Editing Thutmose II (section)

==Family==
{{see also|Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt family tree}}
The name Thutmose II is read as '''Thutmosis''' or '''Tuthmosis II''', '''Thothmes''' in older history works in Latinized Greek, and derives from [[Egyptian language|Ancient Egyptian]]: /''ḏḥwty.ms''/ '''''Djehutymes''''', meaning "[[Thoth]] is born".

Thutmose II was the son of [[Thutmose I]] and his minor wife, [[Mutnofret]], who was probably a daughter of [[Ahmose I]].<ref>Dodson & Hilton 2004: 126, 131</ref> He was, therefore, a lesser son of Thutmose I and chose to marry his fully royal half-sister, [[Hatshepsut]], in order to secure his kingship. Because Mutnofret was a princess and Thutmose I was common born, they most likely married only after Thutmose became king,<ref>Cooney, Kara (2016). ''Hatszepsut. Kobieta która została królem'' [''The Woman Who Would be King''] (in Polish). WAB. p.&nbsp;8. {{ISBN|978-83-280-2771-8}}.</ref> hence their son would be born after his father's coronation, and probably after his half-sister Hatshepsut, who was the pharaoh's daughter by his primary wife.<ref>Cooney, Kara (2016). ''Hatszepsut. Kobieta która została królem'' [''The Woman Who Would be King''] (in Polish). WAB. p.&nbsp;95. note 6. {{ISBN|978-83-280-2771-8}}.</ref> That would mean Thutmose II was in his early teens when he became pharaoh himself. While he successfully put down rebellions in [[Nubia]] and the [[Levant]] and defeated a group of [[nomads|nomadic]] [[Bedouins]], these campaigns were specifically carried out by the king's generals, and not by Thutmose II himself.<ref>Nadig, Peter (2016). ''Hatszepsut'' (in Polish). Prószyński i S-ka. p. 100. {{ISBN|978-83-8069-417-0}}.</ref> This is often interpreted as evidence that Thutmose II was still a minor at his accession.

Thutmose II fathered [[Neferure]] with Hatshepsut, and [[Thutmose III of Egypt|Thutmose III]], by a lesser wife named [[Iset (queen)|Iset]].<ref>Cooney, Kara (2016). ''Hatszepsut. Kobieta która została królem'' [''The Woman Who Would be King''] (in Polish). WAB. pp. 101, 120 & 122. {{ISBN|978-83-280-2771-8}}.</ref>

Some archaeologists believe that Hatshepsut was the real power behind the throne during Thutmose II's rule because of the similar domestic and foreign policies that were later pursued under her reign and because of her claim that she was her father's intended heir. She is depicted in several raised relief scenes from a Karnak gateway dating to Thutmose II's reign both together with her husband and alone.<ref>{{cite book |author=Betsy Bryan |chapter=The 18th Dynasty before the Amarna Period |title=The Oxford History of Ancient Egypt |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2000 |page=236}}</ref> She later had herself crowned pharaoh several years into the rule of her husband's young successor Thutmose III; this is confirmed by the fact that "the queen's agents actually replaced the king's name in a few places with her own cartouches" on the gateway.<ref name="Betsy Bryan, p.236">Betsy Bryan, p. 236</ref>

If Thutmose II had indeed been born after his father's coronation, he would either have been in his early teens (short reign) or early twenties (long reign) upon his death.