Cleopatra Genealogy
Cleopatra VII Philopator, Cleopatra Thea Neotera Philopator kai Philopatris, was the most popular and bravest of all the queens who ruled Egypt. She was the last Hellenistic pharaoh of Egypt and also the last member of the Ptolemaic dynasty. All her predecessors with a similar name made no significant contributions to the history of Egypt and have been almost forgotten. |
Cleopatra was born to Ptolemy XII in 69 B.C. in Alexandria, during the rule of the Ptolemy family with a long political history. Although she was born in Alexandria, she was a descendant of a Macedonian family. Cleopatra was a direct descendent of Ptolemy I Soter, father of Alexander the Great. Ptolemy Soter was son of Arsinoe of Macedonia and Philip II of Macedon.
She was the third daughter of King Ptolemy XII Auletes and was born to her father’s sister. Not much evidence is available about the actual identity of her mother. After her elder sisters were defeated, she became the co-ruler of Egypt. She married her two younger brothers, Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV, who were joint heirs to the throne. However, the union with the brothers had no children.
Later, she consummated a secret affair with the Roman Emperor Julius Caesar and gave birth to a son, named Ptolemy XV Caesarion. After Caesar’s death, she seduced Emperor Mark Antony, with whom she gave birth to twins. She later married him to produce another son. Thus, Cleopatra had 4 children, 1 fathered by Caesar and 3 by Mark Antony. All her children ruled different cities of the Roman Empire after her death.
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