The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1819-06-02 00:00:00

CLEOPATRA.

OM TUE LIFE AND CILARAETE'S OF CLEOPATEA.-~
BY MADAME 1.4 BARON NE DE ST AE L HUL4TEIN•

[ From " The New Monthly llagazine."3

Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, was the daughter
of Ptolemy XII. (Autete.). By her father's will.
she became, at the age of seventeen heiress to the
throne, conjointly with her brother Ptolemy XIIL.
to whom, according to the Egyptian custom, she
w is to be married. Bring older thou her bro.
tiler, she thought herself entitled, to wield the
sceptre alone ; but the young King, instigated,
by his Courtiers, attempted to exclude Cleopatra,
from the throne ; and the Princess was under the
necessity of retiring to Syria, where she levied
an army to march against her br•ither. About
this period, Pompey was assassinated by order
of Ptolemy ; and Cmsar, though he lied little
cause to regret being delivered from so powerful au
adversary. conceived the deepest hatred and con-
tempt towards the Egyptian Prince. Caesar pos.
seised virtues and passions, which frequently car-
ried him away even from the views of his own in.
terest ; and he succeeded in his enterprises rather
through genius than calculation. Ptolemy Auletes
had appointed the Boman people tutor to his
children. Caesar, in his quality of Dictator, as-
totaled the power of exercising every authority, and
declared himself the arbiter of the differences exist-
ing between Ptolemy and Cleopatra. The Princess
anxiously wished to dispatch to Alexandria some
individual competent to take up her defence ; hut
Caesar advised her to proceed thither herself withr
out delay. rearing last she might be recognised
on entering the city. she requested Aptillinforus„
the friend in wham she reposed most cosifidence, to
wrap her up in a carpet, and thos convey her on-
observed into Custer'* chamber. By this bold stra-
tagem she won the heart of the conqueror.
According to Plutarch, Appian of Alexandria,
and Dion Cassius, Cleopatra was not strikingly
breutiful ; but her talent and grace diffused so gnarly
charms over her percent, that it was impossible not
to admire her. She spoke several languages, pos.
leased extensive general knowledge, and. above all,
excelled in the art of pleasing. Her orients! edu-
cation had imbued her with a taste for magnificence.
which subdued the imagination; and, from her
constunt relations with Greece, she had acquired
the more potent charms of the language and seduc-
tions of that nation. Caesar was so enchanted with
her, that, on the following day, he insisted that her
brother should divide the throne, and become re-
conciled to her. Tim young Prince was astonished
to learn that Cleopatra hail visited the palace of
Cesar, and wdl knowing the meant by which she
had seduced her judge, he immediately hastened
to the city, declaring that he was betrayed. He
thus excited an insurrection, which Cesar was
only enabled to quell, by proving to the people
that he had merely executed the will of Ptolemy.
But the *ouch Pothitius, whose plans were frustra-
ted by this reconciliation, in concert with Achilles
an Egyptian General, secretly advanced with a num-
ber of troops to surprise Cmsar, who wits atteuded
only by a small fence. Though besieged in his pa-
lace, the Dictator defended himself until, by receiv-
ing a reinforcemetit from Syria, he defeated the
Egyptians. This occasioned the death of Ptolemy,
who, from the mortification of this defeat, drowned
himself in the Nile. Then Cooler was enabled to
crown Cleopatra without opposition ; lie pieced her
on the throne, and having given her in marriage
to her youtiger brother, who was then only 11 yeas*
of age, he departed. though reluctantly, to subdue
the remains of Pomp ey's party. Shortly afterwards
Cleopatra was delivered of a sun, whom she named
Cmotrion. On her return In Rome (46 years A.C.
Caesar recessed her, together with her youthful
husband, in his own Palace; he classed them
aiumig the friends of the Roman people, mid placed
golden statues of Cleopatra beside those of Venus,
in the temple which he erected to the Goddess of
Love. These honours gave offence to the ROlOlllO.
The Queen of Egypt shortly after returned to her
own states, where. in order to become absolute min.
tress of the kingdom, she administered *eon to
Ptolemy, who had, by that time, attained his Itth
year.
When the death of Cesar gave rise to a new civil
war in the Roman empire, Cleopatra was 41:`,C0Sed
of having aided Brutus and Cassius; and flank
Antony, when on the point of depsrting for the
Partition war, ordered her to proceed to Cilicia to
explain her conduct. It would appear that Cleopatra
on this occasion, devoted her attention mere to the
means of pleasing, than to her justification. She
embarked on bioad a gilded vessel, fitted up with
purple sails. The Queen herself, magnificently
dressed, reclined on a sopha near the stern, bur-
rounded by a group of children, representing the
Loves : her women, all remarkable for their beauty,
were attired as Nereid*. and stationed on different
parts of the deck. A concert of flutes and lyres
made the air resound with enchanting harmony ;
whilst the most flagrant incense was binned in
vases of silver. Thus, as Venus rose Rom the
bottom of the ocean, Cleopatra sailed up the
Cydnue, to visit the conqueror of Asia.
The banks of the river were lined by an immense
concourse of spectators, whom the music, the per-
fumes, and the beauty of the Queen filled with ad-
miration. Cleopatra landed sit Tarsus amidst uni-
versal enthusiasm. Antony, who was then sitting au
judgment at the tribunal, surrounded by his licturs,
ordered Cleopatra to be .cululucted before him ;
but this the Queen begged permission to decline,
urging, in excuse, the fatigue she had encounter-
ed in her journey ; at the same time requestieg
that Antony would himself partake of a banquet uu
board of her vessel. She entertained him with the
utmost magnificence; and, when Antony in his turn
invited her, he made oarless efforts to excel her in
point of splendour. Ife was speedily seduced by her
charms, and his passion for her was snore violent than
Capstan's, for it occasioned ruin. What must ever
be a subject of reproach to Cleopatra is, that she
emasculated the character of Antony. Though she
evinced greatness of mind under some circumstances
of her life. yet she did not place her owls glory in
the reputation of the object of her Choice : she hien-
riably preferred herself to her layer, which, in a
women, is always a bad calcidatiou, as well as au
unworthy sentiment. Antony renounced, fur the
meanwhile, the projected expedition 'gait's* the
Perthiaus, and fullowed her to Egypt, where they

spent the winter in ; continsitel series of etitertein-
mem'. Conforming to the taste of Mink Antony,
the daughter of the Ptolemies shared with Lim the
most refined pleasures, as well as the most ignoble
autusemeuts : she accompanied biro in hie hunting
parties, played at dice, and rink through the streets
with him to hear the language of the poptilace of
Alexandria, %%lot were celebrated for their tale.l
for raillery.
At length Antony was obliged to quit Egypt ;
bis disputes with Oetavius called him hack to ital.,.
where the reconciliatiou of die two rival+ restored
momentary peace to the world, and A hinny mar-
ried Octavio, without ceasing to lose Cleiipetrn.
The Brent, which ltlfeceerlefl lore vent e.I Ism for
several years from visiting Egypt ; but slier his un-
fortunate expedition against the Porilinuis, oboist
thirty years A.C., in which he was on the
point of experiencing the Cite of Croesise, Cleopatra
proceeded in quest of him to P 1 _ .ICellteld, it hrie lie
had assembled the wreck of his army, and the
two lovers once more departed fur Egyw.—
forgetting all his vows to Octavio, all his
duty towards his wife, Antony uguin fell a
victim to iutemperance, arid the caprice of Cleo-
patra. IVishing to entertain her with the spec-
tack of a triumph, and having by some stratagem
taken prisoner Artahazus, king of Armenia, he pre-
sented him in chains before Cleopatra. 011 this oc-
casion he gave a bouquet to the Ronson people in
the Gymnasium, where he caused several thrones
of gold to be erected, two of which were elevated
above the rest for Cleopatra and Marvell. He pro-
claimed Cossarion sovereign of Egypt and Cyprus,
conjointly with his mother; and, disposing of the
kingdoms winch be might afterwards conquer, he
named the States which were to he shared among
the children lie had had by the Queen. As Cleo-
patra took a pride in protecting learning, lie
conveyed to Alexandria the rich library %stitch
Eumeties had collected at Pergarous, comistirig
of nearly two hundred thousand volumes. By
these arrangements Antony created to himself
many enemies at Rome; Augustus, in particular,
irritated at the powerful assistance which Cleo-
patre affeaded to the interests of . his iival, de.
Glared war against her in au assembly of the peo-
ple. Thus the name of a woman resounded
throughout the vast enmity of the Rooms. Every
thing seemed to illiliolltier a CIO war, and Antony
accordingly assembled an army anti quitted Egypt.
Cleopatra followed hitsi to Greece. Athens
granted ;the highest tumours to her ; and Antony
prided himself in appearing bekre the Princess
as a citizen of Athens, to present to her the
homage of its inhishitauts. Horace calk Cleo-
paint a fatal prodigy. Her ascendency over
Antony was absolute, and she ev-st rendered j I
it subservient to the gruntication of her hate-
ful passious, by putting to death at Ephesus her
sister Arnuoe, of whom she was jemluo+. Yet A ti-
tony would never merry her, either Isecause he could ,
not resolve to sacrifice lini wile Octsivia. who was a 1
mediating angel between him and Oen:vitas, or be-
cause he did not wish to incur the airliner:et/raisins td '
the Rowena, who could not ritaure that oar of their
Citizens should marry a foreigner. Some of Alituey's
letters are preserved, in which he speak* lightly of
his connexion with Cleopatra. hoping to conceal, li.i,
feigned indifference, the power she really pos.
seised over him. At length the day arrived when
that fatal power became manifest, namely, at the
battle of Actions, between Mark /Slimily and
Oetavius Cesar, when, to use the language of
Propertitis, " the forces of the move:tie cuotended
against each other."
Cleopatra, accustomed to the luxurione manners I
of the East, was unable to brave the perils of war ;
and though she still possessed eufficient energy to
put ft period to her tort:item:re yet terror overcome
her in the scene of conflict. She ordered her vessel
to be put ashore, and the sixty Egyptian lollies of
the fleet immediately sailed after her. On seeing
this, Antony could net refrain front following her ;
he went on board her vessel, but he stirs au spacer
there, than, overwhelmed with shienie atoll regrt I, he
placed himself near the helm, covered his face with
his hands, and was three days without addressing a
single word to her for Wlll/111 110 held Silelllll`rd all. I
However, on his arrival at Alexaniliio, he again par-
ticipated in all the aintissements which Cleriiestra
prepared for Into. They and dirk friends w,me
termed the uriraitahle band of 10: ; but that title 1
sins soon changed for a t/reeek terra; signif) tog
those ;rho are resolved to (lie altogether.
Cleopatra well kite* the situation I f A ninny, cod
the increasing success of I /etas ius trasiished all 11111..
I.joll With respect to the future. Wh,l,t, thererette,
she was !Hoeing her life etioilsr lestiities, and lavistr-
ing on Mark Antony all the enjoyments, of li:xliiy
and the hue arts, she was tuakilig experiments of
the ttivet of variutis poisoos on animals, tool aeon
oti her aluvrc, in order to atieertom which would oc-
casion death with least pain. There ' were. among
the ancients, many instances of this union of serious- 1
mot awl frivolity, which made them voluptuously
enjoy existence whilst they ',rewired for death. As
they had no hopes beyond the grave, they ex iiiiusted
the cup of life without eissleevuurtog to repair. by
meditation, for the immortality of the soul. %'ithi
Cleopatra coquetry was a grand urn, consistsug of all
the resources of policy. :coal magnificence, and
poetic cultivation of titled. Ail the resolution she
possessed was summoned to the dangers she ers-
countered through /ler desire to please ; she exposed I
herself to love as a man would to the petits of war,
amid, like sit intrepid Geoural, she prepared to die
if fortune should out favour her Inizardune debility.
Some histurione assert that Cleopatra way in secret
negotiation with Octavio', and that she betrayed A ne
Why. Jt is impossible to imagine that it w 1111 l titt Wit., i
could entirely dirpoge of is character so devoted as that I
of Aloofly, could wish to see him tridated by ti e
subtle °mynas ; though it in probable she sought
to bring about a reconciliation with the conqueror. i
It would have been more noble to have wished for
none; but she had children, and was 1111/111111s to
preserve the throne for them; besides, the ells-
racter of Cleopatra von personal, and she render-
ed subservient to her unibition all the gifts with
which Hahne lied endowed her. it is well known I
from phut motives she first become attached
to Julius Crew. She I
next gained to her interest
Sextets Potopey, who was fur a short Buie °meter
of the sea. She exerted every effort to please
Mark Antony, and from his weuktiess vl obtained
all. Had she found the seine disposit in Oc-
tuvists, it is probable else would not hare resolved 1
tu die by her own hand.