Hatshepsut.

Egyptian queen (r. c. 1503-1482 b.c.e.). Hatshepsut (hat-SHEHP-sewt), or Hatshopsitu, was the daughter of Thutmose I and his consort (the Egyptian title was “great royal wife”) Ahmose. Little is known of Hatshepsut’s early life. Although Thutmose I was the third king of the powerful Eighteenth Dynasty, he was probably not of royal blood on his mother’s side; the princess Ahmose, however, was of the highest rank. During the period in Egyptian history known as the New Kingdom (from the Eighteenth to the Twentieth Dynasty; c. 1570-c. 1069 b.c.e.), royal women began to play a more active role in political affairs. Among her titles, the pharaoh’s chief wife was called the “divine consort of Amen” (Amen was one of the principal Theban deities). Being the wife of a god increased her status, and her children were given a certain precedence over the children of minor wives or concubines.