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Volume 12 issue 4 February 2012

ANCIENT EGYPT explores the WORLD WIDE WEB ...

THE EARLY PTOLEMIES

This month’s NETFISHING continues its look at the history of Egypt by seeing what the World Wide Web has to say about the early Ptolemaic Kings of Egypt, the descendants of the general Ptolemy whom Alexander had left to govern Egypt in his absence.

Alexander the Great left Egypt in the capable hands of his general Ptolemy, whilst he left for Asia and his conquest of the Persian empire. Whilst Ptolemy was in charge of the Greek army of occupation and civil affairs, Alexander had been careful to divide the control of Egypt between Ptolemy and one Cleomones, a tax collector who was responsible for Egypt’s financial affairs. This division of authority might have worked had Alexander remained alive but upon Alexander’s death, in 323 BC, Ptolemy sought to establish himself as sole ruler of Egypt. The period is a complicated one and so it is worth referring to a family tree whilst considering the decendents of Ptolemy and

their diverse links with one another. Refer:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ptolemaic_dynasty

At first Ptolemy I - Soter I was cautious, in that he did not claim the throne directly after Alexander’s death, but instead gained permission from the ‘Council of Regents’ to govern Egypt on behalf of Philip Arrhidaeus (Alexander’s half-brother) and Alexander IV (Alexander the Great’s son). Even though Alexander IV was murdered in 311 BC, Ptolemy waited until 304 BC before claiming to be King of Egypt. He was not as slow in removing Cleomones from office, however, and quickly had him charged with embezzlement and corruption, soon after Alexander’s death, leaving himself in sole charge of the province of Egypt. Key to his claim to the throne was his abduction of Alexander’s body. Ptolemy joined the funeral cortège on its journey back to Greece but abducted the body and spirited it away to Egypt, claiming this was Alexander’s wish, “to be buried in Egypt”. The other generals let the matter pass, but by ‘burying the previous pharaoh’, in the eyes of the Egyptian people, Ptolemy now had a claim to the throne. Avoiding the conflicts that followed the death of Alexander, Ptolemy consolidated his position by a series of judicious marriages. Although he married Eurydice, daughter of the Regent of Macedonia, his true love was her lady in waiting, Berenice, and it was her son who eventually became the next king of Egypt. Refer:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ptolemy_I_Soter

www.livius.org/ps-pz/ptolemies/ptolemy_i_soter.htm

www.historyofwar.org/articles/people_ptolemy_I_soter.html

www.touregypt.net/featurestories/ptolemy1.htm

www.phouka.com/pharaoh/pharaoh/dynasties/dyn33/01pto1.html

http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Africa/Egypt/_Texts/BEVHOP/2*.html

Ptolemy II - Philadelphus was an outstanding patron of the arts and he added some two hundred thousand volumes to the great library at Alexandria (which had been founded by his father). He introduced crop rotation into Egypt, resulting in two harvests a year rather than the previous one, and so greatly increased the wealth of the country. He married Arsinoe I, daughter of the King of Thrace and Macedonia, but this appears to have been a political union only and he later repudiated her and married his own sister, another Arsinoe (known as Arsinoe II) who was the great love of his life. Refer: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ptolemy_II_Philadelphus

www.touregypt.net/featurestories/ptolemy2.htm

www.livius.org/ps-pz/ptolemies/ptolemy_ii_philadelphus.html

http://virtualreligion.net/iho/ptolemy_2.html

http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Africa/Egypt/_Texts/BEVHOP/3*.html

Ptolemy III - Euergetes I was a son of Ptolemy II and his first wife Arsinoe I. Ptolemy III was referred to as the ‘benefactor’ because he returned to the Egyptian temples the statues of the Egyptian gods stolen during the Persian occupation. A firm patron of the arts, he began work on the temple of Horus at Edfu, and even sent expeditions to try to find the source of the Nile (although these were unsuccessful). The Egyptian Empire was perhaps at its greatest extent during his reign, including lands as diverse as Jordon, Lebanon and Cyprus, and provinces in Turkey and Greece itself. Refer:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ptolemy_III_Euergetes

www.livius.org/ps-pz/ptolemies/ptolemy_iii_euergetes.html

www.touregypt.net/featurestories/ptolemyiii.htm

http://virtualreligion.net/iho/ptolemy_3.html

www.wildwinds.com/coins/greece/egypt/ptolemy_III/i.html

http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Africa/Egypt/_Texts/BEVHOP/6*.html

The first three kings of the Ptolemaic period were thus, by and large, good custodians of the land and could be said to be benefactors of Egypt. This was to change with the advent of Ptolemy IV and thereafter the reigns of these Ptolemaic kings takes on a different aspect, as murder and court intrigue become to dominate the dynasty – as will be seen in the next issue.

Victor Blunden

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