While Nubia didn't have very good farmland they did have a lot of minerals such as gold, granite, and other precious stones which they mined and exported. Their location was a valuable trading spot as many different resources flowed through and towards Egypt and the coast of the red sea. The people of nubia were skilled in trading and the making of pottery. Their archers were so good that they were hired by egyptian rulers to become police or soldiers. During the middle kingdom egypt invaded and conquared most of nubia.
When the middle kingdom fell Kush took its opertunity to grow and gained control of all of Nubia. Kushites then made an aliance with the Hyksos these were the invaders who ended the middle kingdom. When the Egyptians drove the Hyksos out of egypt they also took revenge on the Hyksos' allies. the Egyptians then invaded Kush destroyed it and claimed its land. after 400 years of Egyptian control the Kushites started to grow stronger. This was caused by the end of the reign of Ramses the great. in 1100 BC they were free from Egyptian rule, however they were still weak. Around 750 BC a new Kushite kingdom grew with the capitol being Napata. This new kingdom then expanded to the north. The leader that did this was Piankhi. at the end of Piankhi's rule the Kushites conquered all of Egypt, however they could only hold onto control for about a century. The Kushites took much of Egypt's culture such as mummification and pharaohs.
The new capitol of Kush was the city of Meroë’s. It was near two rivers and they had abundant amounts of iron which they used as a trading resource. When they moved they also created a new language. A decline in trade and raiders attacking trading routes weakened monroe as they relied heavily on trade. In about AD 350 Aksum raided and conquered Meroë.