Ramesses XI
Encyclopedia
Ramesses XI reigned from 1107 BC to 1078 BC or 1077 BC and was the tenth and final king of the Twentieth dynasty of Egypt
. He ruled Egypt for at least 29 years although some Egyptologists think he could have ruled for as long as 30. The latter figure would be up to 2 years beyond this king's highest known date of Year 10 of the Whm-Mswt era or Year 28 of his reign. One scholar, Ad Thijs, has even suggested that Ramesses XI reigned as long as 33 years—such is the degree of uncertainty surrounding the end of his long reign.
It is believed that Ramesses ruled into his Year 29 since a graffito records that the High Priest of Amun Piankhy returned to Thebes from Nubia on III Shemu day 23—or just 3 days into what would have been the start of Ramesses XI's 29th regnal year. Piankhy is known to have campaigned in Nubia during Year 28 of Ramesses XI's reign (or Year 10 of the Whm Mswt) and would have returned home to Egypt in the following year.
by Queen Tyti
who was a King's Mother, King's Wife and King's Daughter in her titles. However, recent scholarly research into certain copies of parts of the Harris papyrus (or Papyrus BM EA 10052)--made by Anthony Harris
--which discusses a harem conspiracy against Ramesses III reveals that Tyti was rather a queen of pharaoh Ramesses III
instead. Hence, Ramesses XI's mother was not Tyti and although he could have been a son of his predecessor, this is not established either. Ramesses XI married Tentamun
, the daughter of Nebseny, with whom he fathered Henuttawy
--the future wife of the high priest Pinedjem I
. Ramesses XI also had another daughter named Tentamun
who became king Smendes
' future wife in the next dynasty.
Ramesses XI's reign was characterized by the gradual disintegration of the Egyptian state. Civil conflict was already evident around the beginning of his reign when High Priest of Amon
, Amenhotep
, was ousted from office by the king with the aid of Nubian soldiers under command of Pinehesy
, Viceroy of Nubia, for overstepping his authority with Ramesses XI. Tomb robbing was prevalent all over Thebes as Egypt's fortunes declined and her Asiatic empire was lost.
As the chaos and insecurity continued, Ramesses was forced to inaugurate a triumvirate
in his Regnal Year 19, with the High Priest of Amun Herihor
ruling Thebes and Upper Egypt
and Smendes
controlling Lower Egypt
. Herihor had risen from the ranks of the Egyptian military to restore a degree of order, and became the new high Priest
of Amun. This period was officially called the Era of the Renaissance or Whm Mswt
by Egyptians. Herihor amassed power and titles at the expense of Pinehesy
, Viceroy
of Nubia
, whom he had expelled from Thebes. This rivalry soon developed into full-fledged civil war
under Herihor's successor. At Thebes, Herihor usurped royal power without actually deposing Ramesses, and he effectively became the defacto ruler of Upper Egypt because his authority superseded the king's.
Herihor died around Year 6 of the Whm Mswt (Year 24 of Ramesses XI) and was succeeded as High Priest by Piankh
. Piankh initiated one or two unsuccessful campaigns into Nubia to wrest control of this gold-producing region from Pinehesy
's hands, but his efforts were ultimately fruitless as Nubia slipped permanently out of Egypt's grasp. This watershed event worsened Egypt's woes, because she had now lost control of all her imperial possessions and was denied access to a regular supply of Nubian gold.
period lasted into a 10th Year (which equates into Year 28 proper of Ramesses XI).
Ad Thijs, in a GM 173 paper, notes that the House-list Papyrus, which is anonymously dated to Year 12 of Ramesses XI (i.e., the document was compiled in either Year 12 of the pre-Renaissance period or during the Whm Mswt era itself), mentions two officials: the Chief Doorkeeper Pnufer, and the Chief Warehouseman Dhutemhab. These individuals were recorded as only ordinary Doorkeeper and Warehouseman in Papyri BM 10403 and BM 10052 respectively, which are explicitly dated to Year 1 and 2 of the Whm Mswt period. This would suggest that the Year 12 House-list Papyrus postdates these two documents and was created in Year 12 of the Whm Mswt era instead (or Regnal Year 30 proper of Ramesses XI), which would account for these two individuals' promotions. Thijs then proceeds to use several anonymous Year 14 and 15 dates in another papyrus, BM 9997, to argue that Ramesses XI lived at least into his 32nd and 33rd Regnal Years (or Years 14 and 15 of the Whm Mswt). This document mentions a certain Sermont, who was only titled an Ordinary Medjay (Nubian) in the Year 12 House-list Papyrus but is called "Chief of the Medjay" in Papyrus BM 9997. Sermont's promotion would thus mean that BM 9997 postdates the House-list Papyrus and must be placed late in the Renaissance period.
If true, then Ramesses XI should have survived into his 33rd Regnal Year or Year 15 of the Whm Mswt era before dying. Unfortunately, however, it must be stressed that there are clear inconsistencies in the description of an individual's precise title even within the same source document itself. For instance, Papyrus Mayer A mentions both a certain Dhuthope, a doorkeeper of the temple of Amun as well as a Dhuthope, Chief Doorkeeper of the temple of Amun. The reference to the first Dhuthope occurs in the regular papyrus entry while the other appears towards the end of the list but few people would dispute that they refer to the same man. Similarly, the Necropolis Journal entry from Year 17 of Ramesses XI lists the Chief Workman Nekhemmut as well as a certain workman named Nekhemmut, son of Amenua. While they appear to be the same person--at first glance--their official titles are different with the latter lacking the senior title 'Chief'. Closer inspection reveals that the latter was actually named as one of eight prisoners in another document while the Chief workman Nekhemmut was noted to be serving in office in Year 17 of Ramesses XI and hardly a prisoner. Hence, Thijs' case for a Year 33 proper for Ramesses XI should be treated with caution. Since there are two attested promotions of individuals in 2 separate papyri, however, there is a small possibility that Ramesses XI did live into his 33rd Regnal Year. Against this view is the fact that no evidence survives of any Heb Sed Feasts for Ramesses XI. At present, only Thijs' proposal that Papyrus BM 10054 dates to Year 10 of the Whm-Mswt (or Year 28 proper of Ramesses XI) has been confirmed by other scholars such as Von Beckerath
and Annie Gasse—the latter in a JEA 87 (2001) paper which studied several newly discovered fragments belonging to this document. Consequently, it would appear that Ramesses XI's highest undisputed date is presently Year 11 of the Whm-Mswt (or Year 29 proper) of his reign, when Piankh's Nubian campaign terminated which means that the pharaoh had a minimum reign of 29 years when he died—-which can perhaps be extended to 30 years due to the "gap between the beginning of Dynasty 21 and the reign of Ramesses XI." with 33 years being hypothethical. Krauss and Warburton specifically write that due to the existence of this time gap,
This also fits in well with Kenneth Kitchen
's recently published suggestion that Late Ramesside Letter 41 (not 62) (Wente, 75f; cf 15) with reference to West Theban graffito No.1393 likely shows that the Whm-Mswt era reached into a Year 12 (or Year 30 proper of Ramesses XI.)
When Ramesses XI died, the village of Deir El Medina was abandoned because the Royal Necropolis was shifted northward to Tanis
. There was no further need for their services at Thebes.
(KV4
), it was left unfinished and only partly decorated since Ramesses XI instead arranged to have himself buried away from Thebes, possibly near Memphis. This pharaoh's tomb, however, includes some unusual features, including four rectangular, rather than square, pillars in its burial chamber and an extremely deep central burial shaft– at over 30 feet or 10 metres long– which was perhaps designed as an additional security device to prevent tomb robbery. Ramesses XI's tomb was used as a workshop for processing funerary materials from the burials of Hatshepsut, Thutmose III and perhaps Thutmose I during the 21st dynasty under the reign of the High Priest of Thebes, Pinedjem I
. Ramesses XI's tomb has stood open since antiquity and was used as a dwelling by the Copts.
Since Ramesses XI had himself buried in Lower Egypt, Smendes rose to the kingship of Egypt, based on the well known custom that he who buried the king inherited the throne. Since Smendes buried Ramesses XI, he could legally assume the crown of Egypt and inaugurate the 21st Dynasty from his hometown at Tanis
, even if he did not control Middle and Upper Egypt, which were now effectively in the hands of the High Priests of Amun at Thebes
.
Twentieth dynasty of Egypt
The Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth Dynasties of ancient Egypt are often combined under the group title, New Kingdom. This dynasty is considered to be the last one of the New Kingdom of Egypt, and was followed by the Third Intermediate Period....
. He ruled Egypt for at least 29 years although some Egyptologists think he could have ruled for as long as 30. The latter figure would be up to 2 years beyond this king's highest known date of Year 10 of the Whm-Mswt era or Year 28 of his reign. One scholar, Ad Thijs, has even suggested that Ramesses XI reigned as long as 33 years—such is the degree of uncertainty surrounding the end of his long reign.
It is believed that Ramesses ruled into his Year 29 since a graffito records that the High Priest of Amun Piankhy returned to Thebes from Nubia on III Shemu day 23—or just 3 days into what would have been the start of Ramesses XI's 29th regnal year. Piankhy is known to have campaigned in Nubia during Year 28 of Ramesses XI's reign (or Year 10 of the Whm Mswt) and would have returned home to Egypt in the following year.
Background
Ramesses XI was once thought to be the son of Ramesses XRamesses X
Khepermare Ramesses X was the ninth ruler of the 20th dynasty of Ancient Egypt. His birth name was Amonhirkhepeshef. It is uncertain if his reign was 3 or 4 Years, but there is now a strong consensus among Egyptologists that it did not last as long as 9 Years, as was previously assumed...
by Queen Tyti
Tyti
Tyti was an ancient Egyptian queen of the 20th dynasty. It was uncertain which pharaoh was her husband, but he can now only be Ramesses III based on new evidence published in the 2010 issue of the Journal of Egyptian Archaeology . Her titles shown that she was the daughter, sister, wife and mother...
who was a King's Mother, King's Wife and King's Daughter in her titles. However, recent scholarly research into certain copies of parts of the Harris papyrus (or Papyrus BM EA 10052)--made by Anthony Harris
Anthony Charles Harris
Anthony Charles Harris was a noted collector of ancient Egyptian papyri. As antiquary, merchant, and official supplier of the army he was based in Alexandria, Egypt for the last four decades of his life. He made many journeys on the Nile to Upper Egypt where he acquired papyri and artefacts...
--which discusses a harem conspiracy against Ramesses III reveals that Tyti was rather a queen of pharaoh Ramesses III
Ramesses III
Usimare Ramesses III was the second Pharaoh of the Twentieth Dynasty and is considered to be the last great New Kingdom king to wield any substantial authority over Egypt. He was the son of Setnakhte and Queen Tiy-Merenese. Ramesses III is believed to have reigned from March 1186 to April 1155 BCE...
instead. Hence, Ramesses XI's mother was not Tyti and although he could have been a son of his predecessor, this is not established either. Ramesses XI married Tentamun
Tentamun (20th dynasty)
Tentamun was an ancient Egyptian queen, most likely the wife of Ramesses XI, last ruler of the 20th dynasty. She is mentioned on the funerary papyrus of her daughter Duathathor-Henuttawy, who was the wife of Pinedjem I and probably the daughter of Ramesses XI...
, the daughter of Nebseny, with whom he fathered Henuttawy
Duathathor-Henuttawy
Duathathor-Henuttawy or Henuttawy was an ancient Egyptian princess and later queen. She is likely to have been the daughter of Ramesses XI, last king of the 20th dynasty by Tentamun. She married Pinedjem I, the Theban High Priest of Amun who was de facto ruler of Upper Egypt and took on pharaonic...
--the future wife of the high priest Pinedjem I
Pinedjem I
Pinedjem I was the High Priest of Amun at Thebes in Ancient Egypt from 1070 BC to 1032 BC and the de facto ruler of the south of the country from 1054 BC. He was the son of the High Priest Piankh. However, many Egyptologists today believe that the succession in the Amun priesthood actually ran from...
. Ramesses XI also had another daughter named Tentamun
Tentamun (21st dynasty)
Tentamun was an ancient Egyptian queen, the wife of Smendes of the 21st dynasty. She is likely to have been the daughter of Ramesses XI, last ruler of the previous dynasty...
who became king Smendes
Smendes
Hedjkheperre Setepenre Smendes was the founder of the Twenty-first dynasty of Egypt and succeeded to the throne after burying Ramesses XI in Lower Egypt – territory which he controlled...
' future wife in the next dynasty.
Ramesses XI's reign was characterized by the gradual disintegration of the Egyptian state. Civil conflict was already evident around the beginning of his reign when High Priest of Amon
Amon
Amon can refer to:* Amun, an Ancient Egyptian deity, also known as Amon and Amon Ra* Amon , a Goetic demon* Amon * Former name of the band Deicide* Amon of Judah, king of Judah and son of Manasseh...
, Amenhotep
Amenhotep, Priest of Amun
The Ancient Egyptian official, Amenhotep was a high priest of Amun, under pharaohs Ramesses IX to Ramesses XI at the end of the New Kingdom of Egypt. He was also the vizier, or a great confidante of his master, and first prophet of Amun-resonther...
, was ousted from office by the king with the aid of Nubian soldiers under command of Pinehesy
Pinehesy
Pinehesy, Panehesy or Panehasy, depending on different transliteration was Viceroy of Kush during the reign of Ramesses XI, the last king of the Egyptian 20th Dynasty....
, Viceroy of Nubia, for overstepping his authority with Ramesses XI. Tomb robbing was prevalent all over Thebes as Egypt's fortunes declined and her Asiatic empire was lost.
As the chaos and insecurity continued, Ramesses was forced to inaugurate a triumvirate
Triumvirate
A triumvirate is a political regime dominated by three powerful individuals, each a triumvir . The arrangement can be formal or informal, and though the three are usually equal on paper, in reality this is rarely the case...
in his Regnal Year 19, with the High Priest of Amun Herihor
Herihor
Herihor was an Egyptian army officer and High Priest of Amun at Thebes during the reign of Pharaoh Ramesses XI although Karl Jansen Winkeln has argued that Piankh preceded Herihor as High Priest at Thebes and that Herihor outlived Ramesses XI before being succeeded in this office by Pinedjem I,...
ruling Thebes and Upper Egypt
Upper Egypt
Upper Egypt is the strip of land, on both sides of the Nile valley, that extends from the cataract boundaries of modern-day Aswan north to the area between El-Ayait and Zawyet Dahshur . The northern section of Upper Egypt, between El-Ayait and Sohag is sometimes known as Middle Egypt...
and Smendes
Smendes
Hedjkheperre Setepenre Smendes was the founder of the Twenty-first dynasty of Egypt and succeeded to the throne after burying Ramesses XI in Lower Egypt – territory which he controlled...
controlling Lower Egypt
Lower Egypt
Lower Egypt is the northern-most section of Egypt. It refers to the fertile Nile Delta region, which stretches from the area between El-Aiyat and Zawyet Dahshur, south of modern-day Cairo, and the Mediterranean Sea....
. Herihor had risen from the ranks of the Egyptian military to restore a degree of order, and became the new high Priest
High Priests of Amun at Thebes
While not regarded as a dynasty, the High Priests of Amun at Thebes were nevertheless of such power and influence that they were effectively the rulers of Upper Egypt from 1080 to c.943 BC, after this period their influence declined...
of Amun. This period was officially called the Era of the Renaissance or Whm Mswt
Whm Mswt
The period of Ancient Egyptian history known as wehem mesut can be literally translated as Repetition of Births, but is usually referred to as the Era of the Renaissance. It began in about year 19 of the reign of Ramesses XI, around the end of the New Kingdom and the start of the Third...
by Egyptians. Herihor amassed power and titles at the expense of Pinehesy
Pinehesy
Pinehesy, Panehesy or Panehasy, depending on different transliteration was Viceroy of Kush during the reign of Ramesses XI, the last king of the Egyptian 20th Dynasty....
, Viceroy
Viceroy
A viceroy is a royal official who runs a country, colony, or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. A viceroy's province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty...
of Nubia
Nubia
Nubia is a region along the Nile river, which is located in northern Sudan and southern Egypt.There were a number of small Nubian kingdoms throughout the Middle Ages, the last of which collapsed in 1504, when Nubia became divided between Egypt and the Sennar sultanate resulting in the Arabization...
, whom he had expelled from Thebes. This rivalry soon developed into full-fledged civil war
Civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
under Herihor's successor. At Thebes, Herihor usurped royal power without actually deposing Ramesses, and he effectively became the defacto ruler of Upper Egypt because his authority superseded the king's.
Herihor died around Year 6 of the Whm Mswt (Year 24 of Ramesses XI) and was succeeded as High Priest by Piankh
Piankh
While the High Priest of Amun Piankh has been assumed to be a son-in-law of Herihor and his heir to the Theban throne of the High Priest of Amun, recent studies by Karl Jansen-Winkeln of the surviving temple inscriptions and monumental works by Herihor and Piankh in Upper Egypt imply that Piankh...
. Piankh initiated one or two unsuccessful campaigns into Nubia to wrest control of this gold-producing region from Pinehesy
Pinehesy
Pinehesy, Panehesy or Panehasy, depending on different transliteration was Viceroy of Kush during the reign of Ramesses XI, the last king of the Egyptian 20th Dynasty....
's hands, but his efforts were ultimately fruitless as Nubia slipped permanently out of Egypt's grasp. This watershed event worsened Egypt's woes, because she had now lost control of all her imperial possessions and was denied access to a regular supply of Nubian gold.
Reign length
Ramesses XI's reign is notable for a large number of important papyri that have been uncovered, including the Adoption Papyrus, which mentions Regnal Years 1 and 18 of his reign; the Turin Taxation Papyrus; the House-list Papyrus; and an entire series of Late Ramesside Letters written by the scribes Dhutmose, Butehamun, and the High Priest Piankh —the latter of which chronicle the severe decline of the king's power even in the eyes of his own officials. Late Ramesside Letter 9 establishes that the Whm MswtWhm Mswt
The period of Ancient Egyptian history known as wehem mesut can be literally translated as Repetition of Births, but is usually referred to as the Era of the Renaissance. It began in about year 19 of the reign of Ramesses XI, around the end of the New Kingdom and the start of the Third...
period lasted into a 10th Year (which equates into Year 28 proper of Ramesses XI).
Ad Thijs, in a GM 173 paper, notes that the House-list Papyrus, which is anonymously dated to Year 12 of Ramesses XI (i.e., the document was compiled in either Year 12 of the pre-Renaissance period or during the Whm Mswt era itself), mentions two officials: the Chief Doorkeeper Pnufer, and the Chief Warehouseman Dhutemhab. These individuals were recorded as only ordinary Doorkeeper and Warehouseman in Papyri BM 10403 and BM 10052 respectively, which are explicitly dated to Year 1 and 2 of the Whm Mswt period. This would suggest that the Year 12 House-list Papyrus postdates these two documents and was created in Year 12 of the Whm Mswt era instead (or Regnal Year 30 proper of Ramesses XI), which would account for these two individuals' promotions. Thijs then proceeds to use several anonymous Year 14 and 15 dates in another papyrus, BM 9997, to argue that Ramesses XI lived at least into his 32nd and 33rd Regnal Years (or Years 14 and 15 of the Whm Mswt). This document mentions a certain Sermont, who was only titled an Ordinary Medjay (Nubian) in the Year 12 House-list Papyrus but is called "Chief of the Medjay" in Papyrus BM 9997. Sermont's promotion would thus mean that BM 9997 postdates the House-list Papyrus and must be placed late in the Renaissance period.
If true, then Ramesses XI should have survived into his 33rd Regnal Year or Year 15 of the Whm Mswt era before dying. Unfortunately, however, it must be stressed that there are clear inconsistencies in the description of an individual's precise title even within the same source document itself. For instance, Papyrus Mayer A mentions both a certain Dhuthope, a doorkeeper of the temple of Amun as well as a Dhuthope, Chief Doorkeeper of the temple of Amun. The reference to the first Dhuthope occurs in the regular papyrus entry while the other appears towards the end of the list but few people would dispute that they refer to the same man. Similarly, the Necropolis Journal entry from Year 17 of Ramesses XI lists the Chief Workman Nekhemmut as well as a certain workman named Nekhemmut, son of Amenua. While they appear to be the same person--at first glance--their official titles are different with the latter lacking the senior title 'Chief'. Closer inspection reveals that the latter was actually named as one of eight prisoners in another document while the Chief workman Nekhemmut was noted to be serving in office in Year 17 of Ramesses XI and hardly a prisoner. Hence, Thijs' case for a Year 33 proper for Ramesses XI should be treated with caution. Since there are two attested promotions of individuals in 2 separate papyri, however, there is a small possibility that Ramesses XI did live into his 33rd Regnal Year. Against this view is the fact that no evidence survives of any Heb Sed Feasts for Ramesses XI. At present, only Thijs' proposal that Papyrus BM 10054 dates to Year 10 of the Whm-Mswt (or Year 28 proper of Ramesses XI) has been confirmed by other scholars such as Von Beckerath
Jürgen von Beckerath
Jürgen von Beckerath is a prominent German Egyptologist. He is a prolific writer who has published countless articles in journals such as Orientalia, Göttinger Miszellen , Journal of the American Research Center in Egypt , Archiv für Orientforschung and Studien zur Altägyptischen Kultur among...
and Annie Gasse—the latter in a JEA 87 (2001) paper which studied several newly discovered fragments belonging to this document. Consequently, it would appear that Ramesses XI's highest undisputed date is presently Year 11 of the Whm-Mswt (or Year 29 proper) of his reign, when Piankh's Nubian campaign terminated which means that the pharaoh had a minimum reign of 29 years when he died—-which can perhaps be extended to 30 years due to the "gap between the beginning of Dynasty 21 and the reign of Ramesses XI." with 33 years being hypothethical. Krauss and Warburton specifically write that due to the existence of this time gap,
- "Egyptologists generally concede that his reign could have ended 1 or 2 years later than year 10 of the wehem mesut era = regnal year 28."
This also fits in well with Kenneth Kitchen
Kenneth Kitchen
Kenneth Anderson Kitchen is Personal and Brunner Professor Emeritus of Egyptology and Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology, University of Liverpool, England...
's recently published suggestion that Late Ramesside Letter 41 (not 62) (Wente, 75f; cf 15) with reference to West Theban graffito No.1393 likely shows that the Whm-Mswt era reached into a Year 12 (or Year 30 proper of Ramesses XI.)
When Ramesses XI died, the village of Deir El Medina was abandoned because the Royal Necropolis was shifted northward to Tanis
Tanis, Egypt
Tanis , the Greek name of ancient Djanet , is a city in the north-eastern Nile delta of Egypt. It is located on the Tanitic branch of the Nile which has long since silted up.-History:...
. There was no further need for their services at Thebes.
Burial
Sometime during this troubled period, Ramesses XI died in obscurity. While he had a tomb prepared for himself in the Valley of the KingsValley of the Kings
The Valley of the Kings , less often called the Valley of the Gates of the Kings , is a valley in Egypt where, for a period of nearly 500 years from the 16th to 11th century BC, tombs were constructed for the Pharaohs and powerful nobles of the New Kingdom .The valley stands on the west bank of...
(KV4
KV4
KV4 is a tomb in the Valley of the Kings . The tomb was initiated for the burial of Ramesses XI but it is likely that its construction was abandoned and that it was never used for Ramesses's interment. It also seems likely that Pinedjem I intended to usurp this tomb for his own burial, but that he...
), it was left unfinished and only partly decorated since Ramesses XI instead arranged to have himself buried away from Thebes, possibly near Memphis. This pharaoh's tomb, however, includes some unusual features, including four rectangular, rather than square, pillars in its burial chamber and an extremely deep central burial shaft– at over 30 feet or 10 metres long– which was perhaps designed as an additional security device to prevent tomb robbery. Ramesses XI's tomb was used as a workshop for processing funerary materials from the burials of Hatshepsut, Thutmose III and perhaps Thutmose I during the 21st dynasty under the reign of the High Priest of Thebes, Pinedjem I
Pinedjem I
Pinedjem I was the High Priest of Amun at Thebes in Ancient Egypt from 1070 BC to 1032 BC and the de facto ruler of the south of the country from 1054 BC. He was the son of the High Priest Piankh. However, many Egyptologists today believe that the succession in the Amun priesthood actually ran from...
. Ramesses XI's tomb has stood open since antiquity and was used as a dwelling by the Copts.
Since Ramesses XI had himself buried in Lower Egypt, Smendes rose to the kingship of Egypt, based on the well known custom that he who buried the king inherited the throne. Since Smendes buried Ramesses XI, he could legally assume the crown of Egypt and inaugurate the 21st Dynasty from his hometown at Tanis
Tanis, Egypt
Tanis , the Greek name of ancient Djanet , is a city in the north-eastern Nile delta of Egypt. It is located on the Tanitic branch of the Nile which has long since silted up.-History:...
, even if he did not control Middle and Upper Egypt, which were now effectively in the hands of the High Priests of Amun at Thebes
High Priests of Amun at Thebes
While not regarded as a dynasty, the High Priests of Amun at Thebes were nevertheless of such power and influence that they were effectively the rulers of Upper Egypt from 1080 to c.943 BC, after this period their influence declined...
.