Every civilization is built upon rules and regulations. In ancient Egypt, the government was dominated by a single figure, the Pharaoh, who was considered the divine representative of gods on earth. 31 He was the supreme ruler and owned all of Egypt, the land and all the people who lived there. 32 There was a hierarchy of rulers and leaders below him who ran different aspects of the government. The primary leader under the Pharaoh was named the vizier. The vizier was the “right-hand man” of the Pharaoh and had a status equivalent to that of a prime minister. 33 They ruled over an area of land called a nome. A nome was like a state or province. Other officials that reported to the Pharaoh were the army commander, chief treasurer, and the minister of public works. Since government and religion were inseparable in ancient Egypt, many of the officials were also priests and holy men. This group had a special status above the rest of the citizens, forming a kind of nobility. 34 In the several-thousand-year span of Egyptian history, the general method of governing was quite consistent. 35 The consistency of this governing system is what allowed Egypt to remain a prominent country for such a long time. (A) Under the vizier were local governors called nomarks. (B) The Pharaoh, however, could not run the government all by himself. (C) As a living god, the Pharaoh was given absolute control over his subjects. (D) Governors of specific pieces of land were sometimes controlled by the vizier. (E) It only changed when parts of Egypt were invaded or someone overthrew the government. (F) Together with the Pharaoh, the viziers, and the nomarks, these officials and nobles governed the country.
