History vs. Egypt’s 'most powerful' pharaoh - Jessica Tomkins

Pharaoh Ramesses II presided over a golden age of Egyptian prosperity— but was he a model leader or a master of propaganda?

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Pharaoh Ramesses II reigned for almost 70 years in the 13th century BCE. He presided over a golden age of Egyptian prosperity, power, and wealth. But was he a model leader or a shameless egomaniac and master of propaganda? Jessica Tomkins puts this controversial figure on trial in History vs. Ramesses the Great.

Lesson by Jessica Tomkins, directed by Brett Underhill, PorkchopBob Studio.

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Thank you so much to our patrons for your support! Without you this video would not be possible! Mark Morris, Misaki Sato, EdoKun, SookKwan Loong, Bev Millar, Lex Azevedo, Michael Aquilina, Jason A Saslow, Yansong Li, Cristóbal Moenne, Dawn Jordan, Prasanth Mathialagan, Samuel Doerle, David Rosario, Dominik Kugelmann - they-them, Siamak Hajizadeh, Ryohky Araya, Mayank Kaul, Christophe Dessalles, Heather Slater, Sandra Tersluisen, Zhexi Shan, Bárbara Nazaré, Andrea Feliz, Victor E Karhel, Sydney Evans, Latora, Noel Situ, emily lam, Sid, Niccolò Frassetto, Mana, I'm here because of Knowledge Fight Facebook group., Linda Freedman, Edgardo Cuellar, Jaspar Carmichael-Jack, Michael Burton, VIVIANA A GARCIA BESNE, The Vernon's, Olha Bahatiuk, Jesús Bíquez Talayero, Chels Raknrl, Sai Pranavi Jonnalagadda, Stuart Rice, Jing Chen, Vector-Dopamine math, Jasper Song, Giorgio Bugnatelli, Chardon and Eddy Trochez.

[charliefarmer]

Fun fact: Some of the first recorded worker's strikes in history happened in ancient Egypt when the pyramids were being built - and they were incredibly successful, from my knowledge.

[Sunflowersarepretty]

This was made well. And the quote "history is written by winners" feels accurate. Why document your defeats or how oppressive you can be when you can potray yourself as a hero?

[Creative___Mind]

If we are really putting people on trial, I'd like Churchil to be held accountable for the Bengal Famine. We haven't forgotten nor forgiven anything, Britain.

[atlas]

"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!" Ramses II

[zgpwnui]

Why hasn't anyone on Ted-Ed did a History vs. video on the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang. He was a pretty controversial figure back in ancient times, and his tomb is still untouched. I believe there bad and good achievements that should have folks interested in.

[micahbush]

I always find it interesting when people suggest that Hebrew slaves built monuments or the pyramids, because the Exodus narrative explicitly says that the Hebrews were put to work in the fields and making bricks; it says nothing of stonework or building monuments.

[katemillerhuggylovely]

0:49, "rameses, rameses...I think I heard of him." "LET MY PEOPLE GO!"
me: *spits out my apple juice from my mouth* "MOSES?!"

[abthedragon]

Huh, wasn't expecting Rameses II of all historical figures to be the next one on trial in this series. Still, very interesting stuff covered here!

[camboom]

Ramesses II: "I will not be the weak link!!"

[LumityFan]

It’s always a great day when there is a new Ted ed video

[charliefarmer]

I think it would be a good idea to do History vs Winston Churchill, or History vs Queen Victoria. Both so revered - yet neither as great as we often think they are (though on different levels).

[christoffersjberg]

I love the "History vs" series. its really fascinating.

[aidanrogers]

Rameses II is also the main subject of Shelley’s ‘Ozymandias’ sonnet too (which was the Ancient Greek name for him):

I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed:
And on the pedestal these words appear:
"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!"
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.

[_jpg]

I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: — Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert... Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk, a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed
And on the pedestal these words appear
‚My name is Ozymandias, king of kings
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!‘
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.

- Percy Bysshe Shelley

[Jobe-]

I don’t doubt that a lot of what we know about him could be his own propaganda, it was pretty much the norm for pharaohs to do that.

[Niklas.the.th.]

I hope they make one about Mohammad Reza Pahlavi "Aryamehr"
History vs. The Shah

[cinemanuggets]

Thanks for listening to the people. We have been clamouring for another episode in this series for a long time

[gayslays]

Again, a new video of one of my favourite series!

[danielsantiagourtado]

LOVE history vs! Do Constantine the Great!

[germanomagnone]

I know a little curiosity about Moses. according to one theory the name of moses in Hebrew is Mōsheh, (it would be attributed the meaning of "extracted from the water") but it derives from the Egyptian, although today the majority of scholars prefer to believe that the name derives from the Egyptian root Moses, which means son of or generated as we can for example see in the Egyptians Thutmosis (son of Thoth) or Ramses (son of Ra), personally perhaps he had a name like "son of the nile" or of a god/goddess of the river, or In line with this thesis and lacking the name of the father, Moses simply means child as a term of endearment for son. after "cutting the past" he called himself only "son" because he wanted to say: "I am not the son of the false gods of the pharaoh, but of the true god"