Cleopatra VII was historically known as the last ruler of the ancient Egyptian civilisation and the woman who had a passionate romantic affairs with two of Rome’s most powerful men – Julius Caesar and Mark Antony – only to take her own life after their defeats.
But this framing reduces her to a tragic temptress, which is would be a partial truth. Cleopatra was one of antiquity’s most brilliant geopolitical strategists, multilingual queen who leveraged alliances, economic reforms, and propaganda to preserve Egypt’s independence against an expanding Roman Empire.
To understand Cleopatra’s maneuvers, we must first grasp the players:
Julius Caesar
He was the Roman military genius who conquered Gaul (an ancient region in Western Europe, primarily encompassing present-day France, Belgium, and parts of Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, and Italy).
Caesar’s capture of Gaul sparked Rome’s civil war. By 48 BCE, he pursued his rival Pompey to Egypt, where Cleopatra saw an opportunity.
Mark Antony
He was Caesar’s protégé and later co-ruler of Rome (with Octavian). A gifted general but impulsive, he became Cleopatra’s lover and political partner after Caesar’s assassination.
Cleopatra didn’t just seduce these men, she exploited their ambitions. With Caesar, she secured her throne; with Antony, she forged a power bloc to counter Octavian.
Here are 7 things you didn’t know about Cleopatra:
1. She wasn’t even Egyptian
Cleopatra came from a Macedonian Greek family (Ptolemy I Soter) that ruled Egypt for 300 years. But unlike her ancestors, she actually learned Egyptian (plus 7 other languages!) and embraced local traditions.
The Ptolemies ruled Egypt as outsiders since Alexander the Great’s death (323 BCE).
Cleopatra VII, however, mastered Egyptian language and religion, presenting herself as Isis incarnate, a shrewd move to legitimise her rule.
Unlike her predecessors, she didn’t just occupy Egypt; she weaponised its culture.
Key Fact: Her coronation ceremony mimicked Pharaohs’ traditions, blending Greek and Egyptian iconography.
2. She married her brothers, then ‘killed’ them
In Ptolemaic tradition, sibling marriages marriages were allowed to preserve royal bloodlines. For example, Cleopatra’s parents were brother and sister.
At 19, Cleopatra married her 10-year-old brother, Ptolemy XIII – who was her first husband. She ruled in his stead because he was so young, until he rebelled. The King then plotted against her and Cleopatra was chased out of Egypt.
She later launched a reprisal attack against with Egypt, with an army, to dethrone her brother. This conflict forced Julius Caesar to intervene but fell in love with Cleopatra along the way. That affair expectedly determined whose side Caesar was on. Automatically, Ptolemy XIII’s fate was sealed – he was killed in the Battle of the Nile.
After his death, Cleopatra married her other brother, Ptolemy XIV, (aged 11) – and Caesar pronounced them co-rulers. But she dominated the reign, her brother-husband barely had a say.
During this time, Cleopatra and Caesar’s affairs had deepened and eventually produced a son, Caesarion. Three years later (44 BC), Cleopatra ordered the killing of her brother, Ptolemy XIV, so that her own son can assume the position of a co-ruler, which of course meant she would have full control.
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3. Cleopatra’s death by snake bite is questionable
She was said to have died from a Cobra (asp) bite, but historians doubt it.
After Caesar was assassinated, Cleopatra had to forge a new political alliance, and she found that with Caesar’s protégé Mark Antony, who had also become a force in the Roman Empire. The two of them also fell in love but it was deeper than what she had with Caesar, according to historians.
They were so in love to the that extent that when Antony got a false information that Cleopatra had died, he caused a grave injury on himself and instructed that they take him to her tomb so he could die beside her. But on getting there, he found that she was alive, then died in her arms.
According to scholars, Cleopatra also committed suicide after Antony’s death. She was said to have intentionally let herself be beaten by asp (a venomous snake).
Some Roman-era also argues that Cleopatra poisoned herself being that she and Antony’s forces had been defeated, and the city of Alexandria had been captured by Octavian, who would later become the first Roman Emperor.
4. She was a money queen
Cleopatra didn’t just rule, she fixed Egypt’s economy. She monopolised key industries – grain and papyrus trades – and made sure Egypt stayed rich amidst pressure from Rome to conquer it.
5. Beauty wasn’t as beautiful as portrayed
Roman propaganda painted Cleopatra as a ravishing temptress, but coins from her era depict a strong, masculine profile, a deliberate choice to project power.
The real Cleopatra was a scholar, strategist, and master negotiator. Her infamous “carpet stunt” (smuggling herself to Caesar) was proof of her political theatric expertise.
The carpet stunt
In 48 BCE, Cleopatra was exiled by her brother-husband Ptolemy XIII. When Caesar arrived in Alexandria, she smuggled herself into his quarters by being rolled in a carpet (or linen sack), knowing he’d admire her audacity. And it worked.
Why it worked:
- Caesar needed a stable Egypt to fund his war.
- Cleopatra offered legitimacy (via marriage to Ptolemy XIV) and access to Egypt’s treasury.
- Caesar backed her claim, defeated Ptolemy XIII, and installed her as co-ruler.
6. Mark Antony was her power move and downfall
After Caesar died, Cleopatra partnered with Mark Antony, Rome’s top general. Their alliance was strategic: Antony needed Egypt’s wealth; Cleopatra needed Rome’s military.
But Antony’s disastrous Parthian campaign and public divorce of Octavian’s sister turned Rome against them.
The Blunder: At Actium (31 BCE), Antony abandoned his fleet to follow Cleopatra’s retreat, a move that sealed their fate. When they finally faced Octavian (Caesar’s heir), they lost. Hard.
7. Her tomb is still missing
Shakespeare wrote that Cleopatra and Antony were buried together on Octavian’s order, but no one has found their graves. Archaeologists are still looking – because uncovering her tomb could rewrite our understanding of her reign.
However, in 1996, marine archaeologist Franck Goddio and his team (with the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology discovered the ruins of Cleopatra’s royal palace in Alexandria’s harbor, submerged under 20 feet of water. The site includes:
Her private quarters (with shattered statues and gold artifacts)
The palace of Mark Antony (unfinished, proof of their rushed final days)
Temples to Isis and Caesar (she declared them gods to boost her power)
The discovery proved Cleopatra’s capital was a luxury mega-complex before earthquakes sank it 1,500 years ago. Divers even found her famous “Cleopatra’s Baths”, a private spa with heated floors.
Fun fact: The underwater site is so stunning, Egypt plans to open the world’s first submarine museum there by 2025. You’ll literally swim through her throne room.
