Ramesses I (Menpehtyre)

A new military dynasty

The 19th Dynasty was founded by a commoner. Because the previous pharaoh, Horemheb, lacked a royal heir, he selected his trusted vizier and military general, Paramessu, to succeed him. Paramessu hailed from a military family in the Nile Delta region near Avaris. He was specifically chosen because he had no ties to the old Theban aristocracy of the Amarna period, and he already had a son and a grandson to secure the line of succession. Taking the throne name Ramesses I, he ruled for only 18 months and left behind few monuments, but his brief reign officially launched the famous Ramesside period.