led had any share in the creation and
government of the world.

[Illustration: 347.jpg LATER COIN OF CLEOPATRA AND ANTONY.]

The death of Julius Caesar and afterwards of Brutus and Cassius had left
Antony with the chief sway in the Roman world; but his life of pleasure
in Egypt had done much to forfeit it; and Octavianus, afterwards called
Augustus, had been for some time rising in power against him. His party,
however, was still strong enough in Rome to choose for consul his friend
Soslus, who put the head of Antony on one side of his coins, and the
Egyptian eagle and thunderbolt on the other. Soon afterwards Antony was
himself chosen as consul elect for the coming year, and he then struck
his last coins in Egypt. The rude copper coins have on one side the name
of "_The queen, the young goddess_," and on the other side of "_Antony,
Consul a third time_." But he never was consul for the third time;
before the day of entering on the office he was made an enemy of Rome by
the senate. Octavianus, however, would not declare war against him, but
declared war against Cleopatra, or rather, as he said, against Mardion
her slave, Iris her waiting-woman, and Charmion, another favourite
woman; for these had the chief management of Antony's affairs.

At the beginning of the year B.C. 31, which was to end with the battle
of Actium, Octavianus held Italy, Gaul, Spain, and Carthage, with an
army of eighty thousand foot, twelve thousand horse, and a fleet of two
hundred and fifty ships: Antony held Egypt, Ethiopia, and Cyrene, with
one hundred thousand foot, twelve thousand horse, and five hundred
ships; he was followed by the kings of Africa, Upper Cilicia,
Cappadocia, Paphlagonia, Commagene, and Thrace; and he received help
from the kings of Pontus, Arabia, Judaea, Lycaonia, Galatia, and Media.
Thus Octavianus held Rome, with its western provinces and hardy legions,
while Antony held the Greek kingdom of Ptolemy Phila-delphus. Cleopatra
was confident of success and as boastful as she was confident. Her most
solemn manner of promising was: "As surely as I shall issue my decrees
from the Roman Capitol." But the mind of Antony was ruined by his life
of pleasure. He carried her with him into battle, at once his strength
and his weakness, and he was beaten at sea by Octavianus, on the coast
of Epirus, near Actium. This battle, which sealed the fate of Antony, of
Egypt, and of Rome, would never have been spoken of in history if he had
th