As Cleopatra was returning to Alexandria, she learned that Caesar
had been assassinated. After Caesar’s murder, she realized that
there would be no one to protect her so she devised a plan to have
her only sibling Ptolemy XIV killed. By following through on this
plan, it allowed her son from Caesar, Caesarion, to be co-ruler with
her. She also believed that by making Caesarion her co-ruler it
would strengthen her ties with Rome.
Antony outraged by Caesar’s murder, delivered a speech at Caesar’s
funeral that touched the hearts of many. Thereafter, anyone accused
of helping to assassinate Caesar, was murdered and all their
belongings were confiscated. Later, after Caesar’s death, a second
Triumvirate was formed. This Triumvirate consisted of Antony,
Octavius, and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, the least prominent of the
three.
In the autumn of 42 B.C., Antony and Octavius led an army to
northern Greece. Here, Brutus and Cassius’ army waited to do battle
with Antony and Octavius. This battle could not be lost to Brutus
and Cassius because then Rome and Cleopatra’s Egypt would be
controlled by Rome’s old republican government. This could not
happen. Many lives were lost in this battle, especially Roman lives;
however, Antony and Octavius won the battle. Upon winning the battle
they returned to Rome and the Roman territories were divided between
them. Because Antony was the strongest and the most prominent of the
three, he was given Roman territories in Greece, Asia Minor, the
Middle East, and independent territories such as Egypt.
Since Antony now controlled the better sections of the Roman
kingdoms, he began to finance a war against Parthia, a territory
considered unconquerable. Antony also knew that Egypt was very rich
and had many things to offer so he summoned Cleopatra to meet with
him.
Cleopatra was very much aware that Antony was the strongest of the
three. She knew if would benefit her if Antony and her developed a
close friendship. Therefore, she decided to make the trip to Asia
Minor in Tarsus to meet with him. But to make an impression, she
arrived on a huge barge that was decorated with Egypt’s best. The
ship was gold plated and adorned with sails of purple. As she
arrived, there was music playing that had the sounds of soft tunes
of the flute and harp. She covered herself with a canopy of gold and
ensured that she was alone. She gave herself the appearance of
dressing like Venus and had young boys fanning her as she arrived to
greet Antony. She was sure to make this trip as elaborate as
possible to entice Antony. Upon Cleopatra’s arrival, Antony soon
boarded the ship and within a short week they became lovers. Her
plan worked.
Cleopatra soon agreed to finance the war against Parthia and Antony
promised that he would ensure her safety both inside and outside of
Egypt. Right about this time, Cleopatra’s half sister, Arsinoe, was
murdered. Cleopatra agreed to finance the difficult war and had to
stay until the spring. As a result, Antony spent the winter in
Alexandria and enjoyed the lavish feasts and ceremonies that Egypt
could offer. She spoiled him with all that Egypt had.
All this time that Antony was with Cleopatra, he was married to
Fulvia. In 40 B.C. while Antony was away in Egypt, Fulvia and her
brother Lucius started a rebellion in Italy against Octavius. They
were hoping that Antony would leave Cleopatra and he would return
home and focus on his other responsibilities. The rebellion failed
and Lucius was murdered. Antony’s wife Fulvia had to flee to Greece
and he immediately went to meet her there but only stayed a short
time with her. Fulvia died shortly after her arrival to Greece.
By this time, Cleopatra was pregnant by Antony’s departure and was
extremely saddened that he had left her but she returned to her
daily routines. During this time Antony and Octavius had resolved
their differences and they signed a treaty known as the Treaty of
Brundisuim. In order for Antony to prove his loyalty to Octavius,
Antony married Octavius’s sister. This would confirm the Treaty
between the two.
When Cleopatra found out about Antony’s marriage she was extremely angry. She thought that he loved her as much as she loved him but he had now married another woman. In addition to everything else, she was pregnant with Antony’s child. Cleopatra gave birth to twins, a girl and a boy, whom she named Alexander Helios and Cleopatra Selene. She was so in love with Antony and believed that he would one day return to her. Until then, she resolved herself to running Egypt independently.
