Berenice IV

Berenice IV
Berenice IV
Pharaoh
	Queenof thePtolemaic Kingdom
Reign	58-55 BC withCleopatra VI/Cleopatra V(until 57 BC)
Predecessor	Ptolemy XII Auletes
Successor	Ptolemy XII Auletes
	Royal titulary
Consort	Seleucus VII Kybiosaktes; Archelaus I of Comana
Father	Ptolemy XII Auletes
Mother	Cleopatra V of Egypt
Born	77 BC; Alexandria,Egypt
Died	55 BC; Alexandria, Egypt
Burial	Alexandria, Egypt
Dynasty	Ptolemaic dynasty

Berenice IV Epiphaneia(Greek:Βερενίκη;77–55 BC, born and died inAlexandria,Egypt) was a Greek princess and Queen of thePtolemaic dynasty.From 58 to 55 BC, Berenice IV ruled Egypt during the political exile of her fatherPtolemy XII AuletestoRome.It is unclear if she was co-ruler of Egypt with her motherCleopatra Vor a possible siblingCleopatra VIfrom 58 to 57 BC, but became sole ruler in 57 BC. On the return of Ptolemy XII to Egypt withRoman militaryaid andan armyled byAulus Gabinius,Berenice IV was overthrown and executed by her rival father, who later bequeathed his throne to his daughterCleopatra VIIand sonPtolemy XIIIas co-rulers.

Biography[edit]

Berenice was the daughter ofPtolemy XII Auletesand probablyCleopatra V Tryphaena.She was the sister of the famous PharaohCleopatra VII,Arsinoe IV,Ptolemy XIII Theos PhilopatorandPtolemy XIV.

In 59 BCJulius Caesarwas one of theconsuls of Rome.It was believed that the annexation of Egypt was part of his own political programme, the excuse being that the king of Egypt,Ptolemy XII Auletes,wasillegitimateand had no right to rule. Ptolemy Auletes responded by buying Caesar's support at huge expense, and the Romans passed a law to recognise Ptolemy Auletes as legitimate king of Egypt. The treaty however said nothing about Cyprus, where another Ptolemy, the brother of Ptolemy Auletes, was king.^[1]

In 58 BC theRomans annexed Cyprus,forcing thedeposed king and brother of Auletesinto suicide. The loss of Cyprus, and the poor state of the Egyptian economy following the bribes to Caesar, triggered civil unrest in Ptolemy Auletes' capital Alexandria. Unable to quash the unrest on his own, Ptolemy Auletes went in 58 BC to Rome to ask formilitary support,leaving his family behind in Egypt. In his absence, the Alexandrines declared him deposed, and in his place nominated his daughter Berenice IV Epiphaneia and (according to the ancient historianPorphyry) "[Auletes'] eldest daughter"Cleopatra VI Tryphaenaas joint monarchs. Some, though not all, modern historians believe Porphyry made an error here, and that Cleopatra VI Tryphaena was in fact Ptolemy XII Auletes' wife Cleopatra V Tryphaena.^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]

Unable to muster up immediate support fromthe Romans,Ptolemy Auletes was initially unable take his kingdom back from the two queens. From 58 till the end of 57 he resided in Rome or at Pompey's villa in the Alban hills, busily working upon the senators by bribes or promises, and procuring the assassination of envoys sent from Alexandria to Rome; he then left Rome and went to Ephesus, and lived in the sacred precinct of Artemis. In the meantime Cleopatra Tryphaena is believed to have died in 57 B.C. of unknown causes, leaving the young Berenice sole queen in Alexandria.^[7]

As a lone woman ruling Egypt, she was expected to marry and have a man as a co-regent. Her advisors first tried to arrange a marriage with two Seleucid princes, both descended fromPtolemy VIII.The first was a son ofCleopatra Selene of Syria:he died whilst negotiations were in progress. The second was a grandson ofTryphaenaandAntiochus VIII Grypuscalled Philip (possiblyPhilip II Philoromaeus): he was forbidden by theRoman governor of Syria Aulus Gabiniusto accept the invitation. The Alexandrines then, thirdly, arranged a marriage with a man called Seleucus, connected to the Seleucid royal house. He may have been another son of Cleopatra Selene of Syria, perhapsSeleucus VII Philometor;alternatively he may have been an illegitimate son of one of the Seleucid kings. When he arrived in Alexandria, the Alexandrines were shocked by his vulgar appearance and manners, and nicknamed him Kybiosaktes, "Salt-fish-monger". Berenice, after a few days of marriage, found she was unable to bear his coarseness and vulgarity, and felt that he could not command the respect of the populace: she had him strangled. The court then arranged a marriage with a Greek calledArchelaus.Archelaus had been appointed prince-pontiff at the temple of the Great Mother at Comana in Pontus byPompey,and claimed to be a son of KingMithridates VI of Pontus(and, if so, to be distantly related in blood to the Ptolemies).Straboinstead says his father wasArchelaus,one of the chief marshals of Mithridates VI in theFirst Mithridatic War^[8]who defected to the Romans. At that time Archelaus was an associate of Aulus Gabinius, and had hoped to join with him on an expedition against the Parthians. Gabinius furthermore had become suspicious of Archelaus's associations with the Egyptians, and had him arrested. Persuaded though that Archelaus was no threat, and perhaps bribed, Gabinius voluntarily released him. In the winter 56‑55 Archelaus came to Egypt, married Berenice, and was proclaimed king.^[9]^[10]^[11]

In the spring of 55 Ptolemy Auletes anda Roman forceinvaded Egypt. Berenice and Archelaus were defeated, and Archelaus died in battle. Ptolemy Auletes was installed once more as king in Alexandria by the Romans. One of Ptolemy Auletes' first acts after his restoration was to execute his daughter Berenice, for the crime of usurping his throne.^[12] ^[13]He would later bequeath his throne to two siblings of Berenice IV: Cleopatra VII and Ptolemy XIII.^[14]

References[edit]

^Bevan, E.R.,The House of Ptolemypublished by Methuen Publishing, London, 1927[1]
^Bevan, E.R.,The House of Ptolemypublished by Methuen Publishing, London, 1927[2]
^Porphyry,cited byFelix Jacoby,Fragmente der griechischen Historiker,no. 260 F 2, 14
^Eusebius of Caesarea,Chronicle,Schoene, p. 167.
^Werner Huß,Ägypten in hellenistischer Zeit,p. 679.
^Tyldesley, Joyce (2006),Chronicle of the Queens of Egypt,p.200,ISBN 0-500-05145-3.
^Bevan, E.R.,The House of Ptolemypublished by Methuen Publishing, London, 1927[3]
^AppianMithrid. 114
^Strabo12.3.34 and 17.1.11
^Bevan, E.R.,The House of Ptolemypublished by Methuen Publishing, London, 1927[4]
^"Cassius Dio — Book 39".
^Bevan, E.R.,The House of Ptolemypublished by Methuen Publishing, London, 1927[5]
^PlutarchAntony 3.2 - 3.6
^Roller, Duane W.(2010),Cleopatra: a biography,Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 26–27,ISBN 978-0-19-536553-5.

Sources[edit]

Dio Cassius39.12 - 39.14, 39.55 - 39.58

Regnal titles
Berenice IV Ptolemaic dynasty Born:c. 77 BCDied:55 BC
Preceded by Ptolemy XII	Pharaoh of Egypt 58 BC–55 BC withCleopatra VI	Succeeded by Ptolemy XII

[1] Bevan, E.R.,The House of Ptolemypublished by Methuen Publishing, London, 1927[1]

[2] Bevan, E.R.,The House of Ptolemypublished by Methuen Publishing, London, 1927[2]

[3] Porphyry,cited byFelix Jacoby,Fragmente der griechischen Historiker,no. 260 F 2, 14

[4] Eusebius of Caesarea,Chronicle,Schoene, p. 167.

[5] Werner Huß,Ägypten in hellenistischer Zeit,p. 679.

[Tyldesley-6] Tyldesley, Joyce (2006),Chronicle of the Queens of Egypt,p.200,ISBN 0-500-05145-3.

[7] Bevan, E.R.,The House of Ptolemypublished by Methuen Publishing, London, 1927[3]

[8] AppianMithrid. 114

[9] Strabo12.3.34 and 17.1.11

[10] Bevan, E.R.,The House of Ptolemypublished by Methuen Publishing, London, 1927[4]

[11] "Cassius Dio — Book 39".

[12] Bevan, E.R.,The House of Ptolemypublished by Methuen Publishing, London, 1927[5]

[13] PlutarchAntony 3.2 - 3.6

[14] Roller, Duane W.(2010),Cleopatra: a biography,Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 26–27,ISBN 978-0-19-536553-5.

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v t e Hellenisticrulers
Argeads	Philip II Alexander III the Great Philip III Arrhidaeus Alexander IV
Antipatrids	Cassander Philip IV Alexander V Antipater II Antipater Etesias Sosthenes
Antigonids	Antigonus I Monophthalmus Demetrius I Poliorcetes Antigonus II Gonatas Demetrius II Aetolicus Antigonus III Doson Philip V Perseus Philip VI(pretender)
Ptolemies	Ptolemy I Soter Ptolemy Keraunos Ptolemy II Philadelphus Ptolemy III Euergetes Ptolemy IV Philopator Ptolemy V Epiphanes Cleopatra I Syra(regent) Ptolemy VI Philometor Ptolemy VII Neos Philopator Cleopatra II Philometor Soter Ptolemy VIII Physcon Cleopatra III Ptolemy IX Lathyros Ptolemy X Alexander Berenice III Ptolemy XI Alexander Ptolemy XII Auletes Cleopatra VI Tryphaena Berenice IV Epiphanea Ptolemy XIII Ptolemy XIV Cleopatra VII Philopator Ptolemy XV Caesarion
Monarchs of Cyrene	Magas Berenice II Demetrius the Fair Ptolemy VIII Physcon Ptolemy Apion Cleopatra Selene II
Seleucids	Seleucus I Nicator Antiochus I Soter Antiochus II Theos Seleucus II Callinicus Seleucus III Ceraunus Antiochus III the Great Seleucus IV Philopator Antiochus IV Epiphanes Antiochus V Eupator Demetrius I Soter Alexander I Balas Demetrius II Nicator Antiochus VI Dionysus Diodotus Tryphon Antiochus VII Sidetes Alexander II Zabinas Cleopatra Thea Seleucus V Philometor Antiochus VIII Grypus Antiochus IX Cyzicenus Seleucus VI Epiphanes Antiochus X Eusebes Antiochus XI Epiphanes Demetrius III Eucaerus Philip I Philadelphus Antiochus XII Dionysus Cleopatra Selene I Antiochus XIII Asiaticus Philip II Philoromaeus
Lysimachids	Lysimachus Ptolemy Epigonos
Attalids	Philetaerus Eumenes I Attalus I Eumenes II Attalus II Attalus III Eumenes III
Greco-Bactrians	Diodotus I Diodotus II Euthydemus I Demetrius I Euthydemus II Antimachus I Pantaleon Agathocles Demetrius II Eucratides I Plato Eucratides II Heliocles I
Indo-Greeks	Demetrius I Antimachus I Pantaleon Agathocles Apollodotus I Demetrius II Antimachus II Menander I Zoilos I Agathokleia Lysias Strato I Antialcidas Heliokles II Polyxenos Demetrius III Philoxenus Diomedes Amyntas Epander Theophilos Peukolaos Thraso Nicias Menander II Artemidoros Hermaeus Archebius Telephos Apollodotus II Hippostratos Dionysios Zoilos II Apollophanes Strato II Strato III
Monarchs of Bithynia	Boteiras Bas Zipoetes I Nicomedes I Zipoetes II Etazeta(regent) Ziaelas Prusias I Prusias II Nicomedes II Nicomedes III Nicomedes IV Socrates Chrestus
Monarchs of Pontus	Mithridates I Ctistes Ariobarzanes Mithridates II Mithridates III Pharnaces I Mithridates IV Philopator PhiladephoswithLaodice Mithridates V Euergetes Mithridates VI Eupator Pharnaces II Darius Arsaces Polemon I Pythodorida Polemon II
Monarchs of Commagene	Ptolemaeus Sames II Mithridates I Antiochus I Mithridates II Antiochus II Mithridates III Antiochus III Antiochus IV
Monarchs of Cappadocia	Ariarathes I Ariarathes II Ariamnes II Ariarathes III Ariarathes IV Ariarathes V Orophernes Ariarathes VI Ariarathes VII Ariarathes VIII Ariarathes IX Ariobarzanes I Ariobarzanes II Ariobarzanes III Ariarathes X Archelaus
Monarchs of the Cimmerian Bosporus	Paerisades I Satyros II Prytanis Eumelos Spartokos III Hygiainon(regent) Paerisades II Spartokos IV Leukon II Spartokos V[ru] Kamasarye Paerisades III Paerisades IV Paerisades V Mithridates I Pharnaces AsanderwithDynamis Mithridates II AsanderwithDynamis Scribonius's attempted rule withDynamis DynamiswithPolemon Polemon Aspurgus Gepaepyris Mithridates III Cotys I
Monarchs of Epirus	Admetus Tharrhypas Alcetas I Neoptolemus I Arybbas Alexander I Aeacides Neoptolemus II Alcetas II Pyrrhus I Alexander II Olympias II(regent) Pyrrhus II Ptolemy Pyrrhus III Deidamia
Hellenistic rulers were preceded byHellenistic satrapsin most of their territories.

Biography[edit]

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References[edit]

Sources[edit]