Although she was the last of the Egyptian Pharaohs, Cleopatra was actually descended from Greek origins. She was part of the Ptolemaic dynasty that ruled Egypt after Alexander the Great’s conquest.
The Ptolemies spoke only Greek, which explains why some Greek is shown in official documents from Egypt at the time. Cleopatra was given power at a young age, at the age of just 14 years old, Cleopatra was placed as a deputy to her father, Ptolemy XII.
Although she is now simply known as just “Cleopatra”, she was actually Cleopatra VII. There were six other people with the name Cleopatra before her in the Ptolemaic dynasty. It is absolutely certain Cleopatra VII made a name for herself! Facts about her predecessors who were also named Cleopatra do not fascinate us as much, so we refer to Cleopatra VII simply as Cleopatra.
Cleopatra brought the Egyptian and Roman empires together through her relationship with Mark Antony. This love affair has captured the hearts of people throughout history and continues to intrigue us today.
