Cleopatra VII the Last of the Great Macedonian Monarchs
Другие записи: День 2010.11.06, Точное время 11:23:00 | Техническая информация | Вместо молескина. | Конец жизни 2182
Cleopatra VII, one of five siblings, was born in 69 BC. After her father Ptolemy XII Auletes died in 51 BC, she, along with her twelve-year old brother Ptolemy XIII, became co-regent of Egypt. By the time of her rule, the Ptolemais had lost Cyprus, Coele-Syria and Cyrenaica. All that was left now was an impoverished Egypt, economically strapped and choked by its own bureaucracy. Her ancestors had left her a world suffering from famine and anarchy and crumbling all around. Cleopatra, however, was not discouraged and had dreams of great glories, the kind that would rival those of Alexander the Great.
This is the story of Cleopatra, the last of the Macedonian monarchs, not the Hollywood or Shakespearean version. Roman propaganda may have tarnished her reputation, Shakespeare may have brought her into the limelight and Hollywood may have made her world renowned but Cleopatra VII earned her own place in fame with her brilliance, wit and determination. As Plutarch puts it, “To know her was to be touched with an irresistible charm. Her form, coupled with the persuasiveness of her conversation, and her delightful style of behaviour - all these produced a blend of magic. Her delightful manner of speaking was such as to win the heart. Her voice was like a lyre…” (Pages 13-14, Ernle Bradford, Cleopatra, Hodder and Stoughton Ltd, London 1971).
The real Cleopatra was neither a raving beauty nor a voluptuary, as Hollywood would have us believe. She was passionate but never promiscuous and had the looks of a rather ordinary woman with a characteristic long Macedonian nose. She was good looking but not pretty. What she lacked in beauty, however, she more than made up for in intelligence, wit and charm.
Cleopatra was brilliant, strong-willed, quick-witted, and fluent in nine languages. She was also a mathematician and a shrewd businesswoman. She fought for her country and people and they in turn rose for her when all was lost. She had a charismatic personality, was a born leader and a very ambitious monarch. These traits, under better circumstances, would have placed her in the ranks equal to Alexander the Great. It has been said that Rome feared only two people, Hannibal and Cleopatra. She spoke Egyptian and was treated by her subjects like a living legend even after she passed on. For them she was the New Isis.
“Cleopatra was a queen. She was, as her handmaiden Charmion reminded the Romans who broke into the mausoleum where she lay dead ‘the descendant of so many kings’. The whole of her life was devoted to her country, Egypt, and to attempt to preserve its national sovereignty under the rule of the Ptolemaic dynasty to which she belonged. She was the seventh Egyptian queen of her name, but it is doubtful if she had any Egyptian blood in her veins. She was a Macedonian…” (Page 11, Ernle Bradford, Cleopatra, Hodder and Stoughton Ltd, London 1971).
Cleopatra’s reign could not have come at a worse time. Between 51 and 49 BC Egypt was suffering from drought and famine and civil war broke out in Italy. To make matters worse, in late summer of 51 BC, Cleopatra pushed out her young brother as co-ruler and decided to rule alone. Unfortunately, some powerful court officials in Alexandria did not agree with her actions and ousted her in favour of her brother. Deprived of her Egyptian supporters, Cleopatra went among the Arab tribes east of Pelusium and set about raising an army. At about the same time, 48 BC, Pompey was defeated by Caesar at Pharsalus and set course for Alexandria. Pompey was an ally and Senate appointed guardian of young Ptolemy XIII, relying on Egypt for support. With his defeat, however, he was no longer held in high esteem and young Ptolemy’s advisors were already warming up to Caesar. The moment Pompey set foot on the Alexandrian shore (September 28, 48 BC), Ptolemy’s advisors had him murdered, his head pickled and presented to Caesar. Even though Caesar was glad to see Pompey dead, he was appalled at the sight and the circumstances of his death.
Victorious, Caesar arrived in Alexandria on October 2, 48 BC with approximately three thousand legionaries and about eight hundred cavalry. He was accompanied by twelve lectors carrying the fasces, perhaps an indication of things to come. Ptolemy’s guardians may have been eager to welcome Roman dominance but the Macedonians were not and instantly began to riot. Ptolemy XIII was not there at the time was away at Pelusium defending his frontiers against Cleopatra. In his absence Caesar installed himself in the royal palace and began giving orders as if it was his own place. His victories against Pompey must have made him overconfident and coupled with his arrogance, made him careless.
Faced with exorbitant demands for financial assistance, which they were not prepared to meet, Ptolemy’s guardians recalled Ptolemy and his army to the court. Desperate not be left out of the talks Cleopatra had herself smuggled past the hostile lines, rolled up inside a carpet. She was delivered directly to Caesar at night by a Sicilian merchant. The following morning both Ptolemy and Cleopatra were summoned to attend a hearing before Caesar. By morning Caesar was very much captivated by Cleopatra’s charm, which was her plan all along. Ptolemy, on the other hand, was quick to grasp the situation and reacted by running out of the palace screaming that he had been betrayed by his sister. Backed by his advisor guardians, Ptolemy called out to the Alexandrian mobs informing them that Caesar was planning to make Cleopatra sole ruler of Egypt and a puppet to Rome, words that were sure to inflame the situation. Before the mobs had a chance to react Caesar’s guards brought Ptolemy back and Caesar himself went out and made a conciliatory speech to the crowds. When the unpleasantness was over, Caesar provisionally recognized both Ptolemy and Cleopatra as co-regents of Egypt. Additionally, he recognized Ptolemy XIV and sister Arsinoe joint co-rulers of Cyprus, even though Rome had annexed Cyprus ten years or so before. But all was not what it seemed.
No sooner had Caesar taken control of the situation than he reneged on most of his commitments. He even held Arsinoe in the palace under house arrest and would not allow her to depart for Cyprus. Meanwhile another high Roman official, Brutus from Rhodes (Caesar’s future assassin) was vigorously exploiting Cyprus. Being considerably pressed by the situation, one of Ptolemy’s guardians, Pothinus, decided to act. While Caesar enjoyed himself with lavish parties at the expense of the Alexandrians, Pothinus, in November 48 BC, summoned Ptolemy XIII’s twenty thousand veterans from Pelusium and had Alexandria blockaded. War soon broke out (Alexandrian War) and Caesar found himself in an embarrassing and lethal situation. In one instance, having to flee and avoid capture he had to swim a moat leaving behind his purple general’s cloak.
The war destroyed much of Alexandria including an important wing of the great Alexandrian library. Caesar fled and hid in the Pharos lighthouse and managed to secure access to the harbour. Arsinoe managed to escape from the palace and fled to general Achillas, one of Ptolemy XIII’s guardians. The Macedonian army promptly proclaimed her queen, an act that greatly disappointed her sister Cleopatra VII. Fighting continued all through the winter until February 47 BC, when Caesar managed to extend his control to Pharos Island and recaptured the Heptastadion mole. This opened the way for re-enforcements, reportedly on their way, to enter. For his treasonous act, Caesar had Pothinus executed and Ptolemy XIII turned over to his opponents, hoping to stir up trouble in Arsinoe’s camp.
On March 26th a mixed force of re-enforcements, led by Mithridates of Pergamon, arrived and rescued Caesar and his beleaguered legionaries. Ptolemy XIII fled in an attempt to escape but was captured and drowned in the Nile River. This opened the way for Cleopatra VII to return and take her rightful place as sole ruler of Egypt. To avoid complications she wisely chose to rule jointly with her eleven year-old brother, Ptolemy XIV. Arsinoe was captured, charged with high treason and placed under arrest.
After stabilizing Alexandria, Caesar did something unexpected. Instead of following the usual policy of making Egypt a province of Rome, he decided to make it his own kingdom. Perhaps he was thinking of starting his own dynasty when he sired a son with Cleopatra. This, however, could not have been strictly Caesar’s idea. Caesar’s plan, through his son, was to inherit the Ptolemaic throne and rule Egypt in the tradition of the Macedonians. Cleopatra’s plan, however, was somewhat different. She wanted a son with Caesar so that, for the sake of his son, Caesar would safeguard Cleopatra’s dynasty and protect Egypt from Rome. There was another added bonus, Cleopatra’s son, being the son of Caesar, would have access to Rome and with Cleopatra’s help might even have a chance at inheriting the Roman Empire. There is no doubt this was Cleopatra’s plan all along.
No sooner was the business at the palace concluded than Caesar and Cleopatra took a well- deserved vacation up the Nile River. Their vacation was briefly interrupted by pressing business in Syria but Caesar was back in good time to witness the birth of his son. Ptolemy Caesar known as Caesarion was born on June 23, 47 BC. A year after his son’s birth, Caesar decided it was time for him to return to Rome. He left Egypt in July of 46 BC alone and Cleopatra with Caesarion followed later. Caesar’s arrival was well celebrated in Rome and he was showered with honours for his African successes. A month or so later, Cleopatra and her entourage arrived and Caesar set them up at one of his townhouses. By giving Cleopatra his personal quarters Caesar wanted to return the hospitality he received from her in Alexandria. But that was not how the Romans saw it. Caesar’s compassion for these barbarians caused considerable offense among the conservative Republicans who looked down on them with disgust. The unpleasantness unfortunately turned to gossip when it was rumoured that Caesar was contemplating becoming a world emperor and a god, making Alexandria his second capital and Cleopatra his bigamous queen-goddess the New Isis.
In no time Rome was buzzing with gossip, private matters became public knowledge and all of it was filtering back to Cleopatra. Even Roman intellectuals could not help but make their chauvinistic feelings known. Her air of arrogance and marriage to her young brother was all disgusting and very un-Roman. To top it all, Caesar erected a golden statue of Cleopatra in the temple of Venus Genetrix and publicly claimed paternity to his son Caesarion. His actions were leading to one inescapable conclusion “he was going to marry the wretch”. Despite Roman laws against bigamy and marriages to foreigners, Caesar was actually going to marry Cleopatra. This, the Republicans found alarming but the Ides of March set their concerns to rest. In March of 44 BC Caesar was assassinated.
There are those who believe that Caesar, despite Roman disapproval, would have married Cleopatra if he had not been murdered. He would have made her empress of Rome and the Mediterranean world and would have established a Julian-Ptolemaic dynasty. Alexandria, not Rome, would have become the capital of the empire.
The Romans may have despised Cleopatra but there is no doubt that Cleopatra made a lasting impression on Caesar, who sired a son by her. He also adopted Egyptian irrigation schemes, the Egyptian solar calendar and even fashioned the Roman public libraries after the Alexandrian model. It was Cleopatra, among other things, who introduced the famous Alexandrian astronomer Sosigenes to Caesar and it was Sosigenes who reformed the Roman calendar which was to last until the sixteenth century when it was again reformed by Pope Gregory.
Two weeks after Caesar’s death his will was read and there was nothing in it for Caesarion or Cleopatra. Fearing for her life, Cleopatra left Rome in haste and returned to Alexandria.
During Cleopatra’s absence, life in Egypt had deteriorated even further. Public works projects were abandoned and the Nile canals were in need of repair. Famine and plagues were rampant due to poor harvests and neglect and social unrest was on the rise.
Upon her arrival in Alexandria, Cleopatra had her brother Ptolemy XIV assassinated and replaced him with her four year old son Caesarion as her new co-regent. She had Caesarion recognized by Caesar’s former lieutenant Dolabella. For his services Cleopatra gave Dolabella Caesar’s four legions, which were stationed in Egypt. No doubt she was anxious to get rid of them and this gave her the chance to do it. Dolabella, on the other hand, was grateful to her for giving him advantage over his opponents in the Roman Civil war that raged on between the Caesarians and the Republicans. Unfortunately, Dolabella’s legions were taken over by Cassius, his opponent, before they had a chance to reach him. Unable to accept his failure, Dolabella committed suicide in 43 BC.
While the Roman Civil war raged on, both sides where calling on Cleopatra for assistance but she kept pleading impoverishment through famine and plague. Clearly she was in favour of the Caesarians but would not commit for fear of choosing the losing side. After the two battles at Philippi in 42 BC, with the death of Brutus and Cassius, it became clear who would be the winners. Antony, Octavian and Lepidus were the men who came out triumphant and Cleopatra would now have to deal with them. Soon after the battle, Octavian became very ill and had to leave for Italy. After Octavian, it was clear that there was only one choice for Cleopatra and that would be Antony. All was not well with Antony and in 44 BC, during a brief period of supreme power, Antony had given Arsinoe, Cleopatra’s ambitious sister, rule of Cyprus. In 43 BC Cleopatra had taken it back. Obviously, Antony had given Arsinoe control of Cyprus to keep the balance of power in the region but now it was uncertain how Antony would react to Cleopatra’s move.
While awaiting Antony’s fate, Cleopatra received news that Caesar’s divinization was pronounced in Rome. On January 1st, 42 BC Caesar was officially made god and Octavian was proclaimed “Son of Divine Julius”. In Cleopatra’s estimation, this was good news for her son Caesarion as well.
