It had now been approximately a year and a half since Caesar made the fateful decision
to cross the Rubicon.
In that time, he had forced the Optimate faction out of Italy and conquered the peninsula,
defeated the Republic’s best army in Spain, and had now defeated the Republic’s greatest
general, Pompey, at Pharsalus.
But Civil Wars, by their nature, demand a total victory, and Caesar still had a way
to go to accomplish this goal.
And, unfortunately for him, in this episode he will not take steps to finish the war,
but will be dragged into a civil war of another state.
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Throughout Caesar’s campaigns in Greece, he had continued to levy Legions elsewhere,
adding the 31st, 32nd, and 33rd to his ranks.
Following the Battle of Pharsalus, he also inducted some of Pompey’s surrendered men
into his army, making the 34th, 35th, 36th and 37th Legions.
Caesar, by this stage of the war, now had the numerical advantage, but the Optimate
faction still harboured some of the most influential politicians of the day; the war was far from
over.
Caesar’s first priority after the Battle of Pharsalus was Pompey himself.
He immediately left in pursuit, leaving Antony to oversee the political situation in Rome.
It was the time of year where the elections for next year’s consul would usually be
decided, and Caesar’s term as consul of the year 48BC would be coming to an end.
Caesar would entrust Antony with ensuring that his political power continued.
Having picked up on Pompey’s trail through informants in Asia Minor, Caesar pursued Pompey
to Egypt with a fleet of 10 Rhodian ships, as well as a few more from Asia Minor.
Onboard were two Legions, the 6th and 27th, totaling just around 3,200 infantry, as many
soldiers had been lost to war and illness over the years, and 800 cavalry.
Caesar only learned of his ex-triumvirs’ death upon his arrival in Alexandria at the
start of October 48BC, just a few days after Pompey’s death.
According to Plutarch and Cassius Dio when Caesar was first presented with Pompey’s
head, he turned away disgusted.
He was next presented the seal-ring of Pompey, at which point Caesar broke down in tears.
Both historians interpret this grief differently.
Plutarch claims that it was genuine; after all, though enemies in later life, Caesar
and Pompey had been political allies for around 8 years, had effectively ruled Rome together,
and had even been related by marriage.
Dio, on the other hand, claims that this grief was only for show and that Caesar had always
hated Pompey from the start.
It is impossible to say which is true.
However, it is likely that Caesar was incredibly frustrated at Pompey’s death.
Caesar had a genius for public relations; capturing Pompey, forcing him to renounce
the senate, and then pardoning him, as was Caesar’s habit, would have been the ultimate
coup de grace.
Instead, Pompey’s assassination made him a martyr for the Optimate cause, something
Caesar would have surely wished to avoid.
In Rome however, Antony was able to capitalise on the news of Pompey’s death.
Many in Rome had refused to believe that Pompey had been defeated, but upon being presented
with Pompey’s ring, which Caesar had sent to Rome, they finally accepted that the old
general had lost and was dead.
Rome now acclaimed Caesar as the victor, bestowing countless honours on him.
Seizing upon the situation, Antony labeled the Pompeiians in Africa as conspirators,
declared a national emergency, and that a Dictator was needed.
The man chosen to be a Dictator was, of course, Caesar.
Rather than the regular 6 months, his term as Dictator was also set at one year, running
through until October 47BC.
In return for his continued loyalty and effectiveness, Antony was named by Caesar as Master of Horse,
effectively his second-in-command, and was entrusted with the governance of Italy and
Rome in Caesar’s absence.
Many Optimate politicians, such as Gaius Cassius now returned to Rome and appealed for forgiveness
from Caesar - all were spared and welcomed into the new regime.
Cicero also returned to Rome and was forgiven.
He returned to the Senate where he hoped to use his influence to do what he could to preserve
the Republic.
With Caesar in Egypt now being Dictator, he decided to turn his attention to Roman interests
in the area, namely the rulership of the kingdom, and its debt to Rome.
As we have seen, Egypt was ruled by the boy pharaoh Ptolemy XIII.
The pharaoh’s father, Ptolemy XII, had made an alliance with Rome during Caesar’s tenure
as consul in 60BC.
Before his death, Ptolemy XII named his eldest son, Ptolemy XIII, and his eldest daughter,
Cleopatra VII, as co-rulers, with Rome as the guarantor of the will.
Tensions between the two sibling rulers quickly escalated, however, both raising armies against
each other.
Furthermore, both had inherited the debts of their father.
Ptolemy XII had borrowed huge sums of money from Rome throughout his life, and by his
death, there was still an unpaid debt of 17.5 million drachmae to the Republic, which constituted
approximately half of Egypt’s yearly revenue.
Caesar was badly in need of money to pay his growing armies and also saw an opportunity
to solidify Roman influence in the area.
As consul when the alliance with Egypt was first made, and the current Dictator Caesar
thought it his obligation to see that pro-Roman rule in Egypt was maintained, and that the
debt was paid.
Caesar first attempted to take a diplomatic approach, suggesting that Ptolemy and Cleopatra
both disband their armies and that he acts as an arbitrator to see their father’s will
fulfilled.
He also requested the debt be paid but was willing to reduce it to 10 million drachmae.
Ptolemy, though pharaoh by title, was still young and, as such, was being advised by a
council who effectively ruled Egypt through their regency.
Pothinus, a eunuch, was one of the most influential of these advisors.
It had been on his advice that Pompey had been assassinated as a ploy to curry favour
with Caesar.
Now, he opposed Caesar’s suggestions.
He saw Caesar’s arrival as a threat to the royal authority, and initially refused to
pay the debt.
He even went so far as to bring Ptolemies’ Royal Army into Alexandria under the command
of Achillas, one of Pompey’s killers.
This was clear defiance of Caesar’s demands that Ptolemies army be disbanded and, in response,
Caesar sent messengers to Cleopatra, perhaps thinking she would be able to better fulfill
his demands without requiring a regent.
Cleopatra decided to meet Caesar in secret within Alexandria.
Plutarch gives an extraordinary account of this meeting, in which Cleopatra, with the
help of her right-hand man Appolodorus, smuggles herself into the city in a bed sack, laundry
bag, or carpet.
Cassius Dio gives the much more reasonable account, that the two simply met in secret
with no reference to her being smuggled in.
Both sources, however, agree that Cleopatra was quickly able to seduce Caesar.
Cleopatra is described as being beautiful, charming, and above all, clever.
She was a brilliant orator, and could speak as many as eight languages, and was the first
Ptolemaic ruler to learn Egyptian.
Caesar immediately tried to reconcile the two monarchs, proclaiming them co-monarchs
and offering the island of Cyprus recently annexed from the Egyptians by Rome to the
other two siblings, Arsinoe and Ptolemy XIV, thus removing other potential claimants to
the Egyptian throne.
Pothinus, however, was not happy with this arrangement.
He was worried that, due to Cleopatra’s now very close relationship with Caesar, she
would be the more powerful of the two siblings, and that Pothinus would, as a result, lose
his influence.
He began stirring up unrest in the city, even having gold from the temples and royal treasury
melted down in a deliberate attempt to show Caesar as being extortionate.
With the situation worsening, Caesar sent emissaries to Achillas and the Egyptian army,
attempting to explain that he wanted only to be an arbitrator of the will, as was his
legal right.
These emissaries were killed on Achillas orders.
The message was clear; a fight was imminent.
Caesar was aware that he did not have enough men to fight in the open, only having the
4,000 he had brought from Greece.
Instead, he ordered his men to seize the royal quarters where he had been housed.
Within these quarters were Cleopatra, Pothinus, Arsinoe, and the boy pharaoh Ptolemy himself.
Having taken control of the pharaoh, Caesar awaited Achillas next move.
Achillas’ army numbered around 20,000 plus a further 2,000 cavalry, all experienced veterans.
Their numbers were swelled still further by the rioting Alexandrian citizens, and even
slaves, who aligned with the army and took up arms, making a kind of militia.
Things were descending into chaos and Caesar was forced to begin further fortifying his
position and send messengers to allies and his forces in Asia Minor requesting reinforcements.
What had started as a simple political mission had now devolved into a siege.
Achillas army occupied the majority of the city to the west, including the Euonstos Harbour,
while Caesar only held the royal quarters and the royal harbour.
Achillas regularly attacked Caesar’s position, probing for weaknesses, but the narrow streets
helped to mitigate the difference in numbers, Caesar’s men consistently repulsing these
attacks.
Achillas next turned his attention to the Great Harbour where both the Egyptian fleet
and Caesar’s fleet lay at anchor.
If Achillas could seize this harbour and the ships, he would be able to cut off any chance
of Caesar being resupplied or receiving reinforcements.
Sending a diversionary force to attack Caesar’s defences, Achillas simultaneously sent a larger
force to seize the harbour.
Caesar was well aware of the strategic value of the harbour and so, leaving as small a
force as was necessary to hold the defences, led his men to the harbour.
The fighting around the harbour was particularly brutal and Caesar quickly realised he did
not have the men to win this fight and defend the harbour.
Instead, Caesar effectively fought a delaying action, holding off the Egyptian force long
enough for his men to set fire to the Egyptian fleet and pull their own fleet back to the
Royal Harbour.
The fire was ferocious and spread quickly, partially burning the Great Library of Alexandria.
The damage was relatively minor, fortunately, and the library would continue for a number
of centuries afterwards.
Seizing the opportunity of having naval supremacy, Caesar sailed a portion of his men to the
island of Pharos, which controlled access to all Alexandria’s harbours, establishing
a small garrison there, likely around the promenade on which the lighthouse itself was
situated.
Caesar and the rest of his forces then retreated back to the royal quarters.
While Caesar persisted in improving his defences, Pothinus continued his resistance from the
inside.
Secretly, he sent messages to Achillas encouraging him to continue his attacks and plotted to
assassinate Caesar.
Caesar’s men, however, were able to catch some of Pothinus’ messengers who were forced
to reveal the plot.
Caesar immediately had Pothinus killed.
Arsinoe, Ptolemy’s sister, had greater success, escaping Caesar’s defences and joining Achillas.
Following this, an uneasy status-quo developed.
Caesar continued to fortify his position against any assaults, even making makeshift battering
rams to break down the walls of houses to keep a continuous line of defence.
The Alexandrians also constructed their own barricades to keep Caesar penned in, some
as high as 12 meters.
Achillas frequently sent some of the militia forces to assault various points of Caesar’s
defences to look for weaknesses, keeping his veterans in reserve, but with little success.
Perhaps frustrated by this lack of success, a rift began to form between Arsinoe and Achillas,
and eventually, Arsinoe had Achillas killed and replaced by her own man, Ganymedes.
Ganymedes was a cunning general and immediately took steps to try and break the stalemate.
Alexandria was supplied by subterranean watercourses that ran throughout the city.
Ganymedes, therefore, ordered that those sections that flowed into the parts of the city controlled
by Caesar be blocked, and then had these sections polluted with sea water, rendering them undrinkable.
Such a tactic would have been difficult to pull off, but the Alexandrians were renowned
engineers and were quickly able to complete the project, thus making Caesar’s position
even more precarious.
Some of Caesar’s men started to panic, some saying they should have retreated much earlier.
Fortunately for them, Caesar quickly took control of the situation.
He made it clear that if they were to attempt to retreat, the Alexandrians would catch them
before they could successfully evacuate everyone.
He instead ordered wells to be dug day and night, and freshwater was soon found, avoiding
disaster.
Though the situation had been quickly rectified, it was clear that Ganymedes was a dangerous
enemy, not to be taken lightly.
In the next episode of our series, Caesar will continue trying to survive in Alexandria
and turn the situation once again, so make sure you are subscribed and have pressed the
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