Cleopatra
Attribution: J.W. Waterhouse (on Flickr)
69 BC - 30 BC
Queen of Egypt
| Relationship | People |
|---|---|
| Partners | Julius Caesar, Mark Anthony, Mark Antony |
The last Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt, Cleopatra came to power alongside her father Ptolemy XII, before sharing power with her brother-husbands, and finally securing sole control of Egypt. Her union with Julius Caesar, to whom she bore a son, strengthened her position as a ruler and, after Caesar's death, she went on to form an alliance with Mark Anthony, producing three more children from this.
Although bearing the Egyptian title 'Pharaoh', Cleopatra is thought to have been a member of the Greek aristocracy established in Egypt by Alexander the Great some 300 years before. Nevertheless, Cleopatra learnt the language of her subjects and adopted their deities. Her reign marked the end of the Hellenistic period in the eastern Mediterranean and after her death Egypt came into the full control of Rome.
