Cleopatra: The Last Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt

Significant Individual of Ancient Egypt

The last pharaoh of Ancient Egypt Was Cleopatra, born a princess of Egypt. Her father was the Pharaoh Ptolemy VII. Cleopatra was smart and intelligent. She was her father's favourite child and learned a lot about how the country was ruled. They were the Ptolemy dynasty that had been established by the Greek ruler Alexander the Great. They were actually Greek. Cleopatra grew up speaking, reading, and writing Greek. Unlike many of her relatives, however, Cleopatra also learned many other languages including Egyptian and Latin.

Her father died when Cleopatra was eighteen years old. He left the throne to both her and her younger brother, Ptolemy VIII. Cleopatra and her ten-year-old brother were married and were to rule Egypt as co-rulers. Because she was much older, Cleopatra quickly took control as the main ruler of Egypt. However, as her brother grew older he began to want more power. Eventually he forced Cleopatra from the palace and took over as Pharaoh. Julius Caesar In 48 BC, Julius Caesar arrived in Egypt. Cleopatra snuck back into the palace hidden inside a rolled up carpet. She met with Caesar and convinced him to help her win back the throne. Caesar defeated Ptolemy's army at the Battle of Nile. Ptolemy drowned in the Nile River

One of the three leaders to emerge in Rome after Caesar's death was Marc Antony. In 41 BC, Cleopatra and Marc Antony met and fell in love. They also formed a military alliance against another of Rome's leaders, Octavian. Octavian was the legal heir of Julius Caesar. Cleopatra wanted her son, Caesarion, to be Caesar's heir and to eventually become ruler of Rome. She hoped that Marc Antony could help her achieve this goal. Fighting Rome Cleopatra and Marc Antony combined their armies in order to fight Octavian. The two forces met at the Battle of Actium. Antony and Cleopatra were defeated by Octavian and had to retreat to