![[Relief_depicting_Akhenaton_and_Nefertiti_with_three_of_their_daughters_under_the_rays_of_Aton_01_(cropped).jpg]]
*Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and their children.*
The object of the battle had been control of the Mediterranean coast, which Egypt had lost during the problematic reign of [Akhenaten](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akhenaten) and [Nefertiti](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nefertiti), who had tried to shift the polytheistic Egyptian religious system to a monotheism focused on Aten (or Amun-Ra), the solar deity. Akhenaten and his queen (possibly co-pharaoh) Nefertiti ruled for about twenty years beginning 3,353 years ago, abandoning the traditional Egyptian capital Thebes and built a new city in the desert (now called Amarna). After Akhenaten's death, the crown passed to [Tutankhamun](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tutankhamun), who restored the worship of Amun and the rest of the Egyptian pantheon. Akhenaten's legacy was wiped out and his successors worked to restore territories lost during his reign.
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Next: [[4.23 - Sea Peoples]]
Back: [[4.21 - Battle of Kadesh]]