The Ahmose dynasty of pharaohs would rise to defeat Egypt's occupiers to the north and south. In the process they created a New Kingdom, one that would far surpass any previous Egyptian civilization. Hatshepsut, the first female pharaoh, is one of the Ahmose rulers and the first recorded female ruler in history.

Art, technology, and new ideas enhance the wealth of the new empire, and diplomacy and military conquest ensure a firm grip on power. However, sun-worshiping pharaohs such as the royal couple Akhenaten and Nefertiti, and the inexperienced boy-king Tutankhamen, take the empire into uncharted waters.