![]() ![]() A Nubian sentinel runs inside the palace to warn everyone of the advancing army. A wounded Egyptian soldier named Bel Affris staggers through the gate to warn the Egyptians that Julius Caesar’s powerful Roman army is on its way to conquer Egypt and will reach them soon. ![]() The action shifts to Cleopatra’s palace in Syria, where she has been banished by her brother Ptolemy, with whom she is fighting for control of Egypt. ![]() Ra recounts how Julius Caesar defeated Pompey at the Battle of Pharsalus and chased him to Egypt, where he was ultimately assassinated by Lucius Septimius in 48 B.C.E. He also establishes the origins of Julius Caesar’s rivalry with Pompey, explaining that the gods favored Caesar, who lived boldly and had an affinity for progress and exploration. The Egyptian god Ra addresses the play’s audience directly, belittling them for their ignorance and insulting contemporary (mid-Victorian) British society. ![]()
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