Driven out of Egypt by her brother Ptolemy, Cleopatra redoubles her ingenuity to find help from Julius Caesar.
Cleopatra: what was the true face of this mythical queen? 37:38At 17, Cleopatra, married to her brother Ptolemy XIII, is ready to govern her kingdom and imposes her vision of politics on royal advisers from the high aristocracy. Now, all these old graybeards thought that the brother and the sister were going to take it easy, and that they would be the bosses. But Cleopatra is not there to make up the numbers. Results: the advisers turn Ptolemy XIII against his sister by making him believe that she wants to oust him.
Soon, the dissensions between the brother and sister are so great that a violent argument breaks out. Ptolemy chases Cleopatra from Egypt and threatens to have her executed if she sets foot on the land of the pharaohs. Cleopatra takes refuge in Syria where she is chomping at the bit while waiting for her revenge.
The following year, Cleopatra learned that the great general Julius Caesar had taken up winter quarters in Alexandria with his legions. If she could meet him, she would convince him to attack his own brother. But for that, she must find a way to return to Alexandria without being noticed. She is going to set up a completely crazy scheme to achieve this.
At the end of the summer of 48, Cleopatra prepares to meet Julius Caesar in her camp in Alexandria. She managed to return to her country, dressed like a girl of the people. But, in the capital, one could recognize it. She therefore asks one of her friends to offer a gift in her name to Julius Caesar: an Oriental rug. The friend in question enters Caesar's tent with his big rug rolled over his shoulder. As he unfolds it in front of the Roman general, the Queen of Egypt comes out and that is a successful entry!
Read alsoEgyptCleopatra: how did she accidentally cause the death of Marc Antoine?How do you expect Caesar, 52, great winner of the Gallic Wars, to resist this little 21-year-old woman. She is not really beautiful – as the song says – but she has a crazy charm and a disconcerting poise. The Roman and the Egyptian will spend the night talking to reach an agreement. Julius Caesar will force Cleopatra back on the throne and at the same time strengthen Rome's hold on the kingdom.
When Ptolemy XIII sees his sister return to the palace under Roman protection, he gets very angry. An anger that will turn into war: the War of Alexandria, the culmination of which is the Battle of the Nile (January 13, 47). Of course, all military history buffs know that the Romans kicked the Egyptians. In the end, Ptolemy XIII drowned in the Nile. Well, that's what we believe because we only find his breastplate floating in the silt.
Caesar is a little annoyed because a legend says that those who die in the sacred waters of the Nile can be resurrected... To put an end to the rumours, the Roman exposes the cuirass stained with mud and blood in a public place in Alexandria. Cleopatra can resume her place on the throne and her Julius forces her to marry her little brother Ptolemy XIV, because in the mind of a Roman, a girl cannot govern alone! And finally, Cleopatra entrusts her little sister Arsinoé to Julius Caesar.
To celebrate her return to the head of her country, Cleopatra takes Julius Caesar on a cruise on the Nile. This trip resembles a honeymoon, Caesar then imposes himself as the mentor of the queen. She is as daring as him, Caesar loves the idea of playing the Pygmalion and increasing his influence on Egypt now under Roman tutelage. The country has indeed become a vassal kingdom of Rome and Cleopatra is diplomatically a "friendly queen". Basically, she'll do what the Romans tell her to do if she doesn't want to be deposed in favor of a Roman governor.
The editorial staff recommends Egypt history monarchyIn order to ensure the security and quality of this site, we ask that you identify yourself to leave your comments.
This registration will be valid on the RTL.fr site.
