The Eleventh Dynasty of Ancient Egypt History
The Eleventh Dynasty of Ancient Egypt
The 11th Dynasty was part of the First Intermediate Period until 2022, when Heracleopolis, the capital of the 10th Dynasty, was captured. According to Manetho, sixteen kings ruled this dynasty, for a total of 43 years. Today, however, this assertion is contradicted by contemporary inscriptions and the Turin Papyrus.
As Jürgen von Beckerath confirms, the combined action of these testimonies establishes that this dynasty consisted of seven kings who reigned for a total of 143 years. We also know for certain that it was founded in Thebes (the first time the city has gained importance), and that it controlled Thebaid and southern Egypt at the time.
In fact, it emerged during the anarchy of the First Intermediate Period and established itself militarily under the authority of the Antef kings. With central power in Thebes, this dynasty was called “Theban”.
Interestingly, in the early days of the dynasty, the Horus names of the kings were more indicative of their aspirations than of reality: Antef II called himself “King of Upper and Lower Egypt," despite the fact that he was only able to exert influence inside Upper Egypt's borders.. An inscription engraved during his reign shows that he was the first to claim rule over the whole of Egypt.
Antef III even gave himself the name Horus Nekhet Nebtepnefer “Horus the victorious Lord of the good beginning”. Montou, the tutelary god of Thebes, originally an astral divinity who became assimilated to a falcon god and became a warrior god, gave his name to several kings of the dynasty (Montouhotep). The latter traces its origins to a Nomarch (Governor) of Thebes.
