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Queen Cleopatra Vii

Have you ever thought how life would be if you were Queen of the Nile at age nineteen? How do you think it would be like to rule Egypt when you are only a young teenager? In 69 B.C., a young princess was born, in Alexandria, Egypt’s capital, to a wealthy family. Her name was Cleopatra the Seventh (Cleopatra VII) because she was the seventh Macedonian to have that descendent name. “Cleopatra was a person to be wondered at…whom dreamers find always at the end of their dreams…” She was an aggressive woman. She had romances with two of ancient history’s most powerful men first, with Julius Caesar, and after Caesar was assassinated, because he was getting too powerful, then the second with Mark Antony, who was politically in favor of Cleopatra.

In 51 B.C., Cleopatra VII was selected to rule Egypt when Ptolemy (her father) fled Egypt because of a farmer revolt leaving Egypt unguarded. But Berenice, her greedy half-sister, steals the throne away from her. Then, Cleopatra’s father comes back unexpectedly with Romans and kills Berenice, and he reclaims the throne. Her father ruled for four more rocky years. As he grew weaker and older, he took notice of Cleopatra VII, who he thought was an intelligent young woman now. At ruling along the age of nineteen when her father died, Cleopatra VII had enough political support to become Queen of Egypt with her twelve-year-old brother, Ptolemy XIII.

Cleopatra ruled the middle kingdom of Egypt. As did previous female rulers, Hatshepsut, and Nefertiti instead of ruling the old or new Egyptian kingdoms. Cleopatra VII ruled Egypt from 51 B.C. through 30 B.C. Though Cleopatra ruled for 21 years, her brother, Ptolemy XIII did try to seize power and kick her off the throne Cleopatra VII soon seized back through Caesar’s help.

Many fascinating things happened during the time Cleopatra VII ruled Egypt! First, Cleopatra VII is forced to leave her throne and seek protection during her time. She meets Julius Caesar and begins a love affair with him. Cleopatra got Caesar’s attention when she allowed herself to be smuggled in a rug to enter Egypt safely when Pothinus and scheming Greeks were trying to kill her. After Caesar’s death, Cleopatra VII meets Mark Antony in the city of Tarsus and dresses up like an Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, also knowing he was attracted to her.

Cleopatra VII had four children between two of her beloved Romans, Caesar and Antony. Cleopatra VII gave birth to a baby know as Ptolemy Caesar but he is most known as Caesarion (little Caesar). Cleopatra VII also had three more children with Antony. They had two boys and one girl. Their names were Ptolemy Philadelphus, Alexander Helios, and Cleopatra Selene.

Cleopatra VII’s main goal throughout her life was to rule Egypt and keep her kingdom safe. The Ptolemy family took over the ruling of Egypt when Alexander the Great won the land in battle, Alexander the Great set this family up to rule even after his death. By Cleopatra VII’s time, the family’s power had weakened because of her brothers (Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV). Hoping to save Egypt from Roman control, the government wanted Cleopatra in power. So, when Pothinus and his followers planned to kill Cleopatra VII and take control of Egypt themselves, Caesar, supporting Cleopatra, killed them. Caesar then set the government up to be controlled by Cleopatra as a queen.

I think that Cleopatra VII was a successful ruler but sometimes her emotions over ruled her decisions. She successfully rules Egypt until Caesar dies. She then attracts Mark Antony to find new support for keeping her control of Egypt. But Mark Antony falls in love with her and she becomes involved in a political battle between Mark Antony and Octavian.

During the battle between Mark Antony and Octavian, miscommunication occurred. Mark Antony killed himself because Octavian led him to believe Cleopatra was dead. When Cleopatra discovered Octavian’s action, she knew she had lost her last Roman protector. She did not want Octavian to fall into control so that he could make fun and gloat over her in Rome. Since Julius Caesar and Mark Antony were dead, she did not have enough power to rule anymore. Therefore, Cleopatra decided to kill herself with an asp (an Egyptian cobra).

Cleopatra VII, queen of Egypt from 51 to 30 B.C., is truly one of the most mysterious and most memorable women in history. If she were alive today, her name and picture would be plastered across the pages of tabloids and celebrity magazines on a regular basis. She was a diva, a goddess, a powerful woman, a seductress and Egypt’s last pharaoh. Not only was she wealthy beyond belief, but she also had quite a wild life, according to historical accounts. She was an aggressive woman. She had romances with two of the most powerful men, first with Julius Caesar, and after Caesar’s death, with Mark Antony. The legend says that Cleopatra dressed as Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, a swan, and dove, when she traveled to meet Antony and to win his heart. It worked! Antony was smitten by her charms.

I enjoyed researching on this Queen, Cleopatra VII. It was very interesting to know that Cleopatra VII did everything to keep Egypt safe. Even if she was not in love during her relationships, with Caesar or Antony, she still did it out of love for Egypt. Also, she made right decisions at times but sometimes Cleopatra VII was stubborn in her protection of Egypt’s territory.