I've seen various opinions regarding which pharoah is the pharoah of the exodus, Ramses II, Ramses III, Horemheb, Thutmose III, and King Tut. Anyone from the kollel a shtikel history buff and have an opinion?
Menachem Weiman, St. Louis, United States
Not very knowledgeable on this but I'll try. According to Jewish chronology, the exodus occurred in 2448 which is 1312 BC. This would be prior to Rameses II who ruled in the years 1279-1213 BC. However it could be Horemheb who ruled in the period prior to the exodus. He ascended to the throne after Tutenkhamen (Tut) who died young and without children also during this period. Prior to them a king named Ay ruled for a brief period but these kings did not initiate the labor although they may have exacerbated the situation of Am Yisrael.
One of the more interesting theories is that the Pharaoh at the time of the exodus was Thutmose II, who according to Wikipedia "had a brief, prosperous reign and then a sudden collapse with no son to succeed him." ("Behold, I will kill your firstborn son" (Exodus 4:23)). Also, his mummy is the only one discovered which contains cysts, which may have been the result of the plagues of lice or of boils.
Yoel Domb