Late Period
Nectanebo I (Nakhtnebef)
30th Dynasty (Sebennytos) · 380-343 BCE
Open full-size illustration →Source: Shaw, Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000)
Background
Nectanebo I founded the 30th Dynasty by overthrowing Nepherites II, then survived Persia's most serious attempt yet to retake Egypt, a huge invasion force that was turned back less by fighting than by a feud between its own commanders and the timing of the Nile flood. Further detail: UCL Digital Egypt.
Dating: Shaw, Oxford History of Ancient Egypt (2000)
Full profile
Restoring native rule
Nectanebo I founded the 30th Dynasty by seizing power in 380 BCE, initiating the final flourishing of native pharaonic rule. He successfully defended Egypt against a massive Achaemenid Persian invasion in 373 BCE, utilizing frontier fortifications at Pelusium, internal enemy discord, and the protective annual flood of the Nile. He launched an extensive temple building and restoration program across Egypt, securing the vital support of the native priesthood.
A dispute that saved Memphis
Artaxerxes II spent roughly six years assembling the 373 BCE invasion, pressuring Athens into recalling the mercenary general Chabrias from Egyptian service so that Athens's other star general, Iphicrates, could lead the campaign's Greek troops alongside the Persian commander Pharnabazus, at the head of a reported 200,000 men and 500 ships. Nectanebo's fortifications along the heavily defended Pelusiac branch of the Nile forced the invasion fleet to land instead on the less-guarded Mendesian branch, but once ashore, Iphicrates and Pharnabazus fell into open distrust of each other over how quickly to press on to Memphis. Their hesitation gave Nectanebo time to reinforce the capital, and by July 373 BCE the annual Nile flood had turned the Delta into a swamp, forcing the entire Persian expedition to withdraw without ever reaching the city it had come to take.
Sources for this profile
- Shaw, I. (Ed.). (2000). The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press.
- Dodson, A., & Hilton, D. (2004). The Complete Royal Families of Ancient Egypt. Thames & Hudson.
- Leprohon, R. J. (2013). The Great Name: Ancient Egyptian Royal Titulary. Society of Biblical Literature.
- UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology. Chronology. UCLA.
- University College London. Digital Egypt for Universities.
The complete, APA-formatted reference list is on the Academic Sources & Bibliography page.