Cleopatra I. the First Female Ptolemaic Regent: Her Predecessors
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CLEOPATRA I. THE FIRST FEMALE PTOLEMAIC REGENT: HER PREDECESSORS. POLICIES. AND PRECEDENTS by JULIA K.W. WONG B.A. (HON.), University of Calgary, 1995 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES Department of Classics We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA August 1998 © Julia K.W. Wong, 1998 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department of The University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada DE-6 (2/88) 11 ABSTRACT The concept of woman-power existing in the highest circles of society in the Mediterranean world is proven, through a detailed study of the career of Cleopatra I. Cleopatra I, daughter of the Seleucid king, Antiochus III, wife of the Ptolemaic king, Ptolemy V, and mother of the Ptolemaic king, Ptolemy VI, became the first female regent in the Hellenistic period. Her regency was a crucial precedent for her female descendants, who all became joint co-rulers with their husbands and enjoyed much greater powers than any other queens before them. The difficulty of this study was in the lack of sources. Virtually nothing is known about Cleopatra I's career and queenship, which, as a result, required a thorough discussion of not only her predecessors and their precedents, but also her own policies and precedents. The thesis is divided into five chapters and fifteen appendices, the last six appendices serving as a sourcebook. Chapter One describes in detail the immense influence of the Ptolemaic ministers and their oligarchic faction at the court, especially during the reigns of the weaker Ptolemaic kings before Cleopatra I's time, and. However, as influential as these powerful Ptolemaic ministers were, a strong monarch, such as Cleopatra I, was able to suppress their large influence on the monarchy. Having suppressed the influential ministers at the court, Cleopatra I utilised another group of courtiers. These courtiers, eunuchs, came from her own retinue and are the focus of Chapter Two. This chapter documents the introduction and institutionalisation of eunuchs into the Ptolemaic court by Cleopatra I. Much as Cleopatra I's descendants had to rely on her precedents to gain influence and power at the Ptolemaic court, Chapter Three looks at Cleopatra I's three most influential and important predecessors, Arsinoe II, Ill Arsinoe III, and Hatshepsut. These three queens were vital to Cleopatra Fs future success, since each contributed greatly to Cleopatra Fs acceptance and appointment as the first female Ptolemaic regent. The last two chapters of the thesis focus on Cleopatra I. Chapter Four discusses extensively the greater rights and privileges Cleopatra I enjoyed when viewed as the Pharaoh's Wife. However, even with these increased rights, Cleopatra I failed to be recognised and acknowledged any differently than her predecessors had. It is in the last chapter, Chapter Five, that Cleopatra Fs power and influence at the court become manifest. This chapter discusses in what areas of the queenship Cleopatra I, during her regency, established new precedents and how her precedents and policies affected royal women not only in her own Ptolemaic kingdom, but also all over the Mediterranean. TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract 11 Abbreviations vi List of Tables xi List of Maps and Illustrations xii List of Appendices xiii Introduction 1 Chapter One. Ptolemaic Aristocratic Families 11 1.1 Family Connections 12 1.1.1 Sosibius 14 1.1.2 Agathocles 20 1.2 Other Prominent Families 24 1.2.1 Tlepolemus 26 1.2.2 Aristomenes 27 1.2.3 Poly crates 29 1.2.4 Philammon 33 1.3 Cleopatra Fs Relationship with These Significant Families 34 1.4 Summary 35 Chapter Two. Ptolemaic Eunuchs 37 2.1 Aristonicus 39 2.2 Eulaeus 44 2.3 Archias 49 2.4 The Regency of Eulaeus and Lenaeus 52 2.5 Summary 54 Chapter Three. Past Queens 55 3.1 Arsinoe II 57 3.2 Arsinoe III 63 3.3 Hatshepsut 66 3.4 Summary 70 Chapter Four. Cleopatra I, Wife of Ptolemy V Epiphanes 72 4.1 Titulary Evidence 73 4.2 Literary Evidence 78 4.3 Cleopatra I as the Pharaoh's Wife 80 4.4 Cleopatra Fs Position at the Court 84 4.5 Summary and Cleopatra Fs Influences 87 V Chapter Five. Cleopatra I, Mother of Ptolemy VI Philometor 89 5.1 Titulary Evidence 90 5.2 Cleopatra I and Her Portraiture 96 5.3 Cleopatra I's Political Position 100 5.4 Cleopatra I's Policies 101 5.5 Summary 104 Conclusion 106 Bibliography 109 Appendices 119 vi ABBREVIATIONS ANCIENT WRITERS Amm. Marc. Rolfe, John C. Ammianus Marcellinus. Vol.1. (1956) Loeb Classics. Appian, Syrian Wars Broderson, Kai. Appians Antiochike (1991) Munchen: Editio Maris. Athenaeus Gulick, Charles Burton. Athenaeus. Vols. I-VII. (1927) Loeb Classics. Diodorus Siculus Walton, Francis R. Diodorus of Sicily. Vol. XI. (1946) Loeb Classics. Herodotus Hude, Carolus. Herodotus. Vols. I-II. (1991) Great Britain: Oxford University Press. Josephus, AJ. Marcus, Ralph. Josephus. Jewish Antiquities. 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