Khety I

Khety I (Meryibre Khety) was the founder of the 9th Dynasty, who ruled around 1570 B.C. in Upper Egypt at Herakleopolis. He was one of the nomarchs of the 7th and 8th Dynasties, and he was succeeded by an unknown ephemeral king, followed by Neferkare VII. Very little is known about this pharaoh, but more in the revised history than the traditional.

Khety's parentage is unknown. He did not have any known sons, though Neferkare VII may have been one.

In the early sixteenth century B.C., late in the reign of Pepi II, power began to decentralize. By the time of Pepi's death, Egypt completely fractured and formed the 7th and 8th Dynasties, ruled by the different nomarchs of Egypt. Khety was one of these nomarchs, and late in this period (close to 1570 B.C.), he conquered the other nomes of Lower Egypt and began his own dynasty.

Khety I ruled for an unknown amount of time, but during his reign, he ruled with an iron fist and enslaved the Israelites who at the time lived in the Nile delta. This event is recorded in the Bible, though Khety is not named. He eventually died (according to some sources, he was killed by a crocodile) and passed the throne on to an unnamed ephemeral successor.

The evidence for the revised history can be found at Displaced Dynasties. Evidence regarding this pharaoh's place in history can be found here.