So who do we have here?

我們這次的被告是誰？

Your Honor, this is Cleopatra, the Egyptian queen whose lurid affairs destroyed two of Rome's finest generals and brought the end of the Republic.

庭上，這是克麗奧佩脫拉，這位埃及女王糟糕透頂的戀情毀了羅馬最出色的兩位將軍，並且為羅馬的共和時期畫下句點。

Your Honor, this is Cleopatra, one of the most powerful women in history whose reign brought Egypt nearly 22 years of stability and prosperity.

庭上，這是克麗奧佩脫拉，歷史上最有權力的女人之一，她的統治帶給了埃及將近22年的穩定與繁榮。

Uh, why don't we even know what she looked like?

呃，為什麼我們甚至不知道她的長相？

Most of the art and descriptions came long after her lifetime in the first century BCE, just like most of the things written about her.

多數關於她的藝術作品及描述都是在她死後西元前個一世紀才被創作出來，就像多數描述她的作品一樣。

So what do we actually know?

所以我們到底知道些什麼？

Cleopatra VII was the last of the Ptolemaic dynasty, a Macedonian Greek family that governed Egypt after its conquest by Alexander the Great.

克麗奧佩脫拉七世是托勒密王朝的最後一任君主，那是一個源自於馬其頓的希臘家庭，在亞歷山大大帝征服埃及後，統治埃及。

She ruled jointly in Alexandria with her brother to whom she was also married until he had her exiled.

她與她的兄弟，同時也是她的丈夫，共同治理亞歷山大城，直到後來被他放逐。

But what does all this have to do with Rome?

但這跟羅馬有什麼關係？

Egypt had long been a Roman client state, and Cleopatra's father incurred large debts to the Republic.

在那時候，埃及早已是羅馬的附庸國，克麗奧佩脫拉的父親又欠下羅馬共和大筆的債務。

After being defeated by Julius Caesar in Rome's civil war, the General Pompey sought refuge in Egypt.

在羅馬內戰中，朱利亞斯．凱薩擊敗了他的政敵，龐培將軍向埃及尋求庇護。

But was executed by Cleopatra's brother instead.

但卻被克麗奧佩脫拉的兄弟處死。

Caesar must have liked that.

凱薩肯定對這樣的結果感到開心。

Actually, he found the murder unseemly and demanded repayment of Egypt's debt.

事實上，他認為這樣的謀殺不正當，並要求埃及償還債務。

He could have annexed Egypt, but Cleopatra convinced him to restore her to the throne instead.

他可以將埃及併吞，但克麗奧佩脫拉說服凱薩讓她重返王位。

We hear she was quite convincing.

我們聽說她非常地有說服力。

And why not? Cleopatra was a fascinating woman.

為什麼不呢？克麗奧佩脫拉是個有魅力的女人。

She commanded armies at 21, spoke several languages, and was educated in a city with the world's finest library and some of the greatest scholars of the time.

她 21 歲就開始指揮軍隊，會說好幾種語言，而且受教育的城市擁有世界上最好的圖書館，以及當時最頂尖的學者。

Hmm.

嗯。

She kept Caesar lounging in Egypt for months when Rome needed him.

她讓凱薩在羅馬最需要他的時候，在埃及享樂了好幾個月。

Caesar did more than lounge.

凱薩做的可不只是享樂。

He was fascinated by Egypt's culture and knowledge, and he learned much during his time there.

他深受埃及的文化及知識吸引，在那段時間也學習了不少事物。

When he returned to Rome, he reformed the calendar.

當他重返羅馬時，他修訂了曆法。

Commissioned a census.

下令人口普查。

Made plans for a public library.

規劃設立公共圖書館。

And proposed many new infrastructure projects.

促成了許多新興基礎建設提案。

Yes, all very ambitious, exactly what got him assassinated.

是的，這一切都充滿野心，正是這些導致凱薩後來被刺殺。

Don't blame the Queen for Rome's strange politics.

不要把羅馬奇怪的政治問題牽扯到女王身上。

Her job was ruling Egypt, and she did it well.

她的責任是統治埃及，而且她做得很好。

She stabilized the economy.

她穩定了經濟。

Managed the vast bureaucracy.

管理龐大的官僚系統。

And curbed corruption by priests and officials.

並且制止了祭司與官員的腐敗。

When drought hit, she opened the granaries to the public and passed a tax amnesty, all while preserving her kingdom's stability and independence with no revolts during the rest of her reign.

當發生乾旱時，她向群眾開放糧倉，並通過稅務赦免，同時間保持她帝國的穩定和獨立，沒有叛亂發生在她的在位期間。

So what went wrong?

所以，到底是什麼事出錯了？

After Caesar's death, this foreign Queen couldn't stop meddling in Roman matters.

凱薩死後，這位外國女王無法停止插手羅馬政務。

Actually, it was the Roman factions who came demanding her aid.

事實上，是羅馬的派系要求她提供援助。

And of course she had no choice but to support Octavian and Marc Antony in avenging Caesar, if only for the sake of their son.

當然她為了替凱薩復仇，但願也是為了他跟凱薩生的兒子，只好支持屋大維與馬克安東尼。

And again, she provided her particular kind of support to Marc Antony.

再一次的，她向馬克安東尼提供了她那種特殊的支持。

Why does that matter?

為什麼這很重要？

Why doesn't anyone seem to care about Caesar or Antony's countless other affairs?

為什麼好像沒人在乎凱薩跟安東尼數不盡的風流韻事？

Why do we assume she instigated the relationships?

為什麼我們推斷是她挑動了這段關係？

And why are only powerful women defined by their sexuality?

為什麼只有掌權的女人會被認為是因著性別而獲得權力？

Order.

注意秩序！

Cleopatra and Antony were a disaster.

克麗奧佩脫拉跟安東尼真是一場災難。

They offended the Republic with their ridiculous celebrations sitting on golden thrones and dressing up as gods until Octavian had all of Rome convinced of their megalomania.

他們荒謬的慶祝儀式坐在金色的王座上冒犯了羅馬共和，而且穿得就像埃及的神祇，直到屋大維讓整個羅馬都相信了他們的狂妄自大。

And yet Octavian was the one who attacked Antony, annexed Egypt, and declared himself Emperor.

然而卻是屋大維主動攻擊了安東尼，併吞了埃及，並宣布自己為皇帝。

It was the Roman's fear of a woman in power that ended their Republic, not the woman herself.

是羅馬對女人握有權力的不安結束了共和，而不是因為女人而結束了共和。

How ironic.

多麼地諷刺啊。

Cleopatra's story survived mainly in the accounts of her enemies in Rome, and later writers filled the gaps with rumors and stereotypes.

克麗奧佩脫拉的事蹟大多數是透過他在羅馬的敵人流傳至今，後世的作家又加油添醋了謠言及刻板印象在其中。

We may never know the full truth of her life and her reign, but we can separate fact from rumor by putting history on trial.

我們很可能永遠都不會知道她的人生以及執政的完整真相，但我們依然能藉由審判歷史來區分事實與謠言。