Is Rome Worth One Good Man's Life?-A Roman TL

Chapter XV: The Final War of The Roman Republic Part V


Despite the moral victory for the Pompeians, the overall edge still lied with Antonius. Instead of attacking immediately again however, he waited, with seemingly no hurry to press a battle. His troops wondered why their commander was waiting instead of doing battle. They were itching to take another crack at the Pompeians, and it seemed like Antonius did not trust them enough to risk a battle. They failed to realize the real reason he was holding off. Simply put, he was hoping against hope that Cleopatra would return with a large fleet and sizeable reinforcements. It soon became clear however, that Cleopatra was not coming back, at least not anytime soon anyhow, and Antonius needed to do something. Pompeius characteristically beat him to the punch.

Sailing into the Ambracian Gulf one night with a small detachment of his best crews and marines, Pompeius lit fire to what remained of Antonius’s fleet. With complete control of the gulf now, the Pompeians were in business. They were quick to follow up this victory with another bold and dangerous move. Leaving a portion of their army behind to keep the first going and tend to the camp, and do anything necessary to make it seem like a large army was still occupied in the camp, they set about transporting everyone else across the Ambracian gulf the very next night. A detachment moved by land to clear any Caesarian scouts that might be prowing around, and Antonius awoke the next morning to find his army completely outmaneuvered.

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Apparently he hadn’t learned from the night previously, because he was taken completely by surprise. They say lightning doesn’t strike twice, but Fortuna made an exception. The move had been extremely risky, but it rewarded handsomely. Without a fleet and with the Pompeian armies on either side of him, Antonius was essentially surrounded and trapped. More importantly, he could not wait long or his army would starve relatively quickly. The Pompeian commanders however were keenly aware that placing an army on death ground was courting disaster. So their solution was simple: plant the seed in the Caesarian camps that it wasn’t just a choice between fight or die.

With the help of spies and deserters, word spread relatively quickly through the Caesarian camp of rumors circulating that Pompeius was offering mercy and leniency to his troops and an honorable peace. According to the well-spread mis-information, Antonius was refusing to accept any terms, and was deliberately hiding this from his soldiers and was gearing up to fight a desperate struggle to the last, simply for his own selfish desires. This was obviously news to Antonius-no such offer of the sort had been even mentioned to him, and as far as he knew, the Pompeians were resigned to battle themselves. In normal circumstances, this wouldn’t have been much of a problem for him, as his army was staunchly loyal to the head of the Caesarian faction. This was not normal circumstances however, and Antonius soon found himself facing a near mutinous army with desertions en masse. When an army is all of a sudden surrounded and without food, it’s amazing how quickly they will throw their loyalty to their commander out the window, especially when their’s rumors going around he’s deliberately sending them to their deaths.

Sensing the time was right to finish off their coup d’etat, Agrippa and Bassus launched their attack. It is somewhat surprising they chose to attack Antonius’s forces in battle instead of wait it out as droves of deserters defected to their side, but nevertheless, the result was not much in doubt. Watching helplessly as many in the army, starving and low on morale, surrendered after hardly drawing their swords, Antonius knew the game was up. His whole life’s accomplishment dissipated before his very eyes. Withdrawing to his tent, he fell on his sword. A few of his most fervent supporters fought on til the last, holding out for quite some time, but eventually surrendering themselves, when defeat was inevitable and word got around that the man they were fighting for was dead.

The Second Battle of Actium was a resounding victory for Pompeius, though the credit must go to the masterminds behind the campaign, Ventidius Bassus and Marcus Agrippa. When Pompeius found the body of his enemy, he is said to have wept at his death. His orders were to treat Antonius’s body with utmost respect, and he was to be buried with full Roman honors befitting a servant to the republic. There was hardly any time to sit back and bask in his victory however. The war seemed far from over, as Cleopatra-the woman they had declared war on in the first place- was still at large with her powerbase in Egypt. The final war of the republic was entering it’s final phase.
 

Deleted member 67076

Finally that war's ending, arc fatigue was kicking in. Still the quality is good
 
Short update today.
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Chapter XVI: The Final War of The Roman Republic Part VI: Cleopatra Flees To Parthia


The Pompeians now controlled an army of some 65 legions, totaling to a staggering amount of 350,000 men. There was no doubt now that with an army of this size, Pompeius was easily the undisputed master of the Roman world. His position was simply unassailable, and the only men who could have had a shot at destroying Many of the Caesarian forces now under his control had been fighting for some 20 years however, and they simply wanted to finally retire and go home. He spent the remainder of 31 BC discharging and resettling the oldest of the veterans.

Finally, in the spring of 30 BC, Pompeius continued his mopping up operations. Agrippa and Bassus rejected his idea of attacking Alexandria directly by transporting the army by sea. Instead, they decided on marching east, securing the client kingdoms and provinces formerly loyal to Antonius, and now to Cleopatra. The thinking was sound. They were not going to let Cleopatra gather up another army through the easter provinces, and more importantly, they were not about to allow her to escape.

The plan was essentially a pincer movement, and it was made possible by Lucius Pinarius, governor of Cyrenaica. Pinarius commanded four legions, and up until this point, had stood firm in his support for Antonius. When he heard of Cleopatra’s fleeing, he was disgusted at her cowardly act. Pinarius remained silent, but when news reached him Antonius was dead and his army surrendered, he placed all the blame on Cleopatra. It also helped that he saw the writing on the wall, and followed the maxim, “If you can’t beat your enemy, join him.” Either way, he declared his allegiance for Pompeius. On Pompeius’s urging, he converged on Alexandria from the west, while Pompeius did so from the east.

Cleopatra was now in desperate straits. She still had her large navy which she escaped Actium with, but she had little in the ways of a land army. She made a vain attempt to try to negotiate a settlement with Pompeius, but his famous leniency and piousness ended when he was not dealing with Romans. He even made it a point to stop in Ephesus and bring the long ago side-lined Arsinoe IV with him on his march to Alexandria. His intent thus made clear, Pompeius replied by simply explaining her role in his future triumph.Seeing her chances at surviving while remaining in Egypt slim, Cleoaptra packed up her bags, and prepared to leave for Parthia. Prepared is maybe the wrong word to use here, as she had actually been preparing for this moment the minute she fled from Antonius. So with her large war chest and a few hundred armed soldiers, Cleopatra left for Parthia. She made the odd decision to leave Caesarion and her other offspring in Egypt. Caesarion, Alexander Helios, and Cleopatra Selene were all at least part Roman after all. Except for Caesarion (who was 18), they were mere children as well. It may also have been she thought of them as merely unwanted baggage as well that would only be a burden. Better to rid herself of her product of her relations with powerful Romans, if she was to start up anew as a client of the Parthians.




When Pompeius heard of Cleoatra slipping the nuse that had been tightening around her neck, he was not in the least bit shocked. If anything, it was worry, not shock that took over him. For the Parthian King, this would be a perfect pretext for war. His mind was soon pre-occupied with other, more important things, when he received information that Cleopatra had left her children in Alexandria, specifically, Caesarion. Caesarion was a Roman, even if only half Roman, and it would make good sense both politically and propaganda wise to spare the son of Caesar and Cleopatra. Now was his chance to attempt reconciliation with what remained of the Caesarian faction, and to show the Roman people that the age of proscription and endless bloodshed was at a close, and a new era had begun. It would be wise to deny Cleopatra the propaganda of being able to show to the Parthian king that all Pompeius was, was a bloodthirsty and power hungry tyrant. The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. As he neared Alexandria, he finally made up his mind, and decided to spare Caesarion, but made it abundantly clear that the teenager was to be taken to Rome to receive a proper Roman education. This was partly because of his desire to have to only control one, weak Egyptian ruler in Arsinoe IV, than to keep two co-rulers in line. The main reason however, was he was fearful of a Parthian invasion in the future to place Cleopatra back on the throne, and Pompeius had little reason to trust that Caesarion wouldn't try to betray over Egypt to his mother the first chance he got. Off to Rome for Caesarion it was.


 
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...Cleopatra attempted one last ditch effort at reaching out to Pompeius, and offered to willfully accept surrender and imprisonment, in exchange for Caesarion being spared execution...Cleopatra surrendered herself to Pompeius, who characteristically stood by his word, and not a hand was layed on young Caesarion. [/FONT]

A welcome change from the bloody-mined and perfideous Octavian in OTL!

Well done sir! The Pirate Emperor seems off to a good start!

Hero of Canton
 
Nothing seems to stop the Pirate king now! Although...... I fear his leniency towards Cleopatra may prove to be a huge mistakes, as its likely that she wont stop her scheming.....and i fear her vengeance will be against Sextus.
Great TL so far, keep it up!
 
Nothing seems to stop the Pirate king now! Although...... I fear his leniency towards Cleopatra may prove to be a huge mistakes, as its likely that she wont stop her scheming.....and i fear her vengeance will be against Sextus.
Great TL so far, keep it up!

I must cordially disagree. Her eldest son is being held hostage in Rome. She will not risk his life.

Hero of Canton
 
Below is the only thing that seems like a mistake, as far as I can discern.


I don't know enough to talk about probability or realism, but I am enjoying the read! :cool:

Ah, thanks for pointing that out!

A welcome change from the bloody-mined and perfideous Octavian in OTL!

Well done sir! The Pirate Emperor seems off to a good start!

Hero of Canton

Nothing seems to stop the Pirate king now! Although...... I fear his leniency towards Cleopatra may prove to be a huge mistakes, as its likely that she wont stop her scheming.....and i fear her vengeance will be against Sextus.
Great TL so far, keep it up!

I must cordially disagree. Her eldest son is being held hostage in Rome. She will not risk his life.

Hero of Canton

For now, anyway. Still, i think Cleopatra is too good a character to be put on the sidelines in this TL.

She'll scheme and plot and plan but it sounds like her fangs have been pulled...I am not even sure she is remaining in power even as a figurehead.

Hero of Canton

She doesn't have much to go with. Her son is practically a hostage in Rome, and she is being heavily guarded. That doesn't mean she won't try though (or for that matter, that she will try either) but it would be extremely difficult to pull anything off.

I'm not gonna give it away though, so you just have to wait and see. :p

I'm really glad you guys are enjoying this.
 
Okay, so I can use a little feedback here. I don't want to make Pompey's settlements a carbon copy of Octavian's, yet I don't want it to drift too far from Octavian's either. If you guys have any ideas, PM me. I'll probably think up of something soon anyway, but I feel it would be a good idea to get some ideas from you guys as well.
 
Chapter XVII: Consolidation of Power

With the civil war over, Pompeius sent word to the Senate. The aging Marcus Tullius Cicero (he was 76) read it aloud to the Senate.

As I write this, Cleopatra and her son Caesarion are securely in our custody, as well as Marcus Antonius’s son, Antyllus. As we entered Alexandria, Arsinoe IV paraded through the city and was hailed as the new pharaoh. I gladly boast to the Senate and People of Rome, that an era of immense bloodshed is over. A period of civil strife that has racked us ever since the rebel Caesar first crossed the Rubicon, is over.

Despite his age, Cicero still kept his famous oratory talent, and delivered one of his best speeches praising Pompeius Magnus Pius for saving the republic and restoring order. He had seemingly gotten over the death of his good friend Atticus two years prior, and if he was not over it by this time, he did a good job at hiding his sadness at the loss. The Senate rejoiced at the end to the civil war. They unanimously decreed Pompeius a triumph upon his return to Italy.

Pompeius still had more pressing matters at hand in Egypt. He spent a few months in Egypt, attending to affairs there. After disbanding the Egyptian navy, his first priority was to secure Arsinoe IV’s position on the Egyptian throne. For the moment Pompeius thought it best to let Egypt be ruled by a loyal and weak Roman client, than to be directly annexed into the empire. The Egyptian people were loyal to the Ptolemies, so why should he go through the trouble of annexing them while a loyal Ptolemy was alive and with him? It was better to simply place a Ptolemy on the throne than to sow discontent. Always fearful the Parthians would invade at some point, Pompeius thought it best that there was a Ptolemy on the throne, hoping this would make it less likely for them to immediately welcome Cleopatra into Egypt with open arms. Instead, Pompeius made sure that Arsinoe made up a will as soon as she assumed power. In this will, she bequeathed the Ptolemaic Kingdom to the Senate and People of Rome. It wasn’t as if Arsinoe had much say in the matter. She owed her entire rule to Pompeius and had little actual power. He was almost certain the Parthian problem would have been long over by then.

For the sons of Cleopatra by Antonius, Pompeius chose to continue his policy of clemency. He arranged for the young Alexander Helios to be packed up and sent off to Rome to get a good Roman education. His maternal twin, Cleopatra II Selene[1], was at first taken to Rome due to her young age, and then eventually married to the soon to be Numidian King, Juba II. Juba II had an interesting and eventful life up until this point. His father, Juba I, killed himself after losing to Julius Caesar in North Africa in 46 BC. Caesar took Juba to Rome to be shown in his triumph, but instead of killing him as was usual after Roman enemies were paraded in a triumph, Caesar arranged for him to get a Roman education. Juba learned Greek and Latin, and it is said he was one of the best educated citizens in Rome, writing his first work at the age of 20, titled Roman Archaeology.

After Caesar’s death, Juba travelled with Octavian for his military campaigns, and was likely present when Octavian was killed at Philippi. It is likely that it was in the Philippi campaign where he gained most of the valuable knowledge he was to have on leadership and command. When the Third Triumvirate was formed between Antonius, Pompeius, and Agrippa, Juba chose to stick around with Pompeius. This was a practical move, as his father had been allied to the father of the young Sextus Pompeius, Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus. The two soon became close friends, and it is believed by most that Juba also accompanied the Pompeians at Actium, as well as on the long march to Alexandria.

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Bust of Juba II​

Pompeius had plans to restore Juba to the throne in Numidia as a loyal client king to Rome, and indeed he would do just that once he returned to Rome in 29. By marrying off Cleopatra Selene to his steadfast ally and future client king, Pompeius was killing two birds with one stone. He could continue his policy of reconciliation and clemency when dealing with his former enemies, while still preventing Cleopatra from ever posing a thorn in his side in the future. Juba was a friend of his personally, and would do good in keeping Cleopatra in line if she ever got any scheming thoughts.

Marcus Antonius Antyllus was another matter. He had begged to be spared after being captured at Actium, and Pompeius had taken him with him on his march across the east as a prisoner. Obviously he could not keep Antyllus as a prisoner forever, but killing him outright would be counter-productive to his new policy of forgiving the Caesarian faction to achieve better unity. So instead, he searched for a nice place of exile for the son of his sworn enemy. It wasn’t long before he found a desired location: the small island of Rhodes. Antyllus treated the news that he was to be sent to Rhodes for exile with relative indifference. He really could not be mad at being exiled-he knew very well he was lucky to even be alive. With a small escort of Pompeian ships, near the end of 30, Antyllus set sail for his new permanent home.

With affairs settled with in Egypt and the east, Pompeius made plans for his triumphant return to Rome. Without an enemy of the republic to justify his extra-constitutional power, and having been the champion of the Republic ever since Caesar crossed the Rubicon, Pompeius was in a tough political spot. He really had no intention of restoring the republic to what it once was. That is of course, a corrupt, unpredictable place, that had spun out of control. Over the years, he had realized that Caesar had been right on a lot of things. Obviously he had no intention of flaunting around as a dictator however, or he knew he would end up dead like his old foe was.

So he devised a plan to keep his extra constitutional authority. Pompeius would simply enter Rome and serve as a joint consul with Ventidius Bassus, and then in the following year with Marcus Agrippa. True, the final decision for who was consul was up ultimately to the people of Rome, but he had such a large client-patron relationship, and his prestige was such in Rome, that he could be elected consul as many times as he chose. Pompeius was a hero in Rome, and there were none who didn’t at least acknowledge he was too popular to go against.

With that in mind, Pompeius arrived in Brundisium in late 30 BC. He staged a splendid triumph in Rome, and as planned, was elected consul alongside Ventidius Bassus for 29 BC. The Roman people were ecstatic upon his return, and the Senate embraced the man they still thought of as the saviour of the republic. It must have been clear to most of them, if not before then by now, that the republic in its familiar form, would never return. They were happy at least that it was their man that was the most powerful man in Rome, and not a Caesarian.

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Statue of Sextus Pompeius Magnus Pius Augustus [2]​

The next couple of years saw little change. Pompeius made no attempt to change any of Caesar’s reforms, announcing the free grain dole was here to stay. No matter what the Senate, or Pompeius for that matter, thought of the policy, it was obvious that making the Roman citizens pay for the free grain like they had in the past, was inviting full scale riots. He also placed the finishing touches on the Forum of Julius Caesar, which name he made no attempt to change, and what it is still known as today. Simply put, the people had loved Caesar, and it was a nice way of continuing his reconciliation policy.

In 27 BC, Pompeius finally took a step towards securing his permanent place as ruler of the Roman Empire. Peculiarly, he did so by doing the exact opposite of that. He resigned his consulship, and became a private citizen. When the people rioted and the Senate saw that this just was not going to cut it, he made a settlement with the Senate, one he had been planning all along when he stepped down. He was given complete proconsular authority over the entirety of the western half of the empire, as well as the strategic province of Syria in the East. It is important to note though that Pompeius was not actually granted any new powers yet. He simply held consular authority in Rome, and proconsular authority and imperium across the empire.

Pompeius was soon showered with honors by the senate. If their actions seemed odd considering their reaction to the last man who wielded most of the power, it was. One must remember that many of the senators that had been against any signs of power being concentrated in the hands of one man, were purged by Antonius and Octavian upon forming the Second Triumvirate. He was granted the religious title of Augustus[3], as well as Princeps. Augustus itself means “revered”, and the title Augustus that the Senate bestowed upon him, meant “Honored One”. According to Roman religious beliefs, the title symbolized a stamp of authority over humanity, and in fact nature, that went beyond any constitutional definition of his status. As the title Princeps implies, he was “The First Citizen of Rome”. There was precedent to this, as his father, Pompeius Magnus, had also held this title. His name was now, Sextus Pompeius Magnus Pius Augustus, or as posterity remembers him, Magnus Pius Augustus, or simply, Augustus. Along with these honorable titles, Pompeius (from now on to be referred to as Augustus), was also awarded the honor to hang the civic crown on his door. Traditionally worn on the head of a general during his triumph, or by anyone who won it by saving the life of a fellow Roman in battle, this was a great honor. It was clear to all that Pompeius Augustus was the sole ruler of the Roman Empire in everything but name.

[1] Helios meaning Sun and Selene meaning Moon.
[2] The only images of Pompey I can find are on coins. So this was the next best thing.
[3] I couldn’t find a better title for the senate to give him and assumed they’d give him some title, depsite him parading the title “Magnus Pius”. It was the best fit I found but if you guys have any other title ideas, please don’t hesitate to put them forward.

 
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Good updates:cool:

What is the fate of Cleopatra?

Like Zenobia of Palmira of OTL she is exiled in a roman villa?

Originally posted by slydessertfox
Okay, so I can use a little feedback here. I don't want to make Pompey's settlements a carbon copy of Octavian's, yet I don't want it to drift too far from Octavian's either. If you guys have any ideas, PM me. I'll probably think up of something soon anyway, but I feel it would be a good idea to get some ideas from you guys as well.

Thinking I had the idea (an idea that rounded my head some time ago about a possible Pompeius Magnus total victory in Dyrrachium against Caesar) that a title with all a series of legal normatives to stipulate in that consist it that the Pompeius Family and the successors of Pompeius Family in being the power behind the Republic would be of "Protectors of the Republic" in latin "Susceptor reipublicae" or simplily the protectors "Susceptor".

This figure would be like a dictator but with less powers and with a not limited duration although the Senate could abolish this title to the person that exercises it with a qualified majority in a serie of stipulated cases (corruption, bad use of the power against Senate,etc)

I think so the title "Susceptor" would be an interesting new legal figure for this new republic.


Apart of this there were several Gaul rebellions around 30BC in TTL this happens more or less the same?
 
Good updates:cool:

What is the fate of Cleopatra?

Like Zenobia of Palmira of OTL she is exiled in a roman villa?



Thinking I had the idea (an idea that rounded my head some time ago about a possible Pompeius Magnus total victory in Dyrrachium against Caesar) that a title with all a series of legal normatives to stipulate in that consist it that the Pompeius Family and the successors of Pompeius Family in being the power behind the Republic would be of "Protectors of the Republic" in latin "Susceptor reipublicae" or simplily the protectors "Susceptor".

This figure would be like a dictator but with less powers and with a not limited duration although the Senate could abolish this title to the person that exercises it with a qualified majority in a serie of stipulated cases (corruption, bad use of the power against Senate,etc)

I think so the title "Susceptor" would be an interesting new legal figure for this new republic.


Apart of this there were several Gaul rebellions around 30BC in TTL this happens more or less the same?

I forgot to mention that Cleopatra was displayed in the triumph and then killed.

Your idea seems interesting. I'm not sure how possible it is though, because even Augustus had to pretend he had no official power, and his successors had a lot of problems because they didn't want to pretend they had no official power. I'll play around with it though. :)

Oh yeah, the Gaul rebellions just go more or less the same as OTL.
 
Just caught up, great stuff, some feedback:

- The Donations of Alexandria didn't shock anyone at the time. It was Octavian and his propaganda which in time made it seem as if Antonius had 'gone native' and been torn away by the whore queen of Egypt. Bearing in mind of course all we have is the victor's version of events. While Antonius did expand Cleopatra's territory OTL, he gave her only so much as was useful for him, having no problem holding off when he had other plans (ie, her demands he give her Judaea, in order to create a solid Ptolemaic realm from Egypt to Syria). Antonius' gifts restored Egypt in wealth and magnificence but not as a military power, and did not disrupt his client kings in Galatia, Cappadocia, Pontus and Judaea. It would make no sense for him to set these talented men up as his agents in those countries and then demote/replace them with his newborn bastards a few years later (as was implied here). Cleopatra was set up as an imperial rival to the Parthian King of Kings but as liege-lady only of her own sons (and the King of Nabataea iirc, not sure).

- For all his qualities, I'm not sure Pompeius would be able to replicate Octavian's manoeuvures once in power in Rome. He had scruples where Octavian didn't and would probably not do the thing with revealing his will, etc. The name of Pompeius carried less weight with the plebs and legions than that of Caesar: where Octavian managed, over a decade, to attain parity with the authority and prestige of Antony, Pompeius the pirate adventurer would be at a distinct disadvantage.

- Antony's affair with Cleopatra wasn't scandalous, certainly not as early as 37BC. Roman generals having fun in the provinces was either unimportant or approved of. There was no inkling she'd be anything more than a Glaphyra of Cappadocia or Eunoe of Mauretania. Antony's popularity certainly wasn't at a freefall - he was still riding high as late as the early 30s BC, despite absence from Rome and the relentless efforts of Octavian against him. Here Antonius is not only Caesar, he is the sole victor of Philippi (instead of having to share the glory with Octavian).

- Antony's eastern campaigns would not proceed the same as OTL. His efforts were damaged by Octavian's constant calls for conferences on Italian soil (he showed up twice only for Brundisium to be closed to him) and eventually when they did come to terms, it involved an exchange of Antony's ships for Octavian's men. Pompeius would almost certainly follow through on whatever he agreed to, his honour would demand it of him.

- OTL Philippi left what was left of the Republicans to Antonius. With Octavian's death, the municipals he liked so much and Caesarian officers he inherited would almost certainly go over to Caesar Antonius as well, as Salvidienus came close to doing when he was govern of Gaul OTL. Pompeius would be left with his Greek freedmen and dwindling minority of Roman aristocrats - see how even OTL Tiberius Nero and others went over to Antonius. In all likelihood delegations of soldiers, as they had did several times OTL, would negotiate with Antonius and Pompeius and force them to make peace/ alternatively, Pompeius would see his legions and officers break off and pledge service to Caesar Antonius. Before deserting to Pompeius, Antonius' soldiers would undoubtedly sent a delegation to him first, and once the truth was revealed, Pompeius would be in very dire straits indeed.

- Cleopatra was a consummate stateswoman and, above all, a survivor. She would not abandon Caesar Antonius willy-nilly. She would not risk her head for a few ships. Egypt didn't lack gold, with the lands and monopolies she obtained from Antony she was incredibly wealthy. As Octavian's efforts against Pompeius clearly demonstrated, navies could be destroyed and rebuilt. She would either sit the battle out and make her escape after defeat (as she did OTL, obviously expecting to sex or bribe her way to live another day afterwards) or, at the very most, only ditch Antony after having secured an understanding with the other side. She would have no wish to, however, given the superiority of his position and person vs Pompeius and Agrippa.

- If Cleopatra was crazy enough to do something like that and spur of the moment run away, in the most unqueenly fashion and to the complete detriment of her reputation and honour, she would be sure to escape. Like Labienus and others before her, she would most likely found refuge with the Parthians and count on them restoring her to power.

- In Roman thinking, bastard children took after the mother. Cleopatra's children were Greeks to all intents and purposes. Pompeius would most likely negate Caesarion's paternity and force him and Cleopatra to acknowledge her brother-husband as his biological father. At this point he would be most likely left behind with Arsinoe (auntie-wife? :p) instead of going to Rome for education.

- Cleopatra was a Ptolemy at the end of the day. I don't think she'd flinch at having a child of hers die if it could benefit her in any way.

- Cleopatra Selene would likely go to Rome with Alexander Helios, as per OTL. She was too young for marriage and would be useful as a back-up Egyptian heir (failing Arsinoe etc). Here Juba doesn't have a personal relationship with Pompeius to come into play and benefit him as OTL. Juba made sense as a match OTL where he was a safe match, with no pretensions in the East, Octavian's personal friend, and raised in Rome as the girl had been raised in Rome. Here, in a tumultous drama-filled era which may or may not be over, Pompeius would most likely play it safe instead of handing her over to some random client king.

- Antyllus would be a danger as long as he lived, however, I don't know of many examples of Romans sent on exile, only Lepidus. I think it's far more likely for Antyllus to either be done away with or rehabilitated completely (ie, allowed to inherit his father's property, marry, stand for office in due time, and generally be subsumed into the new regime as a public icon of Magnus Pius' clementia).

- I can see Pompeius imitating Octavian's use of Imperator as a praenomen, OTL he innovated styling himself Magnus Pompeius Pius on occassion, but Augustus seems farfetched. He might accept some high-sounding title such as custodian of the Republic (Curator Res Publicae? not sure on that one) without any legal power but bestowing/recognizing his supreme auctoritas.

- Pompeius was a philhellene through and through. Wouldn't be surprised to see his beloved Greeks entering the Senate if he's the one in power.
 
Just caught up, great stuff, some feedback:

- The Donations of Alexandria didn't shock anyone at the time. It was Octavian and his propaganda which in time made it seem as if Antonius had 'gone native' and been torn away by the whore queen of Egypt. Bearing in mind of course all we have is the victor's version of events. While Antonius did expand Cleopatra's territory OTL, he gave her only so much as was useful for him, having no problem holding off when he had other plans (ie, her demands he give her Judaea, in order to create a solid Ptolemaic realm from Egypt to Syria). Antonius' gifts restored Egypt in wealth and magnificence but not as a military power, and did not disrupt his client kings in Galatia, Cappadocia, Pontus and Judaea. It would make no sense for him to set these talented men up as his agents in those countries and then demote/replace them with his newborn bastards a few years later (as was implied here). Cleopatra was set up as an imperial rival to the Parthian King of Kings but as liege-lady only of her own sons (and the King of Nabataea iirc, not sure).
I know the donations of alexandria are blown out of proportions as far as their initial effect goes. I admit, I had taken a few liberties with Rome's reaction, but I still tried to make sure that it wasn't enough to cause immediate war, and held it off for another year.

- For all his qualities, I'm not sure Pompeius would be able to replicate Octavian's manoeuvures once in power in Rome. He had scruples where Octavian didn't and would probably not do the thing with revealing his will, etc. The name of Pompeius carried less weight with the plebs and legions than that of Caesar: where Octavian managed, over a decade, to attain parity with the authority and prestige of Antony, Pompeius the pirate adventurer would be at a distinct disadvantage.
From what I read, at least up until his deal with Antony and Octavian, Sextus Pompey was immensely popular with the people, where as Octavian's popularity was plumetting due to the blockade. He was also the last refuge for republicans in exile who were on the proscription list. His popularity only declined with the people and senators after his deal with Antony and Octavian.

- Antony's affair with Cleopatra wasn't scandalous, certainly not as early as 37BC. Roman generals having fun in the provinces was either unimportant or approved of. There was no inkling she'd be anything more than a Glaphyra of Cappadocia or Eunoe of Mauretania. Antony's popularity certainly wasn't at a freefall - he was still riding high as late as the early 30s BC, despite absence from Rome and the relentless efforts of Octavian against him. Here Antonius is not only Caesar, he is the sole victor of Philippi (instead of having to share the glory with Octavian).
True. I admit I exaggerated it a bit, but I guess you can chalk that up to history being written by the victors, who in this case is Sextus Pompey.


- Antony's eastern campaigns would not proceed the same as OTL. His efforts were damaged by Octavian's constant calls for conferences on Italian soil (he showed up twice only for Brundisium to be closed to him) and eventually when they did come to terms, it involved an exchange of Antony's ships for Octavian's men. Pompeius would almost certainly follow through on whatever he agreed to, his honour would demand it of him.
Sextus did send the necessary troops. Antony was still eager for a quick campaign, and I didn't think it would change up his strategy much (which itself was sound), and with his speed, I wagered there was still a chance he would let the baggage train lag behind.
- OTL Philippi left what was left of the Republicans to Antonius. With Octavian's death, the municipals he liked so much and Caesarian officers he inherited would almost certainly go over to Caesar Antonius as well, as Salvidienus came close to doing when he was govern of Gaul OTL.
Most of the Caesarian officers did stick with Antony. Antony forced Bassus into retirement as he did OTL, and Pompey was quick to fan the flames for his anger at Antony ITTL, getting him to join him, if only initially for his desire to remain in public life and get back at Antony.

Pompeius would be left with his Greek freedmen and dwindling minority of Roman aristocrats - see how even OTL Tiberius Nero and others went over to Antonius.
This really only happened because they were allowed to travel back to Rome when the deal between Antony, Octavian, and Pompey was concluded. Here, they are allowed back, but Pompey is now up on the highest stage as a triumvir, and his power is larger than it ever was. So I took a little liberty here and most decided to remain loyal to the second most powerful man in Rome.
In all likelihood delegations of soldiers, as they had did several times OTL, would negotiate with Antonius and Pompeius and force them to make peace/ alternatively, Pompeius would see his legions and officers break off and pledge service to Caesar Antonius. Before deserting to Pompeius, Antonius' soldiers would undoubtedly sent a delegation to him first, and once the truth was revealed, Pompeius would be in very dire straits indeed.
While they had in the past, there was no sign the soldiers were going to do so OTL at Actium. This isn't about two Caesarian forces like it was OTL. Sure, they had done their best to stave off Roman blood being shed until Actium, but the Pompeian soldiers were almost completely recruited by Pompey, and were loyal to the Pompeian faction, not the Caesarian faction as a whole, as both sides were OTL.


- Cleopatra was a consummate stateswoman and, above all, a survivor. She would not abandon Caesar Antonius willy-nilly. She would not risk her head for a few ships. Egypt didn't lack gold, with the lands and monopolies she obtained from Antony she was incredibly wealthy. As Octavian's efforts against Pompeius clearly demonstrated, navies could be destroyed and rebuilt. She would either sit the battle out and make her escape after defeat (as she did OTL, obviously expecting to sex or bribe her way to live another day afterwards) or, at the very most, only ditch Antony after having secured an understanding with the other side. She would have no wish to, however, given the superiority of his position and person vs Pompeius and Agrippa.
True, I may have made a mistake there. I don't think that's one I can change at this point, so anyway to make it sound more believable?


- If Cleopatra was crazy enough to do something like that and spur of the moment run away, in the most unqueenly fashion and to the complete detriment of her reputation and honour, she would be sure to escape. Like Labienus and others before her, she would most likely found refuge with the Parthians and count on them restoring her to power.
This is something I might be able to work with. It actually leaves me with more options than what I initially did would. I'll probably change this up to have Cleopatra fleeing to Parthia.

- In Roman thinking, bastard children took after the mother. Cleopatra's children were Greeks to all intents and purposes. Pompeius would most likely negate Caesarion's paternity and force him and Cleopatra to acknowledge her brother-husband as his biological father. At this point he would be most likely left behind with Arsinoe (auntie-wife? :p) instead of going to Rome for education.
True, but it's not totally out of the realm of possibility is it? Sextus wants to weaken the power of the Ptolemies as much as possible, and wants to make sure that when Arsinoe dies, Egypt becomes a Roman province.


- Cleopatra was a Ptolemy at the end of the day. I don't think she'd flinch at having a child of hers die if it could benefit her in any way.
IOTL, she actually offered something similar to Octavian. IIRC, she practically begged him to let Caesarion live.

- Cleopatra Selene would likely go to Rome with Alexander Helios, as per OTL. She was too young for marriage and would be useful as a back-up Egyptian heir (failing Arsinoe etc). Here Juba doesn't have a personal relationship with Pompeius to come into play and benefit him as OTL. Juba made sense as a match OTL where he was a safe match, with no pretensions in the East, Octavian's personal friend, and raised in Rome as the girl had been raised in Rome. Here, in a tumultous drama-filled era which may or may not be over, Pompeius would most likely play it safe instead of handing her over to some random client king.

- Antyllus would be a danger as long as he lived, however, I don't know of many examples of Romans sent on exile, only Lepidus. I think it's far more likely for Antyllus to either be done away with or rehabilitated completely (ie, allowed to inherit his father's property, marry, stand for office in due time, and generally be subsumed into the new regime as a public icon of Magnus Pius' clementia).
I have plans for Pompeius to recall him from exile shortly.
- I can see Pompeius imitating Octavian's use of Imperator as a praenomen, OTL he innovated styling himself Magnus Pompeius Pius on occassion, but Augustus seems farfetched. He might accept some high-sounding title such as custodian of the Republic (Curator Res Publicae? not sure on that one) without any legal power but bestowing/recognizing his supreme auctoritas.
Is there a reason it's far fetched? I'm not too familiar with Roman titles and praenomens.

- Pompeius was a philhellene through and through. Wouldn't be surprised to see his beloved Greeks entering the Senate if he's the one in power.
Indeed. I'll delve more into that soon.
 
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