She was a woman and yet she managed to become a pharaoh! However, the path to the throne was not easy at all. It was full of misery and obstacles. She was not destined to become a pharaoh,
despite the fact that she was the only daughter of the pharaoh Thutmose I. and principal wife and queen Ahmose. Pharaoh longed to have a son with his principal wife. but unfortunately, this wish of his was lucky only with his lesser wife, who gave birth to Thutmose II. But unfortunately he himself could not sit on the throne because he did not have pure royal blood. Only Hatshepsut had it, but she was a woman.
So how to solve this stalemate?
Pharaoh Thutmose I came up with a great solution. That his daughter Hatshepsut would marry his younger and half-brother Thutmose II, and in this way their blood would reunite into a purely royal one. But when he announced this news to everyone, no one really liked it. There was, of course, animosity among his wives. But the main thing is that Hatshepsut and Thutmose hated each other. And not just because of mothers. Hatshepsut didn’t like how he is fat, pampered, and most importantly younger. And Thutmose II did not like that Hatshepsut did not behave like a woman but took the role of a man and exalted himself above him. But there was nothing that could be done. Such was the decision of Pharaoh, and every decision of him had to be respected and fulfilled.
But no one knew how quickly this decision would come true. King Thutmose I. died relatively soon when Hatshepsut was only 12 years old and they immediately had to start to rule the country together with Thutmose II.
Hatshepsut initially rejected Tuthmos as king and husband, but eventually came to terms with her situation. She soon found the love of her life, “Senenmut”, he was an architect and a very wise man. Hatshepsut discussed with him all her important decisions but she never told him who she really was.
Thutmose II died after a 15-year reign. Hatshepsut was not even 30 years old and she was already a widow. And like her mother, Hatshepsut gave birth to no son. Only a daughter named “Neferure”. But Thuthoms II had a son! However, he had son not with his next wife but only with Concubine! So the situation repeated itself and worse. Butt Neferure and Thutmose III. they were still small and so neither could sit on the throne. ESpecially Hatshepsut did not want her daughter to marry Thutmose III. but since no one else was there, Thutmose III was entitled to the throne.
That was a chance for Hatshepsut. She was fully aware of it and definitely didn’t want to miss this chance. Hatshepsut served to Thutmose III. as his regent. but it didn’t take long for Hatshepsut to declare herself a Pharaoh! And She declared Thutmose III. as co-ruler. It was a diplomatic move that outraged many people, but it was impossible to go against it.
However, Hatshepsut had one big problem. She was a WOMAN! She knew that people and priests would not listen to her as if she was a man. she decided to be like a man in everything and even act and be portrayed so.
She began having herself depicted in the traditional king’s kilt and crown, along with a fake beard and male body. It was a way of asserting her authority.
She still had one thing to overcome. Almost every pharaoh experienced war, and always led his army. However, Hatshepsut did not have male strength, although of course, she mastered the martial arts. But she did not want to fight, so she had to prove to Egypt her strength and that her people were safe with her. She, therefore, decided to go for a Journey to the Land of Punt. Not every Pharaoh has succeeded in it. It was extremely hard But Hatshepsut proved it! She took ships and crossed the red see to the Land of Punt, and she brought back a lot of rare things to Egypt: gold, aromatic resins (myrrh, incense), Mozambican ebony, ebony, ivory, oyster eggs and wild animals.
Djeser-djeseru (“holiest of holy places”)
She gained immense fame and her trip to Land Punt became the most famous in the history of Egypt. She also had this path displayed in her temple Djeser-djeseru (“holiest of holy places”), which was dedicated to Amon and served as her funerary cult. She also erected a pair of red granite obelisks at the Temple of Amon at Karnak , which still stands today.
The location of the Land of Punt is still not precisely determined, however, we believe that it was today’s Somalia. And it was a really important business partner for Egypt.
During the reign of Hatshepsut, Egypt prospered greatly and she ruled Egypt for 20 years.
Hatshepsut died about 1458 B.C. in her mid- 40s. She had a skin problem and she treated it by ointments, but recent studies have shown that these ointments led her to cancer. So apparently she died of cancer.
Hatshepsut wanted to rest next to her father in the Valley of the Kings. She was buried in the hill behind Deir-el Bahri and her father was reburied with her.
However, Howard Carter found her sarcophagus in 1903, but unfortunately completely empty. a new search was launched in 2005 and Hatshepsut was actually found in 2007. And you can see her in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.
After her death, Thutmose III finally took his coveted throne. Unfortunately, he really hated Hatshepsut because of their incident. He took it that she stole his throne. And so he wanted to destroy all memories about her, everything she built, her statues etc. He simply tried to erase her from the history of Egypt, as if she never existed.
He didn’t want any other woman to think she could rule Egypt. He took it as a great disgrace that Egypt was ruled by a woman.
We get to know about Hatshepsut from the temple Deir el Bahri.
I still have to think about one question. Why did Thutmose III not demolish her temple? Unfortunately, I did not find the answer. but apparently, it was supposed to be! So that this wonderful woman who ruled Egypt should not be forgotten.
However, the Hatshepsut was only one of the 3 women who ever ruled Egypt.
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