Cleopatra: The Last Queen of Egypt

 Cleopatra VII was born into the Ptolemaic Dynasty, a dynasty of Macedonian origins that was descended from Ptolemy, one of the generals of Alexander the Great. This dynasty had taken over rulership over Egypt following the death of Alexander in the 4^th century BC and had been well established in their new home for centuries (Roller 15). Cleopatra was a unique individual for her time because she not only became the first and only female ruler of the dynasty, but she also forged alliances of political convenience with such prominent Romans as Julius Caesar and Mark Anthony that saw her hold onto power in Egypt until her death in 30 BC.

When her father, Ptolemy XII died in 51 BC, he left his throne to Cleopatra and her brother Ptolemy XIII, who were 18 and 10 respectively. The years of their join rule saw Egypt undergo a number of crises including floods and famine as well as economic problems (Roller 53). Furthermore, political problems developed between the siblings as the two ended up establishing their own factions at court. However, because Ptolemy XIII had greater support, he was able to ensure that he established greater dominance, resulting in a scenario where Cleopatra was forced to flee to Syria. In Syria, she assembled an army that was intended to defeat that of her brother and secure her the throne. She returned with the army and faced off against her brother at Pelusium in 48 BC, although the battle seems to have ended in a stalemate (Roller 59). This significance of this period can be described as showing the considerable ambition that was displayed by Cleopatra as she fought to gain a throne that had previously never been held by a woman in her own dynasty. It suggests that she saw herself as having been a more competent ruler than her younger brother and was willing to take on decisive action as a means of ensuring that her ambitions were brought to fruition.

The timely intervention of Julius Caesar in the conflict proved critical for Cleopatra. This is because as she was presiding over a civil war with her brother, there was a civil war between two of Rome’s greatest generals of the time, Pompey and Caesar. When Pompey sought refuge in Egypt, he ended up being killed on the orders of Ptolemy XIII (Clauss 1). Caesar, in pursuit of Pompey, eventually came to Egypt, and it was here that he met and began a romantic relationship with Cleopatra. Cleopatra took advantage of the situation by essentially persuading Caesar to fight for her cause, which resulted in his providing his military might as well as skills as a general to not only gain victory over her brother at the Battle of the Nile, but also secure for herself the throne of Egypt. In this way, Cleopatra became the sole ruler of Egypt and to further secure her position, made sure to continue her relationship with Caesar. She thus tied her fate and the fate of her kingdom to that of Caesar and by extension, to Rome because it seems that Roman influence in Egypt began during this time and would continue for centuries after.

Cleopatra’s relationship with Caesar ensured that her position on the Egyptian throne was secured. She therefore followed Caesar to Rome and only returned to Egypt following his assassination. She would later give birth to Caesar’s son, Ptolemy XV Caesar, better known as Caesarion, in 47 BC and when she returned to Egypt had him made her co-ruler. It seems that Cleopatra, following Caesar’s death, felt that she was not secure enough and because of this, when Mark Anthony called on her to answer questions concerning Caesar’s assassination, she readily accepted and would soon begin a romantic relationship with him (Brown 66). While Anthony saw an opportunity in Cleopatra to have the military and financial support to gain the Roman state for himself, she saw in him an opportunity to not only secure herself in Egypt against his rival, Gaius Octavius, Caesar’s great nephew, but also a means of regaining the eastern Egyptian Empire that encompassed parts of Syria and Lebanon. Through this relationship, Cleopatra would end up having three of Anthony’s children, including Alexander Helios and Cleopatra Selene II, who were twins, and Ptolemy Philadelphus. Anthony and Cleopatra planned to ensure that their children would end up ruling the eastern parts of the Roman state as well as Persia, which they intended to conquer (Strootman 1).

However, the rivalry between Mark Anthony and Octavian over control of the Roman state would prove to be Cleopatra’s downfall. This is especially the case when one considers that she had hoped to have her son, Caesarion, succeed Caesar as ruler of the Roman state prior to the latter’s untimely death. Moreover, she continued to push the claim that Caesarion was his father’s legitimate heir and not Octavian (Eidinow 263); a factor that was not viewed favorably by the latter. Thus, when Octavian handed Anthony a crushing defeat, he committed suicide, believing that Cleopatra herself was also dead. However, Cleopatra herself was alive and she also committed suicide by having herself bitten by an asp; the truth of which will never been known because of the suspicious circumstances under which the events took place. Cleopatra and Anthony were buried in a yet to be discovered location and soon after, Octavian completed the conquest of Egypt and its integration into the Roman Empire. Caesarion, on the other hand, was drowned in the Nile on the orders of Octavian because despite Caesar not having officially acknowledged him as his son (Roller 70), he was still the main rival that he had following the death of Anthony. In this way, Cleopatra’s and her dynasty’s rule over Egypt came to an end.

In conclusion, the legacy of Cleopatra is one that has remained quite prominent, especially in Western culture. This is because it was one that was unique for her time since she proved herself to be an ambitious individual who ended up not only gaining the throne, which would have normally have remained in the hands of her brother as the real power, but she also read the current regional political situation and took advantage of it. This is the reason why apart from making use of her own efforts, as seen when she raised an army in Syria, she was able to forge alliances with the powerful Romans, first with Caesar and later with Anthony and in the course of her actions essentially managed to change history. Her tragic end does not disqualify her achievements and it is for this reason that she continues to be remembered in the modern world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

Brown, John Russell. Antony and Cleopatra. Macmillan, 1968. Print.

Clauss, Manfred. "Cleopatra Vii." The Encyclopedia of Ancient History  (2013). Print.

Eidinow, John SC. "Dido, Aeneas, and Iulus: Heirship and Obligation in" Aeneid" 4." The Classical Quarterly 53.1 (2003): 260-67. Print.

Roller, Duane W. Cleopatra: A Biography. Oxford University Press, 2010. Print.

Strootman, Rolf. "Queen of Kings: Cleopatra Vii and the Donations of Alexandria."  (2010). Print.