Since there are no contemporary records of Cleopatra, it is difficult to piece together her life. Much of what is known about her is accounts by Greco-Roman scholars, especially Plutarch. Born in about 70-69 BC, Clepatra was the daughter of Ptolemy XII and Cleopatra V Tryphaena, who may have been Ptolemy's half sister. In 51 BC after the death of her father, Cleopatra, now 18 and her 10 year old brother, Ptolemy XIII ascended to the throne.
Soon after the siblings ascension to the throne, Ptolemy's advisors attempted to remove her from court and she was forced to flee to Syria, in 49 BC. She gathered an army of mercenaries and returned the next year to face her brother's soldiers at Pelusium, on Egypt's eastern border. Back at the palace her brother, Ptolemy was welcoming Julius Caesar to Alexandria, after Caesar's rival, Pompey had been assassinated. In order to help her cause she decided to seek Caesar's support and reportedly smuggled herself into the palace to plead her case with him.
On Caesar's part he needed to raise support for his return to Rome, so he was in Alexandria to collect debts owed to the Roman empire by Cleopatra's father. After four months of war between Caesar and Ptolemy XIII, Roman reinforcements arrived, forcing Ptolemy to flee the city and if accounts are to be believed, drowned in the Nile. Entering the city as malign conqueror he restored the throne to Cleopatra (who was equally disliked) and her brother, Ptolemy XIV, who was 13 at the time. He remained in Egypt with Cleopatra and 3 years later in 47 BC she gave birth to a son, Ptolemy Caesar aka. Caesarion. In 44 BC, Caesar returned to Rome, followed by Cleopatra, Ptolemy XIV and Caesarion. Caesar was assassinated in March of that year and Cleopatra returned to Egypt with her son and brother. Her brother died soon after and Cleopatra appointed her 3 year old son as co-regent. At this point Cleopatra strongly identified herself with the goddess, Isis. This was a part of tradition, royalty was often associated with the divine, to reinforce their right to rule. Cleopatra III and Cleopatra the VII also identified with the goddess.
With her young son in power, Cleopatra's position as queen of Egypt had never been more firm, yet poor flooding along the Nile lead to food shortages and inflated prices. Meanwhile another conflict in Rome was brewing, between Caesar's allies: Mark Antony, Octavian and Lepidus and his assassins, Brutus and Cassius. Both sides were asking for support from Egypt and after hesitating, Cleopatra sent 4 Roman legions stationed in Alexandria by Caesar to aid the triumvirate (Caesar's allies), who were able to defeat Brutus and Cassius in the battles of Philippi. After their rivals defeat, Antony and Octavian divided power in Rome.
Antony soon summoned Cleopatra to Tarsus (now in modern Turkey), so she may explain the role she played in the chaos after Caesar's death. According to legend, she travelled to Tarsus in a elaborately decorated boat and dressed in the robes of Isis. Mark Antony was immediately smitten with her charms, agreeing to offer protection for Cleopatra and her crown. Cleopatra than returned to Egypt, Mark Antony joined her after leaving his third wife, Fulvia and their children in Rome. He spent the winter of 41-40 BC in Alexandria. In 40 BC when Antony returned to Rome, Cleopatra gave birth to twins, Alexander Helios (Helios is the Greek god of the sun) and Cleopatra Selene (Roman equivalent of the Greek goddess, Artemis, goddess of the moon).
After his wife, Fulvia, passed away from an illness, Antony had to prove his loyalty to Octavian by marrying his half-sister, Octavia. Egypt grew more prosperous under Cleopatra's reign and in 37 BC Antony went to Egypt to ask Cleopatra for funds for his long overdue campaign into the kingdom of Parthia. In exchange, he agreed to take back Egypt's eastern territories, including, Cyprus, Crete and Jericho. They again became lovers and in 36 BC Cleopatra gave birth to her 3rd son, Ptolemy Philadelphos.
After a failed campaign in Parthia, Antony publicly denied his wife, Fulvia's wish to join him and returned to Cleopatra in Egypt. During a public celebration in 34 BC, Antony declared Cleopatra's son, Caesarion, the rightful heir, instead of his adopted son, Octavian. He also gifted his children he had with Cleopatra, land. This infuriated Octavian, who accused him of being totally wrapped around Cleopatra's finger and betraying Rome, in order to found a new capital in Egypt. A war of propaganda was waged between the two former allies and Antony was stripped of all titles and prestige by the senate, in 32 BC; at the same time Octavian declared war on Cleopatra.
On Sept.2, 31 BC when Antony and Cleopatra's combined forces were defeated by Octavian in the battle of Actium. Cleopatra's ships fled the battle, Antony following swiftly. On his voyage back to Egypt he heard a rumor that Cleopatra had committed suicide and he stabbed himself in grief, just as he received news that this rumor was false. On August 12, that same year after burying Antony and greeting the victorious Octavian she closed herself up in her bedchambers and according to popular legend killed herself by the bite of a poisonous snake, known as an asp, a symbol of the divine right to rule.
Sidenotes:
Parthia- a region of northeastern Iran
Philippi- a city in what is now Greece
Actium- a portion of the Ionian Sea, of the Roman territory in Greece
http://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/cleopatra
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