Meris Hulcher
October 1, 2002
Honors 141
The Second Triumvirate
I. General Background
a. established in 43 BC by Lex Titia
b. consisted of Octavian, Marc Antony, and Lepidus
c. created for a period of five years, after which it would have
to be renewed
d. divided up the Roman Empire among themselves, except for Italy
which remained undivided
e. Octavian announced the official end of the Second Triumvirate
in 32 BC
II. Why Was It Set Up?
a. assassination of Caesar
b. protect the safety of the state
III. Why Did It Fail?
a. Antony and Octavian fighting for power
b. negative propaganda
IV. Cleopatra's Role in Its Failure
a. affair with Antony
b. used by Octavian to make Antony look bad
c. scheming woman who wanted to rule Rome
V. Sources
Cleopatra by Michael Grant
Augustus by Pat Southern
Augustus: The Golden Age of Rome by G. P. Baker
A History of Rome by Marcel le Glay, Jean-Louis Voisin, and Yann
le Bohec
Summary:
Quinn Cunningham
Second Triumvirate Summary
The Second Triumvirate consisted of Marc Antony, Octavian, and
Lepidus. It was established in 43 B.C. and was allowed to do so
because a legal document had been created saying it was okay to
have triumvirates again. It was created for a period of five years,
but could be renewed for another five years if desired. They divided
up the Roman Empire, but had to initially leave out the east, for
it was still being held by Caesar's murderers, Brutus and Cassius.
At Caesar's death, Marc Antony, Octavian, and Lepidus were all in
some way supposed to be the next in line for Caesar's title, but
in the end they all decided that they would be able to work together
and decided to do so. Their mission initially was to make a list
of the people they wanted killed (each had to decide which enemy
they really wanted killed and if the others could stand the loss)
and then kill those who they had agreed on. About 300 people were
said to have been killed - 150 knights and 150 senators. The Triumvirate
had intended on killing Brutus and Cassius as well, but they committed
suicide before the Triumvirate could get to them.
When Antony had his affair with Cleopatra things started to crumble
within the Triumvirate. Antony neglected duties and Octavian saw
a chance to take the upper hand. Octavian used Antony's affair as
propaganda and reminded the people how it was illegal to marry a
foreigner. Lepidus was somewhat forgotten in shuffle, leaving Octavian
even more of a chance to do what he pleased.
The three ended up in a war against one another and in 32 B.C. the
Second Triumvirate was officially ended by Octavian.