battle of Kadesh
The Battle of Kadesh was one of Ramses' first tests
on the battlefield. While he and the Hittites both claimed victory, scholars
today disagree on whether the conflict was a skirmish, or a battle with lasting
repercussions. Whatever you call it, the Battle of Kadesh became famous in
part due to Ramses' having the details of it recorded on several temples,
including those at Abydos, Abu Simbel, and Karnak.
Egyptologist
Frank Yurco, who has lectured on Ramses, is amused by one exceptional scene:
An enemy prince who fell into the Orontes River is being held upside down
and drained of water.
“One of the mysteries of the battle is why the Hittite king (Muwatallis) didn't put his infantry into battle on the first day,” Yurco commented during a lecture. “In the late Bronze Age, once chariotry was introduced, kings relied on chariotry to decide who won. Muwatallis could've defeated him if he'd thrown in the infantry, but at that time infantry was used to mop up.”
The losses were heavy for both sides: it took Ramses about two years to rebuild his army. He continued campaigning until he signed a treaty with Muwatallis' successor, Hattusilis, years later.
Ramses'
military strategy
Ramses had inherited a decline in Egypt's influence
due to neglect during Akhenaten's reign. Horemheb's rebuilding of the old
Hyksos capital at Avaris signalled a change in military strategy necessitated
by Akhenaten's losing naval superiority; subsequent pharaohs resorted to land
warfare. Ramses situated his capital near Avaris (Tell el-Daba) and named
it Pi-Ramses (Qantir). He built a string of support cities around it to house
his army.
Having his forces closer to the northern frontier, Ramses could respond quicker to flare-ups in the Levant or threats from Libya. Perhaps learning from his mistakes as a young, impatient general, Ramses went on to have several military successes in Western Asia.
Ramses is also considered by some as the pharaoh of the Exodus. Egypt drafted Hebrews in the Delta for work beginning in Horemheb's reign. The corvée ended in Ramses' 30th year. Yurco says that instead of the Biblical version, Ramses probably released them from the corvée when they weren't needed any more.
Prolific
builder and father
As is well known, Ramses' building projects weren't
limited to the Delta. He built extensively along the length of Nile, including
Nubia. Most famous of all his Nubian monuments are the two Abu Simbel temples
— one devoted to him and the other to his favorite wife, Nefertari Meryt-n-mut.
Although Ramses outlived her, she was the only queen among his numerous wives
to be honored with deification and her own temple. She is also shown at his
side, often in the same size, participating in ritual and state functions,
which is an unusual portrayal of a Great Royal Wife. Hers is the most beautiful
tomb in Egypt.
Ramses outlived his sons by Nefertari, so Merneptah, the son of a later queen, Istnofret, succeeded him. Ramses approached fatherhood as enthusiastically as he did building and fighting. He had approximately 200 children. Nearly every temple shows a procession of them, sons and daughters alike.
What happened to all these children? Kent Weeks' rediscovery of KV5 has revealed that at least some of the sons were buried in this sprawling tomb. Yurco has suggested that the daughters may have a similar tomb, as yet undiscovered, in the Valley of the Queens.
Although some questions remain unanswered about Ramses, his is one of the best documented reigns of ancient Egypt. His wish for eternity has been fulfilled in ways he never could have imagined.
Suggested
reading
Kitchen, K.A. 1982. Pharaoh Triumphant: The Life and Times of Ramses II.
Benben Publications.
Schmidt, John D. 1973. Ramses II: A Chronological Structure for His Reign. The Johns Hopkins University Press.
Lecture, February 1999, Portland, OR. Frank J. Yurco, Ph.D., Field Museum of Natural History.
Article © copyright 1999-2002 by Susan Cottman.