Individual Details
Ptolemy Euergetes II Physcon King Of Egypt VIII
( - )
Ptolemy VIII's complicated political career started in 170 BC. This is when Antiochus IV Epiphanes of the Seleucid Empire invaded and captured King Ptolemy VI Philometor and all of Egypt, with the exception of the city of Alexandria. Antiochus allowed Ptolemy VI to continue as a puppet monarch. Meanwhile, the people of Alexandria chose Ptolemy Euergetes, his younger brother, as king. Euergetes was popularly known as "Physkōn", latinized as Physcon, meaning sausage, potbelly or bladder, due to his obesity. Instead of taking up arms against one another, the brothers decided to co-rule Egypt.
When Philometor died on a campaign in 145 BC, Cleopatra II quickly had her son proclaimed King Ptolemy VII. Physcon, however, returned from battle and proposed joint rule and marriage with Cleopatra II, both of which she accepted. He had the younger Ptolemy assassinated during the wedding feast and claimed the throne himself, as "Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II" (a name deliberately recalling his ancestor Ptolemy III Euergetes), and had himself proclaimed pharaoh in 144 BC.
In 145 BC, Physcon took his revenge on the intellectuals of Alexandria who had opposed him, including Aristarchus of Samothrace and Apollodorus of Athens. He engaged in mass purges and expulsions, leaving Alexandria a changed city.
"He expelled all intellectuals: philologists, philosophers, professors of geometry, musicians, painters, schoolteachers, physicians and others, with the result that these brought 'education to Greeks and barbarians elsewhere,' as mentioned by an author who may have been one of the king's victims" —Menecles of Barca.
Physcon seduced and married Cleopatra III (his wife's daughter) without divorcing Cleopatra II, who became infuriated. By 132 or 131 BC, the people of Alexandria had rioted and set fire to the royal palace. Physcon, Cleopatra III, and their children escaped to Cyprus; while Cleopatra II had their twelve-year-old son, Ptolemy Memphitis, acclaimed as king. Physcon was able to get hold of the boy, killed him, and sent the dismembered pieces back to Cleopatra.
The ensuing civil war pitted Cleopatra's city of Alexandria against the rest of the country, who supported Physcon. Growing desperate, Cleopatra offered the throne of Egypt to the Seleucid king Demetrius II Nicator, but his forces could get no further than Pelusium. By 127 BC, Cleopatra fled to Syria. Alexandria held out for another year. After further political maneuvering, Cleopatra II did end up back in Egypt in 124 BC. A formal amnesty decree followed in 118 BC, but it was insufficient to improve the government's relationship with the whole country. The Romans were forced to intervene in Egypt 116 BC.
About 124 BC, Physcon sent his second daughter by Cleopatra III, Tryphaena, to marry Antiochus VIII Philometor.
Physcon died in 116 BC. He left the throne to Cleopatra III and one of her sons, whichever she preferred. She wished to have her younger son, Alexander, reign with her; but the people of Alexandria wanted her older son, Philometer Soter, the governor of Cyprus, to be her choice. She reluctantly complied, with Philometer Soter taking the name "Ptolemy IX" and ruling for a time at her side.
When Philometor died on a campaign in 145 BC, Cleopatra II quickly had her son proclaimed King Ptolemy VII. Physcon, however, returned from battle and proposed joint rule and marriage with Cleopatra II, both of which she accepted. He had the younger Ptolemy assassinated during the wedding feast and claimed the throne himself, as "Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II" (a name deliberately recalling his ancestor Ptolemy III Euergetes), and had himself proclaimed pharaoh in 144 BC.
In 145 BC, Physcon took his revenge on the intellectuals of Alexandria who had opposed him, including Aristarchus of Samothrace and Apollodorus of Athens. He engaged in mass purges and expulsions, leaving Alexandria a changed city.
"He expelled all intellectuals: philologists, philosophers, professors of geometry, musicians, painters, schoolteachers, physicians and others, with the result that these brought 'education to Greeks and barbarians elsewhere,' as mentioned by an author who may have been one of the king's victims" —Menecles of Barca.
Physcon seduced and married Cleopatra III (his wife's daughter) without divorcing Cleopatra II, who became infuriated. By 132 or 131 BC, the people of Alexandria had rioted and set fire to the royal palace. Physcon, Cleopatra III, and their children escaped to Cyprus; while Cleopatra II had their twelve-year-old son, Ptolemy Memphitis, acclaimed as king. Physcon was able to get hold of the boy, killed him, and sent the dismembered pieces back to Cleopatra.
The ensuing civil war pitted Cleopatra's city of Alexandria against the rest of the country, who supported Physcon. Growing desperate, Cleopatra offered the throne of Egypt to the Seleucid king Demetrius II Nicator, but his forces could get no further than Pelusium. By 127 BC, Cleopatra fled to Syria. Alexandria held out for another year. After further political maneuvering, Cleopatra II did end up back in Egypt in 124 BC. A formal amnesty decree followed in 118 BC, but it was insufficient to improve the government's relationship with the whole country. The Romans were forced to intervene in Egypt 116 BC.
About 124 BC, Physcon sent his second daughter by Cleopatra III, Tryphaena, to marry Antiochus VIII Philometor.
Physcon died in 116 BC. He left the throne to Cleopatra III and one of her sons, whichever she preferred. She wished to have her younger son, Alexander, reign with her; but the people of Alexandria wanted her older son, Philometer Soter, the governor of Cyprus, to be her choice. She reluctantly complied, with Philometer Soter taking the name "Ptolemy IX" and ruling for a time at her side.
Families
| Spouse | Cleopatra Euergetes II Selene Egypt III (-170 - ) |
| Child | Cleopatra Of Egypt IV (-138 - ) |
| Child | Ptolemy Soter II Lathyros King of Egypt IX (-142 - -81) |
| Father | Ptolemy Epiphanes King Of Egypt V. (-210 - -180) |
| Mother | Cleopatra Syra Queen Of Egypt I. (-204 - ) |
| Sibling | Cleopatra Queen Of Egypt II (-190 - ) |
| Sibling | Ptolemy Philometer King Of Egypt VI ( - ) |