Cleopatra

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Cleopatra

Cleopatra (69 B.C.-30 B.C.) was a queen in ancient Egypt.

At the age of 17, she was married to her brother, Ptolemy XII. With the help of the Roman leader, Julius Caesar, she won the real power of the kingdom of Egypt (under the control of Rome).

After the death of her husband, she married again and then became the mistress of Julius Caesar. After the assassination of Caesar, she met the Rome Mark Anthony who fell in love with her. They married in 36 B.C.

The Roman leader Octavian (who later became the emperor Caesar Augustus) defeated the army of Cleopatra and Mark Anthony at Actium and again in Egypt. Mark Anthony and Cleopatra both committed suicide.

Cleopatra is one of the great heroines of history. Even though she was failed in her ambition to restore the power of the Egyptian throne, she is remembered for her charm, energy and ambition.

[Cleopatra (above): sculpture in Altes Museum, Berlin, Germany]

Cleopatra: Trailer of 1963 Film

Starring Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Rex Harrison

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Cleopatra's Nose

"Cleopatra's nose, had it been shorter, the whole face of the world would have been changed."

-- Blaise Pascal in Pensées (Thoughts) (1658)

Books on Cleopatra

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Plutarch on Cleopatra

"Her beauty ... was in itself not altogether incomparable, nor such as to strike those who saw her; but converse with her had an irresistible charm, and her presence, combined with the persuasiveness of her discourse and the character which was somehow diffused about her behavior towards others, had something stimulating about it. There was sweetness also in the tones of her voice; and her tongue, like an instrument of many strings, she could readily turn to whatever language she pleased."

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Cleopatra
Article "Cleopatra" from Britannica, 9th Edition.

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