Upon Julius Caesar’s death, his nephew, Octavian, killed his uncle’s old enemies in an attempt to become the ruler. He was supported by his ally, Mark Antony, so after the successful battle, Augustus decided to share the trophies. Octavian would receive Rome, and Antony got hold of Egypt. Soon after that, Antony became partners with the female Egyptian ruler, Cleopatra. The alliance, which was expected to gain more power for Antony and Cleopatra, ultimately led to their deaths and played a prominent role in the formation of the Roman Empire.
Upon dividing the Roman provinces, both Antony and Octavian wanted to gain greater power, “forewarning of a deadly struggle between the two for rule of Rome.” Cleopatra aggravated the situation by combining her power with Antony’s and turning the two former friends into rivals. When Octavian realized that Antony might want to get hold of Rome, he started taking steps to strengthen his own position and undermine Antony’s power.
The final struggle for the Roman republic occurred between Octavian and Antony at the cape of Actium, which developed the title “the battle of Actium.” Both ex-allies had vast forces: there were 400 ships in Octavian’s fleet and 500 ships in Antony’s. Octavian “cut Antony off from the Peloponnese,” and the latter ran away to Egypt together with Cleopatra. As a result, Octavian had both the navy and the army of Antony’s surrendered. In a year, Octavian abducted Alexandria, which led to Antony’s and Cleopatra’s suicides. The seizure of Egypt allowed Octavian to reinforce his power and strengthen the Roman Empire.