Social Structure and Daily Life

Pharaohs- Had complete control of laws, Religion, and the army. could decide how Egypt interacted with other countries, and controlled the lives of all the citizens. They could also give special positions to their friends and family. At the top of the social structure.

Grand Vizier, high ranking officials, and nobles- Grand Vizier was the second most powerful position in the country besides Pharaoh and was usually a member of Their Family or a close friend, usually nobility. Their job was to help the Pharaoh rule the country by giving them advice and overseeing the day to day goings of Egypt. High Ranking Officials had the job of carrying out orders of the Pharaoh and the Grand Vizier. Despite most of time being vessels of the Pharaohs will, They also held absolute power over everything they were assigned to and could only be overridden by the Pharaoh. They controlled the economy, gave orders to the military, and could take and give everything they wanted so long as it didn't disturb the Pharaoh. Nobles were people who were born into wealth or power. They had huge amounts of money, small armies of servants and slaves, and could use their relations to high ranking officials or their wealth to influence The government to get more power. high in the social structure

Priests and High Priests-Controlled The religions of Egypt and spread the word of the many gods of Egypt to the masses. High priests were seen as the Messengers of Specific gods, and controlled things related to them. High Priests Were appointed by the Pharaoh. They were very corrupt, and used the excuse of being the Will of the gods to gain huge amounts of money. Their influence and corruption were stopped by the second to Last Pharaoh, Cleopatra VII. End of the upper class.

Soldiers- Made up Egypts army and navy. They were formed after the Hyksos people of Northern Egypt became organized and conquered Upper Egypt and taking control of the whole Country. When they were defeated, The government decided to keep an army on standby just in case. They used primitive weapons like spears and bows, used chariots for transportation, and had intense training, and sometimes were signed up as young as 5. They were well respected, and were given loot stolen from enemy cities, also given land. Their Army groups were named after gods, with the Pharaohs personal army being named after the creator god, Amun. Upper middle class

Scribes-People who could read and write. Predominantly Male although records of female scribes do Exist. It was mostly people born in to families of scribes to be scribes, and they had to attend a special school for up to 5 years in order to officially become scribes. Their job was to write records on stuff like, taxes, farming, the population, the economy, and the geography of the country.They were important because the information recorded was vital to decisions that could affect thousands of people. Upper Middle class.

Craftsmen and Artists-Craftsmen Made objects such as, carvings, jewelry, instruments, clothes, and ceremonial items like coffins. Artists made stuff like statues and paintings, and helped in the construction of important buildings that are famous today like the Great Sphinx and Pyramids of Giza. They trained to be masters of their crafts, their work even impressing the Pharaoh at times, as the current Pharaoh chose several great craftsmen and artists to make their tomb and coffins. They mostly worked on ships. Most of their were workshops were made by themselves, but the personal craftsmen and artists of the Royal Family had private workshops in temples and palaces. Upper middle class. Like soldiers, they were respected for their fine attention to detail and beautiful handcrafted work.

Merchant-Egypt was one of the wealthiest countries in the ancient world. Egyptian merchants (actually, they were more like traders) carried products such as gold, papyrus made into writing paper or twisted into rope, linen cloth, and jewelry to other countries. In exchange, they brought back cedar and ebony wood, elephant tusks, panther skins, giraffe tails for fly whisks, and animals such as baboons and lions for the temples or palaces. They were somewhat important as they not only brought back valuable items that Egypt did not have, but also brought back information about civilizations like Greece and Rome. Despite this, it was fairly common to be a merchant, and as such they were not near the top of the social structure, instead being lower middle class, they still enjoyed good lives however.

Servants-Employed by the Upper class and upper middle class. Used to do things like clean, cook, take care of children, guard property, and build things. Sometimes, a Pharaoh would select his most loyal servants to be buried with them when they died, so that they could continue to serve them in the after life. Despite living not so affluent lives, their position as allies to high class figures guaranteed them a steady income and all their rights were guaranteed at least. Some were even able to rise to high positions like advisors and leaders of cities if their skill was noticed by the Pharaoh. In one famous case, Joseph, a servant kidnapped and sold to Egypt by his jealous brothers, became Grand Vizier.

Peasants-The second lowest class. Had to work often till midnight, in harsh weather, in the hot Egyptian desert, and get payed the bare minimum, Just so they had the chance to live the next day, rinse and repeat for most of their life. It should be noted however that peasants still had good lives, they could buy stuff, had celebrations with others in the community, and had access to the vast knowledge the scribes had recorded. They also had the ability to work themselves out of their meager conditions. They loved their lives and had a strong sense of community.

Slaves-The lowest class, Often stolen from enemy lands. They had no pay, could not leave, and had no rights. They were forced to do dangerous work without pay and were whipped and had food taken away if they refused to work. They slept in cells and often had no beds or blankets to protect from the cold nights (since there is no air to trap heat, deserts are very cold at night). Lowest of the low who were essentially human cattle. It should be noted that slavery was not that common, and several of the structures built by the Egyptians were built by volunteers, and most of the other work was done by paid servants. Also, several were criminals who had robbed and murdered others.

Daily life in Ancient Egypt was both A lot like our lives while at the same time. Formal Education was very uncommon, usually reserved for Boys born into noble families, while some girls did get this schooling, though it was very uncommon. They were reading and writing should they become scribes, as well as mathematics. Being pretty and clean was a must for an Egyptian. They bathed daily, usually in the nile, and wore jewelry. The wealthy had gold and sliver jewelry, along with large hats and headpieces made of rare metals and the finest fabrics. The poorer used copper and had more common fabric. Men usually wore kilts and women wore straight dresses. The average Egyptian lived in a mud house with little furniture and few windows with only one or two rooms. They also had flat roofs where they would sleep if it got to hot. the houses of the poor were usually decorated with small paintings of nature. The rich lived in large palaces made of limestone with dozens of rooms, decorated by the finest artists and craftsmen in the lands.They also had servants waiting on their every need. The main staple food was bread, which was so hard it could damage teeth. They also had lamb, goat, fish, fruits, and vegetables. They had clay ovens and used clay plates and bowls. They usually spent most of the day working. Peasants usually farmed, soldiers guarded important officials or trained, Craftsmen and artists did orders, and The Pharaoh and other Officials did paperwork and oversaw the lives of the citizens. Some other facts are Peasant Girls would get married around 12, Women's rights were good, as some even became Pharaohs, and people would often pray to the gods daily.