The beginning of the Ptolemaic period in ancient Egypt

The beginning of the Ptolemaic period in ancient Egypt

* Alexander the Great

The history of the Ptolemies back to the reign of Alexander the Great, wherein Alexander the Great came to Egypt in the year 332 BC, and crowned himself Pharaoh of Egypt, similar to the Egyptian Pharaohs who preceded him, and he threw a great sports and musical celebration for that occasion similar to the Olympic celebrations which devised by the Greeks, and he made the pilgrimage to the temple of "Amun" in "Siwa", Perhaps he wanted to gain the satisfaction of the Egyptians so that he could control them, and he settled in the ancient Egyptian capital "Memphis", and during his stay, laid a foundation stone for building the city of "Alexandria" that bore his name, and the following year he left Egypt to continue his conquests in "Asia" and arrived in "India", and during his return from there died in "Babylon" in 323 BC, thus Alexander the Great died before seeing his city Alexandria after its completion.

* Ptolemy I

He was the great-grandfather of the Ptolemies and one of the most important leaders of Alexander the Great, as was his loyal friend and historian of his events and historical heroics, Ptolemy brought Alexander’s body to Egypt for burial him in the capital "Memphis", and it is believed that he then transferred his body to Alexandria, and in the year 304 BC, He declared himself king of Egypt under the name "Ptolemy I Soter", meaning the Saviour, and thus Egypt began a new historical era under the Ptolemaic rule.

Alexandria became the new capital instead of "Memphis", "Ptolemy I" wanted to achieve a kind of unification between the two ancient religions "Egyptian and  Greek", so he created the Egyptian sacred symbol "Serapis", which he erected for it the Temple "Serapeum" as a link between the two religions, making it easier for him to lead all Genders, and he considered "Serapeum" the official temple of the country.

* Ptolemy II

During the reign of Ptolemy II "Philadelphus" the prosperity of the city of Alexandria increased, he established in it the lighthouse of Alexandria, which was considered one of the wonders of the ancient world, its museum, and its library which gained wide fame and high value, and Alexandria acquired a more beautiful and pompous shape where luxurious palaces spread in it, the spacious gardens and fountains, so Alexandria became the most beautiful and greatest cities of the ancient world, and the port of Alexandria has become a great global center for trade and money, while the Library of Alexandria has become a global center of culture, science, and knowledge, and has become full of scientists and students from all over the ancient world.

* Ptolemy III

In the reign of Ptolemy III "Euergetes", the Ptolemaic rule expanded, as he worked to extend the influence of the Ptolemaic in the eastern Mediterranean, and crossed the borders of the Tigris and the Euphrates until he almost reached the borders of India, and the Ptolemaic empire reached its maximum Degrees of vastness in his reign, so Ptolemy III was called "the conqueror of the world".

* Ptolemy IV

During the reign of Ptolemy IV "Philopator", weakness began to spread in the Ptolemaic Empire to lose little by little it's glory and its golden age, due to the negligence of Ptolemy IV in preserving the achievements of his fathers, where he was interested in his desires and pleasures, where he forced The Egyptians including The Jews, to worship of the sacred symbol " Dionysus" leading to occurred sporadic disturbances throughout the country, as the empire lost parts of its external influence.

* Ptolemy V

During the reign of  Ptolemy V, Rome had gained a powerful position after it has achieved several victories, and it acquired the western Mediterranean, and began to seek to impose its influence on the eastern Mediterranean.

 

* members of the Ptolemaic family continued to weaken and the weakness of their empire increased, while Rome's power gradually increased and its external influence extended, and the Roman Empire began to impose its control over Egypt, and this was clearly demonstrated in the era of Ptolemy IX, and in the era of Ptolemy XII the father of Cleopatra, Egypt was completely subject to Roman influence, so Ptolemy XII became subject to the authority in Rome, trying to satisfy it in various ways to stay in his post.