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The following article contains a fictional portrayal of a real-life person or persons. Details in this article may differ from real world facts. For more information on the historical figure(s), consult the links provided within or at the bottom of the article.

"I fear Father will be murdered. And if he is, I, Cleopatra, want to be, and should be, queen."
—Cleopatra[2]

Cleopatra Philopator VII (69 B.C. – 30 B.C.) was the last pharaoh of Egypt[3] and a member of the Ptolemy family, which had ruled for nearly three centuries.[4] 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.

Biography[]

Early life[]

Cleopatra was born in 69 B.C.[1] 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.

Later life[]

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 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.

Physical appearance[]

Cleopatra, like all her ancestors before her, was pure Macedonian Greek.[4] 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.

Family tree[]

The Ptolemy Family Tree[1]
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Ptolemy XII
(100 BC-51 BC)
 
Cleopatra V
Trayphaena

(?BC-69? BC)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Cleopatra VI
Tryphaena

(79? BC-57 BC)
 
Berenice IV
(77? BC-55 BC)
 
 
 
 
Arsinoë
(68 BC-45 BC)
 
Ptolemy XIII
(61 BC-47 BC)
 
Ptolemy XIV
(59 BC-44 BC)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Julius Gaius
Caesar

(102 BC-44 BC)
 
Cleopatra VII
(69 BC-30 BC)
 
Marc Antony
(82 BC-30 BC)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Ptolemy XV
Caesarion

(47 BC-30? BC)
 
Alexander Helios
(40 BC-?BC)
 
Cleopatra Selene
(40 BC-?BC)
 
Juba II
(c.45 BC-AD 23?)
 
Ptolemy
Philadelphus

(36 BC-?BC)
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Ptolemy of
Mauretania

(c.24 BC-AD 40?)
 
Drusilla
(22? BC-AD?)
 
Marcus Antonius
Felix
 
Key:
♛ - Pharaoh (King or Queen) of Egypt

Behind the scenes[]

Cleopatra

Elisa Moolecherry as Cleopatra

Appearances[]

In chronological order:

References[]

See also[]



My Story characters
Main characters

Nebka | Hatshepsut "Asha" | Claudia | Bran | Tor Scaldbane | Jenkin Lloyd | Eva De Puebla
Elinor Valjean | Lady Jane Grey | Matilda "Tilly" Middleton | Catherine "Kitty" Lumsden | Thomas Hobbs
Remember "Mem" Whipple | Thomas Adamson | Alice Paynton | Susannah Makepeace | Ignatius Sancho
Euphemia Grant | Mary Wade | Elizabeth "Lizzie" Harvey | Isabelle | James Grant | Mary Prince | Bob Jenkins
Dick Maybury | Eliza Helsted | Phyllis McCormack | Lily Hicks | Michael Pope | Hanuman Singh | Clotee Henley
Will Reed | Edith Lorrimer | Jabulani | Florence Finch | Flora Bonnington | Sophia Duleep Singh | Dollie Baxter
Margaret Anne Brady | Billy Stevens | Jack Fairfax | Daphne "Daffy" Rowntree | Eleanor Rhys Davies
Rebecca "Becky" Mortkowicz | Harry Woods | Princess Margaret | Sophie Ridel | Peter Rogers | Kitty Langley
Edith "Edie" Benson | Noor Inayat Khan | Tim Jackson | Andrew "Andy" Pope | Paul Lelaud | Violet Debuchy

Supporting characters

Ptolemy Auletes | Henry VIII | Catherine of Aragon | Anne Boleyn | Jane Seymour | Anne of Cleves
Catherine Howard | Catherine Parr | Edward VI | Mary I | Elizabeth II

Lists of characters by book

Pyramid of Secrets | Princess of Egypt | Pompeii | Roman Invasion | Viking Blood | Agincourt | My Tudor Queen
Anne Boleyn and Me | Lady Jane Grey | Bloody Tower | The Queen's Spies | Armada | Mayflower | Civil War
The Great Plague | Highway Girl | Ignatius Sancho | The '45 Rising | No Way Back | Transported
The Fall of the Blade | Trafalgar | Mary Prince | Waterloo | Dodger! | Mill Girl | The Hunger | The Crystal Palace
Crimea | Indian Mutiny | Slave Girl | The Sweep's Boy | Victorian Workhouse | Zulu War | Factory Girl
Twentieth-Century Girl | Princess Sophia Duleep Singh | Suffragette | Titanic | The Trenches | Flying Ace
Road to War | Berlin Olympics | Nowhere to Run | Battle of Britain | Wartime Princess | Sophie's Secret War
U-Boat Hunter | War Nurse | Blitz | Noor-un-Nissa Inayat Khan | Desert Danger | D-Day | Spy Smuggler
Codename Céline | London Stories

My Royal Story characters

Cleopatra VII | Beatrice Townhill | Elizabeth I | Mary, Queen of Scots | Marie Antoinette | Victoria | Anastasia

Lists of My Royal Story characters by book

Cleopatra | Henry VIII's Wives | Elizabeth | Mary, Queen of Scots | Marie Antoinette | Victoria | Anastasia

My True Story characters

Dora Thewlis | John "Jack" Cornwell | Joe Read | Susan | Vera

Lists of My True Story characters by book

Give Us the Vote! | Standing Alone | Hero at Dunkirk | What If They Find Us?

External links[]

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