, Berenice IV's father Berenice was the daughter of
Ptolemy XII Auletes and
Cleopatra V Tryphaena, and sister to three pharaohs -
Cleopatra VII,
Ptolemy XIII Theos Philopator and
Ptolemy XIV - as well to princess and claimant to the Egyptian throne,
Arsinoe IV. In 59 BC
Julius Caesar was one of the
consuls of Rome. It was believed that the annexation of Egypt was part of his own political programme, the excuse being that the king of Egypt,
Ptolemy XII Auletes, was
illegitimate and had no right to rule. Ptolemy Auletes responded by buying Caesar's support at huge expense, and the Romans passed a law to recognise Ptolemy Auletes as legitimate king of Egypt. The treaty however said nothing about Cyprus, where another Ptolemy, the brother of Ptolemy Auletes, was king. In 58 BC the
Romans annexed Cyprus, forcing the
deposed king and brother of Auletes into suicide. The loss of Cyprus, and the poor state of the Egyptian economy following the bribes to Caesar, triggered civil unrest in Ptolemy Auletes' capital Alexandria. Unable to quash the unrest on his own, Ptolemy Auletes went in 58 BC to Rome to ask for
military support, leaving his family behind in Egypt. In his absence, the Alexandrines declared him deposed, and in his place nominated his daughter Berenice IV Epiphaneia and (according to the ancient historian
Porphyry) "[Auletes'] eldest daughter"
Cleopatra VI Tryphaena as joint monarchs. Some, though not all, modern historians believe Porphyry made an error here, and that Cleopatra VI Tryphaena was in fact Ptolemy XII Auletes' wife Cleopatra V Tryphaena. Unable to muster up immediate support from
the Romans, Ptolemy Auletes was initially unable to take his kingdom back from the two queens. From 58 till the end of 57 he resided in Rome or at Pompey's villa in the Alban hills, busily working upon the senators by bribes or promises, and procuring the assassination of envoys sent from Alexandria to Rome; he then left Rome and went to Ephesus, and lived in the sacred precinct of Artemis. In the meantime Cleopatra Tryphaena is believed to have died in 57 B.C. of unknown causes, leaving the young Berenice sole queen in Alexandria. who defected to the Romans. At that time Archelaus was an associate of Aulus Gabinius, and had hoped to join with him on an expedition against the Parthians. Gabinius furthermore had become suspicious of Archelaus's associations with the Egyptians, and had him arrested. Persuaded though that Archelaus was no threat, and perhaps bribed, Gabinius voluntarily released him. In the winter 56‑55 Archelaus came to Egypt, married Berenice, and was given a title of king, although he is not known to be mentioned in documents as his wife's formal co-ruler, and it's presumed she never allowed him to become one. In the spring of 55 Ptolemy Auletes and
a Roman force invaded Egypt. Berenice and Archelaus were defeated, and Archelaus died in battle. Ptolemy Auletes was installed once more as king in Alexandria by the Romans. One of Ptolemy Auletes' first acts after his restoration was to execute his daughter Berenice, for the crime of usurping his throne. He would later bequeath his throne to two siblings of Berenice IV: Cleopatra VII and Ptolemy XIII. ==See also==