Rise of the Egyptian Middle Kingdom

After a century of fragmentation, Mentuhotep II reunited Egypt around 2055 BCE, but it was the Twelfth Dynasty (beginning c. 1985 BCE) that truly restored Egypt's power. Pharaohs like Senusret III expanded control deep into Nubia and built massive irrigation projects in the Fayum. This era produced some of Egypt's greatest literature, including the Story of Sinuhe.