Egypt has some amazing temples but it's helpful to know a little about the history, which is very complex. Here's some quick notes put together from 'The Rough Guide to Egypt' (my Bible on this trip) and other sources. The errors are all my own work.
What always amazes me about ancient Egypt is how long ago the society was established in a structured, governmental form, the sheer scale of their building achievements and the sophistication of the end products.
It's an unlikely location for an empire - most of the land is arid desert. But the world's longest river, the Nile flows north through Egypt to discharge into the Mediterranean Sea at the Nile Delta. The water from this river creates a green swathe running through the country. Annual flooding inundated the plains, carrying rich nutrients which made the land very fertile.
Whilst records in hieroglyphs and murals from these old times survive, there is still some uncertainty. For convenience, Egyptologists have named the various eras but, of course, the ebb and flow of a country's fortunes does not divide itself quite so neatly.
The people who lived here were producing carved monoliths as early as 6,000 B.C. By around 3,300 B.C. there were two loose confederations, Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt. Each confederation sought to dominate the other - the south prevailed around 3,000 B.C. and the Early Dynastic Period began in a strange mixture of fact and myth. Some surviving pyramids date from this period which lasted around 400 years.
The Old Kingdom which followed lasted around 500 years and more pyramids were built. There were incursions into neighbouring countries and foreign trade developed.
This stable Old Kingdom ended with the death of Pepi II when various contenders sought control. Struggles for power continued for around 150 years and this time of uncertainty is called the First Intermediate Period.
In 2050 B.C., Mentuhotpe II succeeded in re-unifying the country, inaugurating the Middle Kingdom. This stability lasted 400 years before giving way to disorder during the XIII Dynasty.
Politics then became very complex in what is called the Second Intermediate Period.
After around 250 years (Egyptologists have various timescales) the XVIII Dynasty ushered in the New Kingdom, with a surge in temple building (including Deir el-Bahri, Luxor, Karnak, Abu Simbel, Medinet Habu) and creation of the tombs in the Valley of the Kings. This period lasted around 500 years until a series of weak pharaohs (all called Ramses) lost control.
The following 300 years of uncertainty is called the Third Intermediate Period.
From around 747 B.C Nubians, Assyrians and Persians controlled Egypt for about 500 years. This era is called the Late Period.
In 332 B.C. Alexander the Great conquered Egypt and founded Alexandria. This was the start of the Ptolemaic Era during which many temples were built or extended, including Edfu, Kom Ombo, Dendara and Philae.
After around 300 years, Cleopatra VII was defeated by Augustus and the power of Rome. The Romans adopted many of the existing ways as a means of controlling the population. There's lots more (of course) but let's stop there for now.
