The Second Triumvirate and the War between Octavian and

Marc AntonyBy Brooke Coursen and Kelsey Perry

Where did it all start?The Death of Julius Caesar

In 44 BC, Julius Caesar was following Pompey on a mission to kill him. When Pompey fled to Egypt, the Egyptians killed him and presented his head to Caesar to show that they wanted peace. Caesar appointed Cleopatra the ruler of Egypt, defeated the rest of his rivals in North Africa, and then returned home to Rome. He appointed himself dictator for life. The Senate didn’t like that and decided to assassinate him. The Senators stabbed him twenty three times, and Julius Caesar was dead.

“You too, Brutus.”-Caesar’s last words.

The Second TriumvirateThe Second Triumvirate was basically a three man

government. It was an official, legal organization, and the men had more power than the other magistrates as well as consuls. This organization was created to fill the space left in government by Julius Caesar’s death. The men in the Second Triumvirate were Octavian, Marc Antony, and Lepidus.

In their organization, they killed tons of senators and equestrians just to silence opposition and raise money.

Octavian Marc Antony Lepidus

After Caesar’s Death..After Caesar’s death, a civil war broke out. Marc

Antony and Octavian (the power of the second triumvirate!) went to fight Cassius and Brutus. They won easily.

Octavian went back home to Rome after the win, while Antony went to tour Greece and the East. He had a plan to invade Parthia because Caesar was planning to do that before he was killed.

After they won, Antony decided to go off and explore. He met Cleopatra and went back to Alexandria with her. His brother, Lucius, and his wife, Fulvia, tried to warn him that Octavian was becoming super powerful, but he wouldn’t listen at all.

Back at home, a civil war seemed to be on the verge of breaking out again, so Antony headed back…

Before he got there, his wife Fulvia died! Like the great leaders they were, they decided to blame all of their problems on her.

For their reconciliation, they made a pact that made Octavian supreme in the West (Italy and Europe) and Antony supreme in the East (Greece, Asia, and Egypt).

To seal the pact, Antony married Octavia, Octavian’s sister. As celebration for his marriage and the reconciliation between he and Octavian, Marc Antony made coins.

He and Octavia had two baby girls, both of which were named Antonia.

And the War Begins..

Antony made the “Donations of Alexandria” and gave many territories of the Roman East to Cleopatra and her babies. He then divorced Octavia and sent a notice home to Rome telling both her and the children to leave his house. Then he got married to Cleopatra!

That’s not exactly something that people in Rome find popular and the Senate swore an oath to Octavian. They outlawed Antony and declared war on Cleopatra.

In Actium in 31 BC, the war takes place. Octavian went to fight Antony. Cleopatra fled with her troops and Marc Antony, leaving all of his troops to fight, followed her. Octavian, with help from Agrippa, defeated Antony’s former fleet and won the battle.

Antony and Cleopatra took refuge in Egypt. Both of them eventually committed suicide.

Following the War..With his victory, Octavian really took control of Rome. He was given the title of Princeps, which in Latin means “chief, leader.” This was usually given to senators of the highest prestige and influence, but it was given to him. He now controlled all of the most crucial areas of the Roman government. He was also granted the name Augustus by the Roman Senate.

Citations…• http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/antony.html• http://www.socialstudiesforkids.com/wwww/world/s

econdtriumviratedef.htm• http://www.bible-history.com/augustus/AUGUSTUS T

he_Second_Triumvirate.htm• http://ancienthistory.about.com/cs/romebattles/g/ac

tium.htm• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Actium • http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/augustus2.html