Ancient Egyptian Civilization that flourished along the lower reaches of River Nile in Northeast Africa, emerged from the prehistoric Egypt around 3150 BC when both the Upper and Lower regions of Egypt were united by King Narmer of the Early Dynastic Period, believed by several Egyptologist to be the same person as Menes. However, evidence of human habitation in Egypt stretches long back, when with the extension of the Sahara Desert, around 6000 BC, the early tribal people were forced to migrate closer to the Nile River, mainly in search of dependable water sources. After migration, they focused on agriculture, in place of hunting and fishing, as the predictable annual flooding of the Nile ensured a fresh layer of rich fertile soil for growing crops, and developed a settled agricultural economy. Gradually, this led to urbanisation, non-agricultural economic activities, and consequently, the creation of a more sophisticated and centralised society that became a glorious part in the history of human civilization. Before unification, despite remaining culturally distinct, the ancient communities of the lower Egypt coexisted with their southern counterparts for more than two thousand years, maintaining frequent contact through trade. However, after the unification, the history of Egypt witnessed a long series of three kingdom periods, which include the Old Kingdom of the Early Bronze Age, Middle Kingdom of the Middle Bronze Age, and the New Bronze Kingdom of the Late Bronze Age, with shorter intermediate periods of relative instability separating the kingdoms.

Triggered by the increase of the agricultural products and the resulting growth of population, notable progress in the fields of architecture, art, and technology was also made during the Old Kingdom, due to a well-developed central administration. During the period, the state officials used to collect taxes, coordinate better irrigation projects, and engage the peasants to work on several construction projects. Some of ancient Egypt's crowning structures were constructed during the Third Dynasty of the Old Kingdom, which include the 6-tier, 4-sided Step Pyramid of Djoser, the earliest colossal stone structure in Egypt. In addition, the great Giza Pyramids, along with the famous Great Sphinx, one of the largest sculptures in the world, measuring some 240 feet (73 m) long and 66 feet (20 m) high, and depicting a mythical creature with the head of a human and the body of a lion, was constructed during the rule of Khufu or Cheops, the second Pharaoh of the Fourth Dynasty. Apart from that, during the period the Egyptians also began to construct vessels by tying wooden planks together with rope and stuffed with reeds, for trading goods, and it is also likely that the use of hieroglyphics, a particular ancient form of writing, using images to express sounds and meanings, also began during this period.

However, with the steadily increasing importance of central administration, a new class of educated officials came into existence who were granted estates by the king in exchange for their services, which in turn gradually diminished the supreme power of the king, once regarded as living incarnation of god. It is believed by many that the continuity of this practice for a prolong period of five centuries slowly eroded the economic vitality of Egypt, and the economy could no longer afford to support a large centralised administration. With the diminishing power of the kings, and the regional governors challenging the supreme authority of the king, added with the chaotic situation created by the severe droughts between 2200 and 2150 BC, led the country to the First Intermediate Period, an unprecedented prolong period of famine and poverty, together with the uncertainties due to civil war and Bedouin invasions, which continued for about 150 years.

Nevertheless, backed by the strong Nile floods, the kings of the Middle Kingdom finally took back power from regional governors, restored stability, and brought back renewed prosperity, paving the way for regeneration of art, as well as huge building projects. The period also witnessed the Egyptians writing literature for the first time, some which were preserved on stone or clay, and some on papyrus, a paper-like product made from reed fiber. Credited with reuniting Egypt, and thus ending the turbulent First Intermediate Period, Mentuhotep II, the sixth ruler of the Eleventh Dynasty, as well as the first Pharaoh of the Middle Kingdom, ruled the country from Thebes, followed by his successors. However, it is believed that the Middle Kingdom reached the zenith during the reign of Pharaoh Amenemhat I, the first king of the Twelfth Dynasty, who moved the capital from Thebes to Itjtawy or It-Towy. The kings of the Twelfth Dynasty undertook a judicious project of land reclamation, as well as a planned irrigation scheme for increasing agricultural output. Apart from that, they created and maintained a well-trained standing army force, reconquering territory in Nubia, rich in quarries and gold mines. At the same time, they also constructed a defensive structure in the Eastern Delta, called the Walls of the Ruler, to defend and protect the country against any possible foreign attack. During the Middle Kingdom, each city in Egypt typically had a temple of its patron deity, while Thebes had Amun, an ancient god of fertility as its main deity, Heliopolis had the main temple of the sun god Ra.

However, as the power of the Middle Kingdom kings weakened, the Second Intermediate Period heralded the arrival of the first foreign ruling dynasty in Egypt, the Semitic Hyksos that originated in the Middle East. The Hyksos took over the control of Egypt, forced the former ruler to take refuge to Thebes, and established their capital at Avaris, located in the northeastern region of the Nile Delta, establishing the Fifteenth Dynasty in Lower Egypt. Considered as a transition period leading to the New Kingdom, the Second Intermediate Period was characterised by a fragmented political landscape, with rivalry between the Upper and Lower Egypt, leading to economic decline and a lack of major royal construction projects. Finally, the presence of the Hyksos in Egypt was permanently eradicated by Ahmose I, considered the founder of the Eighteenth Dynasty, after the end of a series of conflicts that lasted more than 30 years. Interestingly, although the Second Intermediate Period, which roughly prevailed in Egypt from 1700 to 1550 BC, is often portrayed as a time of chaos, crisis and uncertainties, there were also progress in the fields of art, technology, and economic activities, as the Hyksos introduced the wheel and the chariot, signifying a notable advancement in Egyptian technology.

With the expulsion of the Hyksos from Egypt and the restoration of centralised political control, The New Kingdom period of Egyptian history began around 1550 BC, which was proved to be a period of unmatched prosperity, marking the zenith of its power. The period is also remarkable for some of its most famous Pharaohs, namely Hatshepsut, the Great Royal Wife of Thutmose II, the fourth Pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty, and Egypt's second confirmed woman who ruled in her own right; Thutmose III, the fifth Pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty, as well as a great military commander who created the ancient world's first navy; Akhenaten, also known as Amenhotep IV, the tenth ruler of the same Dynasty, and his wife Nefertiti, who undertook an unprecedented religious revolution, when he disbanded the priesthoods dedicated to Amon-Ra, and enforced the exclusive worship of another sun-god, Aton, which was interpreted by some scholars as the first instance of Monotheism, or the belief in one god; Tutankhamun, also known as King Tut, the eleventh Pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty, who died unexpectedly at the tender age of about 18, after restoring the prominence of the worship of Amun at Thebes. However, Ramesses II, the third ruler of the Nineteenth Dynasty, is often regarded as the greatest, most celebrated, and most powerful Pharaoh of the New Kingdom. According to the historians, New Kingdom Egypt reached the pinnacle of its power under Ramesses II, who fought to expand Egyptian power against the Hittites to the north and the Libyans to the west. He is also credited for establishing the city of Pi-Ramesses, the new capital city, built on the banks of the Pelusiac branch of the Nile, and construction of several monuments and temples, which include the temple complex of Abu Simbel, comprising two massive rock-cut temples, and his own Mortuary temple in western Thebes, known as the Ramesseum.

Following the death of Ramesses XI, the tenth and final Pharaoh of the Twentieth Dynasty, in1078 BC, Egypt entered into its Third Intermediate Period, when Setepenre Smendes took authority over the northern Egypt, ruling from the city of Tanis, established the Twenty-first Dynasty, while the south was practically controlled by the High Priests of Amun at Thebes. Taking advantage of the situation, the Libyan force took control of the delta under the leadership of Shoshenq I or Shashank in 945 BC, establishing the Libyan or Bubastite Dynasty, the 22nd Dynasty of Egypt. It continued till around 727 BC, when the Kushite king Piye seized control of Thebes and eventually the Delta, establishing the Twenty-fifth Dynasty, when several pyramids were constructed in the Nile valley since the Middle Kingdom. Nevertheless, the Kushites were driven out of Egypt, back into Nubia, in 670 BC by the Assyrians, who occupied Memphis, and sacked the temples of Thebes. After that, the Persian king Cambyses took control of Egypt in 524 BC, and took the title of Pharaoh for himself, along with his title as king of Persia, until 332 BC, when Alexander the Great of Macedonia defeated the Persian force and also conquered Egypt.