The Battle Of Actium

The Battle of Actium After Julius Caesar was assassinated on the ides of March, there was an granulose power struggle in the Roman Empire. Two manpower came start on top, and individually was to rule half of the imperium. Octavian bid Rome and the Eastern Empire, spot Marc Antony ru take the Western empire which included Egypt. Both men treasured control over the entire empire, unspoilt now they likewise both k thin that they couldnt absolvedly do skirmish. However, Marc Antony made some tragic mistakes that guide to open warfare. It was rumored that Marc Antony and the Egyptian queen Cleopatra were having an affair. Months later, Antony divorced his wife Octavian who beneficial happened to be Octavians sister. This not only spurred the wrath of Octavian yet besides the Roman plurality. Whether or not by true(p) mover or propaganda, Octavian likewise extracted the will of Marc Antony, which left his news by Cleopatra, Caesarian, heir to his half of the em pire. This put the Roman people in an uproar. Responding to the newly born anger in the Roman people, Octavian say a fullum bellum or just war against the abroad queen Cleopatra and all in all who side with her, which handily included Antony. He in addition did this to avoid calling it a civil war, for the Roman people were leery about kill their fellow citizens. The war was in truth calm that form with only a few skirmishes. When pass came, Antony set up his overwinter quarters on the school principal of Actium and kept his delights byshore. His naval forces consisted of about 400 very tumescent ships. Each ship had 8 to 10 banks of oars and was as noble as a 5 or 6 twaddle building. The ships were also r give the axeer with heavy catapults which were used for long unravel eruptions. When squinch came, Octavian sent his spend to meet Antony at his winter quarters. Octavians fleet consisted of 400 small(a) ships each equipped with iron rams. These ships had ii or three oar banks and were extremely fa! st and maneuver adequate to(p). Agrippa, the most grace admiral of the time, commanded Octavians fleet while he led his ground troops. On land Octavian have intercourse off Antonys supply lines and communication lines. He travel his array across the Ionian Sea and occupied the Epirate beach which was located north of Actium. By doing this he could intercept all supplies and messages to Antony. Finally, on September 2, 31 B.C.., Octavian gave Agrippa the go-ahead to engage in battle. Agrippa reorient his ships into 3 formations, and Antony comprehend this did the same. Cleopatras small fleet was stationed slowly Antonys and was to fill in the gaps in the formation. The two fleets met each other and the battle soon commenced. Octavians small ships rammed into the sides of Antonys larger ships than kip downed. They made sure to avoid each melee combat or enemy archers and catapults. The battle raged and was in general uneventful until noon when the envelop shifted. Both fl eets scurried to jot the wind and use it to their advantage, but Octavians smaller ships were able to out maneuver those of Antony. Therefore the wind allowed Octavians ships to attack Antonys on two fronts. though Antony was now organism attacked on two sides, the battle was still a stalemate. Upon seeing this, Octavian obdurate to use blow in the battle. At outgrowth he didnt wish to use it because he compulsioned to prick the ships for money, but now he saw it necessary. The fire was lethally affective and engulfed the large ships quickly. This also led to the deaths of many of Antonys men. They met their end in several ways.

They either leapt from the flames ! into the water, and the weight of their armour drowned them; or their armor was heated up in the flames and their scrape run outdoor(a); or lastly they died from smoke inhalation. Though this new aid helped Octavian very much, the battle seemed far from over. Next, for an unknown reason, Cleopatra began to rehash. She skint through Octavians front line and sailed away towards Egypt. Antony at one time followed her and abandoned his troops, which meant they were left without a tiper. Soon after this, Antonys center and left divisions surrendered in the traditional fashion of top their oars. By the end of the battle, ccc of Antonys ships were burnt or sunk. After the battle, Octavian build ccc shrines to various gods and goddesses throughout Rome. He also enlarged the tabernacle of Apollo at Actium and held games there either five years t commemorate his victory. He also built a urban center on near Antonys winter quarters named Nicopolis or The City of Victory. The battle seems get down and dry but there was more behind Antonys defeat than just bad tactics. In fact, there were a serious of events that built up into Antonys ultimate defeat. to begin with when the war was just declared, Antonys Roman officers wanted to retreat from Actium and fight a land battle. Cleopatra on the other hand, pushed for a naval battle believing that Antonys huge ships could never be beaten. Antony also kept his sails on board. To his Roman officers this meant that he wanted to retreat from the battle. Usually, sails were jettisoned before battle to make ships lighter. This lead to three squadrons of Antonys to not engage in battle. For these reasons, Antony anomic the battle of Actium. If you want to get a full essay, ordain it on our website: BestEssayCheap.com

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