RAMESES, or RAMSES, the name of several Egyptian monarchs; the name signifies "born of the sun," or the "nas cent sun." The family is supposed to have been of Theban origin, and to have been descended from one of the later queens of the 18th dynasty. According to the Roman authors Troy was taken in the reign of Rameses II. He is the sup posed Sesostris of most authors, and his sarcophagus and mummy were found in Egypt in 1890. Rameses III. was the chief of the 20th dynasty, the Rhamp sinitus of Herodotus, called Meriamoun, or beloved of Ammon, who defeated the Philistines, the Mashuash, and the Lib yans, carrying on important wars from the 5th to the 12th year of his reign; he also made conquests in the 16th, and seems to have reigned 55 more years. He founded the magnificent pile of edi fices of Medinat Habu, embellished Luxo.., Gurnah, and other parts of Egypt. In 1889 the sarcophagus and mummies of himself and his queen were discovered in Egypt in a marvelous state of preser vation. Rameses IV. reigned a short
time and performed no distinguished ac tions. Rameses V., of whom inscriptions are found in Silsilis. Rameses VI., whose tomb at the Biban-El-Meluk con tains some astronomical records, from which the date of his reign has been cal culated at 1240 B. C. Rameses VII. VIII., IX., X., and XI., undistinguished monarchs. Rameses XII., who reigned above 33 years, in whose reign the statue of the god Chons was sent from Egypt to the land of the Bakhten to cure a princess of the royal family of that court with which Rameses had contracted an alliance. Rameses XIII. was an impor tant monarch. Rameses TS also the name of one of the fortresses or treasure cities built by the Hebrews during their residence in Egypt.