![]() ![]() Octavian told the Roman people that Cleopatra cast a spell on Antony and argued that Antony was willing to give away the Roman world to a foreign woman. Antony hoped to oust Octavian and rule both Rome and Egypt with Cleopatra, but Octavian used their relationship to his advantage. Antony and Cleopatra fell in love and had three children together. The Egyptian queen so charmed Antony that he moved to Alexandria to be with her.Ĭleopatra regained sole control of Egypt after the mysterious poisoning of Ptolemy XIV. In 41BCE, Antony summoned Cleopatra to answer questions about her loyalty. Octavian remained in Rome while Antony took control of the empire’s eastern provinces. Octavian and Marc Antony formed the Second Triumvirate with a third general named Lepidus. As a result, Octavian and Marc Antony agreed to an uneasy truce Marc Antony married Octavian’s sister to seal the alliance. Octavian raised an army of soldiers who were loyal to Julius Caesar, plunging Rome into months of turmoil. Octavian came to Rome to claim his inheritance, but Marc Antony dismissed the young heir. Octavian instantly became one of the wealthiest men in Rome, but even more important, Roman law allowed Octavian to call himself Caesar. Despite having met only once, Caesar’s will decreed that Octavian be treated as his son. An heir is someone who inherits a title or possessions. The dictator’s will named Octavian, his eighteen-year-old grandnephew, as his heir. Caesar’s most trusted general-Marc Antony–took control of Rome, but Caesar had a surprise for everyone. Further, both Caesar and Cleopatra were married to other people.Īdvertisement Caesar’s murder in 44BCE plunged Rome back into civil war. Caesar was popular with the Roman people, but the presence of a foreign woman in Rome was a scandal. Shortly after Caesar returned to Rome, Cleopatra and Caesarion came to visit, staying in one of Caesar’s country homes. When Caesar unraveled his gift, he found the former queen. Cleopatra arranged to smuggle herself into Caesar’s suite wrapped in an ornamental carpet. When Cleopatra learned Caesar was in Egypt, she saw an opportunity to return to power. The pair were to rule Egypt together both as brother and sister and as husband and wife, but Ptolemy XIII seized power and forced his older sister from the throne. ![]() King Ptolemy XII had willed his throne both to his ten-year-old son, Ptolemy XIII, and his eighteen-year-old daughter, Cleopatra. While in Egypt, Caesar found himself in the middle of a family feud. ![]() In Egypt, the ten-year-old Ptolemy XIII presented Caesar with the decapitated head of Pompey. Caesar chased Pompey first to Spain, then to Greece and finally in 47BCE to Egypt. Julius Caesar arrived in Egypt in pursuit of a rival general named Pompey. Ptolemy was a general who took control of the ancient land upon the death of Alexander the Great. By the time of Caesar’s death, the Greek-speaking Ptolemy family had ruled Egypt for more than 275 years. ![]()
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