Cleopatra was queen of Egypt, last ruler of the dynasty founded by Ptolemy, a
             Macedonian general of Alexander the Great, who took Egypt as his share in dividing
             Alexander's empire. Her capital, Alexander, founded by Alexander the Great, was
             the center of Hellenistic Greek culture of the world at that time, as well as a great
             commercial center. Although she imagined as a "beautiful and glamorous woman
             today, she was not very attractively depicted on ancient coins, having a long hook
             nose, and masculine features" (Flamarion 181). She deemed to be a strong-willed
             Macedonian queen who was brilliant and dreamed of a greater world empire. Highly
             intelligent, this shrewd politician almost achieved this goal. Her contributions as the
             last of the Ptolemaic Greek rulers of independent Egypt, were the endless expansion
             of the Roman Empire throughout the Mediterranean, and at her death left behind "a
             rich, imperial province which continued to flourish as the center of commerce,
             science, and learning under Roman rule" (Newman 554). This natural born leader
             was the oldest living daughter of Ptolemy XII Auletes and of his sister and wife
             Cleopatra Tryphaena. Such brother-sister marriages were common among members
             of the Egyptian ruling house. Her father, who died in 51 BC, requested the
             Cleopatra and his oldest son, Ptolemy XIII, become joint rulers, and made Rome the
             guardian of the Egyptian state. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the life of a
             prominent Egyptian figure, who through her determination and strong will,
             established herself as a pharaoh and queen of Egypt.
             Problems arose when the young Ptolemy began to serve as a puppet for
             power-hungry advisers, who much have found him far more easy to command and
             dictate than Cleopatra who was older and more intelligent. Cleopatra and her
             brother started a civil war between themselves, which resulted in her be...