Cleopatra VII - part 3
Jan 16th, 2007 by Lee (admin)
The Alexandrian War began when Pothinus called for Ptolemy XIII’s soldiers in November and surrounded Caesar in Alexandria with 20000 men. During this war, parts of the Library of Alexandria were burned. However, Caesar managed to capture the great Pharos lighthouse, allowing him, vitally, to retain control of the harbour.
Cleopatra’s sister, Arsinoe, escaped from the palace and ran to Achillas. She was proclaimed queen by the Macedonian mob and the army. Cleopatra would never forgive her sister for this action.
During the fighting, Caesar executed Pothinus, and Achillas was murdered by Ganymede. Ptolemy XIII drowned in the Nile whilst attempting to flee. Following Ptolemy’s death, Cleopatra became sole ruler of Egypt.
Caesar restored her position, but she now had to marry her younger brother Ptolemy XIV, who was 11 years old, in order to appease the Egyptian priests and the local populace.
Caesar almost certainly helped Cleopatra out of a combination of infatutation for her and greed for the resources Egypt could offer him. However, Cleopatra had intelligence and inheritance on her side. In what must have been a very calculated move on his part, she became pregnant rather quickly. For Caesar to be father of the legitimate successor to the rule of Egypt would have been very important and would have improved his standing with the population.
Caesar and Cleopatra took an extended trip up the Nile for about two months. They stopped in Dendara where Cleopatra was worshipped as a Pharaoh. Caesar would never have this honor.
Caesar only left the boat to attend important business in Syria just a few weeks before the birth of their son, Caesarion (Ptolemy Caesar) who was born on June 23, 47 BC. During July of the year 46 BC, Caesar returned to Rome. He was given many honors and began a 10 year dictatorship.
These celebrations lasted from September to October and during this time he brought Cleopatra to the capital. The Romans were highly offended when he established Cleopatra in his home. Her social manners did not make the situation any better and she upset many. Caesar openly claimed Caesarion as his son and the people were also upset that he planned to marry Cleopatra despite their laws forbidding bigamy and marriages to foreign nationals.
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[...] Part 3 [...]
[...] Part 3 [...]