Combaphis (Kbdj)

Combaphis, known in the monuments as 'Kbdj' in Egyptian, was an official underneath Amyrtaeus from 404 to 399 B.C. and a pharaoh under Persian rule from 399 to 396 B.C. He succeeded Amasis and Amyrtaeus, and coruled with/was succeeded by Nepherites I. This pharaoh is not known by the traditional Egyptian history, though his rule is recorded by several Greek and Persian historians.

Combaphis (Kbdj) began as an official, possibly a vizier, under the rule of Amasis. After Amyrtaeus began to rule Egypt, and independence was secured from Persia, he began to correspond and work with a Persian official named Bagapates. By 399 B.C., Bagapates had planned an invasion of Egypt, and worked with Combaphis to succeed. Together they invaded Egypt, and deposed Amyrtaeus (Psamtik III). Combaphis was rewarded by Artaxerxes II and made a pharaoh, along with the more popular Nepherites I. He ruled for 3 years following the invasion.

After several hundred years, his invasion of Egypt was conflated with Cambyses' (his namesake) peaceful acquisition of Egypt a hundred years prior. This partially led to the incorrect traditional history today, as the 26th Dynasty was moved from its correct position during the First Persian Domination to 121 years before this.

The evidence for the revised history can be found at Displaced Dynasties. Evidence for this pharaoh specifically can be found here.