First Intermediate Period of Egypt
| First Intermediate Period of Egypt | ||||||||||
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| Languages | Ancient Egyptian | |||||||||
| Religion | Ancient Egyptian religion | |||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | |||||||||
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| • | c. 2181 BC | Menkare (first) | ||||||||
| • | c. 2069 BC – c. 2061 BC | Intef III (last) | ||||||||
| History | ||||||||||
| • | Established | c. 2181 BC | ||||||||
| • | Disestablished | c. 2055 BC | ||||||||
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| Today part of |
 Egypt
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The First Intermediate Period, often described as a "dark period" in ancient Egyptian history, spanned approximately one hundred twenty-five years, from ca. 2181–2055 BC, after the end of the Old Kingdom. It included the seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, and part of the eleventh dynasties. Very little monumental evidence survives from this period, especially towards the beginning of the era. The First Intermediate Period was a dynamic time in history where rule of Egypt was roughly divided between two competing power bases. One of those bases resided at Heracleopolis in Lower Egypt, a city just south of the Faiyum region. The other resided at Thebes in Upper Egypt. It is believed that during this time, the temples were pillaged and violated, their existing artwork was vandalized, and the statues of kings were broken or destroyed as a result of this alleged political chaos. These two kingdoms would eventually come into conflict, with the Theban kings conquering the north, resulting in reunification of Egypt under a single ruler during the second part of the eleventh dynasty.
The fall of the Old Kingdom is often described as a period of chaos and disorder by some literature in the First Intermediate Period, but mostly by literature written in successive eras of ancient Egyptian history. The causes that brought about the downfall of the Old Kingdom are numerous, but some are merely hypothetical. One reason that is often quoted is the extremely long reign of Pepi II, the last major pharaoh of the 6th Dynasty. He ruled from his childhood until he was very elderly (at least into his seventies, and possibly into his nineties), outliving many of his heirs and therefore, created problems with succession in the royal household. Thus, the regime of the Old Kingdom disintegrated amidst this disorganization. Another major problem was the rise in power of the provincial nomarchs. Towards the end of the Old Kingdom the positions of the nomarchs had become hereditary, so families often held onto the position of power in their respective provinces. As these nomarchs grew increasingly powerful and influential, they became more independent from the king. They erected tombs in their own domains and often raised armies. The rise of these numerous nomarchs inevitably created conflicts between neighboring provinces, often resulting in intense rivalries and warfare between them. A third reason for the dissolution of centralized kingship that is mentioned was the low levels of the Nile inundation which may have resulted in a drier climate and lower crop yields bringing about famine across ancient Egypt. See 4.2 kiloyear event.
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