“Then pretend I am a man,” Hatshepsut said. And she started to wear men’s clothing. Whenever she sat on the throne, she even put on a false beard. Hatshepsut was so determined to be pharaoh that the Egyptians finally agreed to have her as their ruler. For over twenty years, Hatshepsut ruled Egypt—a queen pretending to be a king. She didn’t fight any wars, but she did lead expeditions into Africa. There, she bought gold, incense, monkeys, elephants, and other things that the Egyptian people loved. She built more monuments than any other Egyptian queen. She ruled over the Egyptians until her
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