Ptolemæum

, a certain place at Athens dedicated to exercise and study. Cicero , bk. 5 , de Finibus Bonorum et Malorum . Ptolemæus I. , surnamed Lagus , a king of Egypt, son of Arsinoe, who, when pregnant by Philip of Macedonia, married Lagus, a man of mean extraction. See: Lagus . Ptolemy was educated in the court of the king of Macedonia; he became one of the friends and a ociates of Alexander, and when that monarch invaded Asia, the son of Arsinoe attended him as one of his generals. During the expedition, he behaved with uncommon valour; he killed one of the Indian monarchs in single combat, and it was to his prudence and courage that Alexander was indebted for the reduction of the rock Aornus. After the conqueror’s death, in the general division of the Maced on i an empire, Ptolemy obtained as his share the government of Egypt, with Libya, and part of the neighbouring territories of Arabia. In this appointment the governor soon gained the esteem of the people by acts of kindne , by benevolence, and clemency; and though he did not a ume the title of independent monarch till 19 years after, yet he was so firmly established, that the attempts of Perdiccas to drive him away from his po e ions proved abortive; and Ptolemy, after the murder of his rival by Grecian soldiers, might have added the kingdom of Macedonia to his Egyptian territories. He made himself master of Cœlosyria, Phœnicia, and the neighbouring coast of Syria, and when he had reduced Jerusalem, he carried about 100,000 prisoners to Egypt, to people the extensive city of Alexandria, which became the capital of his dominions. After he had rendered these prisoners the most attached and faithful of his subjects by his liberality and the grant of privileges, Ptolemy a umed the title of king of Egypt, and soon after reduced Cyprus under his power. He made war with succe against Demetrius and An tigon us, who disputed his right to the provinces of Syria, and from the a istance he gave to the people of Rhodes against their common enemies, he received the name of Soter . While he extended his dominions, Ptolemy was not negligent of the advantages of his people. The bay of Alexandria being dangerous of acce , he built a tower to conduct the sailors in the obscurity of the night [ See: Pharos ], and that his subjects might be acquainted with literature, he laid the foundation of a library, which, under the succeeding reigns, became the most celebrated in the world. He also established in the capital of his dominions a society called museum , of which the members, maintained at the public expense, were employed in philosophical researches, and in the advancement of science and the liberal arts. Ptolemy died in the 84th year of his age, after a reign of 39 years, about 284 years before Christ. He was succeeded by his son Ptolemy Philadelphus, who had been his partner on the throne the last 10 years of his reign. Ptolemy Lagus has been commended for his abilities, not only as a sovereign, but as a writer, and among the many valuable compositions which have been lost, we are to lament a history of Alexander the Great, by the king of Egypt, greatly admired and valued for elegance and authenticity. All his succe ors were called Ptolemies from him. Pausanias , bk. 10 , ch. 7 .— Justin , bk. 13 , . — Polybius , bk. 2 .— Arrian. — Curtius. — Plutarch , Alexander . Ptolemæus II. , son of Ptolemy  I. , succeeded his father on the Egyptian throne, and was called Philadelphus by antiphrasis, because he killed two of his brothers. He showed himself worthy in every respect to succeed his great father, and, conscious of the advantages which arise from an alliance with powerful nations, he sent amba adors to Italy to solicit the friendship of the Romans, whose name and military reputation had become universally known for the victories which they had just obtained over Pyrrhus and the Tarentines. His amba adors were received with marks of the greatest attention, and immediately after four Roman senators came to Alexandria, where they gained the admiration of the monarch and of his subjects, and, by refusing the crowns of gold and the rich presents which were offered to them, convinced the world of the virtue and of the disinterestedne of their nation. But while Ptolemy strengthened himself by alliance with foreign powers, the internal peace of his kingdom was disturbed by the revolt of Magas his brother, king of Cyrene. The sedition, however, was stopped, though kindled by Antiochus king of Syria, and the death of the rebellious prince re-established peace for some time in the family of Philadelphus. Antiochus the Syrian king married Berenice the daughter of Ptolemy, and the father, though old and infirm, conducted his daughter to her husband’s kingdom, and a isted at the nuptials. Philadelphus died in the 64th year of his age, 246 years before the christian era. He left two sons and a daughter by Arsinoe the daughter of Lysimachus. He had afterwards married his sister Arsinoe, whom he loved with uncommon tenderne , and to whose memory he began to erect a celebrated monument. See: Dino crates . During the whole of his reign, Philadelphus was employed in exciting industry, and in encouraging the liberal arts and useful knowledge among his subjects. The inhabitants of the adjacent countries were allured by promises and presents to increase the number of the Egyptian subjects, and Ptolemy could boast of reigning over 33,339 well-peopled cities. He gave every po ible encouragement to commerce, and by keeping two powerful fleets, one in the Mediterranean, and the other in the Red sea, he made Egypt the mart of the world. His army consisted of 200,000 foot, 40,000 horse, besides 300 elephants and 2000 armed chariots. With justice, therefore, he has been called the richest of all the princes and monarchs of his age, and, indeed, the remark is not false when it is observed, that at his death he left in his treasury 750,000 Egyptian talents, a sum equivalent to two hundred millions sterling. His palace was the asylum of learned men, whom he admired and patronized. He paid particular attention to Euclid, Theocritus, Call i mach us, and Lycophron, and by increasing the library which his father had founded, he showed his taste for learning, and his wish to encourage genius. This celebrated library at his death contained 200,000 volumes of the best and choicest books, and it was afterwards increased to 700,000 volumes. Part of it was burnt by the flames of Cæsar’s fleet when he set it on fire to save himself, a circumstance, however, not mentioned by the general, and the whole was again magnificently repaired by Cleopatra, who added to the Egyptian library that of the kings of Pergamus. It is said that the Old Testament was translated into Greek during his reign, a translation which has been called Septuagint, because translated by the labours of 70 different persons. Eutropius. — Justin , bk. 17 , ch. 2 , . — Livy. — Plutarch. — Theocritus. — Athenæus , bk. 12 .— Pliny , bk. 13 , ch. 12 .— Dio Ca ius , bk. 42 .— Aulus Gellius , bk. 6 , ch. 17 . Ptolemæus III. , succeeded his father Philadelphus on the Egyptian throne. He early engaged in a war against Antiochus The us, for his unkindne to Berenice, the Egyptian king’s sister, whom he had married with the consent of Philadelphus. With the most rapid succe he conquered Syria and Cilicia, and advanced as far as the Tigris, but a sedition at home stopped his progre , and he returned to Egypt loaded with the spoils of conquered nations. Among the immense riches which he brought, he had above 2500 statues of the Egyptian gods, which Cambyses had carried away into Persia when he conquered Egypt. These were restored to the temples, and the Egyptians called their sovereign Evergetes , in acknowledgment of his attention, beneficence, and religious zeal for the gods of his country. The last years of Ptolemy’s reign were pa ed in peace, if we except the refusal of the Jews to pay the tribute of 20 silver talents which their ancestors had always paid to the Egyptian monarchs. He also interested himself in the affairs of Greece, and a isted Cleomenes the Spartan king against the leaders of the Achæan league; but he had the mortification to see his ally defeated, and even a fugitive in Egypt. Evergetes died 221 years before Christ, after a reign of 25 years, and, like his two illustrious predece ors, he was the patron of learning, and, indeed, he is the last of the Lagides who gained popularity among his subjects by clemency, moderation and humanity, and who commanded respect even from his enemies, by valour, prudence, and reputation. It is said that he deposited 15 talents in the hands of the A then i ans to be permitted to translate the original manuscripts of Æschylus, Euripi des, and Sophocles. Plutarch , Cleomenes , . — Polybius , bk. 2 .— Justin , bk. 29 , . Ptolemæus IV. , succeeded his father Evergetes on the throne of Egypt, and received the surname of Philopater by antiphrasis, because, according to some historians, he destroyed his father by poison. He began his reign with acts of the greatest cruelty, and he succe ively sacrificed to his avarice his own mother, his wife, his sister, and his brother. He received the name of Tiphon from his extravagance and debauchery, and that of Gallus , because he appeared in the streets of Alexandria like one of the bacchanals, and with all the gestures of the priests of Cybele. In the midst of his pleasures, Philopater was called to war against Antiochus king of Syria, and at the head of a powerful army he soon invaded his enemies’ territories, and might have added the kingdom of Syria to Egypt, if he had made a prudent use of the victories which attended his arms. In his return he visited Jerusalem, but the Jews prevented him forcibly from entering their temple, for which insolence to his majesty the monarch determined to extirpate the whole nation. He ordered an immense number of Jews to be exposed in a plain, and trodden under the feet of elephants, but, by a supernatural instinct, the generous animals turned their fury not on those that had been devoted to death, but upon the Egyptian spectators. This circumstance terrified Philopater, and he behaved with more than common kindne to a nation which he had so lately devoted to destruction. In the latter part of his reign, the Romans, whom a dangerous war with Carthage had weakened, but at the same time roused to superior activity, renewed, for political reasons, the treaty of alliance which had been made with the Egyptian monarchs. Philopater at last, weakened and enervated by intemperance and continual debauchery, died in the 37th year of his age, after a reign of 17 years, 204 years before the christian era. His death was immediately followed by the murder of the companions of his voluptuousne and extravagance, and their carcases were dragged with the greatest ignominy through the streets of Alexandria. Polybius. — Justin , bk. 30 , . — Plutarch , Cleomenes . Ptolemæus V. , succeeded his father Philopater as king of Egypt, though only in the fourth year of his age. During the years of his minority he was under the protection of Sosibius and of Aristo menes, by whose prudent administration Antiochus was dispo e ed of the provinces of Cœlosyria and Palestine, which he had conquered by war. The Romans also renewed their alliance with him after their victories over Annibal, and the conclusion of the second Punic war. This flattering emba y induced Aristo menes to offer the care of the patronage of the young monarch to the Romans, but the regent was confirmed in his honourable office, and by making a treaty of alliance with the people of Achaia, he convinced the Egyptians that he was qualified to wield the sceptre and to govern the nation. But now that Ptolemy had reached his 14th year, according to the laws and customs of Egypt, the years of his minority had expired. He received the surname of Epiphanes , or Illustrious, and was crowned at Alexandria with the greatest solemnity, and the faithful Aristo menes resigned into his hands an empire which he had governed with honour to himself and with credit to his sovereign. Young Ptolemy was no sooner delivered from the shackles of a superior, than he betrayed the same vices which had characterized his father; the counsels of Aristo menes were despised, and the minister who for 10 years had governed the kingdom with equity and moderation, was sacrificed to the caprice of the sovereign, who abhorred him for the salutary advice which his own vicious inclinations did not permit him to follow. His cruelties raised seditions among his subjects, but these were twice quelled by the prudence and the moderation of one Poly crates, the most faithful of his corrupt ministers. In the midst of his extravagance, Epiphanes did not forget his alliance with the Romans; above all others he showed himself eager to cultivate friendship with a nation from whom he could derive so many advantages, and during their war against Antiochus he offered to a ist them with money against a monarch whose daughter Cleopatra he had married, but whom he hated on account of the seditions he raised in the very heart of Egypt. After a reign of 24 years, 180 years before Christ, Ptolemy was poisoned by his ministers, whom he had threatened to rob of their po e ions, to carry on a war against Seleucus king of Syria. Livy , bk. 35 , ch. 13 , . — Justin , . Ptolemæus VI. , succeeded his father Epiphanes on the Egyptian throne, and received the surname of Philometor , on account of his hatred against his mother Cleopatra. He was in the sixth year of his age when he ascended the throne, and during his minority the kingdom was governed by his mother, and at her death by a eunuch, who was one of his favourites. He made war against Antiochus Epiphanes king of Syria, to recover the provinces of Palestine and Cœlosyria, which were part of the Egyptian dominions, and after several succe es he fell into the hands of his enemy, who detained him in confinement. During the captivity of Philometor, the Egyptians raised to the throne his younger brother Ptolemy Evergetes, or Physcon, also son of Epiphanes, but he was no sooner established in his power than Antiochus turned his arms against Egypt, drove the usurper ♦ out, and restored Philometor to all his rights and privileges as king of Egypt. This artful behaviour of Antiochus was soon comprehended by Philometor, and when he saw that Pelusium, the key of Egypt, had remained in the hands of his Syrian ally, he recalled his brother Physcon, and made him partner on the throne, and concerted with him how to repel their common enemy. This union of interest in the two royal brothers incensed Antiochus; he entered Egypt with a large army, but the Romans checked his progre and obliged him to retire. No sooner were they delivered from the impending war, than Philometor and Physcon, whom the fear of danger had united, began with mutual jealousy to oppose each other’s views. Physcon was at last banished by the superior power of his brother, and as he could find no support in Egypt, he immediately repaired to Rome. To excite more effectually the compa ion of the Romans, and to gain their a istance, he appeared in the meanest dre , and took his residence in the most obscure corner of the city. He received an audience from the senate, and the Romans settled the dispute between the two royal brothers, by making them independent of one another, and giving the government of Libya and Cyrene to Physcon, and confirming Philometor in the po e ion of Egypt, and the island of Cyprus. These terms of accommodation were gladly accepted, but Physcon soon claimed the dominion of Cyprus, and in this he was supported by the Romans, who wished to aggrandize themselves by the diminution of the Egyptian power. Philometor refused to deliver up the island of Cyprus, and to call away his brother’s attention, he fomented the seeds of rebellion in Cyrene. But the death of Philometor, 145 years before the christian era, left Physcon master of Egypt and all the dependent provinces. Philometor has been commended by some historians for his clemency and moderation. Diodorus. — Livy. — Polybius. ♦ omitted word ‘out’ inserted Ptolemæus VII. , surnamed Physcon, on account of the prominence of his belly, ascended the throne of Egypt after the death of his brother Philometer, and as he had reigned for some time conjointly with him [ See: Ptolemæus  VI. ], his succe ion was approved, though the wife and the son of the deceased monarch laid claim to the crown. Cleopatra was supported in her claims by the Jews, and it was at last agreed that Physcon should marry the queen, and that her son should succeed on the throne at his death. The nuptials were accordingly celebrated, but on that very day the tyrant murdered Cleopatra’s son in her arms. He ordered himself to be called Evergetes , but the Alexandrians refused to do it, and stigmatized him with the appellation of Kakergetes , or evil-doer, a surname which he deserved by his tyranny and oppre ion. A series of barbarity rendered him odious, but as no one attempted to rid Egypt of her tyranny, the Alexandrians abandoned their habitations, and fled from a place which continually streamed with the blood of their ma acred fellow-citizens. If their migration proved fatal to the commerce and prosperity of Alexandria, it was of the most e ential service to the countries where they retired; and the numbers of Egyptians that sought a safer asylum in Greece and Asia, introduced among the inhabitants of those countries the different profe ions that were practised with succe in the capital of Egypt. Physcon endeavoured to repeople the city which his cruelty had laid desolate; but the fear of sharing the fate of the former inhabitants, prevailed more than the promise of riches, rights, and immunities. The king at last, disgusted with Cleopatra, repudiated her, and married her daughter by Philometor, called also Cleopatra. He still continued to exercise the greatest cruelty upon his subjects, but the prudence and vigilance of his ministers kept the people in tranquillity, till all Egypt revolted when the king had basely murdered all the young men of Alexandria. Without friends or support in Egypt he fled to Cyprus, and Cleopatra the divorced queen ascended the throne. In his banishment Physcon dreaded lest the Alexandrians should also place the crown on the head of his son, by his sister Cleopatra, who was then governor of Cyrene, and under these apprehensions he sent for the young prince, called Me mph it is, to Cyprus, and murdered him as soon as he reached the shore. To make the barbarity more complete he sent the limbs of Me mph it is to Cleopatra, and they were received as the queen was going to celebrate her birthday. Soon after this he invaded Egypt with an army, and obtained a victory over the forces of Cleopatra, who, being left without friends or a istance, fled to her eldest daughter Cleopatra, who had married Demetrius king of Syria. This decisive blow restored Physcon to his throne, where he continued to reign for some time, hated by his subjects, and feared by his enemies. He died at Alexandria in the 67th year of his age, after a reign of 29 years, about 116 years before Christ. Some authors have extolled Physcon for his fondne for literature; they have observed, that from his extensive knowledge he was called the philologist , and that he wrote a comment upon Homer, besides a history in 24 books, admired for its elegance, and often quoted by succeeding authors whose pen was employed on the same subject. Diodorus. — Justin , bk. 38 , . — Athenæus , bk. 2 .— Porphyry. Ptolemæus VIII. , surnamed Lathyrus , from an excrescence like a pea on the nose, succeeded his father Physcon as king of Egypt. He had no sooner ascended the throne, than his mother Cleopatra, who reigned conjointly with him, expelled him to Cyprus, and placed the crown on the head of his brother Ptolemy Alexander, her favourite son. Lathyrus, banished from Egypt, became king of Cyprus; and soon after he appeared at the head of a large army, to make war against Alexander Jannæus king of Judæa, through whose a istance and intrigue he had been expelled by Cleopatra. The Jewish monarch was conquered, and 50,000 of his men were left on the field of battle. Lathyrus, after he had exercised the greatest cruelty upon the Jews, and made vain attempts to recover the kingdom of Egypt, retired to Cyprus till the death of his brother Alexander restored him to his native dominions. Some of the cities of Egypt refused to acknowledge him as their sovereign; and Thebes, for its obstinacy, was closely besieged for three succe ive years, and from a powerful and populous city, it was reduced to ruins. In the latter part of his reign Lathyrus was called upon to a ist the Romans with a navy for the conquest of Athens; but Lucullus, who had been sent to obtain the wanted supply, though received with kingly honours, was dismi ed with evasive and unsatisfactory answers, and the monarch refused to part with troops which he deemed nece ary to preserve the peace of his kingdom. Lathyrus died 81 years before the christian era, after a reign of 36 years since the death of his father Physcon, 11 of which he had pa ed with his mother Cleopatra on the Egyptian throne, 18 in Cyprus, and seven after his mother’s death. He was succeeded by his only daughter Cleopatra, whom Alexander the son of Ptolemy Alexander, by means of the dictator Sylla, soon after married and murdered. Joseph us , Jewish Antiquities .— Justin , bk. 39 .— Plutarch , Lucullus .— Appian , Mithridatic Wars . Ptolemæus IX. See: Alexander Ptolemy  I. Ptolemæus X. See: Alexander Ptolemy  II. Ptolemæus XI. See: Alexander Ptolemy  III. Ptolemæus XII. , the illegitimate son of Lathyrus, ascended the throne of Egypt at the death of Alexander  III. He received the surname of Auletes , because he played skilfully on the flute. His rise showed great marks of prudence and circumspection; and as his predece or by his will had left the kingdom of Egypt to the Romans, Auletes knew that he could not be firmly established on his throne without the approbation of the Roman senate. He was succe ful in his applications, and Cæsar, who was then consul, and in want of money, established his succe ion, and granted him the alliance of the Romans, after he had received the enormous sum of about 1,162,500 l. sterling. But these measures rendered him unpopular at home, and when he had suffered the Romans quietly to take po e ion of Cyprus, the Egyptians revolted, and Auletes was obliged to fly from his kingdom, and seek protection among the most powerful of his allies. His complaints were heard at Rome, at first with indifference, and the murder of 100 noblemen of Alexandria, whom the Egyptians had sent to justify their proceedings before the Roman senate, rendered him unpopular and suspected. Pompey, however, supported his cause, and the senators decreed to re-establish Auletes on his throne; but as they proceeded slowly in the execution of their plans, the monarch retired from Rome to Ephesus, where he lay concealed for some time in the temple of Diana. During his absence from Alexandria, his daughter Berenice had made herself absolute, and established herself on the throne by a marriage with Archelaus, a priest of Bell on a’s temple at Comana; but she was soon driven from Egypt, when Gabinius, at the head of a Roman army, approached to replace Auletes on his throne. Auletes was no sooner restored to power, than he ♦ sacrificed to his ambition his daughter Berenice, and behaved with the greatest ingratitude and perfidy to Rabirius, a Roman who had supplied him with money when expelled from his kingdom. Auletes died four years after his restoration, about 51 years before the christian era. He left two sons and two daughters; and by his will ordered the eldest of his sons to marry the eldest of his sisters, and to ascend with her the vacant throne. As these children were young, the dying monarch recommended them to the protection and paternal care of the Romans, and accordingly Pompey the Great was appointed by the senate to be their patron and their guardian. Their reign was as turbulent as that of their predece ors, and it is remarkable for no uncommon events, only we may observe that the young queen was the Cleopatra who soon after became so celebrated as being the mistre of Julius Cæsar, the wife of Marcus Antony, and the last of the Egyptian monarchs of the family of Lagus. Cicero , For Rabirius .— Strabo , bk. 17 .— Dio Ca ius , bk. 39 .— Appian , Civil Wars . ♦ ‘sacrified’ replaced with ‘sacrificed’ Ptolemæus XIII. , surnamed Dionysius or Bacchus , ascended the throne of Egypt conjointly with his sister Cleopatra, whom he had married, according to the directions of his father Auletes. He was under the care and protection of Pompey the Great [ See: Ptolemæus XII. ], but the wickedne and avarice of his ministers soon obliged him to reign independent. He was then in the 13th year of his age, when his guardian, after the fatal battle of Pharsalia, came to the shores of Egypt, and claimed his protection. He refused to grant the required a istance, and by the advice of his ministers he basely murdered Pompey, after he had brought him to shore under the mask of friendship and cordiality. To curry the favour of the conqueror of Pharsalia, Ptolemy cut off the head of Pompey; but Cæsar turned with indignation from such perfidy, and when he arrived at Alexandria, he found the king of Egypt as faithle to his cause as to that of his fallen enemy. Cæsar sat as judge to hear the various claims of the brother and sister to the throne; and to satisfy the people, he ordered the will of Auletes to be read, and confirmed Ptolemy and Cleopatra in the po e ion of Egypt, and appointed the two younger children masters of the island of Cyprus. This fair and candid decision might have left no room for di atisfaction, but Ptolemy was governed by cruel and avaricious ministers, and therefore he refused to acknowledge Cæsar as a judge or a mediator. The Roman enforced his authority by arms, and three victories were obtained over the Egyptian forces. Ptolemy, who had been for some time a prisoner in the hands of Cæsar, now headed his armies; but a defeat was fatal, and as he attempted to save his life by flight, he was drowned in the Nile, about 46 years before Christ, and three years and eight months after the death of Auletes. Cleopatra, at the death of her brother, became sole mistre of Egypt; but as the Egyptians were no friends to female government, Cæsar obliged her to marry her younger brother Ptolemy, who was then in the 11th year of his age. Appian , Civil Wars .— Cæsar , Alexandrine War .— Strabo , bk. 17 .— Joseph us , Antiquities .— Dio Ca ius. — Plutarch , Antonius , . — Suet on i us Cæsar .