The female pharaoh Hatshepsut ruled for more than two decades, first as a regent for her nephew and stepson, Thutmose III, then as full Pharaoh, assuming even a male identity.
Why didn't Thutmose III become the pharaoh (king) as soon as he came of age? Why didn't he remove his stepmother, Hatshepsut, from the kingship, and take power for himself, when he was old enough to rule?
It's estimated that Thutmose III was very young at the time his father, Thutmose II, died, Hatshepsut, wife and half-sister of Thutmose II, and thereby stepmother and aunt of Thutmose III, became regent for the young king.
In early inscriptions and images, Hatshepsut and Thutmose III are shown as co-rulers, with Hatshepsut taking a more senior position. And in year 7 of their joint reign, Hatshepsut took on the full powers and identity of a king, and is shown dressed as a male king from that time.
She reigned, it seems from the evidence, for more than 20 years. Surely Thutmose III would have been old enough to take over by the end of that time, whether by force or with Hatshepsut's cooperation? Does the failure of Hatshepsut to step aside speak for her usurpation of power against the will of Thutmose III? For his weakness and powerlessness, as in the no-longer-widely-accepted "wicked stepmother" story?
In ancient Egypt, the kingship was tied up with several religious myths. One was the Osiris / Isis / Horus myth. The king was identified, during life, with Horus -- one of the king's formal titles was a "Horus name." At the king's death, the king became Osiris, father of Horus, and the new king became the new Horus.
What would it do to this identification of the deities Horus and Osiris with the king, if the previous king did not die before the new king took on full kingship? There are some co-ruling kings in Egyptian history. But there is no precedence for a former Horus. There was no way to become "un-king." Only death could lead to a new king.
It was most likely in Thutmose III's power to overthrow and kill Hatshepsut. He was general of her army, and his military prowess after her death attests to his skill and willingness to take risks. But he did not rise up and do so.
So if Thutmose III did not hate his stepmother, Hatshepsut, and out of hate want to overthrow and kill her, then it makes sense that for the sake of Maat (order, justice, rightness) that he cooperated with her remaining as king, once she'd taken the step of declaring herself king.
Hatshepsut had already apparently decided -- or the priests or advisors had decided for her -- that she must take on the role of king and a male identity, as there was also no precedence for a female Horus or Osiris. To break with the identification of the king with the myth of Osiris and Horus would have also been to question the identification itself, or to seem to open Egypt to chaos, the opposite of Maat.
Hatshepsut may have been, essentially, stuck with the identity of the king until her own death, for the sake of Egypt's prosperity and stability. And so also was Thutmose III stuck.
Sources consulted include:
- Kara Cooney. Interview, July 3, 2007.
- Aidan Dodson and Dyan Hilton. The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt. 2004.
- Zahi Hawass. The Realm of the Pharaoh. 2006.
- John Ray. "Hatshepsut: the Female Pharaoh." History Today. Volume 44 number 5, May 1994.
- Catharine H. Roehrig, editor. Hatshepsut: From Queen to Pharaoh. 2005. Article contributors include Ann Macy Roth, James P. Allen, Peter F. Dorman, Cathleen A. Keller, Catharine H. Roehrig, Dieter Arnold, Dorothea Arnold.
- Secrets of Egypt's Lost Queen. First aired: 7/15/07. Discovery Channel. Brando Quilico, executive producer.
- Joyce Tyldesley. Hatchepsut the Female Pharaoh. 1996.
