Ancient Egypt is a civilization of the East. And of great importance here is not the geographical component, but the culturological and civilizational ones. Here, the dominant role in the development of society was played not by private property, but by royal-temple economy. Thus, the social structure of the society of Ancient Egypt, the country where one of the first states originated, developed very poorly. And this is a characteristic difference not only of this civilization, but also of other oriental ones. What were the features of the social structure of ancient Egypt? We will understand in the article.
Ancient Egypt: General Information
Before starting a conversation about public life, I want to make a brief excursion into the history of the kingdom. So, on the way of development, Egypt went through several epochs-kingdoms: Early (early III millennium BC), Ancient (from XXVIII to XXIV century BC), Middle (from the end of III millennium to XVII century BC), New (from XVI-XII to XI-VIII centuries BC) and Later (from VII to IV-I centuries BC).
All these periods are characterized by extremely slow development of statehood. It should be noted that throughout its history, the civilization of the ancient Egyptians was either divided into two parts (Upper and Lower Kingdoms), then united into one powerful state, and all this through feuds. In addition, constant wars of aggression were waged. Against the backdrop of these events, the power of the pharaoh only grew stronger, and class inequality resulted in a slave system.
The country's population - African-Hamitic Libyans, Nubians and Semites - come from Africa. All these peoples chose the territory in the Lower Nile Valley for life - this was the natural border of the settlement, which provided isolation and to some extent security.
The area rich not only in fertile lands, but also in minerals fully provided the people. The first social relations arise at a time when there is a need to regulate the spills of the Nile with the construction of irrigation facilities. Society is divided into those who direct the work and those who execute it.
State education and development
So, around V century. BC e. the state of Ancient Egypt begins to exist. It consists of several nomes (as primitive settlements were called in the country), and by the 4th century BC BC e. two kingdoms are formed from them - Upper and Lower. Their unification is associated with bloody internecine wars. This all happens during the Early Kingdom. The ancient kingdom was a purely centralized period of the country's existence. After that, Egypt again breaks up into nomes, with each of them claiming independence. Again, wars begin between the city-states of the country.
They managed to unite the country only during the Middle Kingdom. The city of Thebes became the center. In the end - again the collapse, wars and unification into a strong empire, claiming dominance in the Ancient East world (the period of the New Kingdom). This is the time of a predatory warrior. After - again, the decline, from which Ancient Egypt did not come out anymore - it was conquered by the Persians, then A. the Great. Its isolated existence is ending: now the once powerful civilization is just a province of the Roman Empire.
Political system
What was the state plan of Ancient Egypt? The social structure always proceeds from a political system. It should be said that in times of centralization and disunity, there has always been a division of the country into two districts - Northern and Southern. The governors of the pharaoh ruled there. He himself secured his administrative authority with a title which stated: "Lord of two countries."
The state was always strictly centralized, while periods of disunity were insignificant. On the basis of the unconditional power of the pharaoh, an extensive bureaucratic apparatus arises, also centralized. The dominant role after the pharaoh in government was assigned to the royal court, where the vizier was the main one. It was to him and the pharaoh that the heads of departments with a large staff of small and large officials were subordinate.
The nomarchs ruled the field. They had unconditional power, but exclusively in their subject. The nomarchs also had subordination of local bureaucracy. At the lowest level in this system were community councils with a select headman at the head. They were responsible for judicial and administrative affairs, as well as for economic activities.
Development of public relations
Let us consider how the social structure of the society of Ancient Egypt developed throughout its history. Initially, the young country was a disparate city-state, each living according to its own laws and had its own ruler.
The state of the Early Kingdom was a kind of tribal union. The population of the country was a free peasants united in communities. The land was allocated to them by the authorities for cultivation. Part of the income from agricultural products needed to be paid to the state.
It was during the period of the Old Kingdom that a breakdown in society occurred, dividing it into slaves and slaveholders. The structure of society in Ancient Egypt is becoming heterogeneous: everything determines social and property relations. The priests come to the fore after Pharaoh. It is with their status and authority for the people that the endowment of the pharaoh with unlimited power, equating to a deity, is associated.
The era of the Middle Kingdom is characterized not only by the large-scale growth of the slave system (now slaves are also used in subsidiary farms). The social structure of Ancient Egypt of this period is characterized by the fact that society is stratified more and more. So, there are jesus, small owners. They, as well as scribes, farmers and merchants, live in abundance, but the peasants and other lower strata barely find means of subsistence.
The wars of conquest during the period of the New Kingdom primarily affect the growth of the slave class. All lands are finally assigned to the state and temples. Therefore, landowners disappear as a class. Moreover, no one is allowed to work on the priestly lands, they give it to the guilty members of their own class. The priesthood is now a closed class, one can get into it only by a related principle.
General characteristics of ancient Egyptian society
So, we will draw preliminary conclusions that in the social structure was Ancient Egypt. Its social structure had the following features:
- At the head was the pharaoh, who was revered as a deity.
- The form of government is despotism, and it is Egypt that is characterized by the erection of service to the king in a religious cult.
- A special role was given to the priests.
- The basis of society is the rural community, on which local authorities relied.
- Clear class division.
- The social structure of ancient Egypt in a hierarchical order from the upper to the lower layers is presented as follows: Pharaoh - priests and court nobles - warriors - peasants and artisans - slaves. Moreover, the latter were completely excluded from public life, because they were not considered to be people, but were called “living goods”. We will talk about this a bit later.
- The bureaucracy was numerous, but poorly divided according to duties. One person could be responsible for administrative activities, and for economic, and even for the performance of certain religious rites.
The power of the pharaoh
Now let's talk separately about each social group. Ancient Egypt, whose social structure was based on despotism, was ruled by the pharaoh. His cult was positioned as equal to the gods. Accordingly, a special ritual of worshiping the king God was developed by priesthood. And the names of the pharaohs reflect a divine origin. For example, Amenhotep - "Amon pacified", Thutmose - "born of the god Thoth." The ancient Egyptians believed that the harvest, prosperity, lack of war depended on the god-pharaoh.
It was the king who was the main owner of the Egyptian lands, which he could give or take away. The judicial power was concentrated in his hands, he appointed supreme officials.
Power was handed down by birthright, because the pharaoh, in addition to his first wife, as a rule, was related to his blood (often there were marriages even with his sisters) there were other wives and concubines. Here everyone was on an equal footing. But what about the times of troubles, when one dynasty replaced another? And here the priests found a "justification." According to the beliefs of the Egyptians, kinship within the divine family alone is not enough, it is also necessary for the deity to inhabit the king. So there was a change in the ruling clans. Moreover, the "entry of God" could be made not only in the heir, but also in the sister, wife and others.
Priests
The features of the social structure of ancient Egypt are such that the pharaoh, with all his tyrannical power, could not rule alone. He relied primarily on priests, as well as on noble officials.
The first are lawmakers of norms of behavior and life guidelines. Since the priests belonged to the function of connecting society and the gods, even the pharaohs listened to them. Getting the priest’s rank was not so simple: it was necessary to study long and hard. From the age of four, the accumulated knowledge began to be transmitted to the future generation.
The institute of service to the gods was very developed: temple ministers and secular workers, keepers of secrets and manuscripts, seers - interpreters of all kinds of signs, and even astronomers.
In short, the priests played a very important role in the life of ancient Egyptian society. Their knowledge of rituals, the will of the gods, medicine, and even about farming and cattle breeding, passed down from generation to generation, was considered sacred, hidden from ordinary inhabitants. Until today, Egyptologists continue to discover what worshipers knew.
Aristocracy
The social structure of the civilization society of Ancient Egypt, its elite, was not limited to priesthood. Also, the pharaoh relied on his court nobles. It was an aristocracy, those who actually controlled all spheres of the country's life.
Chief among them was the vizier, or jati. This man was the right hand of the pharaoh. As a rule, he was elected from the ruling dynasty. There were cases when a member of the aristocracy, not related to the pharaoh, took the place of the vizier — this happened during periods of weakening of the country's integrity, the so-called transitional ones.
So what functions were assigned to jati? In his hands virtually all of Ancient Egypt was. The social structure was built in such a way that all the nobles who were in charge of various industries reported to him. In addition, the vizier headed:
- Financial departments.
- Public works (e.g. irrigation facilities).
- He controlled and supervised the life of the capital.
- He was responsible for the army.
- Headed the judiciary.
The rest of the aristocracy was subordinate to jati and pharaoh. These were rich people who built their own tombs and living in luxurious homes.
Officialdom
The scribes deserve special attention. They belonged to the highest aristocracy and enjoyed universal respect. Mostly illiterate people inhabited Ancient Egypt. The social structure of society, thus, allowed the scribes to single out a separate niche.
These employees not only wrote down his decrees for the pharaoh, but also knew how to calculate the water level in the Nile, assessed the consequences in case of floods, and knew the reserves in the reservoirs. They were important in agriculture and cattle breeding. After all, only a competent person is able to assess after the Nile flood what the harvest will be and to calculate the number of cattle or wine made. Scribes were responsible for collecting taxes.
They turned to them for help in writing a letter (including a personal one), and to record a ritual prayer.
What was bureaucracy as a social structure of Ancient Egypt? We can briefly say this: they were divided by rank. Each nome was run by a specific person, who in turn was subordinated to others responsible for specific areas of the economy.
Army
A powerful union of the pharaoh, nobles and priests was able to strengthen only military force. So the army arises.
The place of a warrior in ancient Egyptian society was very honorable: they had their own houses, property, and land. The only thing they did not dispose of was their life. Indeed, by the decision of the pharaoh, backed up by the priests, a war could have unleashed at any moment.
It is worth noting that the army entered the battle with pleasure. After all, it was as a result of wars of conquest that people gained their property.
The army was also used to resolve internal internecine conflicts.
At the peak of the development of ancient Egyptian civilization, the army numbered 100 thousand people, it was the strongest in the world.
Peasants and artisans
The most numerous social stratum of Ancient Egypt are peasants. It was they who fed the estates described above and ensured their comfortable existence. The peasants themselves could not boast of a comfortable existence. Rather, the opposite: the land they cultivated was not their property, respectively, most of the crops and livestock were taken from the peasants. Beggars, hungry, they were often used in community service.
The artisans of Ancient Egypt had exactly the same life. The workshops where they produced products did not belong to them. And the landlord, as a rent, took almost all the products and then resold them at exorbitant prices with the help of familiar merchants and merchants.
Slaves
But the most unenviable position was, of course, among the slaves. Egypt is not the only state in the ancient world with a slave system. It was the usual social order for that time.
Slaves were not considered to be people, they were “living goods” sold, bought and captured as a trophy. The fate of each slave was in the hands of the slave owner: he could be killed, crippled. Moreover, the violation of the law was the murder of another slave (this is the "damage" to property).
Weddings between slaves legally meant nothing: a husband and wife could easily be separated, for example, resold to different owners.
Of course, slave revolts broke out in the country. So, “thanks” to one of them, the country weakened by the suppression of rebellion easily managed to get the Arab nomads.
Social causes of the decline of civilization
Having analyzed all the estates of Ancient Egypt, we can draw a definite conclusion: there was no unity between them, rather, on the contrary, there was cruel hostility and hatred. Moreover, the confrontation was not limited to the line "slaves, peasants - to know." Having become rich, the aristocracy desires power and begins political games against the pharaoh. This always happens in social systems with the oppressors and the oppressed. The imperfection of the social structure resulted in the decline of the civilization of Ancient Egypt.