Table of Contents
Who was the only girl pharaoh?
Hatshepsut
Did you know? Hatshepsut was only the third woman to become pharaoh in 3,000 years of ancient Egyptian history, and the first to attain the full power of the position.
Did a woman ever rule Egypt?
A woman has yet to be elected to the highest office in the United States, but 3,000 years ago in ancient Egypt it wasn’t unusual for women to rule—and some became all powerful, like Cleopatra and Nefertiti.
Were there any female pharaohs?
Hatshepsut was a female pharaoh of Egypt. She reigned between 1473 and 1458 B.C. Her name means “foremost of noblewomen.” The fact that a woman became pharaoh of Egypt was very unusual. …
What is queen called in Egypt?
In Egyptian history, there was no word for a “queen regnant” as in contemporary history, “king” being the ancient Egyptian title regardless of gender, and by the time of her reign, pharaoh had become the name for the ruler.
How did females become pharaoh?
Women owned businesses selling products such as cosmetics, perfume, or clothing. Some women worked as entertainers in the courts as musicians or dancers. Although women had less opportunity than men, they had the same legal rights. In some cases, this allowed a woman to rise all the way in power to become pharaoh.
How many female pharaohs ruled in ancient Egypt?
“In the history of Egypt during the dynastic period (3000 to 332 B.C.) there were only two or three women who managed to rule as pharaohs, rather than wielding power as the ‘great wife’ of a male king,” writes Egyptologist Ian Shaw in his book “Exploring Ancient Egypt” (Oxford University Press, 2003). RECOMMENDED VIDEOS FOR YOU…
What can we learn from Ancient Egypt’s women rulers?
In ancient Egypt, women rulers kept the society stable in times of potential turmoil. Can we use those lessons today? A woman has yet to be elected to the highest office in the United States, but 3,000 years ago in ancient Egypt it wasn’t unusual for women to rule—and some became all powerful, like Cleopatra and Nefertiti.
How old was Cleopatra when she became pharaoh?
Cleopatra VII, the daughter of Ptolemy XII, became pharaoh when she was about 17 years old, first serving as co-regent with her brother Ptolemy XIII, who was only 10 at the time. The Ptolemies were descendants of a Macedonian general of Alexander the Great’s army. During the Ptolemaic dynasty, several other women named Cleopatra served as regents.
Were the Egyptian women Queens just placeholders?
Yet as Kara Cooney explains in her new book, When Women Ruled the World: Six Queens of Egypt, those women were ultimately only placeholders for the next male to take the pharaoh’s throne.