Ramses II

Mummy of Rameses II
For an ancient statue in his image, see Luxor

Ramses II (the Great) was an Egyptian pharaoh (lived c. 1314 BC to 1224 BC(90 years), reigned 1290 BC-1224 BC(66 years). Became pharaoh as 24. His name is sometimes spelled Rameses, and was known to the Ancient Greeks as Sesostris.

At the Battle of Qadesh in 1286 BC (the fourth year of his reign), Rameses II met the forces of Muwatallis, emperor of the Hittites.

He was the third king of the 19th dynasty, a son of Seti I and his Queen Tuya. The most memorable of Ramses' wives was Nefertari. Anothers of his wives was Istnofret and Maetnefrure, Princess of Khatti. It is said that Ramses II had over 200 children. Some of his children were Bintah (Bintanath) (Princess and her father's wife), Setakht (Sethnakhte), Merenptah (PHARAOH), and Kha'emweset (Prince).

Ramses II made war expeditions as far as Beirut against the Hittites to the north and extended Egyptian control well into Ancient Ethiopia (Modern Sudan) to the south. He constructed many impressive monuments, and more statues of him exist than of any other Egyptian Pharaoh. Ramses was indeed a strong believer in the work of those living in Deir el Medina.

He is also the Pharaoh of whom the biblical figure Moses is popularly believed to have demanded that his people be released from slavery.

His mummy was found at Deir-al-Bahari in 1881 and placed in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo 5 years later, where it is still exhibited.

See also: Abu Simbel, Ramesseum, Ozymandias

External links

• TourEgypt.net site devoted to the Pharaohs, with many pages on Ramses and his family
• A short study of his prosperous reign (on GeoCities; JavaScript pop-up ad)