The earliest Egyptian cultures evolve essentially in parallel with those of Mesopotamia, lagging only slightly. However in contrast to the agitated history of the Syro — Mesopotamian universe, the historical evolution in Egypt is relatively linear. The political unification of the twin lands (upper Egypt and the delta) occurs about 3100 BC, and clearly is the logical outcome of a common culture. This cultural and political union of the south and the north is a cherished aspiration of the Egyptians, and persists across the centuries despite several troubled periods. One of these periods is the separation of the ancient and middle Empires from 2180 to 2040 BC, and another is from 1730 to 1560 BC, a prelude to the establishment of the new Empire.
The middle and new Empires were marked by a commercial and military expansion to the south, up the Nile, and also toward the northeast. Egypt succeeded several times in extending its domination into Palestine, and even to the upper course of the Euphrates, under Thoutmosis III and Ramses II in the 15th and 13th centuries BC.
Around 1200 BC Egypt resists the land and river invasion of Sea People, but is weakened by the effort. Always capable of rising to new challenges, Egypt succeeds, for the most part, in preserving its unity. The Assyrian Ashurbanipal temporarily conquers Egypt about 660 BC; but the Assyrians are expulsed with the rebirth of the Saite Dynasty. The Persian Cambyse conquers Egypt in 525 BC, a date which marks the end of pharaonic Egypt and its integration into Achaemenid Persian Empire. In 331 BC, Egypt falls under the control of Alexander the Great, then of the heirs of Ptolemy, Alexander’s general.
