Quotes from Anthony Everitt

Octavian's request was awkward, and Antony angrily refused it.

Another dark night of traveling through mountains ensued—and, surely, a dark night of the soul

this was the worst crisis of Octavian's career.

The younger children, the twins Alexander Helios and Cleopatra Selene, and Ptolemy Philadelphus, were spared.

Perhaps his rage expressed an unspoken, unadmitted bitterness at the truth that he had bought his high place in the world by subduing the claims of affection to the imperatives of power.

He also made the technical point that the adoption was not yet official

His humiliating double defeat at sea not only signaled the ruin of his hopes to eliminate Sextus Pompeius

even without access to Caesar's estate, Octavian had large sums of money at his disposal.

He placed confidence in a senior Parthian defector, who was in fact spying for his king.

the only item he personally took away from the palace of the Ptolemies was a single agate cup.

Nor was there much mercy toward Julia: Augustus sent her into exile;

he may also have received, or seized, tax receipts from Asia on their way to the Roman treasury

That said, he did not want Antony destroyed

Meanwhile, the son of Pompey the Great celebrated his great victory.

arranged Tiberius' divorce from her without consulting him;

the consequence was unfortunate.

The first and foremost of these was the tomb of Alexander the Great, which stood at the crossroads of the city's two main avenues.

and gave orders that "should anything happen to her" after his death she should not be buried in the Mausoleum.

even if Antony held back the moneys due. He also put up for sale all Caesar's properties and estates.

could envision a time when the two men might need to combine against the Senate and Brutus and Cassius

Antony's final mistake was to let his slow baggage train

He never forgave her and never saw her again.

The well-informed Parthians turned up out of the blue with a force of fifty thousand mounted archers

Alexander had died in 323 B.C. His embalmed body in its gold and crystal coffin was the new city's most sacred relic.