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Cleopatra Philopator VII (69 B.C. – 30 B.C.) was the last pharaoh of Egypt and a member of the Ptolemy family, which had ruled for nearly three centuries. Cleopatra went with her father to seek support in Rome, where they stayed from 57 B.C. to 55 B.C. She succeeded her father in 51 B.C.
Cleopatra was born in 69 B.C. to King Ptolemy Auletes and Cleopatra V. She had five siblings, including elder sisters, Tryphaena and Berenice, younger sister Arsinoë, and two younger brothers, Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV. Cleopatra's mother died, when she was very young.
57 B.C. – 55 B.C.
In 57 B.C., King Auletes fled Alexandria after his life was endangered. Cleopatra, also fearing for her life, traveled with her father to seek allies in Rome. During the time, Cleopatra became disillusioned with her father, but continued to help him impress the Roman officials. Cleopatra spent the summer away in Herculaneum, while her father wasted time, causing their departure to be delayed.
The following February, Cleopatra became friends with Cicero, a Roman lawyer. However, the friendship ended, when he argued against helping King Auletes at the Senate. Cleopatra's depature was delayed again indefinitely. In the meantime, Cleopatra spent time with her friend, Julia, and became acquainted with Marc Antony.
The next winter, Cleopatra met Cicero at Saturnalia, where she reproached him for what he said. King Auletes and Cleopatra finally leave with Rome's support, after Cicero withdrew his argument. Back at home in Alexandria, her father became pharaoh and beheaded her sister, Berenice for crowning herself queen in his absence. Cleopatra, subtlety preparing herself to be queen, decided to go on a trip up the Nile in order to learn about the Egyptian people.
Cleopatra followed Egyptian custom and married her brother, Ptolemy XIII. They became co-rulers upon their father's death in 51 B.C. Later Ptolemy angered Julius Caesar, when he attempted to gain his favor by beheading Pompey, Caesar's political rival and son-in-law. Cleopatra meanwhile was in hiding and a devised a way to meet Caesar by wrapping herself in a carpet and carried to his bedchambers. Caesar fell in love with Cleopatra, and together they had a son named Ptolemy XV Caesarion. Caesar was assassinated in 44 B.C.
Some years later, Cleopatra and Marc Antony married in an Egyptian ceremony. They had three children, including twins Alexander Helios and Cleopatra Selene, and Ptolemy Philadelphus. After serving a bad defeat against Octavian, committed suicide and bled to death in Cleopatra's arms. Cleopatra also took her life by allowing a poisonous snake to bite her.
Cleopatra, like all her ancestors before her, was pure Macedonian Greek. She looked similar to her slave, Neva, also of Greek ancestry; they both had light skin and blue eyes. In the historical note, Plutarch described Cleopatra's beauty as "not in itself so remarkable", "but the contact of her presence [...] was irresistible."
Personality and traits
Cleopatra was depicted as calm, level-headed, and confident. Like her siblings, Tryphaena and Berenice, Cleopatra wanted to be queen, though her traits often shown her to be the better candidate. She was the first in the Ptolemaic dynasty to learn Egyptian and desired to learn new wisdom to help her country.
She spent a lot of her time at the Library and Mouseion at Alexandria, reading the scrolls, gaining knowledge, and debating with her friends. Cleopatra was also gifted with language and could speak Greek, Hebrew, Latin, and several more.
(100 BC-51 BC)
(79? BC-57 BC)
(77? BC-55 BC)
(68 BC-45 BC)
(61 BC-47 BC)
(59 BC-44 BC)
(102 BC-44 BC)
(69 BC-30 BC)
(82 BC-30 BC)
(47 BC-30? BC)
(c.45 BC-AD 23?)
(c.24 BC-AD 40?)
♛ - King or Queen (Pharaoh) of Egypt
Behind the scenes
- She is main character of Cleopatra VII: Daughter of the Nile by Kristiana Gregory.
- Cleopatra was portrayed by Canadian actress, Elisa Moolecherry in The Royal Diaries: Cleopatra VII - Daughter of the Nile. She is known for her roles in Degrassi: The Next Generation, The Newsroom, and The Recruit.