Thutmose II: The Underrated 18th Dynasty Pharaoh of Egypt

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Thutmose II was not a full royal, but he became the fourth pharaoh of the 18th dynasty. The length of his reign is disputed among scholars and historians as it was brief and unremarkable compared to those of his predecessor, Thutmose I, and successor, Hatshepsut.

He was generally considered a weak ruler, and many archaeologists believe that it was Hatshepsut who greatly influenced his rule. Continue reading to find out how he lived his life and ruled over Egypt.

What Was Thutmose II Known For?

Although Thutmose II was practically a child when he became pharaoh, he was able to suppress several rebellions and maintain a stronghold all over Egypt. Sadly, his contributions were not widely known, as succeeding leaders either erased them from the records or purposely demolished the monuments he built.

Despite that, the successes he was able to achieve and the legacy he left behind stand as a testament to his reign.

Who Was Thutmose II?

Thutmose II (also read as Tuthmosis II, Thutmosis II in Latinized Greek or Djehutymes in ancient Egyptian, which means “Thoth is born”) was the son of King Thutmose I and his secondary wife or “harem” wife, Mutnofret. In Egypt, it was customary for the pharaonic line to be passed on from father to son, usually to a queen’s son.

However, if there were no existing sons by a queen, the next in line would be a son from one of the secondary wives. In the case of Thutmose II, his two half-brothers from Queen Ahmes, namely Wadjmose and Amenmose, were already deceased, so he was the only one allowed to be Thutmose I’s heir.

To strengthen his position, he cleverly married his full-blooded royal half-sibling, Hatshepsut. Hence, when King Thutmose I died in 1493 BC, his son, Thutmose II, was crowned as his successor. Historians estimated Hatshepsut to be around 12 years of age when she became queen of Egypt. Together, they had a daughter named Neferure.

It is said that Thutmose II also fathered a son by a secondary wife, Iset. Before he died, he proclaimed his son to be his successor and named him Thutmose III.

Nevertheless, as the boy was only around 2 years of age at the time, Hatshepsut took over and reigned for more than 20 years, becoming one of Egypt’s most phenomenal pharaohs.

Thutmose III

When Thutmose III came into power, he committed “damnatio memoriae,” or condemnation of memory, to Hatshepsut, with the hope of completely eradicating her from Egyptian history. This action by Thutmose III was seen by scholars as his way of intentionally deleting Hatshepsut’s memory so that the line of succession would be all male from his grandfather, Thutmose I, up to him.

Thutmose II as the Exodus Pharaoh

According to some historians, King Thutmose II was the most probable candidate to be the Exodus Pharaoh because he had a brief, wealthy reign and then a sudden collapse. This was indicated by Alfred Edersheim in his book, “Bible History: Old Testament.” Thutmose II also had no son to succeed him (aside from Thutmose III, who was also not a full royal child).

In Exodus 4:19, God told Moses to return to Egypt because all of the men who sought to kill him had already died. Thutmose II, also known as Gardiner, was thought to be the king of the land at the time. Supporting facts include the claims that his body was found after he allegedly drowned in the Red Sea, although it was recorded in Exodus 14:30 that the Israelites discovered that the Egyptians died on the shore.

It was also claimed that King Thutmose II's mummy is the only pharaoh's mummy with cysts, which could be proof of a plague that swept the Hittite empires in the period. Furthermore, if the Bible’s chronologies are taken at face value, the Exodus would have taken place in 1497 BCE, nearly coinciding with Thutmose’s reign.

Differing Opinions

However, the identities of the Egyptian royal mummies and their reigning periods remain uncertain. This was mainly because of the reinterment and relabeling carried out during the 21st dynasty. As a result, opinions differ on the year of Thutmose II’s reign and whether he was the real pharaoh who ruled during the period of the Exodus.

The Argument for Thutmose II’s Reign

There was an argument among scholars regarding the length of Thutmose II’s reign, but it was generally assumed to have been from 1493 BC to 1479 BC. Some say that he ruled for 13 years, while others argue that it was not more than 10 years but closer to 3 to 4 years. This is because there is limited recorded information about Thutmose II.

Arguments for His Short Reign

One proof that Thutmose II only had a brief reign is that Ineni, who was an Egyptian architect who served under Thutmose I, was already old at the time of Thutmose II’s reign but lived up to Hatshepsut and Thutmose III’s leadership. Moreover, the recorded monuments and subsequent tomb memoirs of the officials from the New Kingdom provide scant evidence for Thutmose II.

As Hatshepsut seized the majority of his monuments and his son, Thutmose III, wrote Thutmose II’s name aggressively over other structures, a definite number of monuments built under his rule cannot be easily determined. When dated records are nonexistent, the principal method for determining a king’s reign is practically lacking.

While it is said that these monuments can be displaced, scarabs are small and unimportant, such that changing their names would be impracticable and unprofitable. As a result, scarabs provide a significantly deeper perception of this period.

Luc Gabolde, a French Egyptologist, released a significant investigation comparing the total number of available scarabs found during the reigns of Hatshepsut, Thutmose I and Thutmose II in 1987.

A recent study revealed that the number of seals for Hatshepsut was 463, while Thutmose I’s was 241, and Thutmose II’s was 65. According to Gabolde’s analysis, the low number of Thutmose II’s scarabs signifies that his reign was short-lived.

Based on these numbers, he estimated that Hatshepsut ruled for 21 years and 9 months, Thutmose I reigned for 11 years, and Thutmose II only ruled for 3 years. This became and remains a hotly debated topic among Egyptologists.

Arguments for His Long Reign

Ineni’s autobiography suggests that Thutmose II was still a minor when he became Pharaoh Thutmose II. However, it was also written that he had two children, Neferure and Thutmose III. This supports the theory that his reign was longer than 3 years because he lived a long enough time to have children.

Another fact that strengthens the claim of Thutmose II’s long reign is that Hatshepsut observed her Sed Jubilee, a festival to commemorate being on the throne for 30 years, even if she was only in her 16th year.

Many historians believe that this is because she counted the years right after the death of her father, Thutmose I. This would then give a 13-to-14-year gap between Thutmose I’s and Hatshepsut’s rule.

According to Catherine Roerig, a curator in the Department of Egyptian Art, KV20 in the Valley of the Kings was the initial tomb assigned to King Thutmose II. This was commonly thought to have been commissioned by Hatshepsut. If this is correct, then Thutmose II undertook a massive project that would have taken several years to complete, implying a long reign for this king.

Thutmose II Accomplishments

Suppressing Rebellion

During the transfer of power from his father, their enemies saw a fleeting period of vulnerability and planned a great rebellion. The Egyptian forces did not have a choice but to retreat and use the bunker built by King Thutmose I.

However, just like his predecessor, King Thutmose II was not one to waste time. He immediately sent troops to the threatened garrison of Kush to suppress the rebellion and ordered the killing of all Nubian males who took part in it.

As a strategy, he also gave orders to capture one of the Nubian chieftain’s sons and bring him to Egypt, raise him as an Egyptian citizen, and later on appoint him as the pharaoh’s local ruler of Kush. This was a common practice to ensure that allies were loyal to the throne at all times. The historian Josephus referred to this campaign as the “Ethiopic War.”

According to an Egyptian official who served under Ahmose I, it appears that Thutmose II also fought in the Sinai against the nomadic group called Bedouins. Despite the fact that this expedition was referred to as a minor operation, there is a piece of preserved evidence by Kurt Sethe that chronicles the crusade in Upper Retenu, or Syria, that looks like it has extended up to Niy, where Thutmose I usually hunted after going from the Euphrates. This could indicate that the operation was only carried out on their way to Syria.

Erased Records

Even though the uprising was successfully stomped down, it was said that King Thutmose II should not be given credit because he was too young at the time and that his father’s military generals were the ones responsible for it.

While a small inscription in the temple at Dayr al-Bahri and a rock-cut stele south of Aswan testify to how Thutmose II stopped the revolts, little is known about his accomplishments.

This is because Egyptian pharaohs had a habit of erasing records of their predecessors. In the case of Thutmose II, Hatshepsut erased his name and replaced it with her own.

Nonetheless, Hatshepsut’s successor, Thutmose III, had almost eradicated all evidence of her as king, including depictions of her as king on the temples and monuments she built. This was presumed to be with the intention of closing the gap in the dynasty’s male succession line, as he didn’t want a woman to be seen as having ruled the nation.

Building Monuments

Pharaohs are mostly remembered through the monuments they built during their reign, even those for which they initiated construction but were unable to complete. Traces of a temple built by Thutmose II have been uncovered on the West Bank at Luxor, approximately north of Medinet Habu’s temple.

This little temple, known as Shespet-ankh, or Chapel of Life, was eventually completed by Thutmose III.

The largest monument attributed to his reign is the pylon-shaped limestone gateway he developed at Karnak. It was once located in front of the courtyard of the Fourth Pylon and another limestone structure, which was later reused in the construction of Karnak’s Third Pylon foundation. The gate has now been recreated in the Open-Air Museum of Karnak.

Thutmose II also built a festival complex for the ancient Egyptians. However, it is said that the bricks used for the doorway were subsequently torn down by Amenhotep III during renovations.

Surviving Monument

Thutmose II’s only notable monument is a surviving block of structures created by the pharaoh at Semna, Kumma and Elephantine. This monument was not completed during Thutmose II’s reign but during the supremacy of his son, Thutmose III, indicating that Thutmose II’s reign was “essentially ephemeral.” Thutmose II and Hatshepsut were depicted together and separately in images on the Karnak entrance.

Many scholars believe that Hatshepsut was Egypt’s actual ruler even throughout Thutmose II’s reign, as she was believed to be influencing her husband’s policies. Hatshepsut justified this by arguing that Thutmose I, their father, wanted them to rule together.

How Did Thutmose II Die?

The body of King Thutmose II was unearthed in a royal cache of mummies located at Dayr al-Bahri above Hatshepsut’s Mortuary Temple in 1881. His mummy was opened and analyzed on July 1, 1886 by Gaston Maspero, a French Egyptologist. According to him, Thutmose II’s mummy bears a striking resemblance to that of his father, Thutmose I.

Thutmose II’s body was severely damaged by ancient tomb raiders. His arms were cracked and chopped off. An axe had cut into his abdomen and a large portion of his upper torso, and his limbs had also been severed. All of the mentioned injuries were discovered after his death, albeit the body did reveal indicators that he had a difficult life.

Based on pathology, Thutmose II died in his early thirties due to an unknown illness. It also revealed that he was most likely a frail man, emaciated and shrunken with little muscle mass, a head with bald areas, and skin riddled with lesions and scars that the embalming method couldn’t conceal. His skin condition could have been a sign of an infectious disease that eventually led to his death.

Thutmose II’s Mummy

Thutmose II’s mummy bears the inventory number CG 61066. In an event that was called the Golden Parade of Pharaohs, Thutmose II’s mummy was relocated to the Egyptian Museum in April 2021, along with the mummies of other queens and kings. The mummy’s identity has been called into dispute as the rewrapping label appears to identify him as Thutmose II, although it could be a modification of Thutmose I.

Conclusion

Thutmose II, Thutmose I’s son and Thutmose III’s father, was a controversial pharaoh in ancient Egypt. Even though he was not a full-blooded royal, circumstances turned out to be in his favor.

Thutmose II married his sister from a different mother, Hatshepsut, who was the daughter of Queen Ahmes, to ensure his kingship.
He eventually became the fourth pharaoh of the 18th dynasty.
Many researchers and historians regarded Thutmose II as a weak, fragile man who could easily be pushed around.
It was thought that Hatshepsut was the one advising Thutmose II on how to manage the kingdom as pharaoh. This has become evident in the similarities in the policies between Thutmose II and Hatshepsut’s reign.
Thutmose II appointed his son from a secondary wife to be his successor and named him Thutmose III.
When Thutmose II died, his son was said to be only around 2 years old and still incapable of ruling. Hatshepsut became his regent and assumed the throne, thereby becoming the fifth pharaoh.
She attempted to remove and replace Thutmose II’s name with her own on several monuments.
Because of this, the length of Thutmose II’s reign has become a source of many debates.
The only notable achievement of Thutmose II’s reign was the suppression of rebellions from Nubia and the Levant, as well as stopping uprisings by nomadic groups known as Bedouins.
In 1886, his mummy was unearthed in the royal cache at Dayr al-Bahri, where it was estimated that he was in his early thirties.
His body greatly suffered under the hands of ancient tomb raiders, as limbs were severed from the body while his upper torso down to his abdomen appeared to have been axed.
The most likely cause of his death was a disease that seemed to have ravaged his skin, giving him lesions and scars.
He was considered the most probable candidate to be the Exodus pharaoh.