Assess the reign of Hatshepsut Hatshepsut is arguably Egypt’s most distinguished pharaoh, with her reign during the New Kingdom being a successful one in which Egypt flourished and prospered. Her ascension as pharaoh was plagued with controversy as she was a female who directly challenged ‘maat’, the Egyptian concept of balance and order, by rising to a high position of power traditionally possessed by males. Hatshepsut however disregarded the doubt made prevalent in regards to her leadership and went on to become one of Egypt’s most successful pharaohs.
Egypt’s economy flourished under her rule as a result of her expedition to Punt under the premise of peace and trade. In addition Hatshepsut’s building program was quite extensive and elaborate in nature, resulting in the enhancement of egyptian culture as well as the establishment of a grand legacy for herself. Furthermore propaganda such as her divine conception and birth were integral in securing Hatshepsut’s powerful placement and deterring any possible threats to her position.
The expedition to punt, the extensive building program and propaganda are aspects of Hatshepsut’s rule which when assessed illustrate the successful nature of her reign of Egypt. The expedition to Punt that was organised by Hatshepsut during her reign under the premise of peace and trade was highly beneficial towards the Egyptian economy. In the 9th year of her reign Hatshepsut chose to broaden Egypt’s trading network by organising an expedition to the exotic land of Punt, led by Nehesi, the king’s messenger.
Hatshepsut had aimed to aggrandize and meet the exigencies of the Egyptian economy by proposing a trading deal with the King of Punt and because she loved her father Amun’. The nature and significance of the expedition to Punt is illustrated through the numerous reliefs depicting the journey within Hatshepsut’s mortuary temple, Djeser-Djeseru, in Deir el-Bahri . The reliefs depict Egyptian soldiers unloading weapons and jewellery made from substances unknown to the Puntites.
The following reliefs depict the Puntites leading exotic animals such as panthers and monkeys along with loose myrrh resin, large chunks of ebony and ivory and more to the Egyptian convoy. The trade wasn’t balanced as the Egyptians obtained more than they had given which leads to the possibility that maybe the Egyptian soldiers had ‘persuaded the Puntites to agree to trade with them. If true a possible conflict could’ve arisen between the Puntites and Egyptians which would’ve reflected poorly on Hatshepsut.
It illustrates that Hatshepsut was politically manipulative and that her agenda primarily consisted of the continued well-being of her people; a characteristic of a great pharaoh. The Egyptian convoy returned with goods such as animals, construction material and exotic plants which were able to fulfil the exigencies of the Egyptian economy. Subsequently the wealth and power of Egypt increased significantly and remained as such for many years following the death of Hatshepsut.
In addition Hatshepsut was able to prove that she was a capable leader, easing tension that was made prevalent among society when she ascended as pharaoh. Thus the expedition to Punt conducted by Hatshepsut during her reign contributed significantly to the success of her reign as Egypt’s economy prospered and its wealth substantially increased. The most prominent aspect of Hatshepsut’s reign was her building program which oversaw the construction and repair of numerous structures dedicated to enhancing Egyptian culture and establishing a legacy for Hatshepsut.
Majority of the structures constructed under her rule were grand in size and inscribed with reliefs and hieroglyphs which all depicted certain aspects of Hatshepsut’s reign with a positive outlook. In addition Hatshepsut consistently integrated Egyptian culture and religion into her building program. The most noteworthy monuments erected under her rule were four large obelisks made of red granite. ‘I have done this with a loving heart for my father, Amun [… It was he who led me’ is inscribed on one of the obelisks, glorifying Amun and bringing to light his significance in Egyptian society. By making Amun the focal point of the obelisks, Hatshepsut exemplified her appreciation of the culture and in turn was able to enhance Egyptian culture. In addition the size of the obelisks was centred on creating a grand legacy for Hatshepsut; a legacy that would be difficult to erase. Another significant piece of architecture constructed during Hatshepsut’s rule was her mortuary temple, Djesere-Djeseru, located in Deir el-Bahri.
Hatshepsut’s mortuary temple is her biggest architectural achievement with numerous reliefs depicting significant aspects of her reign with a favourable perspective. The reliefs all depict aspects of Hatshepsut’s reign along with various dedications to numerous divine figures. The elaborate dedications to divine figures enhanced Egyptian culture and religion as it reflected the beauty of it as well as its significance. Furthermore the temple was created to secure Hatshepsut’s position as one of the greatest pharaohs through the architecture of the temple along with the reliefs and inscriptions.
However Thutmose III, the successor of Hatshepsut, had attempted to completely erase the memory of Hatshepsut from Egypt by destroying and disposing statues of Hatshepsut and vandalising reliefs that depicted the Queen . However due to the extensive and grand nature of Hatshepsut’s building program, Thutmose III had failed to entirely destroy Hatshepsut’s legacy. The building program conducted under Hatshepsut’s rule was significant due to the enhancement of Egyptian culture and religion and as well as the grand legacy it created for Hatshepsut.
The constant application of propaganda during Hatshepsut’s reign was vital in ensuring her controversial position as pharaoh. Initially when Hatshepsut became pharaoh doubt was prevalent among the kingdom which was why she relied heavily on propaganda to secure her powerful position and discourage those who were discontent with her position. One of the primary pieces of propaganda was a rewritten version of history which placed Hatshepsut as the legitimate successor of the throne following her father, Thutmose I.
Originally Thutmose III was the legitimate successor of Thutmose II, his father and Hatshepsut’s husband. Thutmose III however was too young to be pharaoh so Hatshepsut became regent only to realise how discontent she was ruling as a diarchy alongside Thutmose III. This led to the manipulation of history so as to place Hatshepsut as the legitimate successor of Thutmose I. Hatshepsut had inscribed on the walls of her mortuary temple in Deir el-Bahri a relief depicting her father, Thutmose I, presenting her to the court stating, ‘This is my daughter, Khnemet-Amun Hatshepsut [… she is my successor upon my throne’.
The relief placed Hatshepsut in a position of high political power as very few would question the word of a pharaoh. It was blatantly manipulative but extremely beneficial for Hatshepsut, allowing for her to rise as pharaoh with the absence of challenge. Another primary piece of propaganda was the narrative of Hatshepsut’s divinity that was made prevalent among the land. Arguably Egypt had become a monotheistic society, actively worshipping Amun who was the king of the gods as well as believed to be the divine father and protector of the pharaoh.
Hatshepsut had ordered the construction of reliefs within her mortuary temple in Deir el-Bahri depicting Amun impregnating her mother, Ahmose, disguised as Thutmose II, Ahmose’s husband. Politically this was an ingenious decision as Amun was highly respected and worshipped and no one would question the actions of a divine figure. This further solidified Hatshepsut’s placement as pharaoh and dismissed any notions that stated otherwise. However such a move was risky as it was sacrilegious and if the untrue nature of Hatshepsut’s divinity was made public, it would’ve resulted in her dethronement.
Regardless Hatshepsut’s utilisation of propaganda was politically motivated and integral in securing her position as pharaoh and ensuring that her reign would be one unchallenged by the citizens of Egypt. It can be stated that Hatshepsut was one of ancient Egypt’s most distinguished pharaohs, her reign being one that was highly remarkable in nature. The constant utilisation of propaganda was manipulative and sacrilegious yet integral in securing Hatshepsut’s position as pharaoh so that her people wouldn’t question her position and her reign of Egypt would remain unchallenged.
In addition the expedition to Punt organised under her rule allowed for the Egyptian economy to flourish and subsequently society prospered which allowed for her reign to be remembered as one of success. The extensively elaborate building program conducted by Hatshepsut was aimed at glorifying Amun and constructing a legacy for Hatshepsut, both of which she did successfully despite several attempted removals of her memory. To conclude, the reign of Hatshepsut was a remarkable one based on political and religious manipulation and frequent religious dedications but it also was one where society prospered.