Question

Discuss how Egypt’s New Kingdom differed from earlier eras in Egypt, particularly in its contact with the outside world.

Answer 1

One way that the New Kingdom differed from its predecessors was that Egypt was keenly aware that it was surrounded by enemies. In the Second Intermediate Period before the New Kingdom, they had just thrown off rule by a foreign people called the Hyksos and were once again in command of their own nation. With that experience, it's no wonder that Egypt's later rulers saw the need for a strong and powerful military to protect their borders and to subjugate those that dared to challenge their power.

Later rulers, such as Thutmose I, would expand the military which would go on to win victories and stretch Egypt's borders under later rulers such as Thutmose III and Ramses II. This would bring an incredible amount of wealth into Egypt. But it wasn't always a winning streak and sometimes they would compromise and negotiate treaties and trade agreements as opposed to simply attacking. The New Kingdom was the height of Egypt's power, it's Golden Age, so to speak, as it flexed its trading and military acumen in ways that the previous periods did not.