Amasis

Amasis was the fifth and last pharaoh of the 26th Dynasty, who ruled from 449 to 404 B.C. His 44 year reign was one of the most prosperous periods for Egypt, following the Inaros rebellion during the rule of Apries. He succeeded Apries, and was succeeded by Amyrtaeus, Apries’ grandson. A lot is known about this pharaoh, in both the traditional and revised Egyptian chronologies.

Amasis gained his power by usurping the throne during the Inaros rebellion, and he was not related in any way to the other 26th Dynasty kings. He was the son of Psamtik-sa-Neith, who was the son of Henat, son of Udjahorresne. This makes him the great-grandson of Udjahorresne, the famous official who ruled underneath Cambyses during the reign of Psamtik I. Amasis had several sons, the most famous of which was the architect Khnemibre.

The rule of Amasis began at the end of the Inaros rebellion, during the First Persian Domination (27th Dynasty). He wrested power from Apries in 454 B.C., and a civil war broke out that lasted for five years. Finally, in 449 B.C., Amasis was seen as the true ruler of Egypt by the populace. In his third year, 446 B.C., he attempted to gain independence from Persia again, and rebelled against Artaxerxes I. This attempt failed, and in the process, Apries was killed. Amasis was left as the pharaoh of Egypt.

Over the rest of his illustrious reign, Amasis made Egypt prosperous by trading with the Greeks and building up a Mediterranean empire. He based his trading kingdom on the city of Naucratis in the Nile delta, which had been founded during the Inaros rebellion years before. In Amasis’ final year (405 B.C.), Darius II died, and political turmoil broke out in Persia. Amasis attempted to take back Egypt, and succeeded. He soon died early in the year of 404 B.C., and the grandson of Apries, Amyrtaeus, became pharaoh.

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