Egypt has seen many leaders who have been regarded as evil for various reasons, but one of them stands out as the most wicked of them all: Pharaoh Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV). He ruled the kingdom in the 14th century BC and caused a lot of chaos and turmoil with his radical religious reforms.
Akhenaten tried to force his people to worship only one god, the sun disk Aten, while destroying the temples and statues of the other gods of ancient Egypt. He ignored the traditions and customs of his ancestors, angering the priests and the people who loved their old gods. He was a tyrant who wanted to change the whole culture and history of Egypt with his new religion.
Who Is Pharoah Akhenaten Amenhotep IV?
Akhenaten Amenhotep IV is said to be the most evil pharaoh in Egyptian history. Before we discuss why, let’s take a look at who he was and how he became pharaoh.
Akhenaten was born Amenhotep IV, the son of Pharaoh Amenhotep III and his wife, Tiye. Amenhotep IV was the younger son of the pharaoh. He had an older brother, Thutmose, who was declared heir to the throne of Egypt. Some sources report that he had four sisters, while others report that he had five.
Pharaoh Akhenaten Amenhotep IV’s older brother and heir to the Egyptian throne died before he could ascend the throne. This made Amenhotep the new heir. He ascended the throne after the death of his father and is said to have ruled Egypt between 1353 and 1336 BCE.
The emperor was married to Queen Nefertiti, who was his “Great Royal Wife.” He also had many other wives, including Kiya, his secondary wife, and had about 9-10 children.
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Why is He Considered the Most Evil Pharoah Ever?
Akhenaten Amenhotep IV is referred to as the most evil pharaoh in Egypt not because he killed thousands or fought many wars, but because of his radical religious policies. Akhenaten tried to destroy the polytheistic faith and transform Egypt into a monotheistic kingdom.
At the beginning of his reign, Akhenaten followed the existing traditions of Egypt. But soon after, he began to implement his newfound ideologies in the kingdom, such as imposing the worship of one god, Aten, who was represented as a sun disk, throughout Egypt. Akhenaten is also credited with being the world’s first monotheist.
Akhenaten tried to obliterate the names and images of the other Egyptian gods. He even went as far as dispatching agents to erase the names and images of certain gods from existing texts and monuments.
Although some scholars think that Akhenaten’s religious reforms were premeditated, others claim that they were not, because Akhenaten is known to have worshipped some of the Egyptian gods, such as Atum, Osiris, Anubis, and Nekhbet, after he became king.
After imposing the worship of Aten, Akhenaten made sacrifices only to his deity rather than all the other gods and goddesses of Egypt, as was customary. He also changed the royal protocol of the kingdom to show his devotion to Aten.
To further show his commitment, Akhenaten moved the capital city of the kingdom from Thebes to a new town he created just for Aten. He named it Akhetaten, which means “Horizon of Aten.” He claimed that this was the place where Aten manifested himself for the first time and chose the site for the king alone.
Akhenaten also changed his name from Amenhotep to Akhenaten, which can be translated to “effective spirit of Aten” or “serviceable to Aten.” He became more concerned about his new religion than the progress of the kingdom, which caused the kingdom to be unprotected and susceptible to attacks from its enemies. The power of Egypt began to wane during his reign.
In addition to his religious policies, Akhenaten overhauled the royal artistic style of Egypt and implemented a form of architecture that revolved around the concepts of Atenism.
Akhenaten Amenhotep IV ruled Egypt for a total of about 17 years before his death. The circumstances surrounding his death are unclear, as is the location of his remains. The period of his reign was referred to as the Amarna period. Upon his death, he was succeeded by his wife, Nefertiti.
Some might argue that this African king was not the worst king that ever ruled the kingdom of Egypt, while others might argue that taking away a person’s freedom of worship is the worst thing that can happen to anyone, which is exactly what Amenhotep IV did.
