Accession and family Nectanebo was an army general from
Sebennytos, son of an important military officer named Djedhor and of a lady whose name is only partially recorded, [...]mu. A stele found at
Hermopolis provides some evidence that he came to power by overthrowing, and possibly putting to death, the last pharaoh of the
29th Dynasty Nepherites II. It has been suggested that Nectanebo was assisted in the
coup by the
Athenian general
Chabrias. Nectanebo carried out the coronation ceremony in c. 379/8 BC in both
Sais and
Memphis, and shifted the capital from
Mendes to Sebennytos. The relationships between Nectanebo and the pharaohs of the previous dynasty are not entirely clear. He showed little regard for both Nepherites II and his father
Achoris, calling the former inept and the latter a usurper. He seemed to have had a higher regard for
Nepherites I, who was formerly believed to be Nectanebo's father or grandfather, although it is now believed that this view was due to a misinterpretation of the
Demotic Chronicle. However, it has been suggested that both Achoris and Nectanebo may have been Nepherites I's relatives in some way. Nectanebo had two known sons:
Teos, who was his appointed successor, and
Tjahapimu.
Activities in Egypt Nectanebo was a great builder and restorer, to an extent not seen in Egypt for centuries. He ordered work on many of the
temples across the country. On the sacred island of
Philae near
Aswan, he began the temple of
Isis, which would become one of the most important religious sites in ancient Egypt, by erecting its
vestibule. Nectanebo also began the
First Pylon in the Precinct of Amun-Re at
Karnak, and it is believed that the earliest known
mammisi, which was found at
Dendera, was built by him. The
cult of sacred animals, which became prominent between the two Persian occupation periods (the
27th and
31st dynasties respectively), was supported by Nectanebo as evidenced by archaeological findings at Hermopolis,
Hermopolis Parva,
Saft el-Hinna and Mendes. Further works ordered by the pharaoh have been found in religious buildings at Memphis,
Tanis and
El Kab. Nectanebo was also generous towards the priesthood. A
decree dated to his first year and discovered on a stele at
Naucratis, required that 10 percent of taxes collected both from imports and from local production in this city were to be used for the temple of
Neith at Sais. A twin of this stele was recently discovered in the now-submerged city of
Heracleion. The aforementioned stele from Hermopolis, placed before a pylon of
Ramesses II, lists the donations made by Nectanebo to the local deities, and other benefits were also granted to the priesthood of
Horus at
Edfu. Nectanebo's prodigality showed his devotion to the gods and at the same time financially supported the largest holders of wealth of the country and for expenditure on the defence of the country.
Defeating Persian invasion In 374/3 BC Nectanebo had to face a
Persian attempt to retake Egypt, which was still considered by the
Achaemenid king
Artaxerxes II nothing more than a rebel
satrapy. After a six-year preparation and applying pressure on Athens to recall the Greek general
Chabrias, Artaxerxes dispatched a great army led by the Athenian general
Iphicrates and the Persian
Pharnabazus. It has been recorded that the army was composed of over 200,000 troops, including Persian soldiers and Greek mercenaries, and around 500 ships. Nectanebo ordered fortifications built along the
Pelusiac branch of the
Nile, compelling the enemy fleet to find its way up the less-defended Mendesian branch. At this point, the mutual distrust that had arisen between Iphicrates and Pharnabazus prevented the enemy from reaching Memphis. Then the annual
Nile flood and the Egyptian defenders' resolve to defend their territory turned what had initially appeared as certain defeat for Nectanebo I and his troops into a complete victory. From 368 BC many western satrapies of the Achaemenid Empire started to rebel against Artaxerxes II, so Nectanebo provided financial support to the rebelling satraps and re-established ties with both
Sparta and Athens. ==Succession==