According to many sources, the first real king of Egypt was Menes, who would have ruled Egypt around 3100 BC. There is no official historical proof so Menes might have been a combination of several rulers during that time.

Kings were not only males, but whether male or female, was always called king.

Below him/her were the layers of the educated bureaucracy which consisted of nobles, priests and civil servants, and under them were the great mass of common people, usually living very poor, agricultural based lives.

The king himself (or herself) was the figure upon whom the whole administrative structure of the state rested. These god-kings usually commanded tremendous resources. The Pharaoh was the head of the civil administration, the supreme warlord and the chief priest of every god in the kingdom. All offerings were made in his name and the entire priesthood acted in his stead. In fact, he was himself a divine being, considered the physical offspring of a god.