History of Luxor

Ancient capital
The modern importance of Luxor rests on its location on the site of the ancient city of Thebes. Originally the pharaoh's power base was in northern Egypt, at Memphis ; close to present day Cairo. However various power struggles led to the capital's relocation to 725 km's to the south, at Waset; later to become Thebes.

Under the ninth and tenth dynasties Thebes became the centre for a series of powerful nomarchs(governors). The Theban nomarchs deposed the Heracleopolitan pharaohs and won control of Egypt in 2035 BC.

Expansion and glory
Thebes had been a farming settlement prior to this, but with the new role of being the political and administrative capital of Egypt it flourished. The city's Golden Age was between 1570 BC and 1090 BC when over one million people lived here and the Egyptian empire stretched far beyond its modern boundaries. Thebes crops up in the Old Testament where it's referred to as No-Amon(City of Amon) owing to the importance of the local deity Amon; later known as Amen-Ra or father of the gods. The rise of the city became interlinked with the growing importance in the religious pantheon of the Pharaohs.

Architectural treasure-trove
The Theban Pharaohs built numerous monuments to their Power, the remains of which are scattered under and around modern Luxor. The Assyrians sacked the city in the seventh century BC and once the Greeks arrived in Egypt the city began its slide into obscurity. The Romans almost ensured its oblivion when they completely destroyed the remaining buildings at the end of the first century BC.

Egyptologists Mecca
It was the invasion of Napoleon that resurrected the fortunes of the forgotten city. Although the invasion of the French bought little other benefit the small army of archaeologists that followed his forces quickly set about exploring the remnants of former glory. In the nineteenth century, as Egyptology flourished, interest in Thebes reached fever pitch and more and more treasures began to be unearthed. Inevitably it became one of the great tourist attractions in Egypt.