Suamweset (Of Kings and Gods)

Suamweset
A portrait of Suamweset
Pharaoh
Reign	1262-1247 BC
Predecessor	Na-Thon
Successor	Tutemef (No Dynastic Change)
Born	C. 1270 BC Memphis, Egypt
Died	1256 BC Luxor, Egypt
Burial	1256 BC Valley of the Kings
Spouse	Myula
Issue	None
House	Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt
Father	Aksuma
Mother	Lekeha

Suamweset was a short lived Egyptian pharaoh who ruled from 1262 to 1247 B.C. As the successor to Na-thon, and second pharaoh of the Twentieth Dynasty, Suamweset rose to power in difficult conditions. His reign was largely marked by small scale rebellion and large scale famine and economic issues. For most of his reign, these issues simply compounded, sending Egypt into a slow death spiral. Suamweset was able to do little to alleviate these issues, but did manage to hold onto power until his death in 1257, passing the throne on to his son Tutemef.

Life

Ascent

As Na-thon's popularity deteriorated,

Reign

Unlike his predecessor, no one challenged Suamweset to the throne. As a Nomarch, he had already proven himself a capable leader, and had been vital in orchestrating the plot to take down Na-Thon. His relation to the dead Pharaoh helped too, as even in the case of a disgraced Pharaoh, it was considered preferable to elevate a relative to replace him. With the throne easily secured, Suamweset set to work eliminating the last of Na-Thon's influence from Egypt. The most obvious course of action was to purge the Nomarchs and other officials that had been loyal to Na-Thon up to the end. This was done quickly and efficiently, and within months, Egypt's bureaucracy had undergone a complete paradigm shift away from the former Pharaoh. Most of Na-Thon's other projects were also eliminated - his festivals, sports contests, and even the grain dole he had briefly introduced in Memphis. With the exception of the capital remaining in Memphis (Which was also Suamweset's home city), Na-Thon's influence was all but deleted from Egypt.

But as Suamweset consolidated his power, a problem remained - Egypt's government remained completely broke, its economy was in shambles, and the citizens weren't happy. Meanwhile, Egypt’s army remained ravaged from decades of intense combat. The nearly irreplaceable chariot corps was reduced to a shell of itself, so all that really remained was infantry. Obviously this effect was only amplified by Suamweset’s economic problem - without funds, the army couldn’t be improved. This combination proved very conducive to rebellion. Though not wide spread at first, by 1259, there was definite signs of scattered rebellion, mostly near Luxor and Pi-Ramesses. Had the rebellions taken place under Na-Thon, they probably would have been propped up by nobles but as Egypt stood, they didn’t need the help. Suamweset’s reign was complexity unequipped to deal with any real challenge.

But to be fair to Suamweset, the rebellions were hardly the worst of his problems. Economic struggles were starting to affect the annual harvest, which could easily tip Egypt over the edge if it wasn’t carefully managed. So rebellion festered in Egypt, mostly manifesting in raids against government grain stores and other plots that mostly amounted to minor disruption, with Suamweset taking only minor action to stop it. But even small raids and disruption was enough to throw Egypt off balance at this point. As Suamweset tried to reinvigorate Egypt’s harvests, he had to ignore the civil disobedience, which obviously made it worse. By 1257, while no real rebel figurehead had emerged, but the rebellion started to become a serious proposition, demanding attention. Grudgingly, Suamweset began to start to engage the rebels, having what little remained of Egypt’s army patrol places that were often the victims of raids, and executing known dissenters.

This move would turn out to be a complete failure for Suamweset. For one it made it impossible to properly manage Egypt’s agriculture. With the nation’s bureaucracy gutted by both Na-Thon’s reign and the economic trouble, the Pharaoh couldn’t be fighting rebels while also managing the agriculture. Furthermore, the clamp down also inspired more extremists to join the ranks of the rebels, turning them from a severe nuisance to a legitimate threat. Soon the two sides were in what almost amounted to a civil war—the only upside for Suamweset was that the serious fighting was mostly contained to Luxor, Thebes, and to a lesser degree the rest of upper Egypt, with pockets of resistance in Pi-Ramesses. This meant that most of the nation was reasonably shielded from the worst of the conflict, though it certainly still felt the effects. Despite his army’s weakness, Suamweset was usually able to decisively defeat the rebellions. The real problem was the large destruction and mismanagement of crops that only got worse as the fighting wore on.

As the rebellion started to fall apart in 1255 - the disorganization and lack of any real goal had ensured it’s quick downfall - Egypt seemed worse off than it had before. Despite the victory, during the summer it seemed as if Egypt’s agricultural base was in shambles - and during the harvest, this was confirmed. Egypt was entering a rare famine. Egypt was less prepared for a famine than most nations - the consistency of the Nile and Egypt’s bureaucracy meant harvests were almost always successful, so they were entirely unprepared for a famine. Not only was the harvest smaller than usual, but transportation to centers of population was also difficult. The fighting had deteriorated Egypt’s infrastructure, and without the funds or institutional wherewithal to fix it, Suamweset was stuck with a massively inefficient system.

Suamwest proved unable to cope with the continuing instability. While the famine started to alleviate around 1253, Egypt's economy didn't really improve, and instability continued to plague parts of Egypt. The economy meant Suamweset couldn't effective raise taxes, and thus couldn't do much except maintain the meager status quo for Egypt. These problems continued to compound, and Suamweset's reign remained ineffective. All the Pharaoh was able to do start rebuilding the chariot force and parts of the military, but he couldn't really use it for any productive pourpose, and with a weakening tax base it was really all he could do. Problems continued to plague Egypt until 1247 when Suamweset died. Despite the massive social problem, the transition was uncontested, and Tutemef would inherit the reeling kingdom.

Burial and Succession

 Pharaohs from the 19th to the XX dynasty 

 Pharaohs beyond the XX dynasty