This groundbreaking book illuminates the lives of some 1,300 kings, queens, princes, and princesses of ancient Egypt, unraveling family relationships and exploring the parts they played in politics, cultural life, and religion. It ranges from the dawn of Egyptian history, when only isolated glimpses are available of the royal family, through the vast progeny of Ramesses II, and ends with the fiendishly complicated—and blood-soaked—interconnections of the Ptolemies and Cleopatras. The authors begin with a basic summary of the structure of the pharaonic state, including the nature of ancient Egyptian kingship itself and how its functions meshed with those of the bureaucracy. They then introduce key members of the royal family and assess what is known about the implications of the major titles that define them. The book goes on to provide a chronological survey of the royal family from c. 3100 BC and the 1st Dynasty up to Egypt’s absorption into the Roman Empire. For each dynasty—or significant part of a dynasty—the authors give a historical overview of the period, a summary listing of the kings involved, and a discussion of their families’ relationships, including, most importantly, the vital evidence for their royal status. Finally, the individuals who made up these families are placed in context via 27 genealogical trees, and described in comprehensive sets of short biographies. Handsomely illustrated with hundreds of photographs and line drawings, the book serves equally well as a biographical history of ancient Egypt’s royal families and a superb volume for home reference. Also available: The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt The Complete Pyramids The Complete Temples of Ancient Egypt The Complete Tutankhamun The Complete Valley of the Kings