Introduction

Cleopatra's name still glitters across history, evoking opulence, ambition, and
tragedy. Raised in the shadow of the mighty Roman Empire, she dared to dream of a
world united under Egyptian rule. She almost succeeded, and if she had, we would live
in a far different world today.
Cleopatra was not the renowned beauty of legend--her strength lay in her
intelligence, courage, and charm, and she would need all three in her short and
perilous reign. She became Queen of Egypt at eighteen and by twenty had been driven
from her throne. But she raised an army and won the support of the great Julius
Caesar, who helped her return to rule. We will never know what these two brilliant
and ambitious people might have accomplished together, for Caesar soon fell to
Roman assassins. Instead, it was Mark Antony, another famous Roman, who risked
everything with Cleopatra in pursuit of world power.
In this monograph we want to capture the brilliance of Cleopatra's life. From
the enchantments of the royal court at Alexandria to luxurious cruises up the
legendary Nile, from the intrigues of the Romans to a desperate sea battle with a
shocking end, we are eager to tell the tragic story of one of the most fascinating
women of all time.

"For she was a woman of surpassing beauty, and at that time, when
she was in the prime of her youth, she was most striking; she also possessed a
most charming voice and a knowledge of how to make herself agreeable to
every one

Dio, Roman History (XLII.34.4-6)

II
Context

Cleopatra VII, often simply called Cleopatra, was the last of a series of rulers
called the Ptolemies who ruled Egypt for nearly 300 years. She was also the last true
pharaoh of Egypt. Cleopatra ruled an empire that included Egypt, Cyprus, part of
modern-day Libya and other territories in the Middle East.
Cleopatra was born into a troubled royal dynasty. The Ptolemies were
descended from a Macedonian general who had served under Alexander the Great.
The Ptolemies were not a real family. Rather they lived a kind of a domestic safari in
which they tried to kill as many their close relatives as they were able (preferably in as
painful and as public a way as possible) in order to acquire the throne. This was made
all the more surreal by two other factors. First, the Ptolemies were very conservative in
the names they gave their children. In fact, the men were all called Ptolemy. The
women on the other hand were not all called Cleopatra, but most were. Second, the
Ptolemies married each other: following the Egyptian tradition, brother and sister wed
and had children. Such difficult inter-family relations were even worse by genetic
issues and sexual tensions. Palace intrigues were very common.

III
Early Years
Cleopatra was the last ruler of the Ptolemaic dynasty. She was born around 69
B.C. Her father was the Pharaoh Ptolemy VII and her mother, Cleopatra VI. She was
considered a very beautiful and well-educated woman.
Her full name was Cleopatra VII Philopator which derives from the Greek, the
first one meaning glory of the father, and her last name meaning father-loving.
Therefore, it is said to be a compliment to her father.
Cleopatra was smart and cunning grown up. She was her fathers favourite child
and she learnt a lot how the country was ruled from him. From the age of 14 to 18, she
co-ruled together with his father. However, after his death in 51 B.C., the throne was
left to her and her younger brother, Ptolemy XIII. Cleopatra and her ten-year-old
brother got married, both of them becoming King and Queen of Egypt. As she was
much older, she immediately took control as the main ruler of Egypt. Nevertheless, as
her brother grew older, he wanted more power. Eventually, he forced Cleopatra from
the palace and took over as Pharaoh.
Therefore, Cleopatra fled to Syria and then met Julius Caesar, asking him to
help her win back the throne. They made an alliance and gathered an army to defeat
Cleopatras brother in order to declare the throne for herself. In 48, she returned to
Egypt with her military power and with Julius Caesars company and faced her brother
at Pelusium, located on the empire's eastern edge. There, Julius Caesar defeated
Ptolemy at the Battle of the Nile and Ptolemy drowned in the river while trying to
escape. As a result, she took back her power and co-ruled with another younger
brother, Ptolemy XIV who died in a short period of time.

IV
Cleopatra with Caesar
The Cleopatra and Julius Caesar connection was formed when Julius Caesar fled
to Egypt in pursuit of his enemy Pompey, who had already been executed by the
Egyptians. Julius Caesar, however, was not threatened by the same fate for he carried
a much greater army force.
Julius Caesar was smitten by the woman delivered through a carpet; it was
smuggled through Alexandria and was presented as a gift for the Roman leader.
Cleopatra was then about 21 or 22 years old. Julius Caesar immediately recognized the
potential of being lovers and allies.
The relationship could have been for love among any other. However, there
was also a political agenda behind the union. They were both leaders of influential and
powerful nations. They had people under them, armies that could fight battles and win
them. Both Rome and Egypt needed intellectual leaders.
Specifically, for Cleopatras side, she saw how a Caesars fleet could easily
return her to power which he eventually did. Julius Caesar killed Cleopatras brother
and husband, Ptolemy XIII when his army drove them away only to drown in the Nile.
This was during the Alexandrian War. Julius Caesar made sure that Cleopatra was firm
in her position as the leader of Egypt. He even left three legions to protect Cleopatras
reign of power. He made sure that any insurgencies could be dismissed by his powerful
army.
For Julius Caesar, the union would unite two great lands, Egypt and Rome. He
had an ultimate dream that his children would someday rule this land. Julius Caesar
could have also seen Alexandria as a strategic location for his battles and as time
passed by, Egypt could also form a powerful army to help him in his conquests.
xcgCleopatra, though said to still be in love with Julius Caesar, married her
younger brother, Ptolemy XIV, to return her rule over Egypt. However, she was also
married to Julius Caesar because Egypt allowed polygamy. Cleopatra and Julius Caesar
spent time in Alexandria. The Roman leader, however, was called for to lead his army
to battles. He emerged victorious but returned to Rome instead.
Julius Caesar and Cleopatra also had a son, Caesarion. Julius Caesar sent for his
wife and son to be brought to Rome, with the great surprise of the Roman people. Out
of respect for Julius Caesar, the people did not really give much attention to the fact
that Julius Caesar married a foreign woman albeit having a Roman wife. The son was
later executed for the fear that he could claim the land that was rightfully his fathers.
During Julius Caesars reign, he was able to claim much land for his people as
well as to establish a well-settled society. He was then given the ultimate title as a
dictator for life, thus bearing an unmatched power for the rest of his life. This was only
a year after being declared a dictator or a ruler who had a complete power. However,
Julius Caesars life was also threatened because of this title.

V
 The title had earned him the peoples support but he also received the Senates
unworthy action. Since Julius Caesar had made any changes without consulting the
Senate, he became an unpopular person for them. Before he was to leave for yet
another conquest, he met with the Senate. There he met his end as he was stabbed to
his death by all sixty Senate people, leaded by Brutus and Cassius.
Cleopatra and her son, Caesarion, left Rome, where a civil war broke. They
returned to Egypt, there, Cleopatra allegedly poisoned her brother / husband / co-
regent. Cleopatra then announced her son with Julius Caesar as a co-ruler and re-
acquired rule of Egypt. This was when her rule was entirely secured locally, unlike the
two previous co-regents.

Mark Antony
In 41 B.C., Marc Antony, part of the Second Triumvirate that ruled Rome
following the murder of Caesar, sent for Cleopatra so that she could answer questions
about her allegiance to the empire's fallen leader.
Cleopatra agreed to his request and made a lavish entrance into the city of
Tarsus. Captivated by her beauty and personality, Antony plunged into a love affair
with Cleopatra that would eventually produce three children, including twins named
Alexander Helios and Cleopatra Selene.
Just like Caesar before him, Antony was embroiled in a battle over Rome's
control. His rival was Caesar's own great-nephew, Octavius, also known as Octavian
who became the future Emperor Caesar Augustus. Octavian rounded out the Second
Triumvirate, and Antony, who presided over Rome's eastern areas, detested Octavian
and saw in Cleopatra the chance for financial and military support to secure his own
rule over the empire.

VI
 Cleopatra had her own motivations, as well. In exchange for her help, she
sought the return of Egypt's eastern empire, which included large areas of Lebanon
and Syria.
In the year 34 B.C., Antony returned with Cleopatra to Alexandria with a
triumphant flair. Crowds swarmed to the Gymnasium to catch a glimpse of the couple
seated on golden thrones that were elevated on silver platforms. Beside them sat their
children.
Antony antagonized his rival by declaring Caesarion as Caesars real son and
legal heir, rather than Octavian, whom Caesar had adopted. Octavian, however, fought
back, declaring hed seized Antonys will, and told the Roman people that Antony had
turned over Roman possessions to Cleopatra and that there were plans to make
Alexandria the Roman capital.
In the year 31 B.C., Cleopatra and Antony combined armies to try to defeat
Octavian in a raging sea battle at Actium, on Greeces west coast. The clash, however,
proved to be a costly defeat for the Egyptians, forcing Antony and Cleopatra to flee
back to Egypt.
Antony soon returned to the battlefield, where he was falsely informed that
Cleopatra had died. Upon hearing the news, the despondent Roman leader committed
suicide by stabbing himself. Cleopatra followed her lovers demise by ending her life as
well by being bitten by an Egyptian cobra. She died on August 12, 30 B.C. The two were
buried together, as they had wished, and Egypt became a province of the Roman
Empire.

VII
Cleopatras death
After winning the Battle of Actium, Octavius planned take Cleopatra to Rome as
a symbol of his triumph over the Egyptian people. Knowing what awaited her as a
Roman slave she tried to seduce Octavius, nevertheless it was unsuccessful. He was
not like Julius Caesar or Mark Antony. She preferred die before being taken as a slave
to a town where she before ruled. Cleopatra committed suicide.
On August 12 B.C. Octaviuss troops burst in the place where the Egyptian
Queen was in order to take her. However, when they entered they found Cleopatras
body lying on her royal bed with one of her servant and another dying. They tried to
revive her but it was in vain. She was already dead.
There are many different versions about how she killed herself. The traditional,
and better known, version says that she asked her faithful servants, Iras and Charmian
to get her a fruit basket with an Egyptian snake hidden inside it. This aspid then bit her
causing her death. In the other hand, another version says that she had decided to
commit suicide after being informed of the death of her husband, Mark Antony. Other
hypotheses maintain that she died poisoned by some kind of fruit that she had ate.
Despite all versions, none of them was verified or denied but the most accepted is the
first one. What is clear is that before she died, she wrote a letter to Octavius, where
she made a last request: being buried next to her beloved, in order to be together in
the past for all the eternity. This petition was accepted by the Roman emperor and it
was made. Nowadays the whereabouts of their tomb is a mystery, no archaeologist
has been able to find it.

VIII
Cleopatras Interesting Facts
Cleopatra secured her place in History by living a dramatic life. She conducted
herself as a great queen who could maintain stability at home and command respect
on the world stage. That is the reason why she is one of the best-known women in
History, famous because of her supposed beauty and intelligence. Nevertheless, there
are some interesting facts about her life.
First of all, the Egyptian ruler wasnt precisely the popular perfect woman that
is commonly showed on screen. The characteristics that made Cleopatra so attractive
were probably her wit, charm, and power, and not her facial features or body
attributes. Some ancient coins depict her with a hooked nose, sharp chin and very
masculine aspect in general.
In what is concerned to the ability of the pharaoh to speak languages, it is
important to say that she could master, at least, nine. She was actually the first in her
family to speak Egyptian fluently. Learning the language of the kingdom she ruled, was
presumably very easy task to her. The other seven ones were Ethiopian, Arabian,
Hebrew, Troglodyte, Syrian, Parthian and Median.
What is more, apart from being the ruler of Egypt, Cleopatra was also a mother.
She had Caesarion, her eldest son, who was 16 or 17 and was killed after her death by
Augustus. Mark Antony was the father of Cleopatras other children, Ptolemy
Philadelphus and the twins, Cleopatra Selene and Alexander Helios. After their
mothers death, they were taken to Rome and treated well in the household of Mark
Antonys widow, Octavia, where they were educated.

IX
 Conclusion

Cleopatra has been called a shameless temptress who used blatant sexuality to
maintain her grip on the throne of Egypt. Though she is portrayed as a stunning
physical specimen, one of the most remarkable and noteworthy testaments to the
power of her personality are that she was mildly attractive, at best. Historians credit
her wit, humor, and pleasing voice with the magic that charmed statesmen to fall in
love with her. In fact, the truth is that if she had offered nothing else except her
sexuality, it is hard to believe she could have lasted more than a few months. Indeed,
Cleopatra was a greater political clout in the Ancient World.
Moreover, Cleopatra never felt she was inadequate or unworthy. When others
betrayed her, she methodically took the actions necessary to protect herself and her
people from harm.
Therefore Cleopatra is the finest example of the fullest expression of feminine
power. Cleopatra was a queen, mother, leader of an empire, and lover, who lived first
for herself and then for her people. She was able to nurture her children, protect her
interests, advance her desires, and create beauty. Seductress, negotiator,
tradeswoman, entertainer, hostess, and warrior, she created what she desired.
To summ up, for us, Cleopatra wasnt a common woman but a clever queen
who tried to keep Egypt independent, and to be independent herself in a world of
men.