Cleopatra

• Also known as Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator,Queen of Egypt,Κλεοπάτρα

Cleopatra lived from 69 BC – 10 August 30 BC, was queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler. She was a descendant of Ptolemy I Soter, the Macedonian Greek general and companion to Alexander the Great. After Cleopatra's death in 30 BC, Egypt became a province of the Roman Empire, bringing an end to the second to last Hellenistic state, which had lasted since 336 BC at the start of Alexander's reign. Cleopatra spoke Greek and she was the only Ptolemaic ruler to learn Egyptian. Following the deaths of her ruling predecessors, Julius Caesar declared Cleopatra and her brother, Ptolemy XIV, joint rulers of Egypt, but meanwhile he carried on an affair with her which bore him a son, Ptolemy XV Caesar, nicknamed Caesarion, who would be the last pharaoh of ancient Egypt. After meeting Mark Anthony in Tarsos in 41 BC, Cleopatra carried on a notorious affair with him during which he was influenced more and more by her in his decision making and became increasingly dependent on her for funding and military aid. The couple had three children, who were made rulers of territories under Anthony's authority. Anthony divorced Octavian's sister and married Cleopatra, and all of these events led to the War of Actium in 32 BC, the final battle of the Roman Republic. Octavian forced Anthony's allies in the Roman senate to flee the city, and in 30 BC they invaded Egypt, defeating Anthony. He committed suicide. Cleopatra, when she discovered she would be brought to Octavian's Roman triumphal procession, chose suicide by poisoning, contrary to the popular myth that she killed herself with an asp. Cleopatra's legacy lives on as she has become a pop culture icon of Egyptomania since the Victorian era. In modern times, Cleopatra has appeared in the applied and fine arts, burlesque satire, Hollywood films, and brand images for commercial products.