The first capital of the Egyptian kingdom was the city of Memphis

Egypt is the cradle of civilization. One of the most ancient cities in the world arose precisely on the territory of this state. However, not everyone knows which of them is the first capital of the Egyptian kingdom. And it's not that they are weak in history. Just for all its history in Egypt, there were several different kingdoms that were at enmity among themselves. Therefore, some people answer this question: "The first capital of the Egyptian kingdom was the city of Thebes." Others say that this is Nekhen (the capital of Upper Egypt), the third is Per-Uajit (the capital of Lower Egypt). In our narrative we will talk about the capital of the united kingdom of Egypt.

New town

According to reliable sources, the first capital of the Egyptian kingdom was the city of Memphis. The history of the creation of this city is very fascinating and relates somewhere to the XXX-XXVIII centuries BC. E, that is, to the third millennium before the birth of Christ. Its founder is the famous ruler of the Upper Kingdom of Menes, or, as he was otherwise called, Mina. Around the city, by order of the king, white walls were built, and this was a great rarity for the Egyptian cities. Therefore, the capital was called Inbu Hedge, that is, the "white walls". Memphis became the central city of the Egyptian kingdom, which united two hostile states - Upper and Lower Egypt. As already mentioned above, Menes was king of the Upper Kingdom. Having defeated the Lower, he united them and proclaimed himself the ruler of both. In this case Menes was crowned with a double crown, which was decorated with the symbols of both states - the image of the sacred snake (the symbol of Lower Egypt) and the crown of an unusual form - the relic of the Upper Kingdom. The next step was the decision to create a new capital, which was to be located at the intersection of these two kingdoms. However, the boundary between them was served by the Nile, or rather, one of its branches. Then the king ordered to dig a new channel for this tributary and build a dam to divert the water. A new city was built on the territory that was liberated from it. In short, King Mina became the founder of not only the ancient Egyptian state, but also its administrative center. Since then, the first capital of the Egyptian kingdom was the city of Memphis.

Several names of Memphis

The name "Memphis" is of Greek origin. Under Pharaoh Pepi (Piopi) I, a grandiose temple complex was built in the city, which was called Men Nefer Pepi (from Egyptian translates as "strong and beautiful as Pepi"), or Mennefer, - from this name the name Memphis also arose. The city had another name - Hat-Ka-Ptah, that is, "the abode of the soul of Ptah." It was on behalf of the deity - the patron saint of the city. He was considered the father of the world, and in his honor the temple of Ptah was built in the city. The ruins of the structure are still considered to be the sights of these edges.

There is another name for the city of Memphis - "Mechtaui". It was translated as "the scales of both lands". Probably, it was meant that the city, having become the capital, balanced the power of both kingdoms. Until the end of the XXIII century BC. E. The first capital of the Egyptian kingdom was Memphis. However, after this century, the country split into many nomas. Each of them wished to have its own administrative center. So there were new capitals of the Egyptian kingdom. However, among them, Memphis always remained the capital of the First (main) noma. He was a religious center, here was the necropolis Apis - sacred bulls.