Cleopatra - Last Empress of the Ptolemies - Research Paper Example

Cleopatra Cleopatra is a historical figure and she left her mark in the history of the world and this great empress who stayed in power for 21 years was considered truly as a marvel. She was a woman who utilized her tactics and her beauty to stay in power and to continue ruling Egypt. After the death of Alexander in 323 B.C., his empire could not stay stable and it was broken into many divisions. Egypt which was also a part of this empire was taken over by Ptolemy who was the ancestor of Cleopatra and a close aide of Alexander. It was from this lineage that the throne of Egypt came to fall under the rule of Cleopatra. She was the last descendant of the Ptolemies and with her death, the ruling of the Ptolemies came to an end after 300 years of ruling the Egyptian territory in 30 B.C. Cleopatra came into power in a period when there was much tension in the Egyptian Empire owing to the inclusion of Rome within its territory. Thus, her reign was a very difficult period and consisted of many ups and downs. She had to face internal pressure from Egypt owing to the fact that a woman ruler was not very much welcome in her period and people were still unprepared to be ruled by a female empress. Furthermore, there were external pressures from Rome as well. But Cleopatra was a woman who utilized her charms and her brilliance to overcome this pressure and faced all the challenges. She used her looks and her brilliance to engage with two important men of that period which included Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. She could not face defeat and when she lost all hope of remaining in power, she chose to kill herself rather than live a life of defeat. Her life and her rule are still remembered and are significant in the history of the world (Jonathon 2008; Jones 2006). The birth of the last empress of the Ptolemies, Cleopatra took place in the 69 B.C. in a city Alexandria which is located in Egypt. She was the daughter of King Ptolemy XII Auletes. The king died eighteen years after the birth of his daughter in 51 B.C. He entitled Cleopatra and Ptolemy XIII who was her brother as the heirs to the throne. According to the Egyptians customs and regulations a female leader was only allowed to marry her brother or her son. According to the rituals, Cleopatra married her younger brother Ptolemy XIII who was only eleven years of age. Cleopatra was aware of the tactics that were necessary for her to stay on the throne and she directed all the documents regarding the ruling in favor of her name. But after three years that is in 48 B.C., Cleopatra faced her first difficulty in power. The consultants of her younger brother who included Pothinus plotted a scheme against her and they overthrew her. She was also banished from Egypt to Syria. This was a new battle for Cleopatra and she started plotting of ways to re-enter Egypt and regain her power (Jonathon 2008). Cleopatra formed a plan to enter into an alliance with the dictator of Rome Julius Caesar. She devised a plan to meet him in which she became successful and charmed him. It was then that both Caesar and Cleopatra announced their alliance making it difficult for the Ptolemy to fight the forces. Together with the help of Caesar, she was able to take over Alexandria as the queen. After the takeover she gave a heir to the Egyptian crown but soon she again had to face difficulties when Caesar was killed by two assassins named Brutus and Cassius. It was then that Cleopatra looked for help from others and she found a powerful ally in Antony who controlled the eastern empire of Rome. Her powers as a leader were so charismatic that she was able to successfully take over lands without shedding off blood. At one time Antony left her to take care of his own problems but later on he again needed the help of the queen in affairs of his territory. In order to help him Cleopatra made a deal with him of the eastern Mediterranean empire to which he agreed. Thus she did not have to use her army against the forces to take over that land. It was then after the deal that both Cleopatra and Antony launched campaigns against the armies of Octavia the son of Caesar. Together they were able to get hold of many of the territories in the region and this posed serious threat to Rome. Later in the years when the relationship of Cleopatra and Antony got intimate the kingdom of Rome waged a war against Cleopatra’s Egypt. Octavian gathered a huge army against Cleopatra’s army and at one point it became very difficult for Egypt to win the war. Octavian had a winning edge over Cleopatra’s army and it is because of this that the army of Antony surrendered. Antony upon hearing the rumor that Cleopatra was killed committed suicide giving a free way to Octavian’s army inside the city (Tyldesley 2011; Schiff 2010). Even after centuries the empire of Cleopatra is remembered because of the wealth that it had gathered in those times. Cleopatra was a charismatic leader who worked towards her country in order to conquer many territories. Her love affair with Antony was so pure that the examples of it are still given in our century. This can be witnessed in the reaction of Antony to the death of Cleopatra. Cleopatra always tried to lead from the front but avoided bloodshed till the end. She chose to make deals rather than spill the blood of her soldiers and it is through these conditions that she was able to grasp a wide territory. Her charisma and authority can be clearly witnessed in forming a deal with both Caesar and Antony. Works Cited Grochowski, Jonathon. Cleopatra VII (b. 69 B.C.-d. 30 B.C.).(3 Jan. 2008) Web 4 May 2011. Top of Form Jones, Prudence J. Cleopatra: The Last Pharaoh. London: Haus, 2006. Print. Joyce Tyldesley "I, Cleopatra: this was my life". Natural History. FindArticles.com. 04 May, 2011. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1134/is_8_117/ai_n30886970/ Top of Form Schiff, S. (2010). Cleopatra: A life. New York: Little, Brown and Co. Bottom of Form Bottom of Form Read More