Chronography of Egypt (inc. Suez)
Page last modified 19 August
2023
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also Islam and
Middle East
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also Turkey
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also Judaism and
Israel
Cairo urban growth 1965 � 2007.
Box index:-
7.0, Mubarak era 1981-2011. Terminated by
Arab Spring
6.0, Sadat era 1970-81; peace agreement
with Israel
5.0. Hostilities with Israel, 6-Day War and
aftermath, 1967-70
4,0, Aswan Dam Project, Soviet backing,
1956-70
3.0, Suez
Crisi 1956
2.0, Colonel Nasser takes power, 1954-56
1.0, Growth of Egyptian Wafd Nationalism.
King Farouk abdicates Neguib. British leave, 1950-53
0.0, Start of Wafd Nationalism, 1907-50
-1.0, Tutenkhamen�s tomb discovered, 1922-23
-1.5, British Protectorate over Egypt,
1914-22
-2.0, Anti-European mood sweeps Egypt;
Britain and France take over the country, 1881-88
-3.0, Egypt bankrupt; Khedive Ismail
deposed, 1875-79
-4.0, Suez Canal built, 1854-69
23
March 2021,
A container ship, the Evergiven,
strayed off course in the Suze Canal and ran aground on the bank, blocking the
waterway.
24
November 2017,
Extremist Muslims bombed a Sufi mosque in al-Rawdah, Egypt, then shot dead many
of those fleeing the scene. 305 worshippers lost their lives.
11� December 2016, 28 were
killed and 49 injured in an ISIS bomb attack on St Mark�s Cathedral, Cairo.
28 May 2014, Abdel Fattah al Sisi was elected
President of Egypt.
3
July 2013,
After massive street protests across Egypt, President Morsi was deposed by the military; his regime
accused of sending the country towards bankruptcy.
24 June 2012, Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood became President of
Egypt.
9 October 2011, In Egypt, 24 protestors were killed and 200
injured in a crackdown by security forces.
7.0, Mubarak
era 1981-2011. Terminated by Arab Spring
13 April 2011, Egyptian President
Hosni Mubarak was arrested, along with his sons, in Cairo.
11 February 2011, Egyptian President Hosni
Mubarak resigned after widespread protests against him, leaving Egypt
governed by the military. This was during the �Arab Spring�.
4 February 2011, Large crowds gathered in
Cairo calling for the resignation of President Mubarak.
25 January 2011, �Arab
Spring� protests in Egypt and Lebanon.
1 January 2011, 23 were
killed and 70 injured in a bomb attack on a church in Alexandria, Egypt.
3 February 2006, An Egyptian ferry sank in the Red Sea, killing 1,300.
2005, Mubarak was elected for a 5th
term as President.
21 July 2005, 64 were killed by suicide
bombers at the seaside resort of Sharm El Sheikh, on the Red Sea.
7 October 2004, Three bombs exploded in
the Egyptian resorts of Taba, Nuwelba and Raas al Sultan; the victims were� mainly Israeli tourists. The bombings were
timed to coincide with an Israeli military campaign in the Gaza Strip.
20 February 2002, In Egypt, a fire on a
train at Reqa al Gharbiya killed 370, and injured a further 65.
27� December 1989, Egypt and Syria resumed
full diplomatic relations.
17 November 1997, The terrorist group Jamaat
al Islamiyah massacred 58 foreugn tourists and 4 Egyptians at Luxor.
27� December 1993. In Cairo, Muslim militants
opened fire on a tourist bus, wounding 16, including 8 Australians.
28 February 1993. In Cairo, a caf� used by foreigners was bombed by Muslim extremists.
4 were killed and 16 injured. Americans, Swedes, and Germans were amongst the
injured.
25 January 1993. President Mubarak
of Egypt vowed to end Muslim fundamentalism.
4 January 1993. Muslim fundamentalists
killed two Coptic Christians in Egypt.
12 October 1992. Earthquake hit Cairo. It
was 5.9 on the Richter scale, with an epicentre 19 miles from Cairo, tremors
were felt in Jerusalem 250 miles away. There was panic as at least 160
buildings collapsed and many were trampled to death in the ensuing chaos.
Fortunately the Aswan Dam was not breached.
15�
December 1991. More than 470 drowned when a ferry carrying returning Egyptian
pilgrims and overseas workers sank in the Red Sea.
1986, President Hosni
Mubarak met Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres to discuss Middle
East Peace.
9 October 1984, Jordan mended relations
with Egypt when Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak visited
Amman. Egypt had been despised by the Arab world since the late President Anwar Sadat
signed a peace treaty with |Israel at Camp David in 1979. Now King Hussein
of Jordan
met with Arab hostility for mending relation with Egypt, a move sparked by
problems in the Jordanian economy arising from a downturn in trade resulting
form the Iran-Iraq war.
1982,
The last Israeli troops left the Sinai.
15 April 1982. The 5 men who killed Sadat
in Egypt were executed. They were Muslim fundamentalists who disagreed with Sadat�s
negotiating with Israel.
10 November 1981. Hosni Mubarak
became President of Egypt.
6.0, Sadat
era 1970-81; peace agreement with Israel, see
also Israeli history
6 October 1981. President Anwar Sadat of Egypt, 62, was assassinated in Cairo, whilst attending a military parade
celebrating Egyptian successes in the Yom Kippur war of 1973. ��Vice President Hosni Mubarak
became President.� Army members who were
part of Islamic Jihad organisation killed Sadat, opposing his negotiations with Israel,
which led to the historic Camp David Agreement of 1979.
3 September 1981, President Sadat began a crackdown against
dissidents, arresting 1,536 of them on a single night.
15 September 1981. Sadat expelled 1,500 Soviets
from Egypt.
27�
December 1980, Egypt and Syria resumed diplomatic relations after a 10-year break.
19 April 1979, Voters in Egypt overwhelmingly
approved the creation of a bicameral parliament, multi-party elections, and the
new peace treaty with Israel.
26 March 1979. In Washington, USA, Mr Begin of Israel
and President Sadat of Egypt signed a peace
treaty. President
Carter oversaw the signing.
1977, Sadat visited Jerusalem
for a first ever meeting with the Israeli Prime Minister.
5 June 1975. President Sadat opened the Suez Canal
reopened to all international maritime traffic except Israeli shipping,
after eight years of total closure since the Six-Day War.
28 February 1974. The USA and Egypt resumed
diplomatic relations after a break of 7 years.
10 January 1974, Dr Henry Kissinger, US Head of
State, held talks with President Sadat to discuss an Arab-Israeli
peace plan.
For
Yom Kippur war see
Israeli history.
6 November 1972, A Coptic Christian
church was set alight during sectarian violence in the northern Cairo suburb of
Khanka.
18 July 1972, Sadat expelled 20,000 Soviet
advisers after the USSR failed to supply promised armaments.
2 September 1971, Egypt discontinued its use
of the title United Arab Republic and reverted to its old name.� See 29 September 1961.
15 January 1971, The Aswan
High Dam on the Nile, built with Soviet finance and expertise, was
officially opened by President Sadat, and Podgorny.
14 October 1970, Nasser�s associate, Anwar Sadat,
aged 51, was elected President of Egypt.
28
September 1970. President
Gamal Abdel Nasser,
President of Egypt since 1954, died of a heart attack aged 52, after
mediating in the Jordan civil war.
5.0. Hostilities
with Israel, 6-Day War and aftermath, 1967-70
7 August 1970, Egypt and Israel, both
exhausted by their War of Attrition throughout 1970, agreed a ceasefire. Israel
remained in occupation of Sinai up to the east bank of the Suez Canal. Egypt
retained the west bank of the Canal, and agreed not to site any missiles within
20 miles of it. After a few months Egypt reneged o the missile agreement and
sited missiles close to the Canal. Israel protested but took no further action.
The strategic depth of the Sinai itself made Israel feel secure.
8 April 1970, Israeli bombs fell on a primary school in the Nile
delta, killing 30 children. The bombs were intended for a military base but
fell off-target; it was a further reprisal for the sinking on 3 February 1970
of an Israeli ship near Eilat.
12 February 1970, Israeli raid on factories
near Cairo; 70 civilians died. This was a further Israeli reprisal for the
sinking on 3 February 1970 of an Israeli ship near Eilat.
3 February 1970, Egyptian frogmen sank an
Israeli supply ship off the Israeli port of Eilat. In reprisal Israeli aircraft
sank several Egyptian minesweepers in the Gulf of Suez.
4 November 1967, Egyptian President Gamal
Abdel Nasser told former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Robert B
Anderson that he was willing to agree to many of the requests of
Israel to end the state of belligerence between the two nations following the
recent Six-Day War but to do so
officially would be suicide for any Arab leader.
1967, Six Day War with Israel;
Egypt lost the Sinai. See
Israel for more details
4,0, Aswan
Dam Project, Soviet backing, 1956-70
21 July 1970. The Aswan Dam in
Egypt was completed. The annual Nile flooding could now be controlled, and hydro-electric
power produced; the 111 metre high
dam also created a significant fishing industry.
14 May 1964. Soviet leader Nikita Krushchev and Egyptian President Gamal
Abdel Nasser opened the first stage of the Aswan Dam in Egypt. The Nile had been diverted four years earlier to
build the dam, which created a lake 6
miles wide and 350 miles long, displacing 100,000 people but irrigating a
million acres of desert for farmland. Many of Egypt�s historic sites were also
flooded, but the buildings were moved to safe locations.
9 January 1960. Work began on the Aswan High
Dam, Egypt.
24 October 1958, The USSR
loaned Egypt 400 million roubles to build the Aswan Dam.
23 August 1958, The Egyptian Government approved
the Aswan Dam project.
19 July 1956. Britain
and the USA withdrew financial support for Egypt and the Aswan Dam Project
under its new leader, Nasser, who was
seen as too pro-Soviet.
24 March 1965. Farouk
I, King of Egypt from 1936 to 1952, died in exile in Italy.
7 August 1962, Egypt
agreed terms with the UK for compensating British subjects whose property was seized
after the Suez Crisis of 1956.
21 September 1961, In Egypt, Nasser confiscated the assets of
wealthier Egyptians.
1 February 1958. Egypt and Syria joined to form the
United Arab Republic.� See 29 September 1961.
3.0, Suez Crisi 1956, �See also Britain, France, Israel
30 April 1957 Egypt reopened the Suez Canal.
8 March 1957, The Suez Canal reopened for smaller ships.
4 January 1957. In the wake of the Suez Crisis, a UN
sponsored force of German tugs and salvage
vessels began to clear the Suez Canal. 13 ships of various nationalities had
been stranded in the Canal and could now resume sailing towards the
Mediterranean. On 1 January 1957 President Colonel
Gamal Nasser of Egypt had abrogated a 1954 treaty that had preciously
guaranteed the UK full access to the Canal during international conflicts.
27� December 1956, Clearance work on the Suez Canal began.
22� December 1956. Britain and France withdrew their forces
from Egypt, under intense pressure from the USA. The Suez Crisis had caused a
run on Sterling, and the US would not halt this without a withdrawal.
22 November 1956. The
withdrawal of Anglo-French troops from Port Said was completed, UN forces moved
in.
15 November 1956. UN emergency forces arrived in Suez, and
began to clear the Canal of wrecked ships on 27�
December 1956. UN forces began taking over from the British, under strong pressure from the USA. The
British PM, Anthony Eden, was suffering from
psychological strain caused by the unanticipated world hostility to his Suez
adventure, and flew to Jamaica on 23 November 1957 to rest.
7 November 1956. Britain and France reluctantly agreed to UN
demands for a ceasefire in the Suez
Crisis.
6 November 1956. Israeli forces reached Sharm El Sheikh.
2 November 1956, Gaza fell to British
troops.
31 October 1956. France and Britain bombed Egyptian airfields
in the Suez Crisis. The speed of events � Egypt was only given 12 hours to
withdraw from the Canal � suggested to US President
Eisenhower that the whole operation was staged to maintain Anglo-French
influence in Suez.
29 October 1956. 5.pm. Israeli troops invaded the Sinai
Peninsula and troops pushed on towards the Suez Canal, ostensibly to destroy
guerrilla strongholds, coming within 20 miles of the Canal. 30,000
tank-supported Israeli troops invaded Gaza and the Sinai Peninsula, in
retaliation �for Egyptian attacks on land and sea communications near Gaza�.
Israeli forces wanted to reach the gun batteries at Sharm El Sheikh at the tip
of the Sinai peninsula which were closing the Straits of Tiran to Israeli
shipping. These batteries were destroyed on 5 November 1956.
This was part of the Suez Crisis in which President Nasser nationalised
the canal. See 16 November 1869, 26 July 1956, and 23 June 1956. On 30 October 1956
Britain and France issued an ultimatum to Egypt and Israel to stop fighting and
on 31 October 1956 France and Britain invaded the Suez area �to stop the
Israeli-Egyptian fighting. Nasser closed the canal by sinking 47 old ships full
of concrete in it. In fact this move had been pre-planned with Israel�s
co-operation. On 25 October 1956 the�
British, French, and Israeli PMs, Anthony
Eden, Guy Mollet, and David Ben Gurion, had met in secret at Sevres. On
6 November 1956 Anglo-French forces, 600 British and 487 French paratroopers,
seized the Canal itself, having landed at Port Said. The UN ordered a ceasefire
on 8 November 1956. The US condemned the invasion and the UN saw the rare sight
of US and USSR delegates voting together. The US had threatened not to defend
Sterling against a run on international markets against it unless the UK pulled
out of Suez.
Because of the fighting, backed by Britain and France, and ended by a UN
ceasefire, the Canal was closed for more than six months, blocked by sunken
ships. UK petrol rationing began on 23 November 1956, see this date. The Canal
closed again during the Arab-Israeli war of 1967 and did not reopen until 1975.
However by then very large oil tankers had been developed that were too deep to
pass through the canal. It is hoped that plans to deepen the Canal and reduce
fees will revive the enterprise (2001).
16 October 1956, British Prime Minister Anthony Eden and Foreign Secretary Selwyn Lloyd visited Paris and met with French
Minister Guy Mollet and Foreign Minister Christian Pineau to discuss joint action against
Egypt.
23 September 1956, Britain and France took the Suez issue to
the UN Security Council.
29 August 1956, Major build up of British and French forces
in the eastern Mediterranean, to intimidate Egypt.
1 August 1956, The US, Britain, and France met to talk
about the Suez problem. On 8 August 1956 Eden
said Nasser could not be trusted.
30 July 1956, Eden
tells Nasser he cannot have the Suez Canal
and imposed an arms embargo on Egypt.
28 July 1956, Britain froze Egyptian assets in London in
retaliation for Nasser�s� nationalisation
of the Suez canal.
26 July 1956. Nasser nationalised the Suez Canal a month after
taking power. Nasser wanted the tolls from the Canal to pay for the Aswan Dam construction. On
28 July 1956 the Cabinet met in London and agreed that as a last resort
military means would be used if the Canal was not kept open for free passage of
ships in perpetuity, not just until the Suez Canal Company�s concession ran out
in November 1968. On 9 September 1956 Nasser rejected US plans for
international control over the Canal.
4 June 1956, Egypt announced that
it would not renew the Suez Canal Company�s concession when it expired in 1968.
2.0, Colonel
Nasser takes power, 1954-56
23 June 1956. General Gamal Adbel Nasser was elected Egypt�s first president. However voting was compulsory and he was
the only candidate. Nasser graduated from the Royal Military
Academy in Cairo in 1938, aged 20, and was wounded in the 1948 Arab-Israeli
war. Appointed Prime Minister of Egypt in 1954, he enjoyed popular support.
13 June 1956, The last British troops left the Suez
Canal Zone.
31 March 1956, The last British soldiers left Egypt, and 74 years of
British military presence in Egypt ended, as the Grenadier Guards and Life
Guards embarked at Port Said, Suez.
2 March 1955. Egypt and Syria signed a
defensive pact.
17 November 1954, Nasser became official head of
state in Egypt, see 17 April 1954.
26 October 1954, An assassination attempt
on Egyptian Prime Minister Gamal Abdel Nasser failed.
19 October 1954, Colonel Nasser of Egypt agreed with Britain a
timetable for the withdrawal of Britain from the Canal Zone within two years.
27 July 1954, The UK Government agreed to
Colonel
Nasser�s request to pull British troops out of Suez. They were to leave by
1956.
21 July 1954. Britain, America and the World Bank turned down a request for aid from President Nasser of Egypt to build the Aswan Dam.
17 April 1954. Colonel Nasser took power in
Egypt from President
Neguib and became Prime Minister.
13 January 1954, Muslim Fundamentalists
arrested in Egypt.
1.0, Growth
of Egyptian Wafd Nationalism. King Farouk abdicates Neguib. British leave,
1950-53
18 June 1953, Egypt declared itself a
republic.
24 May 1953, The Foreign Office advised British
families to leave Egypt.
10 February 1953, In Egypt, General Neguib
was granted dictatorial powers for three years.
16 January 1953, Egypt dissolved all
political parties.
13 October 1952, Egypt signed an agreement
with Sudan on use of the water from the Nile.
26 July 1952. King
Farouk abdicated as King of Egypt.�
General
Neguib was the first president.This ended the 148-year-old Egyptian monarchy which had begun
in 1805 with Ottoman Viceroy Mohammed Ali. Farouk was the 10th
generation of Ali�s
descendants. General
Gamel Abdel Nasser had orchestrated the coup behind the scenes,
organising the revolutionary secret Free Officers group that had ousted Farouk.
In 1954 Nasser
overthrew Neguib
as ruler of Egypt. Nasser then held �elections� in which his was
the only name on the ballot paper; Nasser got 99.95% of the vote.
23 July 1952, General Neguib (born 1913) marched
on Cairo, to overthrow King Farouk I. Farouk fled to France and then
Monaco; Egypt became a dictatorial Republic under Neguib and Britain lost its influence in the country.
2 March 1952, The Egyptian Parliament
was suspended.
27 January 1952, Anti-British rioters in Egypt burnt
down the Shepheard Hotel, killing 17.
26 January 1952, In
response to the incident of 25 January 1952 mobs in Cairo led by the Muslim
Brotherhood attacked British buildings, killing 10 Britons. Cairo police
declined to intervene until the evening.
25 January 1952, British troops captured the police
headquarters in Ismalia, Egypt; 46 Egyptians were killed This followed
guerrilla attacks on British bases in Egypt, in which the British suspected
police complicity.
12 January 1952, The first violence by Egyptian nationalists against the British began
in the village of Tel el Kebir.
4�
December 1951, British
forces attacked in Egypt during anti-British riots.
20 November 1951, Evacuation of British Army families
from Egypt began.
22 October 1951, Britain stopped arms exports to Egypt.
21 October 1951, Four British warships arrived at Port
Said, at the northern end of the Suez Canal.
19 October 1951. British troops seized the Suez Canal Zone after
Egypt abrogated the 1936 Treaty.
10 September 1951, Anti-British riots in Egypt.
5 April 1951, The UK Government approved, in principle, of
withdrawing troops from the Suez Canal.
16 November 1950, King Farook of Egypt demanded immediate evacuation of British troops
from the Suez Canal.
0.0, Start of
Wafd Nationalism, 1907-50
3 January 1950, In Egypt, the Wafd Nationalist
Party won overwhelmingly in general elections.
17 March 1948. King
Farouk of Egypt
laid the foundation stone of the Aswan
Dam.
23 September 1945, Egypt demanded that
Britain end its,military occupation, return the Sudan to Egyptian control, and
end the priveliges of Britian in Egypt specified in the 1936 Treaty.
8 January 1945, A general election in
Egypt, boycotted by the Wafd Nationalists, was won by Ahmed Pasha.
8 October 1944, In Egypt, King Farouk
dismissed the Wafd
Government of Nahas Pasha.
21 November 1943, Churchill arrived in Cairo for
an Allied leaders Conference. Also there were Roosevelt and Chiang Kai Shek.
6 February 1942, A new Wafd (Nationalist)
Egyptian government was formed, under British influence.
4 February 1942, King Farouk was, despite British
appeals, unwilling to declare war on Germany; he was perhaps keener to see a
total end to British influence over his country. The British, however, were
determined to stop Axis forces approaching eastwards from Libya from acquiring
Egypt (see World War Two)
and so denying the Suez Canal to Britain and the Allies. On this day British
tanks approached the Abdeen Palace and despite a short defence by palace guards
forced a capitulation by Farouk. Egyptian Nationalists felt humiliated.
26 August 1936. A treaty (The Anglo-Egyptian Alliance) ended the
British protectorate over Egypt and gave Britain control over the Suez Canal for the
next 20 years.
2 May 1936, General election in Egypt, victory for the Wafd Nationalists.
Nahas Pasha
formed a Wafd Government.
28 April 1936, Farouk,
aged 16, became King of Egypt on the death of his father, King Fuad (68). Fuad
had become monarch in 1922 when Britain granted limited independence to Egypt.
12 December 1935, Egyptian Nationalists
succeeded in getting the more democratic Constitution of 1923 restored.
May 1932, The Egyptian Air Force was
founded, and acquired its first 5 planes, from England.
20 July 1930, Anti-British riots in
Egypt.
1 January 1930, In Egypt, Nahas Pasha
formed a Wafd
Nationalist
Government.
21 October 1929, In Egypt, the Wafd Nationalist
Party won the elections.
6 August 1929, Britain and Egypt agreed a draft treaty for the withdrawal of British
troops from Egypt, except from the Canal Zone. British troops were no
longer a common sight on Egyptian streets and the country felt more
independent.
1928, The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in Egypt by the Sunni Islamic
scholar, Hassan al-Banna.
16 March 1928, In Egypt, the Nationalist
leader Nahas
Pasha became Prime Minister.
1/1924, Saad Zaghlul returned to Egypt
from exile to lead the Wafd Party to a landslide victory, winning over
90% of the vote. Zaghlul died in 1927.
10 March 1919, After Nationalist riots in Egypt, the
British deported the Nationalist leader, Saad Zaghlul.
20 February 1910, Egypt�s Christian
PM, Butros Ghali, was
assassinated by a Nationalist.
25 March 1909, Egypt imposed press
censorship, to control the Nationalists.
10 November 1908, The Khedive of Egypt
appointed Boutros Ghali, a Coptic Christian, as the
country�s first indigenous Prime Minister, Muslim rioting ensued.
7�
December 1907, The first congress of the Egyptian
Nationalist movement, under Mustafa Kamil.
2 January 1939, Howard Carter, British Egyptologist who
discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922, died.
26
May 1937.
Egypt joined the League of Nations.
4 May 1928, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was born.
21 January 1926, Sennar Dam, on the Nile, was completed.
24 November 1924, The Egyptian Government resigned under
pressure from Britain, following the assassination of Major General Sir Lee
Stack on 19 November.
19 November 1924, The British Governor-General of Sudan was
assassinated in Cairo. Egypt was claiming the right to rule the territory.
15 March 1924. The first Egyptian Parliament opened.
15 March 1923, Fuad I was proclaimed King of Egypt.
-1.0, Tutenkhamen�s
tomb discovered, 1922-23
17 February 1923. Tutenkhamen�s tomb opened by the Egyptologist Howard Carter. Carter
was born in Swaffham, Norfolk, on 9 May 1873, and joined the British
� sponsored archaeological survey of Egypt at the age of 17. He died in London
in 1939.
26 November 1922. The tomb of the Pharaoh
Tutankhamen was discovered by Howard Carter and his patron, Lord Carnarvon.
23 November 1922, Lord Carnarvon arrived in Egypt
to see the archaeological excavations he was funding..
4 November 1922, Archaeologist Howard Carter
discovered a stairway near the tomb of Ramses II. Excavations now halted until Howard�s
financial backer, Lord Carnarvon, arrived.
-1.5, British
Protectorate over Egypt, 1914-22
15 March 1922, Britain abolished its protectorate over Egypt and �recognised its
independence�. Ahmed Fuad became King of Egypt. However a
British military presence remained in Egypt, both on the Suze Canal and in the
major cities,
23 May 1921. British troops entered
Alexandria, Egypt, to quell nationalist rioting.
18 November 1920, Mustafa Khalil, 40th Prime
Minister of Egypt (1978-80), was born in Al Qalyubiyah Governorate, Egypt (died
2008).
11 February 1920, King Farouk, last King of
Egypt, was born in Cairo, son of King Fuad I.
21 March 1919, Edmund Allenby became British
High Commissioner in Egypt.
25�
December 1918, Anwar
Sadat, President of Egypt,
was born in Talah Minufiya.
15 January 1918, Gamal Nasser, the first
President of Egypt, was born in Alexandria.
20�
December 1914, The British Protectorate of Egypt was established, with Hussein Kamil
as Sultan.
19�
December 1914. Britain declared Egypt to be a
British Protectorate, deposing the ruler, Khedive Abbas II, who had sided
with Germany�s
ally, Turkey.
Abbas II,
born 14 July 1874, who succeeded his father on 8 January 1892, died in Geneva
on 21� December 1944.
22 October 1914. Britain ordered all foreign ships
out of the Suez Canal.
6� December 1912, Archaeologists found a bust
of Nefertiti
near the River Nile.
10 February 1908, Mustapha Kamal of Egypt died.
3 May 1906, Britain demanded that Ottoman Turkey recognise the
Sinai Peninsula as belonging to Egypt, not Turkey. Turkey conceded this on 14
May 1906.
10� December 1902. The large dam at Aswan, Egypt, was
completed. At 130 foot high, with a 114 mile long lake, it had taken four years
to build.
7� December 1894, Ferdinand
de Lesseps, French diplomat and engineer who promoted the Suez Canal, died aged
89.
9 September 1894, Heinrich
Brugsch, German Egyptologist, died (born 18 February 1827).
7 January 1892, Tewfik Pasha, Khedive of Egypt, died. Abbas II (born
1874) became the Khedive of Egypt (ruled to 1914).
10 January 1890, Cleopatra�s tomb was discovered.
-2.0, Anti-European
mood sweeps Egypt; Britain and France take over the country, 1881-88
29 October 1888, Britain,
Germany, Austria,
France, Spain,
Italy, The Netherlands,
Russia, and the Ottoman
Empire signed an agreement that the Suez Canal
was neutral and open in wartime as well as peacetime to all ships.
22 May 1887, By the Drummond-Wolff
Convention, Britain agreed to pull out of Egypt within three years, but
retained the right to reoccupy if warranted by conditions of instability. Tewfik Pasha,
Khedive of Egypt, refused to ratify it.
27� December
1885, Samuel Birch,
Egyptologist, died (born in Woolwich, London 3 November 1813).
14 September 1882, British troops occupied Cairo.
13 September 1882, A British Expeditionary
Force under Lieutenant-General
Sir Garnet Wolseley routed the Egyptian forces under Arabi Pasha at Tel el Kebir. Britain feared
for the safety of the Suez Canal.
3 August 1882, Suez was occupied by
British marines.
24 July 1882, Arabi Pasha declared a Holy War
in Egypt.
11 July 1882, A British fleet bombarded Alexandria in retaliation for nationalist
violence in which 50 Europeans died.
11 June 1882, (see 31 August 1801). After a mutiny of soldiers in Alexandria in
1881, an Anglo-French fleet arrived off the town in May 1882. This provoked a
massacre of Europeans in Alexandria on 11 June 1882. The ruler of Egypt, Arabi Pasha,
was strengthening the system of forts in Egypt and failed to respond to an
ultimatum issued on 10 July 1882 by the British Admiral, Sir Beauchamp Seymour (Lord Alcester).
Hence the British invaded and occupied the whole of Egypt.
1 February 1881, Popular unrest in Cairo
after the arrest of three Egyptian colonels who were accused ossedition, The
three were released and then Ahmad Bey Urubi, an Egyptian army officer, mounted a revolution
against Tewfik, demanding that more indigenous Egyptians be given control of the
government and senior army posts.
-3.0, Egypt
bankrupt; Khedive Ismail deposed, 1875-79
25 June 1879, Ismail, Khedive of Egypt, was
deposed by the Ottoman Sultan under pressure from European powers. He was
replaced by his son, Tewfik. Tewfik (1852-92) was a weak ruler, a mere
puppet of the Ottomans.
4/1879, Khedive Ismail dismissed the
European �advisors� who had been overseeing Egyptian financial
affairs. Ismail,
had purchased the title of Khedive (a Persian title, meaning �great prince�)
from the Ottomans on 8 June 1867 in return for a promised annual tribute of
�350,000 to Istanbul. Ismail had
then embarked on an ambitious plan to modernise Egypt, installing railways, and
canals to irrigate previously-uncultivable land. Cairo was rebult with new
buildings, boulevards and parks. All this was funded on cheap credit, which precipitated a
collapse of Ottoman and Egyptian securities on the London Stock Exchange in
1875. With these dismissals, Ismail had gone too far for the
European financiers to accept and they began to pressure Ottoman Turkey for his
removal.
12 September 1878. Cleopatra�s Needle,
an ancient red granite Egyptian obelisk 68.5 feet high, originally made for Thothmes III
in 1460 BC, was presented to Britain and re-erected on the Thames Embankment.
1876, Egypt was bankrupt. One factor had been the
rise in the price of cotton, cause dby the American Civil
War. This had caused Khedive Ismail to undertake a spending spree, but when
the price of cotton returned to normal levels, the Egyptian National Debt
rocketed so as to require UK� 5 million a year just to pay the interest.
27 November 1875. Britain
bought Suez Canal shares. Britain bought nearly half the shares for �4million
from the Khedive, or ruler, of Egypt. Disraeli, the British Prime Minister, was relieved to have prevented total
French control of the Canal. When the Canal was built six years ago with French
money and French expertise the British, under Gladstone, took no interest; now Britain accounts for 80% of the Canal traffic.
On 15 November 1875 Disraeli learned that the Khedive owned 177,000 of the 400,000 shares but was on the verge of bankruptcy and wanted to sell, or at least
mortgage the shares to a French syndicate. The British put pressure on the
French syndicate who, without government help, pulled out, whilst Baron Lionel de Rothschild provided finance for the British
to buy the shares for UK� 4 million.
14 July 1874, Abbas
II (Abbas Hilmi Pasha), the last Khedive of Egypt, was born in Cairo (died
21� December 1944).
26 May 1871, Ismailia was annexed to Egypt.
26 March 1868, King Fuad I of Egypt was born.
-4.0, Suez Canal
built, 1854-69
17 November 1869. The Suez Canal
was opened after 10 years of
construction. The 100-mile canal, from Port Said to Port Tewfik, 26 feet deep,
with bays and use of lakes to provide passing places for ships and avoid the
need for locks, was designed by Ferdinand De
Lesseps. The distance from London to Bombay by sea was reduced from
11,220 to 6,332 miles. The Canal concession was granted to de Lesseps by Said
Pasha, after whom Port Said is named. The cost was 400 million francs,
ten times the original estimate. See 25 April 1859. By 1875 Britain was
the largest shareholder in the Canal. In 1870 there were 486 transits, and in
1966/67, 20,326 transits. President Nasser
nationalised the Canal in 1956, see 29 October 1956.
However the canal was too shallow right from
the beginning and one in three ships grounded in the first year. In 1875 is was
expanded from a width of 177 feet on the surface and 72 feet on the bottom to
500 feet and 197 feet respectively. Its depth was increased from 22 feet in
1870 to 35 feet by 1955.
25 April 1859. Construction of the 100 mile Suez Canal
began.
Constructed by both Egyptian and French companies, under the direction of Ferdinand de Lesseps, it opened on 17 November 1869.
It was 163 km long and had a minimum width of 60 metres. In 2000, some 25,000
ships used this canal.
30 November 1854. Frenchman
Ferdinand de Lesseps obtained, from the
Egyptian ruler Said Pasha, a 99-year
concession to build a canal between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean.
17 November 1854, The Suez Canal Company was
formed in Egypt.
13 July 1863, Margaret Murray, British Egyptologist, was
born
31 October 1854, Johann Erman, Egyptologist, was born.
13 July 1854, Abbas I,
Khedive of Egypt, born 1813, was murdered, aged 41. He was succeeded by his
uncle, 32-year old Said Pasha.
15 November 1852, Tewfik Pasha,
Khedive of Egypt, was born (died 7 January 1892 near Cairo. Succeeded by his
eldest son, Abbas
II.
2 August 1849. Mohammed Ali, ruler of Egypt from 1805 to 1848, died. Apart from
his military successes (see also Turkey), he laid the foundations of a modern educational
and administrative system, and revolutionised the Egyptian economy.
27 November 1840, Under the Convention of Alexandria, drawn
up by Napier, Mohammed Ali of Egypt agreed to return the Ottoman fleet and renounce claims over Syria,
in return for hereditary rule over Egypt.
10 October 1840, Beirut fell to British forces. The French
decided not to support Mohammed Ali of Egypt.
9 September 1840, British gunboats bombarded Beirut and
landed troops there.
15 July 1840, The Treaty
of London. Britain, Austria, Prussia and Russia agreed to form a military
alliance against Egypt, which was being pressured to give up the Ottoman fleet it held, and abandon
claims on northern Syria, Medina, Mecca and Crete.
2 July 1839, Mahmud II, Sultan of Turkey, died, aged 54. He
had been poisoned, after his fleet
surrendered to Egypt at Alexandria.�
He was succeeded by his 16-year-old son, Adbul Mejid I.
24 June 1839. The Ottoman Sultan, Mahmud II, launched another
offensive against Mohammed Ali, the pasha of Egypt. However this
day at the Battle of Nezib Egyptian forces under Ibrahim Pasha
defeated the Ottomans. The battle took place near the present day
Turkish-Syrian border.
31� December 1830, Ismail Pasha, Khedive of Egypt,
was born.
18 February 1827, Heinrich Brugsch, German Egyptologist, was born
(died 9 September 1894).
3� December 1823, Giovanni Belzoni, Egyptologist,
died in Egypt (born in Padua 1778).
3 November 1813, Samuel Birch, Egyptologist, was born in
Woolwich, London (died 27� December 1885).
1 March 1811, The Egyptian Malelukes were massacred by Mohammed
Ali, (born 1769 in Macedonia, died
1849) after he had invited them to a
banquet. 470 of them were killed in
Cairo and some 1,200 across the whole of Egypt. He then went on to fight
the Wahabi
tribe in Arabia, on the instructions of the Ottoman Porte, a campaign which
secured him the Hejaz region. This campaign was successfully concluded by Ali�s
son, Ibrahim, who also subdued the Sudan.
19 November 1805, Ferdinand de Lesseps, French
diplomat and engineer, builder of the Suez Canal, was born in Versailles.
British
victory over French in Egypt, 1801
31 August 1801. The British captured Alexandria, Egypt,
from the French
under Napoleon.
Alexandria had, despite its classical prominence, become by 1801 an
insignificant town. The French occupied the town on 2 July 1798, and
captured Cairo on 3/ August 1801. The French surrendered and were offered free passage
home, ending Napoleon�s
hopes of oriental conquest.
27 June 1801, British troops captured
Cairo, Egypt, from the French.
21 March 1801, At the Battle of
Alexandria, The French made a surprise attack on the British near
Alexandria, Egypt. The British under General Abercrombie defeated the French, but Abercrombie
himself was mortally wounded.
8 March 1801, The British Army captured
Aboukir, Egypt.
Napoleonic
French conquest of Egypt, 1798-1800
20 March 1800, The French under General Kleber
routed the Turks at Heliopolis in Egypt under Ibrahim Bey. The French now
advanced towards Cairo.
See also France for
British-French Napoleonic military conflict in Egypt
19 July 1799. The Rosetta Stone
was found near the town of Rosetta on the Nile, bearing Greek, Hieroglyphic,
and Demotic (ancient Egyptian) scripts.
1 August 1798. At the Battle of the Nile, at Aboukir
Bay, Admiral Nelson, on the ship Vanguard,
destroyed 11 out of 13 French battleships which were the convoy that took Napoleon to Egypt.� The French commander was Brueys, aboard the ship L�Orient.� The crew were mostly ashore getting water,
leaving no one to man the 120 French guns. This
effectively trapped the French Army in Egypt.� Five French ships with 5,000 men were sunk, 2
ships were captured, and 2 ships managed to escape from Nelson.� On 10 February 1799 Napoleon left Egypt for Syria,
occupying Gaza on 24 February 1799. On 7 March 1799 Napoleon captured Jaffa, where
his soldiers massacred over 2,0000 Albanian prisoners. On 17 May 1799 Napoleon
lifted the siege of Acre after failing to capture it.
23 July 1798. An uprising by the people
of Cairo against the French occupiers was brutally repressed on 22
October 1798. The French captured Suez on 7�
December 1798. However a British
expeditionary force arrived in Egypt on 6 March 1801. The battle of Alexandria
was fought on 11 March 1801, just outside the actual town. After this British
victory the British advanced on the town which surrendered on 31/8. See 11 June
1882.
21 July 1798, At the Battle of the Pyramids, Napoleon,
soon after his invasion of Egypt, defeated an army of some 60,000 Mamelukes.
Napoleon now intended to establish a French base in Egypt from where he could
harass British-India sea traffic. He could also attack the Ottoman Empire form
here via Syria. He sought to assure the ulema, the Egyptian intelligentsia,
that he was no modern Crusader but had come to empower them and facilitate
Egyptian self-rule independent of the Ottomans. However the Egyptians were not
yet ready for such self-determination, and failed to follow the French
initiatives.
23� December 1790, Jean Champollion, French
Egyptologist, was born (died 1832).
8
May 1773, Ali Bey,
ruler of Egypt, died after being wounded in fighting with Turkish rebels.
Ottoman conquest of Mamelukes
in Egypt
1524, Revolt in Egypt crushed by the Ottomans.
20
January 1517,
The Ottomans
conquered Cairo, Egypt.
16
January 1517,
Ottoman ruler Selim
I crossed the Gaza desert via Salihia, on his way to attack the
Malelukes in Cairo.
15
March 1377,
The Sultan of Egypt was murdered by the Mamelukes over a large unpaid debt.
11
December 1366,
Yelbogha
of Egypt was attacked and killed by the Sultan.
8
October 1365,
A Frankish fleet under Peter I of Cyprus landed at Alexandria, Egypt
and raided it but was forced to leave again.
29
May 1363, Sultan Malik al
Mansur of Egypt was dethroned on the grounds of incompetence and
replaced by Shaban,
son of Hosain.
16
March 1361,
Hasan
of Egypt was deposed and assassinated by Amir Yelbogha.
20
October 1354,
Sultan Salih
of Egypt was deposed and his brother Hasan reinstated.
7
June 1341, Malik al Nasir,
Sultan of Egypt, died.
5
March 1310,
Malik al
Nasir was reinstated as Sultan of Cairo
5
April 1309,
Bibars
Jashengir was proclaimed Sultan of Egypt.
7
February 1299,
Malik al
Nasir was reinstated as Sultan of Cairo.
13� December 1293, Al Ashraf, Mamluk Sultan of Egypt,
was murdered.
10
November 1290,
Qalawun,
Mamluk Sultan of Egypt, died. He was succeeded by his son al Ashraf Khalil.
1
July 1277, Bibars,
tuler of Egypt, died.
4
July 1261, Babyars I
became Sultan of Egypt.
1260, Egypt saved from a Mongol invasion at the
Battle of Ain Jalut.
10
April 1257,
Aybak,
Sultan of Egypt, was murdered on the orders of his wife Shajar. His son Nur ad Din Ali
succeeded him.
1254, The first Mameluke Sultan acceded. The Mamelukes (Arabic = �slaves�) were
horse mounted soldiers, originally Circassian slaves, but became powerful
enough to install their own ruler this year. The Mameluke Dynasty was overthrown by Selim I in 1517 but continued to
run the country behind the scenes. They were heavily defeated by the French in the late 1700s, and massacred
by Mehmet
Ali in 1811.
2
May 1250,
The last Ayyubid Sultan of Egypt, Turan Shah, was murdered by his Mamluk
bodyguards. They then elected their commander, Aybak, as Regent; he founded the
Mamluk Dynasty.
Start of the Mamluk Dynasty
Seventh Crusade, fails
6 April 1250, Battle of Fariskur. Louis IX
surrendered to the Mamluks, after a failed breakout and thwarted retreat to
Damietta. The Crusaders were weakened by scurvy. Louis IX and his forces were
allowed to depart on payment of a ransom of 800,000 gold livres.Louis�
surviving soldiers returned to France. Louis himself sailed for Acre, but his further
negotiations, including an attempted alliance with the Mongols,came to nothing.
11 February 1250, The Muslims
counterattacked the exhausted Crusaders, who only just hung on by their use of
Greek Fire.
8 February 1250, Louis IX�s invading forces
dosvovered a ford across the Ashmoun Canal 4 miles from the main battlefield
and surprised the Muslim forces with an attack on Damietta on the way to Cairo.
However Louis
IX�s brother, Robert of Artois, disobeyed orders, he was
supposed to hold the opposite bank of the Canal until further French
reinforcements joined him, but he rashly attacked into the town of Mansura
prematurely. In the streets, Robert�s cavalry were of limited
effectiveness; the Miuslims rallied and halted his advance.
1/1250,
Crusader forces tried to build a causeway across the Ashmoun Canal, but the
Muslims harassed them with war engines, also widened the canal by excavating on
the side they held.
22 November 1249, Sultan As-Salih died, leaving
his inexperienced son Turanshah as ruler. This was good news for the
invading King
Louis IX of France. However initially hois death was kept secret and one of his wives, Shajah ud Durr,
ruled in his name.
20 November 1249, The Seventh Crudaders in
Egypt had only advanced 50 miles in 4 weeks as they moved towards Cairo. They
were halted at Mansura, where the Fifth Crusade had been stopped, as Muslim
forces under Emir
Fakr ed Din, held tham at the Ashmoun Canal.
6 June 1249, In the Seventh Crusade, King Louis IX
of France landed at Damietta, Egypt. Opposaition was light, as the
garrison defending the city fled in panic. Mindful of the issues faced by the
Fifth Crusade in advancing on Cairo in the midsummer heat, Louis IX delayed until Autumn.
However this gave the Egyptian Sultan Malik al Salih, then seriously
ill,� time to restore morale in his
forces
6/1249,
King Louis
IX of France landed in Egypt to fight the Ayyubid Sultan, As-Salih,
and force him to surrender Jerusalem to make peace.
8
March 1238,
Al Kamil,
Sultan of Egypt and Damascus, died. Civil war within the Ayyubid dynasty
ensued.
1221, The city of Mansurah, in the Nile delta,
was founded.
31
August 1221,
The Franks agreed to evacuate Egypt.
25
January 1200,
Battle of Blibeis, Egypt.
4 March 1193. Saladin,
Sultan of Egypt, died at Damascus \aged 52.
18 June 1183, Saladin, Sultan
of Egypt, took Aleppo, |Syria, and on 24 August 1179 made Damascus his
capital.
15 May 1174, The Syrian Atabeg, Nur ad Din, died. Saladin,
ruling in Egypt, declared independence and seized Damascus.
13 September 1171, The last Fatimid Caliph of Egypt, al Adid,
died. Egypt was now nominally subject to the Caliph of Baghdad, and Saladin
was effective ruler.
23 March 1169, Shirguh died of a stomach illness, and Saladin
was appointed by the Caliph as� his
successor.
6 January 1169, Shirguh, who had hastened to Egypt again to
counter the new threat from Almaric, now seized Shawar and executed him some ten
days later.
1168, Ongoing local hostility to
the garrison in Cairo precipitated another invasion of Egypt by King Almaric.
11 April 1167, Battle of
Babain. Shirguh
and his nephew Saladin
defeated an alliance of the Franks
and Shawar.
The Franks and Shawar then made another attack
on Saladin,
besieging him in Alexandria, but after 75 days were compelled to raise this
siege. This was because Shirguh�s forces were threatening Cairo, where
a Frankish garrison had been admitted by Shawar. The Franks and Syrians now agreed to leave
Egypt, although they retained a garrison in Cairo.
4 October 1125, Fatik al Bataihi was seized and imprisdoned on
the orders of Caliph
Amir, who now became ruler of Egypt. Fatik Al Bataihi had also
suffered defeats by the Franks, losing Tyre to them, and losing his fleet to
the Venetians.
8/1121, Al Afdal was assassinated in
Cairo; he had suffered defeat by the Crusaders at Ascalon. Al Afdal was
succeeded by Fatik
al Bataihi.
13 February 1021, Al Hakim, Caliph of Egypt, was murdered and su
cceeded by his son, al Zahir.
1118, Egypt was invaded by Baldwin I,
Crusader. He advanced as fat as Tinnis, but then illness forced him to retreat.
29� December 1094, Al Munstansir, Caliph of Egypt
died; his North African empire collapsed.
14 June 994, The Caliph of Egypt defeated a Byzantine army near
Antioch.
990, Construction began on the
Al-Hakim Mosque, Cairo.
6 July 969, Fatimid Caliph al-Mu�izz conquered Egypt, making Cairo
his capital, and the centre of a Shiite Empire. See Islam year 908. (Tunisia).
879, Ibn Tulun, the oldest mosque in
Cairo, was built.
17 September 642. Alexandria, Egypt, surrendered to the Arabs led by Amr Ibn Al-As. Amr invaded
Syria in 633 and attacked Egypt
in 639, taking Pelusium in January 640 and Heliopolis in June 640. In 646 Amr defeated a Greek attempt to retake Alexandria. Amr died, as governor of Egypt, on 6
January 664. The Arabs moved on south to conquer Nubia, also conquering
Cyrenicia and Tripolitania in 643.
616, Persia �invaded Egypt.
543, Nubia, now in southern Egypt, adopted Christianity.
See Roman Empire for Roman occupation of
Egypt
List of Egyptian Pharaoahs from Afropedia,
http://www.afropedea.org/list-of-pharaohs-of-ancient-egypt
Ptolemaic
Period, 305 � 50 BCE
30 BCE, end of reign of Ptolemy XV Caesarion (acceded 36 BCE)
50 BCE, end of reign of Cleopatra (acceded 51 BCE)
51 BCE, end of reign of Ptolemy XII (Nios Dionysus) (acceded 80 BCE)
55 BCE, Ptolemy XII was restored to the throne of
Egypt.
116 BCE, end of reign of Euergrtrd II (acceded 145 BCE)
145 BCE, Ptolemy VIII Neos Philopater ruled Egypt
under the Regency of his mother Cleopatra II.
165 BCE, end of reign of Ptolemy VIII (acceded 170 BCE)
145 BCE, end of reign of Ptolemy VII (Neos Philipater) (acceded 145
BCE)
145 BCE, end of reign of Ptolemy VI (acceded 180 BCE)
180 BCE, Ptolemy VI became ruler of Egypt.
181 BCE, end of reign of Ptolemy V (Epiphanes) (acceded 204 BCE)
205 BCE, end of reign of Ptolemy IV (Philapator) (acceded 221 BCE)
22 June 217 BCE,
Egyptian native hoplites under Ptolemy IV crushed the Seleucid army under Antiochus III
at Raphia near Gaza.
222 BCE, end of reign of Ptolemy III (Euergetes) (acceded 246 BCE). He
was aged 61. He was succeeded by his 23 year old son, Ptolemy IV, who co-ruled with
his sister and wife Arsinoe III.
243 BCE, Revolt in Egypt forced Ptolemy III to return from
military adventures in Syria.
245 BCE, Ptolemy III conquered Babylon and Susa.
246 BCE, end of reign of Ptolemy II (Philadelius) (acceded 283 BCE). He
died aged 63. He was succeeded by his son who ruled as Ptolemy III until 222 BCE.
283 BCE, end of reign of Ptolemy I (Soter) (acceded 305 ?? BCE)
?? 323 BCE, On the death of Alexander, Ptolemy became ruler of Egypt.
End of
Late Period (ca. 525 � 332 BCE
332 BCE, Alexander the Great conquered Egypt and founded
the port of Alexandria. He was welcomed as a liberator from the Persians. Alexander the
Great envisaged Alexandria, with its great library (destroyed in
riots in the 3rd century CE) as a cultural link between Europe and
Africa.
Ptolemaic
Period, 305 � 50 BCE
Dynasty
30 The last indigenous Egyptian
Dynasty, the 30th Dynasty. Nectanabo I
was the first Pharoah of this dynasty.
342 BCE, Persian invasion of Egypt.
343 BCE, end of reign of Nectanebo II (acceded 360 BCE)
360 BCE, end of reign of Djedhbor (acceded 362 BCE)
362 BCE, end of reign of Nectanebo I (acceded 380 BCE)
373 BCE, Nectanabo successfully repulsed a
Greek�Persian invasion force.
Dynasty
29
380 BCE, end of reign of Hakor (acceded 393 BCE)
393 BCE, end of reign of Nefaarud I (acceded 399 BCE)
399 BCE, Egyptian rebellion against Persian rule; start of
the 29th Dynasty.
Dynasty
28
399 BCE, end of reign of Amyrtaeus (acceded 404 BCE)
486 BCE, Egypt rebelled against Persian rule.
522 BCE, Death of King Cambyses II, som of King Cyrus, King of Persia 529 �
522 BCE. Cambyses
II conquered Egypt in 525 BCE.
Persian conquest of Egypt
Dynasty
27
525 BCE, end of reign of Psammethicus III (acceded 526 BCE)
526 BCE, end of reign of Ahmose II (acceded 570 BCE)
Babylonian conquest of Egypt
Ca. 568 BCE, King
Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon conquered Egypt.
570 BCE, end of reign of Wahibre / Aspelte /Haaibre / Hophra (acceded
589 BCE) After
military defeats in Palestine in which he was defeated by the Babylonians, General Amasis
/ Ahmose II, with popular support, declared jhimself Pharaoh.
589 BCE, end of reign of Psammethicus�
/Psamtik II (acceded 595 BCE). 589 BCE, His son Apries (4th ruler, 26th Dynasty) became Pharoah of
Egypt. He was also known as 'Wahibre Haaibre' and was identified in the Bible Book of
Jeremiah as 'Hophra.' He ruled until 570 BCE.
595 BCE, end of reign of Necho / Nekau (acceded 610 BCE)
605 BCE, Pharaoh Necho II was defeated at Carchemish by
the son of Nabopalassar
of the Chadeans.
Rule of
Psammetiuchus. Rebellion against Assyria
610 BCE, end of reign of Psammethicus I (acceded 664 BCE)
645 BCE, Egyptian ruler Psammetichus I renounced his allegiance to
Assyria.
662 BCE, The Assyrians returned to Egypt and sacked Thebes.
This was the zenith of Assyrian power.
663 BCE, Egypt�s 26th
Dynasty began, when the vassal King of Salis, Psammetichus I, (664-610 BCE) rebelled
against Assyrian rule. This Dynasty endured until 525 BCE. Egypt regained independence
from Assyria.
Dynasty
26
Dynasty
25 (Nubian)
Ca. 664 BCE, Accession of Tanutamun.
666 BCE, The Egyptian city of Thebes was captures by the Assyrians.
668 BCE, Memphis, Egyptian capital,was again captured by the Assyrians under
King Ashurbanipal.
Egypt had supported Syrian rebels against Assyria.
670 BCE, Iron-working introduced to Egypt.
671 BCE, Assyrian King Esarhaddon captured Memphis, the capital
of Egypt. However Tiharqa recaptured Memphis in 669 BCE. But see 668 BCE.
681 BCE, Sennacherib
was assassinated by his two sons, Adrammalech and Sharezer; they in turn were
defeated by their brother Esar-Haddon, who then became King of Assyria. Esar-Haddon subsequently conquered
Egypt, driving out its Nubian ruler,
Tirhakah.
Egypt, however, proved to be an over-extension of Assyrian power and they
withdrew in the 660s.
689 BCE, Accession of the Nubian King Tiharqa as Pharaoh of Egypt.
Ca. 702 BCE, Accession of Shebitku.
711 BCE, End of the reign of Phraaoh Bocchoris (717-711 BCE)
717 BCE, Death of Cushite ruler Piye (acceded 728 BCE) who had
conquered Lower and Upper Egypt and united them under his rule.
Ca. 747 BCE, Egypt conquered by Ethiopians, under the Cushite
King Napata.
First of five Kushite
monarchs, he founded the 25th Dynasty.
750 BCE, Kushite rulers sent armies into Egypt,
conquering it by 747 BCE.
Dynasty
25 (Nubian)
Dynasty
24
Bakenrenef
Tafnakt
Dynasty
23
Iuput
Rudamon
Takelot
III
Osorkon
IV
Sheshonk
V
Pedibastet
Dynasty
22 Dates all uncertain
804 BCE, Egypt began
to fragment again. It now split onto three kingdoms, and by 770 comprised a
dozen virtually independent principalities. This fragmentation paved the way
for the Kushite invasion from the south.
850 BCE, Egypt began to disintegrate as civil war took hold.
Osorkon
III
Sheshonk
IV
Pami
Sheshonk
III
853 BCE, Osorkon II of Egypt joined a coalition with
Syria, also
Israel and Judah, against the growing power of Assyria; The Assyrians,
however, won at the Battle of Qarqar. (fought in the Orontes Valley., modern NW Syria)
Ca.. 874 � 850 BCE, Osorkon II
Takelot
I
Sheshonk
II
Osorkon
I
926 BCE, Sheshonk I of Egypt attempted an invasion of
Israel and Judah, but failed.
Ca. 945 � 924 BCE, Sheshonk I The Egyptian throne was usurped by
the Libyan, ruler Sheshonk I. He founded the 22nd (Bubastite) Dynasty
See also Jewish History
Dynasty
21 Dates all uncertain
950 BCE, First verified cultivation of poppies in Egypt.
Ca. 959 � 949 BCE, Psusennes II
Ca. 978 � 959 BCE, Siamun
Ca. 984 � 978 BCE, Osorkon the Elder
Ca. 993 � 984 BCE, Amenemope
1000 BCE, The Nubian Kingdom of Cush was founded; probably
located on both sides of the southern Red Sea, in what is now Sudan, Ethiopia,
Yemen.
Ca. 1039 � 991 BCE, Psusennes I
Ca. 1045 � 1059 BCE, Amenemnisu
Ca. 1069 � 1043 BCE, Smendes I
1069 BCE, The vizier of Ramses IX seized power himself.
1070 BCE, Start of Third Intermediate
Period in Egypt. To 525 BCE.
1100 BCE, Egypt was fragmenting, Thebes in Upper Egypt broke
away, and migrants on the Nile Delta were establishing their own communities.
Dynasty 20
Dates all uncertain
Ca. 1126 � 1108 BCE, Rameses IX
Ca. 1132 � 1126 BCE, Rameses VIII
Ca. 1133 - ? Rameses VII
Ca. 1141 � 1133 BCE, Rameses VI
Ca. 1145 � 1141 BCE, Rameses V. Died of smallpox
Ca. 1151 � 1145 BCE, Rameses IV
1176 BCE, Ramses III defeated the �Sea People�. These
were probably from the Greek islands, or Siciliy or Sardinia, or the
Philistines (Peleset).
Ca. 1182 � 1151 BCE, Rameses III
Ca. 1185 � 1182 BCE, Setnakhte
Dynasty 19
Dates all uncertain
Ca. 1187 - 1185 BCE, Queen Twosret
Ca. 1193 � 1187 BCE, Siptah
Ca. 1199 � 1193 BCE, Seti II
Ca. 1202 - 1199 BCE, Amenmesses
1209 BCE, Pharaoh Merneptah fought off raids by Libyans,
and Mediterranean-island �Sea People�..
Ca. 1212 � 1202 BCE, Merneptah
1245 BCE, Ramses II married the daughter of Hattusili III.
Her name was Maathomeferrure.
1255 BCE, Death of Nefertiti. Another wife, Isetnofret, appears to have
become principal queen to Ramses II.
1258 BCE, Ramses II and the Hittite King Hattusilis
III drew up a peace agreement, ending years of indecisive
skirmishing at their borders. Ramses II took two Hittite princesses in marriage,
making a total of around seven wives in total.
1272 BCE, Egypt made peace with the Hittites.
1274 BCE, Major battle at Kadesh (now in northern Lebanon)
between the Hittites and the
Egyptians. Pharaoh Ramses
II blundered into a trap and barely managed to escape; he
retreated back to Egypt.The Hittites retained
control of the northern Levant, See also early Jewish history.
1287 BCE, Ramses II married Nefertiti, who was probably aged 13 at the
time.
Ca. 1279 � 1212 BCE, Ramsses II
Ca. 1291 � 1279 BCE, Seti I. Under Seti I, Egypt conquered Libya
and made peace with the Hittites.
Ca. 1293 � 1291 BCE, Ramsses I
1302 BCE, Pharaoh Ramses II was born, son of Seti I.
Dynasty 18
Dates all uncertain
Ca. 1321 BCE, The Egyptian throne was seized by the soldier, Harmhab;
he ruled until Ca. 1293 BCE,
He restored traditional polytheistic worship.
Ca. 1333 � 1324 BCE, Tutankhamun, aged ca. 9. Tutankhamen died aged 18,
probably of blood poisoning following a chariot accident in which he broke his
leg. He may also have had a deformed spine, and an androgynous body due to a
genetic condition causing over-production of oestrogen.
Ca. 1336 � 1333 BCE, Smenkhkare
Ca. 1350 � 1336 BCE, Akhanaten IV Amenhotep IV introduced
monotheism, worship of the Sun God. He changed his name to Akhenaten, meaning
�living spirit of Aten�; Aten was the name of this single
Sun-God. He founded a new capital,between Thebes and Memphis, naming it Akhetaten, meaning �horizon of Aten�. However his religious reforms were
unpopular, amd were reversed by his son Tutankhamen. Harmhab (Horemheb), a powerful courtier and military
leader under Amenhotep
IV, and Ay (an advisor to the young King
Tutankhamen) were instrumental in reversing these religious reforms.
Harmhab later become Pharoah himself.
Ca. 1386 � 1350 BCE, Amenhotep III. Under his rule, Babylonia had
recognised Egyptian hegemony over the region, and Nubia had been subdued. He
was succeeded by his son, Amenhotep IV (Ikhnaton); however the Hittites
under King
Suppiluliumas were soon to attack Egypt under Amenhotep IV�s weak rule.
1380 BCE, A canal was constructed by Pharaoh Amenhotep III from the Nile to the Red
Sea using slave labour (see 609 BCE).
Ca. 1419 � 1386 BCE, Thutmose IV
1419 BCE, Pharaoh Amenhotep II died and was succeeded by
his son, who ruled as Pharaoh Thutmose IV until 1411 BCE.
Ca. 1455 � 1419 BCE, Amenhotep II
16 April 1457 BCE, Battle of Megiddo. Pharaoh Thutmose III
defeated the Canaanites in Palestine.
Hatshepshut
1490 BCE, Thutmose III had conquered
Palestine, Syria and Nubia. Egypt now
controlled a strip of land up the eastern coast of the Mediterranean and into
the upper Euphrates valley.
1492 BCE, Egyptians reached the Land of Punt, probably
modern-day Ethiopia.
1496 BCE, Pharaoh Pharaoh Thutmose II was deposed by his father,
Thutmose I,
who then co-ruled with his brother, Thutmose III until 1493
BCE.
Ca. 1504 � 1455 BCE, Thutmose III
Ca. 1518�
- 1504 BCE, Thutmose II
Ca. 1524 � 1518 BCE, Pharaoh Thutmose I, was not of royal descent.
He drove back the Nubians to the south, and reconquered parts of
Sinai, Syria and Palestine to the north and east.
Ca. 1551 � 1524 BCE, Amenhotep I
Ca. 1570 � 1546 BCE, Ahmose I The New Kingdom was founded by Pharaoh Amasis/Ahmose I, 18th (Diospolite) Dynasty. He
drove out the Hyksos and reunited Upper
and Lower Egypt; The term �Pharaoh� (Pero)
was now first used officially by Egyptian rulers; it means �Great House�.
Dynasty 17
Dates all uncertain
Ca. 1473 BCE, Moses died.
The date of the Exodus is highly
uncertain and has been reckoned between 1513 and 1220 BCE
Ca. 1513 BCE. Exodus. The Jews left Egypt after the
10 Plagues. Moses
began to write the Pentateuch; the
books of Genesis (1), Exodus (2), Leviticus (3), Numbers
(4), Deuteronomy (5). He also wrote the book of Job
(18).
Ca. 1573 � 1570 BCE, Kamose
Ca. 1574 Tao
II
Ca. 1593 (Jerome) BCE, Moses born.
Ca. 1620, Intef
VI
Ca. 1633� Tao I
Dynasty 16
Dates all uncertain
Yakobaam
Anathaer
1674, The Hyksos
(originating from the northern Levant area) seized the throne of Egypt. Floods on the Nile were becoming erratic,
underming the economy. By 1650 BCE Egyptian control over the upper Nile was being lost
to the Nubians.
Dynasty 15
Dates all uncertain
Apepi II
Apepi I
Khyan
Yakhuber
Sheshi
1680 BCE, The horse as war weapon was introduced to Egypt by
invading Hyksos tribesmen from Syria.
1725 BCE, Unrest destroyed the stability of the Middle Kingdom
in Egypt.
Dynasty 14
Dates all uncertain
Ca. 1710, Neferhotep
II
Ca. 1720, Ay
Ca. 1728 BCE, �Jacob moved his family to Egypt.
Ca. 1730 � 1720, Sobekhotep IV
Ca. 1741 � 1730, Neferhotep I
Ca. 1745, Sobekhotep
III
Ca. 1747, Khendjer
Ca. 1750, Sobekhotep
II
Ca. 1760, Hor
I
Ca. 1770 � 1760, Ameny Intef IV
Dynasty 13, Dates all uncertain
Ca. 1780, Sobekhotep
I
Ca. 1782-1780, Wegaf
Dynasty 12, Dates all uncertain
Ca. 1785-1782, Queen Sobeknefru
Ca. 1798-1786, Amenemhet IV
1801 BCE, Pharaoh Amenemhet III died, and was succeeded by his
son Amenemhet
IV.
1849 BCE, Pharaoh Sesostris / Senusret III died, and was
succeeded by his son as Amenemhet III, who ruled until 1801 BCE. He
developed copper mines in the Sinai region, adding to Egypt�s wealth.
1887 BCE, Pharaoh Sesostris II died, and was succeeded
by his son, Sesostris
III, who ruled until 1849 BCE.
1903 BCE, Pharaoh Amenemhet II died, and was succeeded by his
son, Sesostris
II, who had ruled as co-regent since 1906 BCE and now ruled until
1887 BCE.
1935 BCE, Pharaoh Sesostris I died, and was succeeded by
his son, Pharaoh
Amenemhet II, who ruled until 1903 BCE. Egyptian trade with Punt
(probably,modern day Somalia).
1965 BCE, Pharaoah Seseostris I of Egypt invaded Nubia.
1970 BCE, Pharaoh Amenemhet I, founder of the 12th (Theban) Dynasty, died after
a ca. 30-year reign. He was succeeded by his son as Pharaoh Sesostris I, who had
ruled as co-regent since 1980 BCE, and who now ruled until 1935 BCE. He
completed the conquest of Nubia.
Ca. 1991 � 1971, Amenemhet I
Dynasty 11, Dates all uncertain
Ca. 1997 � 1991, Mentuhotep III
Ca. 2010 � 1998, Mentuhotep II
Ca. 2060 � 2010 BCE, Mentuhotep I
Ca. 2069 � 2060, Intef III
Ca. 2117 � 2069, Intef II
Ca. 2134 � 2117., Intef I
Dynasty 10, 9,, Dates all uncertain
Nebhaure bAkhtoy
Kaneherre
Merykare
Meyribre Khety
2150 BCE, Nubia, to the south of Egypt, emerged as a
kingdom. Its capital was at Kerma,
on the 3rd Nile Cataract.
Dynasty 7, 8, Dates all uncertain
Qakarae Iby
Wadjkare
Dynasty 6,� Dates all uncertain
Ca. 2184 BCE, End of the 6th
Dynasty, with the collapse of the
Old Kingdom, its capital at Memphis,
due to natural disasters and famine. The authority of the King,who was believed
to control the vital annual Nile floods, was undermined
Ca. 2278-2184, Pep II
Ca. 2283 � 2278. Mererre Nemtyemsaf I
2300 BCE, Egyptian explorer Harkhuf explored up the Nile.
Ca. 2352 � 2285, Pep I
Teti
Dynasty 5� Dates all uncertain
Ca. 2375 � 2352, Unas
Ca. 2414 � 2375, Djedkare Isas
Ca. 2422 � 2414, Menkhauhor
Ca. 2453 � 2422, Niuserre Ini
Ca. 2460 � 2453, Neferefre
Ca. 2467 � 2460, Shepseskare
Ca. 2477 � 2467, Neferrirkare Kakai
Ca. 2491 � 2477, Sahure
Ca. 2498 � 2491, Userkaf
Dynasty 4� Dates all uncertain
Ca. 2504 � 2500, Shepseskaf
Ca. 2532 � 2504, Menkaure
Ca. 2558 � 2532, Khafre,
Ca. 2558 � 2552, Djedefre
Ca. 2589 � 2566, Khufu. The Great Pyramid was completed, for King Khufu
Ca. 2600 BCE, First mummies prepared.
Ca. 2613 � 2589, Snefru, Pharaoah Snefru developed copper mines, and
built large ships to facilitate overseas trade. Cedars were being imported from
Lebanon. Egypt had subdued Nubia and Libya.
Dynasty 3� Dates all uncertain
Ca. 2637 � 2613, Huni
Ca. 2643 � 2637, Khaba
Ca. 2649 � 2645, Sekhemkhet
Ca. 2668 � 2649, Djoser. The first Pyramid, the Step Pyramid at
Saqqara, was erected by Imhotep, Djoser�s minister and doctor, to
become the tomb of Djoser.
Ca. 2686 � 2668, Sanakhte
Dynasty 2� Dates all uncertain
Ca. 2760, Khaseskhernwy
Ca. 2780, Seth-Peribsen
Ca. 2820, Nynetjer
Ca. 2860, Raneb
Ca. 2990, Hotempsekhemwy
Dynasty 1� Dates all uncertain
Ca. 2955 � 2929, Qa�a
Ca. 2970 � 2955, Semerkhet
Ca. 2973 � 2970, Anedjib
Ca. 3005 - 2973, Den
Ca. 3008 � 3005, Djet
Ca. 3040, Djer
Ca. 3050, Hor-Aha
The term Pharaoh may derive from Per
a�o, meaning Great House. The
Egyptians would say in revenrence �The Great House has decided�.�, rather than
use the personal name of the ruler, much as we talk of �The White House� or�10
Downing Street�.
Ca. 3150, Narmer. Upper and Lower Egypt united under King Menes. Menes founder of the 1st
Dynasty, (possibly Narmer) conquered Lower Egypt from the south.
City of Memphis was founded.
In
Egypt the wind often blew form the north, both moderating the climate and
facilitating navigation upriver under sail. Boats travelling downstream were
rowed. Boats were made of cedars sourced from the Lebanon.
Start of the Old Kingdom (Early) Dynasties 1 � 8
====================================================================================
3300 BCE, Urban centres developed in the lower Nile Valley;
start of hieroglyphics.
3500 BCE, The Egyptians first divided the day into 24 �hours�;
however they set each period of light and darkness as 12 hours each, meaning
the length of an hour varied over the year. Babylonian astronomers, in 3000
BCE, adopted the practice of making all 24 hours of equal length, regardless of
times of sunrise or sunset.
4241 BCE, The Egyptians developed a calendar with 12 months of
30 days plus 5 extra days. This was their Year One.
5000 BCE, Sedentary agriculture began in the Nile Valley.
List of Egyptian Pharaoahs from Afropedia,
http://www.afropedea.org/list-of-pharaohs-of-ancient-egypt