Ancient Egyptian history

Early Dynasty	Old kingdom	First Intermediate Period The government crumbles and civil war breaks out as several rival kingdoms fight for control of Egypt.	Middle Kingdom	Second Intermediate Period Division of Egypt in 13th and 14th Dynasties. Hyksos invaders rule Egypt in 1674 BC., Egyptians learned about bronze, new weapons, and horse-drawn chariots from invaders
c.4000 - 2680 BC.	2650 - 2150 BC.	2150 - 2060 BC.	2060 - 1800 BC.	1800 - 1550 BC.

New Kingdom	Third Intermediate Period Economic troubles and civil wars weaken Egypt. There are up to 4 Pharaohs ruling different parts of Egypt at the same time.	Late Kingdom	Second Persian Period The Persians defeated the Egyptians and Ochus became ruler over Egypt founding the 31st Dynasty.	Ptolemaic
1550 - 1069 BC.	1069 - 752 BC.	752 - 343 BC.	343 - 332 BC.	332 - 30 BC.

Tools and artifacts indicate that humans lived in the Nile valley about 250,000 years ago, an era known as the Pre-dynastic Period.

Archaeological findings point to the emergence of a dominant political and religious culture in the Nile valley by about 3300 BC, when Pharaoh Menes, created Egypt by uniting the two parts of Egypt, also known as Upper and Lower Egypt, into a single kingdom. He made Memphis in the north and Abydos in the south as his capital cities, this important event marked the beginning of the dynastic period of the Pharaohs.

Historians divide Egyptian civilization into four Periods, the Old, Middle, New, and the Late Kingdoms. These eras are separated from each another by, respectively, the First, Second, and Third Intermediate periods. During these times the political divisions of Middle and Upper Egypt broke apart under the influence of weak rulers, fragmenting the central government and disrupting the administrative authority of the country.

Persian invaders occupied Egypt in the sixth century BC until 332 BC, when invasion by the forces of Alexander the Great brought an end to Persian rule. After his death, Ptolemy I took Egypt and in 306 BC declared himself Pharaoh, establishing Egypt's last dynasty. In the Ptolemaic Period Egypt was one of the great powers of the Hellenistic world, at various times extending its rule over parts of Syria, Asia Minor, Cyprus, Libya and Phoenicia. Alexandria became the cultural and intellectual center of the ancient world. The Ptolemaic line ended with the suicide of Cleopatra in 30 BC.