Cleopatra’s Failed Invasion of Armenia

 

Cleopatra’s Failed Invasion of Armenia

Date: 34 BCE

Story:
Seeking to expand their eastern empire, Cleopatra and Antony led a joint campaign into Armenia.
They lured King Artavasdes II into a political trap, promising alliance but capturing him during a banquet.
The Armenian king was paraded through Alexandria in chains—a display meant to rival Caesar’s triumphs in Rome.
Cleopatra dressed in gold, Antony in purple, and their children sat on gilded thrones.
But the conquest backfired. Armenian rebels rallied, and Rome was unimpressed by what they viewed as eastern theatrics.
Octavian used the failed invasion to depict Antony as abandoning Rome for a foreign queen.
Worse, Antony’s redistribution of Roman provinces to Cleopatra and their children enraged the Senate.
Though they celebrated in Alexandria, the victory was hollow. The campaign ultimately fed the fires of Roman civil war.

Key Characters:

Cleopatra VII

Mark Antony

King Artavasdes II of Armenia

Roman senators

Reference:

Appian, Roman History

Cassius Dio, Roman History

Plutarch, Life of Antony