Did Cleopatra really lose the Battle of Actium?

After Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 B.C., Antony and Octavius began vying for the top spot in Rome. Although Caesar named Octavius as his rightful heir, Antony considered him too inexperienced. Militarily speaking, Antony had more notches in his belt and wielded greater influence over the Roman Senate. But in a spirit of coalition, Antony, Octavius and Marcus Lepidus formed the Second Triumvirate in 43 B.C. to share command of Rome. But just like the original Triumvirate, comprised of Julius Caesar, Pompey and Crassus, collapsed, the second incarnation didn't fare well.

A couple of years later, in 41 B.C., Antony and Cleopatra met for the first time as adults (he met her briefly when she was a child) in Tarsus [source: Porter]. Intending to confront her about possibly aiding one of Julius Caesar's assassins, the encounter would kindle romance instead. Married to his third wife, Fulvia, Antony had a reputation for wanton ways with women. Contemporary historians described tawdry parties and orgies that he attended even after his consuming passion for Cleopatra ignited.

Following Fulvia's sudden death, Octavius arranged a political marriage between Antony and his sister, Octavia, in 40 B.C. Soon thereafter, Antony began to strike out independently from the Second Triumvirate as the flames between Cleopatra and him burned brighter. Without bothering to divorce Octavia, Antony and Cleopatra wed in 37 B.C., which vexed Octavius and severed the tenuous alliance between the two men [source: Porter]. Tensions peaked when Antony gathered a military force with Egypt to invade the eastern empire of Parthia (modern-day Iran) in a blatant effort to expand his political reach.

In response, Octavius launched a full-scale campaign against Mark Antony in the Roman Senate. When Antony drafted a loyal consul to speak out on his behalf, Octavius beat him to the punch by producing what he claimed to be Mark Antony's will. Reading it before the Senate, the document outlined Antony's plans to bequeath significant property to Cleopatra and her children and to be buried beside the queen in Alexandria. That alone convinced a majority of the senators, fearing the cunning queen's potential land grab, to side with Octavius.

War was on the horizon. Octavius readied the Roman legions with the brilliant general Agrippa at his side. To the south, Antony and Cleopatra joined forces on the Grecian coast for the impending fight. On Sept. 2, 31 B.C., hundreds of ships met in the Ionian Sea as the Battle of Actium commenced.

It's one of the most crucial naval clashes in history, but the Battle of Actium scarcely lasted longer than a day. Flanked from behind by 60 of Cleopatra's Egyptian warships, Antony's fleet of 500 lacked speed. His heavily armored quinqueremes ships, designed with bronze bows to ram into enemy fleets, trudged through the water. Agrippa tried to maneuver his speedier boats around the back of Antony's fleet, causing the lines of combat to break in the middle [source: Davis]. As Octavius' forces advanced, the outcome appeared grim for Antony and Cleopatra. What happened next determined the course of history for the next 400 years.

Cleopatra's fleet raised its sails and pushed through the opening. But it wasn't in pursuit of Octavius; Egypt was retreating. Once Mark Antony noticed that Cleopatra was fleeing, he and 40 other ships turned course to follow. Catching up to her ship, Antony boarded but didn't speak to his Egyptian wife. He realized that the remaining ships and the 5,000 men on them couldn't defend themselves, and the battle was lost. The desolate consul reportedly sat with his head in hands, barely moving for the next three days.

Cleopatra has since been characterized as cunning and ultimately cowardly, but scholars have given her a second chance. It would've been unlikely that a ship heading into combat would hang sails like Cleopatra's, relying on oarsmen instead. Rather, she may have followed premeditated plans to break from the fighting and regroup [source: Burstein]. In that case, Mark Antony's withdrawal was the definitive blunder.

No matter the scapegoat, the defeat at the Battle of Actium reinstated Octavius' command over Rome and spelled doom for Antony and Cleopatra. Knowing a dismal fate loomed, a depressed Antony took solitary refuge in Alexandria, Egypt. Hearing a false rumor that Cleopatra had died, Antony killed himself.

Soon after, Octavius marched into Alexandria and captured Cleopatra. In the face of punishment, on Aug. 12, 31 B.C., Cleopatra and two servants committed suicide. According to Virgil and other contemporary poets, smuggled serpents provided the fatal venom. But the potency and speed of death have suggested poison as the murder weapon [source: Chauveau and Lorton].

With his chief enemies dead, Octavius consolidated his power and renamed himself Augustus Caesar. Victory at the Battle of Actium at once squelched Antony and Cleopatra's flame and sparked the beginning of the Roman Empire. The next 400 years molded the foundation of Western civilization, but today, our more pressing questions surround that fiery couple who dared to unite and pursue imperial dreams.