The Thirty-First Dynasty of Egypt
The Thirty-First Dynasty is the name given to the Persian kings who ruled Egypt for about eleven years, from around 343 to 332 BCE. This short time is also called the Second Persian Period. It follows the Thirtieth Dynasty, the last line of native Egyptian kings, and it ends when Alexander the Great enters Egypt. It was the final dynasty of the pharaonic age before the Ptolemies.
What was the Thirty-First Dynasty?
It was not a native Egyptian dynasty. The Egyptian priest Manetho, who wrote the first history of the pharaohs in the 3rd century BCE, listed the Persian kings as the Thirty-First Dynasty. Modern historians use the same number, but most prefer the name Second Persian Period. The first Persian rule of Egypt, from 525 to 404 BCE, is the 27th Dynasty.
How did it begin?
Egypt had been free of Persia since 404 BCE. Under the Thirtieth Dynasty, the kings Nectanebo I, Teos and Nectanebo II rebuilt temples and defended the borders. Persia tried to take Egypt back and failed around 351 BCE. A second, larger attack by King Artaxerxes III succeeded in about 343 BCE. Nectanebo II lost the war and fled south, probably to Nubia, and Egypt became part of the Persian Empire again.
The Persian kings of the Thirty-First Dynasty
- Artaxerxes III (about 343 to 338 BCE): the conqueror of Egypt. Greek writers, who were hostile to Persia, say he pulled down city walls and plundered temples.
- Arses (about 338 to 336 BCE): a short reign, mostly under the control of court officials.
- Darius III (about 336 to 332 BCE in Egypt): the last Persian king to rule Egypt. He held the rest of the Persian Empire until 330 BCE, but lost Egypt in 332.
The kings lived in Persia. Egypt was governed by a Persian satrap, or governor, from Memphis.
How did it end?
In 332 BCE Alexander the Great marched into Egypt. The Persian governor, Mazaces, surrendered at Memphis without a battle, and many Egyptians welcomed Alexander as a liberator. He made sacrifices to the Apis bull, founded the city of Alexandria in 331 BCE and visited the oracle of Amun at Siwa Oasis. After his death, his general Ptolemy took Egypt, and from about 305 BCE the Ptolemies ruled as the new pharaohs. Read about the whole era in our guide to the Late Dynastic Period.
What can you see today?
The Persian kings built little in Egypt, but the end of their rule left two places that visitors can see. Alexandria is the city Alexander founded in 331 BCE, and Siwa Oasis is where he consulted the oracle of Amun.
Frequently asked questions
When was the Thirty-First Dynasty?
From about 343 to 332 BCE.
Who ruled in the Thirty-First Dynasty?
The Persian kings Artaxerxes III, Arses and Darius III.
Was Nectanebo II a Thirty-First Dynasty king?
No. He was the last king of the Thirtieth Dynasty and the last native Egyptian pharaoh.
How did the Thirty-First Dynasty end?
Alexander the Great took Egypt from the Persians in 332 BCE.
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