End of the 19th Dynasty

During his lifetime, Ramesses the Great led several famous military battles and campaigns, including conflicts with the Libyans and Hittites, notably the Battle of Kadesh. He also oversaw diplomatic efforts such as the Egyptian–Hittite peace treaty and the relocation of the Egyptian capital to Pi-Ramesses. Ramesses the Great achieved great things and is often regarded as Egypt's greatest Pharaoh. He had a long life with numerous heirs who were given prominent positions in the government as generals, governors, scribes and more. Ramesses II fathered around 100 children and reigned as the third ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty. He even outlived his first heir, also named Ramesses, and decentralised power among many members of the royal family. Ramesses the Great was eventually succeeded by his son Merneptah, who was probably elderly by this time. During his reign, Merneptah led military campaigns against Egypt's enemies. In the fifth year of his reign, he faced the Libyans and their king Mereye. He also encountered the mysterious Sea Peoples, marking the beginning of the collapse of the Bronze Age. However, according to Ian Shaw, the rest of Merneptah's reign seems to have been relatively peaceful. He died in the 9th (according to Ian Shaw), 11th (according to Dodson) or 12th (according to Vivienne Gae Callender) year of his reign, after having settled the borders of Egypt. His death triggered a war of succession, as he had designated his son Seti II as his successor. Claimants The following people are known to have at least claimed the title of Pharaoh during this period: • Amenmesse • Seti II • Tausret • Siptah • Setnakht Contemporary events in the nearby world Late Bronze Age collapse • Fall of the Hittite Empire – Ruled by Šuppiluliuma II • Destruction of Ugarit – A Trading city, vassal of the Hittites • Trojan War – Possibly depending on dating and veracity of the events • Inter-dynastic conflict in Assyria – Tukulti-Ninurta I was assassinated triggering civil strife • Warfare in Mycenaean Greece – There are evidence of warfare and destruction Chronology Scholars primarily use the regnal years of various pharaohs to establish chronology, as scholars disagree about the alignment of these events with our modern system of counting years. The 5th year of a particular pharaoh may correspond to different years in BC, depending on the source. However, there is a relatively high degree of agreement between sources when it comes to placing events in specific years of a monarch's reign. Although there may still be occasional discrepancies in this regard, they are generally less variable than the translations into our contemporary year system. Debate on lineage Determining the descent of pharaohs can be uncertain. This uncertainty extends to other pharaohs mentioned in the list of claimants, except for Seti II, who is known to be descended from Merneptah. The relationship of Tausret, Amenmesse and Setnakhte to the ruling dynasty remains unclear, although it is accepted that they are related. There is often debate about their familial relationships, including questions of parentage, siblingship, etc. These complexities should be taken into account when studying these historical events. ==Phase 1 – Struggle between Seti II and Amenmesse==

Upon Merneptah's death, both Seti II, Merneptah's eldest son, and Amenmesse claimed the throne. Amenmesse, of unknown parentage but royal lineage, was able to overthrow Seti but not completely remove him from power in Upper Egypt. This lasted until the end of the second year of Seti's reign, around 1201 BC. By the fifth year of Seti's reign, around 1198 BC, Seti seemed to have regained control of all Egypt and he died in the sixth year of his reign, around 1197 BC. Thereafter, there is no historical record of Amenmesse beyond Seti's fifth year, suggesting his probable death, as Seti later portrayed him as "the enemy" in his propaganda and murals. Seti effectively ruled as Pharaoh for about three years after the death of Merneptah, from about 1203 to 1200 BC. He then faced a period of about two years, from the years 1199 to 1198 BC, during which he was deposed or pushed out of the centre of power. He regained power eventually and ruled peacefully for one last year in 1197 BC. Whether Seti's death was natural or the result of foul play remains unknown. Following Seti's death, his widow Tausret assumed leadership, first through Siptah and later in her own right. Initially, Seti was married to Takhat. In the second year of his reign, around 1202 BC, he married his relative Tausret, possibly to strengthen his position through this alliance. It is believed that both Seti and Tausret were in their early twenties at this time. The period of struggle, strife, war or civil war, as described by various authors, lasted about five years. Seti's power base was originally in the north, while Amenmesse held sway in the south of Thebes, and possibly extending into Nubia. Transition of rule Siptah, who succeeded Seti II, was a child and too young to rule alone. Ian Shaw's book suggests that Siptah was the son of Seti II, while Toby Wilkinson's book suggests that he may have been the son of Amenmesse. Wilkinson also speculates that Siptah may have been an attempt to unite those still loyal to the late Amenmesse. On the other hand, Callender states that Siptah's father remains unknown, but the change of his name from Rameses-Siptah to Merneptah-Siptah suggests a direct link to Merneptah. Meanwhile, Dodson suggests that Siptah was the son of Amenmesse, who in turn was the son of Seti II through a lesser known figure called Takhat. However, all these historians agree on one point: Siptah's accession was probably due to a lack of more legitimate heirs. This period of uncertainty may have lasted from year 1 () to year 5 () of Seti's reign. An interregnum followed and marked the beginning of the end of the 19th Dynasty. ==Phase 2 – Struggle between Tausret and Sektnakhte==

Tausret shared her rule with Siptah and an official called Bay. Historical sources cited by Ian Shaw mention Bay's role in placing Tausret on the throne previously held by her father. Bay, of possible Canaanite origin, held the title of Chancellor of Egypt and was also referred to in Ugarit's diplomatic records as "Chief of the Troops of the Great King of the Land". Siptah's parentage was uncertain on his father's side, but his mother, Soteraja, was a Canaanite. Final fall of the dynasty The events at the end of the 19th Dynasty are not fully documented. It is mentioned that a Canaanite named Irsu may have invaded and seized power. The subsequent records of the 20th Dynasty indicate that there was turmoil in the land and that Setnakhte eventually came to power and expelled the foreign invaders. However, it is unclear whether this transition of power was peaceful or marked by conflict. The details of the conflicts and their timings are uncertain, but it is believed that they occurred sometime after the death of Bay in 1192 BC. Setnakhte is known to have come from southern Egypt and completed his conquests in the second year of his reign, around 1187 BC. Setnakhte's motivation for seizing power may have been related to Tausret's identification with her late husband after the death of Siptah in the sixth year of his reign in 1191 BC. There is some evidence that Tausret used Siptah's restoration cartouches during the early 20th Dynasty. It is also believed that the transition from Tausret's rule to Setnakhte's was direct, without a power vacuum or interregnum during which Irsu might have exercised control. Setnakhte regarded Seti II as the last legitimate pharaoh, and this transition is thought to have been violent, although the exact sequence of events remains unknown. Setnakhte died a few years after his successful seizure of power. This casts doubt on the idea that she was overthrown in a few months. In the end, we cannot be sure. As for Tausret, her fate is uncertain. There are few later mentions of her, but she did not suffer the same disgrace as Akhenaten or Amenmesse. The exact cause and date of her death are unknown. ==Aftermath==

By Ramesses III's death Egypt's Great Power status had come to an end and the start of a long collapse begun. His father Setnakhte and later Ramesses III played key roles in leading New Kingdom Egypt during the Bronze Age collapse. They defended against the Sea Peoples and helped Egypt recover. However, Egypt's economy suffered from the loss of trade routes to the Near East. By the time the New Kingdom ended with Ramesses XI, Egypt was very different from the time of Ramesses the Great. It is worth noting that some of Egypt's contemporaries, such as the Hittites and Mycenaean Greece, did not survive the collapse of the Bronze Age, whereas Egypt did. ==References==