Top 10 Most Ruthless Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt

10 Most Brutal Pharaohs in Ancient Egypt

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down the most ferocious, intimidating, and frightening pharaohs ever to govern the land of ancient Egypt.

#10: Thutmose III

Given the long, long line of Egyptian rulers, we know that Thutmose III was truly not to be messed with, as he’s generally remembered as Egypt's greatest warrior king. He’s also considered to be one of the best and most influential high-level military figures of all time. After he initially assumed power when he was just two years old, his stepmother, Hatshepsut, ruled (and then co-ruled) until Thutmose’s early 20s. Over the course of his elevated career, Thutmose spearheaded at least 17 victorious campaigns, all to expand his empire to unprecedented bounds. Cities fell to him, entire regions were converted to his rule. While perhaps there are other pharaohs tagged with more stories of specific, outright cruelty… this was one king who simply refused to be beaten.

#9: Ay

As the successor to the now world-famous boy king, Tutankhamun, most of Ay’s political career was actually spent as an advisor to multiple pharaohs before him - including Tutankhamun. And so, while he only ever ruled outright for four years (at sometime around 1,320 BCE) his story is shrouded in mystery. According to the most shocking claims, it’s said that Ay might have had a direct hand in King Tut’s death at just 19, such was his desire to steal the throne from him. He may have murdered his predecessor in order to create a power vacuum, which he promptly manipulated in his favor - with some suggestions that he also married Tutankhamun’s widow, just to sure up his credentials to become king. It’s a tale of treachery that’s never truly been confirmed, but the circumstances appear to cast Ay in a very shady light.

#8: Cambyses II

In 525 BCE, Cambyses II, the son of Cyrus the Great, successfully invaded Egypt, bringing Persian rule to the empire and marking a pivotal shift in its ancient history. His time in power, known as the 27th Dynasty, was characterized by efforts to merge Persian and Egyptian cultures, although he’s thought to have done so harshly. Cambyses is infamous for desecrating temples and outlawing traditional religious practices, all seemingly to weaken the societal fabric that had bound the Nile Valley for millennia beforehand. In one of the cruelest episodes of his takeover, it’s also said that he ordered his army to march with animals that were sacred to the Egyptians - such as cats and sheep - along the frontline. He effectively used them as a shield, knowing that the Egyptians he sought to conquer wouldn’t want (or dare) to hurt the animals that they linked to the Gods.

#7: Cleopatra VII

She goes down in history as the last pharaoh, which might imply that Cleopatra’s Egypt was in a much weaker state than it had been for thousands of years beforehand. But, that said, she’s also regarded as having been a shrewd and intelligent leader, with a notably ruthless edge. Most famously Cleopatra is said to have played a part in the deaths of three of her siblings. First, Ptolemy XIII, who she first married, before he died during a Civil War that she waged against him. Then, her sister, Arsinoe IV was exiled and executed at her request, seeing as she was a threat to her power. And, finally, after again marrying another of her brothers, Ptolemy XIV, it’s said that she eventually poisoned him to make way for her son to rule in his stead. The family dynamics here were… complicated. But Cleopatra’s determination to reign never waivered.

#6: Seth-Peribsen

Ruling during the 2nd Dynasty, more than 2,600 years BCE, at a time when divine favor was paramount, Seth-Peribsen is a leader whose reign is shrouded in mystery. Most notably, though, there was a seeming (and crucial) name change, with this ruler choosing to honor the Ancient God Set (or Seth) rather than the traditional Horus. Modern interpretations tend to have Set as the God most associated with chaos and violence, where Horus is seen as an emblem of continuity and protection. Seth-Peribsen’s apparently deliberate distancing from Horus in favor of Set has led some to claim that his time as pharaoh was also fueled by chaos; that his Egypt was hugely divided by brutal war and fighting. That said, however, there is so very little that’s truly known about him.

#5: Khufu

Much of Pharaoh Khufu’s reputation for wickedness springs from the writings of the Ancient Greek historian, Herodotus, who considered him an evil king and a tyrant. Today, there’s one world famous piece of evidence toward that tyranny still standing; the Great Pyramid. The only remaining wonder of the ancient world, the pyramid was originally built as a tomb for Khufu. It’s thought to have required a rotating workforce of 100,000 people to construct it, though, all of them enslaved by Khufu under horrendous working conditions. For Herodotus (and others) it was just one huge and unforgiving vanity project. Given how iconic the Great Pyramid is today, the story behind how it got there is sometimes lost. But Khufu - a man who’s also said to have sent his own daughter to the brothel to raise money when he needed it - was clearly a callous figure.

#4: Khafre

They say like father like son, and when your father is Khufu… perhaps you have a lot to live up to. Nevertheless, by most accounts Khafre followed on from where his pyramid-crazed parent left off, again seemingly treating his people with very little worth. Most of what’s written about Khafre also derives from the early work of Herodotus, although it should be said that even he was writing some 2,000 years after the fact. Still, Khafre’s reign was marked by a massive amount of building work, said to have been carried out by huge armies of enslaved people. The second largest pyramid at Giza is Khafre’s, and there are even some theories that the Great Sphinx is meant to be a depiction of him, as well. But, as to exactly how they came to be, it may have all been the result of one man’s ruthless demands.

#3: Sneferu

The era of Sneferu, the first pharaoh of Old Egypt’s 4th Dynasty, is remembered as another golden age of pyramid building. There were multiple major pyramids erected under his watch, including what are today known as the Bent Pyramid and the Red Pyramid - the third-largest of all pyramids behind those of Khufu and Khafre. Again, though, the labor force that was required consisted of tens of thousands of people. They faced grueling conditions, with many dedicating their entire lives (and ultimately dying) all for Sneferu’s eternal legacy. But his story is also one of relentless invasion and conquest. His armies raided all across North Africa, mostly to capture, imprison and enslave the workers who eventually built Sneferu’s many monuments.

#2: Akhenaten

For better or worse, Akhenaten made an impact. His lasting legacy is the attempted destruction of almost all traditional beliefs, in a bid to establish Atenism - or sun worship - as the dominant religion. Before Akhenaten, the empire had been very much polytheistic, with countless gods to draw upon. But, during his reign, all of that was outlawed. And sometimes aggressively outlawed, as well. Temples were abandoned en masse, and those who had attended them had no choice but to convert. Life under Akhenaten’s eye was seriously tough, and usually short. Today, there’s some debate around whether Akhenaten is unfairly remembered, and whether we should instead view him as the world’s first individual. But, for the Egyptians at the time, his actions were enough for him to be branded an unbridled heretic. So much so that his name was almost written out of history completely, in a bid to forget what was considered the worst of times.

#1: Ramesses II

As is becoming clear, the legacies of the Egyptian pharaohs are very rarely so straight forward as to deem any of them simply good or bad. But, with Ramesses II, we have one of the most divisive figures of all. He’s also remembered as Ramesses the Great, thanks to his long, 66-year reign, during which the New Kingdom of Egypt enjoyed a steady period of power and success. To achieve that, though, he was another who brutally enslaved his prisoners, and continually invaded as many others as he could. Only Thutmose III embarked on more military campaigns than Ramesses, who was again always successful. A hero to many, he was a tyrannical threat to many more. He’s also generally believed to be the crazed pharaoh as seen in the Bible’s Book of Exodus; a mark on his reputation that’s simply never rubbed off.

Which other pharaohs could have made this list? Which other stories of Ancient Egyptian rule frighten you half to death? Let us know in the comments.