Ancient Egypt was a civilization in eastern North Africa concentrated along the middle to lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern nation of Egypt. The civilization began around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh, and it developed over the next three millennia. Its history is divided into a series of stable periods, known as Kingdoms, that are separated by periods of relative instability known as Intermediate Periods. After the end of the last Kingdom, known as the New Kingdom, the civilization of ancient Egypt entered a period of slow, steady decline, during which Egypt was conquered by a succession of foreign powers. The rule of the pharaohs officially ended in 31 BC when the early Roman Empire conquered Egypt and made it a province.

The civilization of ancient Egypt thrived from adaptation to the conditions of the Nile River Valley. Controlled irrigation of the fertile valley produced surplus crops which fueled social development and culture. With resource to spare, the administration sponsored mineral exploitation of the valley and surrounding desert regions, the early development of an independent writing system, the organization of collective construction and agricultural projects, trade with surrounding regions, and a military that defeated foreign enemies and asserted Egyptian dominance. Motivating and organizing these activities was a bureaucracy of elite scribes, religious leaders, and administrators under the control of the divine pharaoh who ensured the cooperation and unity of the Egyptian people by means of an elaborate system of religious beliefs.

The many achievements of the ancient Egyptians include a system of mathematics, quarrying, surveying, and construction techniques which facilitated the building of monumental pyramids, temples, and obelisks, faience and glass technology, a practical and effective system of medicine, new forms of literature, irrigation systems and agricultural production techniques, and the earliest known peace treaty. Egypt left a lasting legacy: antiquities were moved and art and architecture copied all around the world, and monumental ruins have inspired the imaginations of tourists and writers for centuries. With the translation of hieroglyphs and a newfound respect for antiquities and excavations, the once-lost cultural heritage of the ancient Egyptians can once again be understood.