Mentuhotep II reunites Egypt
A Theban king ends the turmoil and opens the Middle Kingdom
Around 2040 BC the Theban king Mentuhotep II defeated his rivals at Herakleopolis and reunited Egypt after a century and a half of division. Thebes became the capital, and his mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahari later served as a model for Hatshepsut's.