E G Y P T. 
in a fimilar manner, when Planctts, who was prefent, di¬ 
verted her from the defign. When Antony was obliged 
to quit Tarfus, Cleopatra accompanied him as far as 
Tyre, from whence (he returned into Egypt; but the tri¬ 
umvir, unable to endure her abfence, entrufted his affairs 
to two of his lieutenants, and haflened to Alexandria, 
where he devoted the enfuing winter to all forts of voltip- 
tuoufnefs. Cleopatra’s whole (ludy was to divert him, 
and all her winning arts were exerted to retain him at 
her court. Yet after noticing the fupinenefs thefe indul- 
gencies had brought upon him, (he adrnoni filed him to re- 
alfume the hero, and direct his thoughts to the reduction 
of cities and kingdoms- 
Upon intelligence that I.abienus had obtained fome 
great advantages in Syria, at the head of the Parthian 
army, B. C. 39, Antony took leave of this beauteous 
queen early in the fpring; but having changed his inten¬ 
tions with refpeCl to the Parthians, he failed into Italy 
with two hundred (hips, againft OCtavius: a reconcilia¬ 
tion was, however, foon eifeCled; and an alliance with 
his fifter Ochivia, teemed 10 promife the happieft confe- 
quences. It was generally fuppofed that the extraor¬ 
dinary merit of his new wife would effectually detach 
Antony from his recent ill-placed affection; but, after 
fpending the winter at Athens, he haflened back to Alex¬ 
andria, where he again indulged without reftraint in every 
Ipecies of luxury and aiftipation. On his removing into 
Syria, to refill the arms of the Parthians, he left Cleo¬ 
patra in Egypt ; but before he fet out on his expedition, 
he fent for her into Syria, in direCt oppOfition to found 
policy, and the advice of his friends. On her arrival (he 
perfuaded him to fuch flagrant adds of cruelty and in- 
juflice, as rendered him odious to the whole nation. The 
delay which he made with her before he commenced his 
inarch againft the Parthians, was productive of many 
misfortunes ; and his imprudence in returning in the 
depth of winter, merely for the .gratification of luft, was 
attended with the lofs of fixty thou land foldiers, who 
either periflied from the feverity of the feafon, or the in¬ 
credible' hardfhips they had flittered on their march. On 
his return to Syria he retired to the caflle of Leucecome, 
between Sidon and Berytus, and there paffed his time in 
revelling with the queen of Egypt, without exprefling 
the lead concern for the wife of his bofom, or for the lofs 
of his troops. As, however, he deemed it neceffary to 
pacify the foldiery, who juflly complained of their accu¬ 
mulated fufferings, he ordered fome clothes and money 
to be diflributed among them in Cleopatra’s name, and 
then returned to Alexandria with the fafeinating idol of 
his affeflions. 
The kings of Parthia and Media having quarrelled, in 
the mean time, refpeCting the divifion of the booty which 
they had taken from the Romans, the latter fent ambaffa- 
dors to Antony, offering to join him againft the Parthian 
with all his forces. At the fame time intelligence arrived 
that the Parthians had revolted againft their fovereign, 
and were in the utmoft confufion ; in confequence of this, 
Antony haflened into Syria to embrace the opportunity 
pf revenging himfelf upon a formidable enemy. But 
Cleopatra, hearing that his wife OCtavia was come as far 
as Athens, in her way to meet Antony, and fearing that 
the virtue and wifdom of that juftly-celebrated woman 
might recal the triumvir to a fenfe of duty and honour, 
fhe employed various arts to make herfelf look pale and 
dejected, and then wrote to her credulous lover, that his 
abfence had materially affefted her health, and that fhe 
niuft inevitably die if he refufed to return. Antony needed 
no other allurements : he haflened to the arms of his 
miftrefs, and was fo deeply affeCted by her tears, blan- 
difhments, reproaches, and vows of everlafting love, that 
lie confented to relinquifh his projected expedition, and 
to command OCtavia to proceed no farther, but to remain 
at Athens. 
Early in the enfuing fpring Antony fet out for Syria, 
2 
S' l 
with an intention to march from thence into Parthia. Be¬ 
fore he commenced his journey, he bellowed Cyrene, Cy¬ 
prus, Coe.lo-Syria, Itruria, and Phcenicc, with great part 
of Crete and Cilicia, upon Cleopatra. But this not ftitis- 
fying her ambition, (lie earneftly folieited him to put to 
death Herod king of Judea, and Malchus-king of Arabia- 
Petrsea, that their dominions might alfo be transferred to 
her. This wicked reque'ft proved unfuccefsful ; but 
Antony, to pacify her, confented to give her that part of 
Malchus’s kingdom which bordered on Egypt ; and out 
of Herod’s, the territory of Jericho, with the balfam 
gardens. The queen, having obtained thefe important 
grants, accompanied her lover as far as the Euphrates, 
and returning by way of Apamea and Damafcus, came 
to Jerufaiem, where fhe was ill mptuou.fi y entertained by 
Herod. During her (lay in that city, (lie was faid to feign 
an affeChion for the king, and added fo unbecoming the 
charadder of her fex, that Herod formed a defign to affaf- 
ftnate her; but being diffuaded from fo wicked and i-n- 
hofpitable a meafure, he continued to entertain her with 
all poflible refpedt, and attended her in perfon to the 
frontiers of her kingdom. 
Antony, who, in defiance of the mod folemn oaths and 
promifes, liad taken Artabazus, king of Armenia, pri- 
foner, and reduced his country, now haflened back to 
Egypt, B. C. 33, and entered Alexandria in a triumphal 
car, preceded by the trophies of his victory, and by the 
mod illuftrious captives. Cleopatra waited to receive 
him in the forum, being feated on a golden throne, fur- 
rounded by the chief lords of her court. The unfortu¬ 
nate Artabazus was brought before her in chains, and 
with him the other prifoners of diftindlion; but on being 
commanded to kneel before her, they peremptorily re¬ 
filled their compliance. Antony now fummoned a gene¬ 
ral adembly of the Alexandrians to meet in the gymna- 
fiuin, and there made a public oration, In which he pro¬ 
claimed Cefario, the fon of Cleopatra, begot by Julius 
Ctefar, king of Egypt and Cyprus, in conjunction with 
his mother. Antony had alio three children by Cleo¬ 
patra, named Alexander, Cleopatra, and Ptolemy. To 
Alexander he gave Armenia, Media, Parthia, and the 
other eaftern countries from the Euphrates to India, 
zvhen they, fwuld be Jubdued ; to Cleopatra, the twin fifter 
of Alexander, he promifed Lybia and Cyrene ; and to 
Ptolemy, whom he furnamed Philadelpluts, he prefented 
Phoenice, Syria, Cilicia, and all the countries of. Alia 
Minor from the Euphrates to the Hellefpont; conferring 
on each of the children the title of kings. To complete 
the abfurdity of his conduCt, he obliged his queen, to 
take the name of Ids, himfelf affuming that of Oliris, 
and from that time they both appeared in public in the 
drefs that was deemed peculiar to thofe Egyptian deities. 
Yet after all this, Antony’s mind was rent with jealoufy 
and fufpicion, that Cleopatra, notwithftanding her pre¬ 
tended affeCtion, had a defign upon his life, and there¬ 
fore he would not partake of any difh at her banquets 
till it had been tailed by fome other perfon. The queen, 
in order to obviate his fears, and at the fame time to 
prove how ineffectual all his precautions would be if (lie 
really meditated his deftruCtion, caufed the flowers to 
be dipped in poifon Which compofed the garlands that 
were to be worn by Antony and herfelf at the next feaft. 
When the triumvir was in the height of fellivity, Cleo¬ 
patra propofed drinking the flowers of their garlands, 
and Antony admiring the lrolic, threw fome of them into 
his wine, and was on the point of fwallowing them, when 
the queen feizing him by the arm, told him the flowers 
were poifoned, and that fhe herfelf, againft whom he had 
been fo guarded, had prepared the poifon. She then 
commanded a condemned criminal to be brought in, and 
caufed him to drink the wine in Antony’s cup, which 
immediately terminated his life. 
In compliance with, the advice of fome of his partifans, 
Antony declared war againft his former colleague, who 
was 
