Arsinoë IV (who died in 41 BCE) was a Ptolemaic princess that went against her sister Cleopatra VII during the Alexandrian War back in 48 BCE. After losing to Cleopatra’s buddy Julius Caesar, she ended up being captured and paraded around in his Roman victory celebration. Later on, Arsinoë became a priestess at the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, but eventually, Mark Antony and Cleopatra had her killed.
Early Life & Background
Arsinoë was the daughter of Ptolemy XII Auletes, who ruled Ptolemaic Egypt from 80 to 51 BCE. She had two sisters, Berenike IV and Cleopatra VII, along with two brothers, Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV. We don’t know her exact age since ancient records don’t mention it, but she was younger than her sisters and older than her brothers. By the time Arsinoë came into the picture, her mom, Cleopatra V Tryphaena, was missing from Egyptian records, and it’s unclear if she passed away or if they split up. Arsinoë’s mother was likely another wife or concubine of the king.
The first mentions of Arsinoë in Roman texts talk about how she went into exile with Cleopatra.
She was probably born in Alexandria, the capital, and since she wasn’t in line for the throne, not much was said about her growing up. Like other women in the Ptolemaic dynasty, she would’ve been educated in politics and Greek philosophy. Her tutor was a eunuch named Ganymedes, who also looked after her legally. Plus, she was expected to be good at horseback riding.
In 58 BCE, Berenike IV took over the throne from Ptolemy XII and called herself queen. It’s believed that Cleopatra and Arsinoë went into exile with their dad. Ptolemy XII sought help to reclaim his throne and headed to Rome, where he bribed influential politicians like Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great. Pompey then sent his general Aulus Gabinius to assist Ptolemy XII in regaining Egypt in 56 BCE. Once he was back in power, Ptolemy had Berenike executed and made Cleopatra VII his co-ruler.
Cleopatra’s Usurpation & Exile
Ptolemy XII passed away in 51 BCE, leaving behind his 18-year-old daughter Cleopatra VII and 10-year-old son Ptolemy XIII as his successors. Since Ptolemy XIII was just a kid, his tutor Theodotus, along with minister Pothinus and general Achillas, made all the political calls for him. Right from the start, these advisors didn’t see eye to eye with Cleopatra, which sparked a rivalry between the young king and queen. By late 49 BCE, Cleopatra found herself ousted from the capital due to a coup and had to retreat to Thebes.
The first mentions of Arsinoë in Roman writings indicate that she was with Cleopatra during her exile. It’s unclear if Arsinoë joined her sister voluntarily or was taken as a hostage. Together, they headed to Syria to gather an army. After building up her forces, Cleopatra returned to Egypt, gearing up to confront Ptolemy XIII’s troops at the border fortress in Pelusium.
Meanwhile, Pompey the Great showed up in Egypt after losing a civil war against Caesar. His unexpected arrival put a pause on the feud between Cleopatra and Ptolemy XIII, who hurried to meet him. Caesar was also on his way, chasing after Pompey. Ptolemy XIII’s advisors convinced him to kill Pompey and send his head to Caesar, which really ticked Caesar off. He decided to stick around in Egypt to sort out the succession himself.
Caesar also wanted the money that Ptolemy XII had promised him—17.5 million drachmas, which was basically the whole annual income of the country. Ptolemy XIII’s advisors struggled to come up with that cash and even resorted to melting down gold and silver from the palace to pay Caesar.
Alexandrian War
So, Arsinoë and Ptolemy XIV were named as the co-rulers of Cyprus, but they weren’t allowed to actually go there yet.
Meanwhile, Cleopatra was scheming in Pelusium to get Caesar on her side against Ptolemy XIII. She wanted him to see her as a better ally than her brother. She snuck into Alexandria and became Caesar’s lover. He decided that Ptolemy XIII and Cleopatra VII should marry and rule together, just like their dad wanted. While things were calm for a bit, Arsinoë rejoined her siblings at the palace. But Caesar didn’t have a strong legal claim to dictate who should rule Egypt, and he only had one legion backing him up. To keep control, he kept all potential heirs, including Arsinoë, under guard in the palace.
Later in 48 BCE, an anti-Roman riot broke out in Alexandria, and Caesar had to step in to calm everyone down. He agreed to give back Cyprus, which Rome had taken over before. So, Arsinoë and her little brother Ptolemy XIV were named co-rulers of Cyprus, but they still couldn’t go there. Soon after, Achillas showed up with the Egyptian army and attacked the Romans. In the chaos, Arsinoë and her tutor Ganymedes managed to escape.
Arsinoë, through Ganymedes, took charge and killed Achillas. After that, she ruled completely on her own while Ganymedes handled the army. The troops declared her queen since Ptolemy XIII was being held by Caesar. Ganymedes and Achillas tried to win over the Egyptian soldiers with gifts and better pay. Arsinoë executed Achillas so Ganymedes could focus on fighting. He cornered Caesar’s forces in the royal quarter and laid siege, even cutting off their water supply at one point.
Caesar then freed Ptolemy XIII, hoping to stir up trouble among the Egyptian troops. The soldiers ended up capturing Arsinoë and Ganymedes and rallied around Ptolemy XIII. But then Caesar got reinforcements from his allies in Pergamum and Judea, which helped him beat the Egyptians at the Battle of the Nile in summer 47 BCE. Ptolemy XIII died in that battle, leaving Cleopatra as the sole ruler. Once everything settled down, Caesar took Arsinoë prisoner.
More Affairs
Julius Caesar’s Triumph
Caesar brought Arsinoë back to Rome and locked her up with other rulers he had captured during his campaigns, like Vercingetorix from Gaul and Juba II from Numidia. It was common for conquered kings and generals to be paraded through the streets during a Roman triumph, which was basically a big victory celebration. A lot of these rulers chose to take their own lives rather than face mistreatment and humiliation in front of everyone. Typically, women weren’t included in these triumphs as captive leaders, but Caesar made an exception for Arsinoë.
In 46 BCE, Caesar threw a massive four-part triumph to celebrate his victories in Gaul, Egypt, Pontus, and Africa. He showcased captives, treasures, and art that his army had taken. On the second day, during the Egyptian part of the triumph, Arsinoë was paraded through the streets in golden chains for the Roman crowd to see. Accounts from that time describe her as a dignified and sympathetic figure who evoked pity from the onlookers.
After the triumph, Ganymedes was executed, but Caesar decided to spare Arsinoë’s life out of respect for her surviving siblings. The public’s support for her and Caesar’s wish to seem merciful likely saved her. Her harsh treatment during the triumph highlighted Egypt’s defeat by the Roman Republic and embarrassed the Ptolemaic dynasty. It also added to the negative view of Caesar as a tyrant. Cleopatra was in Rome around then, but we don’t know how she reacted to all this.
Exile & Assassination
After her victory, Arsinoë got to join the priestesses at the Temple of Artemis in Ephesus. This priestly role was supposed to keep her from claiming the Egyptian throne, but a lot of people still thought she should be the one ruling Egypt. The high priest Megabyzus even called her queen, which was a direct challenge to Cleopatra.
So, in 43 BCE, things got messy when the Roman Republic fell into civil war after Julius Caesar was assassinated the year before. Cleopatra teamed up with Caesar’s successors, Octavian and Mark Antony, against the assassins Cassius and Brutus. Meanwhile, Serapion, the Egyptian governor of Cyprus, ignored Cleopatra’s orders and started helping Cassius. Some historians think this betrayal was part of a scheme to put Arsinoë back on the Egyptian throne with Cassius’ backing.
After Cassius lost at the Battle of Philippi, Cleopatra regained control over Cyprus. She executed Serapion and other Egyptian naval commanders who had sided with him. Following all this drama, Cleopatra began to see her remaining siblings as threats to her and her son, Caesarion. There were rumors that she poisoned her brother Ptolemy XIV, who died unexpectedly in 43 BCE. Then, she turned her attention to Arsinoë, fearing she might still pose a challenge.
In 41 BCE, Cleopatra convinced her lover and ally, Mark Antony, to have Arsinoë killed. Antony’s men took her out inside the temple, which really ticked off the gods. Megabyzus got arrested too, but he was let go after the people of Ephesus asked Cleopatra for mercy.
Aftermath
In 30 BCE, Octavian took down Cleopatra and Antony at the Battle of Actium, leading to the creation of Roman Egypt. To escape being paraded around like her sister Arsinoë had been in the past, Cleopatra chose to end her own life. While not as well-known as Cleopatra, Arsinoë has made appearances in movies and books. Some portray her as a bitter traitor, while others see her as someone who got caught up in unfortunate circumstances.
Cleopatra, who had previously poisoned her brother, had Antony kill her sister Arsinoë to eliminate a threat to her rule. This happened in the Temple of Diana at Ephesus, where Arsinoë had sought refuge. It was almost like Cleopatra was demanding a sacrifice from her lover.
The killing of Arsinoë is often viewed as one of the most ruthless actions during Cleopatra’s reign. Writers like Flavius Josephus and Giovanni Boccaccio have pointed to it as an example of her cruelty and lack of morals. Still, many historians argue that it was a necessary move to protect her throne and avoid future civil wars.
Possible Tomb in Ephesus
Back in 1926, archaeologists discovered The Octagon, a huge tomb right in the heart of Ephesus. This octagonal structure was originally surrounded by a fancy marble colonnade and had a circular roof on top. It’s tucked away within the old city walls at the end of an ancient procession route. Burials inside ancient cities were pretty rare and usually reserved for really important people. Inside the tomb, they found the skeleton of a girl who was around 15 to 17 years old. Her skull was sent to Germany for some questionable ancestry tests based on phrenology, but sadly, it got lost during World War II.
Archaeologist Hilke Thür suggested that this might be the tomb of Arsinoë because its unique shape kind of reminded her of the famous Lighthouse of Alexandria. However, most experts aren’t buying this theory since the tomb doesn’t really look like a lighthouse, and there isn’t much proof linking it to Arsinoë. Plus, if it was her tomb, she would’ve likely been in her 20s when she died, not just a teenager.
