Chapter 5
Ruler of the East
Cleopatra fled back to Alexandria, with Caesarion and Ptolemy XIV. The young pharaoh had been moody and short-tempered throughout their stay in Rome, but his eyes lit up when he saw his old palace.
Cleopatra was greeted by her ministers. “The people have behaved very well in your absence,” they said.
“I’m more worried about my brother, Ptolemy,” Cleopatra answered.
The ministers promised to keep a close eye on him. A week later, they announced that Ptolemy had eaten something poisonous and died.
“What a shame,” replied Cleopatra, not in the least upset. She immediately had Caesarion crowned pharaoh instead, even though he was only two.
Over the next few years, Cleopatra tried not to think about Rome. She busied herself looking after Egypt. For two years now, the river Nile had failed to flood. The fields were so dry, no crops would grow. Animals were dying and the people were starving.
“It’s not your fault if a river doesn’t flood,” the ministers assured Cleopatra.
“But the Egyptians don’t see it that way,” she moaned. “They think I’m a goddess with powers over the Nile.”
Before long, Cleopatra had more than floods to worry about. A power struggle was taking place in Rome and both sides wanted her help.
First Brutus and Cassius, the men responsible for Caesar’s death, sent word to Cleopatra. “Give us ships and soldiers,” they wrote, “and we’ll protect you and your country.”
Within a week, Cleopatra received a similar plea from Antony and Octavian.
Cleopatra was torn. Antony had been one of Caesar’s best friends and Octavian was Caesar’s adopted son and heir. But if she supported them and they lost, all Egypt would be at the mercy of Brutus and Cassius.
“I must pretend to support both sides,” she decided. She wrote to Cassius, explaining that she’d love to help, but the famine in Egypt had weakened her men. Then she wrote to Antony, promising ships… but at the first sign of a storm, she ordered her ships to return home.
In the end, Antony and Octavian were victorious. They divided the Rome empire between them, Octavian taking the west and Antony taking the east. Soon Cleopatra received an angry letter from Antony.
“The Queen of Egypt must come to Tarsus,” he wrote, “and explain why she refused to help me.”
Tarsus was a city across the Mediterranean sea, where Cleopatra happened to own a palace. She hated being told what to do, but Antony was too powerful to be ignored. She had to appease him somehow… and this time she couldn’t arrive in a blanket.
“I’ll travel to Tarsus in the royal barge,” she told her viziers. “Make sure it’s beautifully decorated, lined with the finest silks and covered with gold.”
Cleopatra’s bid dilemma was what to wear. From the tone of his letter, Antony obviously didn’t respect her as a queen. She decided to take off her wig and dress up as Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty. It was a dramatic gesture, but these were desperate times.
In Tarsus, people flocked to see the famous Egyptian queen for themselves. As Cleopatra’s barge glided in to land, the crowds moved aside. There stood Antony, tall and unsmiling. Cleopatra walked bravely up to him. She knew her life depended on this moment.
“You will dine with me tonight,” he said.
“No,” she replied, in a soft but steady voice. “You will dine with me. I, too, have a palace in Tarsus.”
That evening, they feasted like gods. Cleopatra flattered Antony and flirted with him. He would make a very useful ally… and he wasn’t bad-looking either.
“Come to Alexandria,” she suggested, leading him out onto her terrace. “I’ll show you sights you’ve only ever dreamed of.”
“I’d like that,” said Antony.
Chapter 6
Antony and Cleopatra
That winter, Antony stayed in Alexandria. Day and night, Cleopatra was at his side. She even accompanied him on hunting trips and watched him exercise his troops.
“A good fighter never turns his back on the enemy,” she heard him shout. She couldn’t help grinning. This man was celebrated as the best soldier in the Roman empire… and here he was, in Egypt with her!
“I’ll make him worship the ground I walk on,” she thought. “Then he will only ever fight for me.”
The two lovers had lots in common. Strong, successful leaders with ambitious plans for the future, they would spend hours discussing how to conquer new lands.
“One day, our Eastern empire will be the richest in the world,” Antony would say.
But Antony was married – and his stay in Egypt as cut short when he received worrying news from Fulvia, his wife.
“She’s in trouble,” he told Cleopatra. “She’s been encouraging the Romans to rebel against Octavian.”
“I thought you and Octavian were allies,” said Cleopatra, confused.
“We were,” Antony replied, “but Octavian has decided he wants the Roman empire to himself. Now he’s defeated Fulvia and forced her to flee to Greece. I must go and help her rally more support.”
Cleopatra hated to think of Antony going back to his wife. But, rather than show her disappointment, she decided to give him a lavish send off. “I’ll bewitch him with my charm,” she thought. “Then he’s sure to come back.”
Having concocted the most delicious menu and employed Egypt’s top singers and dancers, she dressed once more as Aphrodite. Antony joined in the fun, wearing a crown of vine leaves and pretending to be Aphrodite’s lover – Dionysus, god of wine.
“I’ll be back soon,” he promised. But he was away for three and a half years.
In his absence, Cleopatra gave birth to their twins – Alexander Helios and Cleopatra Selene.
Once more, Cleopatra put all her energy into ruling Egypt. The country had suffered from bad harvests, but it was still rich, thanks to its large supply of gold. Cleopatra traded gold for food and bought an impressive fleet of ships.
Her spies kept her up-to-date with events in Rome. First, she heard about Fulvia’s death. Within weeks, she discovered that Antony had married Octavian’s sister, Octavia. Cleopatra panicked. Her lover had deserted her and made peace with Octavian. Soon, they would want to expand their empire.
“What if they attack Egypt!” Cleopatra gasped. “Who will protect me now?”
But her fears were forgotten when Antony finally returned.
“I’ve missed my Egyptian beauty,” he cried, taking Cleopatra in his arms. When he met his two children, he was overjoyed.
“They’re speaking Greek, not Latin,” he said. “We’ll have to do something about that.”
To Cleopatra’s immense relief, Antony showed no signs of wanting to leave her. He didn’t care for Octavian’s battle plans and he cared even less for his new wife. But Cleopatra needed to be certain of his loyalty and affection.
“Am I a good queen?” she asked him one afternoon.
“The best in the world!” he replied.
“And do you trust me?” she went on.
“With my own life,” he said.
“Then let me buy some countries off you,” she said. “I’ll pay you in gold…”
“And a husband kisses,” added Antony. It was a deal. Antony needed gold to pay his soldiers and Cleopatra wanted to get back lands to the east that her family had once owned.
Then Antony decided to go one step further to prove his love. He staged a spectacular ceremony where he crowned Cleopatra the Queen of Kings and Caesar’s son, Caesarion, the King of Kings. By now, Cleopatra and Antony had three children together and Antony wanted all of them to have royal titles.
It was an amazing day for Cleopatra. Crowds of Egyptians gathered to witness the event and celebrate their magical, powerful queen. When Cleopatra saw her children receive their titles, she thought of the glorious futures ahead of them and felt happier than ever.
Chapter 7
The final battle
“I’ve divorced Octavia,” Antony announced to Cleopatra, a year after the crowning ceremony.
“That’s fantastic!” said Cleopatra, trying to look pleased, yet worried about Octavian. “But won’t her brother get annoyed?”
“It doesn’t matter what he thinks,” said Antony. “We’ve got our own empire now. It’s none of his business.”
Cleopatra fell silent. Throughout her life, she’d learned to keep Rome on her side in order to remain safe. Now Antony was deliberately cutting all ties with Rome. Surely Octavian would come after him.
Cleopatra readied her ships to fight the Romans if necessary and encouraged Antony to assemble an army. Many Egyptians were eager to fight for their queen and Antony still had a loyal following of Roman soldiers.
Before long, a messenger arrived with news from Rome. Octavian had publicly declared war, not against Antony… but against Cleopatra.
“I won’t let him attack Egypt,” said Cleopatra, fiercely. “If he wants a battle, I’ll take my warships to Greece and fight him there.”
“We’ll go together,” said Antony. “Once we’ve defeated Octavian, we can sail on to Rome for a victor’s welcome.”
All winter they waited in Greece for Octavian to attack. But it wasn’t until spring that fleet finally arrived – and it was much larger than Cleopatra and Antony expected.
“We’re trapped!” announced Ahenobarbus, one of Antony’s advisers. “Octavian has positioned his troops to the north and has sent his admiral, Agrippa, to block off the port.”
“We must march overland to fight Octavian,” said Crassus, Antony’s military commander.
“And leave my ships?” cried Cleopatra. “Never! My treasure is stored on board. If we lose it, we’ll never be able to buy a new fleet.”
By morning, the situation was worse. A group of soldiers, including Ahenobarbus, had deserted.
“The traitors have run to Octavian,” fumed Antony. “You’re right, Cleopatra. We must protect our ships and fight Octavian another day.”
As they left the port, Agrippa’s fleet attacked them. Cleopatra’s ship was the fastest and managed to escape with the treasure. She looked back through the chaos of the battle. Where was Antony? Eventually his ship caught up with hers but his expression was glum. They had