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cleopatra

Dana Livelli
GEO-101-001

Professor DiBello
November 16, 2015 When thinking of Egypt, typically, one would associate Cleopatra with that thought. However, more often than not, a person’s depiction of her is usually in the form of Elizabeth Taylor from her role of Cleopatra in the 1960’s film, or even a Halloween costume. As a result of this portrayal, people fail to acknowledge or aren’t even aware of how strong of a leader she actually was. Through a timeline of events, this essay will prove she was intelligent, determined, and brave and exhibited these traits throughout her life. In approximately the year 69 BC, Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator, most commonly known as Cleopatra, was born. She was the second daughter of Ptolemy XII Auletes, the Pharaoh of Egypt at the time. It is unclear of who her mother was, however it was most likely Cleopatra V Tryphaena. Cleopatra was born to a family of royals, the Ptolemaic Dynasty. The Ptolemaic Dynasty was the last dynasty to rule Egypt. Prior to …show more content…
At the age of 14, Cleopatra joined her father and became co-regent of Egypt. However in 51 BC, Ptolemy XII passed away and left his daughter and son, Cleopatra VII and Ptolemy XIII, as heirs to the throne. At the time, Cleopatra was eighteen years old and Ptolemy a mere ten years old. They ruled Egypt as husband and wife in accordance with Egyptian law. However, it was clear she was the dominant ruler and had no intention on sharing power. In August 51 BC, Cleopatra removed his name from legal documents and made Egypt’s legal tender with her name and likeness on it. This was a bold move on Cleopatra’s part as females of the Ptolemaic Dynasty were to be submissive to their male counterparts; this move alone made a statement that Cleopatra was determined to claim the throne from her siblings no matter the