queen Hatshepsut
Thutmose II married Queen Hatshepsut who was his half-sister. As the new Queen she started to build her royal tomb in a remote area called Wadi Sikkat Taka El-Zeida on the west bank of Thebes (Luxor). She had a quartzite sarcophagus inscribed with a prayer to the Goddess Nut. This tomb was later abandoned before the burial shaft could be completed.
Queen Hatshepsut had one daughter Neferure, but no sons. Thutmose II reigned for 13 years and when he died a son born to Lady Isis from his royal harem was crowned King. As he was an infant and his mother was not considered royalty, Queen Hatshepsut was asked to rule on behalf of her stepson. Queen Hatshepsut allowed the young King to preside in all activities. By the 7th year of his reign Queen Hatshepsut acted as and was crowned King, and her new titles were engraved on her monuments.
Thutmose III was not forgotten, he was acknowledged as a co-ruler and the regal years we counted from his accession to the throne. There was not doubt that Queen Hatshepsut was the dominant King of Egypt, however towards the end of her life Thutmose III acquired equal status.
Queen Hatshepsut against tradition commissioned a pair of obelisks to stand in front of the gate to Karnak Temple. Difficult to cut, transport, and erect Obelisks are tall, slim, tapered shafts of hard stone with pyramid-shaped tops, coated with gold foil. They shone in the sunlight and were meant to represent the first rays of light shining on the world as it was created.
Queen Hatshepsut's journey to King can be seen in a series of images. A stela in the Berlin Museum shows the royal family shortly before Thutmose II's death. The Red Chapel at Karnak shows Queen Hatshepsut and Thutmose III standing together. Both appear identical with male bodies, wearing the kilt and blue crown, both carrying a staff and an ankh. Their cartouches show Thutmose standing behind the Queen in the more junior position.
There is no explanation why Queen Hatshepsut took on the role of King we can only assume that a crisis occurred requiring an adult King and there appears to have been no opposition to her taking on the role. She does offer some justification and claims to be entitled to the throne because she was the intended heir of the revered Thutmose I and also the daughter of the God Amun. According to a series of images in her Mortuary Temple, the God Amun fell in love with her mother and chose her to bear his daughter Queen Hatshepsut. In an oracle revealed to Queen Hatshepsut Amun apparently proclaimed his daughter King of Egypt.
As Queen Hatshepsut she was portrayed as a regular woman, slender, pale and passive. As a King she needed to find an image that would reinforce her new position while distancing herself from her role as a Queen. She evolved into an entirely masculine King, with a man's body, male clothing, male accessories and male ritual actions. It appears that the appearance of a King mattered more than her gender.
Queen Hatshepsut was careful to behave as a conventional King of Egypt right from her coronation. A Queen was then needed to fill the feminine role of the monarchy and she turned to her daughter Neferure to act as Queen. Egypt's royal children normally remained hidden in their nurseries throughout their infancy and Neferure was no exception, but after her mother's coronation Neferure began to play the role of Queen. Scenes on the walls of the Red Chapel at Karnak show Neferure as an adult woman. She disappears towards the end of her mother's reign. The assumption is that she died and was buried in a tomb near that built for her mother.
Gradually Queen Hatshepsut picked advisors, many were men of humble birth like Senenmut. She realized these self-made men had an interest in keeping her on the throne because if she fell, they fell with her. Senenmut, tutor to Princess Neferure rose quickly through the ranks sparking speculation over the nature of their relationship. Were they lovers? They certainly never married. The fact that he carved his image into the Queen's mortuary temple and that his tomb encroached upon the area of her tomb infers a close bond between them, as he would not dare to do this without her permission.
As the King she launched an assault on chaos. Foreigners were subdued, the monuments of the ancestors were restored, and the whole of Egypt took on temple building projects. She then turned to trade missions to the Lebanon for wood, increased work in the copper and turquoise mines in Sinai and a successful trading mission to Punt. The land of Punt, the location of which is now lost, had many exotic treasures, precious resins, unusual animals, ebony, ivory and gold. Reliefs in the Queen's mortuary temple suggest Punt might be along the Eritrean/Ethiopian coast.
The most magnificent building she commissioned was a mortuary temple to herself, situated close to the tomb of Mentuhotep II in the Deir el-Bahari bay. This was a multi-functional temple with a series of shrines and chapels devoted to various gods. The main sanctuary was dedicated to Queen Hatshepsut's divine father the God Amun. Her tomb was to be in the Valley of the Kings, the traditional cemetery of Egypt's Kings. She enlarged her fathers tomb (KV 20) until it became the longest and deepest tomb in the Valley. Her old tomb originally started in the Wadi Sikkat Taka el-Zeida was abandoned.
A stela shows us that Queen Hatshepsut died in the 22nd year of her reign on the 10th day of the 6th month. Thutmose III was then free to embark on 33 years of a highly successful solo rule. Queen Hatshepsut's sarcophagus along with a canopic chest, and a few fragments of her furniture were found, but her body had vanished. There are several unidentified female mummies from the New Kingdom who may or may not be Queen Hatshepsut.
Towards the end of Thutmose III's reign an attempt was made to delete Queen Hatshepsut from the historical record. Her cartouches and images were chiselled away and she was removed from the official history that now showed no co-regency from Thutmose II to Thutmose III. At the Deir El-Bahari Temple her statues were torn down and smashed or disfigured and buried in a pit. At Karnak an attempt was made to wall up her obelisks.
By erasing her name Queen Hatshepsut disappeared from Egypt's records. However, by the late 19th century she had been restored to her rightful place as a female King.
Avril Betts CHA - I am an owner of A-Z Tours and Action Travel with my partner Khaled Azzam. We are travel and tour specialists. I have been in the travel business for over 30 years and specialize in custom tours to any destination and Khaled is an Egyptologist specializing in Egypt tours. |
Queen Nefertari
During the nineteenth dynasty queen under the name of Nefertari was in power withRamses the Great. She was one of many wives, but continued to remain one of hisfavorites. His birth parents remain a mystery, but he is determined to be of royal origin.However, be advised that she had a brother named Amenmose who was mayor ofThebes during his reign as queen. She had two son, Amonhirwonmef, and twodaughters named Prehirwonmef Merytamon and Mertatum.
Looking at all the monuments built it is quite obvious that it was of great importance.She must've been important in his time. Most representations of the queen stand withRamesses II, which might tell I had great political influence on Egypt. Ramses II alsodedicated a temple called Abu Simbel. This temple is located south of Aswan, near thesecond cataract of the Nile. This temple was designed with four large statues ofRamses II with several small figures next to him. The temple was dedicated to the goddess Hathor and Queen Nefertari.
Nefertari was not the only one present when the Queen of the rule of Ramses II. In fact,Ramesses had a harem filled with several queens. His children were estimated at one hundred or more. Ramses refers to it as the most beautiful.
Her disappearance remains a mystery. Experts are not sure if she died, orsimply continued to be part of large harem. His tomb was found and it remains aprecious treasure in Egypt. Her tomb is considered one of the most extraordinary tombsdiscovered so far. It is located in the Valley of the Queens.
Queen Nefertiti
Queen Nefertiti OF EGYPTNefertiti is famous for its elegant beauty. His bust was an icon for many women and many lines of modern cosmetics. Many companies worldwide have adopted the queen as a symbol of true beauty. Some historians have even claimed his most beautiful woman in the world. Whatever people said about him, one thing is true she is famous for its beauty after his death and during his life as a queen.
Nefertiti REIGN
It held alongside Akhenaten during the Eighteenth Dynasty (1550-1292 BC). Nefertiti means "The beautiful has arrived." She lived in Tell El Amarna, a city built by the Pharaoh to worship their god Aten. There they protected their family and their beliefs, he became the center of the new religion Egypt. It is believed that Nefertiti was probably a distant relative of Akhenaten and Queen to Pharaoh favorite. Nothing is known about the childhood of the queen and gave no evidence that his parents are. Some believe thathis father could be due to Aye inscriptions found in his grave proclaiming himself the father of her sister Mutnodjmet.
During her reign as queen of Egypt was religiouschanges many radical. Hundreds of years of culture and religion had been exchanged for a new concept-radical monotheism. The old gods had not been respected, the temples closed and priests forced to change their habits. Many historians believe this transition could have been hostile and has not been so readily adopted by citizens or priests.
His reign with Akhenaton was unlike traditional Egypt had seen. She was more than just a typical queen and helped promote the views of Akhenaten. His reign was only 12, but it was perhaps one of the most powerful queens never rule. Support the beliefs of her husband, she changed her name meaning Neferneferuaten-Nefertiti, "Aten is radiant of radiance [because] the beautiful one is come." Its importance was greatly appreciated by Akhenaten, and he given a lot to show him that his counterpart. As queen, she played strong roles and appeared in a way that the kings of Egypt made. For example, she was often depicted with the crown of a pharaoh and was depicted in scenes of battle hit its enemies. Akhenaten value so that it also allowed him to practice this art of the priesthood, too, was allowed to make offerings to the Aten.
Many Egyptologists believe that perhaps Akhenaten was born with defects that have hampered his role as king. One of the evils that we thought he was poor vision. This disease could have made his work difficult, in turn, would have been able to trust him Nefertiti to decide many important issues. He had no doubt so much that he went to place his name beside her in his royal cartouche. This was quite unique and may have symbolized his equal status alongside Akhenaten.
Other representations show the couple side by side, often with their children so utopian.In a stele, found at Tell el-Amarna, the couple is seated together. Akhenaten is to give her daughter an earring while his wife Nefertiti has two other girls on his lap. In this representation, the queen is having a wonderful time and is represented in a love affair with her husband and children. The two counterparts are presented as equal in status and family.
THE DISAPPEARANCE OF NEFERTITI
Twelve years in the period Amarna Nefertiti disappears. She could have simply died of a terminal illness, but many refuse to believe it. Little is known about his disappearance because of the damage caused by the successors of Akhenaten. It seems they did not want the memory of his existence and that included memories of Queen Nefertiti.Everything has been destroyed or buried in the sands of Egypt. Although little evidence has survived, it has always been a theory on how it went.
The first theory suggests, it has become unfavorable to Akhenaten. During her reign as queen, she had six daughters. All were loved, expect a male heir was needed to inherit the throne. Perhaps a son of Akhenaten worried would never born and he watched the rest of Conservation, in turn, rejected the queen Nefertiti.
The second theory suggests, she became co-regent of Akhenaten and helped him to rule Egypt. After she disappeared from historical records, a new co-regent is registered with the rule under the name of Akhenaten Smenkhare. Many stickers are Smenkhare to Nefertiti and thinks she did everything similar to that of Hatshepsut, dressed as men to be accepted as a pharaoh.
The latest theory suggests it could try to save the throne by a foreign king mess.Sometimes, during the end of the Amarna period a stone tablet recorded the death of the king, which was sent to the Hittites. The queen who had prepared tablets asked the king to send a son to Egypt to not be married. She asked that it be fast because she did not marry any servants. The king of the Hittites sent a son, but he was assonated on his journey to marry the queen. This theory has been linked to two Nefertiti and although we will
never know what happened to the queen, she will forever remain a mystery. His body was never found. Maybe somewhere in the sands of his body was hidden by Egyptian priests. Somehow, she could be buried in a tomb which was created to hide his abode.
cleopatra love story
The last pharaoh of Egypt and the dashing Roman general
One of romance's most famous William Shakespeare, the love story of Antony and Cleopatra is a true test of love. Read on to know the famous love story of Anthony & Cleopatra.
Some love stories are immortal. And the true love story of Antony and Cleopatra is one of the most memorable, intriguing and moving of all time. The real story of these two historical characters had later been dramatized by the maestro William Shakespeare and is still staged all over the world. The relationship of Antony and Cleopatra is a true test of love.
One of the most famous women in history, Cleopatra VII was the brilliant and beautiful last Pharaoh of Egypt. The woman was legendary not only for its breathtaking beauty, but also for his great intelligence. She was responsible in nine languages and was also a skilled mathematician. She is often seen as a beautiful seductress though she was studying to become a nun. She became the mistress of the famous emperor Julius Caesar. After he was killed, she was accused of being party to Ceaser's assassination, for there was a rumor in Rome that Cleopatra had given help to Cassius, one of the murderers of Caesar .
The situation has reached such a head that Caesar's successor and best friend Mark Anthony, the current emperor of Rome, Cleopatra summoned to explain to his headquarters in Anatolia. In the spring of the year 41 BC. she crossed the Mediterranean to see him.
But as she saw Marc Antony, she fell in love with him, and he with her, almost instantly.Sometime later the emperor accepted her invitation to visit his arrival in Egypt and Alexandria in time to spend a winter fun.
The relationship between these two powerful people to the land of Egypt in a strong position. But their love affair outraged the Romans who were wary of the growing powers of the Egyptians. Despite all threats, Antony and Cleopatra got married at Antioch (in Syria) in 36 BC.
Together, Antony and Cleopatra, formed a formidable ruling power. They were now openly together and openly a team against Octavian, Antony's rival for power in Rome.As a Roman general with a powerful army in the eastern provinces, Antony gave his new wife a spectacular wedding present - much of the Middle East. In 34 BC, he declared Cleopatra the Queen of Kings and Caesarion King of Kings, jointly ruling over Egypt and Cyprus and joint lords of the realms of other children.
In the tradition of many eastern monarchies, Cleopatra and Antony began presenting themselves as divine. For the Greeks appeared as Dionysus and Aphrodite, to Egyptians as Osiris and Isis.
But Octavian, Antony's rival in power, had had enough of him. It was a blood relative of Ceaser. how could he bear to see Antony place of his uncle? In 31 BC, he declared war against Antony. The battle between the forces of Octavian and Antony and Cleopatra took place at Actium, Greece, Sept. 2 31.
The exact line of the battle is not known, but it says that if a battle at Actium, Antony got false news of the death of Cleopatra. Shattered, he fell on his sword. He also said that Antony escaped to Egypt with Cleopatra when their fortunes in the war turned against them. But the royal couple could not escape misfortune. The following year, when Octavian arrived in Egypt with his army, Antony had to commit suicide to escape imprisonment. When Cleopatra learned of the death of Anthony, she was shocked. It was taken a prisoner of Octavian, restricted by his bodyguards at a party of his own palace. Shattered by the death of her husband and his captivity with the help of some loyal subjects, she arranged for a small poisonous snake, a viper, smuggling in his quarters in a basket of figs.
Then, Cleopatra ordered her chambermaids to leave her. She put on her royal robes, lied on a bed of gold, and applied to the ASP from his chest. A little later she was found dead.
Great love demands great sacrifices. The love of Antony and Cleopatra epitomize that love is another name for sacrifice.
Cleopatras Beauty Secrets
The Legendary Queen of Egypt was known for her exquisite complexion. One of her secret beauty treatments, the milk and honey bath are still being used today.
One of the main ingredients, Milk, contains lactic acid, which helps to exfoliate your skin. The lactic acid in milk is an alpha hydroxy acid, which helps to cleanse the deepest layers of the skin.
Honey has an abundance of health properties. First of all, it is composed of sugars like glucose and fructose so it is also a gentle alpha hydroxy acid. It's made up of both minerals and vitamins to help nourish and heal the skin. Since it also contains phytochemicals that kill viruses, bacteria, and fungus, it's has a natural anti-inflammatory effect which heals wounds quickly. This makes honey a good substitute for wound dressings.
Here are a couple of ways to enjoy these 2 main ingredients found in her ancient beauty secrets.
Cleopatra Honey & Milk Bath
Ingredients
o 1/2 Cup Powdered Milk
o 1/2 Cup Raw Honey
o 2 teaspoon Jojoba Oil (optional)
Mix ingredients in a large bowl and pour your warm bath. Soak for up to 20 minutes to infuse these beneficial ingredients in your skin. This recipe makes enough for one bath.
Milk & Honey Rinse for Wrinkled Skin
Ingredients
o 1 oz raw honey
o 1 Cup skim milk
o 2 teaspoons aloe vera gel
Combine Ingredients in a jar and shake well. Apply to your face morning and evening with a cotton ball. Store mixture in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.
Incorporating these beauty recipes in your daily regime will help you to experience healthy, vibrant, and ageless skin.
cleopatra death
Female heads of state are few and far between throughout history, but when a woman rises to power, she leaves her mark. Cleopatra, arguably the most famous woman of the ancient world, was Queen of Egypt and lived from 70 or 69 B.C.E. to 30 B.C.E. Her legacy extends through history and legend, and she remains firmly entrenched as an icon of brilliance, seduction, and tragedy.
It is her tragic death that has mesmerized historians and inspired artists through the ages. Supposedly by inflicting the bite of an asp or cobra, Cleopatra committed suicide after the death of her last lover Mark Antony of Rome and the defeat of their armies. The dramatic image of the beautiful queen withering beneath the fangs of a snake has long symbolized the anguish of total defeat after losing a bid for power.
The stakes had always been high for Cleopatra. She was a daughter of the long established Ptolemy Dynasty that had ruled Egypt since the death of Alexander the Great in 323 B.C.E. The Ptolemies were Macedonian Greeks, and Cleopatra would have described herself as Greek. Despite being an Egyptian Queen, she was not of Egyptian blood.
Cleopatra ruled during a time when Rome was the ultimate force of power in the Mediterranean world, but the three-thousand-year-old Egyptian civilization, although waning, remained wealthy and significant. Through diplomacy and her long affair with Julius Caesar, Cleopatra worked to maintain a measure of independence for Egypt and power for herself and her dynasty. After the death of Caesar, her romantic alliance switched to his supporter Mark Antony. Together, Cleopatra and Antony challenged Rome, now under the leadership of Octavian, for control of the eastern Mediterranean. Their disastrous defeat at the Battle of Actium sent them retreating to Egypt to await the final wrath of Octavian as he pursued his rivals.
Ironically, the victories of mighty Rome had left its treasuries spent, and Octavian had disgruntled armies on his hands. A ruler of Rome needs his armies on his side if he wishes to remain in power, and Octavian quite desperately needed to finish off Cleopatra and Antony and seize the treasure of the Egyptian monarchy. Cleopatra possessed the last great treasure outside of Roman control. The wealth of the Dynasty of the Ptolemies was described by the historian Plutarch as consisting of gold, silver, emeralds, pearls, ebony, ivory, and cinnamon. With Octavian's armies restless, Cleopatra hoped to eventually prevail if she could hold out long enough for Octavian to be undermined by his unpaid military. Trying to play time to her advantage, Cleopatra attempted to avoid Octavian with various diplomatic overtures and plots of escaping to the east, but everything failed. Octavian's determined forces eventually arrived at Alexandria and Mark Antony's forces surrendered or deserted in despair on the first of August 30 B.C.E. Antony's death soon followed, and Cleopatra barricaded herself in her mausoleum with her treasure that was surrounded by firewood and kindling. Octavian, terribly worried that she would destroy most of the badly needed treasure with fire, managed to get people in the mausoleum through an upper window. Cleopatra was taken captive and her treasure seized by Rome.
With her lover and ally Antony defeated and dead, Cleopatra was bereft of authority and Egypt's wealth was plundered. She died on August 12th of poison. Cleopatra was described as being in her royal robes upon a golden couch with a diadem on her brow. Two loyal servants shared in her death. The exact nature of how she poisoned herself is not known. The story of how she put a poisonous snake to her breast won out over other versions. Such a death allowed for a stunning and romantic conclusion to a remarkable life, and it corresponded with the Goddess Isis with whom Cleopatra associated herself. Isis is often depicted with a snake coiled around her divine arm.
The politically savvy Cleopatra outmaneuvered the full grasp of Rome as long as she could, but her struggle has charmed historians ever since. Cleopatra will always be known as an ancient queen who played upon a chessboard with mighty men. She did not win, but millions of people even thousands of years later still speak her name - an honor many Pharaohs would envy
queen cleopatra
Cleopatra! What a life! What a woman! What a nose! Like all the greats, she is known to one and all simply by the one name. Her's was a life that was set to dominate world events in the most dramatic of fashions. I blame the parents, from the day she graced the world with her presence, she was informed that she was a goddess, she believed herself to be divine. There were going to be stormy waters ahead. She was the first of the great Divas, her modern sisters Beyonce, Britney and Mariah pale in comparison. Perhaps she influenced them, but she took her influence from the gods themselves, using Isis and Aphrodite as her blueprints. Reinventing herself more than Madonna, Cleopatra was her own best publicist/historian, she had a mood and a costume for every occasion, enchanting the masses with mighty pageantry.
She is one of the most enduring figures in history, yet she is also one of the most elusive. Bizarrely and maddeningly, we still do not know what she actually looked like. Her beauty is feted but other accounts assert her to be beautiful as opposed to a beauty, we have no idea, we are not even certain whether she looked Greek or Egyptian. Much of the blame for the lack of sources can be apportioned to Octavian who ordered that all images of her be destroyed, he also spread tales about her which blurs the line between fact and fiction regarding her.
We know it began hairy, her beauty was a product of the union of a brother and sister, dodgy beginnings to say the least. At the tender age of eighteen, Cleopatra became joint monarch of Egypt along with her twelve year old brother, Ptolemy XIII who she bizarrely later married. Cleopatra didn't like to share anything, she attempted to depose of her younger brother/husband, but in the end it was her who was left fleeing the country with her younger sister. Gone but not for good, she spent her exile in the desert rallying Arab tribes to her cause. Meanwhile, however things were going a tad pear shaped back in Alexandria for Ptolemy XIII. Four thousand Roman legionnaires arrived in the port, led by none other than Julius Caesar himself. Ptolemy fled lively, Julius moved into the palace and began doling out orders. Cleopatra however, was not going to be so easily jilted; famously she smuggled her way into the palace in a rolled carpet. As it was unfurled, the beautiful Cleopatra gracefully emerged, capturing an audience with Caesar and his heart. Ptolemy was understandably rather furious; he had lost his sister, co-ruler, wife and kingdom. He waged war on Alexandria, it proved to be a rash decision, he lost the war and found himself at the bottom of the Nile.
Cleopatra was now the sole ruler of Egypt, albeit with serious Roman backing. Caesar believed that he would be able to use her as a puppet, he had obviously not really got to know her that well. She willingly married her eleven year old brother, Ptolemy XIV to appease the Alexandrian lobby whilst at the same time becoming pregnant in a hurry by Caesar. Their son, Ptolemy Caesar was born in 47 BCE, he became better known as Caesarion meaning Little Caesar. The little guy was something of a pawn between the two, Cleopatra realised that she required the support of Rome to keep her in control of Egypt, while Caesar had seen at first hand how the Egyptian people worshipped Cleopatra, that together they could unite Rome and Egypt and that Little Caesar would rule the whole shebang. However, it definitely was not solely a marriage of convenience, for Caesar brought his mistress back to Rome, although it shocked society, for Caesar was already married. He established her in his home, where she lived in rather a rock and roll fashion. She fashioned herself as the new Isis, refused to worship Roman gods, lived in opulence and basically scandalized Rome. The celebrity couple's exuberance was cut short however, with the assassination of Julius in 44 BCE by a conspiracy of Roman senators. Cleopatra fled Rome with the four year old Caesarion. She was in a perilous position, Caesar had not made any provisions for her, she returned to an Egypt that was ravaged by plague and famine. But Cleopatra was nothing if not capable, she quickly set about murdering her brother Ptolemy XIV and establishing herself and her cherished Little Caesar as co-regents.
In the wake of Julius Caesar's assassination, Rome was flung into a bloody battle of succession with Mark Antony's Second Triumvirate (consisting of he, Octavian and Lepidua) emerging victorious. He summoned Cleopatra to Tarsus in modern day Turkey under the dubious pretext of quizzing her about her loyalty. Cleopatra seized upon the opportunity, she arrived in the port of Tarsus with a magnificent fleet, sporting silver oars and purple sails. Cleopatra ensured that she made maximum impact, dressed as Aphrodite, being fanned by Erotes clad boys and Neried handmaidens. It worked, Mark Antony was bowled over, falling deeply in love with the Egyptian Queen. Cleopatra had marked him well, he was fond of wine and women, was vain, setting himself up as Dionysus and claiming to be ancestor of Hercules. The meeting became more than the cementing of a political alliance, it burgeoned into a marriage of two gods, their union would indeed change the order of the universe. Once again, Cleopatra brought the most powerful man in Rome back to Alexandria, once again he did favours for her (including killing her sister Aristone) and once again she fell pregnant quickly, giving birth to twins in 40 BCE, Alexander Helios and Cleopatra Selene.
Mark Antony though had learnt well from the mistakes of Julius Caesar, he returned to his wife, Fulvia in Rome, leaving Cleopatra in Egypt, the two would not meet again for four years. Fulvia brought her own problems however, she had fallen foul of Octavian, but somewhat fortunately she died, giving Mark Anthony the opportunity to patch things ups with Octavian by marrying his sister, Octavia Minor. However, it was obvious that Mark Anthony was still quite smitten by Cleopatra, for when he went to war with the Parthians, he sent for her to meet him at Antioch. They exchanged gifts, Mark Anthony giving Cleopatra huge tracts of land while she opened up her bounteous coffers to him. In the subsequent war however, Mark Antony was fairly battered, he fell into the open and protective arms of Cleopatra, returning to Egypt with her in 35BCE, spurning Octavia who remained loyal to him and making Octavian furious. The die was cast, Mark Antony decided there was no going back, he married Cleopatra and at the Donations of Alexandria he began doling out parts of the Eastern Roman Empire between her and her children. Cleopatra never one to be behind the door, began to set her sights on becoming Empress of the world.
However, Octavian beat the lard out of Mark Antony at Actium in Greece and then pursued his retreating forces into Egypt. Mark Antony, believing Cleopatra to be dead, killed himself; Cleopatra followed suit a few days later preferring death than to see the Romans march victoriously through the streets of Alexandria. To the end she remained enchanting, calling for an asp to be brought to her, the Egyptian religion proclaimed that death by a snakebite would secure immortality. Her death marked the end of the Egyptian Monarchs, and so a culture that had spanned thousands of years ended, Egypt was conquered and inaugurated as a province into the Eastern Roman Empire. Cleopatra was the last Pharaoh of Egypt.
Russell Shortt is a travel consultant with Exploring Ireland, the leading specialists in customised, private escorted tours, escorted coach tours and independent self drive tours of Ireland. |
