The Middle Kingdom was firmly established in Dynasty XI as King Mentuhotep II (c.2066 - 2014 BC) triumphed over his Lower Kingdom rivals. He became the most stable ruler of a united Egypt since the days of Pepy  II, reigning for a long 52 years..He tended to favor the Upper Kingdom lands where he was from originally. He did most of his building in the south and kept his capitol at Thebes.

The kings following Mentuhotep II inherited  a peaceful state and so built up the constructs of peace - strengthing public works, raising public confidence, and fortifiying the borders. With the passing to a new dynasty, Dynasty XII, the kings even took to recovering lost land during the troubled times of the First Intermediate Period. The first really ambitious campaign of expansion being taken on by Sestrosis III (c.1881 - 1840 BC) who pushed into Nubia and Palistine as far as Schechem. Yet war was still the exception and not the rule - at least not concerning the Asiatics. Evidence of greatly expanded trade with the Middle East is shown in the reign of Sestrosis III. In order to more centralize the government and to be more accessible to the new foreign interaction with Palistine/Syria region, the capitol was moved to Lisht, just south of Memphis  near the Delta.

It is also important to note that it is under the reign of Sestrosis III that a real loss of power is evident among the local chieftans, who exhibited unheard of freedom since the First Intermediate Period. This was done due to a reorganization of the king's government into a more centralized and streamlined state, as well as a more firm and direct handling by the king's goverment.

It is after this time that Asiatic names first appear in the King's Lists showing a general rise in the political and social level of the Asiatics.

The prosperous time of the Middle Kingdom came to an end with the onslaught of the Hyksos around 1650 BC. They poured into the Delta region from the east and soon controlled most of Egypt.

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