Cleopatra Last Of The Ptolemies Essay Research

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Cleopatra was the name of the seven queens of ancient Egypt+s Ptolemaic dynasty. The most famous, by far, was Cleopatra VII. Her extraordinary efforts to revive Ptolemic power through her forceful personality and political skill, and the romantic liaisons with prominent Romans that this policy involved, have been the subject of much literature, including Shakespeare+s Antony and Cleopatra, and in modern day movies and television. She is depicted as a playful, self centered political vixen of the ancient world. A brilliant strategist both politically and romantically, although one could make a strong argument that either one was the upshot of the other.

The most famous Jezebel in history, Cleopatra contrived to attain control of Egypt through her famed affair turned marriage to first Julius Caesar, and later to Mark Antony. Cleopatra made it clear early on that she had both a great understanding of the importance of powerful allies as well as a willingness (and ability) to attain them. The question that enters my mind is whether she used her charms to attain a husband, to attain ultimate political power, or she used her political power to enhance her charms, to attain the ultimate husband. I think both.

The daughter of Ptolemy XII, Cleopatra became joint ruler with her younger brother Ptolemy XIII in 51 BC, after the death of their father. Hoping to retain their father+s Roman allies, they supplied aid to the Roman general Pompey the Great. Growing increasingly suspicious of his sister Cleopatra, Ptolemy XIII expelled her from Egypt. During the next three years, however, Cleopatra raised an army and attacked the northeastern army of Pelusium. This escalated into a civil war in during which Pompey the Great was defeated in Greece by Julius Caesar, Pompey then sought refuge in Egypt where he was assassinated by Ptolemy XIII. After Caesar arrived at Alexandria with his army, Ptolemy and Cleopatra were briefly reconciled, but when the

armies of Ptolemy and Caesar took up arms and the king drowned in the Nile, Cleopatra was married to her other brother now Ptolemy XIV (c.59-44), but had also become Caesar+s mistress. Cleopatra followed Caesar to Rome, where she stayed with him until his assassination in 44 BC. I couldn+t find anything in the texts that say how Caesar+s wife took to the arrival of Cleopatra. However, during their time together Cleopatra gave birth to a son, Caesarion.

Returning to Egypt Cloepatra ordered Ptolemy XIV murdered, and ruled with her son by Caesar. In 41 BC she formed an alliance with Mark Antony, and later married him in 37 BC. From what I gather from the text, they were a very playful couple, and at times perhaps childish. This was possibly one element of their eventual downfall.

They planned to set up a vast kingdom to be inherited by her sons by Caesar and Antony. However, Augustus (at the time still Octavian) defeated Antony and Cleopatra in the Battle of Actium (31 BC) and pursued them to Egypt. Antony committed suicide. Cleopatra surrendered and sought to establish a relatiionship with Octavian. Failing, she killed herself in August 30 BC, allowing herself to be bitten by an asp, which was the royal symbol of ancient Egypt. Her son, King Ptolemy XV, was murdered, thus ending the Ptolemic dynasty and the most romanticised life in ancient history.