The Probert Encyclopaedia of Warfare

BATTLE OF ACTIUM

The Battle of Actium was a decisive naval engagement fought off the promontory of Actium on September the 2nd, 31 BC, between the Roman fleet of Octavian, under the command of Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, and a combined Roman-Egyptian fleet commanded by Mark Antony and Cleopatra. The battle represented the culmination of the old rivalry between Mark Antony and Octavian for control of the Roman world and had been preceded by a long period of skirmishing, which included large armies encamped on opposite shores of the Ambracian Gulf. Against the advice of his generals and allegedly at the behest of Cleopatra, who wanted an opportunity to withdraw to Egypt, Mark Antony launched the initial phase of the engagement. His fleet of approximately 220 heavy craft equipped with missile-throwing devices attacked at close range. Octavian's fleet of some 260 light vessels had greater manoeuvrability. The outcome of the battle remained in doubt until Cleopatra, apparently alarmed by an enemy manoeuvre, ordered the Egyptian contingent, about 60 vessels, to withdraw. Mark Antony himself followed her, but most of his remaining vessels were soon overtaken and annihilated. The deserted army later surrendered to Octavian.
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