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The first pharaohs of the 18th dynasty, determined to keep the rest of the world firmly under Egypt's thumb in order to prevent another several centuries' worth of barbarian rule, expended considerable effort in forging out a huge, far-reaching empire (Aldred, 1988; Redford, 1984). Several generations of warrior pharaohs went out and marked out their new, hugely expanded territory through conquest and (although they did not find it necessary to brag about this quite so much) diplomacy. They then left the management of this monster to their successors. .
Thutmose IV was the great diplomat of the dynasty, and left to his young son an empire that was secure and stable. His son, Amenhotep III, probably a young child at the time of his ascension to the throne, turned his attention to domestic affairs upon attaining pharaoh-hood. Amenhotep III, a prolific builder, probably engaged in more infrastructure projects than any other pharaoh, also taking on the project of rebuilding various dilapidated structures built by his predecessors (Aldred, 1988). In the meantime, we begin to see the gradual decline of Egypt's foreign relations as money-hungry vassals nagged at the pharaoh and demanded the gold which he probably could not give as freely as he might have liked them to think. Into this peculiar situation, prince Amenhotep IV was born. .
Childhood and Early Life:.
Almost nothing is known of the early life of Prince Amenhotep IV. His father's reign is largely void of references to the prince. Some, however, have argued that Amenhotep IV actually appears quite prominently during his father's reign -- as a co-ruler (Aldred, 1988). This is a matter of great dispute, however. If the two pharaohs were indeed co-rulers, then they must have operated largely independently from one another. Seldom are both of them mentioned in the same text or depicted together in artwork. .
Amenhotep IV's age upon becoming pharaoh is largely a matter of guesswork.