TABLE OF CONTENTS  "NET NOTES" MONTHLY PROFILE Thutmose III: Black Military Genius and Pharaoh of Egypt REVELATION: The Ancient Pyramids of China: Is There An African Connection? FEATURE STORY: Vanishing Evidence of Classical African Civilizations: The Tombs (Part II)

The 18th Dynasty (or royal family) of Ancient Egypt (Kemit) has been described by Egyptologists as one of the greatest, if not the greatest, royal families to ever sit on any throne anywhere at anytime. In other words, no other royal family in world history has produced such a long line of remarkable men and women.

Thutmose III was the sixth ruler of the 18th Dynasty. He was short, muscular and black, with a broad nose and thick lips. He was the son of the Pharaoh Thutmose II and a young Sudanese woman, Aset, who was of humble birth.

The ancient record reveals that Thutmose III was a great warrior, administrator and leader of his people. However, unlike most of his predecessors and successors, this pharaoh's reign began with controversy. His predecessor, Queen Hatshepsut, was his stepmother and aunt. Her husband, Thutmose II, was also her half-brother. Sibling marriages were common in the Ancient Egyptian royal family to assure purity of the regal line.

Hatshepsut legally ascended the throne after the death of her husband. By tradition she was obligated to pass the crown to her stepson/nephew Thutmose III upon his reaching adulthood. However, the great queen stubbornly remained "pharaoh" of Egypt long beyond the appointed time, in defiance of protocol and the protests of young Thutmose, high priests and others.

When Hatshepsut died after a thirty-five year reign, young Thutmose III, angry at having been denied for so long his right to the throne, lashed out with a vengeance against her entire legacy. Some even speculate that he may have played a part in arranging the great queen's death.

At any rate, Thutmose III stripped her officials of their rank, expunged her name from royal records and obliterated her statues and monuments. Once having established himself as the true ruler of Egypt, he became a great king in his own right.

According to historian Lester Brooks, "Thutmose III turned out, in the [fifty-four] years of his actual rule, to be the greatest warrior-king ever to direct the destinies of Egypt." ⁽¹⁾ Following in the tradition of his grandfather, Thutmose I, this pharaoh built the world's first great empire. His actions were undoubtedly motivated by the desire to protect Egypt from outside domination, which the nation had experienced after the invasion of the Asian Hyksos over one hundred and fifty years earlier.

Thutmose III conducted 17 military campaigns into western Asia and captured over 350 cities there during an 18-year period. He also fought back Nubian incursions from inner Africa. He was a fearless leader of unmatched military skill. According to the distinguished scholar, W.E. B. DuBois:

"His empire extended from Napata to the Euphrates. The Assyrians and Babylonians sent their daughters to him in marriage, and the descendants of Syrian rulers, conquered by his father and educated in Egypt, ruled as slaves of the Pharaoh. Tribute poured into Egypt."⁽²⁾

Since the time of the reign of Thutmose III, many great generals around the world have employed his military tactics and strategies in preparing for and conducting war. So impressed was Egyptologist James Breasted with the pharaoh's military genius that he dubbed him "the Napoleon of Ancient Egypt."

But Thutmose III was not just a warrior-king. He was an upright and just ruler who took great pains to appoint fair and competent judges and administrators. He was also exceedingly compassionate and magnanimous toward the poor, the enslaved and prisoners of war.

A highly spiritual leader, this pharaoh also maintained a strong priesthood. In support of this, he built, enriched and embellished numerous temples throughout Egypt.

When Thutmose III finally passed away, he had reached his nineties, and could rest content, knowing that he had served his subjects well and had built the world's first empire -- a vast Black empire -- at the dawn of history.⁽³⁾

FOOTNOTES

1. Lester Brooks, Great Civilizations of Ancient Africa, New York, Four Winds Press, 1971, p. 56.
2. W.E.B. DuBois, The World and Africa:: An Inquiry Into The Part Which Africa Has Played In World History, New York International Publishers, 1961, pp. 28-129
3. For further information regarding Thutmose III, please consult J.A. Rogers' World's Great Men Of Color, New York, Collier Books, 1992, Vol. I.

REMEMBER: Our videotape and booklet, "When Black Men Ruled The World: Egypt During The Golden Age," are available now at 1-800-788 CLEGG.

* Legrand H. Clegg II is an attorney, historian and producer of the award-winning videotape, "When Black Men Ruled The World: Egypt During The Golden Age."

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