In 48 BC the armies of Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great fought a decisive battle at Pharsalus in Greece. Pompey was comprehensively defeated and fled to the last power in the Mediterranean world that was independent of Rome, Ptolemaic Egypt. Caesar pursued Pompey and was presented with his severed head, which the Egyptians hoped would make Caesar leave them in peace.

Instead, Caesar – as if he did not have enough to do already – plunged gleefully into the world of Egyptian palace politics, riven by dynastic dispute. He quickly sided with the beguiling Queen Cleopatra (after her famous carpet trick), despite having little more than a bodyguard with him. Most of his army was still in Greece, leaving him massively outnumbered by the Egyptian forces. The Romans were besieged in Alexandria for seven months before reinforcements could get through to them.

Julius Caesar in Egypt is a true story of double-cross, assassination and intrigue accompanied by lively battles, daring escapes, disastrous fires (the Great Library of Alexandria was largely destroyed in one fracas) and, if not a love story, at least a tale of sex and power as Caesar and Cleopatra’s relationship shaped these world-changing events.

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Introduction
• Chapter 1 The Road to Alexandria – Gnaeus Pompey
• Chapter 2 The Road to Alexandria – Cleopatra (the Seventh)
• Chapter 3 The Road to Alexandria – Caius Julius Caesar
• Chapter 4 Murder on the Nile
• Chapter 5 Battleground Alexandria
• Chapter 6 The Opening Rounds
• Chapter 7 The War takes to the Water
• Chapter 8 The Battle for Eunostos Harbour
• Chapter 9 A Change of Management
• Chapter 10 War Alongside the Nile
• Chapter 11 The Final Showdown
• Chapter 12 Aftermath
• Chapter 13 Caesar in Alexandria – the Cultural Fallout