Amenhotep I in Wikipedia

Amenhotep I (sometimes read as Amenophis I and meaning "Amun is satisfied") was the second Pharaoh of the 18th dynasty of Egypt. His reign is generally dated from 1526 to 1506 BC. He was born to Ahmose I and Ahmose-Nefertari, but had at least two elder brothers, Ahmose-ankh and Ahmose Sapair, and was not expected to inherit the throne. However, sometime in the eight years between Ahmose I's 17th regnal year and his death, his heir apparent died and Amenhotep became crown prince.[3] He then acceded to the throne and ruled for about 21 years.[1] Although his reign is poorly documented, it is possible to piece together a basic history from available evidence. He inherited the kingdom formed by his father's military conquests and maintained dominance over Nubia and the Nile Delta, but probably did not attempt to keep power in Syrio-Palestine. He continued to rebuild temples in Upper Egypt, and revolutionized mortuary complex design by separating his tomb from his mortuary temple, setting a trend which would persist throughout the New Kingdom. After his death, he was deified into the patron god of Deir el-Medina.[4] Family Amenhotep I was the son of Ahmose I and Ahmose-Nefertari. His elder brothers, the crown prince Ahmose Sapair and Ahmose-ankh, died before him, thus clearing the way for his ascension to the throne.[5] Amenhotep probably came to power while he was still young himself, and his mother, Ahmose-Nefertari, appears to have been regent for him for at least a short time.[6] This is evidenced because both he and his mother are credited with opening a worker village at the site of Deir el-Medina.[6] Amenhotep took his sister Ahmose-Meritamon as his Great Royal Wife.[7] Another wife's name, Sitkamose, is attested on a nineteenth dynasty stele.[8] Beyond this, his relation to all other possible family members has been questioned. Ahhotep II is usually called his wife and sister,[7] despite an alternate theory that she was his grandmother.[8] He is thought to have had one son by Ahhotep II, Amenemhat, who died while still very young.[7] This remains the consensus, although there are arguments against that relationship as well.[8] With no living heirs, Amenhotep was succeeded by Thutmose I, whom he married to his sister, Aahmes,[7] although once again there is no definite proof that the two were related. Since Aahmes is never called "King's Daughter" in any inscription, some scholars doubt this relation as well.[8] Dates and length of reign In the ninth year of Amenhotep I, a heliacal rise of Sothis was observed on the ninth day of the third month of summer.[9] Modern astronomers have calculated that, if the observation was made from Memphis or Heliopolis, such an observation could only have been made on that day in 1537 BC. If the observation was made in Thebes, however, it could only have taken place in 1517.[10] The latter choice is usually accepted as correct since Thebes was the capital of early 18th dynasty Egypt; hence, Amenhotep I is given an accession date in 1526 BC,[9] although the possibility of 1546 BC is not entirely dismissed. Manetho's Epitome states that Amenhotep I ruled Egypt for 20 Years and 7 Months or 21 Years, depending on the source.[11] While Amenhotep I's highest attested official date is only his Year 10, Manetho's data is confirmed by information from a passage in the tomb autobiography of a Magician named Amenemhet. This individual explicitly states that he served under Amenhotep I for 21 Years.[12] Thus, in the high chronology, Amenhotep I is given a reign from around 1546 to 1526 BC and, in the low chronology, from around 1526 to 1506 BC or 1525 to 1504 BC,[13] though individual scholars may vary by a few years. Foreign policy Amenhotep I's Horus and Two Ladies names, "Bull who conquers the lands" and "He who inspires great terror," are generally interpreted to mean that Amenhotep I intended upon dominating the surrounding nations.[9] Two tomb texts indicate that he led campaigns into Nubia. According to the tomb texts of Ahmose, son of Ebana, Amenhotep later sought to expand Egypt's border southward into Nubia and he led an invasion force which defeated the Nubian army.[14] The tomb biography of Ahmose Pen-Nekhebet says he also fought in a campaign in Kush,[15] however it is quite possible that it refers to the same campaign as Ahmose, son of Ebana.[9] Amenhotep built a temple at Saï, showing that he had established Egyptian settlements almost as far as the third cataract.[6] A single reference in the tomb of Ahmose Pen-Nekhebet indicates another campaign in Iamu in the land of Kehek.[16] Unfortunately, the location of Kehek is unknown. It was long believed that Kehek was a reference to the Libyan tribe, Qeheq, and thus it was postulated that invaders from Libya took advantage of the death of Ahmose to move into the western Nile Delta.[17] Unfortunately for this theory, the Qeheq people only appeared in later times, and Kehek's identity remains unknown. Nubia is a possibility, since Amenhotep did campaign there, and the western desert and the oases have also been suggested, since these seem to have fallen under Egyptian control once again.[16] Egypt had lost the western desert and the oases during the second intermediate period, and during the revolt against the Hyksos, Kamose thought it necessary to garrison them.[18] It is uncertain when they were fully retaken, but on one stele, the title "Prince-Governor of the oases" was used,[19] which means that Amenhotep's reign forms the terminus ante quem for the return of Egyptian rule.[18] There are no recorded campaigns in Syro-Palestine during Amenhotep I's reign. However, according to the Tombos Stela of his successor, Thutmose I, when Thutmose led a campaign into Asia all the way to the Euphrates, he found no one who fought against him.[20] If Thutmose did not lead a campaign which has not been recorded into Asia before this recorded one, it would mean that the preceding pharaoh would have had to pacify Syria instead,[21] which would indicate a possible Asiatic campaign of Amenhotep I. Two references to the Levant potentially written during his reign might be contemporary witnesses to such a campaign. One of the candidates for Amenhotep's tomb contains a reference to Qedmi, which is somewhere in Canaan or the Transjordan, and Amenemhet's tomb contains a hostile reference to Mitanni.[22] However, neither of these references necessarily refer to campaigning, nor do they even necessarily date to Amenhotep's reign. The location of Amenhotep's tomb is not certain, and Amenemhet lived to serve under multiple kings who are known to have attacked Mitanni.[22] Records from Amenhotep's reign are simply altogether too scant and too vague to reach a conclusion about any Syrian campaign...