Antony and Cleopatra

The Story of ANTONY & CLEOPATRA

When Cleopatra heard that the strapping red-haired general was waiting for her in her foray, she greeted the news with a smile. She had first met Mark Antony many years before in Egypt, when she was only a child. She had liked him from the start. Now he was one of her only friends in Rome. The two shared one compelling bond: Both were fiercely loyal to her lover, the great Julius Ceasar.

The moment she laid eyes on Antony, her smile faded. His face gave her the grim news before his words. Julius Caesar was dead, murdered by his own council. Cleopatra and her son, Caesarion, were in terrible danger. There was no time to lose. They must get out of Rome immediately.

Cleopatra had married Caesar in Egypt. Though the union was not recognized in Rome, Caesarion was Caesar's only son. A child of three, he would be a threat to those who wanted to rule in Caesar's place as long as he lived. Worse, the Roman populace universally despised his mother. Cleopatra was blamed for Caesar's excessive ambition, his desire to convert Rome from a republic to a monarchy with himself as king and Caesarion as his heir. Some claimed she had bewitched Caesar with African magic.

In truth, Cleopatra was not really African. She was Macedonian (Greek), descended from the man Caesar admired most, Alexander the Great. Though blonde and fair - she wore a dark wig in public as part of her ceremonial headdress - Cleopatra was hardly a classical beauty. But she possessed more than pedigree and wealth. To present herself before Caesar for the first time, she rolled herself up in Persian rug. She managed more than a clever introduction, averting an assassin's knife in process. She was bright, clever, resourceful and - most of all - original. There was little doubt that Caesar truly loved her.

Caesar was a temperate man, a serious thinker and philosopher, a man who walked upon the world stage - and knew it. He was a man who courted history.

He had but one weakness. An epileptic since birth, his seizures grew worse under stress, striking often at the most inopportune times. Caesar was terribly embarrassed by his infirmary, but in Cleopatra he discovered a partner who could nurse him through his illness, shield him from the public eye and even make decisions in his stead. In a sense, his weakness drew them closer, forming an indelible bond of trust.

Antony's response to Cleopatra's danger was probably based as much upon his loyalty to Caesar as anything else. There is no evidence that any relationship beyond friendship existed between Antony and Cleopatra before the assassination of Caesar. Still, Antony was taking a considerable risk. As Caesar's favorite general he would be part of the Triumvirate chosen to rule in Caesar's stead. His alliance with the unpopular Cleopatra would galvanize a score of bitter enemies against him in Rome.