Hi my name is Jon and welcome to another edition of History Roadshow.
During her reign, which spanned 21 years from 51 BC to 30
BC, Cleopatra was destined to be the last queen of ancient Egypt.
Despite her charm and intelligence, it is said she was determined to hold on
to her position of power at all costs.
Today, she is just as well-known as she was in her own period of time,
but many details of her life remain a mystery.
While she was born in Egypt, Cleopatra's ancestors hail from Greece. The general Ptolemy served
under Alexander the Great, but he reigned in Egypt following Alexander's death in 323BC.
His dynasty would endure nearly 300 years.
Cleopatra would adopt Egyptian culture, despite the fact that she was not
a naturalised Egyptian citizen.
So we now look at the life of this extraordinary woman.
Please subscribe to the channel hit the bell to select all notifications
so you never miss any of our videos and with that said, lets begin todays story.
Cleopatra was born in 69BC, and her father was Ptolemy
XII, Pharaoh of Egypt; when her father died, her younger brother Tolemy
XIII ascended to the throne, and wielded
an iron fist when he was in charge.
Cleopatra was so terrified of him that she fled the country
to Syria, where she planned to raise an army and fight for the throne.
In those days, incest was the norm, and it was thought to be the best way to preserve royal blood.
It was reported that many of Cleopatra's cousins
and siblings were married because they were aware that their parents were brother's and sister's.
Cleopatra was not an exception to this rule.
During her reign, she would tie the knot with two of her brothers, both of whom served as co-regent.
Her intellect, combined with her ability to communicate in at least a dozen
languages, could have played a significant role in securing much of her power.
In later Egyptian sources, it was stated that she elevated the status
of scholars and enjoyed the company of these individuals.
Plutarch, an ancient Greek writer, wrote that Cleopatra's melodious voice and irresistible
charm would win over subjects, despite her appearance being less than ideal.
History tells us that Cleopatra was a beautiful woman, but was this really the case?
Coins depicting her shown a large crooked nose.
Yet She was painted as a temptress who utilised sex as a political weapon, while others wielded swords.
During this time period, Julius Caesar was the Roman leader.
He travelled to Egypt in an attempt to halt the war, but he was also interested
in Egypt's vast wealth and resources.
It was a sort of showdown, and Cleopatra was torn between wanting to help him and not wanting to
because she knew she'd never be able to regain control over her brother without his assistance.
Described as a goddess by some, Cleopatra used every attribute
she possessed to stage her entrance and win over potential allies.
When conflict erupted between her brother and Ceasar, she would smuggle herself
into the Emperor's quarters by wrapping herself in a carpet.
Cleopatra captivated Ceasar to the point where the two fell in love.
Cleopatra was made Queen and her brother King by Julius Caesar in 48 BC,
but it was inevitable that a civil war would erupt between the two family factions.
As a result of Caesar's victory over Ptolemy, Cleopatra became Egypt's new ruler.
Before returning to Rome in 47BC, Caesar spent nearly a year with Cleopatra in Egypt.
Cleopatra gave birth to a son named Ptolemy Caesar only a few months later,
raising the possibility that he was Caesar's biological child.
Cleopatra travelled to Rome with her son in 46BC, but two years later,
Caesar was assassinated, and both mother and son were forced to return to Egypt.
It was a good sign for Cleopatra that Mark Anthony had taken control of the Roman Empire by 42 BC.
She was well aware that, as allies, both countries had the potential
to become destructive powers when combined.
Cleopatra returned to Rome for the second time in 41BC,
and this time she did so with great success and showmanship, demonstrating her dominance.
The goddess-like attire she wore was breathtaking so much so that Romans were inspired
to copy her fashion to the point it became trendy to dress in her style.
To spice things up for her meeting with Mark Anthony, Cleopatra would dress as Aphrodite
and arrive on the scene in a golden barge with purple sails and silver oars.
With Anthony waiting in the wings and thinking of himself as a god, yet
they gradually found their perfect place in each other's heavenly arms.
Anthony and Cleopatra fell in love; they lived in her palace
in Alexandria and had three children together
over the course of time.
They were well-to-do and well-known, with many extravagances and a penchant
for throwing lavish parties and hosting high-profile events.
Trouble was beginning to brew in Rome.
An individual by the name of Octavian desired Anthony's power; he claimed that Cleopatra wished
Rome for herself; his strategy was successful, and the populace began to turn against her.
With the help of propaganda, Octavian managed to turn Rome against Anthony and his seductress.
Eventually, the Roman Senate declared war on Egypt, with the final battle taking place at Actium,
a naval battle in which the ships of Octavian's fleet were able to match the ships
of Cleopatra's and Anthony's.
Despite this, the Romans routed them, and the couple fled to Egypt.
However, in 30 BC, Octavian conquered the city.
Anthony, believing Cleopatra was dead, committed suicide, but Cleopatra was still alive
and dreaded the prospect of being returned to Rome as a prisoner.
It was at this point, according to legend, that
she was bitten by an asp, a poisonous snake, which would prove fatal.
While her death in this manner has never been confirmed, it does leave us with other possibilities.
She ruled her country for 21 years, was unbelievably wealthy and renowned
throughout the eastern world, and yet she lost her beloved Egypt to Rome.
Her death is still a mystery; the snake bite is the one that stands out in people's minds, but others
believe she poisoned herself by concealing the poison in an open comb that she wore in her hair.
The third possibility is that Octavian was the one who murdered the Queen.
Although they were well-known within Egypt, the vast
majority of Egyptian royalty was virtually unknown outside of their homeland.
The hieroglyphic script was lost, as were the stories of the Egyptian Queens,
whose tombs had been covered over, by the sands of time.
On the other hand, Cleopatra's legacy could not be erased
because she lived during a time when literacy was widespread,
and her actions had a long-lasting impact on the development of the Roman Empire.
In order to support his claim to power, Octavian (the future Emperor Augustus) insisted
that Roman history be written in a manner that supported his claim to power.
As a means of accomplishing this, he published his own autobiography
and ordered the destruction of all of Rome's official records pertaining to his actions.
It was decided to include Cleopatra's story alongside his own
because of her importance in his rise to power.
Despite this, it was condensed down to just two episodes:
Julius Caesar and Mark Antony's interactions with the Queen of Egypt.
Cleopatra would be remembered only
as an immoral foreign woman who seduced moral Romans
as a result of her political downfall.
In turn, she served as an effective adversary for Octavian, who preferred
to be remembered for his victories against foreigners rather than his triumphs against other Romans.