The First Intermediate Period, described as a 'dark period' in ancient Egyptian history,Redford, Donald B. (2001). The Oxford encyclopedia of ancient Egypt. Vol. 1. Cairo: The American University in Cairo Press. p. 526. spanned approximately 125 years, , after the end of the Old Kingdom.Kathryn A. Bard, An Introduction to the Archaeology of Ancient Egypt (Malden: Blackwell Publishing, 2008), 41. It comprises the Seventh (although this is mostly considered spurious by Egyptologists), Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, and part of the Eleventh Dynasties. The concept of a "First Intermediate Period" was coined in 1926 by Egyptologists Georg Steindorff and Henri Frankfort. Arguing that it was not a dark age, Ludwig David Morenz has put forward the alternative name "Period of Regions" ().L. D. Morenz (2004), "Apophis: On the Origin, Name, and Nature of an Ancient Egyptian Anti‐God", Journal of Near Eastern Studies 63(3): 201 n2.

Very little monumental evidence survives from this period, especially from the beginning of the era. The First Intermediate Period was a dynamic time in which rule of Egypt was roughly equally divided between two competing power bases. One of the bases was at Heracleopolis in Lower Egypt, a city just south of the Faiyum region, and the other was at Thebes, in Upper Egypt.Gardiner, Alan (1961) Egypt of the Pharaohs (Oxford University Press), 107–109. It is believed that during that time, temples were pillaged and violated, artwork was vandalized, and the statues of kings were broken or destroyed as a result of the postulated political chaos.Breasted, James Henry (1923). A History of the Ancient Egyptians. Charles Scribner's Sons, 133. The two kingdoms would eventually come into conflict, which would lead to the conquest of the north by the Theban kings and to the reunification of Egypt under a single ruler, Mentuhotep II, during the second part of the Eleventh Dynasty. This event marked the beginning of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt.

History Events leading to the First Intermediate Period The fall of the Old Kingdom is often described as a period of chaos and disorder by some literature in the First Intermediate Period, but mostly by the literature of successive eras of ancient Egyptian history. The causes that brought about the downfall of the Old Kingdom are numerous, but some are merely hypothetical. One reason that is often quoted is the extremely long reign of Pepi II, the last major pharaoh of the 6th Dynasty. He ruled from his childhood until he was very elderly, possibly in his 90s, but the length of his reign is uncertain. He outlived many of his anticipated heirs, thereby creating problems with succession. Thus, the regime of the Old Kingdom disintegrated amidst this disorganization.Gardiner, Alan (1961) Egypt of the Pharaohs (Oxford University Press), 110.Rothe, et al., (2008) Pharaonic Inscriptions From the Southern Eastern Desert of Egypt, Eisenbrauns Another major problem was the rise in power of the provincial nomarchs. Towards the end of the Old Kingdom the positions of the nomarchs had become hereditary, so families often held onto the position of power in their respective provinces. As these nomarchs grew increasingly powerful and influential, they became more independent from the king.Breasted, James Henry. (1923) A History of the Ancient Egyptians Charles Scribner's Sons, 117-118. They erected tombs in their own domains and often raised armies. The rise of these numerous nomarchs inevitably created conflicts between neighboring provinces, often resulting in intense rivalries and warfare between them. A third reason for the dissolution of centralized kingship that is mentioned was the low levels of the Nile inundation which may have been caused by a drier climate, resulting in lower crop yields bringing about famine across ancient Egypt;Malek, Jaromir (1999) Egyptian Art (London: Phaidon Press Limited), 155. see 4.2 kiloyear event. There is however no consensus on this subject. According to Manning, there is no relationship with low Nile floods. "State collapse was complicated, but unrelated to Nile flooding history."Water, irrigation and their connection to State Power in Egypt (2012), p. 20; J.G. Manning, Yale University

The Seventh and Eighth Dynasties at Memphis

The Seventh and Eighth Dynasties are often overlooked because very little is known about the rulers of these two periods. Manetho, a historian and priest from the Ptolemaic era, describes 70 kings who ruled for 70 days.Sir Alan Gardiner, Egypt of the Pharaohs (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1961), 107. This is almost certainly an exaggeration meant to describe the disorganization of the kingship during this time period. The Seventh Dynasty may have been an oligarchy comprising powerful officials of the Sixth Dynasty based in Memphis who attempted to retain control of the country.Hayes, William C. The Scepter of Egypt: A Background for the Study of the Egyptian Antiquities in The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Vol. 1, From the Earliest Times to the End of the Middle Kingdom, p. 136, available online The Eighth dynasty rulers, claiming to be the descendants of the Sixth Dynasty kings, also ruled from Memphis.Breasted, James Henry. (1923) A History of the Ancient Egyptians Charles Scribner's Sons, 133-134. Little is known about these two dynasties since very little textual or architectural evidence survives to describe the period. However, a few artifacts have been found, including scarabs that have been attributed to king Neferkare II of the Seventh Dynasty, as well as a green jasper cylinder of Syrian influence which has been credited to the Eighth Dynasty.Baikie, James (1929) A History of Egypt: From the Earliest Times to the End of the XVIIIth Dynasty (New York: The Macmillan Company), 218. Also, a small pyramid believed to have been constructed by King Ibi of the Eighth Dynasty has been identified at Saqqara.Bard, Kathryn A. (2008) An Introduction to the Archaeology of Ancient Egypt (Malden: Blackwell Publishing), 163. Several kings, such as Iytjenu, are only attested once and their position remains unknown.

Rise of the Heracleopolitan kings

Sometime after the obscure reign of the Seventh and Eighth Dynasty kings a group of rulers arose in Heracleopolis in Lower Egypt. These kings comprise the Ninth and Tenth Dynasties, each with nineteen listed rulers. The Heracleopolitan kings are conjectured to have overwhelmed the weak Memphite rulers to create the Ninth Dynasty, but there is virtually no archaeology elucidating the transition, which seems to have involved a drastic reduction in population in the Nile Valley.

The founder of the Ninth Dynasty, Akhthoes or Akhtoy, is often described as an evil and violent ruler, most notably in Manetho's writing. Possibly the same as Wahkare Khety I, Akhthoes was described as a king who caused much harm to the inhabitants of Egypt, was seized with madness, and was eventually killed by a crocodile.James Henry Breasted, Ph.D., A History of the Ancient Egyptians (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1923), 134. This may have been a fanciful tale, but Wahkare is listed as a king in the Turin Canon. Kheti I was succeeded by Kheti II, also known as Meryibre. Little is certain of his reign, but a few artifacts bearing his name survive. It may have been his successor, Kheti III, who would bring some degree of order to the Delta, though the power and influence of these Ninth Dynasty kings was seemingly insignificant compared to the Old Kingdom pharaohs.Baikie, James (1929) A History of Egypt: From the Earliest Times to the End of the XVIIIth Dynasty (New York: The Macmillan Company), 224.

A distinguished line of nomarchs arose in Siut (or Asyut), a powerful and wealthy province in the south of the Heracleopolitan kingdom. These warrior princes maintained a close relationship with the kings of the Heracleopolitan royal household, as evidenced by the inscriptions in their tombs. These inscriptions provide a glimpse at the political situation that was present during their reigns. They describe the Siut nomarchs digging canals, reducing taxation, reaping rich harvests, raising cattle herds, and maintaining an army and fleet. The Siut province acted as a buffer state between the northern and southern rulers, and the Siut princes would bear the brunt of the attacks from the Theban kings.

Ankhtifi

The South was dominated by warlords, the best-known of whom is Ankhtifi, whose tomb was discovered in 1928 at Mo’alla, 30 km south of Luxor. He was a nomarch or provincial governor of the nome based at Hierakonpolis, but he then expanded to the south and conquered a second nome centred on Edfu. He then tried to expand to the north to conquer the nome centred on Thebes, but was unsuccessful, as they refused to come out and fight.

His tomb is highly decorated and contains an extremely informative autobiography in which he paints a picture of Egypt riven by hunger and famine from which he, the great Ankhtifi, had rescued them. ‘I gave bread to the hungry and did not allow anyone to die’. This economic disaster is much debated by modern commentators: it seems that every ruler made similar claims. But it seems clear that for all practical purposes, Ankhtifi was the ruler and there was no higher power to whom he owed allegiance. The unity of Egypt had broken down.

Rise of the Theban kings

It has been suggested that an invasion of Upper Egypt occurred contemporaneously with the founding of the Heracleopolitan kingdom, which would establish the Theban line of kings, constituting the Eleventh and Twelfth Dynasties.Baikie, James (1929) A History of Egypt: From the Earliest Times to the End of the XVIIIth Dynasty (New York: The Macmillan Company), 221. This line of kings is believed to have been descendants of Intef, who was the nomarch of Thebes, often called the "keeper of the Door of the South".Baikie, James (1929) A History of Egypt: From the Earliest Times to the End of the XVIIIth Dynasty (New York: The Macmillan Company), 135. He is credited for organizing Upper Egypt into an independent ruling body in the south, although he himself did not appear to have tried to claim the title of king. However, his successors in the Eleventh and Twelfth Dynasties would later do so for him.Baikie, James (1929) A History of Egypt: From the Earliest Times to the End of the XVIIIth Dynasty (New York: The Macmillan Company), 245. One of them, Intef II, begins the assault on the north, particularly at Abydos.

By around 2060 BC, Intef II had defeated the governor of Nekhen, allowing further expansion south, toward Elephantine. His successor, Intef III, completed the conquest of Abydos, moving into Middle Egypt against the Heracleopolitan kings.James Henry Breasted, Ph.D., A History of the Ancient Egyptians (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1923), 136. The first three kings of the Eleventh Dynasty (all named Intef) were, therefore, also the last three kings of the First Intermediate Period and would be succeeded by a line of kings who were all called Mentuhotep. Mentuhotep II, also known as Nebhepetra, would eventually defeat the Heracleopolitan kings around 2033 BC and unify the country to continue the Eleventh Dynasty, bringing Egypt into the Middle Kingdom.

The Ipuwer Papyrus