Ramesses II ruled Egypt for sixty-six years, fathered over a hundred children, and built more monuments to himself than any pharaoh in history. He fought the Battle of Kadesh against the Hittites to a draw and then carved it onto every temple wall as a magnificent victory. He was ancient Egypt’s greatest self-promoter — a pharaoh who understood that controlling the narrative mattered more than controlling the battlefield.

This episode traces Ramesses from his military youth through the Battle of Kadesh and its propaganda aftermath, the Abu Simbel temple complex, and the extraordinary longevity that let him outlive his own legend.

• Ramesses’s military training and the early campaigns that established his warrior reputation
• The Battle of Kadesh — a tactical draw that Ramesses carved as a great victory on every wall
• Abu Simbel, the Ramesseum, and the building program that made him omnipresent across Egypt
• His ninety-year lifespan, over a hundred children, and the mummy that traveled to Paris on a passport