1. Do you know that there are more pyramids in Sudan than in the whole of Egypt? There are only 118 pyramids in the whole of Egypt. Sudan conquered the Land of Pharaohs at one point, & Egypt was once ruled by Black Pharaohs. Back then Sudan was home to the Ancient Kingdom of Kush
2. The Kingdom of Kush (present-day Northern Sudan) is the Land of Nubia. Nubian desert is part of the larger Sahara desert stretching from West Africa into the Red Sea. Most of the pyramids in Kush were built around 2500 BC, around the time the Pyramids of Egypt were being built
3. Kush was the biggest built up city in Africa at the time. This was around 5000 years ago. Egypt & the Kingdom of Kush were mortal frenemies. They were trading partners, as well as military rivals. Pharaoh Hatshepsut led a short & successful military campaigns throughout Nubia.
4. She led expeditions to the Land of Punt (modern-day coastal Ethiopia & Djibouti) as well. Hatshepsut was the female king of Egypt who reigned between 1473–1458 BCE. She attained unprecedented power for a woman, adopting the full titles & regalia of a Pharoah. There is more……
5. Hatshepsut was the elder daughter of King Thutmose I (18th Dynasty King). She inherited her father’s throne with Thutmose II (her half brother & husband) as his consort. Upon her husband’s death, the throne passed on to her son - Thutmose III.
6. As Thutmose III was an infant, Hatshepsut acted as Regent for the young king. She bore one daughter, & her name was Neferure. Murder & incestuous marriages was rife among ancient Egyptian dynasties. Brothers & half brothers married sisters, fathers married daughters.
7. Even Cleopatra at age 18 married her brothers (Ptolemy XIII & Ptolemy XIV) at different periods, as co-rulers. This was a period of turmoil & murder, when Egypt was torn apart in Game of Thrones. She was lovers to Julius Caesar, then to Caesar’s trusted General - Mark Antony.
8. Cleopatra will later rule Egypt with her son Ptolemy Caesar (Caesarion). While Ptolemy XIII was killed by Julius Caesar by drowning him in the Nile River, Ptolemy XIV was killed by Cleopatra herself, to pave the way for Caesarion (who was Julius Caesar’s son).
9. Finally, Julius Caesar’s legatee & nephew called Octavian (who later became Augustus Caesar) killed Cleopatra’s son. Back then, it was the Game of Thrones; you either kill or be killed. Fathers killed sons & daughters, daughters killed fathers & brothers, all for the throne.
10. Cleopatra was the last Pharaoh to rule ancient Egypt. She was of Ptolemaic Dynasty (descendants of Alexander the Great). She ruled from 51-30 BC.
Back to my Story; the rivalry in Nubia came to a climax in 1500 BC when Thutmose I invaded Kush, & burned it to the ground.
11. Egyptians stayed in Nubia for 500 years, controlling the kingdom of Kush, & all its resources. Completely assimilated & Egyptianized, the Kushites adopted Egypt’s traditions & religion. Then five centuries later, political turmoil in Egypt led to Egypt’s withdrawal from Kush.
12. Kushites quickly reorganized, rebuilt their city, & became a superpower. In a remarkable turn of events, the once subjugated people did the most unthinkable. They invaded Egypt. Rather than carryout their revenge by burning Egypt to the ground, they exerted their rule instead
13. At least five Kushite Kings would go on to rule over ancient Egypt as Pharaohs of the 25th Dynasty. Among them was king Taharqa who ruled Egypt from 690-664 BC. He was the most famous of the Black Pharaohs. Taharqa ruled more territory than any Egyptian pharaoh before him.
14. The largest pyramid in Kush belong to him as well. Taharqa even got a shoutout from the Old Testament. Another king that ruled Kush was King Nastasen. He reigned from 335-310 BC. Famed for repelling invasion by Egyptians, Nastasen was the last Nubian king to be buried at Nuri
15. He brought about a Renaissance in classic Egyptian arts & architecture, & rejuvenated the culture in Egypt. You find extensive footprints of Kush’s power buried in the sand dunes of Kerma, Nuri & Meroë necropolis, way outside of Northern Sudanese capital - Khartoum.
16. Meroë is the biggest conglomeration of pyramids in the world. There has been more finds in Kush than the entire treasures of Boy King Tutankhamun. Like ancient Egypt, the Kingdom of Kush is an ancient wonder now desolate in the sands of time. It should be a goldmine for Sudan
Share this Scrolly Tale with your friends.
A Scrolly Tale is a new way to read Twitter threads with a more visually immersive experience.
Discover more beautiful Scrolly Tales like this.