Octavian Triumphs at Actium: Empire is Born
Octavian's fleet crushes Mark Antony and Cleopatra's forces off the Greek coast, ending centuries of civil war. This decisive victory clears the path for Octavian to become Augustus, the first Roman emperor, and transforms the Republic into an Empire that will dominate the Mediterranean for four hundred years.
September 2, 31 BC
Key Figures & Places
Greece
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Mark Antony
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Augustus
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Cleopatra VII
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Final War of the Roman Republic
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Battle of Actium
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War of Actium
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Battle of Actium
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Augustus
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Mark Antony
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Cleopatra
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Pharaoh
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Egypt
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Caesarion
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Cicero
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Philippicae
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Golfo de Arta
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Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa
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Ancient Egypt
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Ancient Rome
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Filípica
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31 av. J.-C.
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44 a. C.
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Julius Caesar
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قبل الميلاد
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Roman Empire
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Mar Jónico
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What Else Happened on September 2
Cleopatra VII elevated her young son, Caesarion, to the Egyptian throne as co-ruler, cementing a political alliance with Julius Caesar. By positioning the boy a…
Cicero was 62 years old, semi-retired, and knew exactly how dangerous this was. Mark Antony controlled Rome's legions. Cicero controlled words. His first Philip…
Galla Placidia had already been captured by Visigoths, married their king, widowed, ransomed back to Rome, and forced into a second marriage by her own brother …
Richard had spent three years fighting for Jerusalem and never took it. The Treaty of Jaffa was his admission that he couldn't — but he negotiated hard. Saladin…
Mary had been Queen of France, then widowed at 18, then forced to return to a Scotland she barely remembered. When she rode into Edinburgh in August 1561, Prote…
The 4th Spanish Armada didn't make the history books the way the 1588 one did — partly because it succeeded in landing. On September 2, 1601, roughly 3,500 Span…
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