See Amasis II for the 26th Dynasty pharaoh whose name sometimes appears as Ahmose II.

Ahmose I (also known as Amosis I) was a pharaoh of ancient Egypt and the founder of the Eighteenth dynasty. He reigned between approximately 1550 BC-1525 BC.

Ahmose was the son of king Tao II Seqenenre and brother of king Kamose, the last king of the Seventeenth dynasty. At the age of 10, Ahmose I (The Moon is Born) assumed the throne after the death of his father. Upon assuming the crown, he became known as Neb-pehty-re (The Lord of Strength is Re). His reign was dominated by the struggle against the Hyksos rulers of the Nile Delta, in which he was ultimately victorious but suffered the loss of his father and brother. He was also successful in reasserting Egyptian power in its formerly subject territories of Nubia and Canaan. This laid the foundations for the New Kingdom, under which Egyptian power reached its peak.

Ahmose I married Ahmose-Nefertari, who was also his sister, and had several children including:

• Merytamun – eldest daughter of Ahmose-Nefertari (died young)
• Tair – daughter of Kasmut
• Satamun – 2nd daughter of Ahmose-Nefertari (died young)
• Ahmose-Sipair – eldest son of Ahmose-Nefertari (died as an infant)
• Ahmose-Meritamon – 3rd daughter of Ahmose-Nefertari (became Queen)
• Amenhotep I – 3rd son of Ahmose-Nefertari (King)
• Satkames – 4th daughter of Ahmose-Nefertari (died at age 30)
• Henttameh – daughter of Thenthapi
• Ahmose – daughter

According to Josephus, Manetho gives Ahmose a reign of 25 Years and 4 Months. This figure is supported by a Year 22 inscription from his reign at the stone quarries of Tura. He was succeeded by his son, who ruled as Amenhotep I.

The remains of his pyramid in Abydos were discovered in 1899, and identified as his in 1902. This pyramid and the related structures were resurveyed in 1993 by an expedition sponsored by the Pennsylvania-Yale-Institute of Fine Arts under the direction of Stephen Harvey.

Campaigns

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Ahmose's father and brother had waged war against the Hyksos king Apepi I, but when Ahmose took the throne, he was too young to lead campaigns, so he and the Hyksos king Apepi II 'Aqenienre lived in a tenative peace for the first ten years of Ahmose's reign. Because Apepi's name is not attested on any monuments or objects south of Bubastis, it is thought that he already had been confined to the delta.Grimal, Nicholas. A History of Ancient Egypt. p.192. Librairie Arthéme Fayard, 1988 In the 11th year of Ahmose, he restarted the conquest of the Hyksos. According to the Kim Ryholt's analysis of the verso of the Rhind Mathematical Papyrus, Ahmose had captured Heliopolis and Sile sometime around his 11th Regnal Year. This suggests that the Hyksos capital, Avaris was now besieged and would have fallen to Ahmose shortly after these events. Records of this campaign were discovered on the tomb walls of a soldier in it, Ahmose, son of Ebana. These records indicate that Ahmose I led three attacks against Avaris, the Hyksos capitol, but had to quell a small rebellion in Egypt. After this, In the fourth attack, he conquored the city.Breasted, James Henry. Ancient Records of Egypt, Vol. II p. 7-8. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1906. He completely drove the Hyksos out by besieging Sharuhen in Gaza for three years, and conquering it by the 16th year of his reign.Grimal, Nicholas. A History of Ancient Egypt. p.193. Librairie Arthéme Fayard, 1988

After defeating the Hyksos, Ahmose began campaigning in Syria and Nubia. His campaign in his 22nd year reached Djahy in syria, and perhaps as far as the Euphrates. Details on this campaign are scarce because Ahmose, son of Ebana, who was part of Ahmose I's navy, did not travel on this land expedition. Ahmose I's campaigns in Nubia are better documented. After a first campaign, a nubian named Aata quickly rebelled against Ahmose, but was crushed. After this, an anti-Theban egyptian man named Tetian gathered many rebels in Nubia, but was also defeated. Ahmose reestablished Egyptian rule over Nubia and placed it under the administration of Buhen.Grimal, Nicholas. A History of Ancient Egypt. p.194. Librairie Arthéme Fayard, 1988

References

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