Cleopatra VII Philopator who was born about 69 BC, is generally known as Cleopatra. She was the last pharaoh of Ancient Egypt, but she is most famous for her romantic relationships with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony.
Cleopatra was forced to marry her younger brother Ptolemy XIII when she was 11 years old. However, her husband/brother drowned during the Alexandrian War (47 B.C.). Then she was forced to marry another brother, Ptolemy XIV. This brother and his three counsellors then managed to have Cleopatra exiled from Egypt.
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| {1400 years ago, a terrible earthquake and a huge tsunami struck Egypt, near the coast of the great city of Alexandria and it sank the island of Antirhodos, where queen Cleopatra’s palace was located.} |
Intent on revenge, Cleopatra gathered together an army. However, at this time the country was going through upheaval, as Pompeius, the consul of Rome was murdered, and Julius Caesar became the Roman consul.
Wishing to gain entry to the palace and ally herself with Julius Caesar, Cleopatra had herself wrapped up inside a carpet and delivered to Julius Caesar himself, so she would avoid being killed by Ptolemy’s people.
The pair became lovers that very night, and in time, Cleopatra gave birth to Julius Caesar's son, Caesarion (little Caesar).
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| Cleopatra's husband and brother, Ptolemy XIV, died and Julius Caesar was assassinated on the 15 March 44 BC. |
In 41 BC, Cleopatra was summoned to Rome to meet Mark Antony, who perhaps, wanted her support in an intended war against the Parthians. Cleopatra supposedly arrived in Rome, on a barge, dressed as Venus. Mark Antony and Cleopatra then began a romantic affair and Cleopatra later gave birth to Mark Antony's twins.
Mark Antony married Cleopatra, while he was still married to the sister of Octavian (another member of the Second Triumvirate), which led to Octavian declaring war on both Mark Antony and Cleopatra. Mark Antony's armies, however, deserted him and joined with Octavian.
Mark Antony in his anguish cried out that Cleopatra had betrayed him. Fearful of Mark Antony, Cleopatra sent a message to him stating that she was dead. Upon hearing this, Mark Antony commits suicide by stabbing himself in the stomach with his sword. In her grief, on hearing of her lover's death, it is said by many historians that, Cleopatra killed herself by having an Egyptian cobra (an asp) bite her on the breast.
Interestingly, Cleopatra had tested many poisons on slaves to see if an attractive death could be managed and snake poison seemed to be about the best way to die and to preserve her beauty. Just in case her tongue was hanging out, or worse, a slave was on hand to clean up Cleopatra after her death.
Cleopatra's palace sunk into the waters off Alexandria due to earthquakes and tsunamis; lost until rediscovered by divers in the 1990s. The site is an archaeological treasure trove, brimming with riches and historical treasures.
Books To Read
Cleopatra: A Life, by Stacy Schiff. The Pulitzer Prize-winning author Stacy Schiff brings Cleopatra to life.
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| The Death of Cleopatra by Reginald Arthur (d. 1896) |
Books To Read
Cleopatra: A Life, by Stacy Schiff. The Pulitzer Prize-winning author Stacy Schiff brings Cleopatra to life.
