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After Antony's death, Cleopatra was taken to Octavian where her
role in Octavian's triumph was carefully explained to her. He had
no interest in any relationship, negotiation or reconciliation
with the Queen of Egypt. She would be displayed as a slave in the
cities she had ruled over. She must have had memories of her
sister, Arsinoe, being humiliated in this way. She would not live
this way, so she had an asp, which was an Egyptian cobra, brought
to her hidden in a basket of figs. She died on August 12, 30 BC at
the age of 39. The Egyptian religion declared that death by
snakebite would secure immortality. With this, she achieved her
dying wish, to not be forgotten. The only other ruler to cast a
shadow on the fascination with Cleopatra was Alexander who was
another Macedonian. After Cleopatra's death, Caesarion was
strangled and the other children of Cleopatra were raised by
Antony's wife, Octavia.
Her death was the mark of the end of the Egyptian Monarchs. The
Roman Emperors came into to rule in Egypt. The Ptolemies were
Macedonian in decent, but ruled as Egyptians, as Pharaohs.
Cleopatra was the last Pharaoh of Egypt.
What is often not associated with Cleopatra was her brilliance
and her devotion to her country. She was a quick-witted woman who
was fluent in nine languages, however, Latin was not one of them.
She was a mathematician and a very good businesswoman. She had a
genuine respect for Caesar, whose intelligence and wit matched her
own. Antony on the other hand almost drove her insane with his
lack of intelligence and his excesses. She dealt with him and made
the most of what she had to do. She fought for her country. She
had a charismatic personality, was a born leader and an ambitious
monarch who deserved better than suicide.
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