Meeting People: Marc Antony

Hello fellow people (and aliens too, why not?), it's Adele! I just came back from Ancient Rome where I met with Roman politician and general Mark Antony. He told me all about what life was like in ancient Rome. Marcus Antonius (Mark Antony) was born on January 14, 83 B.C., in Rome. His mother was Julia Antonia, and his father was also named Marcus Antonius. Mark Antony had two brothers named Lucius Antonius and Gaius Antonius. Mark Antony had four (well, five if you count Cleopatra) wives. They were named Fadia, Antonia, Fulvia, and Octavia. Mark Antony also had seven children! They were named Cleopatra Selene, Alexander Helios, Antonia Major, Antonia Minor, Ptolemy Philadelphus, Iullus Antonius, and Antonia. Mark Antony died on August 1, 30 B.C., in Alexandria. He committed suicide when Octavian came to avenge him for divorcing Octavia, Octavian’s sister and Antony’s ex wife in Egypt where he was hiding out with Cleopatra. Today I am going to tell you about Mark Antony’s life. I think that Mark Antony was one of Rome’s greatest politicians.

As a child, Antony was properly educated, athletic, brave, attractive, and loyal to friends. But he also drank a lot, got into fights, and was very reckless. As a young adult, Antony served in Syria with the Roman governor of Syria. Antony later came back to Rome to begin working with Julius Caesar. Antony eventually served in Gaul (modern day France) with Caesar. When Antony came back, he was elected a tribune, a person who is supposed to stand up for the rights of the lower classes of people. Just after Antony was elected, the senate planned to strip Caesar of his role of consul, but Antony fled and told Caesar what they were planning. Caesar started a civil war, with Antony serving under him. Shortly after the wars, on March 15th, 44 B.C., Julius Caesar was killed at that senate meeting.

Antony aligned himself with Octavian and Lepidus, forming the Second Triumvirate. Octavian and Antony soon forced Lepidus out of power. So, when they each had power over parts of Roman territory, Octavian controlled Western Rome, Antony controlled Eastern Rome, and Lepidus controlled Africa (temporarily). Octavian and Antony then led a war on the senate for murdering Caesar and they won, making Antony very famous. 

Mark Antony then took control of Africa. He first went to Egypt and met Cleopatra, the last pharaoh. He immediately fell in love with her although he was married to Fulvia at the time. He and Cleopatra had two children. Meanwhile, back in Rome, Fulvia was openly defying Octavian and Antony was called back to Rome to bring back the peace. While Antony was there, Fulvia died of unknown causes, and Antony married Octavia, Octavian’s sister. Then Antony went back to Africa and declared war on Parthia (modern day Iran) and he won with the help of Cleopatra. Even though he relied heavily on Cleopatra financially, he granted land to Cleopatra and her son, Caesarian, and their twins, Cleopatra Selene and Alexander Helios. When Antony went back to Rome, the Second Triumvirate ended legally. Octavian blamed Antony so they became rivals. Octavian got support in Rome while Antony fled to Egypt. They battled near Greece and Antony’s army lost, and then Antony fled to Egypt. Antony committed suicide when Octavian came to Egypt to avenge Antony for divorcing Octavia. Octavian went back to Rome, became the first emperor, and took the name Augustus, meaning “the anointed one."

In my opinion, Antony was one of Rome’s greatest politicians. I think that Antony did a lot of great things in his lifetime and that is why I chose to meet him. It was very exciting to get to go back in time and actually see the second triumvirate happen and to get to meet not just Antony, but also Cleopatra and Octavian (yes, I got to watch a little of the battle). I think that Antony was a great politician and a great general and it was a pleasure getting to meet him. 

By: Adele Wells 

Sources used: 

"Marc Antony." Encyclopedia of World Biography. n.d. Web. 23 May 2012 

http://www.notablebiographies.com/Lo-Ma/Mark-Antony.html

"Marc Antony." Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. n.d. Web. 23 May 2012

http://www.answers.com/topic/marc-antony

"Marc Antony." Wikipedia. n.d. Web. 23 May 2012

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