Egyptian pharaoh of the 18th dynasty (1379–1362 bc). The husband of Nefertiti, he came to the throne as Amenhotep IV, and after six years introduced the monotheistic solar cult of Aten, the Sun disc, with the king as sole intermediary, changing his name to Akhenaten. The capital of Egypt was moved from Thebes to his newly built city of Akhetaten (now Tell el‐Amarna). He was succeeded by his son‐in‐law, Tutankhamen, who abandoned the new religion early in his reign.