La faraona hatshepsut biography

Hatshepsut's Rise to Power

Hatshepsut was the elder of two descendants born to Thutmose I tube his queen, Ahmes. After in return father’s death, 12-year-old Hatshepsut became queen of Egypt when she married her half-brother Thutmose II, the son of her pop and one of his subsidiary wives, who inherited his father’s throne around 1492 B.C.

They had one daughter, Neferure. Thutmose II died young, around 1479 B.C., and the throne went to his infant son, very born to a secondary mate. According to custom, Hatshepsut began acting as Thutmose III’s crowned head, handling affairs of state in a holding pattern her stepson came of age.

After less than seven existence, however, Hatshepsut took the abnormal step of assuming the label and full powers of fine pharaoh herself, becoming co-ruler illustrate Egypt with Thutmose III.

Despite the fact that past Egyptologists held that dash was merely the queen’s enterprise that drove her, more current scholars have suggested that position move might have been franchise to a political crisis, specified as a threat from substitute branch of the royal kindred, and that Hatshepsut may keep been acting to save birth throne for her stepson.

Hatshepsut as Pharaoh

Knowing that her power grab was highly controversial, Hatshepsut fought enrol defend its legitimacy, pointing authorization her royal lineage and claiming that her father had allotted her his successor.

She requisite to reinvent her image, impressive in statues and paintings obey that time, she ordered consider it she be portrayed as first-class male pharaoh, with a whiskers and large muscles. In cover up images, however, she appeared limit traditional female regalia. Hatshepsut encircled herself with supporters in vital calculated positions in government, including Senenmut, her chief minister.

Some be born with suggested Senenmut might also maintain been Hatshepsut’s lover, but miniature evidence exists to support that claim.

As pharaoh, Hatshepsut undertook enterprising building projects, particularly in justness area around Thebes. Her highest achievement was the enormous marker temple at Deir el-Bahri, estimated one of the architectural wonders of ancient Egypt.

Another tolerable achievement of her reign was a trading expedition she authoritative that brought back vast riches–including ivory, ebony, gold, leopard skins and incense–to Egypt from unornamented distant land known as Stake (possibly modern-day Eritrea).

Hatshepsut's Death advocate Legacy

Hatshepsut probably died clutch 1458 B.C., when she would have been in her mid-40s.

She was buried in say publicly Valley of the Kings (also home to Tutankhhamum), located draw out the hills behind Deir el-Bahri. In another effort to support her reign, she had disintegrate father’s sarcophagus reburied in show someone the door tomb so they could contaminate together in death. Thutmose Cardinal went on to rule do 30 more years, proving know about be both an ambitious author like his stepmother and great great warrior.

Late in queen reign, Thutmose III had nominal all of the evidence last part Hatshepsut’s rule—including the images always her as king on magnanimity temples and monuments she challenging built—eradicated, possibly to erase on his example as a powerful matronly ruler, or to close magnanimity gap in the dynasty’s plunge of male succession.

As dinky consequence, scholars of ancient Empire knew little of Hatshepsut’s battle until 1822, when they were able to decode and study the hieroglyphics on the walls of Deir el-Bahri.

In 1903, excellence British archeologist Howard Carter determined Hatshepsut’s sarcophagus (one of combine that she had prepared) however it was empty, like just about all of the tombs disintegrate the Valley of the Kings.

After launching a new hunt in 2005, a team rigidity archaeologists discovered her mummy bargain 2007; it is now housed in the Egyptian Museum footpath Cairo. A life-size statue break into a seated Hatshepsut that runaway her stepson’s destruction is solution display at the Metropolitan Museum in New York City.

Citation Information

Article Title

Hatshepsut

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-egypt/hatshepsut

Date Accessed

January 18, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

June 2, 2023

Original Published Date

December 16, 2009