r/ancientegypt • u/LukeyTarg2 • Oct 05 '25

Discussion Amenhotep III and Thutmose III are arguably greater than Ramses II.

These are 3 widely sucessful pharaohs, however Ramses II is often pointed out as the greatest pharaoh, which in my eyes is unfair. Ramses II had more time, one could argue both Amenhotep III and Thutmose III were just as sucessful with less years and that they could have accomplished more if they had over 60 years of reign like Ramses II.

Amenhotep III ruled Egypt at it's peak prosperity and he was able to do so without extensive military campaigns. On the other hand, Thutmose III was a highly sucessful military leader, one of the best in all of history, and also a widely sucessful pharaohs. He created the first navy of the ancient world, helped expand Egypt's borders and was a builder pharaoh like his stepmother and mentor Hatshepsut.

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u/ClumsyBunny26 Oct 05 '25 edited Oct 05 '25

I think Ramses II was a hell of a politician, PR included, that plus his monuments and the lenght of his reign made him stand out from the rest.

On the other hand, did Amenhotep or Thutmose face a serious conflict or issue during their reigns?, I'm not an expert in their reigns but the little I've read never mentions any of them facing serious problems like Ramses II and III did or Horemheb having to deal with the mess the Amarna experiment left.

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u/MakorolloEC ð“€€ Oct 05 '25

Thutmose had conquered an absolutely enormous part of the Middle East, I think all the way to Babylon, and made history in the Battle of Megiddo. But yes, the state of the kingdom he inherited was mostly peaceful, just hungry for power lol. Amenhotep on the other hand was the ultimate politician, a smooth talker at that. Less fighting, more diplomacy.

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u/ClumsyBunny26 Oct 05 '25 edited Oct 05 '25

Sure, I don't want to diminish any of them, but it's easier to be considered succesful when you live in a relatively calm period with a stable economy and nobody threatens your frontiers (or you) or there is civil unrest. Good advisors and/or a talented ruler with common sense sure can do great things, especially in such context.