Emperor Augustus at the Temple of Kalabsha Depiction of Augustus in Egyptian Art

Aureate coin of Augustus, 27 BCE, the British Museum; with Temple of Dendur, built past prefect Petronius, 10 BCE, its original location was nearly the present-day Aswan, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

"I added Egypt to the empire of the Roman people." With these few words, Emperor Augustus summarized the subjugation of Ptolemaic Egypt in the record of his life and accomplishments distributed across the Roman Empire. Indeed, the conquest of Egypt and its subsequent looting had an of import role in shaping the nascent Empire. The wealthiest region of the aboriginal world became the emperor's personal possession, farther bolstering his power and influence. While Augustus, like all Ptolemaic kings earlier him, assumed the role of pharaoh, Roman rule still caused a clear break with the past.

For the showtime time in Egypt'southward history, its ruler resided in another part of the earth. Further, most high officials were foreigners sent from abroad. The aforementioned practical to the military, with Roman legions replacing the Ptolemaic troops. Even so, the Romans continued to respect the local community, culture, and religion, maintaining good relations with the sometime elites. Also the changes within the land, the taming of the Egyptian crocodile had far-reaching consequences for Roman club as a whole: from the bloom of then-called Nilotic art, to the famous grain fleets that annually supplied the city of Rome with big quantities of free wheat, keeping the populace happy and loyal to the emperor.

Before the Conquest: Ptolemaic Egypt

The bust of Ptolemy I Soter, late 4th to early 3th century BCE, Musée du Louvre, Paris; with Fragment of a black basalt statue of Ptolemy I, presenting him as a pharaoh, 305-283 BCE, The British Museum, London

The history of Ancient Arab republic of egypt was irreversibly inverse by the arrival of Alexander the Great in 332 BCE. Egyptians regarded the young general every bit a liberator, freeing them from the Persian government. During his visit to the Oracle of Siwa, one of the most important sacred sites in Arab republic of egypt, Alexander was proclaimed pharaoh and son of the god Amun. However, the newly crowned ruler did not stay for long, embarking on his famous Western farsi entrada, which would eventually take him all the way to India. Before his difference, Alexander left some other indelible mark upon Egypt. He founded a new city and named information technology later on himself — Alexandria.

Alexander never returned to his honey city. Instead, 1 of Alexander's generals and successors, Ptolemy I, chose Alexandria as the capital of his new empire. Under the new dynasty, which ruled the country for three centuries, Ptolemaic Egypt became one of the most powerful Mediterranean states, deriving its power and influence from its favorable geographic position and the immense wealth of its lands.

Map of Ptolemaic Egypt at its height during the third century BCE, via the Plant for the Report of the Ancient World

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Nether the Ptolemies, Egypt expanded its territory towards Libya in the Eastward and Syria in the West, decision-making at its apex the southern coast of Asia Minor and the island of Cyprus. The capital of the mighty kingdom, Alexandria, became a cosmopolitan metropolis, a trade hub, and an intellectual powerhouse of the ancient globe. Ptolemy's successors followed his example, appropriating ancient Egyptian customs, taking an active role in religious life, and marrying their siblings. They built new temples, preserved old ones, and bestowed royal patronage on the priesthood.

Despite supporting the onetime lifestyle, the Ptolemaic Dynasty rigorously promoted its ain Hellenistic character and traditions. In Ptolemaic Arab republic of egypt, high positions were occupied mainly by Greeks, or Hellenized Egyptians, while the ancient religion incorporated new Hellenistic elements. Too the uppercase Alexandria, the other two main centers in Arab republic of egypt were the Greek cities of Naucratis and Ptolemais. The remainder of the country retained local governments.

The Arrival of Rome

Marble Portrait of Cleopatra VII Philopator, mid-1st century BCE, Altes Museum, Berlin

From having been a world power in the 3rd century BCE, Ptolemaic Egypt fell into crisis a century later. The decreasing authorisation of the Ptolemaic rulers, paired with military defeats, especially against the Seleucid Empire, resulted in an alliance with the rising Mediterranean ability —  Rome. Initially, Roman influence was weak. Still, internal troubles that lasted for the whole of the 1st century BCE farther weakened the Ptolemaic ability, gradually drawing Arab republic of egypt closer to Rome.

After the death of Ptolemy XII in 51 BCE, the throne was left to his daughter Cleopatra and her younger brother, Ptolemy Xiii, a 10-year-onetime boy. Co-ordinate to the rex's will, the Romans had to guarantee that this fragile brotherhood would be observed. It did not accept long for the rivalry to emerge betwixt the siblings. Ptolemy was adamant to rule solitary, and the conflict morphed into a full-blown civil war. But Cleopatra was not ane to surrender easily. Following the bump-off of Pompey the Great in 48 BCE, his rival Julius Caesar arrived at Alexandria.

Cleopatra and Caesar, by Jean Leone Gerome, 1866, private collection, via Arthur Digital Museum

Caesar did not come solitary, bringing with him an entire Roman legion. Having ordered Pompey'southward expiry, Ptolemy hoped to back-scratch favor with Caesar. Withal, he was forestalled past Cleopatra. Using a mix of her feminine charms and her royal status, the 21-year erstwhile queen convinced Caesar to support her claim. From hither on, events moved apace. Ptolemy, whose force greatly outnumbered the Romans, attacked in 47 BCE, trapping Caesar within the walls of Alexandria. However, Caesar and his well-disciplined Roman troops survived the siege. Several months later, the Roman army defeated Ptolemaic soldiers at the Battle of the Nile. Ptolemy, trying to escape, drowned in the river after his boat capsized.

With her brother expressionless, Cleopatra was now the undisputed ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt. Although the kingdom became a Roman client country, it was immune from any political interference from the Roman Senate. Egyptians treated the Roman visitors well, but transgressions and disrespect of the local customs and beliefs could terminate in astringent penalisation. An unfortunate Roman who accidentally killed a cat — a sacred animal to the Egyptians — learned this the difficult way, existence torn apart past an angry mob. Another important brute was the crocodile. A kid of the crocodile-headed god Sobek, associated with the life-giving Nile, the large reptile was a symbol of Ptolemaic Egypt.

Augustus: A Roman Pharaoh

Detail of the colossal etching of Cleopatra and her son Ptolemy XV Caesarion before the gods, on a south exterior wall of the Temple of Dendera, Photo by Francis Frith, via the Royal Collection Trust

Cleopatra'due south intimate relationship with Caesar resulted in their son Caesarion. Yet, the Ptolemaic queen'southward further plans and a possible official union between Rome and Arab republic of egypt were cut short by Caesar's assassination in March 44 BCE. Trying to find protection for both herself and her son, Cleopatra backed Mark Antony in the civil war against Caesar's adopted son Octavian. She chose poorly. In 31 BCE, at the Battle of Actium, the combined Roman-Egyptian fleet was smashed by Octavian'south navy, allowable by his close friend and hereafter son-in-constabulary Marcus Agrippa. A year later, both Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide. The death of Cleopatra marked the end of Ptolemaic Egypt, ushering a new Roman era into the land of the pharaohs.

Rome's rule over Egypt officially began with the arrival of Octavian to Alexandria in 30 BCE. The sole ruler of the Roman world realized that information technology was in his best interest to keep friendly relations with the Egyptians (both the Greeks and the natives), since he rightly understood that Arab republic of egypt had neat value for his nascent Empire. Although the Egyptian religion, customs, and civilisation remained unchanged, Octavian'due south visit signaled a significant shift in the state'southward politics and credo. While he visited the famed tomb of his idol Alexander, Octavian refused to see the resting places of the Ptolemaic kings. This was only the beginning of his divergence from the past.

Emperor Augustus depicted as the pharaoh of Egypt, relief from the Temple of Kalabsha, via Wikimedia Eatables

Like Alexander, Octavian likewise visited the aboriginal capital of Egypt — Memphis — where the god Ptah and the Apis Bull had been revered since the 1st dynasty. This was as well the place where both Alexander the Great, and his Ptolemaic successors were crowned pharaohs. Octavian, however, refused the coronation, which contradicted the Roman republican tradition. Octavian was not yet Augustus, the emperor. He was only an official representative of the Roman state to Egypt.

Augustus was depicted as a pharaoh during his reign, with the cult of Augustus established in Memphis. He would be, however, a different sort of pharaoh. Dissimilar his predecessors, both Egyptian and Ptolemaic monarchs who were crowned by the gods, Augustus became the ruler of Egypt through the powers (imperium) granted to him by the Senate and the people of Rome. Even as emperor, Augustus respected Roman traditions. Some of his successors, like Caligula, openly admired the Ptolemaic divine autocracy and considered transferring the capital to Alexandria.

The Emperor'south Private Estate

The Vatican Nile, showing the personified Nile with cornucopia (the horn of enough), a sheaf of wheat, crocodile, and the sphinx, the tardily 1st century BCE, Musei Vaticani, Rome

Another of import modify made by Augustus was his decision to rule from Rome, not from Egypt. Besides his cursory stay in thirty BCE, the emperor never visited Egypt once more. His successors would as well be proclaimed pharaohs, and would too briefly visit this exotic possession of the Empire, admiring its aboriginal monuments and enjoying luxury cruises on the Nile. Yet, the alter affected all aspects of Egyptian life. Besides the changes in the agenda, a new era was likewise introduced, known as the Kaisaros Kratesis (Dominion of Caesar) Era, commencement with Augustus' conquest of Egypt.

Non simply the Egyptians were affected. By Augustus' decree, no senator could enter the province without the emperor's permission! The reason for such a draconic ban was Arab republic of egypt's geostrategic position and its immense wealth, which made the region an ideal power base for a potential usurper. The successful usurpation of Vespasian in 69 CE, which was aided profoundly past his control of Egypt'south grain supply to Rome, justified Augustus' concerns.

The famous dupondius of Nemausus, bronze coin minted in Nimes in honor of Augustus' victory over Mark Antony and Cleopatra, Left, the joint portrait of Emperor Augustus and Marcus Agrippa; right Egypt personified every bit the crocodile chained to a palm, ten-fourteen CE, via the British Museum

Thus, Roman Egypt, the "gem in the empire's crown" became the emperor'southward private estate. Every bit a  "breadbasket" of the Empire, the province played a paramount office in solidifying the emperor's position, bolstering the imperial economic system, and giving the ruler straight admission to grain fleets that fed Rome's populace, securing their support. To maintain that control, Augustus appointed a viceroy of Egypt, a prefect, who answered just to the emperor. A prefect'southward assignment lasted a limited fourth dimension, finer depoliticizing the country. This temporary status of the prefect likewise neutralized rivalries and lowered the risk of revolts. Equally the coins of Augustus proudly proclaimed to all his subjects, Rome had captured and tamed the Egyptian crocodile.

The Rejuvenated Crocodile

Temple of Dendur, built by prefect Petronius, ten BCE, its original location was near the present-day Aswan, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

While the Ptolemaic court hierarchy was dismantled, the rest of the authoritative structure was preserved but modified according to the needs of the new regime. In Ptolemaic Egypt, the Greeks had held all the loftier offices. Now, the Romans (sent from away) filled near of those posts. The Hellenic residents still kept their privileges, standing to be a ascendant group in Roman Arab republic of egypt. For example, they were either exempt from the newly introduced Roman taxes or had to pay less, dissimilar native Egyptians. But information technology would be wrong to consider Egyptian culture insignificant. Augustus' successors continued to maintain skillful links with the priestly elite, keeping good relations with the natives.

That strategy paid off, and from 3 legions stationed (each 6,000 men strong) in Egypt during Augustus' reign, two remained under the subsequently emperors. The army's main job was to control the southern edge, which remained by and large dormant. The first prefect of Egypt led an ambitious push southwards. However, after initial clashes with the Kingdom of Kush, the expansion was halted, and the edge was consolidated on the Nile's first cataract. During the relatively peaceful reign of emperor Nero in the mid-1st century CE, the Romans ventured southward for ane last fourth dimension, simply as explorers, not soldiers, trying to notice the mythical source of the Nile.

Fresco from Herculaneum depicting a Nilotic scene, late 1st century BCE to early 1st century CE, Museo Galileo, Florence

The peace in the interior and exterior immune Roman Egypt to prosper. The wealthy province distributed grain, fine materials similar glass and papyrus, and precious stones all across the growing Empire. Alexandria, at present the 2d-largest city later on Rome, continued to flourish, fostering Graeco-Roman culture and intellectual pursuits. Afterwards the appearance of Christianity, the city of Alexander became the eye of the new religion, remaining the almost important metropolis of the Roman East until its fall to the Arabs in the 7th century.

The conquest of Egypt and its looting inspired a wave of great fascination with its ancient culture. While senators could non freely travel to Egypt, others could, visiting the land for its imposing architecture and exotic landscapes. Those who were unable to travel to the distant Roman province could admire numerous monuments, brought to Rome and other major cities of the Empire. Giant obelisks installed in Roman fora and circuses clearly displayed the emperor's power. But the crocodile did strike back. Rich Romans decorated their villas with Egyptian-themed frescoes, sculptures, and artifacts — "Nilotic fine art" — while dressing in the ancient Egyptian fashion. Every bit the Roman gods were imported to Egypt, and so did Egypt export their ancient deities to Rome. The cult of Isis, the Egyptian female parent goddess, had an immense impact throughout the empire.

Cease of Ptolemaic Arab republic of egypt: The Ascension of the Roman Empire

Gold coin of Augustus, showing the crocodile with the fable Aegypto Capta ("Egypt Captured"), 27 BCE, the British Museum

The arrival of Augustus to Alexandria in 30 BCE marked the end of Ptolemaic rule, and the beginning of a new era for Arab republic of egypt. While Augustus and his successors connected to respect the customs, civilization, and religion of Arab republic of egypt, the change at the tiptop signaled the articulate break with the country's past. Augustus became the pharaoh, non by the will of the Egyptian gods, merely through the powers bestowed upon him by the Senate and the people of Rome. Further, the new pharaoh resided not in Egypt, simply in Italy.

Due to its central position in the Eastern Mediterranean, and its immense wealth, the new province accomplished a special status. From Augustus onwards, Roman Arab republic of egypt became the emperor's private holding. Egypt'south resources, especially its granaries, were used to shore up the emperor'south position and influence, strengthening the empire. The new and more efficient administration headed by the emperor's trusted governor, the prefect,  governed the country, balancing the needs of its cosmopolitan population with those of the empire. It should not come as a surprise that during Roman dominion, Egypt, and its capital Alexandria, prospered.

A wooden box, showing the ruler making an offering to the crocodile god Sobek, late 1st century BCE, Walters Art Museum, Baltimore

Rome reshaped Egypt, simply Egypt too reshaped Rome. Egyptian monuments were taken to the Empire'southward major cities, Nilotic art institute in opulent houses of the rich and powerful, and ancient gods who joined the Roman pantheon — they all left an indelible imprint on Roman society. Augustus could brag that he tamed the Egyptian crocodile, but in the process, that crocodile became the most important animal in Rome'south growing menagerie.

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Source: https://www.thecollector.com/ptolemaic-egypt-annexation-augustus/

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