Thousands of years ago, a great empire ruled the land of Egypt. The Pharaoh, or king, ruled the lands and the throne was passed down through generation. After the pharaoh died, his appointed son would become the new Pharaoh. Before Hatshepsut, they were always male. Tuthmosis I, her father left the throne to his son Tuthmosis II, her husband. After a couple years he died, and Hatshepsut temporarily took the throne, teaching her inexperienced nephew Tuthmosis III how to be pharaoh. Hatshepsut, the first female Pharaoh of Egypt, maintained peace and order throughout Egypt by creating an important trade route to Punt and using political tricks such as pretending to be a man and child of a god. .
Hatshepsut's ancestry, as shown in Figure 1, is complicated. King Amenhotep was a great Egyptian pharaoh. He did not have a son, so he appointed his trusted warrior Tuthmosis I to rule after he died. Too keep ancestors of prior pharaohs, Tuthmosis I married Ahmos, one of Amenhotep's daughter. Their only child was Hatshepsut, who Tuthmosis I treated as his favorite, raised her as a boy, and wanted her to take the throne. .
Hatshepsut's childhood was different than most Egyptian girls, even if they were of royalty. She was born around 1500 BC and was considered the daughter of Amon Re, the chief Egyptian god. Her father, Tuthmosis I of the 18th dynasty treated her as his favorite, and like a boy. They did a lot of male activities together. She became very curious which he probably inspired. Leaning to read and write, she would be ready to know how to be Pharaoh. .
Other children of Tuthmosis I and his other wives were sons, but not of royal blood. Tuthmosis II was the only one of them who survived when his father died. He took power after Tuthmosis I died so Tuthmosis II married Hatshepsut. Tuthmosis II's reign was short, lasting a couple years because he was sick. Tuthmosis II and Hatshepsut had only one daughter.
