Serapion (strategos)
Encyclopedia
Serapion was strategos
of Cyprus
during the reign of Cleopatra VII in 43 BC. Against the intention of the Egyptian queen he supported in the Roman civil war Gaius Cassius Longinus
and was for this reason executed in 41 BC. Perhaps he is identical with that Serapion, who was instructed by Julius Caesar
to negotiate in 48 BC with the Egyptian commander Achillas
.
ordered Achillas to march with his strong army from Pelusium
to Alexandria
(autumn 48 BC). Because Caesar had not enough soldiers for a military confrontation in an open battle he forced Ptolemy XIII to send two negotiators of high rank to Achillas. Serapion and Dioscurides were chosen for this task, both of whom had already been ambassadors of Ptolemy XII in Rome
and now had to inform Achillas that Ptolemy XIII did not want the Egyptian general to fight against Caesar. But Achillas realized that the young king had been compelled to send this message and stirred up the animosity of his soldiers against Serapion and Dioscurides. One of the two negotiators was killed and the other seriously wounded but he survived because he was taken to be dead.
The sources do not say which of the two ambassadors survived. If it was Serapion, so he is in all probability identical with that strategos of Cyprus of the same name who is attested in this office in 43 BC. Then, one year after the assassination of Caesar, his followers and enemies fought one another. In this war Cleopatra sided with the party of the Caesarians. So when Cassius asked the Egyptian queen for support she excused herself that she was allegedly not able to help him because her country had been afflicted by a plague and a famine. But Serapion handed over his fleet to the assassin of Caesar without consultation of Cleopatra. The ships, that Serapion and some cities, for example Tyre, had sent, enabled Cassius to beat decisively the Caesarian general Publius Cornelius Dolabella
(July 43 BC). Cleopatra was very indignant about the unauthorized behaviour of her governor.
The historian Michael Grant
believes that Serapion tried to support Arsinoe IV, who was then living in exile in the temple of Artemis in Ephesus
, against her older hostile sister Cleopatra and perhaps even wanted to make her new queen of Egypt. When Cleopatra had won the favour of Mark Antony
after the victory of the Caesarians she used the power of the triumvir to take revenge on her enemies (41 BC). Not only Arsinoe IV, but also Serapion were among her victims. He had taken refuge in Tyre but Antony ordered that he had to be handed over to Cleopatra. It is very probable that she had him executed.
Strategos
Strategos, plural strategoi, is used in Greek to mean "general". In the Hellenistic and Byzantine Empires the term was also used to describe a military governor...
of Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
during the reign of Cleopatra VII in 43 BC. Against the intention of the Egyptian queen he supported in the Roman civil war Gaius Cassius Longinus
Gaius Cassius Longinus
Gaius Cassius Longinus was a Roman senator, a leading instigator of the plot to kill Julius Caesar, and the brother in-law of Marcus Junius Brutus.-Early life:...
and was for this reason executed in 41 BC. Perhaps he is identical with that Serapion, who was instructed by Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
to negotiate in 48 BC with the Egyptian commander Achillas
Achillas
Achillas was one of the guardians of the Egyptian king Ptolemy XIII Theos Philopator, and commander of the king's troops, when Pompey fled to Egypt in 48 BC...
.
Life
When Caesar sided with Cleopatra in her dispute with her brother Ptolemy XIII the minister PothinusPothinus
Pothinus , a eunuch, was regent for Pharaoh Ptolemy XIII of the Ptolemaic dynasty of Ancient Egypt. He is most remembered for turning Ptolemy against his sister and co-ruler Cleopatra VII, thus starting a civil war, and for having Pompey decapitated and presenting the severed head to Julius...
ordered Achillas to march with his strong army from Pelusium
Pelusium
Pelusium was a city in the eastern extremes of Egypt's Nile Delta, 30 km to the southeast of the modern Port Said. Alternative names include Sena and Per-Amun , Pelousion , Sin , Seyân , and Tell el-Farama...
to Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
(autumn 48 BC). Because Caesar had not enough soldiers for a military confrontation in an open battle he forced Ptolemy XIII to send two negotiators of high rank to Achillas. Serapion and Dioscurides were chosen for this task, both of whom had already been ambassadors of Ptolemy XII in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and now had to inform Achillas that Ptolemy XIII did not want the Egyptian general to fight against Caesar. But Achillas realized that the young king had been compelled to send this message and stirred up the animosity of his soldiers against Serapion and Dioscurides. One of the two negotiators was killed and the other seriously wounded but he survived because he was taken to be dead.
The sources do not say which of the two ambassadors survived. If it was Serapion, so he is in all probability identical with that strategos of Cyprus of the same name who is attested in this office in 43 BC. Then, one year after the assassination of Caesar, his followers and enemies fought one another. In this war Cleopatra sided with the party of the Caesarians. So when Cassius asked the Egyptian queen for support she excused herself that she was allegedly not able to help him because her country had been afflicted by a plague and a famine. But Serapion handed over his fleet to the assassin of Caesar without consultation of Cleopatra. The ships, that Serapion and some cities, for example Tyre, had sent, enabled Cassius to beat decisively the Caesarian general Publius Cornelius Dolabella
Publius Cornelius Dolabella
Publius Cornelius Dolabella was a Roman general, by far the most important of the Dolabellae. He arranged for himself to be adopted by a plebeian so that he could become a Tribune.. He married Cicero's daughter Tullia Ciceronis...
(July 43 BC). Cleopatra was very indignant about the unauthorized behaviour of her governor.
The historian Michael Grant
Michael Grant (author)
Michael Grant was an English classicist, numismatist, and author of numerous popular books on ancient history. His 1956 translation of Tacitus’s Annals of Imperial Rome remains a standard of the work. Having studied and held a number of academic posts in the United Kingdom and the Middle East, he...
believes that Serapion tried to support Arsinoe IV, who was then living in exile in the temple of Artemis in Ephesus
Ephesus
Ephesus was an ancient Greek city, and later a major Roman city, on the west coast of Asia Minor, near present-day Selçuk, Izmir Province, Turkey. It was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League during the Classical Greek era...
, against her older hostile sister Cleopatra and perhaps even wanted to make her new queen of Egypt. When Cleopatra had won the favour of Mark Antony
Mark Antony
Marcus Antonius , known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general. As a military commander and administrator, he was an important supporter and loyal friend of his mother's cousin Julius Caesar...
after the victory of the Caesarians she used the power of the triumvir to take revenge on her enemies (41 BC). Not only Arsinoe IV, but also Serapion were among her victims. He had taken refuge in Tyre but Antony ordered that he had to be handed over to Cleopatra. It is very probable that she had him executed.