Armed with the notion that he was being guided by a superior God, Akhenaten moved his vast empire to a new location and deemed that his God was the one and only true God. Hence, through this mad rush of power, the Pharaoh went as far as to close all temples of Amun and destroy anything dealing with Amun. It was then that the High Priest lost all his power and respect for the Pharaoh. Eventually, with the death of Akhenaten and the enthronement of Tutankhaman, the nature of Egypt and the power of the High Priest were restored. However, Egypt was forever changed. By considering the aforementioned information, the High Priest's hatred for Akhenaten is readily understandable. This is mainly due to the fact that the Pharaoh took away the High Priest's place in society and sense of power. Furthermore, he disrespected the God Amun, which was truly sacred to the Priest and his followers, and did not represent the type of pharaoh that the Priest favored. Essentially, the Priest felt that a pharaoh should be strong, handsome, brilliant, and powerful, everything Akhenaten was not, and this further fueled the Priest's dislike for Akhenaten. However, it must be questioned whether the Priest truly sought the dethronement of Akhenaten because of his hatred towards him or because the Pharaoh had caused the Priest to lose everything he held dearly.
While the High Priest truly abhorred Akhenaten, the wife of the Pharaoh, Nefertiti, looked upon him in a wholly different light. In essence, Nefertiti, daughter of Ay, truly loved Akhenaten despite his weak and frail body. To Nefertiti, what the Pharaoh lacked in his physical being, he clearly made up for in his mind and spirit. Thus, she vowed her love to him and, unlike many others, truly began to believe in his One and Only God. She, too, strongly began to believe and practice the religion of Akhenaten, and this would eventually lead to her losing many of the people she loved.