Latest / Ramses the Great: Egypt's Most Powerful Pharaoh — Fexingo History / Ramses the Great's Sons: The Massive Tomb KV5 and Succession
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- Lucas: You know, Ramses II lived so long that he outlived most of his own children. He had over a hundred sons and daughters, but by the time he died at around ninety, only a handful were still alive. That created a real problem for the succession. Luna: Wait, over a hundred? How do we even know that? Lucas: We have lists from temples and tombs. At the Ramesseum, there are rows of prince statues, each named. And then there's the biggest clue: a massive tomb in the Valley of the Kings, called KV5, that was built for his sons. It has over a hundred and fifty chambers, maybe more. Luna: A tomb for his sons? That's incredible. Lucas: It was rediscovered in 1995 by Kent Weeks and his team. They thought it was just a small tomb, but then they kept finding more corridors and rooms. It's the largest tomb in the Valley, built specifically for the princes of Ramses. The walls still have scenes of Ramses presenting his sons to the gods. Luna: So who were these sons? Any names we know? Lucas: Absolutely. The firstborn was Amunherkhepeshef — his name means 'Amun is with his strong arm'. He was the crown prince for decades, but he died before his father. Then came Pareherwenemef, Meryatum, and a whole line. In fact, Ramses named his second son Ramses, and that one also died young. The sons kept dying, and Ramses kept naming new heirs. Luna: It sounds almost tragic. All those sons, and only one made it to the throne. Lucas: Exactly. The eventual successor was Merenptah, the thirteenth son. He was already in his sixties when he became pharaoh. But Ramses had also made his daughters powerful. Bintanath, for example, was a 'Great Royal Wife' — she married her own father, which was a way to consolidate the royal lineage. Luna: So the daughters played a role in keeping the dynasty going too. Lucas: Yes. And the sons who died early were not forgotten. Their names and titles were carved into KV5, and some of them had books of the dead prepared. It's a poignant glimpse into a family where so many children predeceased the patriarch. Luna: That really puts the human side of Ramses into focus. Lucas: It does. And you know, when you think about how much work went into preserving the names of those sons — building that enormous tomb, decorating it — it makes you realize how much Ramses cared about his legacy. And that ties into something: if you've been coming with us through these conversations about Kemet and its rulers, you probably appreciate the kind of deep research that goes into unearthing these stories. Luna: Yeah, it's amazing what we can learn. Lucas: We try to keep this show ad-free and listener-supported, and it really helps when people chip in. If you'd like to support the show, you can head to buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Every little bit helps us keep diving into details like the corridors of KV5. Luna: And it keeps the conversations going. Lucas: Exactly. So back to the tomb — KV5 is still being excavated. They think it might have over a hundred fifty chambers, but they've only fully cleared about twenty. There might be more to find. And in some of those chambers, they found fragments of canopic jars and shabti figures inscribed with the names of princes like Sety and Ramses. Luna: I wonder if they'll ever find any actual mummies in there. Lucas: That's the big question. The tomb was severely damaged in antiquity by flooding, and most of the burial goods were probably looted or destroyed. But even without mummies, the inscriptions give us a clear picture of the royal family. For instance, one chamber was dedicated to Ramses's firstborn son, Amunherkhepeshef, and it shows him being led into the afterlife by the god Ptah. Luna: So the sons had their own funerary cults within the tomb? Lucas: Yes. And it wasn't just sons — we also have evidence of daughters like Bintanath and Nebettawy being included in some of the chambers. The entire complex was a family necropolis underground. It shows how Ramses tried to keep his entire family close, even in death. Luna: But then why did Merenptah end up building his own tomb in a different part of the Valley? Lucas: That's a great question. Merenptah likely finished his father's reign and then started his own projects. He may have wanted to distance himself from the crowded KV5 complex. Or perhaps the tomb was already too water-damaged by then. In any case, Merenptah's tomb is in the main branch of the Valley, and it's a standard royal tomb. Luna: So the sons' tomb was more of a shared space, while the pharaoh himself got the grand solo tomb. Lucas: Right. And Ramses's own tomb, KV7, is huge but badly preserved. Unlike his sons, he had a more traditional burial. But the sons' tomb is unique in Egyptian history — there's no other example of a pharaoh dedicating such a massive structure to his children. Luna: It really emphasizes how many children he had and how important dynasty was. Lucas: Exactly. And it also gives us a timeline: many of the princes died before their father, which means Ramses had to constantly adjust his succession plans. That must have caused some tension at court, especially among the older sons who expected to rule. Luna: Was there any sign of rivalry or conspiracy? Lucas: Not that we have direct evidence for. But we know from texts that one of his later sons, Khaemwaset, was a high priest of Ptah and a beloved figure — he might have been considered a potential heir, but he also died before Ramses. Some scholars wonder if there were factions supporting different sons, but we can't be sure. Luna: So when Merenptah finally took over, there might have been a sense of relief or even pressure. Lucas: Probably both. And Merenptah turned out to be a capable ruler. He defended Egypt against invasions and even campaigned in Canaan. He was the one who erected the famous 'Israel Stele', which is the earliest known mention of Israel outside the Bible. Luna: So he left his own mark, despite being the thirteenth son. Lucas: He did. But the story of Ramses's sons really highlights how even the most powerful pharaoh couldn't control mortality. And their tomb is a monument to that: a vast, underground attempt to keep the family together for eternity. Luna: It's almost like a physical manifestation of his desire for immortality. Lucas: Exactly. And it's still revealing its secrets. Kent Weeks's team continues to work there, and new chambers are being found even now. Luna: I'd love to see a diagram of that tomb. Lucas: It's basically a labyrinth. The main corridor runs deep into the hill, with dozens of side chambers branching off. Some of them are unfinished, suggesting that the tomb was expanded over time as more sons died. It's a work in progress that mirrors Ramses's long reign. Luna: How many sons do we actually have names for? Lucas: We have about forty to fifty names from various sources, but there were certainly more. In KV5 alone, they've found inscriptions for at least twenty sons. Some names appear only there. It's a treasure trove of genealogical data. Luna: So it's rewriting what we know about the royal family. Lucas: Absolutely. Before KV5, we had scattered references. Now we can match names to specific chambers and see their titles. For example, Prince Ramses — the second son — is called 'General of the Army'. So they held real power. Luna: It sounds like Ramses was preparing them for rule. Lucas: He was, but fate had other plans. And that's the thing about Ramses's reign — it was so long that it forced the dynasty to adapt. In the end, Merenptah's own son Seti II had a short reign, and then the dynasty fizzled out within a couple of generations. The sons' tomb, KV5, remains as a kind of mausoleum for a golden age. Luna: A poignant end to a powerful story. Lucas: Yes, but it's also a testament to how far we can go back in time with archaeology. Every time we enter KV5, we're stepping into the private grief of a pharaoh. Luna: It makes you think about the human side of history.