Cleopatra VII was the ruler of ancient Egypt for almost three decades. Her government was initially with her father. She then ruled with her two younger brothers and finally with her son. The Latin form of Cleopatra from the ancient Greek Kleopátra (Κλεοπάτρα) is as follows. (Holbl et al., 2001).
If the meaning of this name is interesting to you, we must say that its purpose consists of two parts. “Glory of his father” means κλέος (kléos, “glory”) and πᾰτήρ (patḗr, “father”). (Royster & Steinberg, 2003).
General information about the last pharaoh of ancient Egypt
It is interesting to know that the name of Alexander the Great’s sister was also Cleopatra. Also, in Greek mythology, Cleopatra Alcione was the wife of Meleager.
It is interesting to know that the mother tongue of Cleopatra was Greek Quine. She was the only ruler of Ptolemy who learned the Egyptian language.
The last Pharaoh of ancient Egypt was born in 70 BC. She was the daughter of Ptolemy XII (Auletes). He was also a descendant of Ptolemy I Sutter.
Cleopatra’s intelligence and knowledge
Cleopatra had a good education and good intelligence. She was able to speak different languages. As mentioned, she served as the dominant ruler in all three joint governments, namely the father, the brothers, and her son.
She had romantic relationships and military alliances with Roman leaders Julius Caesar and Mark Anthony. Her dazzling beauty and seductive power were extraordinary. For this reason, it enjoyed a lasting place in history and myth.
Plutarch is a Greco-Roman scientist who provides a wealth of information about the life of the last pharaoh of ancient Egypt.
Cleopatra’s relationship with Caesar
The Egyptian pharaoh Cleopatra, one of the most influential female kings globally, had an illicit affair with Julius Caesar. Julius Caesar was the one who greatly supported this woman to reach the kingdom and helped the conditions to get the throne and the crown and consolidate her power. Because at that time, women alone could not rule as the king of a country or territory.
This woman became pregnant with Caesar and gave birth to a son named Caesarion. Caesarion reached the level of joint rule of Egypt.
The arrival of Caesar’s death and Cleopatra’s marriage to Mark Anthony
Caesar died in 44 BC. After Caesar’s death, Cleopatra began a romantic relationship with Mark Anthony. A relationship that never ended in marriage between the two.
According to the servant of the last pharaoh of ancient Egypt, it is clear that Cleopatra never formally married Anthony. The reason for this was that Anthony had married another woman in Rome. At that time, polygamy was an inappropriate practice in Rome. However, a child was born from Cleopatra’s relationship with Anthony.
Three children of Cleopatra by Mark Antony
This woman had three children by Mark Anthony. She once gave birth to twins Cleopatra Selene II and Alexander Helios and her other son, Ptolemy Philadelphia.
Anthony died on his own. Anthony committed suicide after losing the battle of Actium to Octavian forces.
According to Egyptian tradition, the last pharaoh of ancient Egypt also committed suicide with a cobra bite on August 12, 30 BC.
The followers of Cleopatra, son of Caesarion, knew him as the new pharaoh of Egypt. His reign was very short. Only eleven days later did Octavian order the assassination of Caesarion, the king. After these events, Egypt lost its original position. Eventually, it became one of Egypt’s Roman provinces.
Why do so many people know Cleopatra and know about her life?
Cleopatra has always been one of the most famous figures in Western culture.
This woman is always present in stories and art because of her beauty and excellent and seductive love relationships.
You can learn more about the beauty and glory of this woman in works of art and literature such as the tragedy of Antonius and Cleopatra by Shakespeare. Cleopatra’s opera, composed by Jules Massenet, depicts the last ever powerful and beautiful pharaoh of ancient Egypt in 1963.
In most of the illustrations and paintings, we see Cleopatra with stunning beauty. Her beautiful face captured the hearts of the most powerful men in the world at that time.
Various narrations about the death of Cleopatra
We explained how Cleopatra died. In many narrations and paintings, we see the bite of a cobra on her arm.
An exciting point to know about this. According to a 2010 study by German historian Christoph Schaefer, all hypotheses about choosing this beautiful woman are challenging and seem unrealistic.
According to him, the queen lost her life due to poisoning and committed suicide by drinking a mixture of poison.
Schiffer has studied many historical texts and has even consulted with toxicologists in this regard.
This conversation concludes that cobra bites do not cause painless death. Because when cobra venom enters the body, parts of the body fail. In the first stage, the eyes fail, and then death arrives. Schiffer and the toxicologist have conducted various studies and have stated that Cleopatra committed suicide by drinking a mixture of hemlock, umbrella, and opium.
Conclusion
We have heard a lot about Cleopatra’s beauty and sexual attractiveness in books, movies, and other works of art. Because in the history of beauty, this woman has received a lot of attention. But you should know that this woman’s gentle spirit and pleasant voice have added to her charms. She was so powerful that she could conquer the heart of any man, not only for her beauty but also for her charming voice.
For these reasons, when he saw Anthony Cleopatra in a seductive and dreamy appearance, he fell in love with her beauty. He forgot his purpose, war, and politics and made plans to spend the winter of 41 and 40 BC with Cleopatra in Alexandria.
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Reference:
Holbl, G., Hölbl, G., & Saavedra, T. (2001). A History of the Ptolemaic Empire. Routledge.
Royster, D., & Steinberg, S. (2003). Race and the Invisible Hand: How White Networks Exclude Black Men from Blue-Collar Jobs (George Gund Foundation Book in African American Studies) (1st ed.). University of California Press.
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